BikiniBodby30

Ok, so the first weekend went much better than I thought it would. Especially considering all of the hurdles I needed to jump to get to Monday. I NEVER thought I would look forward to the work week like I did this past weekend. Friday night, I went home and made chicken breast with green beans. Very simple but still good. My roommates were home so we watched "The Woman in Black", good movie - creepy but good. Saturday, I woke up and hung out for a bit before deciding to go to the gym. Brief aside, I've been a member of this gym for oh 2 plus years(?) and have never gone with any real consistancy. My cousin was interested in joining so the front desk guy took us to an office where he looked me up and asked, "How can we get you to come in more often?" Now, outrightly this is not a pushy question. This is their job, I know, I recognize, I understand. But I've also heard it a hundred million times over the many years I have been struggling with my weight and regularly with the three different personal trainers I've had in the past ten years. So I told him the truth, "Nothing. You guys can't do anything to get me in here more often. This is something that I'm commiting to and I need to do on my own." He didn't like that answer very much. ::shrug:: oh well. My cousin and I then had a very enjoyable 45 minutes swimming laps in the pool. After the gym on Saturday, I went to my friend's daughter's 3rd birthday party. Complete with hot, delicious pizza and sinfully sweet cake. These are among my favorite things to devour but I was strong, I abstained. ::pats self on the back:: I left promptly after cake was served and presents opened - no sense in torturing myself by being around things I cannot have. I kept busy the rest of the evening to ensure no boredom hunger/eating. Sunday was best friend day - self explainatory. We met for breakfast, I had an egg white (crepe, which, I didn't know was a crepe until it was served) and I was unable to remove it without destroying my meal so I guess I cheated. I had a 2 egg white omlet with bell pepper, spinach, and avocado wrapped in a crepe, a side of fruit and two turkey sausage patties. I know this seems like a lot of food, and it probably will be once I get banded; but for now, it was delicious and healthy. Yay Me! I made it through my first restuarant meal with only the smallest of deviance. Sunday afternoon was my niece's 11th birthday party, again with no food that I could munch on. Sub sandwiches, chips and dip, cake and ice cream. Again, I am left sitting on the side lines, unable to indulge even the smallest bit because I'm going to make certain that my liver is the smallest and least fat laiden as possible so I can have a healthy, uncomplicated, grossly successful surgery. But I digress, after the party. My friend and I left to pick up her wedding dress - so much fun for realsies - but first we stop for a drink at Sonic. Hmm, what to get here? I can't have carbonation... I opt for a diet cherry limeade. Probably still has a small amound of carbonation but not a whole lot and it is calorie free. I decide that this is truly the best option for me at Sonic and realize that Sonic may be on my X list moving forward. After doing wedding related stuff, we ended Best Friend time at Yogurtini, I had cookies n cream yogurt, only 110/serving. Only later did I realize, that I had about 3 servings Guess I'll need to be more careful about that in the future. My day, although full was not over yet. I managed to get a phone call that sent me reeling. I'm talking anger so white hot that you could spit fire, if only the obsenities would stop spewing from your mouth. Needless to say I was emotional... which as I've stated before, emotions lead to eating for me. Before I walked into the kitchen, I made a conscious decision to go to the gym. Thank goodness I did, it took every bit of 25 minutes on the treadmill before the evil was leached out of me. After my 30 minute treadmill jaunt, I decided to work out my arms. Clearly, I have not done this in some time because after 3 sets of 12 reps using itty bitty 5lbs weigths, my triceps are sore today. I'll need to make sure that I work out with weights more regularly and ease into it so I don't hurt myself. The good news is, after all this the hunger from the inital few days has subsided. I still get hungry but I'm learning to ignore it now. Food still smells amazing (dirty look at my co-worker who just made popcorn ) But it's nothing that can't be managed with a piece of minty fresh gum. Thank you everyone for your encouragement, I know this is a tough journey and I'm glad that I found this site.

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

Congratulations! I've very excited for you and glad that the surgery was uneventful I can't wait to read up on your progress and I'll probably be reaching out to you since you're about two weeks ahead of me. I'm thrilled for your tomato soup tomorrow and you're right, it does sound good!

I think that is the biggest challenge Jen, defeating the Head Hunger. Well that and staying active. I'll use your blog for inspiration

Keep positive and stay busy! Make small efforts to move more

Mylynn, tell the doctor about it. Many times the doctors don't know that their office staff are falling down on the job. I agree, this is completely unacceptable and unless she wants to lose you as a patient, she needs to make sure her staff is following thru.

I'm very glad to hear about your excitement. It still seems surreal to me, but this pre op diet is definitely making it sink in LOL

Lady Sith, I'm glad to hear that this gets easier, even if it is minutely. I had another protein shake this morning. My menu for the day will be two greek yogurts and a salad from Wendy's with a grilled chicken breast - no dressing. I know this isn't the best, most clean lunch but a girls gotta eat and I didn't have time to prep anything last night. Shame on me. I need to become better at dedicating time to planning and making my meals.

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

Thank you Blann I look forward to reading about your success too!

