Foofy

Debbie, I've lost 37 pounds since November and I am thrilled. I'm down from size 24 to size 18 or 20, I have lots more energy, I am not starving all the time, and I don't feel like I am going to gain the weight back. I figure it will take me two years to get down to my goal. I am totally fine with that. This is a long-term journey. Some people lose weight really fast, and some people lose slowly. There are pluses and minuses to each way. Neither is the "wrong" way. Me, I'd rather lose slowly and eat fairly normally. That's just a personal choice. The point to this ramble is that you shouldn't feel bad about having lost the weight you have. Concentrate on making healthy decisions and moving more. Think of some non-scale victories. Molly is right, those bad girls will go off those pills and gain all that weight back - and more. You have made a change for LIFE. Snap out of it girl! You are doing great.

I am at the point of looking for a little "hair hat". I really have very little hair in the front. I already had female pattern baldness before the surgery, and it's really awful now. The top of my head gets sunburned all the time and I notice that people look at the top of my head often when talking to me. I think a "hair hat" is going to be a good solution.

I bought the BEST bra this week in Denver. I can NOT believe how great it works. It's from Lane Bryant. It's a microfiber "balconette" style (whatever THAT means). Anyway, it has nice wide straps and a wide band and it gives great coverage while still having a bit of a plunge in front. The weirdest part is that it is slightly padded (which I NEVER would have even tried on - 'cause what obese D-cup gal needs more padding....). But, the padding gives it more structure and the structure lets it pick the girls up and hoist them out in front like a giant boob shelf. It's great. For the first time in at least a decade, the girls are not resting on my stomach. Really, it's like someone is standing behind me and holding one up in each hand. I feel 10 years younger!! You know how when you get something on your cheek and you keep seeing it peripherally until you brush it off? Well, that's how it is with this bra - I keep seeing the girls in their new position out of the corner of my eye and being surpirsed. LOL. I was so happy I bought one in my current size and one in the next size down. I thought I'd share..... Here's a link to the bra Microfiber balconette bra at Lane Bryant - Visit lanebryant.com for women's plus-size clothing and lingerie in sizes 14-28

Well, I'm definately not losing as fast as many of you fabulous Nymphs, but I'm not nearly as tight either (only 3ccs in a 10cc band). I can eat anything IF I chew it well enough. My surgeon recommends not being as tight as many people like to be, which suits me fine. I too am working on stopping when satisfied rather than when the plate is empty. That is REALLY hard, as I am fighting almost 50 years of training to "clean my plate." I definately think that eating slowly is the way to give my brain a chance to communicate with my stomach. My two favorite things for slowing down are putting the utensil down between bites and eating with my left hand (I'm right handed). Neither thing is really noticed by others when I am out in a crowd, but both seem to be very effective. Also, I was just on a 10-day business trip where we ate out THREE TIMES A DAY (kill me). Many of the restaurants offered "half portions", which I took whenever possible. Then, I still tried to leave something on my plate. It worked. I lost almost 2 pounds on the trip with no exercise. It's a journey. Happily, alhtough I am a slow loser, I have no fear of gaining it back. That's a first for me. Best wishes to you all!

Name..............Start...........Current..............Goal........ To Go Lizzie_07.........233...............228.....................220 .........8 Osangriared.....252...............247.3.....................232 .....15.3 Skinny_Jill.......180...............175.....................168...........7 Sades.............197...............197.....................185.........12 kandiceb..........187...............176.....................175..........1 shortgal............183..............175....................175...........1 TxArcher..........328..............315......................308..........7 Peaches11........217..............208.....................199.........10 Momto1plus1.....223..............215.4..................210......... 5.4 zippykat...........173..............167.....................160..........7 Trixie...............219.5...........209.....................199...... ..10 wnt2lose..........219..............213.6.....................209........4.6 plump_princess....215.............209.....................199.......10 Mariegabrieleee....250............250......................239...... 11 Foofy..............239.5............236.....................230..........6 Shalee04..........196..............189......................185.........4 Hollyberries......267...............261......................254.........7 CindyG............215...............212......................199.......13 MollyBrown......258...............253.......................245........8 lindata............189?.............185.......................180........5 Yay! I finally broke my plateau and got a loss to report. I was in a fancy pants hotel in downtown Denver for 11 days! No scale, eating out three times a day, no exercise (locked in meetings from 7am to 7pm). Thank goodness for the band. I had at least 2 or 3 "reminders" from my little buddy NOT to eat what I was putting in my mouth. They hurt, but they worked. Down 1.5 pounds on the home scale. There's no way I'm making my Cinco De Mayo goal, but I'm moving down and that's what counts.

Ouch! Maybe you need some hand or foot massages. At least those parts haven't been sliced, pulled, or suctioned. Hang in there. We will of course be expecting regular updates and lots of pictures! Best wishes.

Every one is doing so well. It's fun to see who we've been "talking" to. Keep up the good work.

Here's in progress at about 238 pounds.... I wish I could get them in the same post. Rats!

Hope this works... Here's the before at about 275lbs.

That's great news Kendra! Hey, these wrist bands are supposed to work on accupressure points to relieve chemo nausea. It might be crap, or it might be great. It doesn't look too expensive, so it might be worth a try. Chemotherapy Nausea Relief can be found using BioBands wrist bands – a natural nausea remedy Keep stomping gal - we're all rooting for you!

