Sharpie

woo hoo girl... my bandaversery is tomorrow... I feel the same way as you.. I have lost almost 60 lbs and I am so happy and thankful that I made the decision to reverse my health... No more Diabetes, High Cholesterol or High Blood pressure.. Shopping is definitely a happier experience than before @ 200 lbs on a 5' body it was torture..Can't find petite XXL clothes very often.. I went to my Surgeon's office yesterday for a checkup.. I wore my "skinny" jeans and black boots . My Dr. gave me a huge hug and told me how proud he was of me and then showed the staff my "outfit"... When he looked at my bloodwork and saw how good it was he grinned really big and said I knew you could do it... It is a life changing event and like you I was petrified of what my future would be without food.. I am the head cook here on the farm and we have big dinners to Celebrate everything so I was scared I would not be able to do that anymore.. But you know what I am still cooking but just eating smaller... Great job Gowalking and I am so very proud of you...

I used to work in a office that celebrated everything with food.. I am happy that I work at home and I can kinda control that.. however, my husband is a huge junk eater.. he's rail thin too.. disgusting... anyway some people do that on purpose cause they want to see you fail.. it's a sabotage. I would stay out of the kitchen or bring some Protein bars and eat one so you won't be tempted.. I know during the Holidays I had to finally throw out Cookies, candy and cheesecake out of my house.. it's so hard to ignore it.. dont' get down on yourself you are human. Just remember the way you wan to look and feel is worth all the sacrifice.

Keep us posted on your cruise.. I am contemplating doing a Alaskan Cruise this year.. always wanted to go and my husband has finally agreed to go.. I am about 15 lbs from my goal and I wouldn't want to go crazy on a cruise and push my goal back..

No Matter what... We live in a very visual society... look at who we idolize. Movie Stars have to be perfect.. perfect bodies, perfect teeth, perfect hair.. even our political figures have to be good looking. I have owned my own business for many years and have had to meet with company buyers and Presidents. When I was younger and cuter I had more confidence and as I aged and got heavier I lost my confidence. It affects your ability to do your job sometimes.. There are all kinds of discriminations in the world, you can choose to not work for a company or you can choose to make the best of it. Sometimes the advantages outweight the disadvantages. As my Mother used to say "Is This the Hill you want to die on?".. In other words pick your battles carefully. Let's face it ,. we all want to look great and feel great. This is why I got my lapband.

Everyone of us has had that fear of failure.. After multiple attempts to lose weight and admitting defeat each time you become afraid to believe you can be successful... however, I do not regret my decision to have lapband... the first few weeks post op you think "why in the world did I do this?" but after you start feeling better and start eating some real food you realize how good you feel and will be thrilled everytime you reach a new goal... I have lost 55 lbs and have never felt better.. I am sure you will do great...

You will be fine.. first thing you need to do is relax.. sip water or liquids as often as you can.. take something for constipation. milk of mag or something.. that bloated feeling could be gas and or constipation.. don't overdo it.. if you have a physical job you might want to take a little more time off.. if not, just do what you have to.. it takes about a week or 10 days or so to feel pretty normal..I used a heating pad on my shoulder pain and rested as much as possible... Good Luck you will do great...Follow all of your Dr's instructions...

Bless your Heart... My Husband has lost two of his children.. There is nothing worse than to lose a child.. He also was diagnosed with Cancer after losing is son it was a double punch... The good news is, he survived and is living life day by day... You are ready to get your life back on track.. You will have good days and bad but remember that your Son would want his Mom to take care of herself first and foremost... You do not know what God has in store for you, be ready for the rest of your life and with a healthy new outlook.... I will keep you in my prayers and please reach out to any of us here.. We all have our own crosses to bear, none of us have a perfect life and the desire to get healthy can be your life saver.

I love Wendy's Chili.. that is one of the first things I ate when I was cleared to eat regular foods.. two things I eat from fast food restraunts.. Wendy's chili and Chicfilet Chicken Tortilla soup..both good protein, low cal .

I did curves years ago.. it is okay.. not sure how much of a workout you get it depends on your intensity... I hate the gym too and curves would be a good alternative... I get bored easily so after awhile I stopped going.. any exercise is good I am sure.. Walking , swimming or dancing are all good ways to get moving.. I recently started Zumba and it is not boring ..lol

My Surgeon is thin and hot... his staff are mostly normal weight.. one really tall and thin the nurse is a little chunky.. but none are obese..

very factual article...

Great job.. keep on working towards your goal.. I know I have had a bit of a stall due to holiday eating but I am determined to be at my goal in the next few months... I go to my Surgeon on Monday, doubt I need a fill but he can let me know.. Good Health and Happiness to everyone for 2014...

