Zoe

Fantastic post, Paula! You are a wise woman, and I'm grateful that you shared your anniversary insights. Do you have before and after photos?

Hi Parvathi -- There are a lot of Aussies here. "Aussie Jode" posted a message recently to figure out where all of you were to see if it would be possible to meet; see http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=7188 . Try searching for Australia or Oz via the dark blue bar toward the top of the screen and you'll probably get a lot of matches. Meanwhile, congratulations on the great weight loss, and welcome! Hope the wandering port isn't a problem.

Back in Twonesia with Aunt Flo at 203 for my official end-of-challenge weight today. Funny, when we started all those months ago, I smugly thought I'd lose those 12 lbs. by sometime in April. Here it's June 1 and I have only a nine-pound loss. Still, if I didn't have the band, I'd hate to think what my weight would be. So I'm resolved to pull my socks up, wait till nature plops me back in Onederland (I hope!), and get on with the summer fun. Kathy, I am definitely up for a summer challenge. Let me think about it . . . meanwhile, I'm going to check Jonathan's page to see how our merry band of bandsters has fared. Congratulations to all losers!

LMAO, Bandit! I grew up not far from a busy street where you could see far into the city. When I was about five, my dad told me that the big domes of a church several miles away were in Moscow. I was way too old by the time I realized no one could see that far east on Center Street.

Hmmm... you're doing all the right things. It's not like you called Dr. H during the middle of the night, so he had no reason to be rude. Let's see how he responds tomorrow. With luck, your pain will have already vanished.

I usually toss the NYT business section without even reading the front page, so I totally missed this. Interesting articles; I notice that all the malpractice suits are for bypass surgery. Thanks for the links, Z.

How wonderful that you and Penni had a chance to meet. It's a pleasure to learn that she's "even more wonderful and beautiful in person" -- as if that were possible! Thanks for telling us about your visit. How's Penni's foot?

I sure hope so. I'm sorry to hear that the nurses brushed off your problem. Maybe you should mention that to Dr. Horgan when you see him for your appointment. He needs to know how his staff is responding to patients' concerns. Good luck!

I'm finally figuring out that I have something like Body Dysmorphic Disorder -- which in my case is just a pop-psych way of saying that I think I'm fatter than I am. Mind you, when I was topping 260 lbs. I knew exactly how fat I was: I could squeeze into an airplane seat only with great difficulty (and a shoehorn), and I wore 3X pants. I'm still a large woman. But I still think of myself as jumbo, and it's finally getting through my thick skull that I'm not. Exhibit A: I'm on the phone with one of my bros, walking down the beach, when the dog cuts through a hole in the fence. "I've gotta chase the effing dog and there's no way I can get through," I mutter. He tells me to give it a shot. Voilà: I make it with no problem. Exhibit B: Friends and family keep telling me how different I look, but I can't see much of a change. I know my face and wrists are thinner, but I can't get past my flabby saddlebags and blobby knees. Exhibit C: I tried on shoes at Nordstrom Rack last week and strutted in front of the dinky mirrors attached to the footstools. My legs looked incredibly long. I spent about 10 minutes in front of those mirrors, bending down and moving my hands around to see if the image was distorted. Finally I asked someone if the mirrors elongated the reflection "because I look really tall." She laughed, "Honey, I hate to break it to you, but you ARE really tall." Some days I notice the change. But my brain still believes I'm fat. I feel as if I'm changing citizenship, and even though I might reside in a new country (not yet that far away from my homeland), I'm still a Fatlander at heart. My identity is connected to fat. This is not all bad -- I think those of us who have struggled with weight tend to be more compassionate to other people who are also outside the cultural and societal norms -- but it's disconcerting. Maybe after I get closer to my goal weight I'll have an easier time seeing that I'm not the same on the outside as I was before, but I'm not sure. Anyone else experiencing this?

Teresa, what does the vet think about giving the dog Wellbutrin? I know you said the vet is in favor of euthanizing the dog, but it sounds as if you want to try an anti-anxiety drug first, and you should find out the possible side effects in animals before you proceed. Remember that the drug trial dogs were not chosen to see if the medicine worked on curing their symptoms, but just to measure side effects. I suggest you talk to your vet again. I've heard of pets going on Prozac with good results, but I don't know about Wellbutrin. Good luck to you. This is a hard decision, and I don't blame you for trying medication as a last result. (You also might want to ask the vet if antidepressant/antianxiety drugs will take weeks to kick in, as they often do in humans.)

