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Mrs.Prisses' Blog
 

Keeping It Real

Today while preparing for a meeting at work my bosses boss came up to me and inquired; "I heard you had surgery. What does that do for you?" After hearing my spiel, she asked if I was interested in speaking about the journey toward health. (I work for a nation wide fitness company who has many other ventures on the fringe of what it does). My initial reaction was not shock or offense...even tho I wondered who had been talking about me. It made me feel good that she noticed how much weight I lost, but, made me feel even better because I would LOVE to shout to the world that you don't have to take morbid obesity sitting down! In essence, I think that what the devil meant for harm (gossip) was turned into a great opportunity (as God often makes it). I didn't wear any makeup or hair or any jewelry today. I didn't have much in my closet that fit so I picked basic black pants and a button up top. Nothing about me today stood out in any manner. To be noticed because I am pursuing health, weather its negative attention or positive, says something to me. Today, I woke up with my mind on 1000 things. I asked the Lord to guide me thru them all. I may have skipped the "Prisses" today but I managed to focus on what is real. Today, keeping it real went right.
Mrs.Prisses

Mrs.Prisses

6
xoxo313's Blog
 

Waiting For My Big Day On Saturday

Hello All, Well the time is almost here. On saturday i will have lapband surgery which I have been anxiously awaiting for 6 months. I must say I am happy that I did have to wait it had given me time to research alot about the changes in my life and diet. I started today on strickly fluids till my surgery and believe it or not I am not as hungry as I thought I would be. I guess that is because I am getting excited that it is finally approaching. To everyone on here have a wonderful day and God Bless!!!
xoxo313

xoxo313

3
Different rules for the same tool (lap band)
 

Different Rules For The Same Tool "the Lapband"

I have been banded for about 4 1/2 months now and I have read blogs, forums, internet searches and tons and tons of youtube videos and the different rules really baffle me? I hear all these rules of protien first, so many calories, low carbs, no drinking for 30 min, no drinking for 15 minutes, no drinkinhg for an hour. only 1/2 cup of food, only 3 meals a day and no snacks, so many ounces of protien, chew , chew, chew and chew some more and eat slowly and so on and so on, you get the picture. My surgeon had me do 1 week pre op and stated to me it was to shrink the liver, I was given no specific amount of calories, portion size or protien for after surgery, was just told to do liquids, then full liquids then mushies then solids, I went to my dr for my first fill and he gave me 3cc, i was steadily losing 1 lb a week after surgery, still no specific rules on calories but they do give me a paper every time I go that states, no liquids with meals, no liquids as meals, if you have to ask yourself is this a liquid then it is probably a liquid and dont eat it as a meal, take only 20 minutes to eat your food, if you are taking more than 20 minutes to eat your food then you are trying to out eat your band, weigh once a week and eat only 3 meals a day with 2 snacks if needed, wait 1 hour for drinking after meals. this is the only rules I have. so I go home after my first fill and still not much difference, continue to eat but make good choices but eating alot like 2 cups at a time of food, go back to the surgeon about 6 weeks later and still averaging about 1lb a week weight loss and at this time I am ready to get this thing tight so i can eat less and he looks at me and says well you are losing weight, a fill is probably not what you need right now. and I say well I am eating alot and he says well kristy, how much do you think you are suppose to be eating and I say a half a cup and he says NO, you are suppose to eat until you are full then stop. he says if a half of a cup fills you up then fine but if it takes a whole cup then eat a whole cup. and then he asks me what I had for dinner last night and I say chinese food, kung pao chicken and he says how much of that did you eat and I say all of the chicken and a few bites of the rice, and he says why did you not eat more of the rice and I say i heard to avoid rice, breads and past because they are bad for you and they can get stuck and he says NO that is not true, he says to me when you eat rice, bread and pasta it swells up and this will fill the pouch up so he tells me i need to be eating more bread, rice and pasta, so now I Iam really confused, and then he tells me I am losing 1lb a week without eating rice and bread so he gives me a very small fill and tells me to eat more bread, rice and pasta to fill the pouch up. so I leave the office and say okay. I notice no difference in my fill as I am able to eat everything I want and it goes down fine, so I attempt bread, rice and pasta and it goes down just fine so I eat it. I have to be back at surgeon in 8 weeks and this left me with no restriction over the holidays and him telling me to eat rice, bread and pasta. so, what do i do? I eat rice, bread and pasta over the holidays, i go back to the dr on jan. 10, 2012 and I had only lost 2 lbs and he was not pleased. he says what happened kristy? we are now going backwards. and I say well I did what you said and i ate bread, rice and pasta and he says well what did you eat for dinner last night and i say chicken and he says how much of that did you eat and i say all of it, and he says in a stearn voice, how did you eat it and im like ummmm i ate it, he goes you chewed chewed chewed and took 30 minutes to eat it didnt you and I was like NO i ate it, i chewed it normally and swallowed it then he says well what are you able to eat for breakfast and I said 2 scrambled eggs and a piece of toast and he throws his hands up and says "NO way in hell should you be able to eat 2 eggss and toast" and im like omg this dude is nutso because as you see earlier he told me to eat til i was full. so then he says Im going to give you a fill so you cant eat that much. and he gives me a fill of 1.5 cc for a total of 5.5cc in my 10 cc band and sends me on my way and he tells me to call him if i get heartburn at night. so now here in the present, I finally notice restriction and there is NO way in Hell i can eat 2 eggs right now as one egg barely goes down, i am having stuck episodes and I get full very fast. and i lost 4 lbs after this 3rd fill from last week. in essence though my dr says not to chew chew chew, he says when you do that it liquifies the food allowing you to eat more and that I should just eat normal and then swallow. he tells me i can eat whatever I want but smaller portions, he doesnt require a certain amount of protien or calories. but as I can tell, as long as you are losing weight with him he doesnt want to adjust you but then if you dont lose weight he gets on me for not losing. so I am still very confused. I am nervous about going to see him if i dont lose weight for fear of being "scolded" again and I am also fearful that when I need to be filled he will not fill me unless I am not making progress. anyone have thoughts on any of this? I would be greatlly appreciative for any insight with your rules and your experience with your surgeon.
KristyT

