I recently found the video you will read about below and realized I had written a blog post for it and never uploaded. I got lost in the newness of discovering I was pregnant and put this on the back-burner. I do, however, feel like this video is SO GOOD for people considering the Weight Loss Surgery route, so I wanted to share. I am going to leave the writing in the tense I wrote it in (at 1 year post op even though I’m now 2 years out from surgery.) I hope you enjoy!

It’s been over a year now that I let you all in on a HUGE part of my life that I was beginning. I’ve made it to one year now, and let me tell you: it’s been full of ups and downs. If you would have asked me even 6 months ago if I would do it all over, I would have told you no. But things are different now, and whether they are good or bad differences, they are all par for the course at this point.

I’ve got a video (above) sharing some details about the 12 things I’ve over this past year after weight loss surgery. If you’re interested in the surgery or just want to know what my experience has been, check it out! I’ve listed my 12 things below for you as well. Thank you SO MUCH for following along with my journey and for being a major system of support for me. I can’t begin to tell you all how much I appreciate the support you’ve shown!

12 Things I’ve Learned 12 Months Post-Op Weight Loss Surgery

1. There is a HUGE difference between the RNY and SLEEVE procedures. I knew they were different before, but I definitely see a huge difference in speed of weight loss/amount of weight loss now that I see my peers having a totally different experience than me.
2. Being a “Slow Loser” isn’t that bad at all. Things that I notice that may bug me are that I don’t tend to lose weight as fast as other people. (I know, stop comparing- I’m working on it!) But one thing I’ve noticed since I do lose slower is less sagging skin. I still have some, but since I have been a steady loser, the skin is staying more elastic.
3. You can still eat like crap. I know first hand that having a cookie addiction can be a REALITY when you’ve had WLS. Some people have issues with sugar, some people (like me) can take junk food like a champ still. For some reason, I thought I would never want/eat junk again.
4. You can still eat a lot! Granted, you can’t very well eat a lot at once. I can eat 5-8 oz of food, depending on the type and density, but you can eat a lot if you eat all throughout the day. I sometimes get in the habit of “eating to have something to do.” NO BUENO! You can eat healthier foods and still end up consuming over the amount of calories you should have if you eat all day.
5. The surgery/way of life will consume your thoughts. This is a big one for me, because I probably bug people so much about what I’m eating or how much or how things have changed. I don’t mean to be annoying, but it’s SUCH A HUGE CHANGE, that it just comes out. It happens. I can only be so apologetic, but it’s more of a #sorrynotsorry thing for me.
6. You will have a crazy sadness for the loss of your old self. I used to go to a chinese buffet in town with friends or family. It was a NORMAL thing for me, and I can’t now. It doesn’t make sense for me to, too much temptation, but it’s a sad feeling to lose a thing that once connected us. I feel sad when my husband wants to do dinner and then dessert…because…I just can’t. He probably misses his eating buddy! I know I miss it too.
7. You will have a crazy sadness for your loss of STUFF. If you were to peek into my closet a year ago, it would be STUFFED TO THE BRIM. The same closet today is bare. It has maybe 30 things hanging in it. While I have loved paring down my closet to only things I love, I MISS so many things that I once loved to wear. People always say “get them tailored” but they were so stretched from my bigger body that they would never look quite right. Also, YOUR SHOES. Don’t forget that you will lose weight in your feet. (Rolling my eyes, so bummed by the loss of some of my favorite shoes that no longer fit!)
8. Shopping will be a whole new, weird experience. I swear to you, when I go shopping, I immediately go to the biggest size in the store. Now, I can wear some straight sizes and HOLY COW! It’s so overwhelming. It’s just a weird space to be in overall. It’s great and terrifying at the same time.
9. People will judge you. I think so many people believe I took the “easy way out.” But let me tell you, the easy way would have been for me to just live overweight forever. Adopt a baby.  Just live with feeling like crap. The easy way out is not to have a major surgery and be forever changed in lifestyle and diet.
10. You need to actually be working out. While things were not EASY for me, I hardly had to work out to drop the excess weight I was carrying around. Simply changing my diet was enough to drop almost 100 pounds, but now that I am not eating 2 oz per meal, I know I need to get into a real swing of working out!
11. I don’t see myself smaller. It’s all in my head, as I know I am almost 100 lbs littler since I began this journey, but I still imagine I will see myself in a mirror and be pushing 330, not 230. It’s a weird occurrence. I am trying to correct myself, but it’s very hard.
12. I feel amazing. Despite any weird issues I may have with my body or my diet, my health is thriving. I can stay awake all day. I can breathe at night. I have ZERO issues with pre-diabetes, blood pressure, etc. I have had my period regularly for 12 months straight. I can walk, I can RUN, I can JUMP…I can play with my friends’ kids and not feel exhausted. I CAN WEAR HEELS. All these things are an amazing thing I was possibly going to go my life without being able to deal with. I am safe to say weight loss surgery saved my life. I know for sure it gave me new life!

If you want more of an update on my stats/progress, check out this post & video here!

***If you want to see more at my 2 year update, you can click here.