SkyeBlu

I'm loving the blogging thing....it sure is nice to have a place to go and write down your thoughts. I don't always have a particular topic I want to ask about or announce in a forum but just want to put it down on paper and for the record I hate journalling, pen to paper writing is not my strong suit but I can type like the wind :crying:. I'm sitting here listening to my husband snore (as well as the damn dog...I never knew chocolate labs could sound like a freight train) and just enjoying my alone moment after a long, but good day. I heard bumping around in the kitchen and found my 17 yo son making a snack, my first instinct was to demand "why are you out of bed" then it dawned on me....my baby is closing in on 18 and he can honestly make bedtime decisions for himself. Turns out he has a major final in the morning and is pretty stressed about it so studying like a mad man. In the process he got hungry, how can I argue that one. My point to my rambling is actually this. My son is almost 18! The first day I met my husband I was 6 weeks past my 18th birthday. I made some very adult decisions that altered my future permenantly at the same age my once premature, angel faced son is now. He is no longer that little thumb sucker asking for one more story, he is a tall, handsome, strong,extremely intelligent young man who hugs me into his chest telling me "that I'm the perfect snuggle height". It scares me that he will be out in the world very soon. It scares me that I had so much of my life pass me by and I barely remember it and I don't want him to do the same thing. He has such a furvor for living life, but then I have to admire that he just wants to get out and live life. Shouldn't we all? Isn't that what it is about....living our lives? It isn't about what house we lived in, what car we drove, or how our credit score was....in my mind it's about the life we lived and walking off into the sunset knowing we did right by ourselves, that we didn't settle. I know I don't want to settle....

Thank you...We have been together for 19 years and I think maybe, just maybe we might have gotten it right :thumbup: He is a great man.

Wow your lucky your doc only said 15 minutes mine is pretty adamant about 30 minutes before and after. The reasons for it as he explained it are these. If you fill your pouch before hand with fluid your not getting enough nutrients because you have no room for food (bad) and if you drink with or shortly after eating if your chewing as much as you should be you flush the food right out of your pouch and you eat way more than you are supposed to (really bad) Also, if you drink with "expanding" foods (rice, bread etc) you are in for a world of hurt shortly after.

brandyII...I didn't vomit much just get a horrid pain in my belly. I wasn't eating too much at one time it was more of a constant noshing never really giving my tummy time to just relax. And, when I would over eat, I would also drink, I didn't realize until about 2 weeks ago I was actually doing it unconciouslly and now have to make a point of emptying my glass before dinner is even started. I did PB a few times and slimed quite regularly. I didn't start sliming until about 6-7 months ago....you would of thought that this would of been a warning sign to me but unfortunately I would blame it on something else...stress of the day, bad food, what ever. One of the worst things for me was my job! Up until in recent weeks I was a manager for a very busy restaurant here in town. I worked 50+ hours a week going non-stop so I was eating such bad food and all the time. Sades....great job on getting back on track! Just doing what I have done I lost 4lbs this week. I just keep shaking my head and realizing what a mistake I made. Good for you and keep up the great work!

I just had this conversation with hubby recently (and I am 2 years post banding) They don't like the change, there is security in you not being "mainstream sexy". He will be fine and hopefully this is a healthy venture for both of you!

You may have irritated your tummy/band area. I myself have done it in the past. It's kind of like twisting your ankle...if you stand right back up and start running it continues to hurt like heck...give it day off and you are back to good as new. Give yourself a day or two on power shakes and mushies and let your tummy settle down. If you eat anything solid make sure you chew chew chew to a mush. Good luck!

I feel for you! It sucks that you feel so down right now. Something that I did with my boys early on is I knew I had a big issue with food and didn't want them to as well so we made sure they were taught to make good food choices. Sweets should be a treat not an all the time thing. Get rid of all unhealthy sweets for your sake and theirs, keep healthy sweets in the house yogurt, 100 calorie packs, granola bars, fresh fruit, dried fruit etc and if they have a sweet craving they will gnosh on thoses. And, if you happen to indulge it's not a bad treat. Also, you just need to find your sweet spot. When you get it you will know. It took 4 fills for me to hit mine and wow what a difference it made! Good luck!

Yay for you! That is awesome! I noticed your favorite shirt color got a bit brighter too....you go girl stand out...you deserve it!

