vinesqueen

well I think some behaviors are genetic. My older brother never met his biologicical father, but my mother says his manerisms are the same. Our own DeLovely DeLarla discovered that she has the same exact manerisms as her father, whom she's only recently met. Also, modern humans have evolved with this ability to store fat to stave off starvation during famine, flood and winters.

I'm glad you found us too. I suppose I have no shame I haven't been ashamed of my body in a long, long time. I mean, a really long time. I'm not embarased by my size, as a general rule. Don't get me wrong, I've felt like my weight has held me back, like it is the one thing in my life I'm a failure-- I've managed to so some remarkable things, but I could never over come my weight.

excellent work! Congrats on your loss, no Turtle status for you! (that's a good thing, btw )

There are a few different types of breast reduction surgeries, and from what I understand it has to do with the N2N ("notch to nipple" with the notch being the hollow of your collar bone) ratio. One they remove the nipple and plop it onto the new proper place, while the other does a keyhole sort of cut. I'm definately going to have a reduction, but I currently have massive breasts and have had since I was in my 20's. I'm not going to the the "pop the nipple off" even if that means I won't be perky. I just want to be something small, like a D cup. I'm also going to have a tummy tuck. I don't think I"ll have a massive pani, but I do have a small one and I get terrible rashes that bleed at times. It's no fun.

I have a blurry pix of my Great-Grandmother, my dad's dad's mother. I am built exactly like her! I'm mostly built like my mother, except sh'e a B cup and I'm atleast a G cup, but apple body type to the core. (a large apple has about 110 calories) Two of my mom's aunts were MO while her mother and other aunt were not. Both of my Dad's sisters are MO, one batch of cousins is MO, one batch of nieces are MO & technically obese. My son is obese and his father was always on the "fat boy" program in the Navy. (maybe it's spelled "fat buoy"?) And of course, my DH is Super obese, and his sisters and father are all MO, while his mom is merely obese. Most of his relatives are at least Obese as well. My family are all very ... dense. We have more muscle mass than most people, especially for women.

Jessie really is amazing when it comes to giving fills. Do a crunch and viola` you're done! I felt really silly after getting my first fill. I'd worked myself into such a state that I was crying so hard my ears were filled with tears. So anti-cimactic! Now I'm getting my fills done by an interventional radiologist here in ID, and man is it ever a huge production number! Instead of 10 minutes including drinking Water at home vs an hour production.

There is a 30 pound difference in those pictures. I lost 10 pounds before I was banded, water weight.

My port if very obviously a port, no pain though. I think I feel my band at night, at least the last few night after getting this last fill. No pain though

too creepy for me, and not in a good way. Maybe I'd feel better if it was a rag doll instead of a realistic woman. And there's a ground?

I don't see alot of difference in the full figure shots of my, but I think these two are quite dramatic. (Penni, if you please...) The first one is from Jan 1 this year. The night before I'd gotten out of the hospital from a 4 or 5 day stay because of asthma. Puffy prednisone face. I hate, hate, hate pictures of me The second one was taken 9/24 at my pirate party this year.

excellent work! Will your friend even recognize you? Will your friend's husband recognize you? Maybe you should have one of those signs with you name on it just in case! Nothing to be nervous about, it's just like riding the bus, only a bit more expensive and with more security.

sounds like the pain pill mixed with the wine wasn't a good combination.

