Leaderboard

Ok. So i am four days out of surgery and doing much better. The first three days ..well they were rough, but that can be expected... After all it is surgery. I joined this forum to get support and encouragement from others ..not dangerous and incorrect advice that some seem to be giving. Promoting eating solid foods after sugery within the first three weeks is just insane to me. Your stomach has staples in it and solid food could cause a leak! Anyone who does not get this and is more worried about what food they can get down right after surgery is not compliant to the protocol. Peroid. This is an indicator that some folks might not have been "mentally " educated and screened prior to the surgery. Not trying to scare anyone, or make them feel bad.. Just stating the facts. Members are only doing a disservice to fellow newbie sleevers saying it is ok and no big deal to eat solid foods within the three week post surgical peroid. I just find this unbelievable that jokes ate being made about it. Shame on you! To my knowledge these members are NOT doctors and are not experts in the what the medical implications of not following the sleeve protocol could be. You do not know each individuals situation nor is your situation the same as anyone elses. I hope in the future that folks will give anyone reaching out for help the right information. Information that all sleevers are given prior to surgery. i understand know each surgon has a different protocol but NONE of the surgons I approached/ interviewed in my research and selection allowed solid foods in the first three weeks. I did tons of research before making my selection based on the median of data that I collected. They ALL stated it was dangerous and could cause leaks. There are obviously some folks who were not educated as well as others prior and post to their surgery. Giving out wrong info is only hurting newbies not helping them... Had to get this off my chest.

The band continues to amaze me. I am down 2 lbs since last week and I haven't even been trying. Granted I am not eating recklessly or anything but I have been eating normal (for bandsters) portions which I don't have to measure anymore thanks to 26 months of practice.... But I had a few bites of cheese cake for my birthday and ate out alot this week due to a busy social week....and I was sure I would have gained a lb or 2 ... And I actually lost 2 lbs. the band is doing exactly what I hoped it would do!!

This weekend my husband & I went to Lubbock, Texas for the Wine Chocolate Fantasia at Llano Estacado Winery. This is an annual event and is both a fund raiser for the ACF Texas Panhandle Chefs de Cuisine and the West Texas Parkinsonism Society; as well as a chocolate competition. There are entries from amateurs, professionals and chefs. The evening includes many of Llano Estacado’s wines for sampling. It was quite enjoyable hanging around barrels of aging wine, sampling some interesting chocolate creations and sipping on my favorite wines. I consumed about 800 calories this evening; pure sugar and fat calories. My total calories for the day were 1600. I am at goal and that is the only reason I chose to attend this event. I would never recommend anyone still losing to attempt managing an evening like this. I don’t know the actual calorie count for the chocolate I sampled nor do I know their actual weight so I took my best guess. Why am I telling you about this? Two reasons; it was fun and I want to share my experience managing the maintenance lifestyle. I know that I am going to attend things where the only choice is wasted calories, full of fat. As long as I stay in moderation I will be successful. I planned for this event I knew I would be eating chocolate and drinking wine. I knew about how much I wanted to have before I arrived and I stuck to that. The evening was an absolute blast.

Cleaning our closets out finally got to me, so I went in to do mine, and it is only about a quarter full now. Got a nice NSV in the process as well. 2005 I hit the lowest weight of my adult life when I went from 324 to 249.8, I stayed there for a couple of weeks and then started gaining again. During the that time I bought a couple of nice sports shirts that I really loved, but haven't been able to wear since, and I ran across them while I was cleaning. On a lark I tried them on and they fit. Now looking forward to the sale at Kohl's in a couple of days with a 20% off coupon in my hot little hand.