KristyT

20
legnarevocrednu's Blog
 

Gym Success!

So I started back at the gym Friday night! I am sooo happy! I went Friday night, Saturday and Sunday morning. I have a routine down now. I can't do much (as I just started out) so I do 15 minutes on the treadmill to get warmed up, 15 minutes on the bycycle, 15 minutes on the eliptical, then another 15 minutes on the treadmill. I'm happy to report that between Friday morning and this morning, I have lost 3 pounds!! It's so awesome! I'm going to go 5 times a week for an hour. I hope to eventually get up to 30 minutes on the eliptical as that thing kicks butt (almost literally!). I won't be working on any strength exercises until I get the approval from the doctor. My next appointment is February 7th. I'm definitely going to want another fill (although I've lost 7 pounds since my last one on January 3rd) because even though I'm not over eating and I don't feel hungry between meals, it's only my own restraint that's keeping me from eating everything I want. I have zero restriction right now. But I suppose that's normal. I've only had one fill. Anyways, that's my update for now! Don't forget to add me on myfitnesspal. SN is legnarevocrednu Thanks!!
legnarevocrednu

legnarevocrednu

2
zil's Blog
 

Reminder Info For Everyone

Today while reading, I noticed that a lot of people who have been recently banded seem to be frustrated because they are not losing weight...   Well, just remember, the band is a tool that only assists us with our weight loss but we have to do the work. We have to make healthy choices in selecting foods, we have to be sure to drink water and exercise. And most of all, we need to understand that just because we can "eat as much as we did before surgery" we should not be doing that.   It may take quite a few fills until restriction is felt...I started getting fills Sept 19, 2011 and have gone every 2 weeks since then and received a fill...it has only been this past fill that I finally really feel restriction. I have 9.25 cc's in my band 14 cc band. The Doctor put 4 cc's in at the time of surgery.   I did some eating history as it pertained to myself and realized that carbohydrates are my personal enemy, so I shy away from them as much as possible. I do have a few crackers every so often, (even that has proven to be the enemy) but am pleased to say I have given up bread, pasta and rice, as well as potatoes. That stuff really packed the pounds on me. I was 299 at my heaviest and am proud to say that this morning the scale said 226. I am more than 1/2 way to goal of 160 pounds, and then tummy tuck, here I come.   good luck to everyone
zil

zil

4
LosingitinVT's Blog
 

Post Op Day 5

Today I am back on full liquids and although I am excited, my belly sure isn't. I started the morning out with some Lifeway Rasperry Lowfat Kefir. It is 99% Lactose free and high in probiotics which I figure would help the transition. But alas I still had some unhappy trips to the bathroom. I will not go back to my homemade protein shakes until tomorrow, asI believe it would be a shock to my system after just having clear liquids for 5 days.   My stomach incisions are healing nicely, and the pain is almost gone. Thank God for Children's Liquid Tylenol which is the only thing I could take when i got home. It helped me through a very rough patch and an unexpecteded menstrual period. The cramps were insane. The oxycodone elixir made me dry heave and I am going to tkae it back the hospital for them to dispose of properly. My sister-in-law said I would make a bad drug addict. I tend to agree.   Yesterday I went to the grocery store for my first outing with my husband and walked around for 30 minutes pushing the cart. Boy was I tired when I got home! I fell asleep on the couch for 2 hours. When I awoke, we watched a movie and then couldn't fall asleep again at bedtime. Bad move on my part.   I need to get back to 100% by Wednesday when i have to go back to work which is driving almost an hour each way. Plus it is 150 steps from the front door to my desk and on average I put on 2 miles in the office walking around. It ought to be interesting to see if people look at me and notice I have almost lost 15 pounds since January 8th. Time to look for the smaller clothes in my closet to wear. I have plenty of them.   That is the latest update. Hope you all are doing well.
LosingitinVT

LosingitinVT

0
sweetsoutherngirl's Blog
 

Sick?

