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Hi kbel. I posted before and during pictures on August 6th and titled it 'OK, here goes...'. If you search that title you will see my post. The during pic is me 78 lbs. down. I hope to lose another 35-40. You look great by the way. What a difference!

Good post Loretta. This is a life change and the cheating only sets one up for failure. Regarding your calorie count and weight loss, 600 calories is low and your body might be in starvation mode. Just remember that these first weeks,, the goal is to heal and let the weight loss come later. Don't focus on the scale, just focus on getting over the trauma of the surgery. Good luck to you and Kiley.

Congrats and good luck. Are you doing a preop diet? if yes, you should check with the doctor to confirm the surgery is on so you can be compliant with pre surgical requirements

My doctor never said anything about how much she wanted me to lose as she explained that the diet was to shrink the liver, not shrink me. Having said that however, I still lost 17 lbs. on the preop diet just based on how restricted it was.

sorry to hear it did not go well Nailpro. The NUT at my doctor's office was pretty wothless also...and skinny. How can a skinny person understand, sympathize, empathize?? I got more info on this site than from her. I can tell you that she said basically to eat 3 oz. protein, 1/2 cup veggies and 1/4 cup carbs. I basically do that, track everything in the myfitnesspal ap (staying at around 1,000 daily calories) and it's working for me. I hope the other NUT helps you more than this one.

Good luck Red bird. You sound like you are ready and committed to this journey and I expect you will be very successful and find those goals you've written down will surely come true.

Sorry for the length of this post but this is really important for me. I don't want to say this is a NSV because it's more like a seismic shift in my perception and the reality of my new body. I was on the train last night heading home from work. Across from me was a rather large woman. There was an empty seat next to her..or should I say an empty 2/3rds of a seat. No one was in it for obvious reasons and I remember well no one sitting next to me either when I was much heavier. Well, a young man who looked like he probably played football for his high school team sat next to her and was sitting on the edge of the seat as he could not fit comfortably into it. I thought about it for a moment (would he be able to sit next to me any more comfortably?) and decided to give it a shot so I moved my workbag which was on the seat next to me and made a small motion to him to change seats. I tried to be very subtle about it as I did not want to make the woman feel bad but I truly felt for the young man. Well, he saw me move my bag and switched seats. He slipped into the seat with no issues and while we were close, no one was squeezing into the seat like he was doing next to the other lady. For me, this was a huge change in my thinking. First off, I got that someone could sit next to me comfortably, and second, it was confirmed as the young man didn't hesitate to move so it was pretty clear that he also felt that he could sit next to me comfortably. Now understand, this is not a knock against the other woman, this is about me...and seeing more and more how while I am still overweight, I'm slipping into normalcy in terms of how I see myself, and how others see me as well. I'm really starting to see myself as not the morbidly obese person I was before starting this journey. What a sense of discovery and wonder this is for me. It's so worth it and every time I think how much I want to eat something that has too many or empty calories, I think about what feels better...these types of observations, or a full belly. I think you all know what feels better to me.

LOL Terry! What I was getting at was that this kid was no slender running back...he was defense for sure...a big kid...and still I thought he might be OK sitting next to me.

Well first of all, that is a spectacular weight loss in just a little over a year. If this is your first plateau, you are way ahead of the game. I noticed you said that you don't take in the amount of calories you should. I know it sounds odd, but if you go up a bit on the calories and mix it up some, it can work to get the weight moving down again. Also...how much more do you need to lose? If you're a few pounds away from goal, those are the hardest to lose.

Oh boy do I love reading about NSVs. This is a great one and you should be so proud of yourself. Enjoy your shopping!

Just pay attention to the sodium levels. During preop and postop liquid phases, not so much of an issue but once you are on solids and eating 'normally', keep an eye on that kind of stuff. Sodium means water weight and that means the scale doesn't move like we want it to. I loved soup and now consume is sparingly for that reason.

I hope I did this right. If yes, pics of me at 267 lbs. and today at 189 lbs. Not done yet, but on my way.

Thanks everyone for the encouraging posts. Positive reinforcement is a truly wonderful thing. .

My primary care doctor wanted me to get a bypass. Same reason...the band doesn't work as well as bypass and I needed to lose about 120 lbs. Well...I made her eat her words and I'm down 78 lbs. in 7 months and expect to lose it all eventually. She said I was the only real success story with her banded patients and I think it's like alot of posters say...you get out of it what you put into it. It's not a easy fix and you have to work at it. The rewards however can be great. Take a look at my post I put up a little while ago...I put pictures of myself before and after up for the first time and you can see what 78 lbs. down really looks like.

yeah...lol. it was either my face or my body and I wanted to get the body in there to give the newbies some inspiration. Oh...and I see that I'll need to get rid of the 'turkey neck' for sure. Plastic surgery here I come...lol!!

thanks Shirley. No..no replacement yet. I see the surgeon on Monday and find out at that time when he'll do it. Hoping for as soon as possible now that I've lost enough weight to go ahead with it.

