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Don't let others judge unless they walk in your shoes. I know I am off all my meds! I took 6 pills a day just to eat food and when I had the band I had my hernia repaired. My blood pressure is perfect, those pills are gone. That part is not being a failure but a NSV. Have you taken measurements and seen those numbers change? I use to wear a size 18-20 plus size jeans and now wear a 14 misses. I don't share with anyone but my husband and this site how much I weighed, how much I weigh now or how many pounds I have lost. Enjoy your weekend and don't let others bother you. You will do fine.

It may not seem like a big deal, but this week I stopped in at Target and bought a bathing suit top off the rack. I didn't try it on but I got one size smaller than the one I have been wearing. Today, when I got to the pool I tried it on and actually looked at myself, in my bathing suit, in front of a full length mirror. The suit fit, and I looked pretty good all things considered.

Wonderful! I think this is a GREAT NSV. I can't wait for something like that to happen. I've not donned a bathing suit in many many many years. ISG - thanks for sharing!

I chose to have VSG as a last ditch effort to save my life. Not because I was a compulsive over eater, because I was not, but because even eating like an average person caused me to be excessively large. I was a befudlement to my doctors. I had multiple health problems, extreme pain, used a cane to walk (when I could walk) or used a wheelchair. I was on 15 Rx meds and 6 supplements. I was dying. Today I am almost three weeks out of surgery and I am happy to report; I do not use the cane or wheelchair any more. I don't even walk with a limp. I wore high heel shoes to church this morning for the first time in years, walking completely normal and with no pain. I have also quit ALL of my meds- cold turkey. My doc was amazed and to tell the truth, so am I. They never gave me any hope of being able to quit my meds. I only take a ppi and a Vitamin now. It is so great not to be held slave to that pharmacy bag any more. I have not been able to go more than a day without them in years. I feel more like myself than I have in forever. I am not saying I will never have to take meds again, because I dont know. I can't see the future. I am saying that my future seems a whole lot brighter to me now though. I believe that God is still in the healing business, but sometimes it's not in the way we were asking. I think VSG was the miracle of healing God sent me. I feel like I have a new lease on life. Thank you Jesus, I'm LML Sent from my iPhone using VST

Awesome !!!!!!!!!! Supercool story. I wish I cold find my first concert t-shirts from the high school days. My first show was Iron Maiden. I'd get some funny looks rocking an Iron Maiden t-shirt in my late 40's. Hell, I don't care...by my next birthday, almost a year away, I'm going to feel like I'm in my late 20's again. That's really neat that you have those to anchor down the memory of the great shows you must have seen. Fun NSV. Rock on !!!!!

Yes! Every day is a rollercoaster of "I'm so excited, I want to do it NOW!" and "omg, what have I done, this will be terrible!" Reading the forums has mostly helped me lean towards excitement, especially with the number of great success stories and the fun NSVs but some of the problems do make me worry. It will be a huge change but I guess if what I had going right now was working, I wouldn't be here in the first place.

That is a huge NSV. Congratulations!!! Your hard work is paying off.

Congratulations!! I love to hear everybody's NSV'S Sent from my iPhone using LapBandTalk

Good for you CG. That is a great accomplishment. We dont realize how much that kind of thing makes a difference. It's a great NSV to me to hear that from you.

It's not lame at all. I had a similar experience. I grabbed a towel and wrapped it around me just not thinking. Then it hit me. Oh my, it wrapped all the way around. I was sooo excited. I pranced out into the livingroom and showed my husband. He just looked at me. I had to explain and his response was "Good". He didn't get it at all but it was still a major NSV to be celebrated. Congrats!!

Hey Alex, thats more or less, not necessarily because we're over weight but something positive. It just seems like we all have some story to tell where some one was rude to us, or something embarrassing happened because of our weight. I just thought that some good things have happened to me as well and I like to hear the more positive side of things :confused: ,not just nsv's. Situations where others didn't let our weight get in the way. Yours is a very true example. And for me, it was similar, except I usually ended up with the guys, they found out what a sweet caring person I was while being friends and then ended up wanting to date me. So I was 2 for 2 in that category. Big girls can get lovin too!!

