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It's Not Listening!

I think my stomach is trying to enter "Bandster Hell". My brain isn't going to accept that. My stomach is GROWLING. It's screaming "FEED ME" but my brain is set on following the diet plan. My stomach is just going to have to tough it out. I'm getting really good at this mind control thing. The stomach no longer calls the shots. I know what's best for my body and what it needs, so I'll just keep to my plan.   I feel very lucky to be losing like this post op. I hit 30 lbs lost yesterday, my 30 day "anniversary" of the surgical consult. I had surgery on May 18th, so three weeks out from surgery and I'm over a third of the way to my goal. Each day I've been losing between 6 oz and a pound. It hasn't been easy, my brain and stomach are constantly at battle, and I still don't love running on the elliptical a few miles a day or drinking SO much water, but it's working so I'm going to stick to it.   My goal is to be at 210 by the time I go in for my fill on the 19th. Eleven days, 3 lbs. I would love to be at 205 but I'm trying to keep my goals realistic in case the weight loss slows down.   I do really love being happily surprised by my scale every morning. I always think "okay, I probably gained three pounds yesterday and I'm okay with that" then the number pops up and it's lower than the day before.   So for now, life is pretty good for this girl.

jen_1381

jen_1381

 

My New Fitbit!

So, I got a Fitbit Ultra last Friday and having been using it very faithfully ever since. I really like how easy it is to use and all of its little features. It has really been a motivator for me. I like watching the numbers climb on the pedometer portion and I really like when my calories are in the green zone!     Ok, that being said. I was really hoping that paying atention to what I ate and how I moved that much more than I already do would have made a difference on the scale! Nope. I was really really really hoping to be below 270 by now!!!! So very frustrating.

Jerseygirl82

Jerseygirl82

 

Measurement On Day One Of Pre Op Diet

This is going to be short and sweet. Everyone keeps on saying how they have NSV (non scale victories) and can feel their clothes getting looser or falling off completely and while those are fabulous victories, I'm a numbers girl. So here I am baring it all - the weight was pretty hard to disclose to begin with but now I'm going to share my measurements. My hopes are to be able to document how steadily I lose these inches (hopefully many and quickly). I did take "before" pictures last night but have not had an opportunity to upload them yet, those will come later.   So on to the public mortification   All in Inches Left Side Right Side Bicep 18.5 17.5 Fore Arm 13.5 12.75 Thigh 35.5 34 Calf 22.5 21.5   All around   Hips 60 Waist 47.5 Chest 44.5 Boobs 49.5 Neck 14   Sizes 22 pants (snug but 24 are very loose) 18/20 top & XXL 40/42 DDD   This is where I start, I'm not proud of it but I look forward to seeing the numbers come down.

BikiniBodby30

BikiniBodby30

 

Seriously Annoyed! Doctors And Pharmacies...communication Issues

Ok so I am doing fairly well and pretty proud of myself for getting down almost 10 pounds in the last 2 1/2 weeks. I was feeling better, and very motivated to do this while I wait for my insurance to clear so I can finalize everything and get my surgery. So in the meantime I am very fanatic about taking my thyroid meds exactly when and how I am supposed to. I even wait a good hour before eating after taking it so that I know things are processing how they are supposed to.   That being said I went to call the pharmacy for a refill of the meds and low and behold my doctor didn't authorize refills for me when I went and saw her on the 10th. So now I am panicking because I ran out Monday and I had NO medicine. So they tell me that the process can take up to 72 hours to get refills. And now I am about to have heart failure because if I go that long without my meds I have to start all over getting it built up in my system, which also derails my diet progress because when my levels aren't good the scale will NOT move. So I wait and fret and finally they give me a 3 day emergency supply on Wednesday night. So I take it Thursday and boom I crash hard by Thursday afternoon. I had been without it long enough that my dosage is a bit high to start back up with and by 4 on Thursday I feel like someone took a bat to me, I ran a low grade fever and had the most horrible headache all day that I couldn't get rid of. To top it off I was pissed! Seriously pissed. I couldn't believe that they still hadn't got this crap straight by Thursday night so that I could have my medicine....errr.   So even though my doctors office has a strict policy on refill requests (you're supposed to call the pharmacy and they will deal with them) I called the nursing line and left a detailed and not very polite message about how I NEED MY FREAKING MEDICINE, and I thought that a whole week was ridiculous amount of time to wait for a refill. So now I have to call the pharmacy and see if any progress has been made in this area because I only have one more emergency pill left for tomorrow and then I'm out again.   This whole process is unacceptable. I love my doctor, I really do, but this isn't the first time that staff in her office have completely screwed something up and I had to wait for my meds. Every 3 months I go through this when I need a refill and depending on how long it takes or how long I'm without my pills it can take up to 2 months to repair the damage to my body and get myself back to feeling good. I think I might look into herbal thyroid supplements to have on hand as back up and I'm going to talk to my insurance about 90 day supplies so that refills are automatically handled with the insurance company and I don't have to mess with it!

