chriper

Good Evening All I had an appointment earlier today to see my surgeon for a follow up. After talking about my experiences over the past weeks, I was told by the nurse practioner that I was finally at my sweet spot and she would not be adjusting my band anymore. I'd lost 5 pounds since my last visit and she said I was right on track. While the band advertises loosing 2lbs per week, she said in their office they typically see 1/2 to 1 lb per week and I was averaging over 1lb. I don't have to go back for a follow up for 6 months (my band anniversary) unless I feel I need to get in earlier. I must admit I am a little nervous about going on my own and not having those monthly appointments to make sure I'm on track, but then again its time to cut the apron strings. Besides I know I can always make an appointment if needed. I must admit there has been a lot of other emotional issues that have arised since I've started losing the weight so i am looking to go see a therapist for post-op care. I'm sharing this just in case there's someone else who may be wondering if the emotions and "issues" they are dealing with are unique to them or maybe trying to ignore them; don't. If needed, get help dealing with the issues that made you obese in the first place or tool or not; you'll end up right back there. Best Wishes to All!

I don't know what slimming is, can you explain it?

I'm sorry I haven't been on but it's a very busy time right now. I received .5CCs at my last appt and man what a difference that little bit makes. I think I'm at my sweet spot. I can't eat much without vomiting becuase I'm too full. I also can't eat too fast or I'll vomit. Its really making me slow down and pay attention to my chewing and what I'm eating. My weight isn't going down as much as I thought it would, but I must be slimming/toning becuase I keep getting compliments and folks keep asking me how much I've lost. I think its a side effect of all the exercising I've been doing so I'll take it as a positive and keep moving. I am happy to know that I am a standard size 18. I can pick up an 18 in a dress, pants what ever and know it will fit. I can't wait until I can say that about a 16 and then 14th. I know its coming. Hopefully I'll be out of this plateau soon and the weight loss will resume. My nutritionist told me she thought i'd be a stair stepper. Someone who hangs around a certain weight for a while then go down all of a sudden. I think she may be right.

Congratulations on your success

So I have another doctor's appointment today. My guess is they will give me a .5cc fill and I hope it helps. Last time the doctor wanted to give me 1.5cc but when I drank the water afterwards it came back up so they took out .5cc. Hopefully the fill works becuase I cannot seem to break through this plateau. I go up, I go down, I'm exercising non stop but I'm still not losing like I thought I would so we shall see what he says today...wish me luck.

thanks for the support and comraderie!

OK as most of you know I am training for the Avon 2 day walk in June. This past weekend I participated in my first training walk. It was indoors at a local outlet mall, and I must say, I am worn out! I had no idea that 4 times around this mall was 7 miles!. I thought I'd just drop this in as a tip. Most malls open early for walkers. Even if you can't make it during the week, its a great thing to do on the weekend. THis mall opened at 7 and I was out by 9 after 4 laps, a full hour before the mall opened. And best of all its free! You don't have to worry about your finess level or paying for a gym, there were people of all sizes, ages, and fitness levels walking. There was a couple walking with sticks for balance, an elderly gentleman walking with a shopping cart for balance, everybody goes at their own pace. Just some thing to consider!

OK so I've been kind of suffering from image distortion. I knew I'd loss over 30lbs but didn't really see it. Well I took a Zumba class and it was only five of us in there at the most so I had a pretty good view of the mirrorw. I caught a glimpse of myself and was suprised at the reflection looking back at me. I can honestly say that for the first time I saw what others have been seeing, I am slimming down. I know I have a ways to go, but I am counting this as a victory!

OK so since I'm on this journey to get myself healthier and to move forward in my life, I thought it was time to reach back and help others. I will be participating in the Avon 2 Day Walk for Breast Cancer. It will be a challenge to train for 39 miles in 2 days but I figured the training walks will help get me prepared for the big 2 day and keep me on my fitness goals (win/win). The only thing is I am required to raise over $1800 for the Avon Foundation, so forgive me for asking, but if you're able, please donate at my link below: http://info.avonfoundation.org/site/TR/Walk/Chicago?px=5864757&pg=personal&fr_id=2030 There's a training walk this weekend for 7 miles so wish me luck. Its mall walking so at least I won't be cold!

So here I am on my weight loss journey. I'm doing pretty good if I say so myself. I'm losing at a healthy weight and that's whats most important. I've learned to take the good comments and forget the bad. Yesterday at church someone said to me "every time I see you, you look good and gooder" I smiled and said thank you. Then today at work someone actually mentioned how big my clothes were and asked if i was looking weight. Again I smiled and said yes and thank you. Even though I think she was being snide, i took it in stride. I still don't know what clothes size I am though. I've had a lot of things taken in becuase when I go to the store, I buy the smaller size and its snug. The larger size is too big, I guess that means I'm in the middle. The Goodwill has become my location for transition clothes. You'll be suprised of the great finds. I actually got a Jones NY black pants suit for $9.50! It's perfect for work. OK I guess that's my only updates today. talk with you all soon. Oh PS I signed up to walk in the Avon 2 Day walk for Breast Cancer here in Chicago. I hope some of my fellow bandsters are able to help me reach my fundraising goal of $1800. I'll post the site once I have my log on.

Hello All I'm sorry I haven't been online but it's been a busy couple of weeks. I went in today for another fill and the doctor was going to give me 1.5cc's. Afterwards they gave me some water to drink and it would not go down! I was sitting there talking to the nurse practitioner and I just felt aweful. All of a sudden the water came back up. Thankfully there was a sink in the room so I didn't get any on either of us. They took out 5ccs of saline so my fill ended up being only 1cc. They think i'm getting to my sweet spot so hopefully I'll be there soon. I have a question. About how much weight do you loose in a week with the band on average?

