NanaRenan

Forgot to add that when I finally did do some NEW clothes shopping, I went to CATO first! and it spoiled me to every other store I went in! I couldn't bear paying the prices because I knew I could get more at CATO. In two trips on a week I bought two skirts, four tops and 5 jackets and a purse for under $200! And I can mix and match them to get dozens of outfits out of them.

First thing to do is get someone you trust on all levels to keep an eye on you. I have two grown daughters who always look spectacular and know how to live on a budget. I made them promise to keep an eye on me and tell me when it was time to get go of something because it was too sloppy looking. I've given away the equivalent of two lawn and leaf sized garbage bags stuffed tight. I make "clearance rack shopping" an exercise activity. Wear something close-fitting under a jacket so I can quickly slip things off and on between the racks without having to take everything to the dressing room. Ross, Marshall's, TJ Max are great places to find things. Personally, I think a lot of larger sizes end up on their racks because most large women stick to Catherine's, Avenue and Lane Bryant! But my favorite, favorite, favorite is CATO. If you're fortunate enough to leave near one, check it out. I've been a professional seamstress for 27 years (and before you ask, I HATE sewing for myself!) and I will really and truly vouch for the quality of the clothes I've bought at CATO. My first "shopping trip" was into the garage to the Rubbermaid bins I had stored there! I was pulling out things I hadn't worn in 5 to 8 years and was surprised at how many of them were from CATO and still looked excellent. Most everything in the store is under $30 each piece. And not too trendy. or too young. or too tacky. A new store recently opened up called Marianne. I went in there before Christmas, but only ended up buying things for my girls. The styles all looked way to young for me. And truthfully, I didn't feel like the quality could touch CATO.

Thank you. I've learned that that hospital has a horrid reputation. The area we live in is heavily populated with people in the medical field and every time I gave the name of the hospital we went to they rolled their eyes and groaned!!!! At least the billing will go to the insurance company of the man who hit us.

Okay...will some other slow-losers please check in. I don't like being all alone in last place!

We always focus our anger and hatred on the insurance company, but I've come to understand that it is ultimately the employers choices that affect WLS. Insurance money is collected from the employee's wages and pooled and someone like Aetna or BCBS, etc. is contracted to MANAGE and disperse the funds according to how the employer sees fit. I was denied four times -- on the 5th (and final) try my WLSurgeon requested that someone specializing in bariatric surgery look at my file. I had approval in 3 days! Six months out I've lost a total of 65 lbs and am off of EIGHT meds I would've been on for life. The meds alone would have totalled over $5K just for MY co-pay, not sure what it would cost the insurance. They'll end up saving money on me now that I'm banded. Employers need to be made aware the healthy benefits of WLS...I'm sure most of them still look at it as cosmetic.

Name: Frangipani Weight loss from day of surgery: 81 lbs Total weight loss: 87 lbs Name: Candle Weight loss from day of surgery: 81 lbs Total weight loss: 95 lbs Name: Salsa Weight loss from day of surgery: 81 lbs Total weight loss: 81 lbs Name: Pammycakes Weight loss from day of surgery: 84 lbs Total weight loss: 86 lbs Name: Ceradad Weight loss from day of surgery: 80.5 Total weight loss: 100.5 Name: KarenG. Weight loss from day of surgery: 74 Total weight loss: 74 Name: NanaRenan Weight loss from day of surgery: 45 Total weight loss: 65

You're right, of course. And I realize that I can't always compare myself to other people because I don't know their height or other contributing factors. One thing I've noticed in watching TV shows about weight loss -- some people were eating 3000 to 5000 calories per day before starting their pre-op and having surgery. I've lived ON AVERAGE in the 1600 - 2000 range for the better part of two decades! Sure, I had an occasional 4K day, but I had many, MANY more 1000-1200 days while trying to diet!! The band has kept me CONSISTENTLY in the 1200-1400 range so it's a reduction, but not so huge that great gobs of weight is falling off.