I empathize with you. It can be rough, my only advice...celebrate the life he lived and all that he has done to impact your life, continue this practice for all the days to come! It's hard I know! He sounds like a great man you are lucky to of had him in your life for so long!

Hubby was sitting on the couch watching tv and he piped up out of the blue asking why I was so adimant about losing weight? He told me he loved me like I was and that should be enough. I thought about it before i answered... It has nothing to do with being "skinny" or "celebrity sexy" (granted I really like shopping at stores other than Lane Bryant and for a size almost out of the double didgets) but it has to do with being healthy. Being able to do what I want without restriction because of my weight. I want to get old by his side and watch our sons take on the world. If I don't get myself just a bit healthier I risk not being able to do those things. I have lived an amazing life and with age and maturity I apprecaite things more, I want to see and do more amazing things and appreciate them at the time....not later or possibly not at all! We talked some more about why I want to get to a healthier state and it turns out he is secretly affraid that I will get skinny and run off with the next best thing. Is he kidding me:eek:? If I wanted to jet I would of done it some time ago. I think I got him straigtened out because he set up his treadmill to start running tomorrow because he wants us to go backpacking just the two of us by summers end:w00t:....now that is the man I married.

Hubby was sitting on the couch watching tv and he piped up out of the blue asking why I was so adimant about losing weight? He told me he loved me like I was and that should be enough. I thought about it before i answered... It has nothing to do with being "skinny" or "celebrity sexy" (granted I really like shopping at stores other than Lane Bryant and for a size almost out of the double didgets) but it has to do with being healthy. Being able to do what I want without restriction because of my weight. I want to get old by his side and watch our sons take on the world. If I don't get myself just a bit healthier I risk not being able to do those things. I have lived an amazing life and with age and maturity I apprecaite things more, I want to see and do more amazing things and appreciate them at the time....not later or possibly not at all! We talked some more about why I want to get to a healthier state and it turns out he is secretly affraid that I will get skinny and run off with the next best thing. Is he kidding me:eek:? If I wanted to jet I would of done it some time ago. I think I got him straigtened out because he set up his treadmill to start running tomorrow because he wants us to go backpacking just the two of us by summers end:w00t:....now that is the man I married.

Hubby is doing awesome! Thank you for asking! I keep looking at what we really went through (there is more to the story that I posted...lol...isn't there always) and I know if I can pull my family through the worst of the worst...I can get us strong and healthy in the good times!

The metformin helped me some in the 2 years before my surgery but I notice the biggest difference in my PCOS symptoms after I started to shed weight and that was sans metformin (they took me off 90 days after my sugery when my blood sugars leveled out.) Good luck! And YAY for a doctor that is proud of you! Your doing awesome keep up the great work! :laugh:

We all heal so differently, myself it was a good month before my tummy resumed a "not swollen" look and about 2 months before my port site/inscision was healed and not puffy. Good luck!

To give myself a bit of a pat on the back instead of just beating myself up....there was a few months that I did really live right with my band and lost 54 lbs...I still have that off :thumbup: Just have to stay on track to lose the last bit I need to!

I think one of the things that I have learned the most over the past 2 years 3 months is that everything changes...that is the only constant. It's how you deal with it that really counts. I was banded February 10, 2006 my vision in my mind was I would take this band and get to a quick and easy slimmer me. Boy was I wrong! 5 weeks later the love of my life, my husband of then 16 years was diagnosed with Cancer. Can I tell you how overwhelming it is to be a "stress eater" and not be able to eat! :thumbup: I have to be honest I didn't handle it well at all! So there I was trying to learn how to cope with my new band and deal with hubbys new diet, chemo, etc and our teen aged sons. Lets just say I cheated a wee bit.... Fast forward 9 months...short story...we got into a car crash with the boys in the car, rolling and totaling the car. Thank goodness no one was hurt! One month later....Hubby is on duty as a motorcycle officer and a guy runs a red light almost killing my husband. I wasn't eating large quantities but wasn't taking care of me either. Guess what happened....nothing...didn't lose a pound. I got mad, mad at the cancer, mad at the guy that hit hubby, mad at the band for not working....but never took a look at me. Then I did. I was able to do so much to keep my family up and running but couldn't take the few seconds it takes to say "no Skye chocolate is not good for you"...I don't get it! I'm slowly learning from my mistakes!

