JustWatchMe

Just got an email from my mom. The animal care center where our dog is boarded said he's having anxiety and won't eat. My mom visited him for an hour yesterday and brought him homemade chicken. Comfort food?

Oh, and does anyone remember the episode of Friends when Monica takes a tropical vacation? Her hair got bigger and frizzier every day? Yeah, that. Kinda freeing actually. I debated whether to pack my hair appliances and decided against it. I didn't know just how big my hair could actually get until this week. My kids like it. I might keep the look.

Another amazing day. Venice is indescribable. More walking and many stairs, of course. I'm wishing I had a FitBit to track all this exercise! The city is like a labyrinth, with every turn a new adventure. Of course, we took a gondola ride. I didn't realize until I was in the boat that I didn't fret about my weight. That was new for me. The gondolier balanced us as a family in the boat. It was expensive, but worth every euro. Eating has been interesting. I'm walking and climbing so much that I'm way more hungry than usual at meals. And the wine! But I'm tracking it every night in MyFitnessPal, and the numbers haven't been too bad. McDonald's has a Pasta salad in Venice that is outstanding. That was my evening meal (11pm) because by the time we got back to our hotel tonight, that was the only place open within walking distance. It feels sacrilegious to eat pasta at McDonald's in Italy, but lunch was literally 9 hours earlier. Ya gotta do what ya gotta do. And it really was good. Not as good as our amazing lunch, but surprisingly good for fast food. My daughters are smitten with the ceramic masks that are everywhere here. I have a feeling we'll be carrying one or more home on the plane. Tomorrow we take a train into a small town where my husband's family originates from. More walking! My poor shoes!

The more I resist food anesthesia, the less tolerance I have for @$$#0\€$ in my life. It's become clear to me that taking the WLS step was not just about me losing weight and getting healthy. It was about self respect and making life changes. It took a lot for me to get to the jumping off point. But now that I have started, I've set in motion something bigger than dropping some sizes. Maybe that's why it took so long for me to take the WLS plunge. Because it's not all about the weight, is it?

@@gowalking, your sister sounds like my wls skeptic husband. My doctor wanted maximum weight loss in the post op liquids phase. This gave my husband the argument that the band didn't do anything because I was eating so few calories and had no fill. I've stopped explaining because he really doesn't want to know. I'm now on foods and one fill, and weight loss has slowed. This is my project, and I know from decades of marriage that he will not help me with this, so I'm getting my support elsewhere. I didn't do this for him. Sometimes it's hard, but it is what it is. Denial is spot on. As long as he does not actively interfere with my efforts, I don't give a rat's patootie what he has to say.

I'm so exhausted but wanted to send you a picture or two from Tuscany. We walked up hills and down hills all day in Siena, San Gimagnano, and Pisa. My daughter got a leather coat. We drank four different wines. All is wonderful. Side note: there are no fat people in Italy. They walk all day up and down hills and eat the most amazing fresh food. Ok, I saw one plump nun. But she looked like a tourist. I'm going to try to attach a photo or two, but I don't know if the phone app will let me. PS: I can't find the way to add a picture from the iPhone app.

So, I traveled to Italy with my husband and younger college daughter, meeting my older college daughter there after her semester abroad in Madrid. Today is the second day. I decided to start a thread for this because I'm so unbelievably happy with all the changes in my life so far that are making this trip truly one in a lifetime. I also wanted to not hijack the NSV thread because I have so much to be happy about, and this trip will be for two weeks! Before I departed Chicago, I was 9 weeks postop and 4 weeks after my first band fill. I had dropped 55 pounds from my high weight in February. I was 302 then and 247 now. I was nervous about flying, and my new band being too tight during the flight. My first happy moment was fitting in the seat without a seatbelt extender and actually having to pull it tighter! I dreamed of that and it happened. Second was the in flight meal. I didn't plan to eat because I was afraid of tightness due to swelling during flight, but I was pretty hungry and decided to try very carefully. It was fine. I ate very slowly and chewed very thoroughly. I also drank tomato juice, Water and tea on the plane and kept my liquids up. My younger daughter decided she was going to help me by sharing meals with me over the next two weeks so that I didn't overdo it. So our first airport food was shared between connecting flights and it was enough. A little Chinese beef for me and beef and rice for her. After we landed the next day in Rome and found our luggage, our older daughter met us at Arrivals. She put her arms all the way around me and told me I was "tiny". I haven't seen her in over 5-1/2 months since she took a semester abroad. It was wonderful to see her again. Off to Rome from the Italian terminal. From there a train to florence. Between the Chicago, Dublin and Rome airports, and then walking about two miles over cobblestones with all of our luggage to our Florence hotel, I walked more than I have in years. I was tired and sore but not the least bit out of breath. I was so happy about not being winded that I decided not to strangle our travel agent who told us it was "a few blocks" away and not worth a taxi. Then a lovely dinner in our hotel, which I was able to eat about half of. I've never left delicious food on a plate in a foreign country until now. It was incredible. Today we awoke to realize my phone alarm didn't ring and wake us up like I'd planned, so my family went downstairs to have the continental Breakfast in a hurry while I dressed and had an powders?utm_source=BariatricPal&utm_medium=Affiliate&utm_campaign=CommentLink" target="_ad" data-id="1" >unjury Protein shake. I'm so glad I brought the to-go packets. Off to the first activity of our trip -- a 3 hour walking tour of Florence. How can I describe what it feels like to be able to walk for three hours (plus the 30 minutes returning to our hotel because they don't return you to the starting spot) and stand and walk without stopping to sit, when six months before this, walking to the church a block from my house made my back ache and my chest heave so much that I always felt I was a heart attack waiting to happen? Not once did I get winded today. My feet are damned sore but that's from the cobblestones. My back does not ache. My arthritic knee started to complain in the final hour, but not all day. We stopped at a little restaurant and I had a delightful lunch of roasted cheese and vegetables and a glass of wine with my teen daughters. That was a new experience for all of us! Needless to say, they love Europe! Then we stopped for gelato at a recommended spot and I did not order the large, or the medium, or the small. I ordered the "tiny", in keeping with my new identity. It was about 1/4 cup of chocolate hazelnut heaven. And it was enough!! Back to the hotel and into the bath. Deep European tubs -- sinfully decadent! Loving every minute of it. Resting now before a walk tonight and dinner somewhere. Tomorrow is an eleven hour tour of Tuscany by bus and a winery in there somewhere. More to come!

