gmanbat

Your post made me smile. You got it going on! Way to think it through!

Being thinner has not helped me with line cutters. They can now get up easier when I sit on them.

Zephyrhills here. Cocoa Beach is one of our favorite places! Miss the snow in Ohio though........ like a paper cut.

You could be fighting a metabolism slowdown due to the lap band problems. You can heal it with exercise, water, and proper eating. Stress definitely slows down fat loss. By all means don't stress out about weight loss, you will lose it, don't defeat your purpose. And....WELCOME Theresa!

Gman... The average person has 8-10 lbs of skin. Well the formally obese person may have a lot more considering the stretching of the skin. Ex. When you blow up a balloon and let the air back out it does not go back to its original size. If you do that to a balloon over and over again. It will not even go back close to the size it was. We are all different and have been bigger or smaller. Age and genetics also play a part in how much skin would have to be removed...This info came from my doctor this morning........ I found it interesting! Even a plastic surgeon can't tell for absolute how much skin he will remove until you are on the table. He can estimate but not calculate until it is being done. I never thought of that. That 's right. So if a guy is average if he weighs 200 pounds but is 300 pounds at the most he would be 50% bigger in the skin department. So instead of 8-10 pounds he would have 12-15 pounds. That does not take into account internal fat which doesn't stretch skin. That sound right?

Squats will not make your butt smaller. In fact, if anything they will make it bigger and better shaped. Spot reduction is a myth. Working leg and butt muscles is a key to overall strength and losing fat. To those who say putting on muscle makes you stop losing weight, maybe, but it does not make you stop losing fat. It makes you better able to get rid of fat and keep it off. Don't worry about being too muscular! Serve your body, not your scale! edit: Some natural bodybuilders, no steroids, figure division. You have to work real hard in workouts and dieting to even look this muscular. In shape ladies look better. Work it, ladies!

Well said, Linda! I like my wrinkles and loose skin. If they were not wrinkles and loose skin they would be all puffed out with fat layers. Under that shifting covering is a healthy and a yet alive body. They are a badge of victory and freedom! That said, if I hit the lottery or something I'd probably get plastics. I'm not a fanatic.

How much we can change! I was thinking about when my obese wife came home to her obese and very sick husband and began talking about the gastric sleeve bypass surgery that a coworker of hers got. At first I tuned her out with my wife frequency filter. When she persisted on I moved into arguing and ridicule mode. Yes, I said many of the Jerky things that are posted here that husbands say to wives about the surgery. "Why don't I just hold a gun to your head while you're eating!" "Why can't you just stick to a diet?" "You just need to exercise more!" "This thing could kill you!" Finally she talked me into going to a support group featuring the bariatric surgeon. I agreed out of a secret plan to find things to argue about. I may be stubborn but good science and logic speaks to me. The man presented a great case. In that hour I saw a way out of my impending death. On our way home I let my wife know that not only am I solidly behind her surgery, I shall have one myself. In January of 2010 it started. A year later I was virtually at goal. So was she. Our relationship changed. With the horrendous health problems that came with obesity removed we grew very close with the new energy and freedom from pain. Now I am here trying to help others with you wonderful folks. Happiness loves company.

I saw no need to memorialize or indulge enough to last a lifetime before my surgery. I had recognized my overeating as my mortal enemy and saw no need to party in honor of him. In hindsight I could have had a food funeral. I would have loaded up an old boat with donuts, chips, pork rinds, velveeta, Cookies, cakes, and candy...poured the contents of the fat fryer on it...set it on fire...shoved it out into the lake...played Bjork music.....Viking funeral...

Wow! Fantastic!!!!

Not TMI, good I... Accessibility, essential to any good maintenance man...or woman!

Well written and wonderful! In studies I have been involved in it was stated that at a certain stage in life, leaving things behind for others moves to the forefront. My heart's desire now is to give what I have gained to those I will leave behind. Along with that desire is the passion to know that what I am leaving will be valuable to them and make a positive difference in their lives. I want to live a good life...and contribute to a good life for those who carry on.

You look sweet! Go get em!

I think the operation puts a real strain on the brain. A lot of things have to be reorganized. Sometimes the clerk in charge of senses gets freaked out. Things get misfiled. Hang on, they'll get it sorted.

I have been under a number of times so at my surgery I told myself to remember what the guys in the operating room were saying while i was out. Didn't work, close eyes, open eyes. No memories. Not scary, just weird. Most definitely the best sleep you can possibly have...without dreams...I think.

Hang in there, Sweeteyes. People may let you down but don't let yourself down. Never give up on you. Make a future that is much brighter than your past. You can do it!

Veterans...why do we do it? Answering the same questions thousands of times, saying "good luck" or "my prayers are with you" to people about to go to surgery, welcoming countless newbies, dealing with people who are easily offended and strike back, trying to give solace to people who are being chewed up by family, coworkers and relatives, ....why? Empathy. The ability to share someone else's feelings. I believe it is the hallmark of mental and emotional maturity. It is.....being human as humans were intended to be. Think about it, with just a few lines or a paragraph we can alleviate the suffering of another human being. Our triumphs become theirs, our knowledge from mistakes made relieves them from falling into the same traps, our battles won becomes the catalyst for their struggles to overcome despair. Who needs grateful feedback? Realizing that our small effort destroys misery is an amazing reward. We are helping people create beautiful lives, helping humans rise from the ashes. Empathy acted upon is love. Love, ...the more you give the more you have ...and the more you want give it. Now there's an addiction worth diving into!

Glad you came through OK! When I was still quite groggy my family was present and one of them asked me how I was doing. I said in a drug stupor," Miserable! ...but happy!" They still kid me about that.

Eating will not solve your problem unless you eat the kid, but of course, that may bring on other problems. Seriously, you're doing good. This is a good exercise for helping you learn to eliminate eating as a solution to anything but real hunger. Easy for me to say....empty nester.

Best wishes for you! Pre-op was harder than post-op for me as far as hunger. My hunger was virtually gone for quite a while after surgery but not everyone is the same. Now I eat food for life, food doesn't eat away my life.

Best wishes for you!!!! Heal up quickly!

According to Google; How much skin on an average adult: 8-10 pounds...25 square feet

Vent away, my friend! I must say I admire your daughter for standing up for you. I would have done the same thing. I know me. I try to be nice but when someone goes after my loved ones everything goes red. You'll get through this. I am glad you have concerned family. Love hurts sometimes but it lets you know it's there.

Caring about your appearance is not necessarily a selfish thing. You show compassion to others by sparing their eyes from hard things to look at. Walmart after midnight makes the point.

Does your family actually think that with the amount of food you are eating that you will starve? That would only happen if you are somehow unable to absorb any nutrients. Your doctors have not indicated that that is a problem for you. You will level out. Just like when we used to eat just a little more and eventually the weight caught up with our eating, your weight will eventually settle at the reduced level you are eating now. That is my unprofessional opinion. Or is their problem aesthetics? They need to have patience until you are "done". You are a remake in progress. Hang in there, my friend.