enjoythetime

Love this Mikee57! Yes it's happy happy joy joy day!!!:-)

You look amazing! So happy for you! Happy 1-year bandiversary!!

Sooo happy for you!! I can hear the excitment in your text and it's contagious:-)!! Keep it up!! Where are you going on your trip? I hope you have a fantastic time!!!!

The decision to have weight loss surgery should not be based soley on what your apperance will be like at the end. Now don't get me wrong of course that's what we all hope for but that should be the added bonus, the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. The real reason one should decide to have WLS is to better their overall health so they can live to reach retirement age, being around to watch their kids grow-up, etc. I think the first thing you have to do is put apperances aside for a moment and ask youself how is my health? Do I have any current conditions caused from my weight or are there any lurking if I don't do something about it. Of course weight loss doesn't completely take away all your risk for diabetes or high blood pressure, I've got a friend that weighs 125lbs soaking wet and has diabetes but I guess what I'm trying to say is there are many factors that need to be considered when having WLS and going through the journey. For the men and women out there who are comfortable being plus-sized and DON'T have any health issues from being that size then by all means rock it (that's seldom the case though). I love it when people are comfortable in their own skin regardless of size etc., but at the same time let's be honest with ourselves is this true happiness or just smoke and mirrors or is it a movement to try and get society to change their perception? Just because someone walks around in a bathing suit or a mini skirt doesn't mean they truly love the way they are, they may have accepted it to a point or maybe they're trying to convience themselves, what apprears to be one thing in the public spot light can be completely different from what's going on in the inside. It's called a coping mechanisim, a wall they hide behind not to get hurt. Just because you're for people who love themselves regardless of size doesn't mean your a hypocrite because you had WLS it just means that you wanted to make a healthy lifestyle change. Just my opinion and you know what they say about those:-) Best wishes!

Wowza that's incredible!! Congratulations on your success!

This is one I have from Pinterest: I opt to substitute the nooldes for more veggies such as fresh chopped mushrooms green onions, broccoli etc. Hope this helps! Ingredients 1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts 5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped (1 3/4 cups) 1 medium yellow onion, chopped (1 1/2 cups) 4 stalks celery, chopped (1 1/4 cups) 3 cloves garlic, minced 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth (3 - 15 oz cans) 1 cup Water 1/2 tsp dried thyme 1/2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed 1/4 tsp celery seed, finely crushed* 2 bay leaves Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 2 cups uncooked wide egg noodles 3 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley 1 Tbsp fresh lemon juice Saltine crackers or parmesan cheese, for serving (optional) Directions To a slow cooker, add chicken (un-cut), diced carrots, onion, celery, and garlic. Drizzle olive oil over top then add in chicken broth, water, thyme, rosemary, celery seed, bay leaves and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook on low heat 6 - 7 hours. Remove cooked chicken and allow to rest 10 minutes, then dice into bite size pieces. Meanwhile, add egg noodles and parsley to slow cooker. Increase temperature to high, cover and cook 10 minutes longer (or until noodles are tender). Stir in lemon juice and toss in cooked, diced chicken. Serve warm with saltine crackers or top with Parmesan cheese if desired.

Laura70, I'm so sorry to hear you're experiencing this! I have a couple of questions to get a better understanding. Do you know if your band was pre-filled prior to it being placed? Did you talked with your surgeon regarding your complications before being hospitalized? Did your doctor do a 1-week follow-up, 2-week follow-up and a 4 week follow-up? If so, and you were experiencing these issues what was their advice? Just wondering if your surgeon knew all this why they would let you go this far before stepping in. Were you able to follow the post op diet stages given to you by your doctor at all? Right now the focus should be to just get you better. Did they say what the gastritis was caused from? I know there can be several factors causing this to develop. The first 4 weeks are critical for healing after major surgery and to throw something like this on top of that.....I just can't imagine how miserable you must be feeling right now:( My thoughts are if your band was pre-filled with Fluid it's much for your body to handle and you need to have some fluid removed; work closely wth your lapband surgeon and your Primary doctor to get this situation under control; wait to make any major decisions on having the band removed until you know the cause, future plans, treatment etc. You're going through so much right now and to make a major decision to have the band removed so quickly is one that needs careful thought. The Gastritis could have been something that was going to form with or without the surgery. I really hope you get better soon! Hang in there and let us know how you're doing!!!!

Great topic Gowalking! Through this journey the meaning of success is ever changing for me. At first it was ok I need to loss 50% of my excess weight within one year, then it was I need to get to onederland, then it was to hit my goal weight and now it's like you said it's the desire to sustain where I'm at right now for the rest of my life. It was all the little victories along the way that meant the most to me and motivated me to keep going. The NSVs of going down a size or two, going to the Dr. and having tests done and everything coming back perfect, it's in the smiles on my family's face when they see how happy I am to be able to do something I wasn't able to do one year ago, it's that feeling of self-worth at the end when all is said and done that I set out to do this for myself to become healthy and of course look and feel human and have done just that. It's about being the person I've always been on the inside but at times was hesitant because of my outward apperance. I would like to encourange others through my experiences along this journey to help someone else who is where I was, that is what ULTIMATE success looks like for me. I want to be able to give others hope regardless of their current situation that they can change their life.

Don't dread social situations. Its just that the timimg of this one was bad:) After you are able to eat solids social events and restaurants with the band is no biggie. I eat out a lot and have no trouble. Just remember this is a lifestyle change so you have to know the things you can and can't live without. Its all about balance. Youll do great!!!!