mylynn1377

mylynn1377

 

Last Night Was Amazing!

And it was only a seminar! After a slightly stressful drive over there, because GoogleMaps is the worst, thank god for my iPhone.... Ty and I arrived about 10 mintues late. I had this image in my head of them turning us away because we were late and I was so scared that I would have to wait a month to go to the next one, but they let us right in, lol.   It was amazing to see and hear all the facts about obesity in America, I was shocked by some of it. The doctor running the seminar kept calling it a disease, that obesity is the fastest spreading emidemic in America and that we should consider it a disease. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I know that due to genetics, some people are more proned to being overweight then others, but I really feel like it's more of a culture issue. Our portion sizes in America are out of this world. When I first arrived to Japan in January I honestly thought I was going to have to order two of everything when we went out to eat beacuse the portions were so small there, but after about 2 weeks I found that I could "survive" off the portions that they served just fine, that it was indeed, enough food.   We learned about the 4 different types of surgeries that they offer, and all the pros and cons. Then they had three lovely ladies come up who had had the surgery and give their story. That was actually pretty cool, until the audience started focusing more on succes stories, then having important questions answered. That was the frustrating part. I thought that people there would be more prepared like I was, with a list of important questions and ready to just open fire while the surgen was there. And when did raising your hand to ask a question go out of style? My arm got so tired while being raised and having to wait because people were just blurting out questions that I had to rest it on Ty for support. (I don't wan to sound like a b*tch and say that no one should have been asking questions but me, lol, it was just a lot of questions were about clothes and such, and before and after pictures. I just wanted to tell everyone about this site and say "go there! They have awesome b & a pics! but please, I need to know some things first!" but I didn't )   So, as we were walking out, I was eager to set up the next appointments for Ty and me and when I spoke to the lady in charge of that, she asked why we hadn't filled out the insurance sheet (where she calls and checks with our insurance for free) and I told her that I had called about 2 weeks ago and that our insurance didn't cover the band because our employer has decided to exclude it from our coverage. ( I was proud that I could tell her verbatim what was told to me 2 weeks ago) (and I also thought this was something she must hear everyday) She asked if they covered any other WLS and I said yes, gastro bypass and she said she wanted our information, because it's almost illegal for them to cover one but not the other, because the band is FDA approved. So that is what I am doing today, filling out the insurance forms for Ty and myself to fax in. If we can save 30,000 by not self-paying, I'm sure I can find it in my heart to wait a bit longer to have the surgery, plus 30,000 can buy me the new boobs that I've always wanted, or at least some jeans that fit right after I lose weight. lol   Sorry this was so long, I was just so excited about last night, I would have posted last night if the drive home wasn't 2 hours long, but luckily for all you folks, it's time for me to get ready for work and finish my last day of training. Hopefully I passed the test yesterday so that I'm not going to training today for nothing.   Happy Friday!   ~Shelley

Shelleymb

Shelleymb

 

Omg! June 18Th!