Welcome to Peeling Off the Layers! This is my blog about my weight loss journey with the help of the LapBand. I have been on this website for several days prior to posting anything and have gained so much knowledge and inspiration from my fellow bandsters. I hope this blog can be as motivational and encouraging as those I have read. A little bit about me, I have struggled with my weight for the last 18-20 years - yes, since I was eight or ten years old. I discovered early on, much like my counterparts, that I am an emotional eater. If I'm happy, I eat. Sad, donuts are there to comfort me. Angry?! There's a food for that too. Couple this with the fact that I've also dealt with depression for 8 years and its no wonder that I'm a good candidate for LapBand! Understanding and recognizing that I use food as a crutch was the first step on my journey. You know what they say, the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem. It's more difficult to realize this when the emotions are not always bad... Now that I've come to terms with this aspect of my addiction I can find other, more healthy ways to deal with my emotions. I began my LapBand journey with a certain other facility that is widely know here in AZ for offering the LapBand. After their seminar and financial consultation, I was told my insurance would cover it but I would need to fork over an additional $4k. This was 2 years ago, which at that time - and honestly now, $4k is not a feasible option. I heard a radio ad for True Results with payment options which naturally peaked my interest. I hesitate to admit that I was in the drive thru for Chik-fil-A at the time of hearing this... Ha Ha. I contacted the True Results team in Scottsdale, AZ and set up my initial consultation. Cari Green, the patient advocate was phenomenal. She walked me thru the procedure and, having already contacted my insurance company, was able to go over approximately what it would cost out of pocket before surgery. The monetary difference was astounding! I would only have to pay my In Network deductible and could set up payment options with the surgeon, etc.! Needless to say, with the financial burden out of the way, I underwent the necessary testing for heart and lungs THAT DAY! This all started on January 25, 2012. I made the decision at the time to tell my parents, my greatest supporters, that I was going to try for the LapBand. After some initial hestitation, they were on board and became my biggest cheerleaders. My insurance required that I have four monthly visits with the True Results team, have a proven history of obesity greater than 40 BMI for 2 years, complete the Psych Eval and Blood work. After I jumped through all the necessary hoops and the paperwork was submitted, I got approved! Even before True Results had the opportunity to call me, my Bariatric Nurse Courtney from the insurance company called to congratulate me I have opted to participate in their support program through the insurance company as well in order to have just that much more accountability. I know this was super long and I apologize, it was such a long time coming from January until June. In order to understand my blog, I felt the need to start from the beginning. I promise the coming entries will not be as long!

Ok, so I've had my first "Grrr" moment today.... I was sitting with my manager at work and I mentioned that I am starting my pre op diet tomorrow. She already knows that I am having the surgery due to the fact that I needed her approval for time off etc. So anyways, her response after a couple questions about the surgery was "You better not be eating chocolate; otherwise I may have to say something" Which, Ok, fine, please do say something but last time I checked, this is MY journey. I don't see her policing every other person on the team that may be on a diet Anyway - just had to rant. My first experience with people criticizing my every bite.

Thank you for the suggestion, thats a good way to address it. I know that people are 'concerned' about my success, which I can appreciate. However, since when does this surgery permit people to judge us?

@ Jim - please don't say that....... I hate needles too!

Yay for you I'm getting banded in 2 weeks and it still seems surreal

Sissy, I'm feeling the same way! I kind of wonder if the pre op diet will solidify this change in my mind? Are you doing a pre op diet?

Today I had the consultation with my surgeon, Dr. Gowen Nirmul. He seems friendly enough and took time to answer my questions thoroughly before our 15 minute time slot was up. I was slightly concerned that the team wanted me to start my pre op diet only 2 weeks before surgery since the guidelines I was given indicated 3 weeks for those that were over 50 BMI. Dr. Nirmul assured me that since I was not very far over the 50 point mark, two weeks would be more than sufficient. Whew! True Results gave me plenty more reading material along with my Success Kit. As with before, the team is a wealth of information and ever so patient with the multitude of questions that I ask. Surgery is set for June 21st. Pre Op diet starts June 7th. One more day of 'normal' food before the two weeks of Hell On Earth Wish me Luck!

Wow, Mylynn, that is a difficult situation to be in. I feel your pain. Everyone has their demons and it sounds like your friend may be coming face to face with some of hers. Yes, you're doing well in your life and making changes for the positive. Sometimes, that is really hard to watch. If you've been friends for 15 years and you still want to hold onto that, confront her and have a heart to heart. Your friendship deserves to be saved, if it can. If, after you have a candid conversation, she is still distant then she is not ready to support you the way you deserve. This is not to say that she is not your friend or that she doesn't still love you. It just means that your relationship is going to change, she may no longer be your "best friend". And that hurts. You are allowed to mourn the relationship that you lost (IF you lose it). The good news, it sounds like you have a pretty awesome support system in place with your new fiancee, in-laws and all the new friends you will make in your new town. Chin up, you'll get thru this. We are all here for you and pray for the best outcome.

Hi Goal! I'm quite new to the site but like you am looking for support. All our our loved ones can be there for us to the best of their ability but sometimes you just need to talk to someone that is going thru the same things you are. I hope you find the support you are looking for! I am being banded in 16 days. I am just a bundle of questions and have found this site to be amazing. Good luck!

Going in for my Pre-Op Surgical consult tomorrow. Does anyone have suggestions of good questions to ask the Surgeon?

I have a computer/desk job and will be having my surgery on a Thursday and plan to come back on the following Tuesday. As of right now the Dr. has not indicated any extended time for recovery.