nightingale2u

Bandit... My port site tend to get irritated once in awhile and so... occaisionally it will give me a spasm or two during a spirited romp in the hay... most of the time it just covers it's eyes until it's all over.

Awww Megan... I'm so sorry you are sick and had to go through all of that! There is absolutely nothing worse than the stomach flu! I'm glad you are feeling better and this makes me feel like calling my surgeon for a "just in case" supply of suppositories!

Before I was banded... I watched my sister go through the gastric bypass... I was highly irritated by the folks that wouldn't even aknowledge her weight-loss because she had bariatric surgery... as if it didn't count because she wasn't losing it "on her own". Well... news flash... if one is going to WW or Jenny Craig... or any program... they are getting tools to help them do it on their own... just like we are. I even heard titterings of... "she'll gain it back"... well... the person that said that was attending WW... lost a huge amount of weight and guess what... SHE did gain it back and my sister hasn't said one unkind word to her and she looks pretty darn fabulous in her silence.

I was just thinking how easy it is to lose sight of the joy of weight-loss in the midst of the battle to lose it. I don’t want to forget the elation … the joy that I felt as I put my size 24’s away. I don’t want to get so caught up in the battle that I forget to enjoy the potential for happiness in each stage of weight-loss. Wouldn’t it be a shame if in the Quest for a size 12 that size 16 was totally unappreciated? When I worked in an obgyn clinic… I would weight beautiful women of all different sizes… all day long. None of them were happy with their weight… none. I hope that we can all appreciate our individual beauty at every stage of weight-loss and that we can enjoy each and every minute of our journey. I’ve been obsessing about STILL being over 200 lbs instead of enjoying that I am ALMOST under 200 lbs… and it hit me like a ton of brick… Darcy… enjoy 201 just as if it were your ultimate goal instead of thinking night and day about 199. When I jump on the scale Tuesday at my annual/girl thang appointment … the nurse is going to think that I’m insane because I am going to be happy with my weight even if the numbers are still over 200 because I worked hard for those numbers!

Zoe... congratulations girl!!!! Focus on what you just lost... enjoy it... roll in it girl! Amoro... your body is healing and adjusting to a lot of changes... some do not lose any weight during the pre-fill stage so you are ahead of the game! Let your body heal... follow your doc's instructions... get the protein your body needs and the weight-loss will find you.

You pick up the phone and call somebody! Daydream about Mel Gibson? Ummm... let's see... post at LBT like crazy! Share that wisdom girl! As long as you have your mind and your imagination... you are never trapped.

Happy Birthday Miss Pretty Shelley!

Hiya Kimberly and Welcome! Congrats on your success with your band!

I guess food really isn't the enemy... the addiction is. We have to eat... and there isn't anything wrong with enjoying the wonderful sensation of taste and being full... it's the addiction that takes it so many steps past taste and satisfaction. I have to say that I feel I enjoy food and eating more now than I did before the banding. I can stop before the situation escalates into a place filled with guilt and self-loathing. I'm learning that it's okay to throw away food and that there will be many opportunities to eat... I don't have to shove it all in at one sitting.

My hubby has been reminding me how far I've come because I've been so down about where I think I should be... and then I read a post on another site that turned a little light on in my own head. Here was this vibrant... beautiful woman... she had lost so much weight and looked terrific but was so focused on her goal that the joy of what she had already accomplished was lost. I just made me sad and gave me a glimpse into a place that I don't want to visit. It is easy to think that losing the weight will make us all happy... but there are so many things that will make happiness a reality that are totally unrelated to the numbers on the scale. Look ate how lucky I am... I have met oodles of wonderful people on this journey... I can walk without my joints crying out and without stopping to catch my breath... I don't have to shop in the plus sized stores anymore... my husband can put his arms all of the way around me... I can take a bath without either side of my butt hitting the sides of the tub... I can laugh without leaking... I can wear my wedding ring... the list goes on and on... what's not to be happy about???

Greg... Congratulations for maintaining that weight that you worked so hard to get down to!!!! Well... I'm not in onederland... but I am down to 200 pounds. As y'all know... I have been obsessing over this matter and doggone it... no more! Hope everyone had a great week!

Nahhh.... the first consultation is free!

I'll wish you luck on this post too Rachel! You are going to love your new band! Be sure and let us know how everything goes once you are up to it post-op!

Wow... 20 minutes is an awfully long time... you really did feel bad! Glad you are up to par again!

