hawaii_josh

Tony: I accepted your request and you now show up on my friends list. I don't know what stats are calculated on the dashboard friends tile, but whatever it is I'm waaaaaaaay behind you! Lol

I sent an invitation...we'll see if it works!

I'm getting closer and closer to my surgery date (tentatively scheduled for early July), and I've started to get more interested in various tools that will help me monitor--and keep me motivated for--my weight loss journey. I picked up the FitBit Aria scale, and only after one use I really like it. Now i want to get the FitBit One to start tracking steps. One of the options with FitBit is to have "friends" on the app to motivate each other towards our goals. Do any of you use FitBit and/or would you want to be FitBit Friends? I don't have my FitBit linked to my Facebook, but the e-mail I'm using there is joshav8r@gmail.com. Look forward to seeing you there! Aloha, Josh

I got these instructions from someone who posted how to view videos without regional restrictions. Hopefully they'll work for you too. Download the Google Chrome browser (if you're not already using it). Go to www.hola.org. Click on the big blue button in the upper left that says "Start Using Hola...". Click the link I included above to get back to the website with the video. In the upper right corner of Chrome, you'll see a flame icon. Click on it and choose the country from which you want to view the video (in this case, US). That should reload the page without the regional restrictions. View at your pleasure! I used Hola for viewing a video that was restricted to the UK (while I'm in the US) and it seemed to work fine for me. Hopefully it'll work well for you too!

This is a blatant steal/repost from the General Forums, but PBS aired a documentary entitled "All of Me" that follows a group of women who formed a social group in Austin. From the PBS site: The entire show is available for free at http://video.pbs.org/video/2365190806/. I watched it earlier today and thought it was really well-produced and interesting. It gave me an idea of what challenges I might expect as I go through my WLS journey. Thought it might be interesting to you folks as well. Aloha, Josh

Thanks for the heads-up about this documentary. It was really well-produced and interesting. It gave me an idea of what challenges I might expect as I go through my WLS journey. For those of you who, like me, didn't have a chance to DVR the show, PBS has the video at http://video.pbs.org/video/2365190806/. It's commercial free and good quality.

Haha...I'll have to remember that one for next time. And no, I don't think you're bitter at all! Lol

That's the way I've been trying to look at it. In fact, I had almost this exact conversation with a co-worker yesterday (who is a smoker but ironically a fitness trainer). Things were going well until she mentioned that I don't look that fat and that all I need to do is walk some more and watch what I eat for the pounds to come off. She's the second person I've spoken with who had that mentality, and I was prepared for it, but it's something I should've expected knowing her background. Oh well, I kept the conversation focused on me quitting smoking, and that seemed to help.

Thanks! I appreciate it! I've had to spend a lot more money than I anticipated on fixing my car over the last week, so the urge to smoke was there. Each time I got more bad news, I wanted to run outside and light one up to calm down. Then I remembered that smoking doesn't really calm you down, and I told myself I could get through it. And I did! It was still tough, but I was able be good and not find one to light up. I'm hoping that it's gonna get easier the longer I've gone without smoking.

Thanks for checking in! It's going! Haha. Sorry for the delay in responding...I've been at work which is both a blessing and a curse. It's good because it occupies my mind and time so I don't have as many opportunities to think about smoking or crave a cigarette. It's bad because there are parts of the workday during which I would normally smoke, so those triggers are still there. According to my quitting app, I'm 3 hours shy of being 9 days nicotine-free! I'm still dealing with triggers and cue-induced cravings, but I'm slowly getting over them. It's been a process, but one I see as analogous to my upcoming weight loss journey. I'm trying to use this as a learning experience and trial run so I'll have an idea of what to expect when surgery gets closer.

That's a good idea. Thanks!

Just an update for all who may be interested and who contributed their insights to my struggle... I'm currently 3 days, 9 hours, and 42 minutes nicotine-free. I knew my job wouldn't allow the use of Chantix and Wellbutrin, and I didn't want to wait to find an acupuncturist (but thanks for the info BellaDonna!). I smoked my last two cigs on Tuesday morning and decided to see how it would go. I was working for a while after those last two, so that helped kill some time and cravings. This time around has been a little easier than the last couple of times. I was doing good with cravings until the last few hours, but I know that this, too, shall pass. So thanks for all your kind words and encouragement! I keep looking one hour and one day ahead, and so far I've been able to make it! --Josh

Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, my job doesn't allow me to take Chantix because of the side effects, so I'll have to find another method to get over the hump.

Thanks for following up for me! Yes, I'm on O'ahu, so that won't be an issue. It's still mid-morning here, so give her some time to wake up! Ha ha!

Thanks! I'll let you know if I can find a practitioner. It's actually covered by my insurance plan, so I've got to research if it's feasible.

I'm the same way. Although my target date for surgery isn't until July, I thought it would provide the motivation I needed to quit for good. Unfortunately, that hasn't been the case so far. I'm down to buying packs instead of cartons, but I keep smoking with the same frequency regardless. Both of you recommended medication, and I'm not opposed to that at all. Unfortunately, my job is. Due to the nature of my work, there is a highly regulated list of what I can and cannot take. Wellbutrin and Chantix are both on the "banned" list, so I don't have those as options to use.

Thanks! I'll look into it.

Thanks for the encouragement! I knew it would probably suck, but I didn't know it would be as mental of a challenge as it's been!

I never thought of that! I'll have to look into it. Thanks!

Thanks for the suggestion. I've used e-cigs for a little bit in the past, but after reading EASYWay, I'm really trying to avoid anything with nicotine so that I can rid my body of the chemical and cravings. I'm afraid if I use 0mg liquid, I'll want the real thing!

Aloha all, I'm relatively new to this site and have just started my VSG journey, so I thought this might be a good first post. I've completed the informational session and have my initial consultation and NUT appointments at the end of March. According to the nurse at the info session, this doctor requires a minimum of two months nicotine-free (using the honor system) in order to be eligible for surgery. Due to some scheduling coordination issues, I plan to have the VSG in July, so I've got plenty of time to quit and still have two months before the surgery. My question to you fine folks is this: is anyone else in this same position? Anyone trying to quit? I'm on my third quit attempt in four days, and each time I tell myself it'll be my last. I've read through all of Allen Carr's Stop Smoking the EASYWay as well as a lot of articles on whyquit.com. Despite all of this intellectual knowledge, I'm still finding it incredibly difficult to quit. I think right now I'm a victim of what the website calls "cue-induced cravings", and I'm trying my best to overcome them. So, anyone else trying to quit and succeeding? Or trying to quit and need someone to chat with? I'm open to discussing our journeys here or via private messaging. Just wanting to throw the topic out there and see what others are experiencing. --Josh