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shues138's Journal
 

Pictures

In December of 2011 a bunch of my friends and I went to NYC to go to Rockefeller Center and do the whole touristy NYC thing (I've lived literally an hour away from NYC my whole life and have never done anything touristy there! So if anyone wants to visit and needs a tour guide don't ask me, I have no clue!). So anyway, we took a picture of the four of us. That was when I was at the weight that I realized I gained 30 lbs since having my gall bladder taken out (314 lbs). The picture sits in my office. Every time I think about eating crap I look at my bloated face and think "nah, I don't need it, I worked too hard at this" also in my office is another picture of me taken 1 week before my surgery when I was at my highest weight (322 lbs) and another picture next to it when I was my lowest weight post op (250 ish?) these are just reminders for me not to put food in my mouth and to keep up with the fills, the workouts, eating right etc....because if I looked decent at 250 ish or so, imagine how I'll look when I'm at my goal weight (180 lbs).   I'm also a little worried because right now I have 2.75 ccs in a 4 cc band, and this is the most that has ever been in the band, and I can eat things and not feel true "restriction" granted I'm not hungry between meals but it's still scary. For example last night for dinner I had 1/2 c of general tso's tofu (homemade!!! Never made Chinese food before!) 1/2 cup of steamed broccoli and 1/4 c of brown rice. I ate everything except for a couple of bites of the brown rice. Something I'll have to bring up at my next mds appt.   On a personal note I have my 90 day review for my new position at my job, I hope I don't get demoted lol.   Week two of c25k is hard, I don't think I'm running fast enough. I think the next workout I'm going to try to amp up the treadmill to 5mph in the beginning until I can't stand it anymore. Going to the gym tonight to do some weights.   Have a good day!
shues138

shues138

1
blackanese25's Blog
 

Week 12--- Feeling Better From Last Week.. But Still On The Road To Recovery

5'7'' HW: 265 GfS: 250 DoS: 238.1 CW: 192.1 GW: 150   So I just want to start out by saying thank you everyone for your support and caring words when im just in a rutt!   I am doing sooooooo much better this week, I went to my masseus and she basically beat the hell out of me..lol but by the next day i was feeling expoentially better..I still hurt but not nearly as bad as i did a week ago. Im finally able to get back to running and some light weight lifting.   Also, the weight started droping again so that made me happy!!!! I figure i need to look on the bright side of things.. Im down 46 lbs since surgery.. and its only been 2 and a half months.. i think im doin pretty damn good. And i am really excited about tough mudder coming up in sept.. if i can drop the last 40 lbs by then.. I am going to compete. (but im really hopin to lose the last 42 lbs way before then cuz i wanna be bikini ready by summer..lol....*cross my fingers*) probably not gonna happen, but a girl can dream can't she?!!   well you know me blogs are not complete without some pics so here ya go!!!!   this is me on 3-3-12 performing with my band!! had a great night! goofy face..i dunno...lol
blackanese25