I have watched every minute of all 14 season of The Biggest Loser. There are some pretty intresting findings from the study. When Science Met The Biggest Loser http://health.usnews.com/health-news/blogs/eat-run/2013/01/23/when-science-met-the-biggest-loser By Yoni Freedhoff January 23, 2013 Yoni Freedhoff It's NBC's Monday night television juggernaut and the guilty pleasure of over 7 million viewers. Now in its 14th season, The Biggest Loser is a an industry unto itself, with a 2009 estimate by the New York Times pegging its worth at $100 million in annual revenue. Viewers tuning in week after week can watch as Americans with severe obesity are routinely yelled at, exercised until they vomit, injured, weighed nearly naked on a giant scale, and seemingly taught that the numbers on that scale measure not only their weight, but also their self-worth and represent the only true value of their health and success. [see Are You Exercising for the Right Reasons?] Consequent perhaps to the show's immense popularity and polarizing approach, The Biggest Loser has led to the publication of a number of peer-reviewed medical studies that look at its impact on both the participants and the viewers. Their results are anything but pretty. Two studies have been conducted that examine how watching The Biggest Loser affects viewers' attitudes towards those with obesity. Perhaps not surprisingly, given the apparent tenor of the show—that obesity is a consequence of personal laziness and gluttony—the first study, published in the journal Obesity, showed that watching even a single episode of The Biggest Loser led viewers to dramatically increase their own hateful and negative biases towards those with obesity. [see How to Spot and Stop Bullying] This result may be explicable on the basis of the second study, published in the journal Health Communication, which found that watching The Biggest Loser led viewers to be much more likely to believe that weight is well within an individual's locus of personal control. And, of course, that message echoes the show's­—that if you just want it badly enough, you can make it happen.The corollary is that if you don't make it happen, you must simply be lazy, which in turn may explain the increase seen in viewers' weight biases. [see We're Not Fat Because We're Lazy] Interestingly, those same viewers who, consequent to the show, might attribute being overweight to laziness, were reported to be less inclined (go figure) to want to exercise or expect it to be enjoyable after watching a 7.5 minute workout on the show, according to a study published this month in the American Journal of Health Behavior. "People are screaming and crying and throwing up, and if you’re not a regular exerciser you might think this is what exercise is—that it’s this horrible experience where you have to push yourself to the extremes and the limits, which is completely wrong," said the study's lead author Tanya Berry of the University of Alberta. And what of the participants? Will being on The Biggest Loser change their lives forever? According to a paper published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, the answer is yes, but perhaps for the worse. The researchers, including the show's own Robert Huizenga, looked at the metabolisms of participants following the completion of their first seven months with The Biggest Loser. As expected, due to weight loss and an effect broadly referred to as "metabolic adaptation," the participants' burned fewer calories at rest following their massive weight losses. What wasn't expected was the the magnitude of that decrease; researchers found that participants metabolisms slowed by an average of 504 more calories than would have been expected simply as a consequence of losing weight. In other words, participants' metabolisms slowed down to a much greater degree than was predicted. In turn, this suggests that the show's approach to weight loss may have risks unto itself and led the researchers to state: "Unfortunately, fat free mass preservation did not prevent the slowing of metabolic rate during active weight loss, which may predispose to weight regain unless the participants maintain high levels of physical activity or significant caloric restriction." This may explain why, when I interviewed three alumni of the TV show, they reported that 85 to 90 percent of participants regain most, if not all, of the weight that they lose, and that those who keep it off are generally the participants who have turned their losses into careers as personal trainers or motivational speakers. Ultimately the current state of the evidence on the phenomenon known as The Biggest Loser is far from flattering. It suggests that the show may be detrimental to both viewers and participants in that its combination of derision, personal blame, and extremes of exercise and dieting fuel societal weight bias while simultaneously discouraging people from exercising. Meanwhile, for participants, it seems to disproportionately slow down their metabolisms to the point where they're burning a full meal fewer calories than would be expected by their losses. [see Why We're So Fat: What's Behind the Latest Obesity Rates] If you're a regular viewer here's my suggestion. Instead of spending two hours a week watching The Biggest Loser, why not use that same amount of time to ensure you pack your lunch for work each and every day and take three 20-minute walks a week with a friend or a loved one. No doubt the impact of those behaviors will be far more valuable and positive to your mental and physical well-being than watching a show that science suggests may be doing more harm than good. [see 7 Mind-Blowing Benefits of Exercise] Yoni Freedhoff, MD, is an assistant professor of family medicine at the University of Ottawa, where he's the founder and medical director of the Bariatric Medical Institute—dedicated to non-surgical weight management since 2004. Dr. Freedhoff sounds off daily on his award-winning blog, Weighty Matters, and is also easily reachable on Twitter. Dr. Freedhoff's latest book Why Diets Fail and How to Make Yours Work will be published by Random House’s Crown/Harmony in 2014.

