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Thyckness718's Blog
 

Pysch Evaluation...........................................

Well, today was the day. I went to see the pysch, and....................................................HE CLEARED ME !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was so quick. It took me longer to fill out all the paper work then it did to see him. He talked to me for about ten minutes then start printing out papers and was like ok here is your copy to keep for your files, and I will e-mail a copy to your surgeon. Then he was like good luck and have a great day. Talk about someone who walked out there with a chesire cat grin on their face.
Thyckness718

Thyckness718

4
angeladeflorio's Blog
 

Fill Disaster!! Less Than Before.

SO I WENT FOR MY 2nd FILL YESTERDAY.. what a disaster. they put in 1.5 ccs I was good all day till I got home from work I had a glass of milk and that was it i was throwing up for 3 hours. I had to go in to the hospital for a emergency visit. To make a long story short I only have 2 ccs in now. I had 3cc before my fill. SO im less and I am so nervous that I am going to eat like a pig. I had no restriction before. I am going to try and not to, but this is harder than I thought, I might do 5 pr 6 small little meals a day. that seems to work with me. My doctor also said that I am very sensitive to the fills so, I will only get like 1/2 ccs from now on. Ughh Im so disappointed   is anyone else sensitive to fills.   ANgie
angeladeflorio

angeladeflorio

6
The Weight Loss Journey of VegasBusby
 

Three Weeks Out...

I had my surgery on July 10th. I had three full weeks of thin and thick liquids and am moving into the pureed stage (FINALLY). For me the physical aspect of the surgery has been going very well. I am healing great, my surgical glue and scabs have all fallen off and I am starting vitamin E oil to minimize the scarring. I do have some problems in the morning. I am tired, a bit turned off of eating or drinking anything, and feel yucky overall. I have been told that it is my body adjusting to my new smaller stomach and that it will pass. I did feel better this morning than I have in the past week and a half. My biggest struggle is the emotional rollercoaster that followed the surgery. The day after I was released I was sent to the emergency room with as it turns out...severe panic attacks. I only found this out after 18 hours in ER and another trip via ambulance the next day. Three weeks out and I still have mild panic attacks, but they get better each day. Xanax helps a lot. I went from taking 3 a day when first diagnosed to just one a day (yeah me!). The other side of this for me was the sadness and depression. I was depressed before my surgery due to the emotional trauma of being obese, but after the surgery I started to have depression spirals...bad ones. I would cry several times a day, I couldn't think positive to save my life. I went to both my doctor and a psychologist and they said that emotional turbulence is normal the first couple of weeks to a couple of months. Part of it is due to the fact that I just hit my life physically and emotionally with a big Mack truck, my relationship to food which had been a security blanket to me had changed, and as fat is consumed by the body the stores of estrogen in the fat is released causing more moodiness. The biggest hurtle I have faced is dealing with "buyer’s remorse". Knowing that my life will NEVER be the same again can be very scary, but I know in the end it will be wonderful. I just have to get past what I am calling "hell weeks" After upping my antidepressants a little bit; I am getting better at focusing on all the benefits that are heading my way as a result of the surgery. It will be a long road, but I know that the emotional turmoil is perfectly normal, and above all...temporary. I just take it one day at a time.
phoenixgen2