blackanese25

4
gramaof4's Blog
 

Back Home To Harney County

Yesterday, I flew home to Redmond, closest airfield to Home Town.... I greeted my husband after being gone 11 days from home, he smiled, gave me a superficial kiss and began to question why I didn't just have my 47 lb bag as a carry on. I explained it was too heavy for me to cart across the airports to the 3 planes I had to board and unboard...more convienience and the fact it would have been hard on my incisions.   I was wiped out, I got a little clastraphobic on one of the flights and had a back cramp most of the leg...glad was only 55 min flight. anyway, I do suggest for any WLS patient...check your bag...get wheel chair assistance....and if you choose to take your vita water or reg water or drink with you...tell them it is "medical needed" they will test the drink but will allow you to carry it on.... (Tip from airline asst.).   Arrived to a nice clean and made bed at my daughters home. Fell asleep and slept all night long. Woke to my little grandson (6 yrs) starring at my belly....afraid to ask but non the less carefull and curious. He said to me..."Grama, papa says you can only eat 2 bites before you are full", I said yes papa is right...he said then how are you gonna stay alive?...I told him it would be plenty and the great thing about this whole deal is now we get to share our meals for real. He was excited you mean you'll eat my brocolli off my plate???   Then came my shower of the day, both grandbabies were so interested in the incisions and especially the one they couldn't see (drain port)..so I told them as soon as I showered and was ready to put the bandages on I would call them...this was like waiting for Christmas...they were yelling outside the bathroom....Grama can we see your hole yet? well not the calmest shower I've had but showed them and they were done being so darn curious. Cute little babies anyhow.   We took off toward home and 27 miles out, my husband pulls over our Expedition and said, I'm to tired to drive you'll have to...so I got out and moved to the drivers seat where I continued to drive 103 miles to home, while he slept.   I dropped hubby off at home and agreed to take the 2nd car as he had stuff he needed out of the big rig. I went to work to catch up on what I had missed throughout the past 2 weeks...I did go and get myself a bowl of chicken broth and it was so good...I also grabbed an iced tea...   went to grocery store got some progressive soup and waters...took my son with me and while shopping he says to me...."don't tell dad, but he says you can't do this" I said do what lose the weight? he said "yes, dad says "you'll always be fat." I said to my young son 12 yrs. old...."Son this is why I have a separate suport system" because dad won't be supportive and not sure he really cares at this point." "Son, I want you to know I am committed to losing weight so I can do more things with you and with the grandbabies."   Anyway, nothing goes by without missing a beat....family asks me..."What's for dinner mom?" They had turkey hamburgers, I will have soup and Jello.   I weighed tonight, and I'm down 17 lbs since surgery... not sure where the weight has dropped but my guess is my fingers and wrists... I will write more later, Good luck to you all who are considering or recovering from WLS!
gramaof4

gramaof4

8
bbbanded chronicles
 

One More Thing

One of the pharmacists at my job, same one that ridiculed me over my tattoos, asked what I was putting on my face, because it's apparently getting lighter. my answer? Nothing!   I have something called Acanthosis Nigricans, something that has to do with my weight and my skin being whatever color, google it. But with weight loss it goes away.   I'm going home VERY happy today, why did I wait so long to make this change? It feels great!!
bbbanded

bbbanded

0
Is that a Fat Joke?
 

I Don't Know What I Need

So, I'm almost two months out, down 34 pounds. Yeah! Woohoo. Well rewind, really it's only 32lbs because I was down to 282 the other day and I thought, sweeeeet that's almost down to the "seventies"! So what did I do? Well how else does a fat chick celebrate an accomplishment? Eat, right? I tell you what, this has been a challenging journey thus far and holy cannoli I'm only in two months! I don't know how I was physically able to eat a FOOTLONG Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki. I have got to get over this hump in my brain to actually listen to my stomach when I'm full. It's as if I feel sorry for the food left on the plate (I know because bread and sweet onion chicken have feelings, right!). Tonight I found myself getting my husband DQ (at his request) and although I didn't choose my normal large, opting for the mini midnight truffle, I was STILL GETTING DQ!   On a positive note, I've picked back up on my exercise and have even gotten my step kids into the Just Dance 3! I know there are going to be ups and downs, and ups and downs both numerically on the scale, as well as emotionally in my head. Just thought I would vent my feelings here tonight, because I just needed to. Kind of like going to confessional, it just feels good. Thanks for listening
mags2u