Yesterday, I received a call from my Doctor's office with a date for my surgery. It's a good month before I thought I would be able to have it done. The date is June 18th. As of last night I'm on a liver shrinking diet. The diet sucks. Would it really be so bad if I just put a pork chop in my mouth and sucked on it? Or if I puree mashed potatoes and gravy (I could even add protein powder!)   I just keep repeating my mantra "Please God help me to be strong I really want this to work. I feel like this is my last chance to get back to normal. It's been such a long time since I took walks for pleasure, shopped in a department store, or fit in any chair. I just keep remembering that this liquid diet is the beginning of a new life and the end of my old frustratingly exhausting life. At least I can have coffee until the surgery! And if I smack someone I think a jury of my peers will understand.

Marisa46

Marisa46

 

Preparation

I'm trying so hard to gather as much information as I can and be as prepared as I can be. I have started a number of different "lists" and am starting to write down questions I want to ask at the consultation this upcoming Monday. I don't know why it feels so important, although it really is important, but it feels like aggravatingly important to make sure I think of EVERYTHING I want to ask, and write it down so I do not forget. I'm just worried I will forget to ask something important.   I know I'll be just fine though. I'm just trying to "sort" everything through in my head and feel a bit more clear headed and focused on one thing at a time. I need to go to the consultation before I start worrying about things like the protein shakes and liquid diets and all of that stuff and I think that those things will be more clearer after the consult because he will be telling me what I need to do for those things like pre-op diet and what to do for that and the stuff for after the surgery, etc. So I think all of that stuff will be clearer after the consult so I can just focus on the consult 'right now'.

Failure

Failure

 

Stuck On A Number

I have been stuck on the same weight for 3 weeks. I would really like to get below the teens 209 would be good! Not seeing the 10 ten in 210 would be great! Mental thing! All I have to do is lose 3 lbs....easier said than done! Could use a little cheer leading everybody...." i think i can, i think i can!"

journey4me

journey4me

 

Day One Pre Op Diet

End of day one and....... Yeah, I'm hungry. I don't expect this to be easy. And the weird part - or maybe not - is that I wasn't all that starving during the day but as soon as I got home, I ate a chicken breast for dinner and a protein shake blended with skim milk and strawberries a little later. Perhaps this is the "head hunger" all of the other bandsters are talking about. I will need to be aware of this so I don't fall victim to it's wiles. In other news, I'm going to be taking my "Before" pictures and measurements tonight. Oh and I have a headache too - stupid food cravings.

BikiniBodby30

BikiniBodby30

 

On My Way!

Hello Everyone, I am 38 years old and always struggled with my weight. I have 3 lovely daughters and 1 son that I am in the process of adopting. I have always been self conscience about my weight, even when I was at an “ideal” weight. Once I began having children, I packed on the pounds. I have tried so many things, as well as exercise and dieting and most of the things that I have tried have been a temporary fix, usually resulting in me gaining all of the weight back plus some! My highest weight was 301 in Dec. 2011. I was so disappointed and scared that I decided to do something about it by getting banded. In 2009, I began the process of becoming banded but puncked out once I learned I had sleep apnea and high blood pressure. In all reality, my weight was about 280 in 2009 and should have continued with my banding. But no need to cry over spilled milk. On May 29, 2012, I was banded and have successfully loss 21 pounds. I feel very empowered, energetic and refreshed since the surgery! I see the difference in my face and I feel fantastic!   I have such a supportive family and I want to give them the thanks that they deserve. Since the surgery, they have been walking the track across the street from my house with me. Since the surgery, I have been walking at least 2 miles per day with out back pain! Also, I no longer have to sleep with my apnea machine! This is feeling really good. Thanks for reading my story Sara

saramatos11

saramatos11

 

God Was By My Side Today

I truly believe that God was by my side today. And I will be admit that sometimes I find myself wondering sometimes if I ever get heard. This is proof that I do, and maybe that fact can help someone else find faith in the Lord along their journey. I've never been one to have much luck with things, a lot of people feel the need to take from me and the relationship department isn't that great, either. After last year I really didn't think that anything good was possible of happening to my life.   I was wrong. And God was here today to show me that if you try really hard and you try your best to treat people as generous and nice as possible, that that kindness WILL be returned to you. I asked Him for help today, and he gave me what I asked for. Sure, I could do with being financed the full $18,065 plus some for the pre-op testing, but I am 100% grateful for what I was given. $15,000 is perfect for me because the rest can be made up. I am just so incredibly happy and glad that this happened to me after so many years of feeling like I could never deserve something like this.   Thank you. And thanks to those who prayed for me, too.

