anonemouse

Good idea, I hadn't thought of that. Thanks!

I can't quite make it out. Looks like it'd be cute, though.

I mean, it's GOOD, but I'm still a little pissed. I stayed in Memphis with my brother and SIL for several days before I got this last fill, and of course I had to go shopping (let's just say I spent close to a month's wages on shoes and sheets). Anyway, I found these AWESOME glass rings at Pier 1. One's a really great swirl of several shades of blue and green, gold, and silver. The other is purple with gold in it, making it look sort of like bronze. How long did I get to wear them? ONE WEEK. That's it, just one week. They're too big for the fingers I was wearing them on, and too small for the other fingers. And of course, they're solid glass, so they can't be resized. Damn it. Who knew your fingers could lose weight? Granted, they were maybe $4 each, but I LIKE them. :biggrin: Why couldn't the weight have come off my ass instead?

Very true. I just hope nothing bad's happened to them or their loved ones.

Well, when you think about it, even though Scientology sounds pretty wacky to outsiders, Christianity isn't all that much less wacky-sounding. On one hand, you've got aliens. On the other, you've got an all-knowing, all-powerful, invisible entity. Speaking as an atheist, it's pretty much "six of one, half-dozen of the other," as my mom would say.

That makes sense. I'll probably wind up doing the BA, then, since I don't even remember having fullness at the top of my breast. My girls have been sagging since puberty.

Thank you!

Dr. JLo, do you recommend that your patients reach goal before considering PS, or that they just get close to it? Also, do you recommend that if a women is getting a breast lift and thinking about augmentation, she should get the breast lift first and let it heal before augmenting, or do you recommend the lift and augmentation as one surgery?

Yeah, that's one thing I need to do, get rid of my big undies. You never know, Goodwill or the Salvation Army might take the bras.

I'm just starting to look into PS, and I know that I'll need at least a tummy tuck and a breast lift. I'm just not sure about augmentation. I'm used to having bigger boobs (not huge, but not B-cups, either), so I'm not sure if I'll want to have just a breast lift or if I'll want to combine it with augmentation. What I'm considering doing is going for the TT and BL, seeing how the results of the BL look after complete healing, and THEN making a decision about augmentation. On the other hand, sometimes I think that I might as well go whole hog while I'm getting some done, and get it all done. Any thoughts or opinions that you guys want to share?

I had a lot of "last suppers" because I was under the impression that I'd never be able to eat at my favorite restaurants or eat my favorite meals again. Guess what? I was wrong. I've eaten all ALL of those restaurants and eaten ALL of my favorite meals since being banded. The only difference is that I can't eat nearly the same volume as I did before being banded.

My background is in wildlife and conservation, so I'd probably be doing something with that. If I go, I kinda want to be in Africa or the Pacific Islands, but I'm still in the information stage. My university is hosting an information session in February, so I'll be going to that. If I don't go into the Peace Corps, I'll try to find a wildlife biologist position with either a state or federal agency or with a private company. I've always wanted to work at a zoo, so I'll probably try to see if I can find something there, too. Those positions can be hard to come by, though.

I'm not really sure when I'll be solvent again. It depends on whether I can find another part-time job. I'm teaching a few biology labs this semester, but the pay's horrid. I'm looking for extra work though, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I'm thinking that I'll probably go for the FTT. Most of my excess weight is on my belly, so I don't have that much hanging skin on my backside. Whenever I do get it done, I'll definitely be needing a breast lift, as well, and maybe augmentation (I'm considering doing that at a later date and waiting to see how the girls look after the BL).

I'm going to try to wait until I reach goal, but that depends on how impatient I get! I'm really hoping my skin bounces back, and I want to wait to see if it does, but I have a nasty feeling that it won't, since I've had this belly for years. Plus, I'm tight on cash right now, and I don't have any guaranteed plans for employment in the near future (I'm finishing up grad school at the present time). I'm also considering going into the Peace Corps when I graduate, and if I do that, I don't know whether I should plan on having PS before or after that (it's a 2+ year commitment).

Heck, even without the hotel, that's a damn good deal! I'd really hate to see what a week in a hospital in the US would cost! Hey, I may take you up on your offer, you never know! If I graduate when planned, I'm wanting to take a trip somewhere, if I've got enough cash saved up. Unfortunately, I'm still paying off my surgery, and I'm pretty broke!

