I've lost

[auntAgonist]

almost 100lbs. I'm thrilled. Someone said I took the 'easy' way out by having surgery. Folks, it's not easy! There are a lot of adjustments to be made but I'd do it again in a heart beat. It's been five months since my surgery, I'm very careful in what I eat, concentrating on protein of course, drinking lots of water, my meals are not a bad size and I eat often in the day. I have so much more energy and I'm told I look "great". It's hard for me to see the changes but I know in my heart they are there. My hair is giving me a rough time though, it's falling out. I've been told by my Dr that it will stop doing that and that it will come back but it's STILL traumatic when you brush and get handsful of hair!! I'm down from a size 28/26 dress to a size 18 , my jeans are now size 18, tops are size large. I never thought I'd ever buy anything in the regular ladies clothing sizes. My butt has all but disappeared and taken my boobs with it arggghhhh :)

I'm feeling physically very well. I'm upset about my hair, I guess I'm vain!

anyway, thanks for letting me ramble on, it's kind of therapeutic I guess.
here's me.


before



after so far anyway.

[u4ic]

1. You DO look great, auntieA!!

Congrats on your weight loss!! :bounce: :toast: :bounce:

Re: hair loss...are you getting enough B complex vitamins, as well as essential fatty acids (flax, fish, evening primrose oils, etc)? I had some hair loss from illness, and I found that once I ramped those up, it became less.

[auntAgonist]

2. I take SO many supplements now

I'd forgotten about evening primrose oil though, i really should get some. I take Biotin and Folic acid, that's supposed to help with the hair. I have omega 3-6-9 here too. I hope something helps :)

thanks for the post!

[Longhorn]

3. Congratulations!

I agree, there's nothing easy about what you've accomplished! Way to go!

[lavenderdiva]

4. WOW! You look fantastic!!!

I'll just bet you are feeling wonderful too! I'll bet you have so much more energy, many less aches & pains, and are sleeping better?

Right before I got married, I was trying to grow my hair longer. My hairdresser told me about Biotin (which I noticed that you posted you are taking), and Kelp. The Kelp is really an Iodine source. A 100% daily dosage is 150mcg, but I was taking a couple or 3 a day to speed things up. It really helped and made my nails much stronger too!

Congratulations!!! :toast: :bounce: :headbang: :yourock: :woohoo: :applause:

[Systematic Chaos]

5. Very, VERY nice, auntA!!

You look so much brighter and more lively in the "after" pic. I bet it just feels sooooooo good, doesn't it? You did what you had to do. Nobody can fault you for making the decision you did. It's better to be alive with a slightly modified anatomy than to be dead because it was just too hard to change without the operation. If I don't get my weight down and keep it down within the next couple years at most, I will have to look into that as well. I've already been waaaaay too close to death for a guy who's not even 40.

Keep up the good work!! :hug:

[AlCzervik]

6. Congratulations to you-!!

And i don't think surgery is the easy out at all, i know someone that had gastric bypass done about 7 years ago and she still had to be very careful about what she ate, even more so actually because of "dumping" and other issues and she exercised almost everyday as well so i know for a fact it's not the easy way out, it's a tool and thats all. Maybe once your body adjusts to everything your hair will begin to come back in the way it did pre-surgery, thats what happened to my friend Kathy. BTW 7 years later she's gone from 420lbs to 160 and she looks great, she did have surgery to remove the extra skin but aside from that she's like a brand new person.

You must feel like you have a new lease on life and i'm very happy for you.

[MissMillie]

7. YOU ROCK!!!

I'm so thrilled for you!

I know precisely what it took for you to lose that weight and I know first-hand that it's not the easy way out. For everyone who has WLS, it is the last resort after YEARS and YEARS of diet failures.

I have not been as good as I need to be when it comes to my diet, and the results of that are showing on the scale. I'm not gaining, but I'm not losing either.

I'm coming back here, and I'm gonna start over again with the WLS rules and I'm going to lose 30 more lbs.... I consider it a necessity to do it just for me!

[auntAgonist]

8. thanks Miss Millie

You DO understand and I appreciate it so much! Some days are harder than others but I'd do it all again!!!

I just wish my hair would quit falling out!!

:cry:

[u4ic]

10. auntAgonist

do you have any thyroid problems?

I read on another thread that you are using soy protein shakes. Unfermented soy can, for some, cause the thyroid to slow down. That can result in hair loss.

[auntAgonist]

11. I don't have any thyroid issues that I'm aware of

I'll definately ask my Dr about it though. Thanks for that insight! The hair loss is quite common apparently in people who have had weight loss surgery. EVERYONE i've spoken to has experience or is experiencing it. They say it lasts a couple of months and then the hair grows in again. I'm sure hoping they are right :)
I try to keep my protein intake high, around 90 grams a day if I can. Some days better than others.

I am taking folic acid and biotin. L-Cysteine is supposed to be good too, I'm going to pick some up at the health food store.

[u4ic]

12. I had no idea the surgery could cause hair loss

is the surgery permanent, or do you have the option of 'undoing' it at a later time?

I take cysteine (in the form N-acetyl cysteine, or NAC)...it's very good for increasing glutathione (it's one of the precursors) a powerful antioxidant and liver detoxifier, and also for breaking up mucous/phlegm.

[auntAgonist]

13. Surgery

is permanent.
Here's a bit of information for you, better than I can explain it :)

http://www.duodenalswitch.com/procedure/procedure.html

[u4ic]

14. Thanks for that link

I learned a lot.

Wow...and someone had the gall to tell you that you took the EASY way out??? :wtf:

[Droopy]

9. Congrats!

I'm hoping to lose what you have lost. That would put me at 177. I've been told that is too thin for me, but according to those height/weight charts I'd still be 15 pounds overweight at 177. I'll get down to 200, see how I look, and then go from there.