I've been spending a lot of time in Rants & Raves since I joined LBT, partly because it's fun, but also because for the most part it's very GLBT friendly. Unless I haven't looked in the right place, I don't think there's a support thread for us, so I decided to start one!

A little about me. I'm Eddie & I'm a 42-year-old Gay man. I have a partner of just over nine years (henceforth referred to as DH), a 17-year-old son and 16-year-old daughter. DH and I are stupid. Don't believe me, just ask our kids. DH has hypothyroidism and had not been able to lose any weight after his thyroid "went nuts" several years ago. I've just been overweight all my life. He was banded on 2/21/07 and I'm getting mine next Wednesday (5/16). I can't wait!

Anyway, I would love to hear from all the GLBT folks out there. Hopefully this can be a place for us to freely discuss our unique issues and get support we may not be able to get elsewhere.

I am so happy for you Juli...Did you have a fantastic time in P-Town? I can't wait for Von and me to go!!!

Hey gang, I got on the scale this morning and I am now under 200. I am 198.7, I lost 1.4 pounds yesterday and I went to a birthday party and did not pass up the cake. That is so strange to me. I could look at cake before and gain 4 pounds. lol

I am so thankful and happy that I finally did this for myself. Yvonne says she wants us to live long enough to get to see and do all the things we want to. The only way we will be able to do that is to be healthy. We are on our way! Her weight loss is slower than mine, but she is still losing.She has been a little disappointed in it going slow, but I keep telling her she doesn't have the band. She weighed 157 this morning.....what I wouldn't give to be 157. I think I may strangle her...LOL!

:clap2:I just wanted to let everyone know that my wife and I have started on our clear liquid diets for surgery. At this time were not sure who will go on Wednesday. She has come done with a sinus problem and they might put her off not sure. If that is the case then I will go this Wednesday and she would go the next week. I will keep everyone up to date as to how things are going. We are both very excited about are new healthey lifestyle. Thanks again for all the advice and help.

Chris

Pre Band

St. Louis

250/

ok... so i'm freaking out. i pulled out all of my paperwork about my pre and post op diet and i'm freakin!!!! its so complicated i don't get it.

multivitamin now switch to a chewable but do do iron and calcium at the same time and something about carnation instant breakfasts and protein protein protein 100% juice water low carb diet slim fast is the shake i have to use (not happy about it) EXPENSIVE AS HELL! gah i'm freakin out that i'm not understanding want to do on my 10 day pre op diet! breathe stevee breathe! i think i'm hyperventilating! this is insane. why now why freak out now!? heee heee hooo heee heee hooo thats me breathing like i'm a freakin birthing class! SOMEONE PLEASE CALM ME DOWN!

Tricia

P-Town was a great time. Pamela will agree with me. It's so gay/regular. You know where being out, holding your partner's hand is okay. There are no sideway glances when you shop together...No one asks if the check is together or seperate. But it's not "WHEW! WE'RE so GAY" like a pride march either. (I love a good pride march, don't misunderstand..but that's gays on parade...not gays on vacation.)

Anyway, God love your Von. My sweetie did the same when I got surgery, she got serious about dropping the extra weight she was carrying around. She went from 175-about 150. And she's annoying as hell about her lumpy ass and sagging breasts. She's gorgeous and flawless by most standards but only sees the imperfections. Who'd had thought a butch girl could be so vain!

XO!

Stevee....Calm down, heheho, it will all be ok! I was so nervous before my surgery a couple weeks ago, I totally understand. (I'm sure everyone does..) Ask a bunch of questions. Call your doctor's office and ask if there is another shake you can drink. As for myself I haven't found one yet. I can't drink anything that smells bad, same thing with food. I have to at least like the smell. GEEZ!

You will get through this. Everyone here has been so helpful in calming me down. And the results are awesome...it WILL be worth it!

My biggest advice, and I know I'm a newbie...is ask people that go to your doctor about what he or she expects. Ask for a simplified explanation of the list that is so complicated. You are new to this, you will not sound stupid. It has been a little hard for me searching the site because there are so many different doctors and they all have their own way of doing things. Good luck!

Oh, vitamins. If anyone knows of a better tasting one than Flinstones...please let me know.

ok... so i'm freaking out. i pulled out all of my paperwork about my pre and post op diet and i'm freakin!!!! its so complicated i don't get it.

multivitamin now switch to a chewable but do do iron and calcium at the same time and something about carnation instant breakfasts and protein protein protein 100% juice water low carb diet slim fast is the shake i have to use (not happy about it) EXPENSIVE AS HELL! gah i'm freakin out that i'm not understanding want to do on my 10 day pre op diet! breathe stevee breathe! i think i'm hyperventilating! this is insane. why now why freak out now!? heee heee hooo heee heee hooo thats me breathing like i'm a freakin birthing class! SOMEONE PLEASE CALM ME DOWN!