First I would like to thank you all for your kind words and encouragement. Those days of pain and suffering after I got home from the hospital turned out to be an abses in my drain tube. It was full of puss and gunk, gross. Spent a full week in the hospital, (if your surgeon doesn't put you on antibiotics before, during and after, kick him)! They couldn't pin point where the infection was but worked to get it stopped. That week was my Hell week, no more concern for the sleeve, just concerned about this horrible infection. I spent the most part of the week in ICU again. Had to have a p.i.c.k. Line and IV Nutrition. They weren't sure if it was just the infection or a leak as well. They told me that either way the treatment I was getting would heal both. I thought I was emotional before, but for those of you with complications and being far from home, I feel your pain. Although Hubby was only 2 hours away I felt like it was a million miles. I am so glad to serve a God who will be there where ever I am! I really needed my Lord and Savior to get me through this one. I am home at my sons recuperating and finally getting some rest. May feel like going to my home next week, well see. Just enjoying the pampering for now. Still sore but getting used to the sleeve and all it's gurgling, lol still doing full liquids and that's ok with me. It's true what they say about forgetting to eat! Have to work on that. Not sure if I would do it again, too soon to tell. But what's done is done, just have to make it worth it. Also, I haven't weighed myself, just hasn't been a priority, well see. I know I use too many comas and the word just too much, sorry about that. Lol

Well the scale is tucked away in the closet...I'm not saying I'm never going to use it but I think once or twice a month will be good. My clothes are falling off me but the numbers weren't moving fast enough for me......Mentally...I needed to see the number moving....not sure why....

I was banded in May of 2009. I was at a starting weight of 235 lbs. (I was 260 lbs at my highest weight. I lost 25 lbs in two months on my pre-op diet.) Surgery went well. I had no issues. I loved my band. I was very careful to follow all of my doctor's rules. It worked well at first. In February of 2011 I weighed in at 179 lbs. I had lost a total of 81 lbs. I had set my own goal weight at 175 lbs. I was only 4 lbs away when all of the trouble started. I became sick with a stomach bug. I was vomiting very heavy for a day. I started to get severe pains in my port area. That is when I went to the hospital. I was told that I had a large gas bubble. My bariatric Dr. was called in to empty my band. My band was left empty for three weeks. I gained ten pounds. I was constantly hungry. In March, I started having my band refilled slowly. Soon I was refilled to the point I was before I had become sick. The problem was, I continued to gain weight. I went back to my doctor numerous times with complaints. I continued to follow his meal plans and work out routines. However, I continued to gain weight. I knew something was wrong. In September of 2012 I started getting heartburn. I visited my doctor and he decided that my band was too tight. He took out some of the fluid. I continued to have heartburn. I went back to the doctor. He took out more fluid. It still did not stop. In February of 2012 I went to my doctor and demanded an upper GI. Guess what? I was told my band and slipped. Emergency surgery! While visiting me, post op, my doctor informed me that during the operation nothing was wrong. My band was in fact in the correct place and he did not have to reposition it. A year later, I have continued to gain weight. I am back to a weight of 234 lbs. I have "cut all ties" with my first bariatric doctor. I have looked into various options. I am consulting with a new surgeon next week. I am hoping that he can give me the answers to the numerous questions I have that my last doctor just brushed away and refused to answer. I am frustrated but grateful at having the chance to start over.

