Wenjea

mini - congratulations!! A baby under any circumstance is a blessing. I to am expecting my first Grandchild and this afternoon at 2:30 they are supposed to find out if it will be a girl or a boy. We are just praying for a healthy baby no matter what sex it is. Since i am a mom of four biological and two adopted children I can tell you that whatever she decides to do it will work out well. I think the only regret women really have is when they terminate their pregnancy early. I am a believer in pro-life except where rape/incest is concerned. And then I think only in minors and extreme cases, and only in the first trimester. Anyway I think babies are a blessing and with your support I bet she will be a great mom. And isn't it great that you are going to be in such great shape to help her!!! Celebrate life!! Wendy

Sue - sounds like Carol is having the same trouble I was. Remember that you finally had to do it from your office for me. I'm not sure if there is some kind of block on our computers but I was getting the same message as Carol is. Carol - Have someone try it from a different computer. They will have to use your password to get in to your page but once Sue set mine up I was fine.

hey everyone, is anyone else struggling with the holiday munchies and goodies that are everywhere? I am letting sugar slip back into my diet and am feeling very guilty for it. I was at Costco and they were serving brownies . . . yum. It was in my mouth before I knew it! Followed by guilt. . .

Melissa . . . what are you doing talking to us???? Go out their and enjoy the sun and your new husband, you are on your honeymoon for goodness sake. Go show off that new bod . . . and bring some sun home for me! Have a great honeymoon!

Metal band - When I was PBing everything I was thinking how easy it would be to become a bulimic. I drug out all my old Weight Watchers stuff to make sure I was eating enough and I wasn't even close. When eating is such a hassle it is just easier not to eat and my frame of mind was going there and the scale wasn't moving at all for weeks so I got my act together and things are doing better again.

Carol - I feel your pain! I had Sue do it for me and it worked for her just fine. I don't dare change it either because I will never get it up there again. Someone out there will help you.

mini - I can totally relate to the tightness of your band. I am scheduled for another fill the Monday after Thanksgiving but there is no way I can be any tighter. I to PB after the first couple of bites and then can come back to the table and get the rest down. I have found that if I have some hot tea first, it really helps loosen the band so the food will go down. I always do it if I am out with friends and family, saves a trip to the bathroom to clear the pipes. The thing you really need to be careful of is getting enough nutrition down. My body thought I was starving it, which I probably was, so it just refused to drop any more weight. I started drinking two protein shakes and drinking the hot tea so I could eat more and it finally starting to move again, very slowly. Good luck with it. . . .

Melissa - Wow! the big day is here! You are going to look and feel gorgeous in your wedding dress and you don't have to hide behind anyone at picture time. You should be so proud of yourself. My advice is try and remember every moment of the day because afterwards it sort of feels like it was all a dream. Have a very fun and relaxing honeymoon, wish I could go to Hawaii!

Congratulations Sue! At least one of us got there!

Just stopping in to say hi to you all. The weight is coming off in ounces, which really means it's not moving much. Everything I eat is a hassle cuz I PB on it. I am working out pretty regularly but I am still frustrated. It's been at least six weeks since the scale has moved past the same two or three pounds that it is bouncing around on. By now I would have given up if I was on a regular diet but with this band I couldn't eat even if I wanted to . . . thank God.

Macysgranny - thanks for the plateau breaker, it looks a lot like my pre-surgery diet, except for the added protein. I will give it a try because nothing else is working!!!!

Mer, where did your middle go?! You look good girl and very slim!! You have great legs!

I need a little encouragement here ladies . . . help! I can't remember when the scale moved last. It's been weeks and weeks! I even dragged out all my old weight watchers material and started following that because I had to figure out how to get off this plateau. I realized I was not eating enough food but my band is soooo tight that there is no way I can get it all down. I am afraid that I have starved myself into not losing weight at all anymore. I have been faithful about exercising and weight lifting and it looks like my weight is shifting around my body because my clothes are fitting different but it has been six weeks and nothing has changed . . . come on! I'm so discouraged!!

It's a sunny day here in Tacoma so get out there and walk people!!!! It's hard to stay active when it is cold and rainy. I am wanting to go into hibernation for the winter but that just added lots of weight on in the past. I'm coming up on the sixth month mark since surgery and it's a good thing I can't take it out because by now I would have stopped dieting or removed it. I'm feeling a bit discouraged from being on this plateau for sooooo long! I need a plateau breaker!!