phoenixgen2

2
The Weight Loss Journey of VegasBusby
 

Life Before Surgery

So I thought I'd begin my blog by talking about what my life was like leading up to the surgery. My story is probably quite similar to many of yours. I have been overweight since I hit puberty at age 11. In that same year I was molested by someone I trusted and there was never any resolution. All of that coupled with the fact that my family (especially the southern - Mississippi family) did not have any restrictions on how much or what we ate, I was doomed from the start. I ate my way through middle school and high school. I was always the fat kid; the girl picked last and picked on. During this time, I moved around a lot. My mom and stepdad (who raised me) were getting divorced, my mom was on Meth, and life at home was hard so I tried living with family in Montana, Oregon, and Mississippi. And through it all I ate.   High school was particularly troubling. I never had a boyfriend; I was ostracized by the other students at school. I was very unpopular due to my weight. I went to my prom...alone. All I wanted was to be accepted, but no one could see past the fat. My one saving grace was that I was smart and graduated with honors. I was now living in Las Vegas with my Step Dad Brian (who raised me and who I consider to be my Dad). He encouraged me to eat better, but after years of overeating, it was easier said than done. College made it worse. I started at community college and worked a full time job at the same time. Needless to say, my eating habits took a dive in college due to my busy and stressful schedule. I had moved out, took on a second job, and transferred to the university. In my desperation and loneliness, I started seeing a married man (one of the single biggest regrets I have in my life).   After college, I got a job working for the local cable company, but always felt like an outcast because of my weight which had spiked at 255. Then my doctor turned me on to South Beach. At first it worked great! I lost nearly 65 pounds. I started feeling better...but as with every diet I tried, I started to plateau, got frustrated and the rate of loss, and fell back into poor eating habits. To make matters worse, during the plateau I was out of work for 4 months due to the recession and gained all the weight I had lost back and then some.   I finally found a new job in HR at one of the casinos and tried to get back on track with healthy eating. I gave up eating from any restaurant with a drive through and gave up drinking soda. It worked at first and I got back down to 255, but it was short lived. My office was right across from the employee dining room and all the free lattes I could drink and brownies I could eat. In the course of a year I ballooned up to 268 pounds. My company started to offer onsite weight watchers programs so I joined up with my best friend of 14 years and we started to lose weight. She lost 60 pounds, I lost 10. Frustrating right? So I went back to good old South Beach which I had success on before. I didn't lose more than 20 pounds. I was getting very down and for a time completely gave up on myself. I started eating fast food and drinking soda again. I figured that I was one of those people who couldn't lose weight and why bother fighting it.   I had flirted with the idea of weight loss surgery for about 8 years up to this point but always had a reason why not to do it. Then I had 2 major wake up calls, the first is I developed sleep apnea as a result of my weight. If you have ever had this you know how terrifying it can be to be jolted awake in the ***ht, heart pounding, gasping for breath. My doctor said the only way to get rid of it was to lose weight. The second wake up call came when I had an appointment with my OB GYN. My period had gone from a 4 day light flow to a 30+ day light, then heavy, then light flow. As it turned out I had developed menorrhagia. To top it off, my ovaries had stopped regularly producing an egg. To put it bluntly, my weight was making me unable to have children. I never realized how much I wanted kids until I was told I couldn't have them...unless I lost weight.   My weight had skyrocketed to 285 pounds and I knew that if I didn't make a PERMANENT change that my life would be short and unhappy. Enough was enough. I started getting serious about the surgery option and doing a lot of research. Then after a year, I had sleeve surgery on July 10, 2012. It was time for a change. I chose the sleeve over the band because I knew myself well enough to know that I would probably chicken out at some point and have the band removed and balloon right back up to where I had been before. With the sleeve, I took that option away. I needed something permanent! I now have 2 birthdays, the day I was brought into this world, and the day my new life began…July 10th, 2012.
phoenixgen2

phoenixgen2

4
desertmom's Blog
 

Protein Drinks?

I have started tracking my daily calorie and even though Im hitting 60g of protein most days my calories have been around 450 to 600 which kind of explains to me why I just cannot even play badmington with my 11 year old.I realized that during the holiday I dropped my cals just automatically without even noticing.I have not even attempted to playa game of squash as even the thought of it made me tired.   Today I decided to eat more.Back to 1000 when I need energy to exercise.   The thing is even though it wasnt really too much,I dont feel to well.I am hyper aware of my stomach all day and I think of food,something I havent done in a month.   Tomorrow I will go back to eating very little again.I will drink my tea with milk,eat my 2 tiny tiny meals but to that I will start adding a protein shake to help with the protein.I will try and buy a shake that is high in vitamins too as drinking a multi feels like it irritates my stomach and makes me hungry.   Hopefully that will give me a little energy.But the exercise is on.It was shocking to see how little I could do and I had a huge drop in blood sugar to boot halfway through.These are things that I now need to fix as my friend has aked me to run the 10k in November or December with her and I stupidly said,of course I will.   That was me for the day.Weight still the same!
desertmom

desertmom

0
Sleeved by Dr. Kelly in Mexico
 

Week 18

Week 18   Last week’s weight – 202.8 This week’s weight – 201.2 Total weight lost this week – 1.6 lbs   Beginning weight – 246 lbs Total weight loss since surgery – 44.8 lbs   Average weekly weight loss since surgery – 2.4 lbs   Nothing too exciting to report this week. I am getting ever closer to that elusive “onederland” goal but at this rate it will be another two weeks before I reach it!   I went shopping with a friend and used it as an excuse to see what size clothes I can fit in now. I am a size 18 in regular sizes and a size 16W in womens clothing (the 14W's were still too snug). Didn't try on any shirts. I bought a pair of 16 shorts and 16 pants that are a little too snug but I figure I should fit into them shortly.   I bumped up some of my exercise this week with a few days of walking over a large bridge we have. The entire walk I mapped out is 5 miles and I has the added bonus of going up hill (most of the area around where I walk is pretty flat). I think I will add that to my walking routine but on the weekend due to the time factor (1 hour 35 minutes) where as my normal morning walking routine is about 55 minutes.   I am a little nervous about school starting in a couple of weeks because it will affect my morning walking routine. I’ll either have to work out to a tape in the morning or shift my walking to the afternoon (not sure what I’m going to do yet).   Eating challenges this coming week – Going to a restaurant with a friend (to***ht)
Going out of town for a couple of days (this weekend)
Until next week!
mrsteacher

mrsteacher

1
angellic16's Blog
 

Stalled

I know that this stall business is a way of life for us but that does not mean I have to like it. I haven't lost a pound in a while and I have been exercising like crazy. I know that we will lose inches in this process but I guess I am chained to the scale for goodness sakes.
angellic16

angellic16

2
GiGi's Plication Surgery Blog
 

My First Buffet Today

Well I made it through with no problem. I meet with a group of women every Wednesday and we either eat at a local Mexican restaurant for lunch or at a local Inn that has a country buffet. Today they chose the buffet.   I called ahead to find out what they had and I happen to get the owner. I asked her about just buying one item off the buffet and explained my situation and she said I could just have the childs buffet price and that way I could try more than one item. My plate consisted of:   1/2 cup of Black Eyed Peas 1/4 cup of Tuna Salad 1/2 a boiled egg 1/4 cup of mashed potatoes   I was pretty full but very satisfied. It was great. I did have to stand up after I ate. That seems to help the food move down for me.   Success!
GiGi

GiGi

0
worm2872's Blog
 

Reading, Reading And More Reading. Oh And Some Videos Too.

As I stated in my last entry, I am not much of a reader. However, that has recently changed. I cannot stop reading about the surgery, pre-op, post-op, the diet, amount of weight lose, etc. It's become a mini obsession. The more I read, the more I learn it is for me. I bought WLS for Dummies and it has been really great. Kind of a one stop shop for all phases of the process. Also bought Skinny Jeans. This is more of a psyche type book. The mental state you need to be in and why we look for this as an option. So far so good and both are on Amazon pretty cheap too. Also found some great videos on the subject: http://www.muschealth.com/video/Default.aspx?videoId=10693&cId=46&type=rel and http://www.upmc.com/Video/Pages/default.aspx?vcat=511%3b%230cc24f80-e320-4764-933f-2379e134e347%7cWeight+Loss. They are both hospital centers of bariatric excellence. Great info!   http://www.obeseinfo.com/default.htm Is another great website. I have found the more I learn the less nervous I become. It is also reinforcing I have made the right decision. I cannot wait for my first nutrition appointment on 8/14.     Happy Reading!!
worm2872

worm2872

3
Darkkyss' Blog
 

From The Beginning

I have wanted the lap band for several years now but was unable to afford the cost. I was watching TV and seen a commercial stating go to this web site and on the web site it would give you the codes to ask your insurance about. I did not even realize my insurance would cover it, I called my insurance and they were so helpful and let me know what I needed.   I went to a Rockwood Clinic seminar in April, which I found 2 hours out of town (nothing local due to a small town). Then I went home and thought about it and asked my family for their input.   I then called my primary Dr and made an appointment and asked for a referral to Rockwood Clinic.   I then called and made an appointment for May 21st and called my insurance back and asked more questions about co-pay and was the hospital “in network”. I went to my Dr.’s appointment in May and spoke with the Dr about different surgeries after hearing more from him, I decided to change the surgery I wanted I decided on the Sleeve. I made another call to my insurance and the Sleeve was also covered!!!   I made sure I called my insurance regularly and I was seeing to see if they needed any info. I completed all test that were required. My surgery is scheduled August 15th. I had small hurdles; I did have to keep on top of insurance making sure things were completed correctly. I had to call Dr’s office several times to see what they were doing to make sure the ball was not dropped.   These were the test that needed completed before they would even schedule my Surgery.   Medical Psychological Eva. Was completed June 1st it took the person 1 week to submit the test results to the Dr. I did have to pay this upfront cost of $270.00. But I was able to submit to insurance and have myself reimbursed but stating it was required to have for surgery since surgery is covered so are the test by my insurance company. I had to submit 2 times because of incorrect codes. Code I used was; V72.83 (Other specified pre-operative examination - pre-operative exam unspecified). EKG Completed 6/5/2012 Gallbladder Ultrasound Completed 6/6/2012 Chest X-Ray Completed 6/6/2012 Lab blood work Completed 6/6/2012   I completed all tests that were required.   I start my liquid diet Aug 1st   My pre Op appointment is Aug 3rd   My surgery is scheduled August 15th.   I feel very lucky that the time frame is under 90 days from first appointment till the time of my surgery. Like I said I stayed in close contact with a person at Rockwood clinic and my insurance company making sure everything was turned in correctly.
Darkkyss

