Leaderboard

Hi all, For those who don't know me, I live in Sydney and was banded on 15th January. 1 week after surgery, I had a stroke. Nobody knows whether it was related to my surgery or not, given that I have a problem heart and a clotting disorder. I have been in hospital ever since, but finally came home yesterday after spending 2 months in rehab. I can walk with a walking stick, but have lost the use of my left arm. I can move it, but my fingers don't work at the moment and I can't do anything useful with it. I don't want to scare anyone out of banding, it probably wasn't the cause of my stroke. I've lost 22kg and I'm prepared to make the most of my life. I don't regret my operation - don't get me wrong, there were times I wondered what I had done, but there is no clear reason for what happened. Please pray for my arm to come back, it's the only thing holding me back now -I can't drive anymore, have to go back to my L's and get a new car that is automatic. So good to be home! Jen:confused_smile:

Copied this from "The Cardiologist's Wife's chocolate Too Diet: No Sugar, No Fat & Luscious." It's from the updated health information in the first section. Here goes: "1. Your blood sugar drops with just a 1-pound weight loss. In fact, with just the first ounces off, you’ve made yourself immediately healthier. (Overweight is also a huge risk factor for breast and ovarian cancer in women, prostate cancer in men, and colon cancer in both men and women.) 2. Your heart, which is the size of your closed fist, is a small, overworked muscle, pumping 24/7. And for every extra pound of fat you carry, your body has to grow seven new miles of blood vessels-- primarily capillaries but also small arteries (arterioles) and small veins (venules) -- and your heart has to work that much harder. Put on two pounds and that’s fourteen new miles of blood vessels; fifty extra pounds requires 350 miles of new blood vessels. On and on, do the math. But good news: the opposite is true. For every pound of fat you lose, your body sheds seven miles of blood vessels. They just re-absorb, break down, and get excreted. Lose two pounds and that’s fourteen miles of blood vessels gone, lightening your heart’s load. I’ve told you these two things so you’ll know that even a little is a lot. Repeat that out loud to yourself: even a little is a lot. Let it be your mantra. Because dieting is a slooow process, like watching the grass grow. Try to accept that, and the next time you catch yourself groaning, “Oh it’s almost a week and I’ve only lost two pounds” – understand that that’s good. You’ve already brought valuable change to your body; taken a literal load off your heart. Try this too for reinforcement: take a can off the shelf that weighs one or two pounds, and heft it. Or, in the supermarket, keeping your elbow straight, lift some wrapped meat weighing two pounds. It’s heavy. And you’ll think, Wow, I lost this much?" And another fun fact for every 1 pound you lose, you take 4 pounds of pressure off your knees. Wow, my knees are feeling 124 pounds lighter.

I also just remembered an ex-friend who used the word "illiterate" to mean "stupid." I guess she thought that using a bigger word made her sound smarter. One day I asked her what not being able to read had to do with anything. I think maybe she finally went home and looked up the word because she finally stopped using it. The same woman once heard me use the word "oblivious" and thought she liked the sound of that, only she said "bolivious." I never corrected her so that all of those illiterate people wouldn't remain bolivious to how stupid she is!

Gibson: You are welcome.

I was there and thought it was really good. Had lots of fun meeting people from all over that I chat with online here. Always nice to put faces to the names.

Love this thread!! My dream outfit is definitely a pair of killer fitting jeans and a cute sleeveless top. Living in San Diego it's sunny here year-round. It would be nice to have a wardrobe to match the weather!!

A little black dress, and any shirt that i can tuck in!:biggrin:

I am wondering if you have a leak or a defective band. Have you approached this with your doctor yet? It seems to me that the doc should be concerned with this too. I am fairly new at all of this but this just doesn't seem right to me.

I've had lunchables before. They're just so darned handy! My lunches (when I remember to eat ) might be tuna salad - I'll either make it the night before, or buy the 4oz puches and add mayo at work... plain or I too eat them on Wasa (sourdough or multigrain are my favs). We have a Green Acres near my work so sometimes I will make a salad from the salad bar that consists of grilled chicken breast, tofu, feta, bleu cheese, chick peas, sesame crackers, cottage cheese, and about a quarter of a scoop of balsamic vinagraitte. Or I will get a Soup and some of their tofu egg salad... mmm. In case I forget and can't get out, I always keep tuna cups and a few cans of FF refried Beans in my desk, and usually a packet of turkey pepperoni in the fridge. That way I always have something. If you cook, just bring leftovers from whatever your dinner was. If you have a fridge, you can bring a whole week's worth of lunch and leave it in there. Sometimes on Monday I'll bring in a tub of cottage cheese, some sliced meats (I've found that "Boar's Head" brand deli meats are very close in nutritional value to homecooked meats), some Wasa, etc. -- and I'm good to go for the week.

I just wanted to throw my 2 cents.. the rep thing bothers me! I keep looking at mine and getting self-conscious.. It feels like a popularity contest thing. :think