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Well I wrestled over posting these pics in my gallery...but they are there and I think they arent any worse then what I would look like on the beach... so have a look if you are interested.... I think they came out AMAZING! Can't wait for the upper swelling to go down.

Awesome job he did.. you look great! swelling and all

There is a woman who reads my blog. I was going to be in her town on business, so, I decided to ask to meet her; to my shock and horror, she accepted. This was not a “date” in the true sense of the word; in my mind however, I treated it as a date in order to gain experience in my social skills. We planned to meet for dinner. We talked – a lot. I found her to be intelligent, articulate, funny, interesting, and strikingly good-looking. All the characteristics I like in a woman. But really, the reason I’m telling this story is because of what we discussed and how it is helping me grow. I’ve written quite a bit about my negative self-image, my believing that I am unattractive, repulsive and fat and my shyness around people, especially women. I’ve discussed my fears and my social awkwardness. She didn’t see any of that. One of our first topics of conversation was my negative self-image. She said she was expecting someone far different than the man standing in front of her. She was expecting an ugly, fat guy who would have trouble communicating. Wait, that’s not me? Apparently not. She accused me of having a handsome face and not being fat. She thought that I had a terrific personality and didn’t think that I was socially awkward. She reiterated her impressions of me several times that I feared she thought I was making up this entire thing. In my diary I pen my deepest and darkest thoughts. My self-perception is a reflection of these thoughts about myself based on a lifetime of abuse. So while I may have this façade of being all put together on the outside, my writing is really about what’s in my head. My self-image is about how I see myself; not how the outside world sees me. What she was able to accomplish in one afternoon, I could not have accomplished in years of therapy and thousands of dollars. Ever since that encounter in October, I’ve started to evolve my opinion of myself. I’ve begun to question my negative self-image and attempted to gain a more confident attitude. I still have issues with insecurity, shyness, and self-esteem and I still feel socially awkward a lot of the time, but thanks to her I’m trying to build a positive attitude about who I am. And for that I owe her a debt of gratitude.

I've been married for 35 years and have weighed 105 to 200. My husband says he's been married to every size in the book and I've been stuck with the same ol' guy forever

I would contact your doctor about it, and ask him or her what you should do about it. Don't mess around with infection. OK? Good luck.

I can't even imagine what it's like to go thru all of that. You must be a super strong lady though. Stay strong; i know it's easy to say but just remember your family is there AND there's a whole community of people right here thinking of YOU right now.

Lord, blessed be your name! Please restore this woman's health and strength. Let her rejoice in your wonderful provision. All glory and honor are yours, Father.

o_0 ... wow. I'm so sorry. The Holiday's are going to be rough on me this year as a single mom, but you got double and triple whammy's going on. You're in my thoughts and prayers!

I have read so many posts and blogs about stalls. I promised myself not to panic when I got to that point. I have been stuck at 277.3lbs for a solid two weeks. I know it's not because I did something wrong, or because the sleeve is not working. After being on this site for so long, I know it is a natural/normal part of the journey. I stayed off the scale and kept my eating and exercise routine the same. But this morning I got on the scale. I gained ONE pound!! 278.4 The sight of the number took my breath away, and the taste of disappointment stayed with me all day. So I came home and took a picture so I could remind myself that I am doing ok. I needed to put my demons to sleep and realized this is all part of the journey. I am not failing. The sleeve is not failing. Life is beautiful and victory is mine