Hey all.

So there's a bunch of us in this group, all split up into our different banding days. I was thinking that it might be a good idea to have one master thread as we move through the month, in which all of us could post as we go, from the pioneers going on March 1st to the finalists on March 31st.

I'd love to talk about our anticipation and any worries as we approach our banding date, for people to talk about exactly what happened from the moment they walked into the hospital door until the second they walked out, about how recovery is going, about weight loss and plateaus, about non-scale victories and challenges.

I was thinking that if we all contribute to one thread, it'll form a more substantial channel for information and support. At the moment, I was thinking that we might be too spread out into individual date, and that a central thread would be a really good backbone for the group, in addition to the date-specific threads.

What do you think?

Fenton

*go Fenton, it's your birthday!* lol <<<<That's me holding pom- poms cheering you on:) 100lbs lost.. That would be amazing?! Not that 87 isn't amazing?! You can do this. I think you said that you are averaging 5-6lbs a week? You can squash this like a bug!:grouphug:

Good luck to you!

Just wanted to share that my scale finally moved for the first time in almost 6 weeks?! I lost 1lb! It's not much, but I was so happy to see "203" in big red numbers! 3 freakin' lbs to go, and I will be in ONDERLAND! I am so close I can taste it! I'm going to try to step it up a bit today. I KNOW I can do this:)

Oh yah, I started the patch today. I am sooo done with smoking.. Ugh.. This should be interesting!

I hope everyone has a fabulous Monday:)

~Kerri

Yay for the patch! Between weight loss and kayaking and no longer smoking, I'm expecting you to be doing some kind of Iron Man event later this year...

Also: How great to have TWO shamrocks racing towards Onederland!

k-pod! K-pod! K-Pod! K-POD! K-POD!!! K-POD!!!

Sharona, I sympathize - I ADORE ice cream! And I make the BEST ice creams and sorbets at home. However, I'm avoiding ice cream, because it's a classic Band Buster - it's soft, so it slips right by.

I think you have a couple of options:

1. Pure will power, slam the door shut, no more ice cream

2. If you're going to go to Dairy Queen, go online and find out EXACTLY what it is you're taking. No, wait, I've done it for you: each small chocolate-dipped cone is listed on the DQ site as 340 calories. That'll be a conservative estimate, I suspect, to lull the customers into security - I'd bet it's more like 380 - 400 cals. OK, so know that each time you go to the DQ, no matter how "scrumdiddlyicious" it is, that little excess is costing you 340 plus calories.

If you ARE going to have those cones, then you're going to have to figure out a way to burn those calories - and it won't be easy. SO much extra work just to get you back to a manageable intake/consumption status!

3. If you need to have ice cream, find a lower calorie brand - I think the ones discussed aren't bad, actually. The other advantage is that you can eat those and have a clearer sense of your caloric intake.

4. Substitute a non-ice cream treat - some fruit or a bowl of cereal with skim milk and sweetener. Either of those are attractive examples because they'll keep you full longer because they have a lower glycemic index. Well, certainly the cereal will.

Fenton you are the backbone of this blog...thank you so much for taking the time to respond to me. Someone suggested skinny cow and I'm going to try that. And yes I've decided to take another route home from my saturday job so I won't be tempted to go to dairy queen. Your right it is the worst choice. I have bought more fruit this week and will have it with me in the car and at all times so I'm not tempted. Thanks again for the support....you guys are the best.

:grouphug:

I think that you have to recognize that the Dairy Queen HURTS you.

You go there, and you think it's nice, but it's HURTING you, it's damaging you, it's stealing from you...

Edited June 23, 200818 yr by Fenton

Fenton - That is a fantastic goal!!! :grouphug: I have to tell you that I've been thinking about your Mars bar quite a bit. Every time I am by the candy bar / gum rack at the check outs! I wanted to get myself a Snickers!!! But, I didn't... but I had the evil thoughts of doing it!! I don't deprive myself, but if I gave in every time I had the cravings, the scale would certainly be moving the wrong direction!!!

Tess

I think that you have to recognize that the Dairy Queen HURTS you.

You go there, and you think it's nice, but it's HURTING you, it's damaging you, it's stealing from you...

DAMN to all the diary queens in the world!!!! NO MORE DAIRY QUEEN!!!!

:grouphug:

k_pod - I think it's great that you're quitting smoking! Just a suggestion... quite a few of my friends have had success using the new medication Chantix. (I think that's how you spell it) It really helps with the cravings!!!

I wish you lots of luck... you won't regret it!! :biggrin2:

You can do it!!! Onederland Smoke Free!!!!

:biggrin2::grouphug::biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin:

:biggrin2::redface::biggrin2::tongue::biggrin2:

:biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin2::tt2:

Tess

I'm working on being under 200 pounds by my birthday september 15th. This morning I weighed 222 so I will have to lose 2 pounds a week for that to happen. I lost 5 pounds 2 weeks in a row after my last fill but this week was 2 pounds. I worry I'm about ready to plateau.

