gowalking

Wonderful news. So happy for you!!

You bet. Don't worry about failure...not even if you don't lose right away. It can take some time for the restriction to be working for you. As long as you follow the doctor's protocol, and do some exercise..get up and move as much as you can..you will be fine. Good luck and welcome to the other side.

Single digits here in the frozen big apple today. I have a friend in Boston Arlene and I know just how bad it's been for you guys. Hang in there everyone. Talked to mom earlier today and it's 45 in Miami. I know that doesn't sound terrible but it's really cold for South Florida. Went to dinner last night with a man I met online. We had Chinese food and then went across the street to the French Bistro for coffee and dessert. My date kept commenting on how little I was eating and I kept explaining to him that I liked to eat as much as the next person but I needed to limit my intake because I had to keep as much excess weight off my joints as possible. We had a nice time and actually laughed when he said taking me to dinner was a total waste of money since I ate so little. We're going out again tomorrow night to a piano bar he likes to go to. Glad this place has nothing to do with food this time...lol.

I used to keep the ceiling fan on even in the coldest weather because I was too warm. I hardly ever used the comforter because it was so heavy. I'd keep the window open a crack because it was too hot in my apartment. That was 150 lbs. ago. These days, I am so cold that I wear silk thermal underwear under my clothes. I wear silk glove liners because the gloves alone are not enough. I wear a wetsuit in the pool at the Y because I'm too cold in the Water to just go in with a bathing suit on. I wear socks every night and I sleep under that comforter easily nine months out of the year now. I have a full length mink coat my mom gave me that is the only thing that keeps me warm enough. If you've ever worn a fur coat, you know that it's warmer than any other coat no matter what the material. My doctor said it would be a couple of years before my body acclimated to my new size. So, it's hot coffee, hot Soup, and hot showers for me for a while at least.

Is it under warranty? Perhaps you can someone in to give you an estimate on how much it would cost to fix. Good luck...I know how much we depend on our exercise routines...the Y I go to was closed on Monday due to a Water pipe breaking. I was bummed because I expected to go to my water exercise class and couldn't.

Ditto everything @@enjoythetime wrote. Everything.

Yup.

Last night's episode was very frustrating. I thought the psych interview was to try to root out people who were not realistic about what they were getting into. Although Pauline seemed prior to surgery, to understand exactly why she was so large and what she needed to do to turn that around. I feel badly for her son. She has crippled him and if that's not child abuse, I don't know what is. That last video of them together at the Bingo parlor was very telling. He's already lost as far as I'm concerned. And when Pauline dies...and it may be quite soon, he's going to be totally unmoored.

Don't stress. Weight loss is not linear. You will stall...sometimes for weeks. You might gain as well at times. You just started your journey so focus on eating healthy, learning how to eat with your band, exercising, and focusing on the non scale victories. Good luck and keep us posted. I bet you will do fine.

You're awesome Lisa. I have a bit of an idea what you may be dealing with at the moment. Just know that I'm thinking of you and hoping things settle down soon for you and Ken.

@JustWatchMe....I swear by deep Water exercising. My Monday water exercise class instructor does that for the first half hour. She's the one who told me jokingly to gain some weight because the float belt wasn't tight enough because I was too small. I like that she thinks I'm too thin. I'm not, but I like to hear stuff like that. You know my history with the knees and hips and water exercise is the best thing. It's a workout but in the water, you are bouyant and you won't get hurt. Liz

You need to focus on you right now and get rid of this guy who treats you like crap. Once you are comfortable with knowing you need to be treated like a queen, you won't put up with anything less than that. I am dating again because I know I look attractive now but even attractive people can allow others to treat them poorly. You need to work on your self esteem. Only then can you understand your worth...no matter what size you are. I make it very clear how I want and expect to be treated and those who are not going to adhere will go away...and I say not fast enough if you don't show me the respect I deserve. Believe me, I didn't feel this way overnight. I had to lose alot of weight first and then go into therapy. This was a two step process that I've been working on for two years now. I had to change the outside and now I'm focusing on fixing the inside. Good luck sweetie. ...and now I understand why you picked your forum name.

I'm two years out but also having great success. I do hope that you feel better with the revision surgery. I watch these posts closely as I would be very unhappy if I had to have my band removed.

