coreena691
Hello Friends!
My name is Coreena and I live in Halifax Co., Nova Scotia. I am 41 years old and a long time Post-op of VBG (Stomach Stapled). I had my surgery in 1991 and had great success with losing 100lbs down to 145lbs. I kept this weight off for over 10 years and maintains with a 20+gain but felt happy and healthy. I had a full tummy tuck in 1993 with great results!
In the last couple years, through dietary changes and bad habits creeping back, I did manage to gain to above the 200lb mark-twice!! I've been doing a lot of research for old timers like myself and try to learn new strategies to work with my tool pouch.
Three years ago, I finally had some tests to see if everything was intact. Luckily everything is fine inside. My pouch now holds approx. 1 cup of food and the staples are still safely in place. So then began my journey to get this gain back off. I did well for 3 mths managing to lose 30lbs. However, life suddenly got in the way and had to go back to work, so all my hard work came to a halt and the new loss slowly creeped back on til this year. I did not learn how to focus on exercise and holding down a job on top of being a married mother so I let it go and didn't take care of my diet or exercise.
Now I am no longer working and focusing 100% on my weight loss journey with the help of my husband and children. I started my fitness plan back in August and so far have lost 20lbs. I have a membership with Goodlife Fitness and faithfully workout 5 days/wk. For my dieting, well, I am learning new tips, and going back to basics.
I recently did the 5 day pouch test, to help myself listen to the signals and stop with the first sign of satiety. Over the years post-ops tend to slip into old habits or learn how to work around our pouch to be "normal". I am now staying clear of the slider foods and avoiding my water 30 min before & after. Eating with 60+% protein first. I've made a complete lifestyle change with a healthier mind, body & spirit! It's not just about losing the weight quick, it's about getting fit for life!!
I find there isn't much support other than this wonderful website for post-ops from my time out or type of surgery, so I feel I'm on my own. I've learned so much through my research and strongly believe having a close support group with face to face meetings would be the most beneficial. We need to share our stories and work together to understand these bumps in the road and what will lead us to that success we're all hoping for.
If anyone from my area would like to get together to talk, vent, cry, laugh, or just plain hang out and discuss our weight issues, feel free to drop me a note. I look forward to meeting others that are going through the challenges of weight loss. You don't have to be post-op, I would love to talk with the newbies that are just beginning the stages for surgery or someone who is just considering their options. I'm here to help, and in return, you will help me as well through this journey, that I no longer wish to do alone!!
Thanks for reading and look forward to hearing from you soon.
Coreena xoxo