mags2u

6
carlamcgrath's Blog
 

No Easy Way Out

Many people think that lap-band or gastric bypass are an easy way out of a life of over eating. I was one of those people. I have struggled with my weight since I can remember being told I was fat (around 6 or 7). I have been on hundreds of diets, lost hundreds of pounds and gained every single one back again. I personally know a few people that have had the lap-band procedure done. They lost a large amount of weight in the beginning but they didn't change the food they were eating and ultimately gained the weight back. My surgeon told me that the lap-band is merely a tool to be used in conjunction with diet and exercise. Not a miracle. Science has yet to create a miracle weight loss pill or device although; if you watch the infomercials they have. When someone is at an unhealthy weight (one that could kill you) sometimes a helping hand is exactly what the doctor ordered. Many things factor into why a person would become obese. It's not like we wake up one day and say " I think I'm going to be so fat that I can barely move, or breathe". Our skinny counterparts are very fond of saying "you just need more will power". Well, I am here to tell you will power has very little to do with it. In my case, and many people I know food is an addiction. Mine started when I was very young. Food made it all better when I was being abused. Food never hurt me or talked bad to me. It always made me feel happy. Unfortunately; food also got me to where I am at know. My doctor said I use food as a stress reliever. No DUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!
carlamcgrath

carlamcgrath

7
bbbanded chronicles
 

Progress

Things are good!   Although, every so often I get the idea I'm trying to lose weight for the wrong reason ( not health related, more for visual effect). But I like that I'm doing well for myself, I mean c'mon, how can I complain that I'm losing weight?   So I'm at work today, and the day receptionist says to me "Tiana you look thinner, that diet is working!" Thanks barb! Then my dad comes do make sure I got to work alright, and he goes, what are you doing, losing weight in your face? Thanks dad!   I never see it on me when I lose weight, I only go by the numbers I see on the scale. Blah and those dont move very much. But I'm down to 318 so I must be doing something right. Hoping the scale gives me good news again on friday!   My boyfriend broke up with me, for reason I cant verify...whatever, but I'm using that as more motivation to lose weight and look good, he can see what he's missing out on . Anyway, I'm on a roll. I met these things called sweat, and resistance, we're pretty good friends. They know whats good for me!   Less than 70 days til the next surgery attempt, I have a feeling they'll deny AGAIN but I'll keep trucking on, I'm doing alright thus far.
bbbanded

bbbanded

0
Magic Mini Mushroom
 

Off Site Blog

To anyone who might be interested, I've started a band blog off of LBT. The link is here: http://themagicminimushroom.blogspot.com/   Posts may or may not overlap here and there (they do not at the moment), but I think I probably have enough rants to be okay with both at the moment.
morelgirl

morelgirl

0
Magic Mini Mushroom
 

Am I Really Going To Have To Be Adult About This?

Seriously, there are times when I totally resent having to be a grown up, especially about things I want but am not getting. Those are the times when I want to throw myself down on the floor and have a kicking, wailing, punching, sobbing fit worthy of a sugar-crashing three-year-old. And I could do it. Trust me. I could rock the #$&% out of that. RIght now, I'd like to give in, but instead, I'm just going to whine and trust that if you don't want to hear it, you all know where to find your "back" buttons.   I think I'm going to have to resign myself to being a "slow loser."   Sheesh, even the term makes me want to gnash my teeth and curse creatively. Really, I still cling to hope that I'm wrong about this and that at some point, something will click in my stubborn little (I mean that metaphorically) body and the pounds will start to drop off at the rate of several lbs per week, but I have the sick, sad feeling that I shouldn't hold my breath about that.   Offically, I weigh myself once per week, every Wednesday night. That's the weight I record on my ticker and in MFP, and in my brain, that's the weight I attach to myself. I am what the scale says I am on Wednesday nights. However, that doesn't stop me from weighing in every day or two just to check myself. Or to obsess about my weight; however you want to look at it. Before I had my first fill, it was wasy to blame my eensy-weensy incremental losses on bandster hell. To even be happy (to a small extent) at not having gained. After my fill last week, though, I'm running out of excuses. I'm not so restricted that I can't eat every food I've tried (haven't tried white bread) including rice, pasta, and chicken breast. But, while I can eat what I want, I find myself filling up on a cup of food or so and staying full for 4-5 hours after a meal. From what I've read, that should mean I'm at least close to an appropriate fill. Doesn't that mean I should start really losing now?   I'd like to think so, but in the last 5 days, the scale has gone up 0.4 lbs and now down 0.6 lbs, leaving me only 0.2 lbs below my last week's weight. 0.2 lbs? Seriously? Is that all I can expect to lose in a week? Less than 1 lb? How can I lose less than 1 lb when I'm averaging 1000 calories a day, not eating junk, eating my protein first, and not filling up on hi-calorie, low-nutrient sliders? If I'm following the rules, I want to see results, damn it!!! I deserve it!!!   Yes, yes, Logical Me realizes that any loss is a step in the right direction and that the goal is to lose slowly and steadily while maintaining my health and my sanity. Well, my health seems assured, but I can't vouch for my sanity. I mean, seriously. This is going to drive me bonkers.   My surgeon will allow me to return for another fill in 2-1/2 weeks, and at the moment I'm planning on doing that because I don't think I can deal with losing less that 1 lb per week. I think that might kill me. Or cause me to kill someone else, and really, prison jumpsuit orange would totally make me look sallow.
morelgirl

