bonniep

I had my surgery at Lahey too. Dr. Nepomastay was my surgeon. I had a quick recovery and no complications at all. You'll do fine!

I can't find the "I'm Here To Help," thread. Can you give me a pointer on how to find it? I'm tracking my calories on Daily Planet today. Yay!

I know it's in my head and not in my tummy, that's for sure. The man from England who offered to mentor me hasn't replied to my email -- I think he's disappeared. I could really use a hard knox mentor! I've talked to therapists about my eating problem in the past and it hasn't worked. I want to get control of my problem more than anything else in the world and I want to be successful. I'm hoping someone here can help me -- I know I have to take responsibility for my own actions and no one can help me with that. I'm not a sniveling, helpless, victim-type -- in real life I'm a very optimistic, powerful woman with tons of friends and acquaintances. I don't get what's going on with me. I'm like Oprah -- except she can apparently stay on a diet -- she just gains it all back. I can't seem to stick to a diet -- but I'm good at maintaining. Go figure. bonnie

My last fill was 6-weeks ago and I'm now at 7.1 cc in a 10cc band. I have restriction, but I constantly eat foods that slip through the band. I can't eat chicken because it makes me slime. I wish I could be satisfied with a simple fish and veggie dinner, but I'm not. I crave, crave, crave chips and ice-cream. I want to get off this unhealthy roller coaster.

YES -- I'd love if you'd mentor me! How and when do we get started? I'm desperate!

I'm in! How do you want to do this? I need a daily buddy with whom I can correspond and report to -- own up to -- commit to. Are you ready to go on this journey with me and be successful?

I'm a great listener too -- but I'm not a very good follower, evidently. If I could follow advice and/or if I were detail oriented (I'm a disorganized artist-type), I'd have lost lots of weight by now. We're all here for a reason and that reason is that we're not at losing weight. It doesn't mean we're bad people -- it just means that we care more about food than we do about our health. What can I say -- it's the truth. I too don't know why I sabotage myself, except it's easier to give in to my cravings than to fight them. That's it. I'm not willing to make that mind-set change in the moment -- it's easier when my brain says "ice-cream," for me to say "Okay -- ice-cream," and then, binge on it. I'm like Scarlett O'Hara -- "tomorrow is another day." Except it's not. It's the same old, same old, same old day. And I've had it. I didn't go through surgery to be a failure. I have to learn how to change my mind from "ice-cream," to "it's not worth it." And I can't seem to make that shift, or rather, until now, I haven't wanted to make that shift. But, either we all make the shift or we fail. We have a choice here and it's up to us. No one is going to do it for us. I talk a good game but like you, I'm a failure with healthy eating That's why I need a mentor and some weight loss buddies. We need to check in with one another every single day and write every single day -- writing to one another gives us strength. So, another goal, is that we all have to write in to one another every single day. Deal? :tongue2:

Well, you lost 60 lbs. which is better than the three of us here have done. So, you need to be our leader for now. Please tell us HOW you lost your initial 60 pounds. We don't need to know how you gained 30 lbs. back -- we're all too familiar with that story. Tell us how you lost. We need to have a plan. In the meantime, I'm thinking that we should all have a goal for this week. I think our first goal should be that we all agree that we will weigh ourselves every single Sunday morning. Not before -- not after. I'm not a scale addict, but I have been in the past. I think for us all to get on track, we need to use the scale as a tool, but not as an addiction or not as a measure of our success or failure. Hence, once-a-week and that's it. And, we get honest. We report how we've done to one another. Our second goal for this week: exercise. Everyone has to have a plan and post their exercise plan for the week, right here -- in print. And we're all accountable to one another. That's my opinion and I'm sticking to it! Together we can do this. :tongue2: bonnie

Okay -- you're on! I'm really good at motivation in terms of exercise but I need help with the bingeing behavior (ie: ice-cream!), and eating in general. I want to lose weight and I'm sick of sabotaging myself. What kind of challenge did you join? How do I join it too? If we're going to be buddies, then we're in this together! bonnie

I need a buddy desperately! I was banded on 2/4/08 and have not had very good success at all. Basically, I learned how to eat around the band right off and that's where I am today -- almost a year out and only 25 lbs. lost. Ugh. I am sick of being a failure. I want to be a success. I'm really good at being consistent with exercise if motivated. It's the ice cream that does me in. I can eat a gallon at a sitting. It's sick, sick, sick. I was self pay -- you'd think that would have motivated me -- but noooooo. Anyway, does anyone here want to be my weight loss buddy? I am a very positive person in general and this is the only thing I've really ever failed at. I'm a little like Oprah in that way, I guess. I'm 55 years old and I have two kids (well, both are almost adults now), and I live in MA. Let's do this together. Together we can! b.

Please keep me in mind when you start the support group. I live in the Western suburbs and I've been a miserable failure with the lapband. I need to be around positive people -- I am mostly a positive person except when it comes to my weight. I will have been banded a year in Feb. '08 and have not lost very much at all. I'm very discouraged. I could use a good support group.

Or, at last that's how I feel. I was banded almost a year ago now -- 2/2/08 -- and I've lost a grand total of 25 lbs. including 8 lbs. pre-surgery. I don't know why I thought the lap band would be the answer for me when I couldn't lose weight (no discipline -- food just calls out to me), before surgery. I've learned how to eat around the band and I eat around it all the time. I feel like such a stupid loser -- no pun intended. I'm 55 years old and those who know me think of me as a strong, successful woman. I don't think of myself that way, however. I'm really just sick of myself is what I am. If you're the type of person who can be a strong mentor and "show me the way," then I'm all ears. I really do need help. Thanks for listening. bonnie

I was self pay at Lahey Clinic in MA. The cost of the surgery was $16K and that included all pre-and -post op, plus the first 3 fills. I'm very happy with the care I receive at Lahey and for me, the cost was worth it.

I seem to be able to drink cold -- just not first thing in the morning. I'll never do that again! Believe me, you'd know it if you had an esophagus spasm. Chances are you've not had one, otherwise you'd be able to identify with the pain. It's intolerable -- sheer agony. Be thankful you don't have this. I'm hoping it never happens to me again! b.

I knew I wasn't having a heart attack because I'd had an esophagial spasm before and it was diagnosed as such. Still, the pain is absolutely crippling and I wish I could figure out what sets it off, so I know not to do it in the future! My gastro doc wants me taking one Prilosec every morning and she also prescribed Nitroglyceran, which is a medication that goes under the tongue and stops it in its tracks. Still, I'm upset that this is happening and I'd like to know what sets it off in ME. I'm convinced that drinking cold first thing in the morning is one thing that sets it off, but there must be something else that sets it off too. In any case, I'm trying to just live my life and eat the right things and not worry about it -- but the pain when it comes on is absolutely crippling. b.