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This lapband journey has had its ups and downs already and I'm still waiting to be banded. Finishing with the nutritionist tomorrow and then a surgery date and insurance approval and then I'm home free....so they tell me. It's been some journey so far. An experience in every aspect. First, the decision to do this...years in the making...and what a decision it is...lots of research, lots of reading, and lots of questions. Then, came the testing...the poking, the prodding, the multitude of appts and doctors and hoops to jump through. What came of it all...luckily, I'm "healthier" than I thought for being morbidly obese....or maybe I should say that my luck hasn't run out yet! And happily, I've begun to make some new friends on this journey of mine! Just when I'm on a roll and feeling positive a flood of negativity and fear comes flooding in from just one thread on this site. It was disheartening and more than anything else...SCARY!!!! So, I've decided the following..... ...I'm moving forward with positive thoughts ...I have a 2nd appt with my surgeon to ask every question that has come up since my 1st appt...and there are many!! ...I will continue to follow the positive, successful, and supportive members here who really want to help....YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE!...AND I THANK YOU ALL AGAIN! ...I will continue to educate myself and ask as many questions as I want! From all this I've learned I have the right to question and question and question some more....and not to feel bad about it. I've learned that unfortunately there are naysayers who dont want to share "opinions" and tell there story--they want to breed fear. :ph34r: I've learned I will not be a part of that again. I've learned to stop doubting myself to the point of panic setting in. I'VE LEARNED TO BELIEVE IN ME...SOMETHING I HAVEN'T DONE FOR WAAAY TOO LONG! :wub:

After more than two years post-op and almost three years on this board, I've decided to create a blog. I never made one before because I didn't want the responsibility of keeping up with new entries and dreaming up fresh and exciting content to share. But I've come to recognize that blogs, even when they are abandoned, can provide a permanent link to some great information. So, I'm going to use my blog to answer questions that I see come up over and over in the online VSG community. I'll put each topic in a separate entry so they are easy to link to. A bit about me: I'm a retired techie. I wrote techincal documentation for end-users, administrators, and programmers. I also worked on websites and UI design. After retiring, one of my projects was getting healthy. After years of trying to lose weight including a stint with Weight Watchers in person, Weight Watchers online, hiring a personal trainer, hypnosis, and a brief fling with Alli, I decided to try weight loss surgery. At first, I wanted the band. After learning more about it, I decided on the sleeve. I had VSG through Kaiser Fremont in May 2011. I got to my personal goal in March 2012. I've been staying there since. I hope you find the information I provide useful. Lynda

Check out my latest video for this exciting announcement! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXurQmN6IXE

It’s Wednesday, my check-in day! The scale starting moving again – I’m now down 35 lbs since surgery & 45 since starting the pre-op diet. I am so grateful. I feel like my body has taken so well to this. I haven’t really had difficulty with anything I’ve eaten, but I’m only really eating good clean food. The only problem I had was early on when I first started real food I ate a Morningstar farms sausage patty too fast without chewing well and omg that hurt. Lesson learned. But as far as tolerating foods, I chose wisely and chew well. I can even do ice berg lettuce! I’m quite proud of myself. I always kind of knew that this was my one last time to embark on the proverbial “lifestyle change” I’ve always sought, and this time I was going to have the very best tool I could possibly have. And that’s exactly what it is. I have the desire to stay on a healthy eating plan, and with the sleeve I’m able to do it without feeling like I’m a wild-eyed-raving starving maniac. I could totally eat ice cream and French fries now I bet, but I really don’t want to. Still haven’t had bread, or rice, or pasta. It’s been 10 weeks! Someday I will have it again I’m sure, but I want to maybe be at the halfway to goal point before I indulge in some serious carbs like that. And it will be a small indulgence. Small tummy dats why. Right now I am at a point where I have exactly 100 lbs to lose. And I really feel like I’m going to do it! It’s just a matter of how long will it take? Up til now, I’ve wanted to do a blog entry each week, but honestly, I’m at a point where things are a bit repetitious, and the progress is nothing earth-shattering in just a week. So I think I’m going to start just blogging on a monthly basis. I’m SO looking forward to seeing where I am in a month!! Onward!

