melaniesuzanne: (Mucha: The Seasons Spring)
Mary F'ing Sunshine ([personal profile] melaniesuzanne) wrote2014-02-12 09:26 pm
Entry tags:

Before & after photo and closing in on the surgiversary

Back in October, I mentioned being interviewed for the local hospital system's magazine. Then in November I met with a photographer to have some pictures taken to go along with the article. I'd hoped to get copies of the photos, but alas that was not to be. However, a friend who received a dead tree version of the magazine in January was kind enough to scan the article and sent me a copy in which the picture under the cut was included.

weightlossarticle-profile
Left: 3/26/2013 (three days before surgery) -- 266 lbs
Right: 11/7/2013 -- 171 lbs
I'm 5'5.5", by the way.

It hurts my feelings to see that before picture. It's hard to believe that I let myself get that large and I didn't acknowledge it. I mean, I know I was big, but I never felt big, you know? Plus, I didn't have any health problems aside from pain in my knees and my right foot. I had plenty of energy and could walk a few miles with little issue and ride my bike for miles and miles.

At the time of the after photo, I'd dropped from a size 22 to a size 12 in pants, from a 2XL to a Medium in shirts, and had shed 95 pounds. I've lost another pants size and and four more pounds in the three months since (which actually happened in December; I haven't lost anything else since then). Despite my surgeon saying otherwise, I really do think my surgery-induced weight loss has stopped and I'm okay with that. Now starts the hard job of maintaining.

Other things that are going on: I've FINALLY learned to slow down when eating so that food no longer gets stuck and I don't have to pretend to be a bulimic. I've learned what "full" feels like and how to stop eating when I reach that level despite how good the food may taste. My energy is better, but I haven't been been on my bike(s) since October, so I don't know far I can just yet. (C'mon warm weather!!) My hair is still thin and a few strands jump out when shampooing, but I have lots of baby hairs coming in to hopefully replace what I've lost over the past eight months or so. Emotionally, my self-confidence continues to be high and I'm working with a therapist to root out why I overeat and fix that hole within myself so I don't buoy back up to that starting weight.
reedrover: (Summer)

[personal profile] reedrover 2014-02-13 08:16 pm (UTC)(link)
I would be interested in learning what you might have to share regarding overeating as a response to *something* and the ways to avoid that. I'm holding at a little over 200#, and would like to get back down under that line.

[identity profile] melaniesuzanne.livejournal.com 2014-02-18 01:45 am (UTC)(link)
I don't have anything useful to share at this point, I'm afraid. Right now my therapist and I are trying to figure out what the hole inside me is and then we'll work on fixing it or figuring how to fill it with something other than food or material goods.