Merry Meet,

My name is Tracy nickname Gretchen Noel and I am a very spritual pagan. I am 37 years old and the daughter of a Southern Baptist Minister. I live in a different state and my parents, though they know I'm different, do not know of my spiritual beliefs. I have been kitchen/nature witch since I was 25 and do not follow any certain path in particular, but gather differnt things from all faiths and make them my own. I and my husband, for the most part, are solitary (he follows the budda yogi path) but we do have a small 'family' that gathers 8 times a year for holidays.

I think all of our prayers,energies and spells all go to the same place and that no one religion or denomination is the 'correct' one, just that it takes different things for different people and situations.

I am being banded on Tuesday Feb 27th and I am both excited and anxious. I was a size 12 in jr. high and a size 14-18 through high school. I went through a date rape situation when I was 19 and ballooned up to 240. I have been over 200 since I was 19, over 250 for about 12 yrs and over 300 for about 6 years.

I 1st attempted to have this very procedure four years ago but I had health spring and was denied without any hope of an appeal. Last year my company started offering BCBS along with health spring. I didn't change anything, then I found out last fall that there were 6 other people in the company that had switched to BCBS and sucessfully had the procedure SO, I switched this year and as you will see in my signature.. was approved!:clap2:

I am so excited about what lays ahead for myself and my husband. I LOVE to be outdoors and being my size is REALLY a hinderance.

I look forward to hearing from others of alternative faiths or, No faith in particular.

I have created a poll, thought it would be fun. I know there is NO WAY I have remembered all of the different paths so if yours isn't listed..VERY SORRY. Example.. right after I created the poll, I realised I left of NORSE. ANYwho, I'll add it if you ask me to assuming I can figure out how to make changes to the poll. I'm kind of technically challenged.

Blessed Be,

Tracy/Gretchen Noel

Wow, this last fill is really working for me. Back at my 'sweet spot.'

I'm already down to 258. I was 266 at the docs office.

Nice to be back on track. I've been drinking an ensure for early breakfast. (I get up at 4:30)

Then around 8:30 - 9:00 I eat a little cottage cheese. Lunch varies.

I had a beauti Control thing to attend yesterday and ate less than 1/8 cup of salad and 'picked at' my soup and had a couple of crackers and was almost to full. By supper I can eat about 1/2-1 cup of food depending on what it is. Last night Sis-in-law had everyone one over for supper. I had about 1/2 cup fried chicken or slightly less cut up VERY SMALL and some mashed potatoes.

T

synicalchick,

that's a good screen name, how I feel/felt. Sounds like you're doing really well and feel better too. I'm one of those who would cancel appointments because in some weird way I didn't want to disappoint the doctor, is that crazy thinking or what? Anyway I'm the one who totally screwed up and ended up gaining back most of what I lost prior to surgery and am now trying to stay on track but eating the foods now instead of liquids etc... Seven months post-surgery and still trying! Good luck to you too! brandyII

Hello everyone. I was born and raised Southern Baptist, deep in the Bible Belt, but came to my senses about all that about 15 years ago and now consider myself Wiccan. Glad to see I am not the only one around and look forward to chatting with/getting to know some of you!

Greetings everyone! I'm so glad to have found a thread supporting Pagans! I've been Wiccan for 13 years and just starting my journey with lap band. I'm 30 years old, married, have two wonderful boys, and lots of furbabies :wink2: Looking forward to chatting more soon!

This is an interesting forum. I am agnostic/atheist. Depends on how I am asked the question. I go in for the banding on May 27, and on the hospital form I listed Unitarian for religious preference. I do have great support from the church family which will be important after I get back home.

I got the news that my surgery will be the end of this month. I go for my surgeon visit on the 14th and they'll schedule me then. I'm excited and scared all at the same time. Anyone got some good suggestions or helpful hints for the soon-to-be banded?

Edited July 10, 200917 yr by amethyst_moonbow

I was raised Dutch Reformed, then Presbyterian, and went to Catholic school. But I am Unitarian Universalist. Some UUs are humanist, some are atheist, some are pagan. Many come from Judeo-Christian backgrounds, some are "cradle" UUs, and most of us tend to believe there is no one "right path," other than one that is guided by good, kind, loving behavior.

UUA: Visitors

(I tell my friends who don't understand an accept-all, creedless/dogma-free faith that we sort of say, "Eh, it's all good. Open the wine and let's eat!" There's much more to it than that--social responsibility and service are very important--but we tend to get our best ideas when sharing a nice meal and wine :smile:)