Today I woke up with a scratchy throat and a slight cough. Blah! This will make the fifth time I have been sick since my flu shot in October! I was afraid this would happen. Although my pre-op is two weeks away,it takes about that amount of time for me to get back to bring 100%. So I am praying that it's nothing.
sweetsoutherngirl

sweetsoutherngirl

2
Is that a Fat Joke?
 

Just Keep On Keepin On!

Well, tomorrow is the big day, back to the grind. I had enough sick time I should have had the doctor say I had to be off for three months? Actually I'm looking forward to going back to work. Its more of a routine. I'm super busy from start to finish at work, so this will be good. PLUS, all my co-workers are so supportive! I already have a work out buddy at work- we plan on getting there 1/2 hour early (0530-yuk!) to walk. Plus I'm suuuuuuper excited because I just bought the WII Just Dance 3, in addition to committing to Zumba Tuesday and Thursdays. I've been "stuck" at 18lbs lost and I have to remind myself to just keep on keeping on with what I'm doing: measuring my 1/2 c meals, getting my 60g protein in, getting >64oz water in. I haven't waivered from my diet and don't plan on it. I've been given this gift (Prudence is her name) and I'm going to use that band gift to finally do it right. So I've got my meal planned and packed for tomorrow.   I'm excited for what this week will bring with me moving more at work and starting to really get in to exercise! Have a great week!     Mags
mags2u

mags2u

2
Smilecharmer's Blog
 

Am I Doing The Right Thing?

Hey everyone, Hope all is well. As for me I was sleeved on 01/18. Since I had my sleeve everything has been going great. And I am so thankful. I am drinking my crystal light and water. I ate some beans and applesauce. The new protein drink was disgusting getting some more good ones tomorrow.   I don't know when i am full so I just eat the small amount i put on my little plate. Everything stays down. Should I be eating more or less?   Thanks
Smilecharmer

Smilecharmer

3
CVWillis' Blog
 

I Went To The Er This Morning ...

I had to breakdown and go to the ER ... for the last 2 days each night around 9pm or 10pm I would get sick to the point of throwing up. Friday I brought some sugar-free popsicles and had one on the way home and one around 8pm. The one on the way home went down very smoothly. I was so happy. I felt the impending doom of dehydrating was over I FOUND something that I could get down ... NOT!!! They made me earl ... dry-heave ... and my lips where red. Because of that bowel prep (which I can't get over enough to drink sports drinks) so I've been suffering.   In the ER I got 2 wonderful bags of fluids and the Dr. told me my color came back. HUH?!?!?!?!?!? I'm of African decent, my color can't leave ... well evidently it did!!!!! Also in the ER I was given 2 cups of ice which I ate like it was steak!   Sitting there sopping up the ice it dawn on me that maybe I should have crushed ice at home and that the food coloring in the popsicles where the culprit to the throwing up. My daughter has migraines and her Dr. suggested that she control them based on her diet, so she doesn't eat a lot things including commercial red and blue food dye. So I ditched the Popsicles and Crystal light and pulled out the Magic Bullet and shaved me some ice!   That was going ok, however after my nap I woke up filling full and dreaming that Krsytals started selling turkey burgers ... lol!!! I was confused by the full feeling but noticed upon waking my mouth was open ... I was breathing through my mouth, which I usually don't do! So I surmised that I took in air into my sleeve hence the full feeling and when I got up there was the pain in my shoulder. I did laps around the house burped and farted; listened to my sleeve gurgle and rumble and I started feeling better.   Also while in the hospital I decided that I wanted some watermelon. Which is crazy for me for 2 reasons: 1) I don't like watermelon whenever it is in a fruit bowl I pick around it and 2) I am a stickler for eating local in season fruits and veggies. But I went to wal-mart and got some of the melon. I chewed up a piece and it was orgasmic! I didn't swallow the meat. I had 2 cubes and loved each one! Thinking of freezing it and putting it in the MB.   So what did I learned??? Not to consume Red dye, shaved ice maybe life-saving and watermelon ain't that bad!!!!   It's 3 hours before the witching hour ... praying that tonight is different!!!!!
CVWillis

