Parvathi

I'm booked in to have a tummy tuck, breast reduction and a bit of lipo on the hips done on April 3rd. My surgeon had originally said the same thing .. they had to be done seperately, because of the amount of pain. I've talked him around to doing it in one go though, luckily. I think he only agreed because my parents are visiting and can help out around the house and such.

Best of luck to you, Kel! I'm sure everything will go fine and I can't wait to read the Cosmo spread And if you need *anything*, just yell...

I think its an individual thing. The only thing I've found that I definitely can't eat, is gnocchi. Its a no no for me all the time. Other than that, I can tolerate bread some days, some days I can't. I can do peels (potato, grapes, apple, etc) just fine. I've heard some people say they have issues with salad .. I eat salad daily. I'm definitely restricted though and if I eat too fast I know it.

Just wanted to wish all the March bandsters good luck!! I was banded in March 05 - its a great month to do it hehe :confused:

Hey Sandra Ann, I'm having a tummy tuck, breast reduction and a bit of lipo on the hips in 3 weeks. I'm paying around $14,000 out of pocket. Medicare and my private health fund are kicking in $1,781.00. I had heard that they would pay more .. a bit of a downer lol.

How bizarre! I'd love to hear what makes them think that...

I'd have it checked with your doctor, just in case. I've been told that nighttime reflux, when not overfilled, can be a symptom of slippage. Hope you get some sleep soon.

Glad to hear its fixable, Sammee! I'll be sending good thoughts your way that it fixes itself, rather than surgery.

Keri, I'm so proud of you!!! That is such a fantastic achievement! Well done - go celebrate

Thanks everyone - ya'll always make me feel so good lol. Vines, its sooooooooo hard to narrow it down to 10, because really, I've loved ALL of my NSVs, but if I had to pick, I think these are probably tops in my book:- I can walk into a regular clothing shop and fit into stuff - plus, its cheaper than the plus size stores! My sleep apnea is completely gone. When flying, I had a good 6 - 8 inches left on the end of the seatbelt, in economy. I was able to keep up with my 8 year old at a theme park - even out walked her a time or two I can walk up a flight of stairs without feeling like I am going to pass out. For the first time in my life, I weigh less than my husband. I've always been atleast 5kgs (11 lbs) heavier than him (since we met) and now I'm 40kgs (88 lbs) lighter than him!!! My wedding dress is WAY too big for me. My mom brags to her friends and family about my weight loss (something she would have never done in the past). My thighs don't rub together or chafe when I'm wearing skirts. I wore shorts for the first time in over 8 years... and they look good lol.

I met my husband online a little over 6 years ago now. Not at a dating site - at a webcam site. I was in South Carolina, he was in Australia. I now live in Australia and am happier than ever

I wrote one to my daughter .. just in case and showed my husband where to find it should anything happen. It made me feel more at peace w/ the surgery, but perhaps that's just me.

A few days late lol .. I actually managed to forget about my bandiversary :/ Its hard to believe its been a year since I started this whole thing. While I'm a bit peeved at myself for not meeting my personal goal of 100 lbs off in a year, I still say that this band is the best thing I've ever done for my health. I don't regret it for a moment. I'll be honest and say I probably went into this thinking it was the easy way out. Its not... I've had to work for what I've achieved. I changed my eating habits and I've spent alot of the past year in the gym lol .. even began to enjoy working out. But it is a fantastic tool and without it, I couldn't have lost what I have. I've also come to find that losing weight doesn't necessarily make life better. In the past, I've been known to say, "Oh, when I lose weight I'll be able to <fill in the blank>". That's just not always the case. If the blank happens to be a mental/head issue .. like being shy or self conscious or something .. these things need work too. I found myself having a bit of a break down when I could no longer turn to food for comfort. It had always been my coping mechanism. I've had to look for other ways to find comfort or work out problems. Its not easy, but I'm getting there... So I'm down 95 lbs, from 262 to 167. I've went from a size 20-22 US to a size 10-12 US. My bmi has gone from 41 to 26. My sleep apnea is completely gone. The past month I've hit a bit of a brick wall and haven't lost anything at all. That's partly because I've been slack and partly because I've quit smoking. I know what I have to do to get back on the wagon, so I just need to do it. On April 3rd, I'll be having a tummy tuck and a breast reduction. Hopefully I can drop this last 5kgs before then. If I get back into the gym and stop grazing, I know I can do it. Well, that's my past year in a nutshell....

