maggs79

Well, I've lost 70 pounds...about 30-35 from my goal...but that is going to have to wait. Just found out that we are expecting our first baby!! I'm only a little over 6 weeks along, but feeling awesome so far. Another cool thing...my GP says I'm not high risk! I have perfect blood pressure and great pulse...something I never would have had without the surgery. Anyway, a lot can still happen (go wrong) so I'm not telling EVERYONE yet, but yeah. I consider that a success.. Would have been a lot harder trying to conceive before I lost the weight. This was only our second try. For now, just praying for a healthy baby...first ultrasound in two 1/2 weeks...I can hardly wait! I am totally a bag of nerves...I just need to see that things are progressing as they should.. Then I can breathe a bit!! Hope everyone on here is doing well. Blessings, all! Maggs

Well, I hoped I'd have a MEGA success story about some ridiculous weight loss, but I have lost about 40 pounds in 10 months. (I had to stop myself from saying "only" 40 pounds. 40 pounds is still great, right?) I AM down 4 pants sizes...I think it's because I work out fairly regularly. I have to tell myself that that is why my weight hasn't shifted as quickly as I'd like...muscle weighs more than fat. And I've been doing a lot of weight training to build those muscles. I can at least SEE a difference. Even on a month to month basis for the most part. I have an appointment tomorrow for a fill...I had .5cc removed from the band 2 months ago. I think I might only have .25cc put in tomorrow and see how that goes for me. Kinda dreading the appointment, to be honest. I've only lost a couple of pounds since that last appointment. Yuck. But I'm trying to figure out this whole thing. Even 10 months on, I'm still learning every single day! Today I bought a Fitbit from Best Buy to track my activity and sleep, etc. I hope it works for me. If it does, I will sing its praises on here for sure. Let you know in a month or so! Anyway, GOOD LUCK to everyone who is about to be banded. I do not regret it one bit! I just wish I was a fast loser...but a loser is a loser! Ha! Who'd have thought I would WANT to be a "loser?" Blessings all! xo ~M

Have you thought about an unfill?? I had to have a bit taken out a couple months ago because I wasn't losing anything and everything was getting stuck. You might actually see more of a weightloss if you can eat MORE. Your body needs the fuel or it goes into starvation mode. I find I lose more weight if I eat a few more (healthy) calories. But I am still frustrated with food sticking sometimes. It's weird... PLEASE--stay in touch!! Add me!

Ahh, there we are! I had lost the group and couldn't figure out how to find it again! I am down (since surgery day) 40 pounds and down (since pre-op) 56 pounds. It's a start! I had to have an unfill a couple weeks ago because I was having a hard time keeping much down and wasn't getting enough calories...which made me not lose anything for about a month or so. But since my unfill 2 weeks ago, I am down 4 and a half pounds! So I think it was the right decision. How is everyone else doing?? And add me on Facebook if you want! Maggie Hitchinson is my full name.

I am going to follow your blog! You are such an inspiration for me! My goal is to get to One-derland by my birthday (May 26) and I have about 15 pounds to go (as of this morning.) So, we will see!!

Well, it looks like the .5cc unfill and stepping it up at the gym this week has helped to let me see some more results! Since the 9th of February, I have lost 4 pounds...not bad for just over a week! I'm extremely happy with that. I have also forced myself to go to the gym everyday this week so far and plan to go back for a 5th time tonight. My workout plan that I have set up on AnytimeHealth.com gives me Saturday and Sunday off from the gym...but I might go on Saturday evening anyway. I need a new addiction...maybe working out can replace all that junky food that I still tend to miss sometimes. Oh, I have an INCREDIBLY good recipe for a super healthy meal if you're interested! Spaghetti squash! I know, I was like, what the heck is spaghetti squash! It's completely vegetarian, though you can add any meat that you like. (I just was too lazy to cook some meat with it. Ha!) I made mine with zucchini, red peppers and mushrooms, but you can use any veggies you'd like. Cut the Squash in half, scoop out the guts to throw them away and drizzle the squash with olive oil and pinch some rosemary or thyme or basil---whatever spices you like. Put it in a microwaveable dish with 1/4 inch of water in it flat side down and cook for 10 minutes. While that is cooking, saute your veggies in olive oil, a little salt and pepper (I use salt substitute so it has zero sodium), and some lemon juice. When the squash is done cooking, take it out and fork out the insides. It will look like short spaghetti noodles. Take the insides and put the in a bowl. (You may be cooking the other half of the squash while your doing this.) Add the veggies to the squash with another squirt of lemon juice. Stir and serve!! If you add meat, add that at this time as well. You can also try it with spaghetti sauce, but that will add more calories and sodium. Though tomatoes are a good addition! Ok, that's it. Don't expect me to share too many recipes...I'm just starting to experiment with healthier foods. I hope to report more weightloss soon! I'm trying to kick my butt in gear a bit more!! I wish I had a workout partner...but I suppose that at the end of the day, I need to do this for me and no one else. Meh. Blessings all! Maggs