In my honest opinion I wouldn't try to eat beef t this point. You are still recovering from major surgery and it's extremely important to follow your dr.'s post-op diet so that there are no issues in the healing process. I know this is a tough situation and of course you don't want to disappoint anyone but the most important thing is for you to heal properly and when you start progressing too fast some times that can cause problems. So you may have to think outside the box on this one. So there will be cheese, sour cream and salsa I'm assuming??? Any refried Beans???? If so what I would do is take some refried beans mash them up the best you can with your fork, top with cheese, sour cream and salsa and there you go. If there are no beans I would do the same thing but maybe stand in front of the meat like you're getting some and then quickly run for the cheese and put some one your plate. Once you start eating no one is going to examine what you have in your pile. I hope this works. Congrats on your promotion!!!

Christy929, This is a very common fear when starting out. Everyone of course is different but I think the most important thing to do is take your time when eating so you can get the chance to listen to your band and your stomach and not your head. Sometimes we go so fast that the signs are consistantly missed. There's also a fine line because you should be finishing your meals within 20 min. regardless I always walk away from my plate at that time limit. As far as finding your mark mine is a burp but it can be a tricky thing because at times it comes before I've finished my plate so I stop even if I still feel a little hungry I give it time but at other times I finished my portioned plate and feel satisfied but my burp may come 15-30 min. later so it's kind of weird for me I rely more heavily upon the portion sizes my Dr. laid out for me. 3-4oz of Protein per meal, 1/2 cup veggies, 1 serving of starch (if I have room) and I always eat my plate in that order. I think that as long as you eat the correct portion sizes dictated by your doctor then you will do just fine. Some times I feel statisfied before I've finsihed my veggies and if so I stop, some times I still feel hungry and I've finished my entire plate, BUT i know that after my hour is up after eating and i can have something to drink I fill up very quickly and know that if I would have eaten any more it would have over flowed:-) I hope this helps! Good luch you'll do great!

Any time. It's hard for me too so what I did was I started pinning health recipies on Pinterest and then modifying them even further ifto my taste or if I thought other substitutions would be better health wise and by doing this I've come up with several different recipies I even have a not so healthy board that I try to tweak when I get really crazy:-) @@enjoythetime Thanks so much for posting your eating ideas. I've had the dumbest reaction about what to eat once I get onto a regular diet. I think fear of the unknown and fear about giving up my favorite foods caused me to sort of blank out ideas about how to eat. The guidebook given to me by my surgeon lists nothing but plain foods, not the recipe stuff I've always eaten, and I was beginning to think I'd be stuck with 3 oz of plain chicken or whatever day after day. I don't think the surgeon means I can't eat other things, I think that was simply the easy way to explain it. I know plenty of healthy recipes, but I couldn't visualize them in my post-op life. You've helped me a lot!

Awe thank you Sharpie! YOU'RE A HUGE SUCCESS!!! YOU LOOK AMAZING!! DON'T EVER DOUBT YOUR ABILITY, IF YOU WANT TO GET OFF 15 MORE LBS YOU WILL!!! LOOK AT HOW FAR YOU'VE COME YOU SHOULD BE OVER JOYED AND SO PROUD!! I'M HONORED THAT YOU TOOK TIME TO COMMENT AND READ THIS. YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY ADORABLE!!!!!!!!

Thank you chasingadream for your support and kind words! It means alot! Youre doing awesome yourself!!

Hillarious!!! Been there done that. I love that u put this out there! Have fun!!!!!!

Congrats on your awesome loss! Perfectly said!

This is awesome!! Thanks for sharing!

Might is the key word here. Everyone is different, and responds to food differently, some do fine others dont. I don't think we should discourage others from trying nutrious Protein because they "might" have an issue. My doctor never told me to rule out or avoid any food other than doughy bread. In fact he encouraged me to try problem foods a couple of different times before completely ruling them out.

@ pink dahlia Wow! This brought tears to my eyes!!! I hope you never find yourself in a dark alley at midnight BUT if you do, I definitely got your back!!!!! You're doing an amazing job yourself girl!!! Thanks again for the words of encoragement!!! People like you make this site a wonderful place to be!! All I can say is if I ever have to walk down a dark alley at midnight, id want you by my side ! Attitude is everything !! Congrats! You look amazing and should be very proud of yourself for your hard work ! You are a great inspiration to others !! Way to go !!

YAY!! I'm super excited for you! May is a GREEEAT month to be banded Keep in touch and let me know how you're doing!!!

That ah girl! You've got this in the bag! You have the right attitude and frame of mind! When is your surgery?

Everyone is different but overall I think we all have this to some degree or another. The amount depends on the elasticity of your skin, how much you work out, what kind of exercise, your age, sex, etc., etc., But no matter how much skin you do or dont end up hanging around its crazy to think you're going to hate yourself or that you're going to be disappointed I mean you just lost a TON of weight which more than likely means you just lost a TON of serious health issues, your energy will be through the roof. So if you have excess skin and you're unhappy with it, get a tummy tuck, buy some spanx or a gurdle to hold it together;), tuck it in whatever works;)

Why no shrimp Martha? I eat shrimp and do just fine. Its low in cal and a great Protein...just windering what the reason behind this. Thx

takuwinds, So glad you made this post. I was literally just wondering about how you've been doing! Glad you went to your Dr.'s to find out what was going on! It's good you have answers now and that you went and got yourself taken care of! Hypothyroidism will definitely throw you off track. Stay strong and keep pushing through. You're doing all the right things for all the pieces to fall into place! Keep in touch!

booflu, I'm so excited for you! I know you're nervous right now which is completely normal, if anyone likes having surgery that's when we need to be concerned:-) I'm 11 months post-op and am thrilled with the decision I made to have the lapband! It's changed my life in more ways than I could have ever imagined! You're going to do great. Just follow your doctors instructions to the T and you will be successful! Please keep us posted on how you're doing!