Failure

Failure

 

Help!!!!!!!!!!

It is possible that i am in a bander hell! Its also possible that life is hard right now. Of course i am making the best of this and i WILL NOT GIVE UP!!!! ok so here is my problem and just so everyone knows i am working through it! I will win this fight i really will! Ok so last month i couldn't eat at all and that is hard no matter what so they took out .4cc's not to much and i did just fine. This time i went back and they put in .5cc's so yeah i was kinda worried. But i thought they know what they are doing right? Ok so the first day i could eat i tried a hamburger patter on my lunch break with my boss and i throw up everything NOT fun. so today i go black eyed peas and it seem to go down but im only eating about 10% or less and I feel tired real fast and then i feel hungry and its actually hunger not head hunger so ill go back and eat a little more. I went to my regular dr today because i got a spider bite and well that's not fun either but in the past week i have lost a good 8lbs. AWESOME for me because i thought with all the eating that's really good well now that i think about it that's not really so good 8lbs since Monday..... Idk maybe it in my head i am having issues and i honestly don't know what to do i don't want any thing taken out of my band so should i be worried or should i just go with it?? can someone help me?

newlife4nekaylyn

newlife4nekaylyn

 

Shakes, Shakes, And More Shakes!

So today is day 4 out of 13 of my pre-operative shake diet. The shakes are actually pretty good, I make them with light unflavored soy milk and put fruit in. My hunger has been really managable, but wow! I can imagine I'm going to be seriously bored by the time surgery comes around!   The nice thing is I have lost 13 pounds now since my heaviest (7 in the last 4 days), and everything feels so nice and loose. Physically, I feel better already. It's amazing that I have so little control over food, when I feel so horrible physically when I'm eating crap and binging. My head hurts, I feel sick, I have trouble sleeping, my joints hurt more, and I feel tired every second of the day when I'm binging and eating crappy food. How is that addictive? It is though - even as I write this I know that I'm really craving a cheeseburger and fries. What a long road it will be to unlearn such messed-up habits!

becky444

becky444

 

Day 2 Liquid Diet

I am on day 2 of my liquid diet and I'm feeling a little better than I did yestruday. I'm taking day by day instead of looking at it as a 2 week process. I have a protein drink for breakfast one for lunch and soup for dinner. LOTS of water in between. I'm very excited and a bit nervous about the procedure but I know in the end it will all be worth it. The only people that know I'm doing this is my husband and boss(had to tell him for the time off) and 2 co-workers which all have been great supporters. I'm opting not to tell anyone about this because to be honest I dont need or want the negative feed back. This is going to be a life time change for me so I need only positive feed back. I will have my procedure done on June 20th!!! yay!!!!

Lady Sith

Lady Sith

 

Ouch!

I went in for lab work this morning, I am SO not a morning person and I am SO not a needle in the arm person, so this morning? not so much fun for me. I'm a big baby about having blood drawn, I would rather have been in surgery this morning instead. The guy had no sense of humor, and he was not impressed with mine either...he's probably not a morning person.   Surgery still seems so far away, and I feel like I have nothing to do until then, no Doctor visits, nothing. I do think I'm going to try to make a support group meeting next week, and that might make it more real to me, because right now 2 weeks seems like 2 years.

sissy12

sissy12

 

Is It Safe To Come Out Yet?