I think one of the things that I have learned the most over the past 2 years 3 months is that everything changes...that is the only constant. It's how you deal with it that really counts. I was banded February 10, 2006 my vision in my mind was I would take this band and get to a quick and easy slimmer me. Boy was I wrong! 5 weeks later the love of my life, my husband of then 16 years was diagnosed with Cancer. Can I tell you how overwhelming it is to be a "stress eater" and not be able to eat! I have to be honest I didn't handle it well at all! So there I was trying to learn how to cope with my new band and deal with hubbys new diet, chemo, etc and our teen aged sons. Lets just say I cheated a wee bit.... Fast forward 9 months...short story...we got into a car crash with the boys in the car, rolling and totaling the car. Thank goodness no one was hurt! One month later....Hubby is on duty as a motorcycle officer and a guy runs a red light almost killing my husband. I wasn't eating large quantities but wasn't taking care of me either. Guess what happened....nothing...didn't lose a pound. I got mad, mad at the cancer, mad at the guy that hit hubby, mad at the band for not working....but never took a look at me. Then I did. I was able to do so much to keep my family up and running but couldn't take the few seconds it takes to say "no Skye chocolate is not good for you"...I don't get it! I'm slowly learning from my mistakes!

This is a bit long but I need to put it in print..... I have been lurking in the shadows reading every post on band complications and all the stuff that can and does go wrong. The reason for this is that I have not lost a pound in almost a year and for the last 6 months I have had this funky at times horrible pain in my stomach, I get raging headaches and I feel like general crud 90% of the time. I kept thinking what is wrong with my band why isn't it working. Then the other day I had an epiphany....ok it was really a reflection on a conversation with Dr. Billy, but it got me back on track....he said that the band is just a tool, it isn't a magic bullet, but just a simple tool that I can choose to use or not. So I sat down and really thought about my pain, my lack of weight loss and my feeling of overall icky. Here is what I came up with...I'm not using my tool right. My issue isn't with my band but in my head. Bummer!! So here is what I have to work on..... I have plenty of restiction but eat until I am FULL thus giving myself a tummy ache because i'm eating myself sick...fortunately for the restriction I can't eat tons or I would be back where I was when I started this venture. So back to measuring my portions, using my small plate and fork I go. Also, knowing when I am "almost" full. I'm not chewing as well as I should...bad bad me! I'm allergic to wheat and corn so "um hello" the nachos, sandwiches and pizza need to stop effective immediately. buh bye headaches! Soda... I was drinking Diet Pepsi heard it was bad so moved to regular Coke....Sad but true this has been my path Alcohol...margaritas are my true weekness....i'm going to limit myself to one a week on Sundays when we bbq. Visiting lapband talk....I stopped...it's like not talking to that good friend that helps keep you on track....stop smacking me upside the head..I am back and yes I will listen! I am putting myself on a quasi-first month diet...back to soft foods, lots of protien shakes and the like and i'm going to give my tummy a few weeks to heal from the mess I am sure I made of it. And for the record I started 2 days ago and have already lost 2 lbs and feel so much better! Whatever my excuse is work, stress, family issues etc....I lost track of the whole point and reverted back to my old ways. I am just thankfull I realized it before I made myself sick! Thanks for listening and hopefully I stop "struggling" and move forward!

Wahooo....a biker group!! I am normally on the back of hubbys 2005 Dyna Low Ride but will be taking the rider course at Reno Harley Davidson this spring. Looking at the new 2007 Sportster low for me...maybe just maybe Summer rides between Reno and Las Vegas and down into the Auburn/Sacramento area have taught me alot about constantly sipping on Water because I just can't gulp it like I used to. I actually slip a waterbottle between hubby and I and we sip on it as we go. The one I have to watch is beer....the guys we ride with love their beer. It can be hard to turn down an icy cold one or three when it is a 105! I look forward to hearing about everyones rides this summer! Skye

One year ago today.... I was laying in bed looking at my battered, swollen belly and sipping on chicken broth wondering what in the freaking blue blazes did I do to myself?!?!?!One year later I am... 54 lbs lighter (hey when your 5' that is a lot o' butt) able to shop at ANY store other than Lane Bryant able to run on the treadmill and not pass out or throw up feeling sexy liking what/who I see in the mirror because I now see me healthier stronger (mentally and physically) I AM THANKFULL

