getsemani
I'm Losing Weight Fast!
Jun 26, 2026
It's been a month since I had my surgery, and I'm so pleased at what I'm seeing! My clothes are fitting looser, my face is slimmer, and I feel lighter on my feet. Although I still see the same fat woman in the mirror no matter what position I'm in in front of it, I know I'm losing weight because the scale doesn't tell tales.
Due to the backlash I received when I shared my plans with everyone about my Lap-Band surgery back in 2008, especially from my now ex-husband and from my younger sister, I decided to share my revision surgery with just a couple of people. I shared my plans with my youngest daughter, who wholeheartedly supported me and traveled with me to Mexico for the surgery. I couldn't keep it away from her even if I wanted to because she lives with me. She, in turn, told her best friend, which was fine with me because I had told her to ask her if she wanted to go with us to Tijuana so my daughter had someone to go out with while I recovered. I also told my current husband, and it was needless to say that he was shocked, but he supported me. He didn't like the idea that I was traveling to Mexico without him, but due to his serious ongoing health issues, he wasn't able to go, and that's why I asked my daughter to go with me. You see, when I had considered doing this surgery in Mexico, I was considering doing it a couple of years ago, and he was completely onboard, and we were going to go together, but I chickened out and didn't go through with it.
I told my oldest sister, and I think she in turn told her daughter, but I was fine with it. I wasn't going to tell my two oldest children who live in Florida, but it happened that my oldest daughter broke her ankle and needed help. I desperately wanted to go, but I already had my surgery scheduled, so I had to explain to her why I wasn't able to go to her aid. She was happy I was going to do the surgery and supported me. Finally, I had to tell one of my sisters-in-law because I had asked her if she could stay at our place and look after my husband while I was in Tijuana for my surgery. She was mortified that I was going "so far away" for a surgery, but I defused all negative comments before they left her lips. I politely shut her down because, truth be told, I didn't care what anyone had to say about my decision. I only shared my plans with five family members and with a couple of people at work once I returned. I haven't even told my church pastor and his wife.
I had to be on a two-week pre-op diet, and I was 253. On the day of the surgery, I had gone down to 246, and as of today, I'm weighing 220. Altogether, I've already lost 33 pounds in a month and a half because I'm including how much I weighed when I started my pre-op diet. When I had the Lap-Band, I only lost 37 pounds in three months, but I was also weighing less. I was weighing 235 and went down to 198, stalled, and was never able to reach my goal weight of 160.
I had my moment of victory when my son and I FaceTimed the other day. He's one of the ones I haven't told about my surgery. He has no idea that I went to Mexico and had it done, and I don't plan to tell him anytime soon. He doesn't like video chatting, and it's very rare when he does. Well, I almost jumped with joy when the first words out of his mouth were, "Mother, your face looks skinnier." I played it off and told him that it's all the stress I'm going through. He said, "You no longer have chubby cheeks."
I've been following my nutritionist's directions almost to a tee. I tried one Wheat Thin, and on another occasion, I popped three cheese puffs and let them melt in my mouth because I was craving something salty. I don't deviate from the foods I'm allowed to eat. I've been strictly sticking to proteins, proteins, proteins. My stomach fills up with 3 oz of food, sometimes four if it's very soft and watery. Do I have cravings for junk food? Of course I do! Am I tempted to put something in my mouth that could make me sick? Not really. My stomach is still healing, and I know that I'll be able to eat "normal" again, just in smaller amounts. What I find challenging at this stage is that I can't eat anything on a menu when my husband and I go out. We've been to Denny's three times since my surgery, and he's felt uncomfortable with him eating, and I'm across from him not eating anything, but I'm not about to pay over $3 for one scrambled egg and another $3 for a couple of ounces of coffee.
On Wednesday, we went to the beach where we first met as teens in the 80s. I packed up a light lunch for him and a couple of snacks. The weather was perfect, and we just enjoyed being together. He sat in his beach chair; I sat on the grass. We took beautiful pictures, and he ate everything I had packed up for him. We then went to Shakey's, where we ordered our favorite dish, with the difference being that I wasn't joining him. He told me that if he had known I wasn't able to eat with him, he wouldn't have asked me to go. I picked at a piece of chicken thigh so he wouldn't feel bad, but I didn't really eat. I pretended just to not make him feel bad. After we were done at Shakey's, I made a beeline back to the car and ate 2 oz of cottage cheese with pineapple, and I was full before I was able to eat the whole thing.
I'm just getting started, and 60 pounds remaining before I reach my weight goal seems so far away, but I'm sticking to my guns. No medical insurance paid for this surgery. It was out of pocket, and I'm making sure I take care of my investment, and that's why I'm diligently watching what I eat and drink. I only drink decaf coffee, decaf green tea, skim or 1% milk, and Zero Gatorade. I'm actually sick of those protein shakes, so I hardly have any now. I'm still taking my blood pressure and cholesterol medication, plus multivitamins with iron, and I'm taking calcium chewables, which are yummy because they taste like a piece of caramel candy, and biotin gummies. I'm doing 100% better than I was when I had the Lap-Band. I was seeing a nutritionist after the Lap-Band, and it was out of pocket, but all she did was push for the HMR meal program, which I used throughout.