Today while I was at work I honestly had to say to myself I am so thankful for my health. When you work in a hospital you think you have seen everything and then there is always something worse. The pain that people suffer, the drug addiction, alcoholism, patients with HIV, miserable infections that antibiotics wont cure, people trying to kill themselves, and the list goes on, I just have to think these aches and pains I have from being on my feet for 12 hours is nothing compared to how these people suffer daily. All the people in ICU on vents being kept alive by a machine. Some of these things just are not right. When you see these things from a medical perspective it really is an eye opener. I never in my life have seen family's who are so selfish to keep someone alive and make them suffer because they don't want to let go. Then they stand outside of ICU and argue about what the patient wants, when in fact it's not at all what the patient wants but what they want. The patients that get me the most are the elderly with dementia whose bodies work so well but their minds don't. It must really be pure hell to have a healthy body but you can't remember who your family is or where you are. I don't take life or my health for granted because it can be gone in a minute. One of my coworkers today had to leave work because her cousin was shot dead in her car because someone tried to car jack the car and she wouldnt open the door. A life gone in less then the time it takes to send a text. Life is hard and people are even harder. I am thankful today and always for everything I have. I will take my bad hip any day then suffer like others do. Take time to be thankful for everything in your life.

Today My weight is the same than last week but I am doing good.No gin and tonics..lol,clean eating! Cauliflour does not agree with me,even when pulverized in the food prosessor,dont know why. ThenI decided to put what I ate in December,lost nearly 17 pounds in 6 weeks,into fitday to see how many of what I was eating.Calories worked out to 1200 plus per day.Fats were 55 plus and carbs were about 70. At first I thought I must have made a mistake.But I did it twice and the results came out the same. This is shocking as all I ate for weeks were the following.I would take chicken breast,cup into atrips or veal cut into strips or pork cut into strips and dust it with flour.17oz of chicken takes about a cup of flour.Then I would put olive oil in the bottom of the wok and fry it.When the oil was gone,I would add more!I didnt measure it but I am sure that it was a lot that I used! Now,maybe I didnt eat as much as I think I did.Maybe I ate less of it after a week or so as usually when I eat protein only I gradually start eating less.I had 5 cups of tea with milk and 2 dolci gusto cappuchinos per day.Very little water,maybe one small bottel during the day and half at night. With only 2 pounds to goal I am going to try that again this week. At 10 and a half months out I do feel that I can eat more and should start weighing my food again.I ate like this because I regularly get a stomach ache when I eat veggies.Any veggies.I also cannot eat fruit as this causes acid even though I am on a PPI. Now to just reach goal already and then to decide if I should drop more weight.Acouple of my friend's husbands no less,have commented that I am now getting to skinny.Thr girls just say they dont recognize me!I just wish I could see what other people say they see.(they might always be lying..lol) I now wear a size 12 pants and top even though I havent lost more weight but it is very clear that my shape is changing,and not all for the good.I have saddlebags on my upper legs that appeared over the past couple of weeks and my boobs are now a size 36 C.One thing I never realized was that as we get older our waistline increases even when there isnt fat anymore.I use to be very curvy when I was young but now I am straight as a plank and my waist seems to have widened...lol.But I need to just get this weight loss phase over and done with now.It still takes up too much of the space in my head and I just dont want this anymore. I had a bit of a realitly check today when I witnessed a motorcyclist die in an accident.Life is short and all this seems so much less important tonight and in the bigger scheme of things.Accepting myself and others and living life the way the Lord has intended fo me to do is what my focus should be on all the time.I am second!But while Im counting and weighing and logging and cooking and posting I do get a bit consumed with myself which is not the way I should live my life! One more week to goal (positive self talk..lol)