I'm checking in. I started doing the eliptical trainer after work this week. I started out slow, so I wouldn't get burned out and quit. So, my goal is to do 20 minutes a night 6 days this week. Next week, I'll up it to 25 and then 30. I must say that I slept like a log the last two nights... DH and I used to walk to work with our dog and walk home at lunch. It's about a mile each way on a hill. Then, the dog got old (he's a 15-yr old border collie) and he can barely get around. So, we DRIVE him to the office and take him up the elevator. He used to be a great source of exercise, but now he is an excuse for us NOT to exercise. We keep thinking he is going to keel over any minute, and then we can start walking to and from work again. Maybe, in the meantime, I'll alternate with DH and one of us can drive the dog in while the other one walks. Man - I sound like a lunatic.

My DH and I shared a house with another guy before we started dating. He was out grubbing weeds in the yard and got into some poison ivy (without knowing it). He later got some of it on himself when he went to pee. Later that night, I'm in my room and hear all this noise from the adjacent bathroom. Seems DH (then only nice roomate) had an "intersting dream" which caused certain parts to expand - parts that now were feeling the effects of poison ivy. He had run screaming to the one bathroom in the house and was leaning into the sink soaking the offending member in cold water and howling in pain. He was very embarassed. I was VERY glad that we had not started dating yet, because I knew where that poison ivy would have ended up if we had been!

Ah yes, there's nothing like scratching your eye (or other sensitive area) after prepping jalapenos.

OMG. Now I know what I'm having for dinner tonight. My stomach is growling like a bear right now after reading the 20-page discussion on fast food. I'm heading home to eat ,my 3 oz of tuna on miultigrain crackers. Sigh!

LOL. $86000 for the thigh lift. For that much money, they ought to carry them for you too. At least you know we are paying attention.... ;o)

Txarcher and Hollyberries - you too are so inspiring. I can't wait until I lose 70 or 90 pounds. I just hope it happens within the first year. I can't imagine what it must feel like to have those changes happen as quickly as they have done for you two. Keep up the good work. I bet your blood pressure, heart rate, and other factors are showing similar improvements. Txarcher - you're gonna have to change your name again if you move! Scarcher? Doesn't sound right.... Get to work on that. ;o)

WOW!! I second what everyone else is saying. That's a fantastic difference. You are sizzling. What's the difference in inches on your belly before and after?

Cindy, I was changing the 5-gal Water bottle in the water cooler at work on Friday and it hit me that you have lost more than two of those bottles in weight. Try walking around the room with just one (pretty heavy) and than think about TWO!!! What a load has been lifted from your heart and joints every day! Way to go.

My surgeon says that I should eat something about every four hours. It doesn't have to be a lot, but just enough to take the edge off. For me, that works out to breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snack. My stomach growls like a BEAR from about 11 am to noon. It is really pretty amusing. It doesn't seem like "hunger" to me. I always think of it as proof that fat calories were being burned from my waist and hips because the old pink pantry is empty. I like your analogy of the big stomach talking to the little stomach. The big stomach is NOT to be trusted. :huh2:)

I love my band! Most of the time, I have no problems at all eating whatever food I want. I just have to eat slowly and chew really well. The few times I have had trouble have been totally my fault. Usually, eating while distracted and swallowing too much too fast. Then, that little fist clenched on my stomach grabs me and lets me know that I have broken our agreement. It hurts, but it gets my attention and modifies the behavior. It's the only thing that ever worked for me and I am happy, happy, happy. I am probably embarrassingly frank about the band and regularly yank up my shirt to let people feel my port and admire my tiny scars.

My two cents. I started out crushing all my pills because I was told to swallow "nothing bigger than a pencil eraser." Then, I accidentally took a big one and nothing happened. So I did it again, and again, and again. No problem with any pills. Maybe it's just a problem for freshly banded folks and for folks who gets their bands really tight?

90 pounds!! What an accomplishment!!!! You are looking good girl. That's quite a difference in your midsection! We have the same apple-shaped build. Keep taking pictures. You will want to remember the journey.

Right now, I have simple goals regarding my looks. I want to be small enough to shop in regular sizes. I haven't done that in 20 years. I would also (someday) like my waist to be much smaller than my hips. Right now it is only two inches smaller. I KNOW I will need to have PS to accomplish the waist goal. I suspect that once I get to size 14, I will want to be size 10, but I am not worrying about that now.... I am alreay strong, but my goal is to be able to do pull ups. I can lift a lot for a woman right now (bench press 100lbs, biceps 25 lbs each, leg press 300 lbs), but I am waaaay too heavy to do a simple pull up. We do a lot of rafting and other sports and strength is very important to me. I want to know I can save myself if I fall out of or under something or if I need to row away from something scary.

Name............Start.............Current...............Goal... ...........To Go Lizzie_07.........233...............233.....................220 ..........13 Osangriared.....252...............252.....................232 ..........20 Skinny_Jill.......180...............180.....................168............12 Sades.............197...............197.....................185............12 kandiceb..........187...............187.....................175...........12 shortgal............183..............181....................175............6 TxArcher..........328..............328......................308...........20 Peaches11........217..............217.....................199..........18 Momto1plus1.....223..............220.6...............210.............10.4 zippykat...........173..............173.....................160..........13 Trixie...............219.5...........217.....................199..........18 Shalee04..........196..............196.....................185..........11 wnt2lose..........219..............219.....................209.........10 plump_princess....215.............213.....................199........14 Mariegabrieleee....250............250......................239........11 Foofy..............239.5............237.5...................230........7.5 Shalee04..........196..............195......................185........10 The 3-week stall is OVER!

I just noticed this on one of the sponsor sites (Madison Ave PS). It's nice to know they are making improvements that allow reuse of the excised skin. Maybe, by the time I need PS, the techology will have made it to the wilds of Montana.... Can I donate my skin for burn victims and reconstruction? Yes. Until just recently, the removed skin was unsuitable for donation. However, new technology allows for the donation of your skin for reconstruction after cancer, accidents, and burns. Currently, we are the only physicians in New York performing this procedure.