susannah

Hi and welcome, I am getting banded in 5 days time, and I share many of the same fears as you. I am sure all will be well though. Audree 17 pounds lost!!!! Good on ya! That is tops.:biggrin1: Susannah

Hi Jessica, I am feeling a little scared of plastic surgery, as the leading story in my local paper was the death last monday of a 26 year old woman after liposuction at an asthetic beauty centre. She had fat removed from her thighs and buttocks on the friday and was dead on the monday. She was beautiful and young. It is such a horrible tragedy.:scared: Susannah

Hi, Hey thanks Tracy for the compliment. I am day 17 on the liquid diet and I have not cheated once, or eaten anything that I should not have on The Optifast program. I am determined to walk the path that others have successfully done before me. I want to be able to say '' I did it, I can control myself and be disciplined from here forwards''. I am fast closing in on that goal. Susannah

Hi there, I would never allow anyone other than my medical surgeon to move my port once I am banded. Have to be frank here. Susannah

Hi Everyone, Thanks Meredith and Swan for all your hospital tips. They will be put to good use. I will be recovering up at my sister's house in Castlemaine for two weeks. My sister has eight year old twin boys who have a lot of energy and full of life. They often jump on me and hug me, something that will have to be curtailed for a few weeks post surgery. The hugs are ok though. Meredith you must be so excited about your wedding. You are not a bridezilla though I hope!:biggrin1: Bronnie get as many hot cross buns down your neck while you can!:scared: I am day 17 on the liquid diet and I have not cheated or eaten a single thing that I should not have. Hope my surgeon will be pleased with my efforts. Susannah

Hi All, Hey Veronica I like your name, that is also my mother's name. Yes I really like Walk away the pounds. Nobody should knock Richard Simmons because he has done so much for people struggling with their weight. If he was British the queen would have knighted him by now. Sir Dick!!!! lol!!! Feel the burn girls!:biggrin1: Susannah

Please don't spruik your travel information here. Nearly two hundred Australians went to Bali in October 2002 and were murdered. Sorry but Bali is no fantasy destination for me. Susannah

Hey Babygrl, Thanks mate. You can do this. Strangely enough in the second week I kind of lost the desire to eat. True! Eyes on the prize. Susannah

Hi, I just wanted to let everybody know, having acknowledged it to myself that I am a food addict. There is no other way to put it. I have done really well during the Optifast phase and have lost more weight this week, but I will battle this addiction always. I plan to go to Overeaters anonymous once a week to work on my head hunger issues. Susannah

Hi All, I will echo what others have said everybody is welcome on the Melbourne chat thead! I am so glad that I am not a drinker. I could count on one hand the number of drinks I have in a year, and then they are only pushed into my hand by others at parties etc. Susannah

Hey All, I am now day 16 of a 21 day liquid diet. I found taking bubble baths, doing crosswords, going through your old music collection and listening to it while doing really bad karaoke took my mind off food. Keep really busy, that's the ticket. I am getting banded next friday!:biggrin1: Wowie zowie. Susannah

Gday All, Welcome Chris. I am getting banded next friday, so like you I am going to be an Avenue bandster. As for food I really don't eat much red meat, I prefer chicken. Being a jew I also do not eat pork. I am not religious though, as here I am on the internet on shabbat! I have also been reading the boards at Ozband for ages, but I don't like the layout of the threads,posts etc. The layout here is much more user friendly. Meredith and others, any tips on what to take to hospital? I will pack my bag in the next few days. Do you wear a hospital gown after the surgery? Can you wear your own nightie? Etc Etc. Thanks. Bronnie you will be giving others tips pretty soon on what to take to hospital. Tangle check out www.nealslapband.com click on the icon that says '' Watch Lap band procedure'' Follow the links to Brigham and women's hospital site. Cheers. Susannah

Hey girls, Are we ever gonna have a guy chatting here? :biggrin1: I just watched a streamed webcast of a lapband surgery. It was suprisingly easy to watch, very little bleeding,done very efficiently. I am the girl that always covers her eyes when RPA is on telly, but I watched this easily. As for pizza, I thought as you couldn't stomach bread,that pizza would be out. I am a bit of a virgin to all this.:biggrin1: This time next week I will be in bandland. Susannah

Hi Diane, I have done the one mile, of the ''walking off the pounds''. It was good. My sister Rebecca said that she loves doing the 2 mile one also. It is good and managable. Jacqui, you are a machine mate! New york marathon for you next? :biggrin1: Susannah

Hi Meredith, I didn't think you could still eat pizza after being banded? Doesn't it get doughy going down? Susannah

Hey, I am getting banded for all of the same reasons as others have stated. I know that Lap banding has been performed in Australia since the early 90's and that we are world leaders in all things lapband,along with the Europeans. I was not aware that RNY surgery had ceased here. I thought that they still offered it at The Epworth Hospital. www.obesity.com.au At any rate it would be performed rarely here,as banding is definately the preference in Australia. Good luck with your decision. Susannah

Gday Fee and All, Today was warm, perfect weather. I was feeling good today so I walked from my place in Caulfield to Starbucks in Malvern. That is the next suburb over from where I am. I was fanging for a decaf.:biggrin1: When the Optifast period is over I can have regular coffee again. Sip,sip,sip, not gulp ey girls?!!! I was thinking today that I need to exercise and be as active as I can, given my health, to earn the right to sit at my computer at night. I will get there. Fee, maybe plastic surgery could address the concerns you have about the loose skin. Susannah

Hi Fee, I will get a better photo and put it up as my avatar. For now just call me Pebbles.:biggrin1: Susannah

Hey, this is the worst photo of me! My left eye looks like it is closed. I actually have big eyes that are not squished like that. Something happened to the photo when it was being downloaded. Will try to get a better one. Susie

Hi Girls, 94 kgs Meredith good on ya ducky!!!!:biggrin1: I can understand what everybody is saying regarding setting weight goals. Things are a bit more complicated for me though having disease in my nervous system. Some days I am perfectly well and other days my legs are so stiff that I stumble around my home. Ms is a bizarre illness. Getting down to a size 16 will be a major victory for me. I don't nessessarily buy the whole BMI thing at that weight to be honest. Certainly my current weight endangers my health, and I will pull out all the stops to reduce it after the banding. I don't drink, smoke or touch drugs, so I could live a healthy happy life at size 16. I am not going to get into a self hating mentality. I plan to do some ''head work'' to help me to identify and stop overeating. I am doing the best that I can, and thats all I can do. Susannah

Hi J, Don't be so hard on yourself. Rome wasn't built in a day. It takes time to change habits of a lifetime. Every marathon starts with small steps. I am on three weeks of Optifast pre surgery. The first week is hard, then your body adapts to it. Hang in there. Susannah

Gday Baby, I am not really excited, but more nervous to be honest. I will feel a bit more relieved when it is all over and I have recovered from it. One week to go. Susannah

Hey girls, I reckon life is too short to get really steamed about things to be honest. I am not going to twist myself up into knots. For what? I reckon anger and bitterness is like a cancer. That doesn't mean that some people don't get on my t**s, I just let it wash over me.:mad: Susannah

Gday Babygrl, believe me it does get easier, and your body becomes used to it more each day. I may have an advantage here as it is summer and the weather is hot. I always eat less and lighter in summer. Keep at it, the time will pass. Susannah

Hey, Bronni I am 166 cms tall. Did you read my last post? Terrible punctuation etc. I am not really having too many cognitive problems with this illness, but at times my words get a bit jumbled and disordered. They never used to. Susannah