Oh my gosh, I went into the attic to take down my old clothes......I knew I probably had 2 sizes worth......I really wasn't ready for what I found up there......it looks like a hoarder got a hold of my hallway..... I don't know how well you can see it, but these are most of the clothes that were in the attic....yes there are more (but not much)......the pile is about 7 feet long, and 2 feet high, and most of it is in those space age vacuum bags.....yikes! Now, I have 45 minutes to find a home for it before DH comes home and has a cow (he is as neat as they come) LOL The question is do I 1) quickly hide them; 2) fess up; or 3) throw them into the car and madly drive to Goodwill, drop them off and buy what I need as I lose weight? I'm kind of liking the last idea, except is in direct conflict with my typical frugal nature..... I don't know what made me do it today, other than I have the energy to do it.....I suppose I should have vacuumed instead LOL It's hot as anything up there, and now I'm soaking....I have water droplets on my glasses.. So, here's the picture......blurry as it is

During which week of the post-op diet is foot on the menu? I'm teaching a summer chemistry class to adorable little teenagers. My post-op week we were using small, round candies (not using names - don't want to trigger anyone) to represent atomic particles during radioactive decay. Of course, they could eat whatever they weren't using. At the beginning of class, seeing the HUGE and numerous bags of candy on my demo table, they asked if we were going to be doing something with them for that day's class (they are masters of deduction - watch out, Dr. House!) and I joked that it was all for me. Fast forward to the end of class, as they're cleaning up/inhaling their candy like Dysons. One of them asks if I'm going to have any and I reply, "Nah, I have surgery next week and I'm on a liquid diet." WAY TO GO, BIG MOUTH. Of course, they wanted to know more. I joked that I would tell them about it afterwards. That way If I died on the table they could make up whatever story they wanted ("Did you hear Ms. Diamond had a brain aneurysm and farted out her spleen???"). Well, I didn't die (thanks a lot, Dr. Illan), so now I'm in a pickle. I have no idea what to say if they ask me about it in class today. Do I lie and say I was just trying to crash diet before my beach/wedding/girls' weekend vacation? Or do I go the evasive route and imply it's gross and personal and they wouldn't want to know? I know some of you are wondering why I don't just tell them the truth. I'm sure when I'm 50+ pounds down and everybody's asking, my attitude may be different, but as of now the only people I've told are my immediate family and therapist. Something tells me that revealing my very personal secret to a room full of Tweeting teenagers may not be the best way to maintain an ounce of decorum in this very small town. Any fellow foot-eaters who can offer follow-up advice?

I bought organic produce today and added some new things to my protein shake. I put the following in the blender 1 scoop of Market Pantry's chocolate whey protein shake 3 heaping tablespoons of fatfree vanilla yogurt 1/3 of a raw beet sliced 1/2 of a raw cucumber sliced 2 large strawberries 1 handful of blueberries ice It is very good. I deem it a success!

It is time for me to set some new goals. I am half way through the ones I have already set and I am finding the most important aspect of all of this for me is not the scale, but my fitness level. I absolutely love the fact that I can stay on the stair mill longer than the thin people next to me. I love that I am always in the gym with all the regulars. I relish in the the fact that my cardiovascular fitness is soon to pass my husbands....bwuahahahahah (evil laugh). I was working my biceps the other day and in the mirror I noticed a new definition in my forearm. I have never in my life seen that! Just to recap: These are the goals I have accomplished 1. Get under 300 pounds 2. Get under 250 pounds 3. Weigh less than when I was preggo (230 lbs) 4. Be able to do a straight hour of moderate/intense cardio sesh 5. engagement ring fits again! (its tight, but it goes on) Yet to accomplish: 1. Fit wedding ring again 2. Get under 200 pounds 3. run a mile in under 14 minutes 4. reach goal weight 5. Get below 25% body fat percentage NEW GOALS 1. Sign up for a 5k (I have signed up just not done it yet...its in November) 2. Do a marathon next year (I have a year and a half to get this extra weight off and train for that) 3. Hike the stair master in Hawaii 4. Do a 10 mile hike 5. Go parasailing I have many fitness goals...I think this is what motivates me

