Sue Magoo

Becky: Please don't let that insurance company or those pictures take your spirit away. If it doesn't get approved for insurance you just have to keep fighting and get a second job so that you can save enough to have the surgery done. I can totally relate to your pain and anger with yourself for letting the weight get so out of hand. But, it's better to put that in the past and move forward to the new Becky. Use that anger to drive you to solving this plastic surgery problem. Take care, and big hugs! Sue

Hi: We have something in common. I started my weight loss program at 324 pounds. That was last April (2007). This morning I weighed 196! I'm 36 pounds from goal and hope to attain that goal this year. It can be done. I love my band because it's helped me to lose all this weight and my life is so much better. I think it's great that you're changing your daughter's bad eating habits too. I wish you well. Take care. Sue

Hastings: How's the trikking going? I'm still loving mine. I take it to work and go out trikking at noon instead of walking. It's alot more fun than walking for exercise. Let us know how it's going with the trikke. Sue

Hi: My Sister calls me SuzieQ sometimes. I had pain on my right side and it ended up that I had gallstones. Had my gallbladder out in April. It's a pretty easy recovery, at least it was for me. My pain was intermittant with my gallstones. Hope you feel better soon. Sue

Kate Eryn: Some people just have heavy ankles. I'm 5'7", used to be 5'8" and even when I weighed 127 pounds (in my 20's) I had heavy ankles. Unfortunately, I passed this trait onto my daughter. She's almost 21 years old and she has heavy calves and ankles. My legs and ankles didn't hurt until I put an extra 100 to 160 pounds on them. Yipes! I hope you find relief for your pain. Sue

Knee Brows???? Please elaborate. I probably have them, or will have them because my legs were and still are so heavy. I'm guessing that a knee brow is if you have skin hanging from your thigh over your knees. I just checked. I don't have them yet. I still have about 40 pounds to go so I'm sure they're on their way. Maybe I'll have to get a wetsuit for the summer - not! The nutritionist told our support group that we should all get full-length mirrors and study our bodies in them and say only good things about how our bodies look. EEEEEWWWWWWW! This thread is so blanking funny. It's probably not funny to someone who's not sagging all over yet, but it is hilarious to me. Sue

tchilambe: Maybe you should increase your calories up to 1200 for a few days. Maybe 800 isn't enough for the calories you're burning. Just a thought. I hope it works for you soon. Sue

Hi: I was banded ten months ago. My port is just under my rib cage in the middle. I can feel my port. It feels kind of like a hard spot under the skin. It's far enough under that it doesn't show even though that part of my body is getting to be nice and flat. I think of it as my "belly cop" and I am comforted knowing it's there doing it's job with the band. Sue

I can totally relate to the thighs issue. I've gone from a size 26/28 down to a 16 and my thighs look horrible! I have these big lumps of tissue that looks sooooooooooooo uuuuuggggllllyyyyy! My top half is pretty small, but I still have a big belly, butt, and legs. I bought two size 14 bathing suits last year at the end of season clearance. They actually fit! However, I don't want anybody to see these horrible thighs of mine so I went and bought some long shorts (just above the knee) to wear over the bathing suits. I think they're disgusting. However, my Sister tells me they're not any grosser than my legs were before! How complimentary - yikes! There's a plastic surgeon in my future. I hope I don't have to spend all of my retirement funds fixing what I did to myself in my twenties and thirties. I think it's important to focus on the good parts instead of the bad. So, I'm going to think about my neck (no fat at all) and my collar bones. I like both of them because they look so "normal". Best wishes to all of you and finding those good parts. Sue

Best wishes from Massachusetts too. Can't wait to join you in the "flat lands". Hope your recovery is quick. Sue

Hi: I have something that helps me get through the hot nights with no calories. I have an ice crusher. I crush ice and pour crystal light over it and eat it with a spoon. It's refreshing and it's no calories and it has to be chewed. If not for this and sugar free popsicles I wouldn't know what to have at night that is low calorie. I look forward to seeing other people's responses. Take care. Sue

Julie: I don't have any advice. However, I wanted to say that my heart goes out to you because you're just getting over the first procedure and you already have to think about revision. I'm guessing that's why we haven't seen any pictures yet. Maybe I missed them. Maybe with a little more time and those other few pounds off it will make a big difference. I hope so. Take care. Sue

Becky: I've heard of people having their panniculectomy's covered if they had issues with skin rashes, or lower back aches. If you have these, get them documented with your surgeon and/or primary care and submit that it is medically necessary because of this history of rashes and/or lower back pain. Best wishes. Sue

Hi: I haven't found anything that would be uncomfortable about exercising and my port and band. However, after a lengthy exercise session I find that my band can be pretty tight. I usually have to drink something, and then wait an hour before eating anything if I've been exercising more than an hour straight. Sue