CVWillis

10
momof4's Blog
 

My Gastric Sleeve Journey Begins

I want to start off with thoughts of what lead me here, to this point!! I have been considering weight loss surgery for some time now. I have family members and friends that have done various procedures over the years, and never thought it was just right for me, so I kept at it the "traditional way". I have four kids, from 14-24 and have always bounced back and forth with my weight. I was a size 8 when I had my first child, and at my highest a size 20. I am currently a size 16, and miserable. I go on the normal diest such as wiehgt watchers and jenny craig and slim fast, and so on and go back and forth between 10-30 pounds here and there. Being over 200 pounds is very depressing and it causes me to just give up most days. I get motivated sometimes and head to the gym and walk the dog and eat better and try harder, but am easily distracted by my daily life needs. We travel a lot (mostly camping and work related), and it throws me out of whack. I get tired easily, so it's easy to want to rest and then the snacking starts. I do not sleep well at night and there comes in the night snacks. I am just always hungry.... so there comes in the over eating during dinner or lunch. I am finally tired of it.... i need a drastic change... the final straw for me was when my long time boyfriend was going to propose (yes I had figured it out) and we were away on a romantic weekend in yosemite and he was trying to motivate me to make it to the top of the mountain, under the water fall.... ummmm obvious... yes.... however I was so winded, and my heart was pounding and i just gave up and said "i can see it from here (half way), and I had to sit and rest and it ruined the mood. (he still proposed, but not until later that night when it was far less romantic and meaningful). So we got married a few weeks later... but we got married in a civil ceremony, without telling any friends or family, with just us and the 4 kids, because I could not bare the thought of a wedding looking the way I do and feel. I talked my own self out of a wedding because of my weight!!!!!!!!!!! So the deal is this.... I told myself I will lose this weight by any means neccesary and we will have a wedding fit for showing off how happy we really are in every other way of our lives. My husband always says he loves me for me, all of me... which i know he does as he has NEVER given me a reason to feel fat, or ugly and we have sex at least once a day. (tmi I know... haha)... but with that said... of course he would feel better if I looked and feel better. that has to be natural. He is a fit, very good looking succesful man that has women throwing themselves at him all the time... so I want to look the way he makes me feel. I am not doing this for anyone but me as the main motivation, but of course I am doing it for my children as well so that they can have me for a very long time and I can enjoy my future grand children and grow old in a healthy way with my amazing husband. So that is where i am now... ready to take a major step to imrove the quality of my life! I saw doctors, and picked one I felt amazingly comfortable with. My husband has gone to the appointments, evaluations, and the seminar with me. I know this is the right docrot for me. (that has to be more imporant then anything to start right)! the downside is my insruance company does NOT pay for this type of surgery. I will be financing the $20k, yes, twenty thousand dollars,,,, it will take for me to do this! Is that a small fortune? YES! is it worth it?? YES!!!!!!!!!!! Tomorrow marks the first day of my pre-op requirements. I have an appointment with a nutritionist. Next a pysch eval, and an upper GI and endoscopy will follow. I am readyyyyyyyy...............
momof4

momof4

2
CAsleeve's Blog
 

Day 3 At Home After Vsg Surgery

I will upload a photo of myself pre-vsg surgery to my profile. :embaressed_smile: I am so looking forward to posting photos along the way of my shrinking self. :smile1:   Each day seems to get a bit better than the last, now on my 3rd day home after vsg surgery. My belly is still very sore. Thank goodness for the pain killer (roxicodone! - discovered I'm allergic to hydrocodone, i.e., vicodin, in the hospital, nausea, hallucinations and an itchy mouth is not my cup of tea) or I wouldn't be getting sound sleep. I am not one to take meds, especially a narcotic, but it truly is necessary in this case to keep from getting too exhausted fighting agains the pain. I have a strong pain threshold, but this is some serious surgery and it is required. I plan to discontinue the roxicodone by tomorrow and change to children's liquid Tylenol, if needed. I'm also meditating and doing some conscious deep breathing exercises for relaxation.   My first blog entry was super long and wordy, but wanted to admit to some things and put it in writing.   Today a trip to Costco is in the plans to buy some protein drinks and a scale with my honey. I'm so looking forward to weighing myself today. (This is a statement I would have never made before.) So far on this 4 weeks liquid diet phase I've had Chiobani Greek yogurts (honey and vanilla) with Beneprotein added and a couple of the sample protein mixes I received from the nutritionist. I've tried the Bariatric Advantage Chocolate and the Unjury Chocolate. The fav out of these is the Unjury Chocolate protein mix shaken up with Plain Soy Milk - just like a chocolate shake, rather tasty. After reading other posts, it seems like the follow-up diet is different in other locations. I'm surprised when I hear people are eating more of a pureed diet 2-3 weeks out from surgery. The instructions from Stanford are a 4 week liquid diet phase, six protein meals a day, post surgery, followed by 2 weeks of a pureed phase diet. The liquid phase includes yogurt, cream of rice/wheat and protein drinks. I've never been a fan at all of artificial sweeteners nor drinking sweet things on the regular. I tried the Gatorade with protein and Crystal Light, but the artificial taste is rather revolting to me. Additionally, I don't think it wise to fuel your body with artificial chemical anything. So, I'm going to stay as natural and organic as possible, well, except for the prepackaged protein drinks and mixes - simply for convenience. I've been getting in the required daily protein amount, thanks to adding beneprotein to most everything. I've really only been drinking water and herbal tea in between and find it much more satisfying than anything with artificial sweetener. I'm also making sure I get all the required protein in 'cause I really don't want hair loss! I'm just not quite ready to lose the dreadlocks yet or have them thin out too much.   The healing continues.....
CAsleeve