"What if the stupid diet works?! What if I loose just enough weight in that 6 months to no longer qualify for the surgery?!" That's the problem. Of course, if you could keep losing on a diet alone, you wouldn't be looking into a band in the first place -- but try explaining that to an insurance company. It looks as if you've already figured out your choices: (1) Go ahead with the doctor-supervised diet for six months, see what happens, and possibly get a band courtesy of your insurance company -- or get turned down; (2) self-pay. There's no easy answer here, as the other posts attest. Only you can decide. I'm a self-payer, thanks to a home-equity loan. I'll be paying it off for quite a while. But I too believe that this was the best investment I've ever made.

Amen! People who consider the band (or RNY) "cheating" seem to believe that only losing weight by brute willpower is worth applauding -- as if the object of any weight-loss method was not a healthier body but self-chastisement, punishment for having previously indulged in fleshly sins. I have no use for these diet Puritans. If they think your results don't count because you have a band, that shows only what fools they are. And anyone who thinks the band is easy clearly doesn't have one!

How about buying some frozen dinners (Lean Cuisine, Trader Joe's, etc.) that you can just pop in the microwave? There are lots of healthy, band-friendly choices available. I like Trader Joe's chicken with lemongrass and chicken masala. Lean Cuisine's Pasta choices are pretty good -- not as good as cooking pasta yourself, but for those days when you don't even have time to boil Water, they're a decent choice. Too bad about the salads. Maybe in a few weeks you'll be able to eat one without the same difficulty.

Please call Dr. Horgan ASAP if you haven't already done so. Let us know what he says.

Good luck, Mary -- hope all goes well for you. Let us know how you're doing.

It's true. Dr. Horgan is my fill doctor; on my first visit I made a lame joke about wearing a bikini (I'm in my late 40s, with big surgery scars on my belly and back) and he said very seriously, "Don't laugh -- you can do it." He has an excellent reputation. I think you've made a fine choice. Maybe next year we can visit him together in bikinis! (Over my dead body. . .)

Hi Christina -- I am a back-pain veteran. I'll send you a PM. Hope you feel better soon!

Thanks for checking in, Kendra! Quote:"Im doing alot of things I probably would have hesitated to before, or even not done at all. The band may very well be helping with saving a part of my life." Amazing, isn't it? Congratulations -- it sounds as if you're doing great.

Very cool! Do you have a similar chart for your first year?

Onederland, Twonesia... how about Tripoli? OK, it's the capital of Libya, but who's counting? How about a romantic getaway weekend for the celebration?

Happy birthday! Let that booty shake in celebration!

Hey there, DeL, glad you're still around. And thanks for asking about me. I've gotten into a horrible LBT habit at work myself, and it simply must stop, so I'm writing this on my computer and my own time. I'm limping around from another sciatica episode, otherwise I'm still fat and sassy. OK, not quite as fat as before, but still . . .

When I hear "sabotage," I don't think of people who trivialize or dismiss weightloss surgery, I think of people who try to undermine our efforts to lose weight by waving before us high-calorie goodies in mass quantities. Both can be damaging -- if you let them. I've been lucky in that my family and friends who know about the band are totally supportive. However, there's one dear person in my life who doesn't quite get it: my mother. She spent all of my childhood and young adult years taking me around to quack diet doctors and trying everything she could to get me to lose weight. Well, we know how well that worked (see stats below). Anyway, about 10 years ago she had a crisis of conscience and decided my body was my business and I could eat what I wanted. She also started putting on a lot of weight herself. When I visit my mother now -- she's in her mid-70s, in good health although obese -- she still gives me enormous portions and encourages me to eat sweets. Fortunately she does take no for an answer, but it's not easy. I feel like Gretel in the gingerbread house.

(Thread hijack) Hey, Karen, I hope your daughter's surgery goes well. It's great that she has you as a band partner!

Hi everyone -- I'm afraid this has turned into a "Do as I say, not as I do" challenge. I have been pretty gimpy with my sciatica over the past couple of weeks; on Friday I'm getting an epidural steroid injection which my orthopedist thinks will help stop the chronic pain. Last week I had a couple of days where I shuffled like Tim Conway's little old man from the Carol Burnett Show... OK, I'm showing my age in more ways than my stride. But I'm still cheering everyone from the sidelines! Maybe I'll start a June challenge if my leg is back to normal next week. Meanwhile, maggots, you're almost done with the May challenge, so kick it up a notch!