Hi: I don't do any weight training, however I do alot of aerobic exercise. I walk and/or trikke 1 1/2 to 2 hours per day. Luckily my weight has been coming off of my back. My lower belly is another story. I'm wondering if the body choses where to lose from on its own. I'm kind of melting from the top down even though I've lost everywhere I look normal from the belly button up. My lower abdomen, butt, and legs are still very heavy, but I expect that alot of that will go away with the last 37 pounds to goal. Good luck. Sue

Yellowroseaz: I was banded 7/26/07. I was okay with dieting, but after a few months I would always gain it back. I lost 37 pounds pre-op following a modified weight watcher diet. Before banding I did a ten-day presurgical liquids only diet. Then after banding I think I did liquids (with Protein shakes added) for two weeks, mushies for two weeks, and then solids. Since banding I've lost 90 more pounds. Total to date is -127 and I'm within 37 pounds of goal. I exercise alot. I don't have any small children so my time after work is my time. I walk three times during the day. Two of my walking sessions are with coworkers and we walk a mile in 15 minutes. My third walking session is by myself and I usually walk for 50 minutes. Sometimes I forgo my noon-time long walk and go for 20 to 30 minutes on my trikke instead. Way more fun than walking. I climb a hill when I walk during the evening. I try to do it for 20 to 30 minutes. I have a terrific doctor and his team is great too. I go to support group meetings every month. I come here for support too. I think that adding exercise to the mix is critical to my success. I enjoy listening to my MP3 player when I'm exercising. It helps me to listen to fast-paced music. Good luck. Sue

Penny: I was at a plateau too. So, I started charting my food on mydailyplate.com. It helps me to make sure I don't exceed 1200 calories a day. You might want to change up your exercise too. If you're walking on a flat surface, try some hills. Good luck. Sue

Moe: I think it can vary based on your surgeon's requirements as well as your insurance company's requirements. You may want to ask the surgeon's surgery coordinator if they know how long it takes for someone with your medical insurance plan. It took me 3 months from my first visit with the surgeon. I had to have a number of appointments/preliminary tests in order to get approval. Good luck. Sue

Moe: Always love to see Red Sox fans on the site. Hope all went well at the seminar. I'm going to the Red Sox game today - yippee! Take care. Sue

KristyLynn: I've heard that the Water retention is the first thing you lose and that's why weight loss is so much faster at the beginning. Good luck. I have alot less water retention now than I did 127 pounds ago. I can remember my joints aching from Fluid and now they don't. Take care. Sue

Luscious: Sounds like alot of fun. I think one of the things that will help us maintain our weight after we're at goal is finding an exercise that's so much fun that we forget we're exercising. Right now I'm trikking and loving it. I'll keep your post in mind for the winter when I cannot trikke. Keep up the good work. Sue

Cheri and Cindy: I totally agree with it getting harder to lose. I've been playing around with the same three pounds for a month now. It does get a bit discouraging. I think it's important to focus on all accomplished so far when there's a lull in the weightloss. I try to think about the fact that I can wear size 16's instead of 26/28's. I also try to think about how much younger I feel - about 20 years younger! I also think about how much better shape I'm in physically. I was able to ride my trikke/and walk for almost 2 hours at once today. So, try to focus on the positive, follow the bandster rules, and we'll all get over the plateaus and to goal. It's a war, and we've won alot of battles already, but we have more to keep fighting.:woot: Take care. Sue

Hi Everyone: Yesterday somebody called me "The Incredible Shrinking Sue"! :biggrin2:That was so nice to hear. After that she asked me if I was done yet, because she thought I shouldn't lose much more. I still have 37 pounds to goal, so that was nice to hear. Someone else told me that she was worried that soon I will be thinner than she is. Another one is that I actually have muscles in my thighs! The inside of my thighs are soft and mushy, but the front and outside are getting firm. Yippee. Must be the trikke doing it's magic. Keep sharing your NSV's. Sue

Numbrgirl: I asked the nutritionist that same question and this is what she told me. I asked the question based on 1200 calorie diet. I think she's full of crap :thumbup: because I told her I didn't think I could possibly eat that much fat, protein, and fiber and still keep my calories under 1200. She said that I can. I haven't been able to yet. Carbs 150 grams Protein 60 grams Fat 40 grams Fiber 25 to 30 grams So, I'm sharing what she said because she's a licensed nutritionist. Good luck. Sue

Thanks for posting this CJ. My last stretch was 9 days without a bm. I've tried prunes, miralax, stool softeners. I have diverticulitis, so it's not good to go so long between. I'll bring it up with my surgeon when I have my check up end of June. I look forward to seeing everyone's responses. Sue