MsAlaineus

Imagine swishing the hem of your dress across the chest of your loved one....????

My BFF shared with me that she uses her loose tummy skin to *ahem* "caress" her husband when she's in certain positions. She treats it as an extension of herself...he loves it, and she is unashamed/unapologetic about it. I think it's all about attitude.

My BFF shared with me that she uses her loose tummy skin to *ahem* "caress" her husband when she's in certain positions. She treats it as an extension of herself...he loves it, and she is unashamed/unapologetic about it. I think it's all about attitude.

^^^I'm just sayin'...

I like apple melon. Very cold with ice, it's pretty good.

I did it.....The OLD MAN did it!!!
St. Kitts, climbed a Volcano, over 3000 feet through a Tropic Rain forest.
I am 63 years old, the next age was a couple who were 42...after that everyone was in their 20's and 30's.
We broke up in 3 groups of 12...if you were falling behind, you would drop back a group. If a group was slowing you down, then you moved up a group. Took us 3 hours to get to the summit.
I started in the first group, and stayed there.
Half of the 2nd group didn't make it, and we never saw the 3rd group...they all quit.
I go to the gym 4-5 days a week, run 5 &10 K's, but THIS was probably the toughest Challenge I have done in 20 years!!!
That's why I did it...to prove it to myself!
Yes, I was once morbidly obese, had diabetes, heart trouble, etc etc.
Five years ago I could not climb the stairs in my house without getting short of breath.
Am I bragging?? You Bet!! And it is all because of the Lap Band Surgery!!!
(Next day I jumped off a 45ft cliff into the crystal clear Caribbean....no one else would do it)

I had a career that kept me away from my home, and my kitchen, 45-60-hours per week. I did not want to cook after a long day, but I wanted to serve a nice meal to my family. However, I learned to develop fast and simple recipes -- typically 5 ingredients that can be prepared in under 30-minutes.


Our food is killing us. Today's families are fat and diseased from a diet of processed foods, and our children will be the first generation to live shorter lives than their parents. Time is of the essence: We must change course right now. It’s time to start eating real food and stop eating ‘frankenfood.’ This is not just another fad diet. It’s about saving lives.
Gastric bypass weight-loss surgery was my wake-up call in 2003 to reverse my personal obesity epidemic and diabetes and hypertension — the death triad as I now call it (read my story). To borrow a phrase, I was sick, fat, and nearly dead in my 30s, a processed food junkie on ~10 prescription medications. Without bariatric surgery and lifestyle changes I would not be alive today. I would have missed out on my grandchildren. That’s a very sobering and humbling thought. Instead, I cheated death, I surely did, thank you, G-d.
The problem underlying these health conditions is the modern American diet heavily-laden with grains, refined sugars, unhealthy fats, and toxic food additives. Obesity is even harder to treat than the diseases/health conditions it causes. The low treatment success rate associated with obesity is likely because people need to commit to changing patterns deeply woven into social fabric, food and beverage commerce patterns, personal eating habits, and sedentary lifestyle. And if you think the bariatric surgery is an easy pass to skinny, then I’m here to tell you that it isn’t.
My approach is one of replacing grains, refined sugars, and unhealthy fats with fresh, local and seasonal food that is chemical-free, sustainable, and nutrient-dense. That was a complete turnaround for me. I had a career that kept me away from my home, and my kitchen, 45-60-hours per week. I did not want to cook after a long day, but I wanted to serve a nice meal to my family. So I relied on processed foods, aka frankenfood, like frozen stuffed chicken cordon blue, frozen broccoli in cheese sauce, and a white rice pilaf from a box.
However I learned to develop fast and simple recipes -- typically 5-ingredients that could be prepared in about 30-minutes. The food industry is very deceiving in their marketing. They craftily paint a picture of health and convenience for us, labelling processed food products as “healthy” or “all natural” and use words like wholesome goodness, when these claims in reality are not backed by truth. There are no regulations or standards that define “healthy” so just because something is labelled healthy doesn’t mean that it is. And generally-speaking, if a food was “all natural” it would not be packaged in a box with an ingredients label.
The food industry also has somehow convinced us that it takes too long to cook a meal from scratch. I know, I used to believe that lie! It’s really not much trouble to grill a chicken breast and some vegetables and serve it with a salad. In fact, in the amount of time it took me to serve up a dinner of processed foods, I was able to serve up a much tastier and far healthier meal of real food to my family — and the rewards are tremendous.
Dinner in my house typically is a grilled or roasted Protein with fresh grilled or roasted vegetables and a salad. Sometimes I’ll make a stir-fry served over quinoa, or a homemade Soup, or crockpot chili. These are all examples of how I make real food real simple in my home, and anyone can learn to cook like this. By the way, this is the way my daughter cooks for her family, too, as cooking skills whether good or bad are passed down from generation to generation. What cooking skills are you teaching your children?
I use some minimally-processed foods. I try to avoid at all costs those foods with any chemical ingredients, or ingredients list that contains more than 5 items. And I never bring any processed foods Desserts into my home, such as boxed cake mixes, frozen donuts, brownies from the supermarket bakery aisle. If I want dessert then I have to make it from scratch and that’s fairly involved. Because it’s so much work I won’t make dessert every day; heck I won’t even make it once a month! You won’t, either.
Living larger than ever,
My Bariatric Life
www.mybariatriclife.org

Surgery was yesterday. Lots of pain on day one, but managing it with meds now. Should be getting out of hospital later on today.

Surgery was yesterday. Lots of pain on day one, but managing it with meds now. Should be getting out of hospital later on today.

Just had surgery feeling pretty good thanks to all who wished me well

Hey everybody! Tomorrow is the day! I go in at 5:30 am and my procedure begins at 7:30.

@@MsAlaineus
Good luck!

I understand. Its tough, but remember the goal is to shrink that liver so that your surgeon can perform your surgery successfully. Listening to a lot of music helps, too.
XO,
Ms A

I haven't been doing any food funerals. Personally, and I'm only talking about myself here, I feel like they are a habit that I got into with every other diet or eating plan that I have been on. This is going to be different. I had been on the waiting list in 2013 to have the surgery done in Ontario (where it would have cost me nothing), but I moved out of province so I wasn't able to have it done. And in Saskatchewan, where I live now, there is a years long waiting list to even get the initial appointment to have the surgery done here. But I still have the handbook from when I was in Ontario, and they are fairly strict. I've been following that plan. I cut out all carbonated beverages almost a month ago now. And I cut out junky snack food (chips, cheesies, chocolate) this week. As of the 20th I need to be down to only 50 grams of carbs per day, according to my surgeon, so I'm easing myself into it. I'll cut out bread, Pasta, and rice next week. It seems to be working for me.

Thinking Happy Thoughts!!!!

Hi everybody! I am just getting started with the process. I have BCBS coverage and I am in Michigan. I am working with Sparrow Weight Management. I have sat through the introductory meeting / Q&A session, contacted my insurance and I have my first appointment which will include my physical and initial paperwork to submit to the insurance company later this month. I am so excited! I have learned so much from this amazing network of individuals already, and look forward to learning more. I also look forward to sharing my experience.
XO,
Ms. A

Momma_missie,Getting approved was no
Problem. I received approval after submitting my initial paperwork. My BMI was above 50, which
Meant I had no regimen. I needed to receive clearances from a behaviorist, exercise specialist, and dietitian before getting referred to the surgeon. This took about two months because of the need to demonstrate to the nutritionist that I could get all of my nutrients in.
My surgery date was scheduled today with my surgeon. I'm getting the sleeve on the15th of July. I anticipated having a date in May, but rethought things because I decided to wait until school let out for me and my daughter.
I'm glad I waited. Tomorrow I begin my two week liquid diet.☺️

You all are lucky! My diet starts today, and I can only have 4 Protein shakes a day and SF liquids (Water, crystal light). It's only 4:40 and I'm dyin! Lol
I just keep telling myself, it's all for health, it's all for health....,

I'm on day 12! You can do it!!

As of today I have made it through the first of two weeks. I have to drink 4 of these New Direction shakes a day. I am not allowed any other food. I can only have no or extremely low calorie fluids, so basically Water or crystal light.
I will say that around day 4 or 5 things got easier. The scale is really moving so that is a great motivator. I had one friend who cheated on his pre-op diet and the surgeon just sewed him back up without doing the surgery. The smaller the liver and stomach are at the time of surgery, the better job the surgeon can do and the better long-term results you can expect.
I get sleeved in a week and a day and the only thing I know is that it is going to be an adventure.
--Scott

So, today I went to my first appointment. I got my official BMI, measurements, lab work, and met with the PA. I Learned that my BMI allows me to skip the six-month waiting period. I am nervous and excited. It's like I won the lottery, or something. I'm trying to keep myself in check. I am going to the library right now to pick up books on CBT to support my work making the mental shift. Wish me luck!
XO,
Ms. A

Hi everybody! I am just getting started with the process. I have BCBS coverage and I am in Michigan. I am working with Sparrow Weight Management. I have sat through the introductory meeting / Q&A session, contacted my insurance and I have my first appointment which will include my physical and initial paperwork to submit to the insurance company later this month. I am so excited! I have learned so much from this amazing network of individuals already, and look forward to learning more. I also look forward to sharing my experience.
XO,
Ms. A

After reaching goal. I slowed down my work outs and added carb's. I was able to maintain my weight. But it felt empty. In weight loss mode I was very focused and goal oriented. Anyone else feel this way?
I'm now directing maintenance in to fitness level goals. I'm reading how to get better results from my work out. I'm trying to get my body more lean and build more muscle. My hope if I keep this mind set I will continue to keep my head in this for the long term.

Listerine is your friend. It's nasty but it works. Gargle with it, use the pocket spray, suck on the breath strips.

NOTHING tastes good after a healthy dose of it so it will kill your cravings for sure.

I'd love to start this thread going. I attend OA meetings and the support, honesty, and peace I find is critical for me. I am parenting myself, putting my needs first, validating my inmost feelings; the ones I thought were only mine to bear. I thought it was all mumbo-jumbo...I realize now how complex my relationship with myself, food, and emotions really is. I also realize WLS is only a small part of my overall journey.
Is there anyone else who is interested in keeping in touch?