okies y'all, imma gettin' a lil bit skeered now (cross post from main board)

I was having that problem myself.  BMI wise I wasn't getting overly small, but since I have a medium-large to large frame, I was getting VERY boney.  I lost almost all my weight (245 High, 232 starting, 135 goal - hit at 6 months!, now, 125 - 130).  When I hit my goal of 135 I was still losing at a rate of 3 to 5 lbs a week and I and everyone around me was freaking out.  Then it just stopped.  For the next six months my size dropped from a 6 to a 4 as I tightened up, but my weight only dropped a couple of lbs.  At one year out I had a tummy tuck and lost about 7 more lbs (only 2 were taken off during surgery) and that was too thin, but I've come back up a couple.  Since then (I'm 18 months out now) I've stayed between 127 and 132, a size 0 or 2. The key I've found is I actually LOSE weight and look like CRAP if I eat CRAP.  I stabilize and look healthy... ie not grey when I concentrate on getting as much protein in as possible.  Also, when I lift weights as opposed to doing a lot of cardio.  Lean muscle looks great on a thin frame. Good Luck

Maybe us over achievers need a page of our own. I was suppose to stop at 125, per surgeon's orders but last week I scared myself stepping on the scale at 115.9. I didn't stay there but a couple of hours but still. Scared. My BMI is officially (at 116) 19.4 which is .4 above the lowest point.  I also chart at fitday and am obsessive about every crumb I put in my mouth. I was told there's a "bounce" in weight at 18 months. GAWD I hope so! I'm at 17 months now and hoping for that bounce but dreading it too.  AT 11 months I was at 122 and the surgeon said I could quit losing now but didn't say how. He said "eat more". Mmmm. How, pray tell, do I do that with a stomach that will only hold 10 ounces? So I eat more but take a lot longer to do it. I can eat 2 cups (16 ounces) of homemade buffalo chili but it takes me 45 min to an hour to do it. Still, it's the calories I need. I believe good carbs are fiberous veggies and whole grain breads so just today I ate one whole slice of whole wheat toast at breakfast. I haven't had bread in 17 months so it was a big deal for me to even try that.  I would suggest not getting hooked on the junk though. Add the good carbs but stay away from the sugar and white carbs cuz those are extremely addictive. Once you get the "bounce" it will get back out of control. That's what I'm afraid of, actually. Losing control.

All I can say is that eating candy WILL come back to haunt you. When the wt loss ends, you get an automatic 10-15 lbs back with no effort. My low was 104, and that was at 14 months.

I gained up to 118 at one point, and that was still behaving, no sugar, no changes at all, then settled at 112. I'm 5'1".

So, while it's very fun to lose while doing candy and stuff, all I can say is that it doesn't last forever and when the ride ends, it's over.

I'm 13 yrs now and sugar is a sure ticket back to larger size jeans. As time goes on, it takes less "deviation" for me to gainand much more work to take it back off again.

my "goal weight" was 123 so if i gained 15 pounds right now that would put me at 124. i wouldn't complain.

Have you thought about going on a digestive enzyme.   Creon is normally prescribed for DSers who are losing too quickly or too much.....you can go on it for a short period of time until your weight stablizes.  It kind of helps chemically undo the absorbtion part of your surgery. Scott

i haven't ever heard of that. where do you get it? at a health food store or is it a prescription? my nut said that he wasn't going to get concerned UNTIL i was underweight so if it's a prescription i'm pretty sure i'd have to wait until i hit 95 pounds sometime between january and valentine's day (at the rate i'm going anyway...)

Your nut is not a doctor.....at best they are someone who went to community college and has a 2 or 4 year degree...but they aren't surgeons, they aren't MDs and many of them have little professional training (if any) dealing with WLS patients.  So my advice would be to call your surgeon and say "i'm still losing weight, i'm eating enough, and want a prescription for Creon.  It is a pancratic digestive enzyme, and from my research it will help stablize my weight until the time that my body adjusts and stops losing".  You're surgeon should call in a prescription for you.   Here's the reason you shoudl not wait....there is a line that once you cross it, you're health starts to go down hill rapidly.   We are not normal....nor will we ever be 100 percent normal....we have  surgically induced malabsorbtion...what that means is that we will never absorb 100 percent of what we eat...which is the reason I can eat 6000 calories post op during a day...and not regain (i had the DS)...and in fact lose 3 lbs. You can get OTC digestive enzymes....like Omnigest from walmart...but it isn't as powerful and really it's just not the same thing.   You are at a point where your weight should start to stablize....and you just need this to get you over that "hump" until it does.... call your surgeon Scott

I agree with Scott on the digestive enzymes.  If food isn't getting you under control, this is the second phase to try...and don't wait until your nut is concerned, see a PCP or your surgeon at least and get their take on it.  Like he said, you want a doc that knows more than a chart for reference. I've been lucky so far, but I promised my mother that I would do that if I got down to 135 (I'm 145 and 5'5"), because I'm pretty tiny right now but still looking healthy and planning on keeping it that way.  So far, I've been able to maintain within a 5 lb window.

I'd suggest backing away from the junk and adding some healthy fats to your diet. Think avocadoes, olives, olive oil, fattier fish varieties if you're a fish eater, etc.  I also second starting a bit of muscle building t ype exercise. BUT make sure you're getting LOTS of animal based protein before you do this. Because you are still actively losing weight, you are at risk of losing muscle mass if you don't support your exercise program with extra protein intake. If this continues for several more pounds, perhaps digestive enzyme supplementation might be in order, too.

thank you so much to everyone that responded to my thread! i did some research today on that "creon" digestive enzyme and i'm going to have to ask my pcp about it. i'm no longer using my rny surgeons (because they just don't really seem to give a rip!) so my pcp is my only option. only thing is, she's out of the office for another week. but i'm sure i'll be fine for another week. i'm not losing very fast (flo's on the way so i think that's why this weekend was such a steady loss) so i'm not going to panic just yet. thanks for all the advice! i'm definitely backing away from the sweets and bad carbs now and trying some of the other suggestions that y'all offered.