I decided to get some fluid taken out of my band today. Just a 1/2 cc. The stress of the last 4-6 weeks has worked against me with losing weight. I didn't lose a single pound since my last visit. Ok, well, I actually gained 4 or 5 pounds over Christmas, lost all that right away when I got back from vacation because I was sick! Then gained 3 and lost those too. But now I'm stuck where I was before my last fill...and I've been STUCK literally as well. Even throwing up sometimes. It's worst in the morning, but it can happen at any time. I think taking some fluid out of the band was the best plan I could have. Now, to see if it will work! I have been working out about 3 times a week at the gym. I really need to ramp that up as well, but this week has been rough. It's negative 7 degrees outside with a windchill of negative 25. I don't feel like getting out of my PJ's except to go to work...and that takes some convincing. Plus, an old colleague is in town and we've been hanging out in the evenings. Soo, no gym so far this week...but Saturday evening for sure, if not sooner! I will hopefully find out soon if this unfill has helped. I am close to what I was when I lost 9 pounds back in October. I hope this lets me move forward with my weight loss...another 20 pounds by May 26th (my birthday) is my goal...to bring into ONE-derland!!

Yes, I actually talked to my PA this morning about this. She said to start the day with very soft food or even a protein shake. And it IS kinda normal...or at least not unheard of.

I'm not sure how much is in there, to be honest. When I go to the doc on Wednesday, I might have a little taken out. from October to November, I lost NINE pounds. So I think I did better with less fluid in the band. Since being banded in June (excluding the pre-op diet) I have lost just shy of 40 pounds. I'm a slow loser. But at least I have lost this much! My goal is to lose 20 more pounds by my birthday. (May 26) I hope I can do it!

Thank you for the prayers! And I do think an unfill is the best idea at this point.

I haven't posted in a long time...first, I was busy with the crazy holiday season at work. Then I went to England for Christmas. I actually got a fill the day before I was flying overseas! Not recommended, by the way! I hardly ate anything before I got on the plane and not quite half the (awful) meal on the plane. Mainly drank water the whole time. But it wasn't until after I landed that I really felt the restriction! I got to my in-laws' house and my husband's mom had prepared this huge meal! Ugh!! Roast chicken, veggies, mashed potatoes, roasted potatoes...I ate some of the chicken and some of the veggies...and then had to throw up! It was awful. I was so tight from the pressure on the plane, I guess. It was just that one day, but wow...rough at first! Well, I lie...it was rough food-wise the whole time! His mom cooks the most rich food you can imagine!! And even though my portions were smaller, it was packed full of fat (I'm sure) and carbs and generally good-tastin' stuff! Ha! I gained about 4 pounds in the 2 weeks I was there! When I got home, though, I had the WORST cold/flu I've ever had and lost it all in 3 days. On the 3rd day after I got home, I got a text message from my husband's mom saying Mark (my husband) was in the hospital with a chest infection. (He still lives there because we are waiting for his greencard.) So I called the hospital the next morning to find out how he was. He had taken a BIG turn for the worse and was in the ICU, sedated and ventilated. They advised me to come over as quickly as I could. So I booked a ticket BACK to England and flew out the next afternoon. Crazy. I was so sick, coughing, sniffling and trying not to eat much (because of my last experience) all at 36,000 feet above the Atlantic. It was hard trip! But it was harder once I got there. Mark's mom was in tears when she saw me. We drove straight to the hospital where he had been sedated for 3 days at that point. Tests found he had swine flu of all things! He had cancer a few years ago and now has a lot of lung problems. Anytime he gets an infection or virus, it sits in his lungs and he can't clear it. So it developed into pneumonia. Now, nearly 4 weeks after getting the initial call that he was in the hospital, he is STILL in ICU over there. I came back after about 10 days over there. But there were a few times while I was there that we were very close to losing him. He developed other infections while they were trying to clear the H1N1. He had to go on dialysis because his kidneys were failing. His heart rate was 125bpm and his temp was 104. We watched other patients in the ward DIE of this while I was there. SO hard! Thank God he started to improve a little bit before I left. He's had a few bad days since, but more ok, than bad. They had to do a trach and they finally stopped his sedation a couple days ago. Now it's a matter of his waking up...though he it still on a ventilator. So...between the stress, the trips back and forth to England and super rich food over there, I haven't lost a flippin' pound since my fill in December! Well, I did gain 4, lost 4, gained 3, lost 3...now I'm stuck. And I am frustrated. But I am also finding that I'm literally getting "stuck" a bit too often. So, I might not get a fill on Wednesday when I go in...or I might even have a slight UNfill...ugh. It's just been a really crappy month. And I am mad at myself for eating "junk." Even though I HAVE been going to the gym every other day. I am still not losing much. And I'm still worried about Mark. Oh sheesh...sorry to ramble on and on... ~ Maggs P.S. Attached is a photo of me, Mark and our niece, Freya from our trip up to Scotland right after Christmas.

