Positive people unite! This thread is being created for the sole use of positive people to give positive reinforcement to others in the group that we care about. We know that we may disagree on some issues but we will offer constructive criticism, objective suggestions, we will always give kind support even when delivering the occasional (but necessary) kick in the pants.

Thanks for your response, Denise! :thumbup: It was really helpful!

Christie! Wow! BIG Congrats!!! On the old doctors' scales, that is a big clunk down, when they'd move that 50 lb marker another clunk one direction or the other.

Liegha, You go girl! You just have victories coming all over the place! Yay!!!

Bobbie, I think theoretically, a calorie is a calorie, it is the amount of energy required to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius.

But in reality, the way they make us feel and the foods that we consume to get them make a big difference. You can get 2000 calories of sugar and get hardly any nutrition, or eat 2000 calories of protein, complex carbs, and a little bit of fat, and feel satisfied.

I am far from qualified to speak on the topic though, as far as the inner workings of the body.

And I can't address the difference between eating it all at once or over the course of a day. But I will anyway, :thumbup: Something in my pea brain is saying there is a different reaction that goes on when we eat way more calories than we can use in the near future-something to do with fat storage vs. glycogen storage. I think Betsy could address that better than I can.

Good morning my friends. Not a lot to report here. Planted some pretty annuals in my garden yesterday. I have not been weighing myself lately only because I was becoming obsessed with it and am trying to get away from going out to the garage to weigh myself every hour...lol. I don't really think I'm at my sweet spot yet because of the hunger. I go for another fill a week from now and will discuss this with my doctor. But I haven't gained anything during this trying period and without the band I would have. Bobbie...you sound just like me. I have many of the ailments that you have too. I don't know what I would do without my health insurance. I am praying hard you'll find a good job. Take care of yourself. Well, just checking in. Love you guys...

Good morning everyone! Well I worked in my yard for 6 solid hours yesterday and I feel like I got ran over by a truck! I skipped the bike ride to work this morning because I wasn't sure I could make it. I weeded the back porch bed which is full of ivy so it takes a while to hand pick out the weeds.

Then I got my veg. gardens ready and planted. I had to put up string around them because apparently labs think that the only reason people till the dirt is to make a cool place for them to lay down.

Here is a picture of my scavenged iris. They have grown 6 inches just since I planted them on Wednesday!

Bobbie--Over the last few weeks I have decided that a calorie is not equal to every other calorie. I see people posting that they are losing slowly and only eating 1200 calories a day but when you ask them specifically what they are eating, their diet contains mostly packaged food. I think to lose the most weight, you have to use whole foods.

HB--I hope your water heater just quit and didn't flood. Water heaters suck! I would like the mountains as well, I like the wild look of the mountain gardens.

Amy--I advise slow and steady on the fills, I think the longer you let it acclimate to your body the better chance you have of the band being trouble free.

Dottie--Sometimes a "not gain" is as good as losing. I think this is what gives me hope for the band. I can't diet for the rest of my life so if I need to stop for a while and recharge the band keeps me from gaining, I think this is the key to stopping the yo-yo.

Denise--I hope your better from the dehydration incident. I thought potassium had something to do with blood pressure regulation, I guess I will have to look it up.

I have been worrying about not getting enough vitamins, I worry that the multivitamin is just like processed food so we don't take it in as easily. So I started the green smoothie this morning. I wasn't too bad, so I ordered the unflavored protein powder from Unjury to use in it. I found this really cool website that gives nutritional data. I thought y'all might be interested.

