Jill_S

Oh now that's supportive, yay! :eek: I'm nearly six months out. I haven't eaten any fast food. I tried pizza - twice. It no longer holds any attraction for me, at least not to the extent that it used to. Tough love, babes - tough love. Rather than reacting maliciously as the quoted post, why not try reacting with the compassion you expect to get when *you* *do* screw up? Have I eaten things that I shouldn't have? Yes. And I pay the price for it each and every time - either on the scale or in pain. The fact is, you either work WITH the band, or you work against it.

Ditto. Although I do pamper myself, just not with food. Replace bad habits with good habits. Replace a quarter pounder with a facial. Replace a Hersey bar with getting your nails done or your eyebrows waxed. Replace eating that bowl of ice cream with a Protein bar (The Southbeach bars are so damn good...) This is my issue. This is my body. I did this, no one else. I am not diseased. I am simply unable to eat anything I want. And that's okay. It's my responsibility. Not the band, not my parents, not my friends.

Easy? As an (almost) 41 year old woman, who has been obese her entire life (with short moments of just being chubby) - who comes from a family of morbidly obese people - who comes from a family of diabetics, high-blood-pressure kings and queens - who comes from a family of brand new knees and hips and a host of other weight related health problems.... - who has dieted off and on since she was TWELVE years old; lost and gained, lost and gained, lost and gained - who is staring at her future every time she looks at her 425 pound aunt and her 400 pound father... Easy? HA. ONLY way. Not easy way. Only way. The band is not losing this weight for me. *I* am losing it, by making sound food choices, exercising, and using the band as a *tool*, as it is intended. In the end, the band isn't doing anything but telling me to STOP EATING, or risk an hour sliming and PBing myself into tears. If I *had* an internal mechanism capable of learning that, don't you think after 41 years I would have learned it? I'm a pretty smart woman. I learned how to cross the street and look both ways, don't they think I could have picked up something as simple as stopping eating? Easy way, my big fat butt. Pffft on those who say this is the easy way. A big sugary raspberry to the nay-sayers and the perpetually skinny who cluck their tongues at us. To quote a favorite song of mine: "Everything easy has it's cost." If this is easy, and the cost is being *healthy* - I'll go along with it being the easy way out. Otherwise, I'm sorry. I can't agree.

Professional geek. Okay, I'm a systems analyst. Same thing :puke:

Banded 9/19/05 Dr Paul Huepenbecker, Madison Wisconsin, USA Filled to 1.75cc No problems at all.

I'd been stuck for a couple weeks between 259-258, but this week, I started adding a Protein bar (210c, 19g protein) after I work at in the evenings, and today, I'm 256.5. Also, last night, rather than 30 minutes @ 17.5 mph on the bike, I did 20 minutes @18mph on the bike. I dunno if that's part of the change or not, but I'll defintely take the loss! My daily calories had been between 800-1000 a day. I added 210 calories. I also burned 200 less last night. /shrug Maybe that's just a kick start. Maybe that's what you need.

They want you to quit befor surgery because of the anesthesia, and because supposedly, it takes smokers longer to heal. I cut down from 2 packs a day to less than a pack before surgery and now since I started working am at 22 cigarettes a day. I consider this a vast improvement. I haven't had any band related problems due to the smoking.

My dad's Chex Mix he makes at Christmas. Not because it got stuck or it made me PB or anything. But because after eating a bowl of it, I gained like 2 pounds (salt and Water retention anyone?) and i HATE it when the scale goes the wrong way.

I have to agree - Nykee, you should get some of these and keep them at home. They are a lifesaver for me. I have them, along with a couple low-cal slimfast bars and my Protein bars - in a huge basket on my dining room table. I want something? I don't even go into the kitchen - the dining room has everything I need.

Garlic hasn't bothered me yet. But anything Soy? Oh my. Unfortunately, the Protein bars I eat are mostly soy based (South Beach). Good thing I have my own office :target:

I'm going to throw my scale out. I've gained and lost the same 2 pounds now for 2 weeks, and I know that I have been ultra-good :target: I just ordered a Tanita scale. If it says the same thing, well - ok, but I hate getting on the scale and not seeing it budge from 258 when I am doing everything right. I'm so frustrated. I really wanted to hit my first goal by my birthday next week, but that's not gonna happen. At least, not according to THIS scale.