CAsleeve

1
My Second Chance
 

Feeling Thankful

I just have to say...God is good. He's good when things are good and He's good when things are bad. He doesn't change. It's easy for me to be thankful right now because my life is like a freakin' fairy tale! (my biggest problem is that I'm fat. oh woo.) How did I deserve this life??? I didn't. God in His infinite grace and mercy has lavished it upon me. I have to say it gives me some uneasy feelings when I look at the misery around me. I almost feel guilty. My husband, my children and I enjoy relative good health. We have more food and "stuff" than anyone could ever need. It's not fancy, but there's a lot of it. I could go on for days about how blessed we are. And for that I say Thank You Lord!! (I'm sorry if this offends anyone, but it's my blog space;)   On this forum, I've read about more than just surgery and weight loss. I've read about people. Real people with real lives. People who have lost the ones they love most to d.u.i., unexpected death in the family, house fires that have taken away not only possessions, but family as well, people who were abused as sweet little children and are now fighting their own bodies over it, people who put their faith, love and trust into a spouse and get nothing but venom and hatred in return. I've read about the pains and emotions that can go along with this surgery, and the possibility of being hospitalized for endless months with endless complications. I've read about people who are being rejected by friends or family because they've made the decision to become a healthier person. I've read about a LOT of pain. A lot of heartache.   I hope and pray that if the terrible awfuls of this world befall me, I will still have the faith to say Thank you Lord! He is Good! I am thankful for my life and my salvation and I am praying for successful surgery and weight loss. And I have been/am/will be praying for every one of you.   --danielle
Dooter

Dooter

9
Hopeful to be full's Blog
 

Bandster Hell Or Real Fire

Dear LapBand World,   Here's my story I started out at 257lbs and lost 10 pre-op. On November 30th the day of surgery I weighed 247lbs. In the two weeks after surgery I lost 10 more lbs and was down to 237. Since then I have only lost 2 more lbs. I had my first fill January 12th and haven't really noticed a differance in restriction. I have a 14 cc band and my doctor fills only 1 cc at a time.THE REASON I AM WRITING ALL THIS IS BECAUSE I'M NOT LOOSING LIKE I THOUGHT I WOULD. I have only lost 22 lbs so far and most of it was shortly before and shortly after banding. IS THIS BANDSTER HELL????? I try to eat what I'm supposed to by I tend to overeat, obviously or I wouldn't have needed the surgery to begin with. i know i'm eating more than i should( and i'm working on it) but i still am eating ALOT LESS THAN I USED TO. I'm worried because I see others on this forum loosing more weight and I FEEL LIKE A FAILURE. My questions are when did you start to REALLY REALLY loose weight??? AND how does restriction help with weight loss once you get it?????? I am tracking my food and exercising although i could do better with both. any other suggestions??? Should i be panicking??? or is any of this normal
Hopeful to be full

Hopeful to be full

9
sunshineinbama's Blog
 

Hunger

Hello, and good evening everyone, i am 21/2 weeks since being banded i have not been eating much until today for some reason i'm hungry, is that unusual? and are you guys able to just eat that tiny bit they tell us to eat ....its really hard today, any suggestions on what i need to do? please help ......
sunshineinbama