Hey there bandmates! I am getting soooo frustrated with the plateau that I am on. Since my third fill, only fluids and mushies go down easily and I to am not thinking about food much but I am wondering if this is a good idea or not. I think my body is adjusting to the lack of food and not losing anymore. I am seriously thinking of doing Weight Watchers or something to kick start my metabolism into high gear again. has anyone tried this? I am walking three times a week for 2-3 miles each time and working out on weights twice a week. I'm totally stumped as to why I'm not losing but I definately think it has something to do with starving my body.

ragdoll - talk about not looking like the same person! You have a whole different shape to your body. I took my pictures in my underwear and I'm not sure the world is ready to see that but you never know . . . . someday?

Has anyone gotten the stomach flu while banded? It is going around through my kids and I feel like I'm a ticking time bomb and am worried about what the throwing up might do to the band. I'm looking to all of you for information.

I'll be there if I'm still among the walking. I had three go down with the flu this weekend so I'm avoiding my family as much as possible, hee hee. I really don't have time for it plus I have no idea what would happen if I started throwing up with the band. Has anyone had the stomach flu while banded? I'll wear my new clothes!

I hit Marshal clearance yesterday and wow did I do good. I bought Ralf Lauren pants, originally $159.00, for $39.00 and $49.00. Both were size 16, down from a 20W. I'm with Sue on the selection, it took me three hours to scour out everything and try it on. I ended up with three pair of pants, 4 shirts, and two pair of shoes. That should get me through the winter. My old clothes were just looking dated or to big. Bummer dude!

I'm feeling a little jealous of all you onederland people. I am adjusting to my third fill and the scale is moving slowly down but it still seems a long way to go some times. I need to get back on track with the rules as far as no sugar!!!! Drink Water!!!! No Ice-cream!!! Just wondering for some of you with different docs, what are your eating restrictions that the doctor says as far as what you should or shouldn't be eating?

The good news is I went to Nordstroms and tried on 'Not My Daughters Jeans' and bought a size 16. Down two sizes from the start of this and out of the women's sizes . . . Yeah for me!

I went in for my third fill and my doctor wasn't going to give it to me because I told him I was Pbing. I begged him to check how much was actually in there because I had stayed the same over the last three weeks. I was supposed to have 2.6 in there but he could only pull out 2.2 so he refilled it to 2.6. Well some of it must of been hiding in there because this is tight! I can get liquids down but yogurt is to much for now. I have to puree my soup if it has any thing in it like vegetables just to get it down. I have gone back to two shakes a day but even those are hard to get down. i think it will be a long while before I go back in for another fill. i think I will just hang tight (literally) through the Holidays and get a fill in January. This is reminding me of my pre and post op liquid diet but if the scale starts to move then I can live with it. I know my vitamins and protein drinks are crucial for now.

Dawn - It sounds a lot like an attack that i had one time. I thought I was having a heart attack while my four boys were standing there watching. i told them to call 911 but instead they called their dad at work and he said he was on his way. About 20 minutes later when he got there it was all over but it sounds very similar to yours. In talking to my doctor she thought it might have been a gall bladder attack. They did a test but I didn't have any stones. If it had been caused by one then it had passed. I have never had another one and that was like 14 years ago. I thought I was going to pass out too and got very nauseous and the pain under my sternum was just exploding!!! It traveled out my right shoulder. I guess if it goes out your left shoulder then it is your heart and right shoulder means it is your gall bladder. I broke out in a drenching sweat and really thought I was going to die. It's a very scary thing to have happen. I'm glad your band is in good shape.

Hey everyone! I know it's been awhile . . . life is soooo busy. I should be able to find some time to come out this week Mer. I'm getting my third fill tomorrow and I don't think I will be able to eat anything because I PB and throw-up on everything as it is. I guess I will do what you are doing and stick to warm liquids. I just want the scale to start moving down again. Since I started working out five times a week my weight has been stuck on the same number. Frustrating! I'm wondering if I will ever see onederland in my lifetime.

Ginger - I'm getting my third fill tomorrow but I'm not really sure what I will eat because I slime on everything as it is. Part of it is the kind of food I choose to eat. My mind still wants bread and fries and potato chips but those things are a for sure slime and throw-up waiting to happen. It seems like I can't eat anything and I have stalled out on weight loss also, that's why I'm getting a fill again. I went on a cruise last weekend with my mom and felt like all I did was eat. I came home and got on the scale and had gained two pounds. I got back on my walking and weight lifting routine and over the next three days four pounds came off. I read somewhere that you have to keep your metabolism guessing. Eat about 2000 calories for a couple days and then drop it to 1000 for a few days. That way it doesn't go into starvation mode. I will let you know how it goes after the fill. I have to be on liquids for two days. I am slowly coming to the realization that bread if forever out of my menu.