Darkkyss

0
Kekeboo's Blog Menu
 

August 1...today Menu/exercise Plan

Please feel free to comment your thoughts. This is new for me, but I am a planner. If I don't plan ahead I don't follow through. I stopped working at the end of the last school year and it's been hard to get my daily plans in order. I get my down time, but without my "things to do list" or a menu plan I end up with a lot more down time with a bag of chips. treadmill workout: 1 incline 10 min. 3.4 speed 2 incline 10 min. 3.0 speed 3 incline 5 min. 3.0 speed 4 incline 5 min. 3.0 speed 2 incline 5 min. 3.0 speed 1 incline 5 min. 3.4 speed 1 incline 5 min. 2.8 speed Total time:45 minutes   Breakfast: Iced High Protein Coffee + Energy 20g whey protein 130 Calories   Lunch: 3 oz tuna, 1Tbsp light mayo, dill pickle juice. 18 g protein 125 Calories   Dinner: 6 Butterball turkey meatballs, .25 serving Francesco Rinaldi Spicy Marinade 18.5 g protein 185 Calories   Snack: 1 sugar free pudding 2g protein 60 calories   Drinks: Diet Lipton Mixed Berry Green Tea 16.9 oz 0g protein 0 calories Sugar Free Koolaid 0g protein 10 calories 1 scoop 100% Whey Protein 21g protein 110 calories   Vitamin: OnTHEGo Vitamin drink 2 Tums plus calcium   Daily intake: 79g protein 620 calories
Kekeboo

Kekeboo

5
Ready! Set!'s Blog
 

Woman In Bathroom Becomes Hysterical After Looking In Mirror

Over the weekend, the hubby and I took a little road trip down to Galveston Texas to tour the new Pleasure Pier. If you aren't from our area, let me explain. Galveston has many piers that jut out into the gulf. One had a hotel on it. After Hurricane Ike demolished what was left of the pier and building, the question of what to do with the space came up. So, Galveston put a carnival like space out onto the pier. There are restaurants, a merry go round, roller coaster, log ride etc. as well as all the fun carnival games you remember from childhood. The place just opened this summer and we'd been too busy prior to this past Sunday to go down and look it over.   So, we started our afternoon sitting in the bar of the Bubba Gump Shrimp company enjoying some Cajun steamed shrimp, cold Shiner and people watching (my favorite sport). The place was packed, the staff was busy and the people watching was awesome. One customer was getting on the bartender's nerves to the point I was ready to open bets regarding who was gonna win the inevitable brawl (the bartender was a cute little blonde chick, about 100 pounds soaking wet). The brawl was everted by a smart manager who found an open table - far away from the bar- for the obnoxious customer.   In any event, I digress.   I ended up going to the toilet during our time @ Bubba Gump. Washing my hands afterward, I glanced into the mirror and almost laughed out loud. I was not the biggest chick in the mirror!! No disrespect to the other women in the toilet intended, this blog is after all, all about me and my journey.......but for the first time in a very long time, I was not the biggest chick in the bathroom !!!!. I did contain myself and stifled my laughter (they would have had me hauled out for insanity if I just burst into hysterical laughter after looking in the mirror) but I did giggle all the way down the stairs and back to the bar. Taking my seat on the bar stool by my hubby, he asks what happened in the bathroom.....and I told him. He just shook his head and laughed with me.   Again, I am amazed when I think of all the sad, little conditioning that has occurred over my 20+ years of obesity. Until Sunday, I wasn't aware that every time I was in a room, I was scanning to see if I was the fattest chick there........and sad to say, many times I was - the fattest chick in the room. All of the subconscious bull shit I've done to myself over the years continues to simply appall me. And it was so undeserved. I've always said being fat is 1) NOT a character flaw and 2) if that number was my IQ rather than my weight, we'd be excited!!! And I've believed that......but yet, here I was comparing myself to others and beating myself up without even knowing it.   Well, the beatings end here!.........let the love-in begin!!!
Ready?Going..

