My biggest dilemma is that I have to take medicine in the morning. I don't want to eat until around 11 am because I like to have a late night snack of 100 calorie pack of cocoa dusted almonds. I've been putting off taking my medicine but the one I can't put off is an anti biotic.

I guess I can share this ,lol. I have to take an antibiotic before have sex or I will get a UTI.I have to take it with food.

I guess half of a Greek Yogurt would be 50 calories. I need to look up string cheese and baby bell light.

How about you? Is the 5:2 plan working with your life? I also don't like working out with my trainer on an empty stomach.

Will this not work if you have 11 hours in between instead of 12? There must be some reason you have to have 12 hours off.

Just landed back from Cuba, great time but no need to hurry back. 3rd load of laundry in the machine! I will log in again in a couple of days, work Thursday. I'm dreading the scales tomorrow as I haven't seen any in more than 2 weeks. Glad people are returning.

Glad you're back Cathy. I hope you had a fabulous time.

I am going to Mike's house to go boating. We are going to take the boat from one coastal town to the next, have lunch then boat back to where the truck is parked . It should be fun.

I really like this guy but I don't know how long I'll be able to tolerate the things that bother me about him. I know nobody's perfect and he does treat me like a princess. There are just some things that make me not want to give myself much to this relationship. I'll see if he manages to correct some of the things I pointed out to him.

I'm bummed that i gained a lb and 1/2 just from eating food. I did Protein Shakes until I lost what I gained in chicago, and yesterday I didn't eat anything off track and gained 1 1/2 lbs. I'm afraid I'm not going to be able to lose at all since I can't exercise the way my back has been hurting.

Kim, did you and hubby every take anymore motorcycle rides? I am so glad you're posting here again!

Hope everyone is doing great !

Michael (mine!) is a great boyfriend but we had a couple of strong disagreements. After the first one we both just ignored it, second one we had the discussion "is this relationship worth it?" And we both strongly said YES! After the 3rd we spent a few days apart and he told me thought he finally had it figured out. He can be very adament about something and it triggers an unconscious fear reaction in me and I get unreasonable. I also figured out what set him off. So we don't walk on eggshells and still have strong personalities and opinions but we respect each other enough to find ways to speak our minds without setting the other one off.

He is not perfect but I am deeply flawed as well. I've never been with someone who I feel completely honest and the "real me" without fear of rejection. That's worth a lot.

Sheryl it seems that you and Michael are working well on your relationship.

Denise - Mike You don't think it will last? Why not. You seem happy.

Cuba was amazing. Havana with its old cars was great. We went in a car that was 59 years old 1 older than my husband!! It was very poor too but no one was begging. The second week at the coast was truest amazing. I went in to the sea for the first time ever. The Caribbean was warm and safe. I don't like Water but I felt very safe and secure. I timed myself so that I did not burn and but a high factor on. On the beach there were four poster beds with thatched roofs which meant I could be in the shade. I read many trShy books and relaxed really well.

Terrible jet lag since I got back, only 5 hours difference but I'm going to bed at midnight and my body thinks it is 7pm! Wide awake!! Then when I do finally fall a asleep the alarm wakes me up.

Back to work and I received today a very varied timetable for the days I'm working and I'm really pleased with it dos I will work with a variety of students.

Weight is terrible and it is all down to Fluid intake and it is not water.

I like Mike a lot. We had a great past few days. I stayed at his house so we could take the boat out. Boating was really fun. One day we took it to a lake where we had the whole lake to ourselves, since all the kids have gone back to school.

One of the things that bothers me is he needs to see a doctor and he refuses to get set up to see one. He hasn't been to a doctor for years but has been hospitalized 3 times for pancreatitis. Each time, he was in the hospital for several weeks. He has blood sugar problems which cause a variety of other problems.

Cathy Cuba sounds amazing. I would love to go where the Water and weather was warm.

My weight drives me crazy. I can't seem to lose anything. I saw a dr. last week for my annual check up, and she told me Gabapentin causes weight gain. I've been trying to find this out for months. I think it's what's keeping me from being able to lose. I really would not be able to sleep without it.

Everyone's gone[emoji22]

Not me! I ended up breaking up with Mike. He has these panic attacks that

cause him to completely shut down. He had one at my daughter's house and went and sat in the car until she came home. We were watching the kids and she was having surgery.

He had another one at Walmart. We made our shopping list and he never mentioned a word about Walmart causing anxiety for him. We got to walmart and he would not go in. He sat in the McDonalds which is in the front of walmart and waited while I got my prescription. Then I had to drive him home.

I knew he couldn't be around my house while my kids from Portland were staying with me. It was just too hectic for him, so he went home. After my kids left, we had a long talk (on the phone) and I told him we aren't a good match. I am very social and he is a hermit. All his physical problems and refusal to go to the doctor were just too much for me.

I have hardly eaten anything the past few days. I am really trying to lose weight now.

i went to the doctor and had a cat scan and the doctor told me my fusion is not taking. I am supposed to grow bone where it's fused and I'm not. I'm supposed to get a shot tomorrow. I'm very upset that my fusion is doing so poorly.

Denise, was the fusion back surgery?