You guys and gals are SO inspiring!!! I hadn't weighed in a few days and was happy to see a substantial drop this morning.....I immediately changed my ticker! Heck, I even changed it when I was sick and dehydrated a few weeks ago -- I knew I'd have to change it back, but just couldn't resist! LOL

Me, too! I bought fabric and am gonna make one! Evidently I'm long in the torso. I tried on a one-piece slimmer in the lingerie department the other day and about died laughing! The cups came no where NEAR my breasts, which are, IMHO, quite LOW!!! Found a slimmer SLIP on a website, but it's sold out! Grrrrr!!! I boxed up the last of my big stuff to take to a friend when I go to Dallas this weekend. 2 pair of jammies 3 suits 11 skirts 13 jackets 14 tops, tanks, blouses and shells It filled up a large moving box!

I'm fine. GrandDoll still has the occasional headache, but they continue to be less severe and further apart. We had just pulled out of JITB getting her a burger before we were to meet up with her Quiz Team and head out of town for a tournament. I was coming to a stop at a red light when I saw her burger fly past my head and splat all over the windshield and dash. That's when I realized I was reclining and wondered how that had happened. A guy had fallen asleep at the wheel of his pick-up and rear-ended us at about 40-50mph sending us into the rear of the minivan in front. It was 12:30 PM, on a BUSY street in a shower of rain -- how you can be so tired as to fall asleep in all of THAT, I dunno, but he did. Sloane freaked me out. The instant I realized we'd been hit I turned around to check on her. She's 9.5, but small for her size. She was in the middle seat on the middle row and had her lap belt on, but the shoulder harness was behind her....(something we scolded her about often, but don't have to mention any more!) It was as though she was unconscious, but she was sitting upright and her eyes were open. She was unresponsive -- didn't blink or move her eyes to follow my hand or look at me. I was screaming at her and praying to God -- she still had a bite of her burger in her mouth and I wanted to sweep it out of her mouth so she wouldn't aspirate it when she 'came to' and I could NOT pry her jaw open, although her teeth were not clenched. Just a very, VERY weird 2 or 3 minutes that felt like an HOUR! We went to the ER in an ambulance, but that was awful. They did Xrays and a CTscan, but no one ever 'read' them. She was drowsy...we could wake her and she would respond sensibly, but go right back to sleep. Every couple of hours she would start to squirm as if waking up, but she would sit up and vomit and go back to sleep. They never came to clean her up or change the sheets....we were cleaning her up ourselves with paper towels and finally threw the sheet in the corner. After 8 hours of that her mother signed her out AMA and we went home. We both saw our PCP the next AM and she went to get new glasses (never did find hers!). My big toe was black and blue -- evidently the foot that was on the brake got slammed up under the dash by the force. I asked for ice at the hospital because it was swelling so big and hurting -- they couldn't give me an "official" ice bag, because I wasn't a patient -- dumb bunnies should've MADE me one, since the insurance was sure to pay for it!! DH says you can tell by the damage to the car that we got hit really hard, actually TWO hits, because we got hit, then we hit the other car. But it probably helped that we never saw it coming, so we didn't brace against it. We were both awful sore for a good many days and I went back for a few physical therapy sessions on my neck and shoulders. That's about it. My 2006 Trailblazer (with all the bells and whistles!:crying:) was totaled. We replaced it with a 2006 Honda Pilot. (Still can't believe my red-white & blue DH actually bought a 'foreign' car! LOL)

Y'know, some might call me 'religious'. And 6 years ago when I tried to get gastric bypass I prayed, "Lord, if it is Your Will...", so when I heard "No" I didn't press it. Meanwhile, lots of people said I should have appealed it, but I couldn't forget that I'd asked Him for an answer. This time, with all my doctors telling me to do it, I said, "Father, if it is NOT what you want me to do, then it will not happen regardless of what me or the doctors do!" Now, Aetna denied me FOUR times before they approved. And I went to the OR 2 times and was sent home before it finally happened!!! I was beginning to wonder....but I kept trying! And here I am 6 months later, 65 lbs lighter and off of 8 out of 9 meds (which I totalled up was worth over $5K per year!). Yeah, I just prefer to think He had me wait until the RIGHT surgery and the right surgeon were available.