Post-op life has been incredible so far. Even when I was in the hospital right after surgery, I was so positive. I was so thankful to the nurses, doctors and hospital staff - and I told them so endlessly - that many of them told me that I was the sweetest patient they'd had in a long time. Why? Because I was so thankful to be alive, to be doing okay (in pain, but no complications), to have them helping me, to know that IT WAS DONE... I just couldn't help but want to thank each of them so much for being there to help me through the hardest part (first few days post op). It was wonderful. Through all the pain and discomfort, I was guided by the idea that this is exactly what I wanted. I was exactly where I wanted to be. It was only gonna get BETTER from there. And it has. SO MUCH!!!! So, last Thursday was my 12 weeks post op. My stats: High weight: 459 Surgery date: 417 Today: 370. In 11 more lbs, I'll be at 100lbs down. And my high weight is from November 2012, so in LESS THAN A YEAR (cuz I know 11lbs will be coming off soon) I will have lost 100lbs. This surgery is my miracle. And I am an agnostic cynic who doesn't really believe in miracles. At my highest weight, it was impossible for me to have any sense of fashion or feeling cute in clothes. All my pants had to be ordered online and were usually somewhat ill-fitting. Almost all my clothes were bought from catalogs because plus size store tops were just too snug, even in the highest size. About 6 yrs ago was the last time I was able to buy pants at a store. Tops were okay, but jeans/pants were too small. Well, now just about everything I have is way too big. So, I started pulling clothes out of "the archives" a few weeks ago. I had held on to some of my nicer work clothes from Lane Bryant from about 5-6 yrs ago when I could still fit in them. Now, even those are all getting too big. The smallest size I remember being in my adult life is 26/28 and 12 weeks post op IT'S TOO BIG. I still find it so hard to believe! Well, I went clothes shopping this weekend. I waltzed into the Lane Bryant outlet and grabbed a pair of 28 jeans thinking "I'm sure all my old clothes are stretched out/worn in. So we'll see just how much more I have to lose before these brand new ones will fit", guessing that I'd get them pulled up but would have trouble buttoning them. Wrong. More like "Um, Miss, can you get me a 26?" A 26!!!!! And yes, I realize this is still big. I have a long way to go still, but just the idea of buying something in a store - something smaller than I would have bought even 5 years ago - it blows my mind!!! I got a bunch of cute tops in size 22/24 - and by the end of summer THOSE will be too big because they are already just a tiny bit big in the shoulder area. Anyway, aside from the clothes shopping (which I always LOVED back when I could actually shop in stores, so it kinda made me giddy to be able to do it again!) - I also have some NSVs. I've started parking on the 3rd floor in the parking garage at work. I was on the 2nd and would take the stairs every day. There are 5 floors, so I want to work my way up. Not sure how long it will take, but I just want to be able to do it! I can cross my legs at the knee. My thighs are still so huge (UGH), but small enough that I can cross my legs, and I was NEVER really able to do that comfortably in my LIFE. I moved my seat up in my car about 2 inches. Never thought that would be something I'd have to do because I'm almost 6 ft tall, but without my gut (well, with LESS of a gut) I felt a mile away from the steering wheel! I no longer fear any chair. Sometimes arms with chairs were just too tight and I couldn't sit in them. Now, I don't have that problem. Next challenge - sitting in a booth at a restaurant! this last one may sound snarky - but I have an overweight friend who's been acting a lil jealous of me lately because my weight loss is getting noticeable. I'm REALLLY close (if not already there, really), to being smaller than her. I've ALWAYS been the biggest friend. Always. I know that may sound petty - but I am just so sick of being the fattest person in my family, at work, in the store, of my friends - I have always been the fattest person... and now - I'm not! however that comes across, there is something about that fact that makes me proud of what I've accomplished! And last but not least - I met a guy. He's a really good one, too - so far. I haven't shared all my secrets with him or anything, it's still really new. But I do thoroughly enjoy him and want to see where this could go. It's got some potential! I haven't had the confidence to date in YEARS, and I go on this one blind date and am lucky enough to meet a really great guy. Another miracle? I dunno. Maybe I've been overdue for some miracles in my life! lol Anyway, that's about all I got to share at this point. Hope everyone else is doing well out there, too! <3 <3

just hopped on this website a few days ago, didn't realize that it existed ! i'm looking to hear other people's stories about life after band my name is annemarie. i am 7 months and 9 days post op today i was banded on 1/10/11. since then, i have lost around 97 pounds. hoping to hit the big 100 soon ! i am finally NOT considered obese which is amazing ! i would just like to meet some new people on here and hear their stories and see their pictures to gain some inspiration/motivation. these last 30 pounds are killing me ! school is about to start on 8/29 and i am not looking forward to it /: i am also interested in talking to younger members with the band (since i am young myself, 20 years old), i would love to hear what their journey has been like hope everybody has been having a great day !