sunshineinbama

3
Caribear's Blog
 

"the Rules That Made Me Fat" Youtube Video

I have to say that I'm an information junkie. If I'm interested in something, especially if it involves making a major life decision, I have to research the heck out of it. I look for facts, opinions, and viewpoints from both ends of the spectrum. That's one of the major reasons why I love this forum so much - it has a little bit of everything in one place. But I have also been doing a lot of YouTube research. Reading someone's story is great, but there's something about actually seeing a person talk about their experiences that you just can't get from a written post.   One of the channels I subscribe to is by a lady who goes by losingitwithrebecca. Recently she posted a video called "The Rules That Made Me FAT" which I think was a homework assignment from her nutritionist or therapist. In the video she lists some ideas and theories that she used to use to rationalize her eating habits before she had her band. A lot of those rules sounded awfully familiar to me. The video stuck with me so much that I finally decided to make my own list. I came up with twenty, but I'm sure there are more. It was an interesting experience. I had to be brutally honest with myself about some of the things I had told myself in the past in order to keep eating like I did. It helped me immensely, and in the interest of possibly paying it forward, here's my set of rules. Personally, I prefer to call them "The Lies That Made Me Fat."   1. If I have a feeling in my stomach, it must be hunger and I have to eat. 2. If I steal a bite off of someone else's plate, it doesn't count as actual calories. 3. If I'm eating or tasting while I cook, it doesn't count either. 4. Everything is better with bacon. Everything. 5. Everything is better with lots of cheese. 6. Liquid calories don't count. 7. I can eat more because I'm big and I burn more calories naturally anyway. 8. If it doesn't have nutritional information on the package, the calories don't count. 9. All salads are good for you, no matter what you put on them. 10. If it's a topping or sauce, the calories don't count. 11. If I don't finish all of something, it's wasteful. I should eat it so it doesn't go in the trash. 12. If my son doesn't finish his food, and it's not enough to put in the refrigerator, I should finish it so it doesn't go in the trash. 13. I can trust my body to tell me when to stop eating. 14. One can or bottle equals one serving. 15. If the "hunger" in my stomach doesn't go away, I must actually be hungry and it's ok to eat. 16. Eating at night is ok as long as I'm really hungry. 17. Being fat is better than dieting and being miserable. 18. I can eat just one piece of candy, one cookie, one slice of cake etc. 19. If it was given to me as a gift, I have to eat it because throwing it away would be rude. 20. If I'm craving something, it's ok to eat it because my body must need something in it.   It's amazing how absurd a lot of these sound when I actually read them back. I have decided to post my list up on my refrigerator. Hopefully it will help keep me from accepting and rationalizing these things again, and so help me lose more weight.
Caribear

Caribear

1
CAsleeve's Blog
 

The Beginning To What I Know Will Be A Hugely Successful End!

