sueoco

Just checked - only open Mon-Fri - darn it! Sent from my iPhone using VST

I just checked on urban spoon and it says they are not open on the weekends - I find that hard to believe so will give them a call!

That sound great - I might have to do a recon this weekend!

hi missy moo - it gets better every day so hang in there!

That sounds great. I don't think I have seen any other takers yet. I will PM you my mobile number so we can keep in touch when we meet up.

I wasn't told that and have been having coffee right through - I drink it very weak and must admit that I have also cut back on the amount as I think it does upset my stomach a bit if I have too much

yes Aussiegirl, it is a shame you won't be here. I am sure you will have a few margaritas for us! How are you going - I didn't get to see the take 5 article -wonder if it is too late to pick up a copy! Liss - My husband is going to pick me up after our meeting (so I can have a couple of drinks!) - we can give you a lift back to Parramatta afterwards.

All good here - Yes we are trying to get together for a Sydney catch up - it is great to meet people face to face!

ok - sounds like Monday 11th November in the evening in the city is the easiest so far - There are heaps of bars and restaurants in the darling harbour, cockle bay and king street wharf area - maybe we could meet at Critini's at Darling harbour and then deside if we stay there or go somewhere else?

Friendships are funny things - over the years I have learned that they can drift apart at some points in your life and then years later you can drift back together again... so Kazza and Kelli don't give up on your friendships ...just put them on the back burner for a while and I can almost guarantee you will reconnect at some point! Getting the sleeve is a game changer not only for us but for all the people around us...it makes people reexamine not only their weight issues but all sorts of issues in their lives as they look at you and see what a brave, drastic, determined way you were prepared to change yours! Some people just find it too confronting. Hey Liss - do you think I would make a good physiologist - ha ha! Anyway, I am not in a situation where I have lost any friendships (yet!) but where I have actually rekindled friendships that I had tended to neglect as I just didn't want to participate - I didn't want my friends to see how big I had got and that I was getting bigger every year. Now of course I can't wait for them to see how bloody fantastic I look! I think some friends find it surreal as I do too, as I have lots of comments about how I am almost unrecognisable (and I don't think they are just referring to appearance!) Anyway, it would be fantastic if you could make it down Kelli for our Sydney get together! Who else would like to meet up - the more the merrier!

Hi everyone - haven't been on for a while so just been catching up on all the postings A big welcome to all the newbies - you will find this thread fantastic - great people that will give you the support you need. For those of you that are interested my stats are as follows Start weight: 103kg Height: 167cm Op date: 18 July 2012 BMI: 33 (I think?) Surgeons Goal: 65kg My Own Goal: 68kg Current weight: 60kg and maintaining BMI: 23 Exercise: mmmmmm ... still trying to get to that! All my friends on here, that have been with me since I joined know that have been taking about this forevvvver! I am so happy I did this - I won't lie, in the beginning there was a lot of adjustment but you get better and better each day. Now I can eat anything I want but just small quantities - I feel completely normal and are always amazed at how much people can eat now too! I can fit size 8 bottoms and size 10-12 tops at the smallest but it depends on the style and shop! Like Kelli, it feels surreal and I have even had experiences of not finding clothes small enough! I really can't believe it! All welcome to our Sydney get together - place and time to be confirmed! Aussiegirl - What a shame you will be away when Liss is here! Vegas when you could be in Margaritaville with us! Kelli - can you make it to Sydney? All welcome

I live not far from Parramatta so can easily meet up with you there or could even meet up with you and we could travel into the city from there to meet up with everyone else - we could even catch the river cat which would be a nice trip for you down the river and then into the harbour!

I had always had issues pre sleeve and post sleeve it was worse. Nothing moves me other than osmolax - I will be taking it for life! i know everyone is different so just keep an eye on it.

Great work Misty - I have no doubt that you will make it into the healthy weight range no problem! Yes Aussiegirl I agree, it is often just subtle changes to your confidence that make you happy to put yourself out there. I have found that I want to go out more and things that were an effort for me are not such a mountain to climb - even simple things like driving across town to catch up with old friends. I never wanted to do that and I think it was because I didn't want them to see how much bigger I had got since that last time they saw me...now I just want to show off how much smaller I am! OMG - on a health note - I vomited the other day after eating a pear too fast.I think it was too fibrous for me so it just couldn't go down. Anyway, for the last two days after this episode I have found it difficult to eat - kind of a burning sensation when the food hit my stomach. I was really worried I had done some serous damage..anyway I seem to have come right. The moral of the story everyone is be very careful - here I am 14 months out and I can still make that mistake! I am still on Nexium and tried to go off it but it was just too uncomfortable so it looks like I am one of those people that will be on it for the rest of my life. A pity but not enough to ever make me have any regrets. I will also be on osmolax for the rest of my life too...opposite problem to what you have Misty. Other than that, all good here ...still maintaining at around 60 and eating what I like..except pears!!

I told everyone that would listen before and after - even shop assistants! I only had one negative reaction and the comment was they thought it was too drastic - I also had a phone call from one not so close friend which was a bit strange trying to talk me out of the surgery about a week before my op! However, like you, I was fully committed so nothing was going to change my mind - I knew I was doing the right thing for me! The first person has never commented on my weight loss so I get the impression that they think I did it the 'easy' way and didn't put the hard yards in! The other not so close friend did complement me - I think they were fearful of the operation not against what it was going to achieve. All other people were supportive as they could tell that this is what I wanted - I think everyone is bit scared for you regarding the surgery - hell I was nervous about that too! The sort of comments I got were - you are so brave and you are so determined and committed (if you can survive the pre-op diet then that is what I call commitment!). Anyway, here I am 15 months later sitting at around 60kg (goal was 65) and maintaining and happy as a pig in you know what....no one has told me that I did the wrong thing!

Hi ausmith - I think the best advice about preparation before and life after the sleeve is right here! (and of course, from your surgeon and dietitian!) I have received so much great advice and support from this thread that I don't think any book you read could replace that! Sending you all the best wishes for your journey!