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And remember the open part of the gown goes in the back...

You have to admit we have been through some funny stuff. There are all kinds of indignities to being overweight. But the stuff we have gone through in our VSG journey - all in the name of beauty - are above and beyond the norm. I will do an entire post on the rope-down-the-nose test, but that was one of the weirdest things I have ever had to do. And I am convinced that the doctor knew what he was doing when he picked a cute, incredibly personable young lady for that job. 'Cause I'll tell you one thing, if she was not sweet, funny and personable, I would have strangled her with my slime covered nose rope. BLECH. Or when the nurse, in getting me up to walk around the hospital floor at 10:30 at night was having to fix my gown. I do not know what she was doing back there but (no pun intended) it seemed to take a long time and my fanny was cold. So, I will post here, as I am not sure that my silly humor is always appreciated by unsuspecting readers when I reply on the various forums.

I never thought that I could be on the verge of meeting my ultimate weightloss goal. I was just doing some thinking and realized that I am about 35 pounds away from my first goal and 51 pounds away from my ultimate goal and for the first time ever I can honestly say that I am going to get there and I will succeed. I have come so far this year to stop now. Even tho we have up's and down's that just gives you all the more reason to really concentrate on you! This last week was really tough for me but I also realize it could have been way worse then what it was. For that I am very grateful. It also just gives me that extra push to really get myself even more in shape. I know that I can do this and I want it even more. I need to take some pictures of me now and post more. I feel great and I don't even know when the last time was when I was this small. Its been along time that is for sure. I am so proud of myself and everything I have accomplished. I feel that great things are still in store and I just gotta keep positive because its gonna happen. In other news I wanted to lose 10 pounds by Aug 1 because we are going on a trip and I am 2 pounds away from that goal! Very proud of me! Thats all for now :wub: :ph34r:

My last meal was bruschetta, little toasted pieces of baguette, rubbed with garlic, laden with chopped tomatoes and basil. I thought maybe I would never be able to eat them again, I mourned a little that it had come to this, I was excited to have hope again, I was already bookmarking favorites in online shopping, filling the imaginary shopping cart with pretty items in never before dreamt of sizes. Two years ago today I woke very early, 6 perhaps, amazing how some things get forgotten ... I had drunk the horrific milk of magnesia the night before and had my final water at the same time and now was nervous and thirsty, the adrenaline making both sensations all the more acute. My Mother and I were at a hotel around the corner from the hospital and we drove there, or did we take the shuttle? I was in my pyjamas, having just showered with the special cleanser they gave me. I was private pay from one of the best surgical teams for VSG in the world, Laparascopic Associates of San Francisco, so I got a pretty 5 star treatment, private changing room, garment bag for my things, robes etc. with the LASF logo stitched on. I must have been nervous but my adrenaline kept me from really feeling much. My Mom and I waited in a private room, I laid on a bed in my gowns. One last trip to the bathroom and it was off to the OR to meet the kindest anesthesiologist ever, I think she had all sorts of dogs printed on her surgical cap, that's all I remember ... Next thing, I was waking up in my room with a view of the City, in and out of consciousness ... there were popsicles ... there was walking ... there was feeling like I was going to barf but nothing happening ... I didn't pee when they wanted me to and a few other things so I spent an extra day in the hospital ... The following few days are mostly a blur, 2 years later my Mother tells me the timeline of events during those days and it's all news to me. I spent 3 weeks recovering in the country, in a little cottage up the coast a few hours from SF. That first night I stayed on the couch in a sitting position and the following 3 nights I slept in bed but only on my side as sleeping on my back gave me terrible sensations. My body was a foreign landscape that first week and for the first month I felt as close to vampiric as one can, I had no human bodily functions - no need to pee or poop, no interest in human food, in fact a revulsion of nearly every food or beverage. Before I walked into the OR they weighed me one last time, 294. 2 weeks later I came back for a check up and they weighed me, 274. 20 pounds! Those first 20 pounds were more stunning than the following 100. After all the research, all the thinking, all the talking to sleevers, it still had never genuinely sunk in that this was real and that it really does work. I sat in my Dr's office, stunned! There are plenty of people here on VST who tell delightful tales of reaching and exceeding their goals within 6 months, how they are now under goal, wear a size 0, and chirp chirp chirp, tweet tweet tweet. Well, good for them, wish I was one. That has never been my VSG story however. It was a full year before I joined the century club and 2 years out I am still shy of surgeon's goal by approx. 25 lbs and personal by approx. 50. Two years out I sometimes still reflexively tense up when I sit in a chair with arms, genuinely expecting to not be able to fit into it. I still stiffen up when in crowds, thinking people are staring and staring for negative reasons. I still FEEL fat often, I still feel frustrated that after so much time and effort I still probably look like a pudgy lazy bones to the average lay person, but I would rather be at this stage of the game rather than having never begun and still at square one! I've learned that losing weight and becoming physically active and strong does solve a lot of problems and does bring a lot of simple joy but that losing weight or becoming a specific size doesn't automatically confer happiness and that fat or thin life can just suck sometimes. Weight loss is NOT a fairy tale prince come to swoop me onto a horse and ride me off into a happily ever after sunset, a fact that honestly, I am still trying to come to terms with. One final thought, I think I might not have made the decision or had the success I have had or a lot of positive things if it weren't for this forum and the support I've found here. Fellow sleevers from around the world have supported me, advised me, commiserated with me and have just been indispensable on this journey. I hope I have been able to give some of that back. Here's to the continued adventures, the continued seeking of and eventual attainment of goals, for me and for us all, -Globetrotter

