gowalking

You are a terrific group for sure. I'm so glad that I found this forum and all you wonderful people.

I love all your posts...CG girl, I nearly sprayed my keyboard with the mouthfull of coffee I was swallowing when I read what you wrote! I know you were dating Di...I remember when you wrote about it and I thought you were so brave to get out there and tackle something that still seems so scary to me. I didn't want to post this on the general forum..I don't need/want judgement. Not that I'd be judged, but I'd rather just keep this story here in our little private thread for the time being. It's support I'm looking for and you are all my friends even though I've only met a few of you F2F. Gosh, I wish we could do some type of get together so we can meet. Lisa and I had such an awesome time with HealthyNewMe when she came to NYC and I've met a few gals from the forum through our support group. It would be such a blast to hug you all. I'd also love to meet the guys as well. Jim and David at least. And TMF...he's a hoot as well. OK...back to work. Really. LOL.

OK friends, I decided a long time ago to be honest and forthcoming on this site to help myself and others partaking in the experience of WLS. You all know just about everything...from my bathroom habits to the fact that I see a therapist to help me with body image issues and all that go with it. So..the last big hurdle had to do with the opposite sex. I've been alone for a long time for many reasons...not just the weight gain. With help from my therapist, I decided to go on some of those dating websites even though I am still very uncomfortable with my body. I am still working out my issues and whether or not I'll get any plastic surgery. If I do it, it has to be for the right reasons and not to try to achieve some unrealistic idea of perfection. Part of this process is to admit I would like to have a man in my life. I don't need to have a man, but I would like to try dating again. Well...I've been chatting with a few different men and I am meeting one of them tomorrow night. It's not the first date I've been on actually...I went out with a lawyer I met online a few weeks ago. He never shut up so I figured I'd just eat and enjoy an evening out knowing there wouldn't be a second date. But this one I like. I've talked to him on the phone for a few weeks and we seem to be hitting it off. I'll let you all know how it goes. I have to keep telling myself that he would be a lucky guy to go out with me. Not an easy thing to do when one battles self esteem issues all the time, but you have to start somewhere right? I've adopted a little saying in my head that comes from an old proverb: 'A virtuous woman is worth a price above rubies'. I have to remind myself that I am worthy of a good man's intentions. Wish me luck ya'll and I'll keep you posted.

Oh honey...thank you for the compliment but I agree with the gals who want to smack you upside your head. You are doing great. It's not about how much weight you are losing...it's about living our lives. When I read about folks getting out and exercising, or buying clothes they never thought they would wear again, or just being engaged with life again, it makes me feel just so great. I take the Water exercise class at my local Y and not only am I getting the exercise, I've made some really nice friends and I look forward to going to the class. What a difference from before being banded to now. I'm just so much happier with my situation now and I'm sure you are as well.

Just wanted to mention that I need new stockings. I'm wearing a pair I got from the back of the drawer and now I know why they are there. Talk about baggy ankles...I keep having to pull them up so high that the waistband is up under my boobs. I know...TMI for the guys on this thread but you're all married so you know the score. Have a great Monday everyone!

Congratulations. Great job so far. And it's so comforting to see long time bandsters who are still happy with their choice of WLS.

Same thing happened to me. I had to lose an awful lot of weight just to go down one size from 26 to 24 pants. But as you lose, it takes less and less weight to move to smaller sizes. I just went from an 8 to a 6 pant and only lost about 10 lbs. to get there. Don't worry about it...this is how it goes for alot of us.

I keep 100 calorie packs of popcorn, pretzels, and Cookies in the house so that if I must have a snack, I don't do something stupid. I don't eat these things often but they usually ease the craving without overdoing it. What I really find helps me if I'm a little hungry but don't want to make bad choices is the Laughing Cow light cheese wedges. They're only 35 calories a wedge and one always does the trick for me.

Great post Cheryl!

OMG....I fart all the damn time. Even if I try to hold it in, I can't. Sometimes when I walk in the hallway at work, I'm tooting away and just praying no one hears it.

I went to the hospital this morning to have a stress test. I need a colonoscopy and my doctor wanted something checked out regarding my ECG. I've been through hell and back in terms of my health so I'm not going to worry about anything unless or until I have to. But the visit was chock full of NSVs from the gown being too big on me (rather than my having to hold it closed, or even wear two of them, back to front and front to back) to the nurse being blown away when she saw my pre band photo once she pulled up my electronic records to fitting into the echo machine. One time I had to have a special part put into the MRI machine so my huge trunk-like leg would fit into it. Talk about embarrassing. I remember with such intensity, worrying about almost every situation in terms of my once obese body. Would I fit into something? Would I break something? Would someone say something nasty to me? Would I embarrass whomever I was with? Right now these feelings are very strong because the weight loss is new. I need to find that balance so I don't focus on it, but I don't lose sight of it either. I don't ever ever ever want to be heavy again.

Great! Just didn't want any of the regulars here wondering which thread we're on. I'm good with staying right here with my pals.