Settle down there girl.

First of all the vitamin is pretty easy to deal with. I did flinstones chewable pre and post surgery. I moved to centrum chewable one those were gone. (Too much vit A, in the kid's vits.)

Call your surgeon's office if you really can't sort out what to do. Write your questions down, one after the other with space for the answers on the paper. Make them answer you. They will, it's thier job.

Pre op liquid diets, ( I didn't have to do one) are hard but not rocket science. The goal is to shrink the liver by eating very few calories...but you need something to keep you moving. Slim fast may be expensive, but really you'll be spending less than $5 a day to eat for those 10 days, I'm sure you spend more than that now. It's a bitch and hard and did I say it's a bitch? Post op is hard too...

Expect to extract yourself from social food settings during the pre and post surgery weeks. You need to be strong enough to get through the 10 days to get through the next 10 weeks, 10 months, 10 years.

I know that sounds preachy, but sweetie, you are just beginning the challenge...I don't mean to discount the rough time you've gone through to get to this point, but it's not the top of struggle and all down hill from here. You are part way up the hill. It's like a maze and once you get though one challenge there's another one just beyond. (I'm trying to give you little perspective.) so build those reserves and find that piece of you that can handle anything and handle this.

You can do it. Much love to you. Take a breath and get your answers. You'll kick that diet's ass and you'll be banded soon.

XO

Hi Juli,

P-Town sounds wonderful. We are smack dab in the middle of the B-Belt, Southeast Texas. We've been together for a while so most people here don't do the double takes anymore. But, how NICE it would be to walk down the street holding hands and not think we were going to be shot!

I know about the great body and complaining though. We took more before pics yesterday and she was pointing out all what she calls her problem areas. Then I start doing the same and she is like "Oh baby, I love you just the way you are!". She told me the other day she wasn't going to know what to do when there wasn't so much of me to hug. Too cute!

Von says Hi! And WOW on the bike ride!We can barely make it 2 miles without turning around and coming home. I think that is mainly my fault though. LOL Not for long.

Hey Family~

I was taking some pix to send to a friend and thought I'd post a couple here. They are from my cell, because I can not figure out how to work the real camera and software. Anyway, here I am!

9-10-c.bmp

one more sorry it is big, but I am tech challenged

9-10-a.bmp

Hey Pamela!

Beautiful smile! Nice to see what you look like in actual real person size!!

(As opposed to the avatar pic.)

Dana

Sweet! you're beautiful! :whoo:That's all I got to say!!! oh, and also that I'm very impressed that you got them posted, and no excuses about the cell phone, I can't do that one either. It's all beyond me how you get it from there to here, and I have figured out the camera but I can't find any instructions on how you post a picture. So, in my book, you are brilliant!

Just a note on the band thing, got my 3ed fill today, so far, fingers crossed, no problems! but that's a learning process too, and I'm hoping I finally got that one...lol:rolleyes:

Pamela,

IT'S YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

You look great! Your face is sliming out.

FANSTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Thanks everyone. I haven't weighed in a couple of weeks, but will try this week at the doctors office. I can tell I've slimmed down, thanks Juli...glad you can see difference. That is why I took the pix, to send to friend in Reno. I saw her in July and she wanted to see a difference.

Have a great day~

xoxoxoxoxoxox

well... i've calmed down. hehehe i bought some protein powder for my shakes. and my vitamins. and am ready to start my pre op diet on the 20th. i'm doing it an extra 4 days to hopefully lose a lil extra hehehe. i had my upper GI today. it sucked. well i mean it was neat to see my insides but that barium stuff was soooooooo gross!!!!

Hey everyone,

I've been gone for a while -- I went on vacation, and then I got really sick and ended up in the hospital over labor day weekend (not LB related) but now I'm back!

Pamela, you gorgeous thing! Love the photo!

Stevee, it's going to be ok. Whenever you get nervous, stand back and think about why you are doing this and how much you want it. And I agree with whoever mentioned that it seems expensive, but it's actually less than you normally pay for food. I am such a cheap date now!

My weight loss is going very slowly, but it's going nevertheless. My ankle doctor has had my left leg in a boot for the last month and I have very limited mobility, so I haven't been getting much exercise at all. I had an unfill almost a month ago (I suddenly felt overfilled during PMS) and I haven't had another fill since -- I want to see if I feel the same thing when I have PMS again....ugh...so...it's been hard, but I have been trying to make the right decisions and stop before I am full, but it's hard...

Hope you are all doing great.

xoxo