Kerri I'm supprised they banded you if you were smoking. How did you get away with that?

Gosh, Scrappy - 37 lbs! Keep up the good work!

As far as smoking goes, my brother AND my ex-girlfriend quit on Chantix after having tried dozens of times to quit using other methods. Lots of people get good results with the patch, but Chantix is an effective back-up. It's not without side-effects, though!

Chantix- I know this works for some but the only 2 people I know that tried it had trouble with it. One went into a weird depression that only stopped when she stopped the drug. Forewarned is forearmed.

Indeed, that's a very common pattern - both my brother AND my girlfriend had it. But it resolves when you come off the drug - you only take Chantix during the period when you're actually fighting the nicotine addiction, for perhaps a couple of months.

As you say, forewarned is forearmed, and it's unquestionably worth a few weeks feeling crappy and sad in exchange for freedom from a severe smoking habit. Indeed, I don't think it's possible to stop smoking without feeling some strong emotional impact, no matter HOW you do it...

I had my 4th fill today. My doctor purchased the x-ray machine to use the barium swallow so he could tell I was very loose. Hopefully, this fill will do the trick and I'll really see restriction. 5 lbs to onderland. Friday, it was only .6 lbs. My goal is to be there by July 4th.

K-pod, I cannot say enough good things about Chantix. I tried everything else and nothing worked for me. It does have strange side effects. I had to start Lexapro while I was on it but the Lexapro kept me happy and the Chantix kept me smoke free. It also gives you very, very vivid dreams but other than that, I had no problems. If you find yourself struggling with the patch, I strongly urge you to get a prescription for Chantix.

I just came back from the Drs. I lost the 4.5 lbs I gained plus lost another 3 lbs . I didn't get another fill today because I think I'm doing good since I got the last fill . If you noticed I didn't change my ticker when I gained but I changed it now . I also joined the gym today . I never thought I'd do that . I start tomorrow .

This came from a post by Alan of LI, NY on the SmartBandster on YahooGroups. I thought it would be useful to pass them along.

I haven't allowed myself to dwell on why I might fail, or why I have periods where I am not succeeding as well as I may have been in a prior week or month. Why? Because good or bad, success or failure, what happens to me is based on the *choices* that I make on any given day. And because I didn't get banded so that its presence around my stomach would rule my life or make me obsess about how anything I do relates to the band. I was banded because I needed a tool, unlike any of the other tools I've used/tried in the past, that would help me a) get to a healthy state-of-being and

remain in that healthy state. By *my* definition of healthy (again, see disclaimer), *obsessing* about the band and all the *guidelines* associated with it -successful as it (the band) and many of them (guidelines) are for me - is not healthy.

Early on in this journey, as pounds were melting away from me and I was

developing my own, personalized, lifestyle of "what works for *me*", I adopted two key quotations here that became my mantra: "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should" and "Live life well." What struck me fairly recently is that neither has anything to do explicitly with weight-loss or dieting or the band or eating habits. The first is strictly about making choices. And it is suggestive in nature, not a directive. Otherwise it

would have read, "You can, but don't." The latter is, semantically, a directive - but the meaning of "well" is not defined and subject to individual interpretation. And I'd worry about the mental stability of

anyone who chooses to *not* live life well - as per their own definition. So if someone tells/suggest to me to live life well, I'd be foolish not to heed it. So I made choices, everyday, that weighed upon the outcome of my success/failure. Most were choices to follow most of the guidelines most of the time. But sometimes I chose not to follow the guidelines. The reasons don't matter. Either way, they were *my choices*. Sometimes I did give up what I really want for what I want now. I agree with that quote and we all do it from time to time. Why has that not lead to failure for me? Because I think the statement should read that we fail when we *continually* (or *consistently*, take your pick) give up what we really want for what we want now. No one is ever going to fail by living for the moment - now and then - as long as we don't lose sight of the goals for more than a moment (or two). Again, if I'm living every day, every moment wondering if every single thing I do runs counter to the long-term goals, I'm not living life well; I will have trapped myself into a mindset that may lead to a very healthy life, but that's not necessarily living life well. We all make choices. They may seem contrary or counter-intuitive but in the end, if we're happy with our choices and lead to our individual success, then we've done what we should.

ps Fenton this group has quite a few guys who were/are in your situation. Give it a look.

Thanks, Amanda - maybe a year or so down the road, when I'm the only Shrinking Shamrock left, I'll go over there, but for now I get the support and info I need here!

GROUP HUG, Y'ALL!

I had sangria at lunch; I appear to have been possessed by Britney Spears.

And look at all of you heading into Onederland...!