I am setting a few challenges for myself. I've been driving myself absolutely insane by counting every single calorie that goes into my body. (an almond has 6.3 calories.) I've also been super restictive with my diet, doing my best to stay between 1000-1200 calories a day. All of this has provided me with an average of 5 ounces lost a week since May; and stress beyond what is good for anybody. (an egg has 70 calories) So, my challenges are that I will stop counting calories for a month, I will actively ignore my caloric intake until Dec 1, after Thanksgiving break. (2.5 ounces of turkey has 165 calories). I am on my 4th fill, but I am less than a week into it. I, of course, doubt that I lost anything last week. I feel really restricted, so we shall see how this works out. I can always get another fill, right? My second challeng is that I'm going to start snacking. 3 meals with no Snacks isn't working for me, so I'm going to add at least one snack in the afternoon. The last time I had any success losing weight I was required to have two snacks in addition to my 3 meals. I would have a bowl of Fiber one Cereal with peaches as my before bedtime snack. Considering how much success I had with that program, I'm going to try modifying my diet to include at least one good quality snack. I know that these seem to be breaking the bandsters rules, but I'm not having much luck dropping the weight following them.

I don't see how being depressed is going to help you lose weight... I know whan I'm depressed I don't care about anything, let alone making good choices about my health! I would say either go back on the prozac or find a different anti-depression. If you know it is going to interfere with quick loss, then you can deal with that because you know is is going on. I sure hope that made sense. I'm back on trazadone in the evenings to help with my depression. Since I'm already a Turtle... At least with the medication I care what happens... We are here for you

welcome Louise! I understand some of your pain. Please make a list of your NSVs, since not all victories are by the scale. I know that in our culture pounds are all that seem to matter, when really they are only part of the picture. Hopefully this analagy will explain why I think NSVs are so important. When we look at a picture, a line drawing we see the outline of the object. We see detail, but the image is flat and one dementional. Now contrast this picture with one that more complete, one with shading and conturs. The more detailed picture gives us better and more complete information, it is more interesting than the simple line drawing. I think the information about pounds provides is the line drawing, just one bit of the picuture. When we start adding information from our NSVs and our inches lost then we start to see a more complete picture, one rich with dimention and textures.

Like Kathy said, just after surgery I felt that way, but for crying out loud, I'd just had major surgery! I maintain my calories between 1000 and 1200 a day, generally speaking. I just had my 4th fill, so I've been getting less than this for the last week, but I'm giving myself a break from counting calories for a while. (I'm making myself crazy) I only occasionally feel really lethargic, but I attibute this to my fibromyalgia rather than nutrition.

Call your local hospitals to see if they have Interventional Radiologists that your band doctor can call. These docs can give fills, this is how I'm getting filled in Idaho.

Lisa, she's cutie all right! Vera, I'm sorry to hear about your friend, and how very sad for her daughter.

Eileen got her la-ap band! Eileen got her la-ap band!

I'm a weird fat woman. If I want to just eat frosting, I just buy frosting. I've never done that extra food eating thing, and I've only hidden food to keep my DH and son from eating the entire package in one sitting. I have not ridden on some rides because I've been afraid of my weight and not have the bar fit around my big tummy. It's awfully embarassing to have to get off a ride. I have not asked for a seatbelt extender when I could have used one.

I have lost an average of 5 ounces a week since May (first fill)

hmmm, I dunno how much mine typically weigh... let's see, 2- 3 hardbound books, spiral bound notebook, notebook computer & power supply, graphing calcultor, various pens and pencils, 1 liter Water bottle, various junk.... 100 pounds? I'll weigh it eventually

You might need another fill, but if you take your time, you can probably eat as much as you could before. Do you limit the amount of time you eat? I am told "no more than 20 minutes at a meal." Sure, if you take longer to eat, you can eat more because you don't get full. You might not be getting a soft stop, or you might not recognize it as a stop. Some people can eat everything they could before banding. This doesn't mean the band doesn't work, it just means that you can eat the same types of food. Some can, some can't. I seem to be one of those people who can still eat the same foods, just not nearly the same quantity. Try fixing your plate on a little plate, like a salad plate, a sandwich plater or a saucer. Try measuring out your food, to make sure that you are getting the right sized portion. And as always, call your doctor with specifics. If you are having pain, call your doctor.

excellent work you two!

hmmm, I do 98% of my walking with a different walk vest... my BOOKBAG But it's too soon after my 4th fill to know if it has had any effect, other than the 3 hour drive (round trip)