8 Month Update

My 8 month surgiversary was on the 1st. I'm down another couple of pounds, but that is mostly thanks to the food poisoning that I had last week. I don't recommend it as a weight loss method, FYI. I bought some running shoes and started my C25K program before I got sick. The air is just too cold to really get started now that I'm well. I was pretty bummed when I thought that I wasn't going to get started... Until my father decided to buy a treadmill today! I'm one of a zillion post-college grads who have had to move back in with the parents (it works for us, so no biggie), so I'm going to start the C25K program back up again tomorrow! 

Even though the scale hasn't been my friend this month, I am positive that I've lost inches. I'm down into Lg shirts without them being tight, and my 16 jeans are getting embarrassingly big. I've done a lot of thrift shopping this month, but not everything that I've bought fits yet (I'm not willing to try on clothes at Goodwill... ew.). I'm still getting a TON of "You're getting so skinny!" comments, which have boosted my confidence while the scale hasn't been moving.

I can definitely eat more, and it has become a daily struggle to keep off-plan foods out of my routine... Food poisoning didn't help that. I survived on crackers, toast, and sprite for several days and I am STILL dealing with the carb cravings a week later. Detoxing is tough, given that I still feel pretty "blah" about food. I'm finding myself wandering around at meal times trying to find something with protein that sounds appealing. It's pretty bizarre. I feel like I did immediately post op when NOTHING sounded appealing. I'm just going to push forward though. No rest for the weary!

I finally got my first negative reaction to surgery this month. I saw my best friend's dad (who was like a 2nd dad to me through college) after not seeing him for probably 6 months or more. He told me that I looked great and asked how I'd done it... I've been pretty open about my surgery, and so I told him with no hesitation. His response was a condescending, "Well... THAT will do it." It stung, sure. But I had to remind myself that anyone who has never been obese is going to have trouble being 100% empathetic. In the end, I did this for ME and MY health. Not because I was worried about what people thought of me.

All in all, a good month. Here's hoping that the scale will get back to business in March!

Hey, don't knock food poisoning- that is what rapidly took off my last 10 to make it to goal!  No sprite, toast, or anything though- nothing stayed down during that time period.  You keep the path and make it all the way to goal.  Running is an awesome thing to start!  Great dad you have there bringing in a treadmill- now weather is not longer a factor in getting the rear moving.  I can't believe it has been 8 months for you- seems like it was just a bit ago I saw you starting to post on the boards.  

Thanks, lady. It definitely doesn't feel like it's been 8 months! I'm glad to have the treadmill now. I wanted so badly to do the running at a park a few miles from my house, but when I went the first time, my throat and lungs were burning so badly that I coughed the rest of the day. I'm ready for SPRING WEATHER!!!!!

I hear you about the weather. This is my first TN winter and it's not been terrible but I am so ready for Spring! 

So..you handled the "Well..THAT will do it" comment better than I would have. Like, what? Do people say crap like that when someone is told they are diabetic or have high blood pressure or any other medical condition?  It's a health issue. And you know, when you're putting yourself out in the job market, there is some discrimination for overweight people. It sucks but it's a reality. I would say something along those lines too..."I'm making myself more marketable to assist me in my job hunt" 

Do they not have Karms where you are at? The ones here in Knoxville usually have a much nicer selection than the Goodwills.

I am SO glad you are feeling better. Get going on the Couch25k ..I think you can run on treadmills, right? I'm not coordinated enough to do that, but maybe you are LOL 

CONGRATS!!! You are doing awesome..I love your posts

Yeah, my initial reaction was, "Umm... excuse you?" But, I just let it go because this is a person who wouldn't intentionally hurt my feelings. Best to just move on.

I've never heard of Karms, but I'll look into it! We have a TON of Goodwills around here and I've learned which ones get the goods from the nice neighborhoods ;)

I've actually taken the approach to tell people who have been struggling with dieting that the surgery will make all the difference in being successful at becoming healthy through losing weight.  So sort of like saying, 'that will do it'...I will say,'I did the sleeve gastric surgery and believe me that will do it!'  I sometimes will then go on to explain that the medical community can't quite explain why some people's stomach doesn't respond to dieting the normal way so...the part of the stomach that causes hunger may be overstimulated or not communicating with the brain quite right so they had to take it out.  So in essence, with this surgery...it will do what is not able to be done without the surgery...sort of like putting in a pacemaker to make the heart act right, you have to take the portion of the stomach out that talks with the brain and gets the message scrambled.  I don't know the person who said this to you...but possibly he doesn't even know how you took it or at the least thought he wasn't saying anything reflective of a negative connotation.

Oh, I know that this person wasn't trying to be negative. He's just a person who is super healthy and always has been. He's almost 70 and still works out regularly... He's also a bit of a poindexter when it comes to being delicate, so it really shouldn't have been surprising. I'm not upset by it in the long run. It's just that it was my first experience with a negative reaction and it stuck with me.

Gotcha!  I can understand.  My first negative person stayed with me (especially since I have to see him everyday at work).  He has finally shut up since I started shutting him down.  Keep up the hard work!  I'm 7 months post-op and struggling more with head hunger than anything!

Your doing awesome Chrissy...especially having just survived food poisoning! Congratulations, I hope in 8 months I can accomplish half as much as you have!

Thanks! You'll get there before you know it! You're doing amazingly well! You need to put your surgery info on your profile so that everyone can see how well you're doing so soon after surgery!