lellow

now *they* are freaking awesome.

acidic,

thanks for your picture comments, hunny! How have you been? Taking care of yourself? I don't come here much anymore (today has been an exception) so if you want someone to chat to about band stuff or anything else, I'd be happy to PM your my mobile number!

Also, yes, my hubby supported by body lift because my 'overhang' of skin was causing major skin problems. He didn't want me to get more surgery but I was getting sores and everything. He couldn't argue with the medical reasons for it.

But he didn't like the idea of a BA at all. In the end, I did it anyway, and now he's stoked with the new girls! Do what ma...

hey Jacqui,

I have been thinking of you and hoping all went well for you. I see you haven't checked in since November and I hope it means all is going well and you're busy recovering. xxx

Hey, I'm sorry I've taken so long to reply, I only just realised I'd received a msg from you!

Basically an inframmary incision is placed in the bottom crease of your breast and an areola incision is an incision through your areola. My incision is pretty big (about 4 inches each) but they're thin and unless I'm lying down, you can't even see them!

Heya!

I finally put up some new body lift photos. I realise looking at them that the scars haven't changed much in the last year!

Not long now until your surgery!

Hi and thanks for your lovely comment on my photo. I have been banded almost 18 months now and I lost all of my excess weight in 7 months. I went on to lose a little bit more after hitting goal and my BMI is now 23, which is perfect for me.

I probably didn't notice a difference for a long time, but other people started to notice after I'd lost probably about 20lbs. I'm sure in a month or so everyone will start to see the difference in you!

Good luck and I wish you all the success in the world. The band has been a Godsend for me, I hope it is for you too!

Hi Annie,

Steve was my surgeon! I was very happy with him and all the aftercare I've received from him and Max Bowater (the dr who does the fills). Steve's very experienced so you'll be in good hands!

Hey, if you would like to chat, or even just need to ask questions of someone who's been there, done that, please don't hesitate to PM me, k? We have a few of Steve's patients on this board, and we seem to do pretty well all things considered, so it's not a bad thing for us to stick together and support each other!

Hi Cali,

I'm Australian so I'm not sure if the sizing is the same as where you're from (where are you from?) but the first pair is a size 20, the second pair is a 14 and my latest pair is a size 10.

It's so lovely for you to say that you look at my pics for inspiration. I did the same with many others in this forum, and never thought I'd actually be inspiring some one else less than a year later. Soon, I bet others will look to your pics to motivate them.

And as to how tall I am, I'm 162cm (5'4").

Hi cutiew/booty,

I have posted new post body lift photos taken today, if you wanted to have a look.

Hi Denise,

I've lost about 63lbs and I'm 5'4". My BMI was 37 at the start and now it's 26 and I'm still losing.

Good luck with your decision. It was definitely worth doing for me - it was for the same reasons too, my family has significant histories of heart problems, hypertension and diabetes. My risk of developing any of those issues is now sharply reduced.

Hi ebonymc,

I was afraid too before I was banded - what if something went wrong? What if it didn't work for me? What if I regretted it? Would I ever be thin?

The band did work for me. It wasn't that hard! I learnt to exercise and like it. I learnt to not think about food all the time. I'm very seldom hungry. I don't worry about my weight anymore. The worst is over and now i have the rest of my life to live.

Good luck with your op in two weeks! I'm sure you too will experience good results! Remember it takes time, but you'll get there. And once you're there, you're there for good.

Hi FluffyJen,

Thanks for the msg on my photo. I am 5' 4" (so quite short) and am currently at 159lbs. My Dr wants me to get to 154lbs, But I personally would like to get to about 145! (so another 14lbs to go!)

Hi Kelsey,

thanks for the comments in the before/after thread. I lost 100% of my excess weight in 7 months, but went on to lose approximately another 30 pounds in the year following that. I now tend to struggle to put on weight rather than lose. My band is pretty loose now but my appetite died a long time ago!

Good luck with your journey. I hope the band works for you as well as it did for me!

Hi melaniediva1,

I got a lapband It was the only thing I was offered!

Hi Nat,

I said I'd update you on the progress of my Body Lift surgery with Dr Allbrook, and so here I am, 10 days post op, doing just that!

I have added some pics of before/after to my album, but as I've made it a private album, you need to be a contact of mine to view it. So I added you as a friend, so you can have a steaky beak at the pics if you like!

Hi nat! I too wanted to take care of the main thing that bothered me, and for me, that was my horrible sagy belly. I hid it okay, but as you can see, unclothed I looked a mess. My thighs are pretty saggy but I can live with it, and my arms are actually pretty good.

Mainly I wanted you to see Dr Allbrook's handiwork. He may not be the cheapest but he's really good at what he does, as I can now attest to. His work is better than I thought I could hope for. Even the nurses at SJOG Murdoch all mentioned that he was definitely up there with the best.

I hope you won't have to wait too long for your surgery!