morelgirl

4
ready4changein2011's Blog
 

Post-Surgery

Well I was scheduled for surgery on Friday, March 2. I arrived at the hospital at 06:30, was weighed in and given a gown to change. I was so dehydrated 4 attempts were made to get the IV in, by that time the surgeon was ready for me. The anesthesiologist came to talk to me and he gave me a cocktail and I don't remember anything else. I awoke in recovery, with no pain, I stayed there then I was placed in a room on the floor to finish recooperating. I was told he did a hernia repair along with my banding. I did a swallow test and xray to confirm placement. By 3pm I was a mess dry heaving, trying to vomit but nothing would come up, blood pressure was out of control and the pain was terrible. I walked and walked and walked and could not rid the gas or burp. The doctor made me NPO due to the nausea, thank God I never vomited. I was concerned about the band with the dry heaving, hope I did not ruin anything. I had one nurse who was awful, I ask meds 2 hours before I actually started heaving, had to literally cry to get meds for nausea and gas. Beyond that I'm glad to have been discharged at 10:45 pm made it hope at 11:30 had a rough night but feeling so much better today. Still having the gas in the left shoulder area but been walking. Came home with pain and nausea meds. I am glad to be on the otherside at this point I would have not changed a thing, this could have happened to anyone. As far as appetite, I have none not hungry at all but have had jello, water, vitamin, juices gonna try a protein shake today. Gonna take it easy, walk, rest and hydrate.
ready4changein2011

ready4changein2011

7
bayougirlmrsc's Blog
 

Being Stubborn Pays Off...

I had my LB 11/10/2009 and got laid off from my job 11/16/2009 on the day i returned from surgery.... So I lost my insurance. Thanks God my surgery was covered and one years fellow ups... up to 7 fills.   Skip ahead to seven months after and now i'm self pay..... my surgeon charges $235 per fill. So i paid for a fill in July 2010 and then waited till Nov. to get another.   Went one year with out going back. Last appointment 12/2011. total weight loss .... 80lbs. 14cc band and with all the my visits and my calculations i should have 10.9cc in my band. My doctor has acquired a new doctor in his office and i saw him that day for the first time. Not a good experiences. Never Never had pain while getting a fill.... but this time... hurt like hell. He stick the needle in and because i had not been in in over a year he pulls every thing out to see what i have.....pulls up .... 10cc. I'm like what the hell happened to my .9cc. he said it sometime evaporates. OH OK. didn't know that. So he puts in .5cc at a charge of $235. Wen home and i knew something was not right... i was STARVING... and could eat solids. so i called him back and went back in the next day. he pulls up 10CC.... WHERE IS MY .5CC that you put in yesterday? He said... I don't know.... but that will be $85..... WAIT.... WHAT...you are charging me again?   so after multiply rants and Bi@ch fests..... and me telling him he was wrong and that he is raping people that are self pay for fill....   I WON...... He has now changed his fill price too...... $150. To all of my Dr.'s self pay patients...... your welcome.
BayougirlMrsS