I did not get a fill this morning. I didn't think I needed one and that was confirmed! I've lost 9 lbs this past month! That's the best weight loss I have experienced in only a month thus far!! My PA was ecstatic!! Maybe even more excited than I am. Ha! I'm hoping I'm in the green zone for a while and continue to shed the weight. I'm sure I could have lost even more had I actually gone to the gym as much as I probably COULD have. (Ok, my gym is 24 hours...I seriously have no excuse! LOL) But I have been TRYING to go more regularly. Work is just exhausting me! Anyway, I still feel pretty tight in the mornings, so breakfast is the most difficult meal to get down, but the rest of the day I normally eat around a cup or so of food...pretty good over all. This morning after my appointment I had half a souffle from Panera (that's all I could eat!) and a fruit cup. I'm sitting in Panera right now, watching the clock for 30 minutes so I can drink my coffee! :smile: Not drinking with meals is sometimes still a challenge as well. But I am DETERMINED to overcome all these challenges! Anyway, that was my quicky update of the day. I'll try to blog a bit more often like I did when I first got the band. Work keeps me going all day! But I enjoy reading all the blogs on here and I SHOULD contribute more often. :redface: Hope you are all well!! xo Maggs

Tomorrow is my 4th fill...but to be honest, I'm not sure I need one! I've lost about 8 pounds (I think) since my last fill a month ago. I'm happy with that! At least the numbers are going DOWN!! Obviously I'd like to lose 100 lbs over night, but that's just not going to happen! Ha!! I've had quite a bit of trouble at first with my last 2 fills. I had a hard time keeping things down and a lot of pain eating solids for the first meal of the day. But I've gotten used to eating slower and taking smaller bites and STOPPING when I'm full. (That last bit is sometimes the hardest when I'm out with friends!) I have also found that if I don't eat very much in a day, I won't lose very much that day. I have to have a decent amount of calories or my body goes into starvation mode or something. Weird thing. So, 5 months with the band and I'm still learning. Eventually I'll get it figured out, I'm sure. I have been going to the gym when I can, but we're extra busy at the studio now with everyone wanting holiday portraits, so my ME time is somewhat limited until January. I tell myself that I'm doing a LOT of extra running around at work, so that will help a bit. And there's little time for snacking! Ha! Planning my trip to England for Christmas. I'm interested to see how that goes, food-wise. I'll just eat what I know I can eat--no matter how much his mother tries to put on my plate! :bored: I will let you know if I get any extra in my band tomorrow...but I might be getting to a good place with it! Yay! :thumbup: Blessings, Maggs xo

What kind of snacks are you keeping in your purse?? I really need to do that. I work in a mall and mall food is just so terrible! And I'm getting tired of the kids meals from Chipotle! Ha!!