I just went shopping in my own closet! A year or two ago, when I had been on a diet and lost a few pounds, I'd bought several pairs of pants and a bunch of shirts. Of course, once I did that, I gained all that I had lost back, plus some. I was trying on some other pants that I'd gotten several months back (like many of you, I buy several pairs in different sizes whenever I find a style that actually looks decent), when I remembered the stack of stuff that was in my closet, with the tags still attached. The pair I was trying on was actually too big (and I hadn't even worn them!), so I figured I'd try the others, too. They FIT! Hell, a couple of pairs are a tad on the BIG side! I've got to find time to go through my closet now, and weed out all the stuff that is either too big or hideously ugly. The only bad thing is that I was looking forward to going shopping for real.

Wow. If that includes the 3/4 weeks of hotel and the week in the hospital, that's not bad at all. It converts to just over $17,500 US dollars. Hell, my insurance paid my banding hospital over $18,000 for just one night and I had to pay another $7,000+ out of pocket. Damn, makes me want to travel to France for surgery, too.

I was actually interested in this, also, because I'm considering joining the Peace Corps and would probably be located in a third-world country.

Y'all, I'm seriously about to squeal with glee! Back when I was a size 20W, I found some pants that fit wonderfully, so I bought them in all the smaller sizes that the store had. I'm basically in a 16W now, so I just went and tried on the 16Ws I got in that style, and they're almost TOO BIG! Plus, the style isn't right any more! They're only a little big in the waist (enough that I know that they are too big), but they're baggy as hell in the hips! They sort of make me look like I'm wearing those funky horse-riding pants.

I couldn't do sugar-free stuff AT ALL. Like you said, they're super-sweetened. Call your doctor, he may take pity on you and let you have regular-sugar items. I'm sure he'd much rather you stay on liquids than stay on sugar-free stuff.

I weigh 182 and I'm still a 16W, but that's just because of my shape (I'm pretty hour-glass shaped, but I've got a big belly). In fact, I just recently got to that size, so I actually need to go shopping for pants, since I've only got one pair of 16Ws. I don't like close-fitting clothing. I like to have a little bit of room to move in them, but still have a nice tailored look (not too baggy, not too tight). I've gotten most of my clothes on sale at JCPenney's.

Oh! I forgot to add that my brother's MIL told me that I looked like I was about a size 12! She was so shocked when I told her that I was barely down into a 16W. I loved it, but it makes me hate this damn belly so much more, you know? I'd have a really great hour-glass shape if I didn't have this belly poking out. I'm not that wide from side-to-side, but my front-to-back depth is so much that I have to wear larger clothes. If I get clothes that fit my waist, they're baggy in the ass. :ohmy:

I've had a belly for as long as I can remember. Apparently, I tend to carry the majority of my excess weight in my abdomen, which of course makes me look pregnant, with stretchmarks (some pretty severe) to go with the appearance. I really don't think I'm going to have a pretty stomach after I reach goal. I'd have a nice hour-glass shape if I could just chop this damn belly off. I'll probably have to get my boobs at least lifted and possibly augmented, too, since they've always pointed in a generally southerly direction. I mostly like the way they look when I've got my arms stretched straight up in the air, but I can't exactly go walking around like that, can I?

My personal feeling is that I support abortion if it is performed prior to viability (as defined by the fetus having a greater than 50% likelihood of living), and that they should be legal after the fetus becomes viable IF there is a major medical issue involved that was not previously discovered, either for the fetus or the mother. After viability, I think that attempts should be made to save the fetus (whether through inducing early labor or some other means), but that if it comes down to choosing between the fetus and the mother, the mother should have the right to choose herself.

I had another fill on Wednesday and met with my nutritionist, too, for my 6 month post-op check-in. Guess what?! I've lost inches! She weighed and measured me and showed me the difference in my measurements from a week before I had surgery and my measurements now. Eee! I'm still at the point where I can barely see the weight-loss in the mirror, so actually seeing how many inches I'd lost was such a motivator! I don't actually remember the exact inches lost (stupid me, forgot to write them down), but it was something like 9 inches off my chest, 5 off my waist, and 6 off my hips. That, combined with the fact that I'm about to go down another size in clothes, REALLY helps.