Ok so I am a little over 2 weeks into my recovery, I know from recent experience that I did too much last week by planting a garden and doing alot of bending while cleaning. I just want to know if its safe to at least walk a few miles a day or something. Last week walking through Wal-Mart for about an hour just regular grocery shopping, and by the time I left the store and got into my car my stomach hurt like crazy, and yes, I know I shouldnt have been driving, but Im in a situation where I dont have a choice sometimes. I do have my first and hopefully only follow up with my surgeon on June 8th so I could wait to ask her, BUT then what are blogs for? lol Thanks for reading

Leaha

Leaha

 

Rebound Acid

Since having my one day bout of acid after forgetting my nexium I started doing research in how on earth am I going to get off the nexium without suffering from acid.   This whole thing about rebound acid is really scary to me.How on earth does the stomach learn to make less acid while being blocked?   Usually I take my calcium citrate at least 4 hours before or after my nexium.Hopefully the bone density wont be affected.Will go for check up soon.   At month 6,at the latest, I am goning to wean myself off the PPI's.There is some natural herbs that will help but I am also going to trust reducing from 20mg in the morning and evening to 10mg in the morning and evening will help prevent rebound.The problem is it seems that this furry fluffy feeling I have in the back of my throat is because of some acid. I wll start taking probiotics from today and see if that makes any difference.   The most important thing is to 1.start taking a multivitimin again 2.take the calcium citrate every second day (gives me diaree so its a laxative as well and I really need it) 3.start taking B12 sublingual to not have injections anymore 4.get vit D injection every month till the D is up   And get enough protein every day.   At th momnt I am doing the protein,almost every day,the D injection tthe calcium citrate and had B12 injections until now.The multi the dr gave me contributed to my getting hotflushes so I stopped it.Have a different one that I will start drinking tomorrow.   Geeze,I never thought this would be so regimented as far as do's and dont are concerned.   Will start taking it serious though as I want to be healthy and get thin.   xxo

desertmom

desertmom

 

Borgwarner's Advanced Technology: The Turbocharger Blades And Coating

Low-pressure exhaust gas recirculation turbo engine has been shown to have the advantages of a substantial increase in fuel economy, reduce emissions and improve dieselelm327 http://www.reliabletop.com/elm327-vgate-scan-advanced-obd2-bluetooth-scan-tool_p340.html engine sensitivity, but until recently, has always been the only high-pressure systems occupy a dominant position, because the turbocharger can not afford inherent in the extreme loads and harmful particles in the low-voltage systems. The BorgWarner solve this problem. BorgWarner Inc., headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, is the leader of a high standard of components and systems engineering in the global automotive power systems. BorgWarner is a U.S. Fortune 500 companies, 60 manufacturing and bmw gt1 http://www.reliabletop.com/bmw-gt1-plus-lan-cable-for-bmw-gt1_p31.html facilities in 18 countries or regions. BorgWarner turbocharger blades coated with a special coating to protect the turbocharger compressor wheel and other components, you can avoid abrasive and corrosive particles. This maxidas ds708 http://www.reliabletop.com/autel-maxidas-ds708_p229.html see is conducive to the promotion of low-pressure exhaust gas recirculation turbocharger. It is reported that the 2011 Renault has been the application of new coating technologies, low-pressure exhaust gas recirculation turbo diesel engine used in the landscape and scenery on the two models.(more information of cars you can refer to:www.reliabletop.com)

reliabletop

reliabletop

 

Where Does The Weight Go?

So I have a bit of a philosophical question. Now I've been stalled out for the last 1.5 weeks but somehow I've lost almost 2" around my waist. So where has the fat gone? It DEFINITELY hasn't gone to my butt (which is now bonier than an underfed horse and twice as uncomfortable to sit on!) and I must admit that I've given a bit of deep thought to this conundrum. Basically after researching all the scientific data that I could get my google-obsessed hands on I reached a major scientific breakthrough of an answer:   Worm holes.   Yep, worm holes. Basically we all have worm holes hooked up to us and as we lose inches (but not weight) the fat goes through the worm hole to another dimension where it floats around in 'space'. Since technically it's still attached to us (via worm hole thermonuclear physics and trans-dimensional laws of relativity ((I really love google! And Star Trek.))) the scales still count that fat. Yeah, it's a bit of a bummer but I figure if I ever get lost in the woods somewhere and can't find a bear to eat I can just reverse the worm hole and live off my stored fat. Kinda like a camel does water, or maybe a bear....   Okay, enough of the silliness (and I'm REALLY impressed if someone actually read this far. Give yourself a strawberry scratch-n-sniff sticker!). Today I had my 6 week checkup and I'm doing great. Thank goodness! These last few weeks have been hard but it's nice to know that everything is okay. Also, mom and I ate at Ruby Tuesdays and they have a surprising number of entrees that someone like me can eat. I think I about died and went to heaven when I found that they have a spaghetti squash pasta. Yeah, mmmmm, good! Granted I was only able to eat about 1/5 of it, but that's why people invented carry-out containers. Soooo good!   I hope all of ya'll are doing well!