I'm so happy! I've ditched the seat belt extender and flew to Europe with belt inches to spare! I walked the airports without getting winded. This trip is gonna be amazing! Five more hours until I'm reunited with my daughter who hasn't seen me since way before pre-op. I was even able to eat on the six hour flight to Dublin. I made sure to chew really well and take my time. On to Italy now. I feel like a normal person for a change!

Hovering around 247. I fly to Italy tomorrow. My goal for Italy was to fly without a seatbelt extender. We'll see if it happens. Wish me luck!

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My NSV today is this. For the second time in three days, I am moving my younger daughter's college stuff out of her 14th floor dorm and bringing a carload home. Although my joints are hurting from my arthritis, I have not been out of breath even once. This is amazing to me, because less than six months ago, I could not walk even half a block with empty arms without getting winded. Now less than nine weeks postop, I can do all of this with ease and feel so much healthier. The surgery has truly saved my life.

One piece no shorts

@@jaybro, I don't have that every day, but I do still have a left shoulder pain occasionally. It always surprises me, because I thought it would be completely gone by now. I was banded March 13. However, it does not last long and does not hurt as much as immediately post surgery.

Very inspirational! Thank you for posting this!

Thank you, and Happy Mother's Day to you, too!

Debbie3sons, congratulations!! I'm so happy for you!!!!

I was banded March 13. I was on full liquids 6 weeks post-op and banned from the swimming pool for four weeks. Got my first fill at 6-1/2 weeks and then was back on liquids for two days. I would normally be scheduled for my second fill three weeks after my first, but that would put my second fill just days before a trip abroad. So we're waiting to do my second fill until I return from Europe. I've been advised not to eat one hour before, during, or one hour after the flight due to swelling and tightness that occurs when you fly. I can and should drink water in flight. I'm very glad I got a fill before my trip, although I was nervous before I did so. Go for it. Get your surgery. There will never be a perfect time, so stop waiting to start your life. It's so worth it. Good luck.

What do you know. Amazing.

2muchfun tells it like it is. My clear liquids was short (5 days) but my full liquids post-op was 6 weeks. It wasn't easy, but it got much easier the less I tried to bend the rules. Besides the surgical healing, which is REAL, this strict time is also meant for breaking habits and developing discipline. I was told not to snack. Three meals no snacks. I thought what the hell, I'm on liquids, who cares if I have a liquid snack? So I'd toss in a glass of buttermilk, or a pudding, between my protein shake meal times, or before bed. Without fail, those were the days I struggled harder with hunger. Snacking woke up my appetite. Yes, even liquid snacking. I was told don't skip a meal and make yourself overly hungry. I thought, I'm too busy at work to take a break. I'll just work through lunch and ignore the shake in my desk because then I can have those calories added to my dinner allotment. Not smart. I'd sit down to my liquid dinner and guzzle it and feel unsatisfied. I'm not perfect and I mess up often. But when I listen to my body and listen to my band and listen to my doctor and listen to my NUT, things go better and it truly gets easier. Good luck.

Im a newbie too, and I am in awe of the successful banders here. Just what I needed to see today!

Safety first! This is serious stuff you're signing up for. Give your body every advantage to come through the surgery without complications. It's hard, I agree. But you will need even more discipline than that after surgery while you are on liquids for weeks. Embrace it, surrender to it, and know that this, too, shall pass. And you'll be so glad you did when you begin to see dramatic, and I mean dramatic, changes in your body size, your breathing, your sleeping, your hunger, your complexion, your mood, all within the first month post-op. It's real, and it's waiting for you. As RuPaul likes to say to his drag queen contestants, "Good luck... and don't f&!@ it up!"

Great article. I learn something on this forum every day.

Update: had emotional day today as expected. Saw my younger daughter and trekked most of her college stuff home and up the stairs singlehandedly. I'm so grateful for my weight loss, as I wasn't out of breath at all. Will make the trip again in three days to bring her home for the summer. Had a heart to heart with my mom during the long car ride about some serious stuff. Nothing like four and a half hours to talk stuff out. Had lunch at Cracker Barrel and tried their chicken salad for the first time. Yummy! And when I looked up moving boxes in MyFitnessPal, it awarded me more exercise calories burned than my treadmill walking. Unfortunately, this evening I am up two pounds, added to two pounds up the day before. I have swollen ankles from the long car ride two ways, so some of it is fluid. But I can't help thinking the pork chops are getting their revenge. LOL

Oh my gosh. You are not kidding about the skirts floating. I made it through this Aqua Zumba class but I had to laugh with my friend each time our skirts were floating to the surface. You're right. The next time I will have a different style of suit for exercise!