Ok, so...This site along with the ObesityHelp.com site (where I started this blog today) seem a bit disjointed and I don't really know how to maneuver through it. Doesn't seem intuitively setup (sorry, but true). However, I want to be a member of this community, tell my story, keep an ongoing blog and be able to make wonderful connections with you people! To start, I thought I should just start telling my story by just starting to write. This is my first blog ever. I started writing my blog at the ObesityHelp.com site and copied it here:     Describe your behavioral and emotional battle with weight control before learning about bariatric surgery. Hi. Well I'm starting to tell 'MyJourney' (this is from the ObesityHelp.com site). I've been overweight the majority of my life. There were periods of time when I wasn't overweight, but that was rare and only when I did some wacko diet like Jenny Craig, Nutrisystem, Medifast, etc. (I've done them all!) The most I ever lost was 45 lbs, but those 45 lbs only stayed off for a couple months and then would creep back on and at a fast creep, in addition to more lbs. I could never maintain any weight loss. I'm 49 and started taking anti-depressant meds two years ago. I've been depressed about my body and my weight for so long I went on anti-depressant meds to help make everything seem ok and to be able to make it day by day. I've always perceived myself, in my own brain, smaller that what I really am. I have always been rather athletic and I actually love to work out. In addition, I love a plant based diet, juicing, vegetarian and vegan cuisine. I was even a raw foodist for a year. I live a fairly healthy, large woman, lifestyle. But...I have always been way too much overweight. I do not want to be overweight and 'morbidly obese.' Morbidly obese is just a horrible term and state of being. I have just not been able to stick with anything to truly change my weight and my body. I started this journey and found out about the vertical sleeve gastrectomy at the age of 49. When I turned 49 I started looking in to what new and different or even going back to the same weight loss program but just didn't want to spend the money and fail again. I just really want to be lean, fit, happy and healthy and I want to achieve this by my 50th birthday. I don't want to enter the next half of my life and continue to be a large, fat, morbidly obese woman. I want to want to see myself in photos. I've always been confident, but hate how I look, which would counter act my confidence. I never liked the large woman in any photo I saw of myself. It's like the photo I was looking at was me, but wasn't really me. I hate being the largest woman in the room, any room. I hate shopping at plus size women's clothing stores. I hate that my feet hurt, because I'm too heavy. Like I said, I've always loved working out - spinning class, yoga, kettle bell, boot camp, walking, hiking, swimming..., love it all. Being fat didn't keep me from working out and I would always tell myself..."I'd really be a cow if I didn't work out." I'd always have to adjust though. In yoga I'd have to move my stomach out of the way to do certain poses and things like that. I was looking in to the lap band procedure but was turned on and informed of the VSG procedure, when I saw a friend and former colleague's incredibly successful life change with her VSG. I asked her what she did and she gave me her story and I knew immediately it was what I needed to change my life. When I reach my goal weight, one day, I am going to so repay her for her guidance and the incredible support she has given me from my first inquiry to now and the future. So, like I said, I turned 49, this was in August of 2011, and this is when I started this incredible journey to salvation. It took seven months of all kinds of tests and poking and proding to my VSG surgery date this past week. I had my surgery on Tuesday, January 17, 2012, at Stanford Hopsital in Palo Alto, Ca.   What was (is) the worst thing about being overweight? There are sooo many things that are the worst thing about being overweight and I will name some here: 1. I hate that my thighs rub together (they have all my life) and they rub the color off the jeans in that area so my jeans are thinner in the material and lighter in color that the rest of any particular pair of jeans. 2. I don't feel at all sexy being overweight. My sex life with my husband is pretty much nonexistent. And, believe me, I love sex and I find my husband absolutely delicious. Not fair to him or to me. He loves my body, but I don't and I feel way too bodywise ugly. He doesn't understand, but me being overweight is not an issue for him, but it is 100% an issue for me. 3. In my previous job, I traveled about 2-3 weeks out of each month all over the US. It was grueling travel, but I absolutely loved my job - intellectually stimulating, I loved the professional interaction and making friends across the US. I truly got to a point after traveling for 2 years, where I couldn't get on yet another uncomfortable plane. As a large woman, plane travel is freaking uncomfortable. It was embarrassing to spill over into more than one seat, even a bit. I always wished I just didn't take up so much space. I never had to ask for an extender seat belt, but was close. 4. Not being able to wipe my own ass sometimes. Hey, when there is that much body in the way, it makes it challenging to sometimes properly wipe your own ass. 5. Because you have creases, skin overlapping other skin, sometimes you have an odor. It's simple biology. 6. Always thinking about the next thing I'm going to eat and how much of it I might be able to get away with eating that item. Oh, and never really feeling full, even when I was painfully full! Crazy! 7. Not being able to reach around and scratch my own back. 8. Wanting to meet up with friends or colleagues, but being too embarrassed about my weight to do so. I've made/arranged appointments, dates, outings and have cancelled them on many occassions because I was embarrassed about being overweight. With the facebook craze, I've met up, on-line, with old friends, and have arranged to meet in person to only cancel. Crazy! ****** I could and probably will add more to this section. But, I just want to let you know...I feel all these things still. I am just 5 days from my surgery date. I've got a lot of changes ahead of me and I am so freaking excited about the future, it is just hard to explain. At this point, I'm in the healing process from surgery. I'm sore, but so so so hopeful and so looking forward to LIFE!   If you have had weight loss surgery already, what things do you most enjoy doing now that you weren't able to do before? I will have to revisit this section when it is time. The surgery was super intense. It is not easy and no one should be mislead and think it is easy peasey. It is major surgery. I started at 266 lbs, was at 256 on my day of surgery (I didn't follow a pre-surgery diet as my surgery date came up quickly after my insurance was approved, but I had started watching everything I put in my mouth and did quite a bit of green juicing.) I actually didn't think I was going to get insurance approval and started to loose hope that I would. But once approval came through I had just two weeks until the surgery date. Looking forward to writing a bunch of positive step along my way to a new lean, fit, healthy, normal weight, beautiful woman!!! Check me out soon...Soon come... **************   Again, once I figure how to move around this site, I will post photos and many other blog posts. I'm so excited I can hardly stand it!   Here are my particulars: Female Age: 49 Starting BMI: 43.5 Starting Weight: 266 Weight on Surgery Date: 256 VSG Surgery Date: January 17, 2012 Duration in hospital: 2 days   NOTE: I am, today, on my second full day home from the hospital. The worst part of the surgery was the swallow test the day after surgery. It makes me want to puke just thinking about it. I had to fill my mouth with the most horrible tasting contrast three times an swallow it all. Well, after the second swallow, I know I was in trouble. After the third time, I puked it up. I was totally nauseous the rest of the day and threw up again. I was so afraid of keeping anything down after that. I had quite a bit of nausea in the hospital. Once I got home, I felt so much better. Started the Liquid Diet Phase. Taking meds is not a pleasurable thing for me. I had another incident yesterday when I took the liquid stool softener and threw that up. I will not be taking that ever again. I will do a little dulcolax (sp?) tab should I need it. However, I think my plumbing at this point is working fine. I've got all kinds of grumbling and rumblings going on internally. I've always been a big water drinking person, and have to keep telling myself to slow down with the water...sips and no gulping! Am I hungry? Heck no! This is a total strange thing for me...not to feel hungry! LOVE IT! Feeling very positive, albeit very sore, and just want to get the insides healed up so I can start exercising. Oh, I'm walking yes, but I want to get to some real workouts and start toning and getting strong. The first thing I'm going out and purchasing is a scale. I've never had one before and never wanted one. I do now!!
CAsleeve

CAsleeve

0
Tim Bellamy's Blog
 

Being To Paranoid??