Its been a long time since I have checked in - as usual Looks like there havent been a lot of folks responding lately on this thread but thought I would give you guys an update.

As it turns out I have been having some ongoing problems that will require som more surgery. I have always had terrible gerd prior to and it seemed to get worse after the sugery. My lucky husband had his resolve completely after his vsg and hernia repair. I started seeing another bariatric doc last year, as my doc had moved to another practice and we moved as well. To make a very long story shorter - and the number of tests I've had done dwarf the first surgery - I will be having revision surgery on 11/22/16 - 11 days from now.

I have a significant hiatal hernia, a stricture, and various other sundry things that will be repaired - gallbladder out and removal of stray sutures (which is goofy but that's what the photos after the last egd) My new surgeon is going to revise my sleeve a traditional Duodenal Switch. I had gained back about 30 lbs from my lowest weight.

And it took just about a year to recover from the total knee replacement - what a nightmare that is, but at least I can walk again. Hopefully the hips and back wont hurt as much soon.

Wishing everyone well and hope everyone is happy and healthy

Yes the fusion was back surgery. My spine is really messed up. I had epidual shots in my back about a week ago which were 2500.00. My daughter paid it out of pocket and I have to pay her back. The shots made one thing better and the rest it made much worse. . I'm in a lot of pain and yesterday I went to the ER because I could not take another minute of it.

Chimera I am so glad to see you posting! I check all the time so please don't stop posting. You're lucky to have found a good bariatric surgeon who can fix your sleeve. I have awful acid reflux but WLS is not covered on my ins so I have to pay anything having to do with it out of pocket.

I'm so sorry that you are in pain Denise - I can relate, though the knee is much more stable, it better be since it is made out of metal lol! It still hurts quite a bit, and as does everything else it seems. I was at my final pre-op appt with the new surgeon whom I really like (Dr. Srikanth in Federal Way, WA) and I was pretty stunned at the results of labs that were done on Hallowen...normal Iron level should be at least 100 - mine is 11, I am peri-monopausal, so some months I will have a normal cycle, some times it will be light, then I will miss one and then its like those elevator doors opening in The Shining. I also have frequent nosebleeds.

So I have a few more hoops added - doc wants a colonoscopy, that took a bit to get on short notice, and have that Thursday afternoon and I see an ear, nose, and throat doc on Friday morning, then more iron infusion after that. So after I get a call from the hospital to clear everything in ab out an hour, I drop off my post surgery scrips and pick up the fun stuff so I get to sit on the toilet for the next two days haha!

I guess my gallbladder is packed full of stones - I will be very happy to get that out. The stricture and hernia are pretty serious - doc says some mesh may be involved to anchor my esophagus in place and keep that stomach where it should be. A dear friend found out he was showing signs of Barrett's esophagus in June - she lived until mid September - that one gets you fast.

This doc is super comprehensive and it is cool to find out all the things inside that I did not know about - my husband and I have matching cysts on our livers lol. The last bone scan revealed arthritis just about everywhere - my hands have been bothering me and sure enough it showed up between the carpals and metacarpals. I'm an inch shorter than I used to be too - so that mea I need to lose even more weight haha.

I am hoping that the surgery will help with the reflux so I can get off of PPI's - I worry that my bones are just going to turn to dust. You guys don't even what to know what the Vitamin req's are with the surgery - its pretty intense - 4500 mg of Calcium a day, 150g of Protein (2 scoops of Optimum Nutrition chocolate mixed with 4 oz. of Water three times a day gets me to 144g with only 12 oz. of liquid) this is good since I am also to drink an ocean of liquid a day I wont go into the other supplements the list is long.

I honestly cant quite believe that insurance approved a revision - I got denied round one and was ok with the decision either way. Round two they said yes. I will keep you guys posted with how it all goes. I am sorry I have been so bad at keeping in touch with the board. I have only recently started reading other forums again - I hate drama and get upset when everyone else seems upset.

I asked how long the procedure will take - this one is going to be a humdinger - 6-9 hours of surgery. Wish me luck! If for some reason I don't make it - its been a good ride

Happy Thanksgiving folks

Hope everyone had a nice turkey day Surgery went well - almost 10 hours, and a lot was accomplished! The hiatal hernia was repaired, anchored in place with mesh - hopefully that wont be an issue in the coming years. My sleeve was repaired - Doc said it was like a curled up shrimp, with a significant stricture in one area - he was able to fix it up and get things equalized. When I had the sleeve done in 2012, that surgeon used a 40 bougee, Dr. Srikanth used a 34. He removed an inflamed gallbladder full of stones, and worked on my small intestine to convert the vsg to the DS. So far so good.

The first three days I didn't feel so great but energy has been getting better every day. Struggling with fluids a bit and trying to get in the supplements - I'll get there I know it takes time. The supplement requirements are pretty intense - My old surgeon had DS lumped in with RNY with supplement needs (he does not do the DS). I take Vitamins and minerals pretty much all day long, and Protein supplementation is to be 150g a day due to the malabsorption.

Worse thing is the constipation - a nightmare, but it will get better I hear. Hope you guys are all doing well.

Chimera, glad the surgery went well. Please be kind to yourself so that you heal well.

Does anyone look in anymore? If you do Merry Christmas- miss you all.