revswife

Hello All, 1 year has gone by...some days it feels like just yesterday, some days it feels like it's been forever. I'm still not sure whether or not this is exactly where I should really post this, but I do know that this portion of the board has been most helpful to me when discouraged along the way. I've lost a total of 75 pounds so far, still 40 pounds from goal, but my outlook on life has most definately improved. It's amazing what carrying around 75 less pounds will do!! For those of you who may feel discouraged about your success, just know that this a process and not a quick fix, as the cliche goes, you didn't gain the weight overnight, don't expect it to disappear overnight. Thanks to those of you who have answered questions I have had over the last year. Blessings to all of you in your journey!!

I haven't had any sort of bread or pasta since surgery...and don't plan to try!! I get stuck on chicken, no matter how it's cooked unless it's in soup. I live on fish and seafood, it has really changed my taste. I like roasted shrimp and steamed broccoli for supper, makes me feel full, more full than I imagined it would.

Hi All, I am watching Biggest Loser, and I am wondering where I can find a Body Bugg w/ Digital Display for any less than $350 that I found on the official site, any ideas. We don't have a 24 hour fitness in our area, otherwise I would definately go that route. Any suggestions on where to look, or any other brands that are similar to BodyBugg are greatly appreciated.

I was banded 8/11/08, I have lost 23 lbs so far. I went in for my second fill this a.m. 1 cc today, for a total of 6.2 cc in a 10 cc band. I have done o.k. today with food, don't really feel much like eating, but I am really struggling with myself and my outlook on this whole process. I feel so frustrated, I know that I didn't put on the weight in a day, I know that it won't come off in a day. I am having a difficult time grasping how good the 23lb loss really is, and where I go from here. Any CONSTRUCTIVE advice is appreciated.

I know what you're feeling, I was banded 8/11/08 and sometimes I forget I have the band, I eat well and moderately exercise every day, and...I feel nothin' I think I've finally convinced myself to call the Dr. and schedule my 2nd fill, the 1st didn't go well, lots of pain and they had a difficult time finding the port. I guess that's what they mean when they tell us to be aggressive with the fills, I'm just gonna have to bite the bullet. Hang in there.

New Whey Protein Bullets, available online & GNC, I think. 3oz liquid shots, considered a clear liquid, tastes like Kool-aid & Jello, 25 grams of protein, they were a life saver for me.

New whey Protein Bullets, 3 oz liquid shots 25 grams of protein, comes in fruit flavors!!

Hi all, I had surgery on the 11th. All went relatively well. I was under longer than usual due to a misunderstanding on my surgeons part. I had my post-op appt on the 18th. Dr. refilled my pain meds and said she would give me as much time off as I needed. I am supposed to be going in tomorrow for 4 hrs and Friday for 4 hours. I am really dreading going back to my new job. I am insurance biller/coder, so it's not a matter of an "active" job. I have only been at my job for 7 months, and I don't really like it. I'm not really attached to my co-workers. None of them know that I had lap-band. I told them it was for a hernia repair. Right now I'm part-time and they are going to make be go full-time. That's what they said at my review, that after the surgery I would be full-time. I don't know what to do. Anyway, I'm still in so much pain. I am taking my walks and trying my best to get in enough protein, being on mushies helps now. Praise God for protein bullets. So, do I need to buck up or what?

Hello All!! I will be banded on Aug. 11 in Everett, WA!! I'm looking for support as my husband and I are a long way from friends and family.

Hi There, I will be banded in less than 24 hours scarry & exciting!! I have found the liquid diet to be kinda hard, the first 2 days were the worst. I hasn't been too hard since, the hardest thing is resisting the temptations of eating the "regular" food we are usedc to eating. I started crying over a cheeseburger last night, just the simple fact that I am not sure it will ever taste the same again. I'm trying to tell myself that I have eaten enough for a lifetime and I'll be just fine without it. It was quite enpowering to drive to the Dairy Queen and order a blizzard for my husband and it didn't even phase me. I'm a bit nervous still about the pain of surgery and what to expect. I had abdominal surgery about 15 years ago and it was some tough pain, but my co-worker just had an hysterectomy and said that the pain management has improved greatly!!! Here's to hoping. I'll let you know on Tuesday, maybe Monday, depends on how I'm doing, how things went. I will keep you in my prayers.