I understand your dilema. I have a weekly girls outing at the local bar for open mic night and a variety of fried food chicken wings, cat fish, french fries, onion rings, etc. I was never a heavy drinker so I would always order a pepsi, well now I can't do that. It took some adjusting but you can do it. The best thing is to eat before you go, or at least have a protein shake. That will stop you from being hungry and will curb your desire to munch. Having never liked beer, i can't tell you what a good substitution is, but you can always add a shaker to your water bottle for a little extra taste.have fruit juice or some other type of drink to get you by. I often order cranberry juice at the bar so it looks like i have a coctail when I really don't and the juice is good for you anyway in moderation. The reason they say not to drink is you have less food in your stomach, and your stomach is smaller, so you will absorb the alcohol much faster and once you're tipsy/drunk you will make poor decisions including what to eat. I've learned each doctor's recommendations are different so follow your doctor's advice.

Good luck on your class tonight. Don't worry about the sit ups, it won't affect the band at all. Enjoy!

OK Sunday was my first experience with overeating and vomitting. I got up and had some broccoli, chicken, and cheese caserole for breaksfast. I started my day and left for Sunday school. On my way to church I thought I was still hungry so I stoped at White Castle and ordered two cheeseburgers. Given how small they were, i thought they would be the right amount. OMG in the short drive from the restaurant to my church I thought I was going to die. I only ate about half of one sandwhich and it felt so bad in my back and I was burping trying to make it go down, then all of a sudden up it came. NO food just acidic juices...it was not a pleasant experience...lessen learned: do not eat again unless its at least 3 to 4 hours later. its just not worth it!

Thanks for all the responses! I am going to keep at it and maintain a positive attitude!

Happy New Year everyone! I can say we are all blessed if we made it to the new year, so let's rejoice and be glad in it. I had my first workout today of the New Year. The class was called Total Body Cardio and it was a series of 30 second intervals where we did everything from jogging in place, lunges, crunches, butterflies, squats, you name it we did it. It was a great class to get the juices flowing and my energy up. My instructor knows that I had the surgery and he asked how much weight i've lost and another girl in the class keepscomplimenting me that its coming off so like anything work having it takes hard work. I also spent Saturday with a friend of mine that loves to cook. We went through a few cookbooks and made some healthy receipies. We made chicken enchallada caserole (sp), chicken chili, black eyed peas with navy beans and turkey, and I have more receipies to try on my own. My resolution for this year is to be more consistent. Consistent in cooking my own meals, bringing lunch, and maintaining my workouts. Whose with me?!

So I saw my surgeon today. He gave me another fill. This time only 1cc for a total of 5cc's. I told him of my frustrations. With all the exercise I do, and how I know I'm not eating no where how much I used too or as frequent, how is I'm not losing more weight? He said that I'm doing well, I've lost 30lbs, and reminded me that if it wasn't for the band,where would i be? I thought about it and agreed. He encouraged me to have more patience and to keep doing what i'm doing. They also took blood work to see where my protein levels are and my vitamin D and we'll go from there. I am proud to report my pressure is down a lot! Hopefully when I follow up with my primary care physician, i can be taken off of blood pressure pills all together. What about you? Did your weight come off fast or slow? How soon after where your medications altered or eliminated?

Wow why are the holidays so full of craziness?! Jmunks2000 its called a chilli dog. And its the best thing since sliced bread. Toasted bun, hot dog, chilli without beans, onions and mustard. Cheap good food. Cost about $.99 and pair it with chlli cheese fries, the best worst food you can eat! lol

I am very sorry for your loss. I hear that the first holiday season is the worse hump to get over and it gets easier from there. You mentioned that you talked to God about. I would like to encourage you to continue to talk to Him about it. He's the only one that can grant you the peace and understanding that you need to press forward. Thank Him for the extra time that He gave your mom (not the alkaline diet) and for the pleasure of haivng known her at all. Thank Him for relieving her pain and for the great memories, and I gurantee you'll feel better. Then get up, get dressed and LIVE! I believe that's what your mom would have wanted. I'll be praying for you.

You have an excellent view on things. Keep up the work on you and never, ever settle!

OK all I had my annual Christmas visit home to Michigan. I don't know what I was expecting, but what I wasn't expecting was for no one to mention my weight loss! Maybe its becuase over the years I made such a fuss about someone always asking me about my weight that now they just don't approach the subject. My brother casually said I can tell you've lost a lot of weight but that's about it. My sister (always my champion) told me i was looking good, and my mother didn't say a word. But I gather she said a lot to my grandmother whose down in Memphis. When I talked to Granny she said oh I hear you're still coming down, your face is slimmer, etc, etc...Amazing they couldn't say it to me but they said it to her. Anyhoo I did good on the food front. Even though I was looking forward to an authentic chilli dog I didn't have one. Nor did I go to greek town, or any other of good eating in Detroit. I guess knowing its always there helps me to overcome the "need" to have it. And with my grandma out of town I didn't have to worry about peach cobbler and sweet potatoe pies. How did you all do over the holiday?

HI All I have a question that I hope you don't think is too silly. I know we're not supposed to eat and drink. Wait 30 minutes after drinking to eat and 30 minutes after eating to drink again. Well I just had lunch and i soup and a half sandwich. It was a veggie soup with broth which made me wonder, is that the same as eating and drinking? Thanks

Thanks for all the answers!

Good Morning All I was wondering does anyone know of a fish oil pill that is small in size? I've been taking fish oil for three months prior to my banding, but now since having my 2nd fill, its a little harder to swallow the large pill. I'm looking for a smaller option. Thanks!

Absoultely inspiring! Congratulations.