When I was having this same dilema, I decided to rent the exercise equiptment (a bike in my case) for a couple of months to see how often I'd use it. It was in the lounge room 2 weeks before I was sick to death of seeing it lol. But that's just me .. it really is a personal decision. We also have a treadmill that lives in the garage. I've paid it a visit a couple of times recently with my ipod and enjoyed it.

5'7 168 lbs Pants - 12 US (14 Aus) Shirts - L Bra - 36G

Kel, I could have written this post ... I've been a bit absent from here lately .. mainly because I've felt out of control. Nearly 3 weeks ago, I put the smokes down, cause I wanted them well and truly out of my system for surgery in April. Since then, the cravings have been insane! Not for smokes, but for food. I had been doing really good, not wanting bad stuff, but now its ALL I want. I've found myself eating chips like they're going out of fashion. I put on 2kgs. I was hoping to have lost 100 lbs by my bandiversary later in the week, but that's looking oh so not realistic at the moment. If you need to talk or anything though, just yell out. Not much longer to go .. you can make it!

Well crap - I've only just seen this lol. Glad to hear you're finally banded, Rene I knew your day would come soon.

YaYYYY Kel! (and YaYYY Paul hehe). That's fantastic news I was having the same issue when you posted that thread, but since going on the Zoloft, my sex drive seems to have increased ten fold *shrugs* .. guess I'm in the 1% that it actually does that for lol, but I'm not complaining.

Thanks again ya'll. Its so comforting to know that I'm not the only one. I'm happy to report (and this may be a bit too much info lol), that my sex drive is very much here and active. Had sex for a good hour straight last night and easily achieved orgasm ... and a small nsv - I was on top and didn't feel self conscious LOL. I'm only on 25mg at the moment .. she told me to increase it to 50mg over a few days. I'm feeling pretty good on the 25mg though, so I'm not sure I want it increased. I'm assuming that as it increases, so do the side effects?

Well done, ladies!! Everyone's doing sooooo fantastic - March bandsters rock hehe Crystal, remember .. that's 30lbs less than you were this time last year. That's also 10 months consecutively, in which you have NOT gained weight - you've lost. That's definitely an achievement! Go back and look through your NSV's - you are a success!

Thanks for bumping this thread, Crystal. First time I've seen it and alot of it really hits home. I very often worry that when I get to goal, I still won't like who I see staring back in the mirror. The closer I get, the more I realize that is a very definite possibility. Something I must work on ...

As the title says lol, just wondering how many surgeons other people say before picking the one to have surgery with? I went to three, as insisted upon by my husband lol, before I found the one for me...

I experienced bad reflux when I was filled too tight. Tums and Mylanta didn't even begin to touch it lol. A small unfill of 0.1cc took the pain away instantly, but I do realize each person/band is different. How is her current restriction level? Does the heartburn happen at any one time of the day, or is it a constant thing?

I've been thinking about that too, TraumaNurse. I can't believe its almost been a year already!! Yesterday was exactly 11 months for me. This morning I weighed in at 75.8kgs (167.1lbs). That's down 95lbs from this time last year .. I can't believe it!! I still don't see it when I look in the mirror. I see my sagging tummy, I see my massive thighs... I see everything but a shrinking body lol. But I guess that's what a good psychologist is for. I'm also going to take someone else's (sorry, for the life of me I can't remember who) suggestion of printing my before picture and pinning it up around the house/office to remind me of where I was. I'm hoping I can drop another 5 lbs over the next month, as I'd like to say I lost 100lbs in a year.

Thank you all for your input! I really appreciate it. Today is day 5. The fuzzy headed thing is gone, as is the mind racing when I lie down, so that wasn't too bad. The doctor warned that for some people, it can cause diarrhea. Luckily, for me it hasn't, but it has helped me stay regular lol. Still don't know about the sex drive thing. Hubby's still out of town lol and I've swore off having a play til he gets back (he's on the plane now!!) heh. Night before last though, I had a really vivid sex dream and woke up horny as .. so hopefully that's a good sign! Perhaps that's all too much info lol, but oh well.