Ready?Going..

6
Kekeboo's Blog
 

I Own Every Self-Help Book On The Market, One Day I Will Be Fixed!

I talk a good game but can I follow my own advice? I have always been told that I give great advice, but I just can't seem to incorporate my advice into my life.   Between the selfhelp books, the weightloss books and the devotional books...I thought I would have my life more put together. My kids are healthy, smart and seem to very happy. I monitor thier food, thier homework, thier friends. I am not over protective because I feel they need to fall down so they know how to pick themselves up. We talk about what they eat and teach them to make good food choices, we talk about thier friends and if they are surrounding themselves around positive role models or if they are the role model for those who need positve friends.   I took motherhood on as a lifestyle, not a challenge. But, I forgot to take care of mom. They saw the opposite of what I was teaching them in me. My food choices, my education and a few friends that were not healthy for me.   I remember introducing a friend of mine to Lowcarb eating. She lost 35lbs so fast and I gained 5. She thanked me for all the recipes and websites to follow. I wanted to crawl under a rock.   So now that I have revealed myself, I feel like I have to put up or shut up. So, I am going to post on my blog my daily food intake, my excercise and anything else that comes to mind. It will be easier to post my successes my failures since I don't personally know anyone here. The only person I can dissapoint is myself.
Kekeboo

Kekeboo

0
lrainb's Blog
 

Today's The Day!

Well it's 5 am and Im just about ready to go...lost that 12th lb with yesterdays liquids! 82 to go! God bless everyone today especially all us August Firsters!!! See you back here soon:-)!!
lrainb

lrainb

0
LovetheNewMe's Blog
 

Fat Pant's

Happy Wednesday everyone. Today I want to offer some encouragement to all the new bandsters and all that have been working hard on their weight loss. While cleaning out the closet I found these pants that I "USED" to wear and they were tight before I stated my journey. I have now lost a total of 112 lbs, (Banded in October 2010) This has been an eye opening experience, I never realized how unhealthy I was or how badly I ate. I wish I could say my journey was over but I know that my true journey is just beginning. I now must maintain this new me, I must learn from the past year and rely less on my band and more on the new behaviors I have been drilling into my brain. Portion Control, Protein first and "No Snacking Between Meals" and let's don't forget daily exercise and if not daily at least 3-4 times a week. This is my life now, "Learning to Stay Healthy" This journey has given me back so much, when I started I was not only morbidly obese but I had sleep apnea, I was on multiple medications for asthma and hypertension. I have none of those issues now. I must admit getting here was a journey but being here is both rewarding and scary. The band has worked well for me, it has it's ups and downs but I have learned to work through them and have modified my eating and life style. I love my cyber family and all the support and encouragement they have given me and hope I can pay it back ten times over.   Happy Wednesday!   Picture # 2 is me standing inside of one leg, yes one leg of my size 24 draw string jeans. (I am sure we all have a pair or had a pair of these) Picture # 1 is me in my small top and size 4 linen (no stretch pants)  
♥LovetheNewMe♥