BayougirlMrsS

5
carlamcgrath's Blog
 

8 Days And Waiting

Okay, I am 8 days away from the big day, and am getting more terrified. I bought a bunch of my favorite foods on Sat. so I can enjoy them one last time. I have an emotianal connection to food and am so afraid that I won't be able to get rid of this. Any suggestions?
carlamcgrath

carlamcgrath

0
legnarevocrednu's Blog
 

Goals And Problems

Okay so I literally JUST realized that I am one pound away from losing half of what I need to lose! OMG! That's a crazy thought! In less than 4 months!! I hope to keep going at this rate, but I'll be realistic. I know weight loss tends to slow down as you go along. On top of that, I have 4 more pounds to lose to finally be under 200. That's totally awesome. I love my band so much! I mentioned in the title "problems." Some of this is TMI, so if you don't want to read it, you can click out. However, I wanted to share to see if anyone else has experienced something similar. I often found myself stuck on in the bathroom trying to have a BM. Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn't. This morning, it was for 40 minutes and I was unsuccessful. LOL. Sorry, I have to laugh or I'll realize how disgusting this really is. Anyways, I was late to work by 15 minutes because of my issue. This isn't the first time either. It's just kind of ridiculous. I eat prunes and I've been trying to drink more water. I'm trying to take the natural route before I implement any kind of medicine. Tomorrow is my next fill appointment. My doc usually leaves me the option to choose whether I want a fill or not. As always, I'm not sure! I usually fill out a chart, but honestly, that doesn't really help. It asks me what I eat. I purposely choose not to eat sweets, pastas and bread, so me checking no on that doesn't necessarily mean I don't need a fill. It just means I know how to make better choices. Anyways, last week, I did get stuck a little bit and had to throw up. Also, Saturday, I was not able to finished my broiled crab cake. I've also lost 12 pounds this past month. However, there have been meals where I know I could have finished it if I wanted to. Meaning, no restriction. I still feel restriction every so often, but not enough that I feel completely confident in telling my doctor I don't want a fill. I am leaning more towards getting the fill. The way I see it, if I'm too tight, I'll just go back for a little unfill. I want consistent restriction, not hit or miss. Oh I've also noticed that I haven't been as hungry or been thinking about food as often. I have to remind myself to eat sometimes. Just my rambles! Feel free to chime in with any opinions or advice on anything I mentioned. Thanks!!
legnarevocrednu

legnarevocrednu

4
Lyra's Canto
 

Danger Will Robinson, Danger!

Holy batcrap, Batman! Last night I went to this awards dinner for a friend and the food and wine kept coming...and coming...and coming... I admit it, I ate the hell out of that food. If the food was an enemy army, I not only defeated it, but laughed in the face of it's useless whimpers for mercy. It was amazingly delicious, but at the end of it I was...unimpressed? That's not quite the word that I'm thinking of, but by the end of the meal I got hit with a wave of "this is so not worth it". I'll admit...ever since I've decided to do this surgery I've kinda had an "enjoy it now, within reason, Mr Stomach (I have no idea why my stomach is a dude, since I'm a woman, but eh) 'cause you are gonna be a trim, slim, mushy eating machine soon." Of course, this doesn't give me carte blanche to gorge myself into insensibility...but I did find myself pleased that I'm starting to separate food and emotions. Yeah, it was good (read: scrumptious) but on the scale of "Delcious food vs Lyra's Awesome Life Waiting To Happen" it falls short. Very short. It also isn't as emotionally fulfilling as it used to be. Perhaps it's because I'm taking this step forward to change my life that I've started feeling this way. I still enjoy great food (see pig-like actions above) but it's now more about the taste than "I feel so sad/depressed/angry/bored lets eat a cheeto" that I was (not) rocking before.   So, porky pig-like actions are a thumbs down, but who would have thought an awards banquet would bring about some self-realization? Now I need to go walk a couple of miles and do some (a lot of) "I was a bad, bad Lyra" pilates.
Lyra

Lyra

0
shues138's Journal
 

Weekends.....