I certainly never felt anything happen -- except, I had a BAD stomach virus about three weeks ago. Up and down all night on the potty and dry heaving (because nothing would come up past the band!) for about 10 hours!!! ANYTHING could've happened then....might've flipped my liver, kidneys and pancreas, too!!!

btw -- I didn't set out to write a rant, but, it is what it is.

LOL Imagine that! Like the GP I saw ONE TIME ONLY!! who asked me in his broken English, "Why you eat de butter and de gravy and de mayonnaise?" As if I'd done all this to myself by overindulgence in condiments!!!! :cursing: Then there were all the other PCPs I DID go to for extended periods who would just say, 'Well, yes, you're borderline diabetic, but at this point, we'll just control it with diet and exercise, which you need to do anyhow." SERIOUSLY? I need to diet and exercise? I had no clue!!! Eventually, by the time I found a more Enlightened PCP, I'd also aquired a cardiologist for heart problems and carried a glucometer with me every where! Be proud that your taking good care of yourself and moving forward instead of waiting like some wallflower at the homecoming dance for a doctor (a jock? maybe) to figure out you may need a tool like a lap band and offer it to you.

Don't you just love those "light bulb" moments...? of course to have them means you're probably bumbling around in the dark like me! LOL I had one a while back. I think I might've posted about it, but who knows where. Anyhow, my BIG "finally getting it" moment came while DH was pressuring me to choose where we would go eat and then what to order. I was tired and cranky and hungry and I snapped, "I DON'T CARE -- IT DOESN'T MATTER, I'LL BE FULL AFTER 3 BITES ANYHOW!" (And yes, I said it in an ALL CAPS tone!!) Then that danged light bulb went off! Hello!! See, for months I'd stated over and over that "If I can only eat 3 oz, them by golly, they're gonna be three AWESOME ounces!" Suddenly I realized it didn't matter if I ate lobster, filet mignon, canned tuna or CARDBOARD, I was full after three bites. I'd actually been sort of accidentally sabotaging myself by trying to make so sure each bite was delectable....that led to more than one PBing incident because I was too busy paying attention to the deliciousness that I forgot to pay attention to my body that it was getting full and I'd try to slip in that "one more bite" before realizing that the bite before it should've been the last bite. My AHA-MOMENT was to realize that that's been a large part of my problem all along -- letting the food dictate to me and pleasure me, instead of simply nourish and sustain me. HUGE paradigm shift for me! Now, I make DH decide what WE eat. Because he's going to take way more than three bites, it needs to be something satisfying to HIM. I'm happy with whatever, as long as I'm full.

You just lived a 'dream come true' for me!! It's been almost 20 years since I was in a size 12 -- and that was only after dieting and only lasted for a few brief months. Before that I leap-frogged right over Size 12, (from about a size 5 or 6!!), twenty-eight years AGO when I never went below a 14 after having my first baby!

Here are two quick ones....yesterday we went to Outback for lunch. Whoever designed their booths must be an avowed 'fattie hater', because they are HORRIFIC!! I've been able to get in them since a couple of months after surgery (couldn't EVEN before!), but getting out was not always a pretty sight and often required my husband's assistance. Yesterday, I was up and out of the booth before HE was and we both looked at each other with shock, then began to LOL!!! The other one made us LOL, too!!! A couple of weeks ago I noticed (don't know when it actually happened!) that my navel has gone from looking like this --> O to looking like this --> | !!!! Now that's not at all 'pretty', but, it'll be 'fixed' eventually, but for now, it's a big NSV......SOMETHING had to have happened for that dramatic change!