I've only had 2 fills, but I'm at 1.75cc and I'm plenty restricted. Maybe too much, as I only eat about 900-1000 calories a day, and I burn off 500-600 of those at night. My weight loss was great right after the last fill on 1/17, but has now managed to slow, then stop. I defintely don't need another fill, but I may need to play with my calories and up them some.

If you're comfortable eating mushies while you're gone, I say go for it. You never know how fill is going to affect you, so you should be prepared for that. I've flown since I had a fill, and it hasn't bothererd me at all. What bothers me is airport security I can take a big ol' honkin' screwdriver on an airplane, but they take my bic lighter? bah.

Grats to you !

Several years ago, i was on Zoloft, and yes, it was a HUGE help for depression. For anxiety, though (I've had a couple panics attacks - 3 in ten years now), I have an emergency bottle of Xanax. I get ten pills a year (at my own request. If I had more...ugh.) and last year, I only took 2. I've also been on Paxil, which was *awesome* for PMS. I'm seriously considering going back on it, because my mood swings lately have been horrible.

Right now, I'm doing cardio 30 minutes a day, 6 days a week. I'd like to add in some strength training, but as I'm moving closer to work later in the spring, I hesitate to join a gym right now.

Something I've noticed over the years, when talking to people who've dealt with weight issues: We're caretakers, and we suck at taking care of ourselves. After reading some of these threads today, I see LBT is no different. So now that you've worked so hard to get where you are -- how are you treating yourself differently? Are you taking more care of everything in *your* life? Or are you still spending all your energy on everyone else?

I read, or I write. I light a candle and stare at the flame until I can find a good thought. I cry. Seriously. Crying helps. Crying has gotten a bad rap through the years. You need a release when you're stressed. It's either cry, or...uh...well, you all know another kind of release.

Calories just confuse the hell out of me :/ If I'm eating 1000 calories and exercising off about 400-600 calories a day, shouldn't I be losing a lot more than a couple pounds a week? Isn't that logical? I have come to the conclusion that nothing about weightloss is logical. You roll the dice, you takes yer chances. Hang in there - stick with it - it'll get better (at least, that's what I keep telling myself!)

I'm getting a new one for my birthday! I have one on my right shoulderblade, and this one will be on my left. The one I have has not changed with weightloss or gain, so I figure another in the same area won't hurt :Banane23:

On my second fill, the surgeon who is partnered with and assists my surgeon actually did the fill. The first time I went in, my surgeon zipped the needle right in and I was in and out of that office in 10 minutes! With the assistant, it took much longer and after almost 2 weeks, it's still a little sore :/ I don't think I'll go back to the other surgeon I went to him to save a little time cause his office is closer to where I work, but for peace of mind and sanity, I'll take an hour off and go to my own surgeon.

This is all coming in very handy for me, too. My stepdaughter is getting married in May and I need something that looks very "too young to be her real mother" and makes her dad wish we'd never split up

Blair has a website: blair.com - I used to buy the stirup pants that were the staple of my wardrobe from them. I hear ya on the body issues, loud and clear. Before going to see my husband at NY's, I went through my closet and about half the stuff I thought would *never* fit, actually did. I can't judge it at all. I don't think I look any different. As far as lane bryant goes, they are pricey, but their jeans RULE - always have. Their Talls actually are Talls, and I need that! I find an occasional sweater or shirt there that looks good on me, but some of their clothes are just - weird. Their bras and underwear though are the best I've found for plus size, and they have lingerie sometimes that isn't butt-ugly.

Replace diet coke with diet pepsi, and that's me all over. Splenda doesn't do it to me, but nutrasweet does, for sure.

Thank you for sharing And ya, my boobs are my indicator lol. I've haven't been regular since I went off the pill 6 years ago - then, I had it predicatable to the hour! Now, it's 17-20 days, whenever the heck it feels like it :/ I should know better than to get on the scale anywhere NEAR that time of the month. It should be a rule. I think I'll tape it above my scale. "Do your boobs hurt? STAY OFF!" :girl_hug: