btrieger

Good luck!! I hope it is as smooth and painless as mine was. What time do you have to be at the hospital? Bring a pillow to prop against your abdomen on the ride home and don't worry about what you wear to the hospital, you won't be wearing them long.

There are quite a few people here whose positive energy is a boost to me and two of you are having surgery on March 10th. As the results become evident, the energy will grow! Congrats and I hope your recovery is as painless and speedy as mine was!

It's not the number. It's the realization that you are experiencing. An awakening if you wish. You may have had doubts that you could lose substantial weight and now you know that it is more than a pipe dream. That excitement is contagious and will spread among those close to you. Keep it up!!!

If the only reason you think they are disgusting, ask your surgeon if it is ok to put some Splenda in them. I had no problem getting through the pre-op, I just looked for ward to the end and put hunger out of my mind. If you cannot fight the hunger then do something to put it out of your mind like taking a walk or brushing your teeth. You're not alone here. Tens of thousands have done it and you can too!

There are 2 ways to post pictures. The easiest way is to just click on the paperclip above the text box you are typing your post in; browse to the picture and click upload. The other way is to upload your pictures to your gallery; click the picture of the mountains above the box you're typing in and paste the url to the picture you uploaded. I use the more complex way because I like to throw them in the middle of my text I love sun and hate cold. Supposed to be 77 here tomorrow. Winter is over!

If you can manage to push yourself to do it for a couple of days you will slip into a groove and in time won't have to push as hard. And when you see the weight loss resulting from it you won't have to push at all.

Congrats!! and there is no need to thank me. Just pay it forward as I do. You are yet another victim of the epiphany I posted about 5 minutes ago.

It just dawned on me in the past few days that I experienced an epiphany either with the heart attack in September or somewhere along my journey here. I've had a few dozen people thank me lately for comforting them or being inspirational to them with my positive attitude. All the while I was thinking, "Boy do I have them fooled. If they only knew the real me." The more I thought about it, the more I realized that they were seeing the real me and the only one I was fooling was myself. I went back and reread my last 100 or so posts. Almost all were either positive reinforcement or congratulating somebody for reaching a milestone. The surprising thing is that I meant every bit of it. Six months ago I was a selfish, miserable, negative, argumentative, pessimistic jerk with a huge chip on my shoulder feeding on others' misery. Today, I feel like I get stronger with every positive experience I have or read about. I am trying to forget the past and look forward to each new day. Attitudes are contagious!!!! I'm actually feeling pity for those that are letting their negative feelings take over. I try not to empathize with their feelings because I don't need any regression in my attitude now that I may have finally seen the light. I've still got quite a bit of anger and repressed feelings inside me but they are dwindling with every minute passing.

It must be odd because I felt the same way and I am odd. :biggrin: I think if you get too excited or nervous about the actual surgery itself you will be disappointed. It really is pretty boring. Good luck!!

No offense taken. I just want to clarify what the poll is for and hope that others are using it to send their good wishes and prayers to those having surgery soon. The banner is big as to not be missed We are on a journey to raid our bad habits and return with the spoils of a healthier life. It takes a little imagination but works for me.

This is easier said than done but you have to convince yourself that you are not hungry or do something to take your mind off of it until it passes. Go for a short walk or brush your teeth. It is for a very short time when compared to the rest of your life. Try to squash any negative feelings you are having towards the process. Try to find the silver lining in it. Even if it is just making a joke out of it or understanding that you are not alone.

Congratulations!!

Thanks and you are right. I probably shouldn't have given up. I am down about 100 pounds since my sleep study. I don't know when my next sleep study will be but I am hoping they say the apnea is gone. If not, I will have to look into alternatives to the CPAP.

What is funny? The results of the poll are public. Click Here The survey was created so that we could see who is having surgery in March and which day, in order to comfort them and wish them luck. We have 71 responses so far and and I think there is just 1 that shouldn't be there.

Thanks! Surgery was Tuesday afternoon and by Friday afternoon I wouldn't even know I had surgery if it weren't for the scars. The gas is horrendous for a couple of days but much easier when you are ready for it. Good luck!

Got my CPAP 4 months ago and have used it maybe 4 full nights. I pull it off in the middle of the night subconsciously or wake up in a panic because it is trying to force air down my throat while I am trying to exhale. I gave up on it.

It's been 3+ years. I have tried hairball remedies and even a cat laxative. I refuse to spend too much on a cat at the vet. After all, kittens are free for a reason. She's 6 and a half. How long do indoor cats usually live? Brewski looks great. Want to trade for my cat? Is it just me or do all of us that have dogs, have big dogs?

Didn't change prescription at all.

Good morning all. My pets are named after restaurants. My male dog is B-Dubs (nickname of Buffalo Wild Wings); my bitch (I love saying that is the correct context even) is Seven (short for 7 Salsas, a great Mexican restaurant here in North Texas) and my cat is Twin Peaks. B-Dubs is 14 months old and weighed in at 165 pounds a month ago. He's still got about 100 pounds to go. One of my goals is to weigh less than him. Seven is 26 months old. Somebody paid a lot of money for her and I got her for free because she grew too big for them. She's been holding steady at 140 pounds for 6 months or so. The dogs don't eat much at all. About a half gallon bucket of Purina One dry food between them a day. They sleep the majority of the day. They are like gigantic stuffed animals and just as vicious. I am still contemplating putting the cat down because she puked all over my keyboards Saturday night. She pukes at least 3 times a week on everything. It's not an accident when she sits there forcing it up, making nasty noises for a couple of minutes. Elfie, I was actually worried about you. No more disappearing without permission young lady!! Betsy, you posted the same picture twice. Is your cat a schizophrenic? :biggrin: I love the pet pictures but the names and origins are even better.

Cross your fingers and hope you don't get a call from them later this week for a follow-up. My favorite part is the glue they stuck in my hair. I am a guy with short hair. I can only imagine what it is like for you girls. All you can do is grin and bear it. It's for a good cause, your health. Good luck with everything.

I agree with Cheri on Juarez. Also, make sure that you do a ton of research on whatever surgeon you do choose. The courts here can't hold foreign surgeons accountable for any discrepancies that occur. Dr. Ortiz in Tijuana get great reviews here while Dr. Huacuz has been depicted as an incompetent butcher.

I prepped myself and those around me for these changes and I never experienced them. I think all of the extra exercise I was doing diffused a bunch of it plus the fact that I take budeprion (Wellbutrin) daily. Others will tell you that I am such a miserable jerk all of the time that it just wasn't noticeable. :biggrin: I tend to go with the latter.

I was approved after 10 days by Aetna. The nurse at my surgeon's office said that caffeine is a diuretic and causes your body to retain fats and Fluid. I don't know the exact science to it. It was the first time I had ever heard this. I've been told numerous times by nutritionists that black coffee and tea were fine to drink on diets. The one thing I am positive of is that caffeine raises your blood pressure and that was enough for me to give it up. I just googled it and this was the top response: WikiAnswers - Does caffeine hinder weight loss I'm not a picky eater and notice no difference between real coffee and caffeine free. I did notice the difference in Diet Coke but since I am not drinking carbonated beverages again, it doesn't matter. Don't FOCUS on the negatives and what you have to give up. Look at it is a positive light. A much better outlook is, "If I drink decaffeinated coffee, my blood pressure will be lower and I will be healthier." Good luck!! We now return you to your regularly scheduled thread. :biggrin:

Lou, I'm sorry to hear you are going through this crap. I had something similar but it was only one person in the doctor's office and she was fired when they found out. Try to keep a positive attitude. This is only a small set back and life isn't a race. There are plenty of competent surgeons in Florida and I'm sure you'll connect with one soon. Good luck!! Bob

I don't know about the shakes but a couple of things were raising my blood pressure. The first is salt/sodium intake. A lot of low cal products replace the tasty fat and sugar in their products with loads of sodium to imitate the taste but it sounds like you have a handle on that if you are buying low sodium meats. The second is smoking. Do you smoke?