Hi Ro,

thanks for the message. I had a very busy weekend, so this is the first time I've logged in since my fill.

The fill went well. A local then 2ccs, and I can't burp again! Lol! But it's good in that my food intake has decreased significantly again. My Dr said he's looking for 3kgs a month weight loss and I've lost 6 since my op, so he's very happy with that. He thinks if I can lose about 2-3kgs a month, I should get to my personal goal weight within a year.

It's good to hear you're on pureed foods now. You need some solid food for energy to regain muscle, and while you may not lose much weight from now on, you'll lose inches for sure. The pants I bought two weeks ago, which fit very snugly, require a belt now to stay up. And I've only lost less than 2 kgs in that time. But almost 3.5 inches off my waist alone!

Have you started any exercise as yet?

Hi there,

thank you for you msg on my profile! My surgery went well and I'm actually feeling pretty good right now. Once my swelling is gone, I'll post an updated 'after' pic for general viewing so you can see the results.

Hi,

I had my body lift in Australia and it was partly covered by Medicare (our public health system) so I don't know that any figures I give you will be of any use to you. But thanks for the photo comment nonetheless!

Hi! I had a lower body lift 18 months ago and initially had loss of sensation around the scars but luckily, I got 99% of sensation back in the months that followed. Not that it would have bothered me much if I didn't - I was glad for the skin to be gone and it's made such a difference to my quality of life.

I just had a BA 3 days ago (no lift) and had inframammary incisions and no loss of nipple sensation whatsoever. I believe there is a higher chance of loss of sensation with a lift and/or areola incision, but that's the chance you take, I guess. For me, loss of sensation would have been an acceptable trade off! As far as affects of aneasthesia, have experienced nothing! Fatigue is normal of course, but nothing on-going.

I have body lift photos in a private album in my profile, only avlb to people I've added as friends, so will add you so you can have a look. No BA photos as yet, but they'll be added soon.

Happy to chat some more, feel free to ask any questions you like!

Hi! I just read your comment on one of my pics and thought I'd leave you with the answer to the question you asked.

I started out by walking, but as I got stronger, and lost weight, I started cycling. Cycling (on a spin bike) became my main source of exercise, and I cycled 40 mins 3 times a week most weeks. It was good because my knee was arthritic and cycling was low impact. As I approached my goal weight, I did take up some running but it aggravated my knee, so I stopped.

Doing that, it took me 7 months to lose 66lbs. And I've lost another 19lbs or so since my body lift, though since my lift, I don't exercise in a structured way so much anymore.

Hi! It's so funny when people tell me I'm an inspiration, because not long ago I was exactly in the same place you're in now - just banded and a little worried that it wouldn't work for me! It's nice though to speak to another Perth girl as there are so few of us who regularly use this site.

Fanny is a great chick (met her IRL) and she and I had the same band surgeon and plastic surgeon. Our band surgeon was Steve Watson and our plastic surgeon was Bruce Allbrook. And yes, Bruce is here in Perth. I had my surgery in SJOG Murdoch, and Fanny had hers in Hollywood Hospital. Bruce is a bit of a legend, to be honest!

Happy to chat about any other questions you have! I'm sure you'll have great success with the band - us Aussies seem to do well with it!

I am MSN illiterate, LOL! Actually no, I moderate on another forum and have had many many negative experiences on msn with members from there bombarding me with complaints and questions if they see me signed in, so I got rid of it.

I also won't allow my 14yo son on it, so not having installed helps him resist the urge.

I apparently miss out on a whole world of communication without it, though!

I'm glad you and your dad will be there to motivate each other, but I agree about getting home to your own space. And I found that getting motivated to exercise has been easier this time - where I've already lost some weight and can already see the difference - than it's been in other times I've tried to increase my physical activity. In fact, the tables have turned in my house, I now exercise MORE than my DH and not only that, where he used to have to force to to walk or bike-ride, I now harrass him, and if he doesn't go, I go without him. Lol!

And I really admire your resolve to cook when you get home. I think that will be the best thing for you. I am still really lazy in that respect. Though I am trying to avoid fast food (haven't always been successful), because if I can only eat so much, I want it to be good stuff, IYKWIM. Tasty and fresh and satisfying. But cooking after a whole day of meetings and focus groups and writing reports and training is beyond me these days unfortunately.

I'm glad that I withdrew from uni too this semester, because between work and exercise and the band, I have my hands full. Once things settle, I think uni can come back into the mix. But for now (esp work) life is really full on.

5 days to go for you before bandland!

I came back to loads and loads of work waiting, my work clothes are loose and my pants are riding my hips, so I look like I have a big crotch, and the canteen's food is fatty, greasy and awful. But yeah all in all it went well!

I'm glad I took the 2 weeks off though, because I was dead tired when I got home yesterday. Make sure you have all two weeks off, Ro, you'll need it, even if you start to feel better. Just a week or so to go for you now!