*knock knock* Yooohoooo....yep it's me...i'm still around! Things are still nuts here but we are hanging in there! To help with my stress levels I have started to ride my bike to work...9.8 miles ONE WAY! Woohooo! I'm glad to see everyone is still doing so well and sticking with it! Good Job guys! Love ya and miss visiting with you! Skye

I am so glad you found Dr. Billy! I love working with him towards gaining my health back! Good luck with everything! Skye

Melatonin is good to try! I love it! It is sold in 1mg 3mg and 5mg strengths I would reccomend trying 1mg and go up from there you may not need a ton to make it work. DO NOT go over 5mg unless you are being medically supervised. Also...start with a lower dose if you regularly take B12. Ambien...at times a necessary evil but be very very careful, you would be amazed at what people are doing while completely asleep on this drug! There are people that are claiming that they eat entire meals at night and have no recolection the next day....I too said "whatever" THEN...my husband started to take Ambien...last week when we got in bed we were being intimate and it was amazingly soft, romantic and loving, the bad part is...he has ZERO memory of it! NONE...NADA! EEEKKK!!!

My surgery wasn't until 2:15 pm so we got to the hospital around 1pm. I was taken straight to pre-op, put in my gown and IV'd, they gave me the first round of anti-biotics and I immediately had an alergic reaction to them, sooooo that slowed me down just a bit because they had to watch me for a half an hour. The trip from pre-op to the operating room was quick and they knocked me about almost as soon as I hit the operating room table. The recovery room was non-eventfull other than the normal waking up out of a major fog feeling. It turns out they did hernia surgery while they were in there so I was a bit more on the sore side than expected, but nothing a few pumps on the morphine didn't fix! I had to have a semi-private room and my roomie was a bit "difficult" (she didn't shut up and whinned non-stop) BUT the nurses were awesome! When it came to the medical staff that was by far the best care I have ever recieved. Going home was a bit rough as I was SUPER nautious and the drive home was an hour on a windy freeway. 4 days later I was at work and moving forward with life! Tired, sore...and over the liquid diet but very happy with my decision. Skye

Skyeblu's Gone for Good Club June Challenge Score Card Points earned for Rule 1 For each day that you drink a minimum of 64oz of water, you earn 1 point. You may earn a bonus of 5 points for a perfect week. 5-31___1_6-01__1__6-02_____6-03_____6-04_____6-05_____6-06_____6-07_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-08_____6-09_____6-10_____6-11_____6-12_____6-13_____6-14_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-15_____6-16_____6-17_____6-18_____6-19_____6-20_____6-21_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-22_____6-23_____6-24_____6-25_____6-26_____6-27_____6-28_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ Grand Total_______ Points earned for Rule 2 For each day that you exercise for a minimum of 30 minutes, you earn 2 points. You may earn a bonus of 5 points for a perfect week. 5-31__1__6-01__1__6-02_____6-03_____6-04_____6-05_____6-06_____6-07_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-08_____6-09_____6-10_____6-11_____6-12_____6-13_____6-14_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-15_____6-16_____6-17_____6-18_____6-19_____6-20_____6-21_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-22_____6-23_____6-24_____6-25_____6-26_____6-27_____6-28_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ Grand Total_______ Points earned for Rule 3 For each day that you do not eat foods that contain flour or sugar, you earn 3 points. (sugar substitutes are allowed) You may earn a bonus of 5 points for a perfect week. 5-31_0____6-01__1__6-02_____6-03_____6-04_____6-05_____6-06_____6-07_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-08_____6-09_____6-10_____6-11_____6-12_____6-13_____6-14_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-15_____6-16_____6-17_____6-18_____6-19_____6-20_____6-21_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ 6-22_____6-23_____6-24_____6-25_____6-26_____6-27_____6-28_____ Bonus____Week's Total_____ Grand Total_______ Points earned for Weight loss For each pound that you lose during the challenge, you earn 1 point Beginning weight 5-31: 169 Weigh-in weight 6-7: Weigh-in weight 6-14: Weigh-in weight 6-21: Weigh-in weight 6-28: Total lost during challenge: Total points earned for Rule 1: Total points earned for Rule 2: Total points earned for Rule 3: Total points earned for weight loss: Total Challenge points earned: In the pics...the first one is from christmas (I had to fill it in just a wee bit because my sons arm was in the pic) and the second one is just 2 weeks ago.