Im in the same boat. I see the surgeon for the first time on Friday and have ot wait for other clearance as well. I decide to challenge myself to a 24 hour liquid diet just today. So far I've had plenty of water, a strawberry banana shake by atkins, tomato soup for lunch and Im gonn try another protein shake later and more water than I can stand. Thanks for the tip about optifast I'll try that at a later date. This whole process is definately a huge lifestyle change. Best wishes to ya

Just wanted to add a blog. I've been so busy lately...lots of traveling while school is out. It's hard to believe that I only have 2 more weeks off before preplanning begins. My weight loss has been astounding to me...it is literally just falling off of me. I look at myself in the mirror and can't believe the changes that I see. My relationship with food has changed so much (a little frustrating at times)...i now eat to live instead of live to eat. I still struggle with not eating the volume of food that I once did, but that is just a mental struggle; it's certainly not because I'm hungry. I looked through my closet today and thought that I have nothing to wear to work. I've resisted buying clothes because my weight has changed so much, but I know that I will have to go shopping before school begins. Part of me is excited about it and the other part of me dreads it terribly. There seems to be nothing like going shopping to snap you back to reality when it comes to your size. I actually took a picture of the scale this morning when I stood on it; it is right at 201 pounds...just two pounds away from onederland!!!! Holy cow!!! I haven't seen that number in 20 years; it is unbelievable to me. I have a dr appt on Wednesday...don't think I'll need a fill this month...still feel very tight. Can't wait to see the weight loss this month.

i cudnt have said this better.. i recently went to a bbq and knowing that i wanted to eat.. and treat myself.. i did liquids the day of and the day after.. to balance myself and to eat without remorse or guilt. awesome advice the other thing i will say is that everything that u cud have eaten before u can find low calorie fat free diet sugar free soemthing... there is a substitute for everything. while i still try to consume and little substitutes as possible.. i still treat myself every once in a while.. i have low cal no sugar ice cream bars every once in a while ( but i have quarter of a bar..) not enuff to kill my calorie count, but enuff to satisfy the craving. i have a spoons ful of mashed potatoes if i want.. not loaded with butter and cheese though.. its all abt control the other thing i will say is that u have to give into the cravings,... u have to treat urself ... not always but soemtimes.. the one reason why alot of diets fail is because ppl feel to restrictied.. to deprived of things they want know and love.. whats life worth if u feel deprieved all the time? yes we want to loose weight but at the same time we want to b happy.. dont deprive urself.. dont restrict urself so much that all u do is think abt .. cookies.. once some one told me.. have a piece of chocolate. have a nice expensive piece, not the cheap grocery store kind.. and ud see that it fulfills that craving better.. with a smaller piece and less calories and junk.... .. try it.

Emotion l eating is a serious issue. When I get that urge to eat for no reason other than being upset I ask myself " Are you hungry enough to eat a full meal?" Most off the time the answer is no. I live alone so I don't have to worry about other peoples food habits/desires. I just don't keep my food triggers in the house: chocolate, candy, ice cream (though not my favorite), cracker (my favorite), low fat chips, low fat rice cakes, crunchies off any kind, bread (Oh how I love buttered toast!). I go to restaurants with friends. I either look for a healthier option or ask to substitute a low fat veggie instead of mashed potato or french fries. I also eat VERY CONSERVATIVELY the day of the restaurant visit and VERY CONSERVATIVELY the day AFTER to balance out my calorie budget. Treat those restaurant visits as a treat and not something you do everyday or even once a week. I try to think of my food consumption as a calorie budget. If you have a lot of calories one meal modify other meals to ensure you aren't consuming too many calories.