Hi there, How's the pre-op diet going for you? I decided for supper tonight I ate a Lean Cuisine and a small salad. I probably shouldn't have but I haven't "cheated" all week and I needed a little something different. What time is your surgery at? How is your family handling the change? What did you tell your kids? Hope you're hangin in there. Good luck this weekend, those are always tough for me. Take care!!

Great NEWS!!! I will be having surgery on Monday @1:00. My pre-op labs came back & my White Blood Cell count was 14, normal is 11. The labs I had drawn yesterday came back as a 12. So, I got a call from the surgeon & asked questions if I was having symptoms, etc. She said we could go forward. I would imagine your labs would be included in your pre-op appointment. After all the stress of the last 2 days, I'm now very nervous about surgery. It has finally hit home that it is going to happen. I'm scared about how everything will go. I hope that my fears are lessened when I arrive at the hospital, we'll have to see. What are you up to this weekend? Hope you are recovering from your vacation & that you have all your suitcases unpacked & laundry washed, that is my least favorite part of traveling. Talk to you later.

Good Morning, Hey, I need you to pray for me. I had my pre-op on 8/4 (Mon) and I got results back on Wed that my White Blood Cell count was high, I had to go in and have a culture done, it won't come back until Saturday. They tell me that if it comes back high again, I will have to cancel surgery for Monday and reschedule after a course of antibiotics (I think)!! I am so very frustrated with NWWLS, they have NOT been helpful in the whole process. I haven't even spoken with the surgeon, how frustrating!! I don't play the waiting game very well. I was freeking out on Wednesday, talk about wanting to emotionally eat, but I couldn't STUPID liquid diet!! How was your vacation? I'd love to hear all about it!!

Hi All, I am scheduled for surgery on August 11. I had my pre-op on 8/4. My White Blood Cell count came back high, I don't have any symptoms or anything like that. My surgon wants me to schedule an appt with my PCP for a pan-culture. Problem being, my PCP doesn't even know I'm having surgery and she is 2 hrs away from where I live. Does anyone have an opinion about whether or not I will still be able to have the surgery as scheduled? Thanks for your input!!

Good Morning, We just may be long lost sisters!!:biggrin2: I too binged and purged my way through high-school and most of college. I've been "big boned" as my family used to say, all of my life. The problems came when it wasn't cute anymore. I've certainly been overweight my whole adult life. I weighed 180 when I met my husband, 200 when we married and it has gone up from there over the last 6 years. At my heaviest I was 298. I am a "new" diabetic, and haven't had a period in at least 2 years. My goal weight is 183, which is crazy to me, that still sounds big, but I suppose I'll judge it when I reach it. When I had my consult, the nurse I met with was so cavalier about the weight-loss process, it was kinda refreshing. She said, "oh ya, by next summer you'll weigh in at 183..." I looked at my husband sitting next to me and his jaw was on the floor. It's such a random consept that this little device could change my life for good. The way I look at it, me paying boo koo $$ for this little "rubber band" as my friend likes to call it takes the "choice" to loose weight out the equation. I definately know that it's not the easy fix, but I look at it as the only way to not give me a choice but to eat healthy. From what I hear being "stuck" is not all that pleasant. One of my main worries is how to react to the comments about weight-loss. Weight has always been such a negative issue for me, I'm not sure how I will handle it if people start commenting me on my looks, all of a sudden. Anywho...off to work!! Take care, have a great day and don't forget to love yourself the best way you know how to, today!! You are a child of God and He loves you!!

Hi There, Good to hear from you!! I'm getting so nervous. I forget sometimes, in the rush of my day that I am going to have surgery in less than 2 weeks, then I remember & I get butterflies! My best friend is coming to help take care of me after the surgery, she gets here on the 7th. We will have a few days to do some things together before the surgery, she wants to go to the San Juans, so we'll go on Saturday, hopefully that will keep my mind occupied. I got a call from the hospital on Monday afternoon to pre-register for the surgery, reality check!! I asked if they were going to set up the time or if NWWLS was going to be doing that @ my pre-op appt. The lady said that they wouldn't know until Friday after 3:30 & that I was supposed to call and find out. I can't believe I won't know sooner than that, that's tough for me, I'm a real planner. Anyway, to answer your question, we would love to have kids, we can't just of yet, hopefully by this time next year it will at least be a possibility. We're really far away from family and we're not quite sure if we want to raise our kids in the pacific NW, that remains to be seen. I do work outside the home, I graduated the end of June with a degree in Medical Billing and Coding, I was hired in Februrary @ a ENT office in Whatcom county. I'm enjoying it for now, it's not where I thought I would be @ 27 years old, but it certainly pays the bills. I'm just part-time for now, I was finishing up school during the day after I was hired, and I knew that I was going to be having this surgery at some point, so I thought that I would give myself some down-time and just wait until after the surgery to start full-time. I gotta go to work now, it's so wierd arriving @ work @ 10:30 in the day, it feels as though half the day is over. I hope and pray that all is going well for you and that you are preparing for the big day, yet still enjoying this time of anticipation. Have a great day, we'll talk soon.