Hi Rachel, Good Luck with your surgery! I know that I was concerned prior to surgery for the same reasons. I worried that my addiction would lead me to work around my band. There certainly have been times that I have been able to do so... but to a much smaller degree than before the band. All I can say is that when you have a good fill in your band... you have to stop in regards to regular food. I have learned not to keep any type of ice cream or candy in the house because they go down so nicely. I am addicted to certain foods... and if I encounter them outside my house... at least I eat it and then am done with it! If they are here... I'm not done with it until I cram every morsel in. I guess the difference is that it takes me much longer to get the bad stuff in? It works... even in the face of addiction. Miss Lisa... I think we have to thank food for getting your through a terrible childhood... even if it has caused harm in your adult years. I don' know how to leave these lifelong addictions behind... don't know how to unlearn... maybe learning new ways will lead us to leave the old ways behind? One day at a time... that's how we built these coping mechanisms... I guess we have to break them down the same way? Little by little I sure hope that we can retrain our brains so that it isn't so much of a fight! (((hugs)))

Ate it immediately... and loved it. I'm so glad you are keeping some things down!!!! Just keep sipping... veeerrrryyy slowly. Still sorry for all of the hardship... but thrilled that things are improving!

I don't feel a sensation in regards to my band... Like Miss Marie... I feel my port. First I thought it was neat that I could feel my my port... then it freaked me out a bit... now... it seems like it's always been there. After they did and upper GI I was amazed at the band snuggly around my stomach and that I had no sensation of it being there.

Jonathan... I'm so damned sorry this is happening to you... I can only imagine your misery. It really sounds like you may have to give in for the hospitalization... it is concerning that there has been zero improvement. I hope somebody out there will burst out with a story of... "yeah... the exact same thing happened to me"... until then... so glad you are married to a nurse and hope you can escape another hospitalization.

Jack... I got very clear warnings prior to my first fill... and the warnings just became a lot more subtle after my fills. Now... if I ignore that warning... I have pain in the chest and between the shoulder blades like Teresa... sliming... and a whole lotta belching! I usually have to walk it off... and I can't continue with my meal once that happens... zip... nada... nil. I don't know why I ignore the warning sometimes... I guess my head is hungrier than my good sense! I am always very cautious after a fill until I can gauge the restriction level. You are going to do just fine with your band and it sounds like you are really taking the time to experiment carefully with different foods.

Babs... that is absolutely fantastic! WOW!!!! Congratulations!!!!!!!!

Yikes!!! I hope you find a doctor that you can trust and good luck whether you decide to have your band placed properly or not. Yikes...

Bright... I think that more and more people are fighting this fight... and one day they won't be able to catagorize us so easily. Somehow we all seem to believe that we deserve to be obese... and we are ashamed to tell people that we are seeking a tool to help... well I'm with ya Bright! I would sing from the rooftops about my band and about how the world looks upon people suffering from obesity!

Blossom... Lisa... I still eat until I take it one bite too far... once in awhile I will stop myself but not often! I think that is why I am looking forward to the fill tomorrow... most times I can eat a very healthy portion of food and I stuff it in until I am miserable and walking around belching and praying it will go down without much of a fight. Lisa... something is totally misfreaking wired in my brain... it seems to think that hungry is simply not having the sensation of being stuffed. I have been struggling with gains... then losses... then gains... then losses... but at least I end up on the positive end of the losses as time passes. I'm tired of struggling so much and even though I don't want to give up being able to eat larger portions I know a fill will help with the struggle. I just hope that time will retrain my brain. Miss Betty... carbs are evil... but somehow I know I will always struggle to keep them to a minimum in my life. I try to keep them out of my house and go to McDonalds for a cone when the cravings are too horrible to ignore. Ice Cream is not allowed in our freezer... not even the low carb or frozen yogurt because it is a trigger food for me. I do know that if I stick to Protein... even if I overeat... I still lose weight. I have to go walk... for Miss Becky. :clap:

Absolutely girlfriend! I'll never forget turning in my food diaries and then being told... well... you eat too often and too large of quantities... DUH... so... we'll need 4 more weeks of diaries proving that you can follow a post-banding diet before we'll even make an appointment with the surgeon. Well... I jumped through all of the humiliating hoops... but I still yearn to change the process that most have to endure in order to prove themselves worthy of bariatric surgery.

Okay... he's a keeper for sure!!!!! Congrats and thanks for sharing a picture of your new little cutie pie!