I've been banded since '09,not much weight loss from it 38lbs down from 340lbs,been VERY disgusted with it so far,i was doing 10 to 12 miles aweek cardio 3X's aweek in the gym for 2 yrs straight with not much success....so i started weight training hard now the weight is ever increasing......is it from the extra protein 150grams a day approx."eating habits" Lean cuisines until i can't stand them anymore,i feel like i've done everything right with no results.
Tim Bellamy

Tim Bellamy

2
Brieana's Blog
 

Sleep Study

so i had my sleep study last night was hell i slept on a full bed the room was small and i can hear the bart train passing the nurse put wires on my face behind my ears on my neck chest and belts around my chest waist and wires in my nose i think i stayed up till 1 or 2 am couldnt sleep i checked in at 830pm i tried thinking of wat it will be like being thin and happy at the gym or beach how ima be active what i will look like in small clothes skinny how small my jeans will look and have fun trying those jeans on i doozed off for like 30 mins i think lol woke up again the nurse kept stomping back and forth ugh he finially came in turned on the light without warning oh hell naw my eyes hurt he took off all them wires my ride was outside i was home by 350am didnt go to sleep untill 5am worst night ever and i gotta do it next friday again but this is what i want hopefully its all worth it oh btw i lost 3 pounds i have no clue how but ima not going to say im 198 cuz i dont feel 198 i feel 201 lol
Brieana

Brieana

0
Lyra's Canto
 

Fat Pounds, Meet Your Match!

So my first VSG blog entry, how exciting! A chronicle of the minutiae of a pre-sleevers journey towards a new life...and oh how I want that new life. To excuse a bad pun, I want it so much that I can practically taste it. I figured even if I'm only talking to myself and sending these blogs out into the ether, then at least I can get how I feel on this journey down on paper. It may be interesting to look at a year from now and actually know what I felt and how I changed without the rose tinted glasses that time often gives our recollections. Or perhaps at the end of this journey, when I've met all my goals I will ceremoniously hit 'Delete'. *grin*.   Right now I'm a 29 years old woman, 5'5" ant 270 lbs, no kids, no SO, but with a ton of friends and a close family who are being (for the most part) very supportive. I do have a rather crazy cat, but I personally think she would be horrified at a reduction in cushy lap space. My deepest desires are to run marathons, complete Tough Mudders, join canine Search and Rescue, become a published writer, and to get married and have kids. I don't know about the other ladies out there, but I'm damned sick and tired of being "the girl with the hilarious personality" with the unspoken "too bad she's fat" tacked on the end. There is more to me than my weight and I finally reached the breaking point where I could give up and accept that my dreams would forever only be dreams...or I could take the bull by the horns, pull up my big-girl panties and figure out how to become a woman that can forge her own path. To that end I left a job that made me miserable, moved to a different state and now have a job and friends that make me smile and actually dance at work. As my dad found his courage to go through a surgery he was terrified of, I in turn found mine to take the next step.   To that end, my first bariatric doctor's appointment is Tuesday and I can't wait. I've been working hard at proper nutrition, weight lifting, yoga, and running to get my body in the best shape possible to tolerate surgery and to kick tail once I'm through it. I'm reading books to figure out why I eat what I do and how emotions dictate my eating. I'm calling it the three-pronged attack so that I am ready emotionally, mentally, and physically for what is to come.   Life is good, and with better health it can only get better!   Feeling Five by Five! ~Lyra   "Remember, Ginger Rogers did everything Fred Astaire did, but backwards and in high heels. " ~Faith Whittlesey
Lyra

Lyra

2
Smilecharmer's Blog
 

The Surgery Is Over..so Thankful

Hi Everyone, I am so glad the surgery is over. I was home within 24 hours. I am still in pain but trying not to get addicted to the pain meds. Everything i eat is staying down, no gas pains and no trouble with my bowels (TMI)...lol   I get up and walk around the house its really cold here. To everyone who sent me a message , I appreciate it alot.   Take Care, I know it will get better.
Smilecharmer

Smilecharmer

4

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