Nutrition facts, calories in food, labels, nutritional information and analysis – NutritionData.com

Have a great day! :thumbup:

Bobbie-a calorie is a calorie...HOWEVER...how your body uses those calories and the effect on your metabolism can be huge. Blah blah blah...small, frequent meals, high in protein, lower in carbs tend to fuel the fire and get the metabolism up and going. If you only eat 1 huge meal of 2000 calories once a day your body essentailly goes into starvation mode halfway through the day and you're essentially burning nothing which means you need less calories, which, well, sucks And of course, fat it fat...it tastes mighty fine, and the calorie is a calorie theory still holds but overall effect on your body is again different, a protein calorie boosts metabolism, builds muscles, etc, a fat calorie builds butt...big jiggly butt (I'd turn around and dance for you just so you can see but no one needs that picture). Of course you have to have some fat to be healthy, just not as much as most of use used to get, hence my jiggly parts.

There's a big long technical explanation but hopefully this helps some!

a fat calorie builds butt...big jiggly butt (I'd turn around and dance for you just so you can see but no one needs that picture).

MY EYES!! OH MY EYES!!!! Aaaagghhhh!!!!

Leigha, not sure how potassium figures into the blood pressure thing. They told me it was probably a factor in why my pulse was so high, and that I could have started getting arythmias from it. I was very glad I went in.

I am feeling much better today :thumbup: I go see my primary doc in just a little bit. My blood pressure is still low, but I feel ok. Not much pizzaz, but hey, I am upright!

The low potassium was from losing so much fluids out the back end from the c. diff.

What I found fantastic is that the PA who saw me Saturday actually kept a copy of my paperwork and called me this morning to follow-up with me and be sure I made an appoinment and see how I am doing. I don't believe that is a normal part of the urgent care process. I was touched. He treated me so well, everyone did.

All you gardeners kill me. I can't even grow weeds. Plus we have a concrete yard. It is all pool deck. Ah well, I can enjoy everyone's pictures!!

Ok, time to leave for the doc's.

Here goes nuthin'!!

Edited April 13, 201016 yr by Cocoabean

We have hot water! Glorious, Slendid, beautiful HOT WATER!!! The part would have been $85, but we just finished building this house in June 2006 and the water heater has a 6yr warranty! , so the part was free! Wooo Hooo!! Hot bath tonight and Hot shower in the morning!!

I should clarify a point above, an excess in ANY calories leads to fat jiggly butt, not just fat calories....sorry if that was misleading. My butt happens to be jiggly mostly because of fat calories.... I try to stick with a lower carb, lower fat, higher protein diet. I won't say low/no carbs because good carbs have many nutrients you won't find anywhere else and I think some people take the high protein low carb thing a little too the extreme (that, and life on a low fiber diet does bad things to me so I have to get my fruits and veggies in).

Hope this helps a bit.

I think I slimed for the first time yesterday. I was eating some tuna fish and it was kinda dry and I probably didnt chew it enough. :thumbup: I started getting this pressure in my chest and I started spitting up all this thick, foamy saliva and a tiny bit of tuna fish came up. That was NOT fun.

Ewwww...... I hate the slime! I have not done it in awhile, knock on wood.

I have a question, maybe y'all can help me with. Can eating sugar really set up a physical loop making you want more? Something to do with insulin? And if you stop using it all together you stop craving it? Is this a myth or is it medical fact?

I have a question, maybe y'all can help me with. Can eating sugar really set up a physical loop making you want more? Something to do with insulin? And if you stop using it all together you stop craving it? Is this a myth or is it medical fact?

Did you see Dr. Phil yesterday? He did a show on children and obesity and he discussed becoming insulin resistant. I can't explain all of it but it had to do with this very subject. Maybe Betsy, our nurse, can explain better. It was very interesting. The scale is moving in the right direction now. Thank God!!!

Leigha-In a nutshell...sort of, for some people, some times. Sugar (carbohydrates) causes your blood glucose to elevate which causes your body to release insulin (to control the blood sugar levels) which causes your blood sugar to go down, which can cause you to become hungry and crave sugar. In reality, most healthy people with a healthy pancreas probably wouldn't really notice the fluctuations in blood sugar levels. Now, someone who is having issues with their blood sugar (either insulin resistance or full blown diabetes) is likely to have larger fluctuations in their blood sugar, it goes up faster after eating carbs and then goes down fast and hard so they're more likely to get a lower blood sugar level which may be symptomatic and causing hunger or sugar cravings. Simple carbs make their sugar go up faster and come down faster while complex carbs take longer to digest so you have a more slow and gentle rise and fall in blood sugar levels which are less likely to cause symptoms....

So, in short, sugar increases your blood sugar levels...your pancreas releases insulin in response which brings down the blood sugar levels (just like in a diabetic, we give them insulin to lower their blood sugar) but if the blood sugar goes down too quickly or too far your body responds by trying to get you to eat more sugar....if you eat more sugar your blood sugar rises, your pancreas releases insulin, you blood sugar goes down, lather, rinse, repeat.

Carbs tend to get a bad rap these days. I do try to avoid simple carbs because they cause the biggest fluctuations in blood glucose levels AND because they don't offer much nutritional value (sodas and sweets...high in calories, low in nutrients, just not much room for them in my diet). However, complex carbs (fruits, veggies, beans, grains, etc) don't have as severe an impact on blood sugar levels and tend to be high in nutrients (fiber, vitamins, etc)....

Sorry this got so long but hopefully it helps!

So .... Where were we? Oh ya. Job Interview - was a bust. The guy was a totall a**hole. He called and left a msg that he needed to re-sched. ok. I called him back, got an answering machine at the store, left a msg, and he never called me back. I called him again an hour later - he said he was busy and wld call me back in a few min. That was 2 days ago .... I even went in there to talk to him. The gal up front went back to get him, and she came back to tell me he was too busy to see me, and that he'd call .... Jerk... If he doesnt want me, he should have a pair big enough to tell me himself. Or at least to call!!

Oh well. I found out i qualify for heating assist so i wont get disconnected this friday - WOOT!

I also qualify for food stamps. And unemployment. Between the two, I'll get $850.00 a month to live on - Gotta love uncle sam... doesnt matter that i have 2 kittens, a hamster and a bf ( who is looking for work aslo ) and need to buy gas, food, meds, electric, cable ( just for my puter - only get 4 channels ) phone, and any extras... like rent! SHEESH! Rent alone is $ 505.00... Man, i neede a job soon!!

My eating hasnt been too bad. not too much junk, but some, because its handy and available. My weight is still fluxuating between 207 - 211 - same as its been for 3 months, GRRRRRRR oh well, could be worse.

I hope everyone is doing well today. The sun is shining here, bright blue sky, and supposed to hit 65 !!!!!!

Talk to you all soon :-) ((HUGS))

Hi Everyone!

Bobbie,

Sounds like you are keeping a good attitude. Try to keep that up!

What you are going through totally sucks! I am glad you are getting SOME financial help. It's better than no help.

As for me. I am doing better.

My white blood cell count is down, that means the infection is responding to the treatment, yay!

My blood pressure is up. Still low, but not in the, "hey, you look terrible, are you OK?" Category. I still get woozy when I stand up, but I expect it and wait for it.

I did a workout today, I got into the shower! Did y'all know that is an aerobic event? sheesh!

If the hind end cooperates after dinner, I am going to try to return to work tomorrow.

My boss has been super about me being gone. Well, on Sunday when I talked to him he told me, "don't be in a hurry to come back."

Hmmppff! Not sure how to take that! :thumbup: I dearly love him, though. He treats me great, could not ask for a better boss.

My doctor said that I will lose weight as I recover from this. He also said this was a stupid way to go about it! I totally agree. But I cannot report any losses so far. Which is most likely because I am hardly taking in any calories. I must be in starvation mode or something.

I'm getting a bowl of cereal for breakfast, some crackers for lunch, and half a sandwich for dinner with some gatorade off and on throughout the day.

So, as my mother would have said, "other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?"

How's everyone else doing?