Kelly sweetie..no one is judging..I promise. I looked at your profile and see that you are just 19 years old. I am so very sorry that you are in so much pain that you thought death was the answer. I am no therapist but I am a mother and I'd hate to think my child was hurting that badly and I couldn't help her. Please take care of your emotional issues along with your band concerns. I agree that you should talk to your bariatric surgeon regarding any damage you may have done to the band and I also think that you should be speaking with a professional regarding your attempt at suicide. I understand how you can be in that much pain. I considered suicide myself at one time but I told my therapist about it and with the help of medication and additional therapy, I got past the crisis and have not felt that way in a very long time. Please keep us posted on how you are doing because we really do care about you.

Every time I hop into my bed, or cross my legs, or bend down, curl up, stand up, etc, etc, etc, I am reminded how as we get larger, we compensate in how we move. I know I didn't realize for a very long time, the changes I made as I got heavier and heavier but I am hyper aware how much easier it is now to engage in any type of movement. Everything we do is different because it's easier the smaller one gets. It's so wonderful that I hope the feeling never goes away. Right now I'm constantly reminded of my weight loss because of this and I don't ever want it to become something I take for granted.

Stay safe and warm. It's bitterly cold here in NYC and I'm sure it's worse in NH.

Keep posting those pictures. You worked hard to make the changes we see in those photos so be proud of your achievements. Besides...I look at my before/after pics all the time. It helps me to see the new me because I still struggle with being the fat girl. Great job and keep it up!! Long term WLS success stories is what inspires me.

Please go see your doctor and ask if you need some fill taken out. You should be able to eat fruit...you should be able to eat almost anything. I think you are likely too tight.

It's not about what challenges we face, but how we deal with them and right now, you inspire me with your strength and commitment to your health and well-being.

You're getting very good advice here Mama. You will have to learn as others have said, to stay away from the carbs and fats and think Protein first. I can count on one hand, the number if times I've eaten carbs at breakfast since being banded. It's all about protein. Mostly eggs, oatmeal, yogurt. Same for lunch and dinner. I do have carbs...but in very limited amounts. Just remember success will happen if you eat less and eat smart. The surgery just helps to make that easier to adhere to. Good luck!

That's the problem Julie...I can't wrap my head around it. Hence the pictures...and more than a year of therapy. We are now finally getting to some of the meat of the issues that helped to make me turn to food so I can try not to do it again if/when I run into trouble. I look at those pictures because I know I'm not the same person anymore...not physically or emotionally. When I feel like I'm still the fat girl, I look at the pictures so I can put my head in the right space. I'm still on the journey my friend..similar to your journey since becoming a widow. It takes a long time to become a new person whether it's related to the outside, or the inside. Just a tip honey....I thought at some point I would stop using 'Mrs. when being addressed but for whatever reason, I never felt uncomfortable with it and 20 years widowed, I'm still Mrs. Winters. You do what feels right but don't worry if it is or not...as long as you are OK with it, go with it.

Aww..thank you @amponder. Are you on a laptop? If yes, you just need to click on the 'attach' icon and upload the pictures to your post.

So proud of all you gals. Facing the challenges we have without resorting to eating the feelings away or anesthetizing with food. I'm going through my own stuff and thank goodness for my therapist who helps me to work on what is bothering me instead of getting scared of the bad feelings and eating to avoid them. We are strong women and we have to keep reminding ourselves of that. We have to know we are worthy of having everything we desire and there's no reason why we cannot.

You'll be fine on the cruise @Sharpie. When I was on my cruise last summer, there was plenty of protein and plenty of good choices. I actually lost a half a pound that week. Enjoy!

Although I am two years out from being banded, I have a number of body image issues and I find that photographs help me to see what I have trouble seeing when I look in the mirror. I know that pictures also help my buddies on this site when they wonder if they too can transform even with high BMI's or complicated co-morbidities. Here's the proof that it can be done by just limiting intake, making healthy choices, and moving a little bit. I haven't done anything to excess and have still found success. If I can do it, so can any of you. The first set of pictures is from our company Christmas party. The before is from 2011 and the after is from 2014. The other set of pictures is from a hotel I stayed at in June of 2013 and again last week. At the time of the first picture, I was already down nearly 70 lbs. and the after pic is me down 155 lbs.