Carol, I live near Lake City.. had my surgery (Lapband) on Jan 15, 2013.. Dr. Sarantos in Gainesville is my surgeon.. There is a support group in Lake City, held at the Lake City Community Hospital the 2nd Monday of each Mo. @ 7 PM.. I hope you are still interested in meeting other people in our area... Let me know .. 386 984 5558. Mary Lou

I tried to go on Florida Bandsters awhile back but didn't have any response.. is there a secret? I don't live in Orlando but I am in North Florida...

nothing to be terrified about.. I was a little scared at the first fill but it's really no big deal.. my Surgeon numbs my port area, injects some saline , gives me some water to drink and if it goes down easily he is done... He is however very conservative, I have had 2 fills since my surgery Last January.. both were small .. I think I only have 1.5 cc's in my band..

Not sure if the same rules apply to Sleeve Patients Linda.. I know At week 3 I could have puree foods such as mashed potatoes, refried Beans, applesauce .. I was very careful with meat of any kind to make sure it was very tender and pureed.. We have a different set up than the sleeve patients because we have a small opening our food has to be very small . Experiencing swelling at this stage is still possible.. I know I couldn't eat my 1 cup of food for the first 6 weeks or so... But as usual follow the Dr's guidelines and check in with your Nutritionist..

What a great job... You are a inspiration...

I am almost 1 year post op.. I eat pretty much what I want.. smaller amounts and try to stay away from Pasta, potatoes and bread.. typical daily menu: Breakfast, 2 turkey sausage links, 1/2 cup eggbeaters (southwestern) sometimes a little cheddar cheese..1 piece of sara lee 45 calories all grain toast...lunch is usually chili, chicken salad or soup with wheat thins, sometimes applesauce or fruit if I have room.. dinner varies from meatballs, chicken thighs, salmon, or fish.. veggies .. I sometimes have a snack like a fat free pudding or sugar free yogurt bar (frozen).. I try to stay around 1100 to 1200 calories per day.. I track what I eat on my fitness pal.. for now it works.. I am never what i call hungry.. I drink 6 bottles of Water a day most of the time.. sometimes more.. I have had issues with chicken breast if I don't use a sauce or gravy.. it's just too dry.. I can eat steak if it's very tender and moist.. sometimes I splurge and if we eat out I get something different.. tonight we ate at Olive Garden I had 1/2 portion of eggplant parmesan.. I have the rest for lunch tomorrow.. did not eat the spaghetti.. had a little portion of salad.. no breadsticks.. I am very satisifed...it's way easier than being on some crazy diet. .. hope you find your way to healthy eating..

I am very happy that I am now off of my diabetic meds, high blood pressure and cholesterol too.. I am happy that I can wear normal clothes and shop with my girls without pooping out.. Happy that I can ride my horses and enjoy going out to dinner without panic setting in... I had the best Thanksgiving and Christmas I have had in many years.. did not worry or stress about how much weight I would gain and pretty much ate what I wanted .. Hope everyone is ready for another great year.

absolutely beautiful... I am sure you know that your story is very common in our group... I bet I have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on every weight loss program out there.. Jenny Craig, WW, Nutrisystem, HCG, even went to a Dr. who gave me B12 shots and speed... It's no wonder my metabolism was screwed up.. I finally had had enough and like you decided to stop that diet merry go around.. I am so very thankful I did and very thankful to have found lapbandtalk to give me some motivation and advice when needed. Keep up the good work and all I can say is you have taken 20 years off of your life..

I weigh myself everyday in the morning after I've been up a little while.. it keeps me focused on the day ahead and what I need to do... I'm not overly obsessed with it just think it keeps me on track.. I knew I had gained 2 lbs over the holidays because I weighed myself every day.. I cut back to my 1 cup at each meal and a lite snack .. no more sugar Cookies, chocolate covered peanutbutter balls, etc. soon it came off and I lost a bonus 1 lb. so here I am back to where I was before the holidays.. feel better and motivated to continue my journey.. But, not everyone can do the same.. If it really upsets you to weigh every day and you are obsessed with it, stop doing it... weigh once a week or once a month... my scale and my dr's scale are never the same so I expect to weigh more there... no big deal...

ewww the Boost are bad,, I recommend Muscle Milk or GNC's Lean Shakes.. either of them are just as nutritional if not more so than boost.. high protein, low sugar and low calorie...

Wonderful for you... 9 years is a long time and I love that you are healthy... That was and is my main goal.. at 67 I doubt I will be modeling swimsuits..lol but I can walk, ride my horse and wear normal clothes.. no more plus sizes for me... keep up the good work..

my first Holiday since being banded went okay.. other than evil Christmas Cookies finding their way into my mouth I ate fairly well. I had some days I was tired of all of the food. I gained 2 lbs then promptly lost them.. that in itself is a miracle for me.. I enjoyed this year so much more than previous years when I was miserable.. I even enjoyed shopping.. I also enjoyed being able to wear nice clothes to the different social events.. I always tried to hide my bigness with even bigger clothes and mostly black.. this year I wore skinny jeans with boots and red sweaters and dresses to church with high heels.. it was awesome... Hope everyone has a wonderful healthy and happy New Year...