I know what you mean, no it doesn't sound crazy. I feel like I live a pretty normal life, except for this issue I have with food. I have dreamed of the day to not have the food & emotional issues that go along with it attached to me. I feel like a hypocrite at times. If you just give it to the Lord, he will take all things from you. I feel like I selfishly add, "except for this, this is me, I need it". No kids here, we've been married just over 6 years, I'm sure everyone in our family is chompin' at the bit to ask us, but they stopped asking round about the 2nd anniversary. I have not been able to have a period after going off the pill in 2006, hopefully this surgery will help to make that possible. How many kids do you & your husband have? What do you do for a living? Hope you have a great time at family camp, enjoy those young ones, I hear they grow up way too fast. Blessings on your weekend.

Hi There, I have not told many people, but here is where it gets tricky. My husband is the pastor of a very small church, and we will be telling them on the 10th (day before surgery) that I will be having surgery and that we prefer to keep the reason for surgery private. We seem to think that they will be very offended if I don't tell them, and it gives me an out to not be there for a few weeks if the need be, until I'm up and ready to take on the church, not to mention how to handle all of the supper invites, since I won't be able to eat "real" food for awhile. The problem being, the only other people that I have told are my husband (of course, very supportive) my dad, whom lives in AZ and my best friend, whom lives in MN. My mom and I don't have a great relationship, so I have decided not to tell her. She has this glitch in her system that has shown itself every time I have lost a bit of weight. She was really hard on me growing up about my weight, constantly hounding me, so I feel like if I tell her she will have the "it's about darn time" type of attitude, not to mention, then...I will be considered her best friend, because I'll be skinny. Not the most supportive mom in the world. The problem with all of this is that, I feel like I have tons of support, it's just that only 1 parent knows, no in-laws and it feels like a "big secret" from the congregation. I would love to be able to tell them. There are a few people that I know would be behind me totally, it's just that our church is up there in years and I think I would be explaining all of this to them, i.e. how the surgery works and why I can't eat their baking anymore, until I was blue in the face. So we feel this way is a compromise because they will know that I had a "procedure" as they seem to call things and I most definately welcome the prayer support, they just won't know the type of surgery, which I know I will have to stick to. I know the time is coming and I'm excited and nervous all in the same. Last night my husband grilled steak on the barbeque, I don't even eat alot of red meat, I found myself teary-eyed over the fact that I won't be able to have that for quite some time p/o. I guess that must be a sign...

Hi There, Dr. Chock from NWWLS is doing mine @ Evergreen hospital in Kirkland, since it is @ the hospital, my only choice was the Lap Band, that's all they would, or maybe my insurance, would allow. I was going to choose the Lap Band anyway, before I found this out, just for it's track record and wide use. I would like to attend the NWWLS support group a few times, but I live in Bellingham, so that is quite a drive, I will have to see how it goes.

Hi there, Who is your doctor? Mine is @ Evergreen hospital in Kirkland, but Dr. Chock will be the surgeon.

So...is your husband supportive, or, no....I have read a book that I found very helpful in putting things in perspective. It is intitled It Ain’t Over Till the Thin Lady Sings: How to Make Your Weight Loss Surgery a Lasting Success By: Michelle Ritchie. She is a RNY pt, many years p/o, she had lots of great things to say about weightloss and the things that have held us back in having long-term success at weightloss. She also gives many different ideas for Protein supplements & recipes. Hope this helps. I'm pullin' for ya!!

So, are you stressing out at all? Do you have the support of your family? Are you open to telling all that want to know, or is it a wait and see kind of thing?

Melody2006, Just wondering what kind of pain to expect, I know that every patient is different as far as to what level. I'm taking 5 days off of work, but I'm just trying to imagine myself post-op, did you take the pain meds that the Dr.'s gave you, etc?