You are still very much a success my dear. Especially as you are looking to stop the slide now and not after you gained it all back. Good luck and know that we are all rooting for you.

Hi nursejen. take a breath and think for a minute how you will deal with plateaus and even weight gains. If this will discourage you, no need to broadcast it and make it worse. I see too many people on this forum focus on the scale and the number. If you can deal with it, great. If you think this tactic will keep you accountable, then go for it girl. Just remember it's only a number and there are so many other successes that have nothing to do with the scale. For me, there was nothing better than the first time in years that I could sit in a plane seat and not request the seatbelt extenter, and I could put the armrest and tray down without any issues. If I could have, I'd have told everyone on that darm plane about it, I was so excited. Don't get me wrong, do whatever works for you...just remember it's alot more than a number on the scale. Good luck and welcome to the forum.

super duper!!

Agree with Missy. Count your calories my dear. I use Myfitnesspal but there are plenty of other aps. I was horrified to find out how much sodium and sugar are in things like dressings and marinades and just how much caloires there are in even healthy foods. Check with your doctor for a daily caloire amount but so you know, I am almost always between 950 and 1,150 calories daily and have lost 78 lbs. in seven months.

Hi Cwal. I have not had any fills. I was banded mid January of this year, am down 78 lbs. and get hungry usually around 4 or 5 hours between meals. Band sized portions satisfy me almost all the time and the doctor does not feel that I need a fill nor do I. Believe me, if I was hungry and this was a real struggle, I'd get a fill or several fills as needed. If you are losing weight and not having an issue with hunger and overeating/grazing, you may be one of the lucky ones like me. Talk to the doctor but don't rush to get a fill if you really don't need one. Good luck next week and let us know what happens.

You can ask the doctor to explain it more thoroughly but what I can tell you is that the band interacts with the vagus nerve and that is what suppresses the hunger.

I agree 100% with you. I've said many times that this site has been a godsend to me. The advice and encouragment has made this journey so much easier because I feel as though I've got the support of so many people behind me. I was such a mess before being banded. I was terrified and worried and acting like a crazy person between starving to death and being off my pain meds, never mind what was coming after being banded. I imagined the worse... And that's why I'm on here and try to post as much as possible the positives to being banded and how it's changed my life. I hope to connect to folks the same way I felt connected when I was so afraid of what was going to happen to me. Just trying to pay it forward and so glad that this site helping you on your weight loss journey.

I find that I become aware of things after the fact...sort of like what PrettyThick posted. I'm very limited physically because I need a knee replacement but I can still notice how much easier it is to move around even while depending more on my upper body because my knee gives me so much trouble. I dream about being able to keep up with the grandkids all the time and after my surgery, and recuperation, I'm hoping it will all take place. Because of the physical limitations, it's the clothing that I notice. I posted earlier today that I just got into a size 16 pant size yesterday. When I started this journey I was wearing a 26/28. I'm actually thinking I might wind up in at 12 at the end of all this. That's almost more than I could hope for. As far as a grand unveiling....you will have it with folks who don't see you regularly. For those who do, it will be a constant stream of remarks concerning your shrinking size...especially as you wear clothes that fit you better. Most of us wear things that are way too big until we go down a couple of sizes so that also makes a big difference. Good luck!

Hi all. When I post my successes, I am hoping to inspire and have it not seem like I am bragging because I’m not. I just remember well what it feels like when just starting this journey…needing to lose so much weight, it seems like an impossible task. Also, not knowing what it will be like living with the band, and dealing with bumps in the road, plateaus, etc. can be very challenging. Seeing as how I’m not ‘finished’ with this journey, I thought my little success stories can help the newbies and for the vets, remind them of their goals and successes as well. So…this weekend, I was in the Pocono Mountains with my son and his family at their summer home. No Myfitnesspal readily available to track food/calories but 7 months out, I have a pretty good idea of what band sized portions are and what is good to eat and what should be avoided. I plugged in all my food today and per the ap, did just fine staying in the 1,000 or so calorie range. I am also learning to embrace good choices rather than mourn food that is not good for me anymore. We were at the mall on Saturday because it was raining and we figured we’d do some shopping for the girls for back to school. We went to the food court for lunch…they all had the Chinese food….General Tso chicken and lo mein. I made the choice to have a half a tuna sandwich from Subway. It was very good and I could walk away from lunch with my head high. What a great feeling. And then to top it off, while they were in the children’s department, I went into the women’s section and did a little looking. I found Alfred Dunner work slacks on sale….size 16 short. My size 20’s are pretty loose so I figured I’d see how close I was to fitting into them and if close enough, I’d buy a few pair since they were on sale. Well…..suffice to say that I’m wearing a pair right now as they fit just fine. Hooray! Now I just need to buy some blouses that fit because the 1X and 2X sized ones I currently own are definitely too big. What a thrill all this is for me and so worth it. Hope these kinds of everyday NSVs helps to inspire you good folks on this forum.