Hakuna Matata, Ladies and Gents

Okay, as promised, I'll update you on how the past 8 months have gone.

As I said before, I had VGS on 2-2-22.  The surgery went really well.  I had virtually no pain afterwards, which I'm sure is credited to the great pain management medications given to me.  I ate nothing but sugar free jello, broth, and sugar free popsicles (which went directly into the trash can because they're beyond nasty) for 3 days.

I remember how excited I was to weigh myself when I got home, because they'd taken out 80% of my stomach (which had to weigh SOMETHING), plus I'd basically eaten nothing for 3 days, plus my several days of pre-op liquid dieting.  I was SURE I'd be down a few pounds!

I stepped on the scale when I got home....and saw that I'd GAINED 7 POUNDS!
Luckily, I do know how this stuff works, and I knew that the nonstop stream of IV fluids had plumped me chock full of liquids.
I knew not to panic, and to be patient.

The first few weeks were a little difficult.  Mostly liquids, and a few very soft foods like cream of wheat and soft-scrambled eggs were my mainstream diet.  I slowly added in more stuff as I healed, taking it VERY easy on my tummy.

Eventually, though, I healed up just fine and was able to introduce real food back into my every day diet.

One thing I see a lot in my support group (which is made up of people from all around the world, who used various techniques to obtain their VSG surgeries) are comments and questions posted from people who went through very strict programs like mine.
I saw that they tend to obsess and fret over every single thing.  They have been conditioned to think that they will drop dead if they do not get every ounce of protein, water, and take the myriad of required vitamins and supplements every single day.
Seriously, these people have been taught that they will not survive without the $320.00/week supplement of barrenwort, bishop's hat, fairy wings, horny goat weed, and yin yang huo.  Yes, I made those up for comedic effect, but you get the gist.

When I left that last appointment with my "dietician" (and I will forever put that word in quotes, because she was psychotic), the list of supplements and vitamins I was "required" to take was a mile long.  And I was led to believe that straying from the list would ultimately lead to a hole in the fabric of the space-time contiuum, and all life as I knew it would cease immediately.  And I'd get hemorrhoids or something like that.  Bad.  Very bad.  Don't even THINK about not taking the 24 pills a day that we require!

Yeah.  Fuck that.  I take one multivitamin each day, over the counter, "Dollar Store", when I can find it, and one calcium supplement once or twice per week.  (I used to take the calcium every day, until it crescendo'd into a 6mm kidney stone that I thought would kill me).

That's it.  ::::Taking pulse::: still here.

So far, I've lost 74 pounds without really trying.  What do I eat?  Whatever I want.  I am not stupid about it, and I always choose a protein over a bread.  I try to get in my water (or fluids of some kind).  I'm 95% sugar free in everything I choose, but that's nothing new.  I always used sugar free creamer and Splenda in my coffee.  If I drank soda, it was Coke Zero or Diet Dr. Pepper.  I love Crystal Light.
Do I eat some birthday cake at parties?  Yep.
Will I eat a few potato chips and a barbecue?  Yep.
Have I had a donut?  Yep...well, usually only half of one.

But I have to find something I can do for the REST OF MY LIFE.  Who will suffer if I fail?  Me.
I'm walking more.  I park farther away at the store now.  I take the stairs when I can instead of the elevator.

I had a couple of stalls along the way, which anyone who has traversed this path will tell you, is perfectly normal.  I was not discouraged by them, as I knew I was doing what I should be doing.  Eventually, the numbers started moving down again.  I was moving more, gaining more muscle while losing fat at the same time.  I was trading one kind of pound for another.  I knew that.  It was all good.  Don't let stalls get you down!!  I once went 3 weeks without the scale budging, but you know what?  I went down and entire pants size in that time.

I was able to get my hip replacement (another story there coming soon), so I'm very mobile now, when I was pretty much handicapped before.  I just returned from Colorado where I walked trails and climbed ravines.  I endured 11,000 feet altitude without my supplemental can of oxygen!

Life is good.  I plan for it to remain good.  This surgery has saved my life in more ways than one.

But my advice to anyone reading:  DO NOT fret or stress over the requirements they place on you.  Do not let them bully you.  But BE SMART.  Don't go straight back to your crap way of eating.  But use the restriction tool the VSG gives you.  Listen to your new tummy.  Stop when it says "stop", or you will hurt.  And I love it.
I love not being able to pig out on Chinese food.  I LOVE not having to eat 3-4 slices of pizza to feel full (I can now eat 1 small slice, or 1/2 of a normal slice).

If you're not ready to be happy with tiny portions, you may need more time to think it over.

Take it seriously, but do not develop anxiety or worry constantly over rules and regulations.  YOU are in control, not them. They can help you if you need it, but don't let over zealous dieticians drive you to the brink of insanity.  They are there if you need them, but if you feel they're not helping, you have the option to just stop going.  They're not your parole officers.

I would not trade this surgery for the world.  It's the best thing I ever did.  But I'm successful DESPITE all of the bullshit they put me through, not because of it.

I plan to continue to blog about my journey, but also about other things that affect overweight people.
No matter how much I lose, I will always advocate for people-of-size.

People do not realize that we are the same people we always were, just in smaller bodies.  Don't say things to us now that you wouldn't say when we were bigger.  Just don't.

Namaste, and all that jazz.