♥LovetheNewMe♥

4
genre77's Blog
 

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genre77

genre77

0
Shoshanna's Grand Weight Maintenance Adventure or Life After Reaching Goal
 

Once Upon A Time There Was This Fat Girl

Once upon a time there was this fat girl. Me. Like many fat girls, I was an expert on inner thigh chafing, aching knees, swollen ankles, shopping for ugly prints and polyesters in the Plus Department, and taking deep breaths before leaning over to tie shoes. The Weight Watcher Points for fifty different foods and the calorie counts for three dozen more were etched into my brain and I truly believed (Hallelujah, sister!) that eating fewer calories than I burned was the Holy Grail of weight loss. Forty years of dieting seared the fear of doughnuts into my soul and I sought salvation a dozen times. Alas, try as I might to avoid bad company, peanut M&Ms, bacon burgers, and extra-large portions of fries remained my guilty pleasures and emotional solace.   Decades passed and the fat girl (me) evolved into a fat woman despite Mr. Atkins, Jazzercise, Lean Cuisine, salads without dressing, broiled meat, and personal willpower. I lost weight many times only to have those familiar pounds return home to roost, bringing along friends and relatives to take up residence on my hips and thighs.   I'd have quit looking in the mirror when the scale registered 240 pounds, but that wasn't possible since I teach belly dance classes that require me to face a mirror for a couple of hours each Wednesday night. Looking like a round black dot with a head was bad enough, but arthritic knees and limited mobility are not conducive to teaching dance. Still, denial was my watchword when it came to physical damage caused by my weight. I broke my foot during a simple chaine turn and ignored it for a month, earning an exasperated sigh from my good doctor when a belated x-ray showed the break was almost healed.   Not long after the broken foot incident, I went for my annual physical. Dr. Renee Stirling has long been witness to the ups and downs of my weight, encouraging me and gently admonishing me as necessary. Though I had never seriously considered the procedure in terms of myself, that day I asked her, “What do you think of bariatric surgery?” Dr. Renee is a conservative doctor and I expected her to recite the litany of burning more calories than are taken in. To my astonishment, she promptly replied, “I think you are a perfect candidate and I will write whatever letters and fill out whatever papers you need in order to have it done.”   Obviously the time had come to consider the matter seriously. That was mid-October of 2009; I naively hoped I could get the procedure done by early December at the latest. After three visits with the hospital nutritionist, several visits with the nurse in charge of Wyoming Medical Center’s Weight Management Program, one meeting with the surgeon and his staff, a psychiatric evaluation, a pile of paper work, and a nerve-racking six week wait for insurance approval, I finally had surgery on March 3, 2010.   I’d tell you about the surgery and aftermath except I remember nothing at all about it (lucky you). I don’t recall if it was done in the hospital or Outpatient Surgery. Even once my husband assured me it was done at the hospital, I couldn’t recall if I stayed overnight or not (he says I did). I was off work for several days and when I went back I did not share the nature of my surgery with coworkers except to say it was done to improve some matters involving a gastric problem.   To make a two and a half year long story short, I lost weight slowly and with long plateaus between ten pound losses. In January of 2012, still 13 pounds from my goal weight, my surgeon asked if I would be the poster girl for the Wyoming Medical Center Weight Management program. Recognizing my chance for fifteen minutes of fame when I saw it, I agreed, and for a couple of months my before and after pictures appeared in the local newspaper along with the caption, “I can dance again!” Actually I never quit dancing, but it was certainly easier when my feet were no longer in danger of cracking under my weight. In return for allowing my picture to be used for promotional purposes, I got a nice set of professional photographs and some atta-girls from friends and acquaintances.   Two weeks ago while on a business and pleasure trip to northern California, I reached my goal weight of 145 pounds. I haven’t weighed 145 pounds since I was 24 years old and I wasn’t quite sure what to do next. My inclination was to set a weight goal of 135 and keep the downward momentum going, but my husband and son protested vociferously that I was getting too thin. I expected it from my husband who likes a bit of meat on ladies, but hearing it from my son surprised me; he’s a rancher and since I’m not a horse or a cow, I wasn’t sure he’d even noticed I was 95 pounds thinner.   For reasons known only to God, my band tightened this summer until it was difficult to even drink liquids some days. Last week I went to see my surgeon, Dr. Todd Beckstedt, to get a bit of liquid removed from the band. In the course of removing .75 cc from my band, he asked me if I was interested in being the WMC Lapband poster girl again. My initial thought was, “What? Isn’t anyone else losing weight?” but I decided I wouldn’t mind a new set of pictures at my goal weight and so agreed.   The unfill allowed me to drink water again (oh, the heavenly feel of liquid running down my throat unimpeded!) but I realized the remaining restriction was not going to allow me to eat enough for maintaining my weight. I went back today and to my utter horror, Dr. B removed an entire cc of liquid, explaining that it is easier to adjust up than down.   On one hand, this will be good for me, allowing my stomach to relax following the bout of gastroenteritis that probably caused the tightening and giving me a taste of life without stern restriction after 2.5 years of banding. I am particularly excited about the prospect of being able to eat a good salad tomorrow after so many months of having lettuce get caught no matter how well I chewed the stuff.   BUT...   Dealing with this relative lack of restriction is the biggest challenge I have faced since filling out the first paperwork two and a half years ago. I am frankly terrified of gaining weight back. Dr. Beckstedt will be gone next week and I have two weeks to deal with this unsettling state of non-restriction and the fear that I might revert to old habits and go into one of those blind fugues where I eat everything in sight without being hungry.   Fortunately my medical insurance gives me access to a nurse who calls me once a month to go over health concerns with me. I can contact her whenever I need guidance or support regarding health challenges that I face. I spoke with her today and she helped me work through how I am going to deal with some of the challenges of maintenance. I am considering reestablishing contact with my in-town counselor and the local bariatric support group for a couple of months to get me through the transition period. The Lapband forum has been a good source of support and information in the past and I’ve started this blog in conjunction with it. I’m not a blogger by nature, generally preferring to keep my meandering written thoughts to myself, but I hope by writing under a pseudonym I can remain relatively private while keeping myself in line and giving back to others some of the guidance and encouragement I continue to receive from the generous souls around me.   With any luck I won’t bore any of us to death, either.
Shoshanna