This weekend was horrible as always food wise for me. But someone who I cannot stand put something into perspective, I have to thank her for that (the witch lol).   Friday was my usual day of egg white omlette, tuna sammy on multigrain, and then for dinner my dbf and I went out for Mexican. Hindsight is 50/50 after we went out to dinner on Friday I felt like crap but to think about it, it wasn't that bad. I had two margaritas chips and salsa, then shrimp enchiladas with no sauce it was basically shrimp wrapped up in corn tortilla (which I didn't eat) with some pico de gallo on it. I think the worse thing I ate was the chips and the margaritas lol.   Saturday sucked food wise. Sucked real bad. Not going to even go into it. But I have to say that I'm not eating as much as I did before. Especially when I'm drinking (margaritas again on Saturday night lol)   Sunday I was back to normal (yay!) I made my 3 meals for the next four days and I'm usually so busy with that and laundry that I forget to eat. All I had was a lean cuisine for dinner.   So anyway back to someone I don't like putting things in perspective. After dinner Saturday night we were all hanging out (me, my dbf, and his roommates, including the one I don't like) and I felt so bad about how I ate for dinner and she said to me "You eat so well during the week, that one day is not going to kill you. Also, you went to the gym today and ran that burns calories for hours!" So, it made me feel better not by much, but it did a little bit.   Also I learned to stay away from fried foods for now on, I think I went on a little overkill Saturday night and I felt like crap all day Sunday up until I went to bed. So, lesson learned friend pickles = the devil!   This is week 2 of c25k let's see if I survive tonight! I hope everyone who reads this had a good weekend and remember one day off the wagon is not going to kill you. I think for me, if one day turned into two then into a week I would have to put things in perspective but I guess the witch was right one day isn't going to kill me.
shues138

shues138

2
journey4me's Blog
 

I Saw It With My Own Eyes!

This morning I got up and I stood in front of the scale, as I always do....looking down as I stepped onto it, (I believe I stop breathing each time as I wait for the numbers to appear) it said 219!!! I have waited to hit the point where I was in the "teens"!!! I thought there would be a happy dance, but instead I was in awe! I don't think I have come to yet! This is a big step in my journey for my mental part of this. I realize I can do this! What a great feeling! One number less and in overdrive with confidence! Hip Hip Hooray!
journey4me

journey4me

7
sweetsoutherngirl's Blog
 

To Eat Or Not To Eat

I will be three weeks post op on Wednesday and I am currently on mushies. I am finding that I really am not hungry and small amounts of food are filling me up. But the problem is trying to determine if and when to eat. I usually would follow the breakfast, lunch, afternoon snack and dinner schedule. My doc did tell me if I am not hungry, do not force myself to eat and that it the exact opposite of what I have learned in the past. I would eat a little something, even if I was not that hungry to keep my body going. Now I am eating whenever I get a twinge of being hungry. Today I had a protein shake around 1pm because I was still pretty full from my dinner the night before. I had a scrambled egg later and then a container of greek yogurt. I also drank water all day. I am full now and probably will not eat much else today. Is this normal? I have my first fill in a little over a week and I am thinking I will bring it up then.   On a sidenote, I am down 3.2 pounds today and I am very happy about that!!!
sweetsoutherngirl

sweetsoutherngirl

6
DIAMOND45's SPIRITUAL INSPIRATION
 

" It Feels Good "

Salutations, My Sleeve Family,     Let's kick our day off with a Spiritual Vitamin.     Today it's R: REJOICE     Phillipians 4:4 says for us to, " Rejoice in the Lord always, again I say rejoice! "   YAYYY!!!   We are doing "It!" Winning the battle against our weight issues. So we should be rejoicing today in what we have   accomplished so far, and wait in anticipation to see what surprises, tomorrow may have in store for us! Keep a journal   of all our "NSV" triumps, so we can have them to reflect back on, when the day doesn't seem to be our friend, and   then "rejoice again", praising God for His unwavering Love and support. We've spent enough time being down, sad,   and feeling sorry for ourselves. No More! Stay on course, keep moving, remembering that "time waits for no one," so   make it count everyday. Rejoice, your heart will thank you later!     Praying For My Family Always, Diamond45 :D
DIAMOND45

