gowalking

My freezer looks just like yours. I've been doing the same thing almost since I've been banded and it also keeps me from overeating or being impulsive.

Great post. We have to remember that we didn't put it on overnight and it won't come off that way either.

Keeping you and Dave in my thoughts and sending hugs your way.

Consider tracking your food intake on Myfitnesspal or something like it. I found it invaluable for tracking calories and keeping me focused.

When I was in plus sizes, everything was waaay too long. Why does the fashion industry think that bigger means taller? What I wouldn't have given to find plus size petites....

I don't 'like' this post...I love it. Beautiful...just beautiful. And so are you.

I portion out my food at home even if one piece of fish becomes three meals. As for dinner out...I either bring it home or I try to share small plates with whomever I am with. If necessary, I leave it over and it gets thrown away. I remind myself that it's better to waste the money for food rather than eat what's left over and have to spend money on larger size clothes. I see it as a trade-off and that helps me to be OK with leaving it over and knowing it's going into the garbage.

Speaking of flying comfortably, I'm heading to London in July and will meet up with my sister who will be there for business. We'll spend some days together exploring the city and I'll also be on my own for a few days while she is involved in her meetings. While checking prices of plane tickets, sis mentioned that I should have no problem being in coach as I'm small enough now to fly comfortably even if I wound up in a center seat. That got me thinking about how uncomfortable it used to be as @@briefs199 noted and how much better it is now that I'm small. I can bend over to get something out of my bag or if something falls on the floor. I can cross my legs or stretch them out a bit..I can keep the tray open if I want....and yes, the seat belt always closes and I don't have to ask for an extender anymore. Isn't it wonderful to fit wherever we want and not worry we'll spill over or not have enough room?

I didn't want my weight to impact who was checking me out (NOT interested in chubby chasers) so I waited till I was happy with my size before going online. Might I suggest if you are not ready to jump into the datiing pool but still want friends and support...look for weight loss support groups in your area. Ask if the hospital hosts any groups, or your bariatric doctor. Even Weight Watchers or OA has support groups. This way, you find people who are like minded and it's a way to socialize without necessarily dating yet.

Look for a lingerie shop with bra fitters. Yes...the bras are expensive, but they will help you find what looks best on you. My breasts are just shriveled lumps of flesh at this point and I needed help desperately. I was fitted with a style and size I never tried before and at least with clothes on, My breasts are where they belong and with a nice shape not just in the bust but the whole chest and waist area as well.

The best way I can put it @ is to describe it as a combination of physical and emotional factors. You still need to make good food choices but when the body physically cannot take the same amount of food in, it is usually easier to make those good choices. For instance, I ordered a meal from Applebees yesterday. Sure, I would have loved to have eaten the Pasta dish that probably was in excess of 1,000 calories and God know how much sodium, but I went to the low calorie menu instead and had the Asian Shrimp Salad. I then chose to use the dressing sparingly rather than dump a ton of it on top of the salad. Then..I paid close attention to the feeling of satiety that you will need to recognize. Once I felt 'not hungry', I stopped eating. I did not finish my meal as I know I would have felt sick or at least uncomfortable if I had eaten more. And...the salad was pretty good as well. You learn to appreciate healthier meals...you really do. And when I woke up this morning...no guilt...no self hatred, no disappointment, no depression. Just another day with this wonderfully active body I have again. I understand where you are coming from. I expected to fail at this as I had failed at every other weight loss attempt. This time I have not failed. The weight has come off and now I'm working on maintenance. I'll be on these boards to be there to help others so check in with me as year after year goes by and I maintain my weight. I just know now that it will be different. I'm betting it will be for you too.

I was maybe six months away from going into a wheelchair when I got banded. My life was miserable due to the pain and loss of mobility. I was as frightened as you were in the beginning but I did what I had to and 2 1/2 years later, I've gotten a new lease on life. I can do almost anything an able bodied person can do. I went on a date Sunday and we walked in the park. That's two amazing things that have happened to me...first that I can walk and second that I am dating. The point is that your life will improve in ways you can't even imagine. I used this site and the folks here as my support and they have never let me down. I stay here to encourage other newbies like yourself who are also scared and in pain. You can have a wonderful quality of life...it's there just a little out of your reach...but it's there. I promise. Good luck, keep us posted. Go to that seminar on Saturday..put one foot in front of the other and keep your eye on the prize.

It's always been about the food for most of us. Just wait till you realize that food is secondary compared to all you gain or get back in your life when the weight comes off. Just a short list below of my gains since losing all that weight. After you read it, you'll realize how unimportant eating pizza and drinking beer is. Throw away the cane or overeat? Walk without pain or overeat? No diabetes or overeat? No high blood pressure or overeat? Minimal knee pain or overeat and get both knees replaced? Wear pretty clothes or overeat? Feel like a desirable woman again or overeat? Swim laps for an hour or overeat? Fit in a plane seat without a belt extender or overeat? Fit in a restaurant booth or overeat? Allow myself to be in photos again or overeat? Not hear nasty things said about my size or overeat? Not feel bad about myself or overeat? Shall I go on? I think you get where I'm going with this, right?

Plenty of folks following this thread and keeping you and your hubby in our thoughts. Wishing you only good news and that this scary and difficult time becomes a thing of the past as soon as possible.