Shoshanna

2
Dig It Dog
 

Bored Cooking, Chefs On Tv And The Olympics

So this whole summer break is very boring. My car is unavailable to me for the next two weeks, so i'm stuck at home, watching daytime TV and since i have never had cable, or satellite TV, that means lots of talk shows and cooking shows ( the chew, Lidia's Italy Kitchen America, etc...)   Basically I've been making some of the recipes i see, Just making them healthier, more organic, less fat. ,more yum. Today I made an Organic Corn soup. Added Carrots and basil from the garden. Was DElicious, used milk instead of cream or a heavier cheese. Made Tortilla soup last night. Onions, cilantro and tomatoes from the garden, plus garlic and chicken bouillon. I'm not really eating all that much more since I got the unfill, but i feel so much better that i did a month ago.   Also been watching the Olympics! (( GO USA!!)) And i find that when i watch sports i'm familiar with ( soccer, boxing, swimming, biking, etc) My muscles tend to twitch. Like when i was watching the Men's Bike race, my legs where twitching when they would go up hill, my hands would reach from the brakes... in swimming and water polo my arms are stretching out. lol i'm feeling so silly.
Tanya_cotto

Tanya_cotto

0
J. Fabulous' Blog
 

Staying Active

I had a lot of fantasies about all the different things I was going to do after I lost weight. I was going to be a lot more active, I thought. I was going to buy bicycles for my wife and me, and go bike riding all over town.
I was going to take a self-defense class and learn how to finally protect myself.
I was going to go on photo safaris all over, and spend hours walking around and taking pictures.
I was going to go on hikes in the Shenandoah mountains, and learn kayaking – why, I have no idea.
I’ve been trying to get my wife to agree to buy bicycles for some time now. She always said that we couldn’t afford it and that they were too expensive. I agreed with her, but it was really something I wanted. I felt that it was going to help in my recovery from weight loss. I wanted to buy bicycles in spring so that we could go out riding when the weather was cool. She had said no, but just last month she agreed that we should buy bicycles.   I called up a good friend of mine who is an avid cyclist, and he met us at the pro bike shop. After spending a few hours of learning about bicycles, we selected two identical his and hers Schwinn comfort bikes. It’s been 90 to 100 degrees here most days, and just too hot to ride. On the few occasions that I have been able to ride my bicycle, I will say, I am woefully out of shape. I find that I can’t ride for more than fifteen minutes at a time, partly because we live on a hilly street, and going up and down the hills takes a lot more energy than riding a stationery bike. So far my attitude has been that my biking stamina will improve the more I do it. I’m just waiting for the weather to get a little bit cooler so I can go out riding.   One of the other things I need to do is to start weightlifting. When I was having all those back problems, my physical therapist told me that the issues were partly due to my back muscles not being strong enough to withstand the extra exertion I was putting on them. She told me I needed to strengthen my back muscles. My wife and I have signed up for a weightlifting class that meets once per week. She is encouraging me to go do weight training two to three times per week. I believe the class starts next month, and I’m looking forward to it. I’ve also looked online to find photo safaris all over the country. There are several photo safaris in my area. I signed up to go to one in August. It would be great if I could go to one safari per month to get back into my photography. I’ve really been missing it. This particular safari I signed up for is going to be meeting at a museum, and we’ll be shooting in and around the museum.   I asked my wife if she wanted to come along with me, and we could have lunch afterward. She agreed to go with me to the museum, but not to the photo safari. She would spend her time walking around the museum while I shot my pictures. We would meet up at the museum restaurant at a pre-designated time for lunch. One of the reasons why I invited her was because I didn’t want her to feel left out.   The entire time that I was at the fire department, she would always complain that I was leaving her to go to the fire department and that I wasn’t spending enough time with her. I would like to make her as much a part of my photography as possible. It won’t be possible all the time, because a lot of these safaris don’t allow you to tag along if you don’t have a camera. I’ll do my best.   My wife also found a kayaking class in the LL Bean catalog, and also, a fly fishing class. I’ve always wanted to try fly-fishing. I had signed up for fly-fishing classes a couple of years back while we were on vacation, but unfortunately, I was sick in bed the entire time during that vacation, and was not able to do it. While I haven’t actually done anything yet, it’s exciting to know that I am making plans for an active future. I think last weekend’s excursion to the park was a good first step.
Jack Fabulous

