pink dahlia

Although my kids are grown, as a mom I can understand your fears for your kids in alot of ways. Your chances of "something" going very wrong during surgery and afterwards are minimal, but " something" is going wrong with your unhealthy body every. single. day. 24/7. Do not pass go, do not collect $200 dollar's. .................Do not live a happy, healthy life and set a good example for your kids..........etc...........etc.......... How about looking at WLS with all the possible positives , instead of the possible negatives ? Being banded was the best decision ever, I live a happier, healthier life every day. My only regret is that I didnt do it sooner ! I would of been one of those healthy moms running around with her kids, instead I was too tired and overweight most of the time ! So if you can change things for the better NOW, do it ! Good luck !!!

Oooooooohhhhhhhhh !!! Well, SOMEBODY'S going to be fabulous !!!!! Congratulations !!! What WLS are you having ? Let us know what we can do to support you !!! Good luck !!!

I say go for it ! With everything you 've been through lately, you deserve a break . Take the discounts !! Who cares what your real "age " really is ? Bein' fabulous is a state of mind, just sayin '. So , go out there and be fabulous! !!

A Washington State cowboy, tight jeans, mmmmmmmm..............need I say more ?

In the late 1970's when I was a young, slender teen I remember going out for pepperoni pizza ( Shakeys ? Dominoes ? ) with friends and eating 7 pieces in one sitting ! 7 !!! And with a big Coke and probably ice cream later ! Ahhhhh, those were the high metabolism days ! Thinking about Pre Lapband , Chinese buffets ? I don't even want to know how much fat /calories/sodium was in my favorite Chinese foods like sweet and sour pork, fried rice, and almond chicken. Welcome to Heart Attack Central !!!

My 1st question is "what caused the constant throwing up in the 1st place ?" Why were you getting sick everytime you ate ? Before I did or didn't have a new band installed, I'd want to know what caused the problem because who's to say it won't happen again ? What does the Dr. say ?

He "eat a cheeseburger and fries " was a sentence that jumped down , sorry !!

Hi there ! Hope you're doing better today, but 1st , slow down a little ! I may be wrong , as everyone s a little different, but 1st and foremost you're supposed to focus on healing at 7 weeks, not losing weight. Follow the rules as much as you can and the weight loss will follow. 2nd , you're not in the green zone yet, so of course you're hungry alot ! You cant control the hunger, but you can control whether you eat a cheeseburger and nachos. Your choices are to eat those foods when you're hungry, or eat some protien and fruit or veggies. Once your stomach is filled with food ( healthy or unhealthy) the hunger goes away until you feel hungry again, right ? . So, plan ahead, pack small amounts of healthy foods in tupperware or baggies, and when you're too busy with your child to cook you'll have something healthy already to go. Hope this helps ! Good luck !! eat a cheeseburger and nachos.

Hi there ! Hope you're doing better today, but 1st , slow down a little ! I may be wrong , as everyone s a little different, but 1st and foremost you're supposed to focus on healing at 7 weeks, not losing weight. Follow the rules as much as you can and the weight loss will follow. 2nd , you're not in the green zone yet, so of course you're hungry alot ! You cant control the hunger, but you can control whether youn eat a cheeseburger and nachos.

I really have trouble getting water in me, and I don't like plain water, so for me its Crystal Light, Propel, low cal Gatorade 2 ( 45 cals per 20 oz bottle ) , Swiss Miss cocoa ( mixed with water), tea, and occasionally a glass of milk. There may be some calories in them, but with the very painful leg cramps I was getting from not drinking enough, , I figure having these drinks is the lesser of 2 evils. Im still losing weight, so I must be doing something right !

1st off , congratulations on your big weight loss !!! Thats a huge accomplishment and you should be VERY proud of yourself !! I think they're s been alot of great suggestions, but since nothing works for you for one reason or another, you may have to ask yourself not "what CAN'T I do?" , but instead "what CAN I do ?" I know you're frustrated, but Im not sure what else to come up with. How about contacting the local hospital or Veterans Association and seeing what theys suggest for exercise options? You can't be the only person in your area that needs to exercise but has physical problems. Even volunteering at one of those places would give you an outlet for your "high energy" , ( a "workout " can be done in many different ways ) and be helpful to others , and still be accommodating of your disability. Win Win !! Good luck !!!

We are all happy to come up with ideas for you, but everything that gets suggested comes back with " can't", "don't", or "won't," so I'm not sure what else you want us to suggest. You may just have to build your own exercise program to accommodate your wants and very specific needs. Let us know if we can be helpful in any other way. Have a good day !

Sorry, I got nuthin'. If I think of anything, I'll ket you know.

I was under the impression that because of your physical problems you were fairly limited , but I guess not ! However, you say you can't do certain things , but then want to exercise hard. Sorry, I'm not sure where to go with this because of others suggestions that you don't want to do or can't do. Give us a little more info and maybe we can brainstorm some ideas for you . Please ?

Volunteer at the local Library with the summer reading program, help out at the retirement home, talk to the town Quilting group, they need people to quilt/sew/knit baby blankets for the newborns in the hospital or foster babies. The local Red Cross always needs help with blood drives, emergency packets, inventory etc. Talk to the local Food Bank, or the Girl Scouts, you dont have to be strong to do stuff, you just have to be willing to lend a hand !

I kid you not, if you had'nt told those 2 pics were of the same person I wouldn't of believed you ! Except for the cute button nose, everything is completely different ! In a good way ! Congratulations ! You look great !!!