Lyra

Lyra

 

It Feels As If....

....I'm getting the band tomorrow, and I'm just going in for a seminar. Ty just told me that he is confused on why we are going, he says that with all my research I should have all the information. But I have a Million questions that I need answered! This is normal right? ....It feels like Christmas Eve right now... I don't even know how I'm going to get through work tomorrow. I'll need to figure out a way to stay focused... I have a career altering test tomorrow afternoon. Game on.     Have a great night and an awesome day tomorrow.     ~Shelley

Shelleymb

Shelleymb

 

I Knew This Would Not Be Easy

I knew this would not be easy and I was prepared for it. It still did not stop me from bawling my eyes out. We are trying to come up with ways that we can pay for this regardless of however much they give us, if it is $7,500 or more. We still need to make the difference because we do not think they will cover it 100% at this rate. It's unfortunate that the surgeon in Chattanooga accepts 4 different lending companies but the one here only has the 1. It's frustrating and it makes me angry but by golly I am going to figure this out and have this procedure.   I need to do this for myself and for my health and for my life. I'm not giving up.

Failure

Failure

 

Week 10 Postop

Last week’s weight – 213.8 This week’s weight – 212.8 Total loss for the week – 1 pound   Total loss since starting – 33.2 Average loss per week since starting – 3.2 lbs   My challenges this week included a two night camping trip with 18 girl scouts. I think all the work we did to set up and take down the campsite off set any extra calories I might have taken in. I also went bowling and had three small pieces of cheese pizza, a beer, and a glass of wine (over a 2 hour period). The beer was the only thing that bothered me (mainly because I was obsessing about the carbonation).   A look at my food (today and yesterday):   Today   Breakfast - A ramikin size bowl of Go Lean Crunch with skim milk Snack - Atkins meal replacement bar Lunch - Yougert (4 oz) with go lean crunch cereal mixed in, 4 oz container of Lloyd's BBQ (ate seperately over some time) Snack - 3 Altoids mints (I didn't have anything else with me) Dinner (if you want to call it that at 3 p.m.)- 4 Burger King chicken nuggets and their hot fudge sundae (was stressed at work and that was how I dealt with it - I really wanted four yummy krispie kreme donuts!!!!!). Stomach felt icky and I laid down to take a nap. It is currently 7:40 p.m. and I am not really hungry but am super thirsty so I am drinking water and diet green tea. Might make a small meat and cheese plate with olives.     Yesterday   Breakfast – SlimFast high protein chocolate protein powder with 8 oz of skim milk. 8 oz of minute maid lemonaid at Sonic. Snack – Almonds (15) Lunch – To go individual peanut butter packet and a 1 oz bag of cool ranch Doritos (I forgot to pack my lunch and that was all I had at school) Dinner – 1 pint 1% milk, cut up boneless porkchop – thin (probably one and a half), bag of edemami (individual serving steamed). Dessert – 2 small scoops of orange sherbet at my school’s ice cream social   School is finished for the year this week so I am hoping to get into a regular early morning walking routine starting next week.

mrsteacher

mrsteacher

 

Holy Friggin' Bazookas!

Oh my gosh I called today to talk to someone about a few questions and also to set up a consultation with the surgeon. And since I am doing this through medical financing they said I can go ahead and do that since I have the pricing sheet from an email the person I spoke with sent to me.   So I went ahead and they have already called me to verify a few income related things for me and my co-signer and she said she would call back TODAY and let me know the result of my application.   I'm so nervous and on edge, my life is awaiting this phone call and it will be the deciding factor of my future, at least in the immediate. This is my only option right at this moment. I pray to God that this is it for me, I need this for myself. Dear God help me now and please please please let this lender approve me!!!!!

Failure

Failure

PatchAid Vitamin Patches

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