Hey there! I'm going conservative on my challenge goals.....last time I upped them I ended up having a car wreck and not doing anything for weeks and weeks -- and just when I was able to go back, I had a nasty stomach bug that laid me low for another week!! But, I'm committed to increasing my endurance. Hubby and I are taking another cruise (maybe! depends on if DIL's due date coincides!) and he's challenged me to be able to keep up with him on hiking excursions! YIKES! So I'm focusing not on time spent, but on increasing my distance each time I go. Has anyone else tried this method? And was it helpful?

I finally cut myself loose last week and went shopping -- a little! I'd been pulling out old stuff but (a) some of it wasn't near as "cute" as i remembered, ( some elastics do not store well and are stretched out and © fashions have changed a LOT over the last 5 years! Anyway, I went to CATO -- if you have one near you, you owe it to yourself to check it out. I found that all of my OLD stuff that WAS still in good shape and looked good was from there. Take it from a professional seamstress: You cannot beat them for quality at that price. PERIOD! You can find other stores with similar pricing, but I guarantee the quality of the materials and workmanship do NOT compare! Anyhow, I hit the clearance racks and some of the new stuff. I got a new jean skirt, two tees, a shirt and FIVE jackets for $127. (I wear a lot of jackets because of these 'faux boobs' I've acquired on my BACK!!! UGH!) I've already given away several boxes of 24 to 30 clothes. Some of it I'm a little sad to see it go, but I solidly in 22s now and dropping! I'm packing up the bulk of them to take to a friend in Dallas next weekend, because I worked long and hard to put together a collection of pieces that could mix and match and make a multitude of outfits and it just seems a shame to dump it at Goodwill or something and all that 'effort' go to waste! Giving it, en masse, to one person just makes me happier. Almost as happy as buying 18's and 20's!!!! LOL

I've been away a while, too. But still losing....way slower than you August Folks who've lost 90+.....WOW! I can't help but be jealous! Anyhow, I'm gonna perservere....still too early to tell. But I am back at the gym and watching what I load on the fork every day!

I went in for my 6 month check up and 2nd fill and found my port has evidently flipped. My doctor stuck me 13 times -- I counted the holes when I got home! (And that sounds worse than it really was!) -- and bent 4 needles. He could get a good grip on the port (unlike the first fill when there was still so much fat over it he could only HOPE he was hitting the right spot!), but couldn't get a needle in. So, just waiting for approval from the insurance co. and am tenatively scheduled for 2/10. He intends to relocate the port more towards my sternum where it's a little firmer territory than how squishy it is down by my navel. Just curious -- how many of you who've had flipped ports fixed ALSO had them relocated...?

Hey, LJM....glad to finally get on and read about your surgery. I did think about you and pray for you on the day, just couldn't eek out a chance to peek. Sounds like things went well and those photos are amazing...love the 'pants' one. That before frontal could be me -- my pann. gives that 'faux hips' look, too. I can't WAIT to be where you are some day! You are an inspiration and SUCH a trooper to post through the pain and drugs! Love ya, Gal!!!!

I'm absolutely THRILLED that I did it and wouldn't hesitate to do it again or to recommend it to anyone!! And it doesn't "feel" DRASTIC at all once you've done it. I sometimes get impatient -- I want the weight to fall off faster, but, I have to remember it took years to put it on AND since I've been on a perpetual diet for the last 20 years, I wasn't consuming mass quantities of calories to begin with, so it's not a huge reduction in calories, just a slight, but consistent one.

Sweetie, give yourself a little more time to recover. Just the fact that you were put under general anesthesia can mess with your emotions, hormones and brain chemistry. Let that all settle down before you panic and make up your mind you've made a mistake. I'm six months out, and while I never felt quite as desparate as you sound in your post, I did have some moments of great anxiety. Still do on rare occasion. But for me (and I have no idea your situation) I have to look at the reality -- at least I am ALIVE to have regrets, or anxiety......and the road I was headed down BEFORE being banded, I didn't have much time left in this world!!! I had to decide which was worse, living with a device and possibly never eating certain foods again. Or being dead before I'm 50 and my grandkids never knowing who their Nana was....? Not too hard a choice when you think about it. You're in my prayers!

LOL on the crackers!