Stuff that just doesn't happen to me anymore

Continuing to give a glimpse into my life as a four-year post-op.

 

Things that don’t happen to me anymore…

 

That I like

 

I don’t tend to throw up or get food stuck anymore.

 

I think this is because I know what I can/cannot eat, how it should be prepared, how fast or slow I can get away with eating it, etc.

 

Accidental Dumping

 

Notice the word “accidental." I have dumped. Not the big, splashy dumps of yesteryear. Those were a trip. I used to joke that I was a “3 day dumper" and it was true! It took me three whole days to recover from dumping, mostly because I was still learning my dump triggers (fatty foods like animal skins etc. and foods too high in ANY type of sugar) and so these thing were hitting my empty pouch. I now know better. If I eat good protein before attempting ANYTHING with sugar (fruit included) it all goes much better. Still I have had a few of what I call “mini-dumps" (fleeting fast heartbeat, etc.) and I can handle that since I only eat things that elicit them on rare occasions.

 

Awkward feelings at restaurants

 

This is NOT simply because I can eat more, but I learned pretty early on how to eat strategically. For more information about that, check out the downloads section of Bariatric Foodie. I tend to share all my “secrets" there. I know what I can eat a lot of and what I can’t. When I go out to eat I tend to order something I know I can finish a decent  portion of and I tend to stick to things like small plate menus or half-portions if they are offered (and I tend to insist on restaurants that offer both these things).

 

Questions/Comments/Incredulity about my weight loss

 

It’s not easy living in a fish bowl! Believe me, I understand. Most folks who met me within the last two years only know the “now" me. This creates a bit of awkwardness if I share pictures from the past, but for the most part it’s nice to just be me. Not “me who is taking back their life through WLS."

 

 

Things that I either don’t like/or are “Ennnhhhh" ok

 

Herculean bursts of energy

 

Generally I’m a pretty energetic person. I eat great food so my body responds in turn. I move my body and am able to do most any exercise routine without killing myself. But back inna day? Man! I only needed like 4-5 hours of sleep a night I had so much energy (this came around month four btw newbies).

 

Aunt Flo

 

She went away for a full eight months during my losing phase and I did not miss her. ‘Nuff said.

 

Food Aversions

 

You’d think I’d be glad they are gone but some of them were nice. My sweet tooth has been making a comeback. I still can’t do too much sweet stuff in a day but I crave it more than I did in the beginning. So far it’s manageable and anyone *****ads Bariatric Foodie knows I’ve figured out good solutions to sweet tooth yearnings!

 

The Scale

 

It no longer tumbleth. Interestingly, I (and I think many others) have a “tumble range." My upmost range, which seems to be 203 (don’t gasp or feel sympathetic…I am ok with it…) can easily become 195 within the span of about a week, interestingly. Anything below that takes work I am, most of the time, unwilling to do. I exercise every day. I don’t want to exercise HARDER than I do is the problem. LOL! These days I do what I like to do and leave the rest. If I die curvy I can live with that.

"If I die curvy I can live with that."
Thank you for this. It made me smile.

Glad I could make you smile!

At the end of the day,  I like me and that's what's most important.

I like you and that's important too! 

Thanks for the post-op insight!

This weekend I am going to try to play with a Flan/baked egg custard sugar free bariatric recipe. Thanks for your recipes!

Michelle

 thanks for this post, Nik, keep it up, it is good for us newbies to get an idea of how things may go, and how things continue to change as we grow up.  Curvy is good!

Melissa

Girl, you rock!

I too have a 10 lb range I stay in....and I'm okay with that.

Hugs, keep it real!


Kim

I have only thrown up food once as a result of just eating (illness is another matter), have only dumped three times (all within the first 18 months) and I have never had anything stuck, so I never had issues with those, but I can definitely say "amen" -- or "me, too" if you would prefer -- to just being me (where my RNY is just part of my medical history like my DVTs or my thyroid issues) and to finding a weight that my body likes and that I don't have to obsess over what I eat or how much exercise I do or don't get in order to maintain.  Yeah, I might be able get those extra 5-7 pounds off again to get back to my goal weight, but experience has shown me that food and exercise would have to dominate my life in order to keep it there (if I could at all)... and I am not willing to live that way.  Life at 5-7 pounds above my goal weight (and therefore just over the line into an "overweight" BMI) but with only 26% body fat (yay!) is balanced, and I like it that way.

So... here's to women who have had RNY and still have their large breasts, LOL!

Lora

The things that no longer happen to me:
Unexpected dumping- I now listen to my body for clues. I still dump on fats and sugar.
Uncontrollable Gas- I hated this more than anything because the smell was long lasting and awful
BM Issues- I could never find a balance it was either too much or not at all
Unrealistic Expectation- I learned this from my oldest daughter. She told me I probably would never get skinny because I weight 468 when I had surgery. So I've learned to accept my 200 lbs lost
Scale- is my daily friend but for a different reeason now. I check my weight daily because it's easier to adjust before that few pounds become more than 10 (my lowesdt weight was 214 and now I'm back at 270). I'm striving to get back to at least 250
Exercise-is no longer a force requirement for me. I enjoy walking, biking, and chasing kids at school. So no longer do I go to the gym for 2 to 3 hrs a day. I have a life now.
Clothes- my size range is 18/20 and I'm ok with that too. Now I have clothes to wear for most events because my size has stablized.