Jolie_KeMi

Let those haters continue to do their job, and you continue on your road to happiness. You look FABULOUS!

Every year since 2004 my friend has thrown a fabulous Halloween party. And every year, I go to the costume stores and complain about how limited the selection is for plus sized women, and complain about how regular sized women's costumes are borderline slutty. Well this year I'm gonna be that Sexy Kitty or that Slutty Fairy damn it! LOL!! The truth is that I've secretly always wanted to wear the fishnet stockings and ridiculously short skirts, but never had the confidence or body type to do so. I was the typical plus sized woman at the party: sitting down, not engaging, wearing something that I wasn't 100‰ happy with, poking fun at myself for not being able to find something flattering, blah, blah, blah. Now that I'm pretty much sitting at goal, I want to go for it. Maybe not a kitty tho...maybe Pam or Tara from True Blood. Or a sexy zombie (oxymoron?) I can't wait! What are some of you dressing your new bodies in this Halloween?

Thank you Maggie! Rootman: I considered it! LOL! I definitely stood out from the other women at the party who wore the skimpy stuff. They were sexy, but I was interesting.

Well, I tried to find something sexy, but I didn't see anything that was ME. A zombie girl/woman costume....now that's more like it!

TJ Maxx, Marshall's, Plato's Closet and Ross have been my life (and money) savers! I too had Rubbermaid buckets full of clothes, but I never got to enjoy them because I lost inches pretty rapidly. I went from 18 to a 12 in 3 months and most of the cute stuff was 14's. I gave the buckets of clothes to friends, family, or whomever would take them.

Today, 11 months, 2 days post surgery, I am at my personal goal. I am so happy I am tearing up and shaking a little bit. Lol! This is a weight I thought I would never see again. I seriously thought that I would have to live the rest of my life 200+ lbs and tried my hardest to be comfortable, "happy", and social at that weight. I don't have to live my life that way...and neither do YOU! Yea...I could probably lose more, but I am HAPPY right here, right now! I am still curvy (still have hips, a nice lil bootay, and DD boobies) and I don't want to lose any of that. I'll probably be one of those women who used to annoy me by saying "I need to lose 5-10lbs". I promise as a former plus sized woman to never say that in the presence of another plus sized woman. To the people considering this surgery: DO IT! Absolutely do your research and continue to browse this and other sites, but make a decision. You can't get yesterday back, so don't sit on the fence too long. To the Newbies: Be kind and patient with yourself. You can do this. You can get to your goal. Believe in you and your relationship with God. Stalls will happen, food mourning will happen, hair loss of some type will happen, but you will get through it all. Just keep breathing. And keep asking questions. To the Sleeve Masters: I have been stalking your profiles and lurking on your posts for over a year now. Thank you, thank you, thank you for your contribution to the site. I think of this community as an additional wl tool that I need to get me through the day. I won't go into detail about some of the things you guys helped me get through, but I want you all to know that I appreciate it immensely! Thanks everyone for listening to my whining, venting, rambling, sarcasm, and typos - there will definitely be more of that to come. Off I go to maintenance. Wish me luck!

Thank you all!! Loving this Sleeve life!

Well ladies, a year later, I'm happy to say that my curves are still here! I went from a 42G bra to a 34DD (sooooo hard to find bras in that size). I lost some of my butt, but not enough to be worried about. Basically, my body is the same shape, just a smaller, more toned size. Thank you all for your advice and comments.

I went to my friend's graduation dinner and saw people I hadn't seen in over a year. I heard a couple of women who I knew, but don't KNOW, whispering about who I was. One of them said "Ohhh that's Kendra!" Wow she lost a whole lot of weight."I thought it was pretty funny so I changed my screen name. It is used to be MsKendraHL.

3 weeks until my surgiversary and I am currently in maintenance. I am living a happier, healthier, or fulfilled life. What a difference a year (and surgical procedure) makes! I would love to hear what some of you have been up to and how your journey has gone.

In addition to the liquids, make sure to get your vitamins in. That will help with your energy levels.

You guys...I am so appreciative of each and every one of you, your comments, and your "likes". You all can get to your goal, whether it's 6 months or 16 months post surgery. Don't think that because you didn't get there within your first year that you are a failure. The sleeve doesn't have an expiration date. It will work for as long as you're willing to make it work. So WORK IT!!!

Thanks again everyone! I can't express how much your support an encouragement means to me. I celebrated today by going to Panera Bread and eating half a grilled chicken salad. Oh how times have changed...

You look like a different person. You were cute heavy, but man...you're hawt now! (I have an affinity for bald men) Absolutely an amazing transformation.

Congrats!! The best part is that it gets better. Keep going!

You're most welcome. Just keep looking forward. Eventually will happen eventually. <- that sucks I know. LOL.

Nice play on words there Catracks! Haha. The last 10 drove me insane! I was 160 waaaaay back at the end of May.

You will get there Chica! If you believe then you can achieve, just look at me! (I stole that from Tupac. LOL!) I've lost 77lbs thus far.

Haha! You made me blush Gman. Thanks for that.

Y'all are freakin awesome! You sure know how to make a girl ! I've tried to be an open book for you guys so that you all will not feel alone. I hope It's working!

Thank you so, so much everyone. You just dontb know how much you all mean to me.This is a day that I will always remember. I have some before and after pics on my profile, but here's some more. I can't believe I uesd to live in that body. It's surreal!

You're welcome!

Thank you Carol!