I would have to say 70% is the band and the rest is me. Doesn't mean I have only a little to do with it..I just mean that with the feeling of satiety that the band provides, it's so much easier to stay on track and make good choices. I tried to lose weight for a year prior to deciding to be banded and I struggled that whole year keeping to small portions and better choices and only managed to lose 25 lbs. I lost 100 lbs. the first year I was banded. And that was because I was able to stick with a food plan of around 1,000 calories a day. It's not a magic wand though. On the days where you are battling head hunger, it's a good reminder of why it's so hard to lose weight without surgical intervention.

The biggest reward(s) was just to treat myself with self-respect. I learned to take care of myself and that meant anything from a personal trainer to help me with core strengthening/weight training/balance to things like buying not just pretty clothes, but finally buying better clothes. There's nothing wrong with buying less expensive when you are going down in sizes or if you are just unable to spend the money but if you are in a position to do so, start buying designer clothes for work and play. No question, a Ralph Lauren dress fits and feels different than something bought at Kohl's or Walmart. It just does..and I'm worth it. I also have makeup overflowing..probably a dozen or more tubes of lipstick alone. I go for massages and manicures and pedicures because I now live the well known line 'woman, thy name is vanity'. I feel pretty again and I want to look pretty because I'm worth it. I buy all kinds of accessories as well. I have quite a bit of fashion jewelry so that I can mix and match my real stuff with the less expensive stuff and it feels like I'm wearing a new outfit even if it's just new jewelry and a new purse and/or shoes. Yes...I went from one black and one brown pocketbook to now owning nearly a dozen bags in different colors and styles/sizes. Excessive? Maybe. But I'm worth it. And I also have lots of shoes as well. Again..I'm worth it. Unfortunately, I didn't know how often I would have to buy new shoes...my shoe size went from 8 1/2 wide to 7 regular..but that's another thread..lol. I've been living a ghost life for such a long time..hiding behind my size and trying not to be noticed. Now I want to be noticed. I'm not saying I feel entitled..but I am saying over and over...I am worth it. I have value and I deserve to take care of myself. So do all of you.

The doctors push the sleeve because there's alot less follow up. Easier money for them. Never forget that medicine is also a business.

Just like me, you are a not even a shadow of your former self...you are completely different from the outside and no matter what others say, this type of transformation has to impact the inner person as well. It has for me...and I can understand how it has for you. I was always the happy fat girl laughing at my size to lessen the impact of the hurtful things that I'd hear..even when not meant to hurt. I have some very close friends who have told me that I got attention for my size in a very negative way even if I wasn't aware of it. I'm sure I was stared at and I'm sure no one wanted to see me try to sit near them for fear of loss of personal space. I no longer feel that I'm trapped by my size, nor do I take up more space than I should these days. I don't think about my size all the time anymore in terms of will/if I can fit somewhere. How wonderful to feel that I fit in the world now rather than take up too much of it. I know I've already posted on here but this topic resonates so much with me that I am compelled to write again. This is a journey...a transformation. Both inside and out. Even if we are not aware of it, we are changing everything about our lives whether it's small things or huge life changing things.

How sweet of you to say @sharonintx. Thank you.

Here's the best part of this...I have no guilty pleasures. I eat anything I want. I just do it sparingly and in doing that, without the guilt. For me, the guilt was always the amount I ate...or that I was the fat woman with Ring Dings, chips, and soda in her shopping cart. Life is so much better this way with a cart full of lean Protein, veggies, good carbs...and a few treats like thin pretzels, SF jello/pudding, and unsalted nuts.

A friend of mine suggested I try hypnotizing myself to just 'think' I was banded. I knew it wouldn't work for me...I'm just way too cynical to believe that a hypnotic suggestion will work as well as the band itself. Except....I didn't think the band would work either. It has so sometimes I do wonder if hypnosis might have worked as well. Hmmm...?

What you said...except I never considered any other type of WLS. I wanted nothing permanent done to my insides. This is typically the reason given for choosing the band over another type of procedure.

Yes...the pre-op diet is awful. I had a full out melt-down when I was on it so I totally understand. Between the hunger, fear of surgery, detoxing, etc. it really is the worst part of this I think. But...just wait till you start to transform. Oh my...you will look back on this time as a short but necessary evil and thank your lucky stars that you got through it and knew it was the beginning of a wonderful journey to better health. Good luck and hang in there!

Hi Shel. How're you doing hon? Have your band issues settled down some?

I took another big step a few days ago. I wore a bathing suit that did not have a skirt. I have very wrinkled upper legs and thighs and usually look for a skirt to cover what I can. I couldn't find a suit I liked with a skirt this time around though I did find some very nice one piece tank style suits. I look fine in one except for the legs. My tummy doesn't pouf out like it used to, nor does my behind so I put it on and had my mom give me her opinion and she said that I'm way more aware of the loose skin than anyone else would be and that I shouldn't worry about my legs. So, I wore it to the pool when I was in Florida last week. I tried to not think about it and just to go about my business but I can tell you that I felt so much lighter in the Water without the skirt material swirling around. I will just have to try to not be so critical of myself and enjoy the accomplishments I've made rather than focusing on what I can't change at the moment...or perhaps ever.