Mandi Lutz
I chose to have this surgery and got my first appt to see my surgeon before I ever got pregnant with my second child, my son. When I showed up to my appt, some months later, I was big and pregnant. So the funny thing is, I got my approval and was all set up for surgery while I was pregnant. When my son was 4 months old, I went into surgery and changed my life. I started at 274lbs. I lost all the way down to 156. Wow! was I skinny! And throwing up all the time. I guess I am a bit mule-headed, but I would try and try to keep eating certain things and pretty much barfed every meal I ate for about 1.5 years. Funny how now when I think about eating certain things, it will make me nauseous to even have it cross my mind. Namely: rice, couscous, ice cream, certain kinds of chicken, bleh... Now I go several months between throwing up episodes, but it always surprises me when I do. I usually never see it coming, but I know by the end of a meal that it is. Also, if I start on that path, I will be sick after meals for several days post. weird, this whole thing.
So, after 8 years I have gained some of the weight back but I am not that person I once was. Of course, there is the general self-loathing, wishing I was back to 156 lbs. In my mind, I was ever so happy! But, for some reason, even though I have gained back, my weight has stuck right here, and I neither go up or down (too much). For years I have been right here. Even through my next pregnancy, I stayed at the same weight, gaining almost none while pregnant. (I had lost about 20 at the beginning, combine morning sickness with food intolerance and it happens really fast!) But once I got those back, I just stayed there. Ready for a fat girl's big day of victory? The day your ob/gyn tells you to step up the eating and put on some weight. awesome!
So, here I am eight years later... some droopy skin, esp my arms, they are really sort of saggy and fat. I could not understand what the deal was with those, but I ran into an older cousin I had not seen in awhile and she is really trim. Her arms were huge. I think maybe this is a genetic thing (my story--sticking to it). I had a tummy tuck and boob lift two years ago. That helped a ton. I wish I could say my tummy is as flat as a pan, but it is not (thanks to torturing my flesh for years). It is really flat, but not super firm, I would say.
Lifestyle-wise, I ran my first half-marathon in May 2009 and I am scheduled to do my second next weekend, Nov 2009. That is really satisfying. When I was big, my husband would run whole marathons, and I would make fun of him, saying he was nuts and "I would never"... It is nuts, but I would recommend it once. If that sounds appealing to you at all, do what I did and join the TEAM in Training in your area and run for the Leukemia/Lymphoma Society. WORTH IT!!!
Just the other day I was playing tag football with my hubs and boy. I take fun dance classes. I go to the gym (sometimes--ha!) I hang out with friends and I work on being positive. I love my husband more every day. He stuck with me all the way from thin-ish to gigantic to skinny to today.
Watch out for alcohol, though. It is easy to get loaded really quickly so you cannot keep up with your hard-partying friends anymore. Also, if you eat because of issues you don't deal with, you can very easily switch to alcohol or drugs. (or sex, shopping, etc..) Keep yourself in check and go to your support group meetings. Be honest with yourself and your fellow WLS'ers. You need them. This is not going to make everything else in your life perfect, but it will make maneuvering through this world much easier.
Thanks for visiting me!
Mandi