K@t, you're asking about positive experiences we've had because we've been (or are still) overweight, right? Not NSVs about losing weight. Correct me if I'm reading you wrong... I had to think about this but there is definitely one thing I have had better in life because I've always been fat. And that is: friendships with men. Time and time and time again I've been "the friend of the pretty girl" who always got passed over in favor of my gorgeous good friend. But on several occasions that I can recall, the flame that was between the guy and my friend sputtered out (sometimes unpleasantly) while MY relationship with the guy remained strong or even got closer as I nursed his wounds. To me, this has been a plus (once I got over the high-school anguish). Several of my female best friends have been extremely pretty--not just normally so. So they'd always attract a lot of attention. In college especially I got a lot of "who's your friend?" comments from guys, because my roommate was widely acknowledged as one of the great beauties on campus. But 20 years later she's recently ended her second wildly unsuccessful marriage, and I'm still very close friends with one of the guys she got dumped by in school. So I'd say having a better sense of my worth as a person is a result of being fat all my life. I was never "the pretty one," which meant I had to be "the smart one." And I personally think that's worth more in the long run.

My NSV this week was getting a TV set up in my master bathroom so I can now relax in my Jacuzzi and watch TV after my half marathon training workouts!

So this morning I am sitting there, enjoying my coffee & watching the news when I got an itch on my shoulder. I reach up & scratch only to discover this hard lump near my neck. Imagine my surprise when I took out my phone for a selfie and discovered {GASP!} my collarbone!! It's actually showing. No longer hidden beneath all the layers of chubb that used to reside there, I could actually SEE IT. Had to take a photo to show my hubby too, after he walked in on me giggling like a school girl and rubbing my neck ... admiring my collarbone! (Don't know why the photo is sideways, but that really is a bone showing!)

That's such a great NSV! Keep it up!

Now, is that an NSV or what? A bathing suit big enough to fall off... I don't even mind that one of the girls got loose! hope ya'll enjoyed the show - no one has seen em in a while.. lol.

Well - this is my first posting and first blog so here goes! I feel lately I have had a lot of firsts....first major surgery, first time putting myself first, first time owning my health, etc I have to say that it definitely is hard to choose yourself first. Anyone with children, a spouse, family, etc knows what I mean. You feel as if you are cheating them out of being there. It has taken me many years to come to understand that what I thought as putting them first was actually an excuse for me to continue to be unhealthy. How was I putting them first if I wasn't taking the best care of myself? This is a VERY hard lesson to learn. As I look around at my family members and family history of chronic weight related issues I put my foot down. There was a voice deep down saying "me, me...did you forget that I am here?" This time I chose to listen. I have not always been overweight...alright "morbidly obese". This is something that has been rolling along pretty much for the past 15 years. You know the story....get married (get comfortable), have children (more comfortable with a few pounds) and before you know it you are a shell of the person you once were. Years go by and you lose a little and gain more and back and forth. Many of us have the same story. My weight loss surgery journey originally began two and a half years ago, Dec 2009 with a seminar for the lap band. I went and listened and then said I will give it another try of doing it myself and bailed on following through. Two years later I found myself at the seminar again with a firm grip on my nerves and actually listened with more conviction about choosing me first. After going through the 3 months of NUT, psych appointment, surgeon visits and pre-op testing...I took a leap of faith with myself and God . I had clear liquids 24 hrs before surgery and was officially sleeved on 7/17 at 10am. I am currently 10 days post-op and completely intrenched in the full liquid diet. What can you say about liquids? Not a whole lot . Anyway, I am just passing time until Tues when I get to start the greatly anticipated puree stage. Never thought I would be so excited about eating food the consistency of baby food. But here I am and readily counting the hours. This past 2 weeks has given me time to do a lot of thinking!! Sometimes I wonder if the liquid stage is just as much for learning to listen to your body and conquering some of your food obsession as it is about letting your body heal. I have found that everyday that voice is getting a little stronger and I can't wait to begin to have NSVs and see the weight come off. I will take each day of passing time to consider the gift I have been given of my life, living longer, spending more time with family and friends. I am 38 years old and have a lifetime ahead of me and plan to make it the best I can!!

Tuesday 198.5!!! Yesterday was my 5 month anniversary and I am down 30 lbs! I am thrilled!! I have refused to compare my loss to anyone elses, I am losing at the rate I lose at! I have consistently lost about 6 lbs a month. I have so many NSV's I cant begin to list them, but I need to...just to look back at. 30 lbs has made a HUGE difference on my body, especially from the waist up. 1. My waist is SIX inches smaller. 2. Ribcage under my bra is FIVE inches smaller....36 inches and one inch smaller than my waist!! Goodbye back fat. 3. My arm at the bicep is only 12.5 inches, ! 4. From size 20W pants to size 16 and 18.....16-18 misses, not W!!!! 5. My boobs stick out farther than tummy...no longer look 5mo pregnant. 6. There is not ONE coworker, friend, family that has not noticed and commented on the weight loss (and I am still in the closet with banding) 7. First time under 200 in about 4 years. 8. My face is getting thin enough I am starting to feel really pretty again. 9. I feel 'heavy/normal' and not huge, bloated, puffy 10. My ankles never ever get edema anymore. 11. I have zero nighttime reflux anymore. 12. My DH says it is like having sex with a different woman because he can FEEl such a difference in my body. 14. My back is completely smooth. No roll above waistband or around bra. 15. Blood sugar stays very stable (thanks to no bread, lmao) 16. OFF BP medicine....was only borderline and now normal. 17. Gone from (bust,waist,hip) 48.5,43,51 to 46.5(-2),37(-6),47(-4)......big fat gut is so much more in portortion now, hell! its gone!!!...maybe that is why everyone notices I have lost weight. My shape is still big but back to being very shapely now. I could keep going but these are the major ones....in no particular order.

wow Pati, just what I needed to hear. I have just over two weeks before I see Dr Kuri, too, and I'm looking forward to the results. Way to go!!! Those are awesome NSV's.

So as of today I am almost 3 months out from VSG and I have lost 55lbs. Today is Christmas and things are very different this year, for the first time in my life I didn't overeat into misery at Christmas dinner, I have stayed well within my nutritional goals for the day, and (here's a big one for me) I came home and worked out when we got back from the family gathering I have never ever done that before. For me today was a few big NSVs that made the holiday all that much more enjoyable! ???? On the left was at my all time highest weigh, middle was at surgery, and right was a few weeks ago.

gowalking, I love this type of NSV! @DjmohrI, I love the fact that your husband James calls you Bartles : )

I week out from RNY. Two weeks of Liquid diet and Keto found my ankles but one week after surgery gave me an even bigger blessing!!! I haven been able to wear this comfortably in about two years. Now I’m scared to wear the dern thing because I’m so used to the silicone bands I’m afraid I’ll ruin it! At least it fits!!!

Morning all! Just thought I would drop in and let you know about my NSV last night! (Admittedly, it started out with a bit of a nightmare!) I was happily sitting at home, in my pjs (no judging) after dinner last night when I logged into my work emails. I was waiting for a client to send something back that I needed for today, and being the paranoid soul I am, wanted to check it was in my inbox. I logged in, and to my horror, it was not. (Wild panic ensued). I then checked my outbox and to even more horror, my last email was stuck there! Long story short, dashed out of my PJs into the first clothes out of the closet and raced to work to send the email properly. It wasn't until I got home that I realised the jeans I had slung on were the ones I had bought before surgery, that wouldn't even go over my thighs. Admittedly, they were still a bit tight on the tummy, but I am taking that as my first NSV thank you very much! Hope everyone is well! MB Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I love your NSV and the way you told us about it! Your enthusiasm made me smile so big! So far, the only way I've been able to do this is to buy bigger towels.

Thanks! We're not posting NSV's (although I suppose mine was a bit of an NSV, I was emphasizing the more sneaky vindictive purposeful torture of my ex) we're posing Flame Free Friday Confessions So if you've got a juicy confession, we wanna hear it!