OK folks...CG changed it to 'Me'. I'm not sure if she's going to start another thread or if we stay on this one. CG darlin'....will you start a new thread or shall we just stay here?

awww...thank you.

Same here countrysweet. My sister got annoyed with me because I kept asking for pictures to be taken from our weekend in Florida and my SIL told her that if I wanted to take pictures, I deserved to because of how hard I worked and how good I looked. That's a nice thing to say, but it's not why I have my picture taken these days. I do it because I need to start to recognize the smaller me. I also see the fat girl in my head though I am finally starting to recognize the new me. It's not been easy though and I see a therapist to help with my body image issues. It's understandable when one has lost half their pre-band weight. There are some pics of me at my heaviest. I look at them and then look at current pictures to try to get comfortable with my new body. It's still a work in progress but I'm hoping sooner or later, I accept my new reality. If you have trouble with this, don't hesitate to discuss it with a professional. Even if you can't find before pics, put up current pics so we can see how beautiful you are. Congrats on your success!

pizza is a once in a while treat for me. It's not that I don't love eating it, it's a choice I've made. As good as a hot slice of pizza is, it's so much better to walk into a place like Old Navy and know that even though the clothes are too young for me, I can still try them on if I want to. Shopping these days is much better than eating. I will need a new fall/winter wardrobe as the clothes I wore last winter no longer fit and I can't wait to start buying stuff!

Best tip out there is to log in all your food. It will help you get back on track ASAP when you document everything that goes in your mouth.

FYI, CG started a new thread...Lap Banders #1. Come follow us there.

Guess who's a tiny lady? Me. Yup...that word was used to describe me. The pic below is from my mom's birthday dinner and yes..the tiny lady is me. When we were out the day before at the Chinese restaurant, the waiter taking care of our large table was doling out hot and sour Soup and describing us as he was doing it. So he called my mom 'pretty lady' and he called my aunts 'blonde lady' and 'smiling lady'. When he handed me my bowl, he said, 'for the tiny lady'. Yes...I am pretty small these days and loving my life.

thanks for the heads up Sandy. I'm so not looking forward to this but I have to do it...I should have done it when I turned 50 and that was six years ago.... My doctor is really annoyed with me...

Yes..many many ice packs...here and in Florida..lol. Enjoy your walk. I'm battling a cold so no pool for me. Maybe I'll bike a little instead. From what I understand, there are so many auto-immune conditions out there that many of them are undiagnosed and that's the big problem for the rheumatologists. I hope you find someone you can work better with. I've been very lucky in that regard. The pain management doctor I see has recommended many of the doctors/surgeons I see and they have all been top notch. Have a great day today hon!

My dear Bandista...I am the poster child for arthritis and anti-inflammatories. I'm on Cymbalta 60 mgs. now. It's working very well for me in that my lower back is much better. But I have joint, muscle, and nerve issues still. I was on Neurontin before the Cymbalta and it didn't help at all. I was also on Voltaren 100 mgs. for a very long time but finally went off it a couple of months after the hips were replaced. I am currently taking a med called Duexis. It's a combination pill that includes an anti-inflammatory and Prilosec. I know that NSAIDS are not a great thing to take long term but any med has risk. You have to determine with your doctor, if the benefit outweighs the risk. Right now, I need to be on the meds because I have some kind of hyper-inflammatory issue going on that they can't seem to diagnose. I see a rheumatologist as well so he can monitor my condition. The current thought is that I have some kind of auto-immune issue going on but they can't figure out what is causing it. My bariatric surgeon is aware of these meds I'm on but she feels the same way...for me, the benefit outweighs the risk. I'm also not filled and that might have something to do with it. Oh...and I've tried a few topical meds but they never really worked for me. My issues are too severe for that. If you have any questions about pain or NSAID meds, just PM me. Chances are I've had some type of personal experience with it.

Didn't look at this yesterday but just had to today. It really is all about the poop. What a challenge it's been for me since being banded. Who knew how wonderful a really good s**t could be once it became as rare as The Hope Diamond. I take a stool softener and a prescription med for IBS. I don't actually have IBS but the doctor feels it will help me stay regular. Well..turns out what works best for me is acupuncture. She puts the needles in my hand and ear and that's for digestion. It really works. Oh, and about floating turds...mine sink like the Titanic so maybe more fiber is needed. I eat my veggies regularly and I have salad once or twice a week so I'm not sure what else to do. I take Mirilax once in a while for bloating emergencies. My colonoscopy comes up shortly. All I'm looking forward to in regards to that procedure is weighing myself after being all cleaned out. Maybe I can get down to 120 lbs. When I was 16, I weighed 113 lbs. Obviously I don't have that body anymore but it would be sorta cool to know I weighed close to that number again.

If you're concerned about being able to eat the rice, go with sashimi instead. The fish should go down pretty easy as long as you eat slowly and chew well. In fact, if the fish is as fresh as it should be, you can likely get it down fairly easily.

I'm presuming since you are working with Methodist in Brooklyn, you are open to trying another practice not too far from you? If so, I was banded by the bariatric group out of NYU Langone. I've been very happy with the practice and the hospital. If you want further info, feel free to PM me.