DIAMOND45

1
Jrowe1971's Blog
 

From 10 Feet To 10K

03/01/2012       By: Hannah Chapman Jerry Rowe – a self-proclaimed “hefty child” – tipped the scales at 564 pounds in October 2010, categorizing him as morbidly obese and putting him at risk of premature death. During his two years of employment at a local pizza establishment his waistline started to wander. He would eat an entire pizza and an order of wings by himself, not to mention the breadsticks and soda that always accompanied the two. Rowe also admitted to frequenting fast food joints where he would order several burgers, fries, and soda. He had become accustomed to a lifestyle of excessive eating. “I had made up my mind that I was going to eat myself to death,” Rowe said. As Rowe’s pounds piled on, so did serious health issues. A Midlothian physician, Dr. Paul V. Jackson Jr., startled him with the news that his days were numbered. Rowe, a 40-year-old Richmond resident, who was suffering from chronic back pain and arthritis in his knees, was in the process of committing a slow suicide. “I would get up in the mornings and struggle to get out of bed,” Rowe said. Walking to the bathroom, an undemanding task for most, proved to be a huge challenge for him. He would often stop to catch his breath during the 10 feet trek. Rowe says he was struggling financially and subsequently fell victim to major depression. Being hooked on the euphoria of eating, he medicated his feelings with food. He found comfort in feeling full and gorged at every meal. For breakfast Rowe would have six to eight eggs with six slices of toast. Lunch would be three or four sandwiches, and no matter what was on the menu for dinner, it was usually delivered in large portions. On average, he was consuming 10,000 calories a day. His wake up call came when he was diagnosed with diabetes. “I literally said, ‘That’s enough.’ I was not going to go through that,” Rowe said. Not long after, in February of 2011, he staggered into the Chester YMCA. “I honestly thought I was going to die,” Rowe said. He was concerned about damaging the equipment or hurting himself so he took refuge on the indoor track. “I swear it took about 10 minutes to walk two laps, I couldn’t do any more.” Ten months later, Rowe was still attending the YMCA and discovered the YMCA 10k Training Team. Initially, he signed up for the program as more of an experiment to gauge his level of fitness ability. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine actually participating in the 6.2-mile event. With the encouragement and motivation of the coaches, he bit the bullet and officially secured his spot for the 2012 Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k taking place on March 31. “I love to go out with the Chester training team on Saturdays,” said Rowe. During the week he does his best to clock in every mile that he can. As an adult Rowe had fallen into a trap of frequent fast food meals, binge eating, and depression. He stubbornly ignored the urging of his doctor’s to get healthy and lose weight. It wasn’t until he made a paradigm shift from thinking being fat was his ultimate fate to believing that he’s capable of achieving anything he sets his mind to that he now has begun to truly embrace life. It’s the little things, commonly taken for granted, that would make him happy - like being able to walk into a department store and buy clothes off-the-rack, for instance. Rowe knows firsthand what it feels like to be humiliated, embarrassed, and treated differently because of his weight. “Anyone who has ever been in my situation knows the hurt that the words of others can inflict,” he said. “I wish I could help people understand what it’s like to be on the receiving end of those hurtful words.” Rowe has left 153 pounds in the dust since the beginning of his quest in October 2010. By striving to exercise and changing his diet to include less fast food and more lean protein, Rowe plans to continue shaving off the pounds until his reaches his goal of 225 pounds. He now takes a proactive stance and advises people to stop overthinking when it comes to decisions or obstacles in life and just take action. “I want to show others that feeling alone in a crowded room only means that you need to talk a little louder to get their attention.”     This was just written about me and my journey. I had band surgery in August 2011 but, before that I had already lost 105 pounds. I did mention the band in the interview but the writer focused on the emotional part of my journey. I hope it may help or inspire someone.
Jrowe1971