My mom was a great cook, we ate well but also grew up with sugary cereals, potato chips with our PB sandwiches, soda or milkshakes when we went out for a hamburger w/fries occasionally. And the amount of candy I bought at the store was ridiculous !! And I loved salty stuff ! But I was a skinny kid, a slim adult, and then my metabolism slowed waaayyy down as I approachd 30. Even eating healthy I couldnt lose weight ! Now, I love fresh fruit, salad and can't stand salty stuff. Go figure.

Great topic ! I have / had a few "bucket list " items. Mostly I just wanted to be strong and heathy again , like in my younger days. I wanted to walk without getting winded, quit the C-pap machine, wear cute small sized clothes, like what I see in the mirror, (maybe even have a fairly flat stomach again ?) I have done all of those so far. I also really wanted to run, be one of those healthy looking outdoorsy girls who wore cute running clothes ( I did it !) , hoped to run a half marathon someday. Well a permanent foot injury means no more running ( forever) , so Ive joined Pilates, and now Im slowly getting a flatter stomach! (Guess I dont have to save for Liposuction anymore !) Future goals ? Ride a horse on a pack trip , travel, and keep working on building a strong, ,healthy body that will take me into my older age.

Sippedchick, first off .......HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU !!!!!!! Yes, we do care ! And its nice to be acknowledged !! Sending lots of good karma your way ! 2nd, as Rosepose said, sometimes even though you have done very well in the weigh loss part, and you should be VERY proud of yourself, its not part of other people's life as much as it is yours. Her "wedding " idea was spot on. We're not ALL on the same page, sometimes not even in the same book ! Here on this forum ? Same book, mostly the same page, hell, sometimes even the same sentence. Sometimes. And 3rd, your Aunt had WLS too. Dont know how long ago or how successful she was, but maybe you're doing better than she did and you hit a nerve ? Then again, based on your description of several family members etc, it could be they're just acting " normal " for them............ unsupportive, cranky, impatient. ............. whatever they are. It has nothing to do with you, so you just keep on getting stronger and healthier every day, come here for the support you need, and know that as you get stronger and fitter you will find that the stuff your family does won't bother you so much. What you lose in weight , you will gain in self esteem. My best to you !

Hey there, hope you're doing better today ! Im glad you have a Dr.s appt today, tell him/her everything you told us so he can help you. I will say getting banded was the smartest and best thing I could of done for myself. But you definetly have to go through stages (foodwise) to be sucessful, but remember those stages are TEMPORARY ! NOT forever ! And yes , you must walk ! I have dealt with depression too, its.not. fun., and no its not a "pity party" , but walking did help me both mentally and with weight loss. With following the food rules ( not. hard, to.do.) and walking and swimming, (easy!) the weight started coming right off ! You.can. do. this ! Come back here for more support if needed, have a good day !!

Hey there, how are you doing ? Hopefully better by now ? Your body is still healing from surgery, but I would talk to your Dr. about the port pain. Not sure why you're still sore there but you would probably feel alot better after you talked to him/her. 4 lbs in the first 3 weeks ! ? Great job ! That's about what I lost when I was banded, my Dr. said that was perfectly normal. (1-2 lbs a week, and sometimes you'll stall and not lose for a bit ) Sounds like you're doing great weight loss wise ! So, look on the bright side . You're getting healthier and stronger every day and that's more than you could say 6 weeks ago ! Hope all goes well for you , keep up the good work !!! You got this !!!!

I feel extremely lucky that I was 100 % supported in my WLS journey, I realize not all are so blessed. I too was a little surprised that people would ask me how much weight I had lost. I didn't take it personally, Im not sensitive about the subject, but I felt it was a little more than they should know sometimes. I too felt that this whole thing has been "an amazing journey ", watching myself emerge from the cocoon has been alot of fun ! As far as " reactions that surprised me ?" Yes, the ones from men ! Im almost 57, happily married, but when men flirt with me or compliment me, Im thinking " that's cute, thank you !" but I'm still mentally turning my head around thinking they're talking to someone behind me ! Totally . Strange........

For the love of God, thankyou to everyone who posted all the above thoughts ! I just want to scream every time I read a post from someone who's whining because they cant eat /drink/party/celebrate/couch surf etc like they used to ! And loose weight too !! Really ? Seriously ? (No shit Batman ! Ya'think???) My favorite one was the person who actually updated her status with the whine fest of "I've gained 3 ounces, so depressed !!!" You. Have. Got. To. Be. Kidding. Me............................rant. over...............have a good day ! Happy 4th of July to all !!!

Although I know you're hurting from your friends attitude towards you and your weight loss ( Congratulations by the way !) , from your story Im sensing this is not so much about what YOU'VE accomplished, but more of what she HASN'T !!!! Her statement about men not paying as much attention to her as they do you speaks volumes about her own insecurities. She wants what you have, and isn't getting it, so instead of having you around as that constant reminder she's pushing you away so that she can breathe and not have to deal with it. Sad but true. You both may be average sized , but she has no light shining from within, you however, do. Sorry for your lost friendship, but not sorry for the new person you've become . You worked hard to become her , you should be very proud of you !!!

You said " I put all my worth in my weight, " . Ummmm, thats definitely NOT what you're all about ! Your worth is ALOT more than just a # on the scale . Maybe , until you get your physical health somewhat solved with your OA, you might consider working on your mental health.Seeing a good therapist who specializes in WLS patients might be one of the best investments you could make. A healthy mind is just as important as a healthy body ! And you are sooooo worth the time and money !! Good luck !!!