Jack Fabulous

1
Kekeboo's Blog
 

First Day Of Soft Foods, I Don't Like It.

I was just getting used to the soups and protien drinks and now.... I don't know if I am mentally ready to move on. When my nurse said I could add mashed potatos and other foods to my meals, I didn't hear anything after mashed potatos. My mind immediately saw a bag of potatos, a block of cream cheese, a stick of butter and a can of PET milk. Oh the horror!!! I know myself, adding the white carbs will sabatoge anything I have done so far. I am a carb junkie.   I went to the store and purchase veggies to steam, turkey meatballs, maranara sauce, quinoa and other items that I intended on adding slowly to my diet.   Hehe, I made dinner for my family tonight...little do they know that they had turkey meatballs, whole wheat pasta and low sugar marinara sauce. And they ALL liked it. I had steamed veggies and 2 meatballs with a TB of sauce. It was weird eating it, I felt like I should have put it in the magic blender first. I may do that tomorrow with the meatballs and marinara and add a spoon of ricotta cheese.
Kekeboo

Kekeboo

4
Hardly Hannah
 

11 Hours And 34 Minutes

HOLY "MY SURGERY IS TOMORROW" BATMAN!!! I am having about a million emotions right now. None of which is sleepiness. I am thinking a bubble bath is exactly what I need. A little light reading and some decaf sleepy time tea before my midnight ban on food. I have half of my bag packed.   BUT   My dog is being too cute, he is begging me with his puppy dog eyes for a cuddle.  
hannah

hannah

1
The Slim Down Journey
 

Day 9 Of 17 Liquid Diet

Today is day 9 of 17--made it past the half-way point of the liquid diet! It's easier than before but still not easy. Hunger is definitely there and I am learning to cope with cravings as they come up. I know that the rest of the time will fly and the big day will come up much more quickly than I ever expected. So looking forward to getting this done and being on the other side of this. And I've lost 12 pounds on the liquid diet, so I can't complain! Still, what I wouldn't do for a grilled cheese sandwich!
MsCook

MsCook

0
slojo67's Blog
 

Received Band Wagon Book Today!

Just received my Band Wagon book today. It's pretty informative. I also filled out my history papers for Dr. Swain for my post op care/fills. Seems like the day will never get here! Buddy, my husband, is out west on the motorcycle, the kids are all staying here with me. Been trying to get some sun on my body, tried to go to lake the other day but it rained. So i guess I'll just stay pale. Just trying to pass the time. I'm on this site probably 75% of the day, just trying to find someone who's going to my surgeon on the same day. I even got on verticlesleevetalk.com to try to find someone. Thought I had found someone on there but then I lost her and couldn't find her again. I'm just ready to go and get the rest of my life started. We're going to add a porch/new roof/carport this fall to the house i'm ready to get on with that as soon as my husband and I both get back from our trips... We have alot going on. I start dayshift at my nursing job tomororrow morning. I've gained 30 lbs. since going on nights 8 mo. ago. though dayshift would aid in my wt. loss. It's hard to know when to eat working nights, and I haven't been sleeping enough. Also when all of this is over i'm going to finish nursing school. I have 5 classes to go (online) then clinicals to complete my BSN in nursing. I've been working on it for 10+ years and have to finish it this year. I HAVE to!!! Otherwise alot of money will go down the drain. Not just in wages, but the cost of college will be wasted.Well, I'm "just a waitin!). Gotta go ....
slojo67

slojo67

1

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