Jrowe1971

3
Sleeved by Dr. Kelly in Mexico
 

My Story

My Story   I am 42 years old, 5’5” and weigh 243 lbs. I wear size 20/22 pants and 2X tops.   I never really thought about my weight one way or another until I wanted to join the military (18 years old). When I went to check out all the branches I actually choose the Navy because I had to lose the least amount of weight – 30 lbs (I was 180 at the time). I put myself on a crazy crash diet and exercise program to lose the weight as fast as possible. I could only get to 25 lbs down and the day before I had to weigh in I took a bunch of laxatives (NEVER AGAIN!). I was over my weigh in by 2 lbs but they gave me a waiver and I joined the Navy for 5 years. The good thing about the military is that they give you a PT test and weigh in every six months so I kept myself within my weight range (not easily but I did it for five years). The moment I left the military and restrictions of weighing in and exercising came off I started a progression of gaining weight. Getting married, moving, new job, college, graduate school, and an uncertain future helped add more weight on.   I work very hard to not let my weight interfere with my life. We live in a coastal region so summer clothes and swimsuits are a staple. My husband (not overweight) loves the water and I love my husband so I am good about not letting my weight become an issue in our marriage (which means even if I feel uncomfortable in my 22 size bathing suit I fake my enthusiasm for spending the day on the water).   I never thought about WLS until my sister had lapband surgery a few years in Mexico. She actually had a bad situation with her band slipping and had to go into emergency surgery and now she is battling the insurance company to cover the emergency surgery. Up until then I hadn’t know about medical tourism or about the many WLS options.   This past fall I started to research different WLS surgeries. I have to lose 100 lbs and that is beyond overwhelming to me. The most I lost was 30 lbs on WW but gained that back and more.   I liked the sleeve option better then gastic bypass. My insurance does not cover it so I knew I was going to be self pay. My husband isn’t very chatty and I he said if that is something I wanted to do then fine but he is fine either way (I married an easy going guy). He won’t be going with me….no sense in both of us going if he’ll be bored. I am not telling anyone about the surgery. I don’t want to be talked out of it (it is enough to keep myself from talking myself out of it!).   I think I am a good candidate for surgery. My health is very good (minus the 100 excess pounds). My weight related ailments include – lack of energy, knees that bother me, and snoring. Our only son is married and serving in the military (so no small children). I am on temporary assignment outside of the classroom this year so I don’t have the crazy and stressful teacher schedule (which will make recovery easier for me).   I am mentally preparing for a rough few months after surgery (I am not a complainer and can tough out a lot). I am worried about the normal things – complications, insurance not covering complications, dying, long term ramifications, dealing with my eat out friends. However I am looking forward to buying clothes in normal sizes, fitting into airplane seats, crossing my legs, having more energy, enjoying being outdoors.   My surgery is on March 28th.
mrsteacher

mrsteacher

6
I'm in control now.
 

Irritations

Ya know, I really hate it when I give someone explicit instructions - even WRITE THEM DOWN about what I can eat and they don't follow them and then get pissy at ME because they don't follow instructions. Don't volunteer yourself to go get lunch if you're not going to pay attention. Knowing I have specific food requirements, you should probably pay attention. I didn't write it down because I'm trying to annoy you, I'm trying to do things right. If you don't want to do them right, don't volunteer to do them. I get that mistakes are made - no big deal, but then to get pissy and lash out at ME because you can't seem to handle it - that ain't gonna fly.
circa

circa

2
Rhapsody's Rants
 

One Day And A Wake Up!

I clean when I get nervous or frustrated and right now my house is spotless, my plants have been replanted, and if it wasn't so cold out, the cars would be washed. I have ONE more day and a wake up before my surgery. Don't get me wrong, I'm super excited, but I'm really nervous because even though I lost on the pre-op diet, I'm still dangerously close to my cut-off. My body is just rebellious! As soon as she figures out I'm on some kind of diet, she shuts down all weight loss. Story of my life!   Meanwhile, going to find something else to clean.
Shemy-away

Shemy-away

9

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