Kelli1016

Sept 16th here!

Congrats!!! I'm on the 16th. I had nerves the day everything became official (insurance approved) and have been OK since. I have my pre-op class on Friday and meet with the doc next week. I am wondering if nerves are going to creep in then. Haha. It will be good to "know" someone who's basically at the same point in their journey. Good luck, girl!

Congrats! I think the thing I noticed the most is your smile in the after photos. Great job. I wish you continued success.

AH HA!!! NEON TREES..... Everybody talks. Man that was driving me bananas since I posted earlier. Ha ha.

Of course it really depends on your musical tastes.... but most songs by Michael Jackson get me moving. Eminem's Lose Yourself... Survivor is good for Eye of the Tiger but High on You is good, too. Journey... and there is one song that I cannot think of for the life of me right now. I'm going to have to look it up and come back. LOL

My doctors office wouldn't give a surgery date before you hit the pre-op weight loss. It's hard. I struggled with my last 5lbs for a couple weeks -- which was super frustrating. But you CAN do it! Best of luck!!! :-)

If there is one negative about that fact that my surgery is in two weeks, it's that I just found the CUTEST outfit for an event at the end of October and I can't buy it! I have NO IDEA what size I'll be in. On that same subject, I suppose I can look forward to a new wardrobe when I reach my goals!!!

I hope you heal, quickly, Janiece!

Thanks, ladies! My husband is going through the clothing problems now. He got a pair of shorts about a month ago that were tight on him (just fit but slightly snug) and now he's pulling them off and on with out buttoning. Agreed, it's a good problem to have. Hopefully, I'll have some weight off and find the outfit closer to the date! Good Will is going to be getting a lot of clothes from this house.

Does your doctors office offer any type of support or classes? I am pre-band as well but I am starting a class next week called, "The Hungry Head" that is aimed to help with the addiction we all face. Try to keep a postive outlook. You may have "failed" (tho, I wouldn't even use this word) this once but that does not mean you are a failure. In fact, you're just starting out. Get support, where ever that may be and believe that you CAN do this! There is power in positive thinking... "I think I can, I think I can". I always say, "If you think you cannot do something, you're right". You have to believe in yourself, first. I know it is hard and frustrating at times. Everyone has struggles and set backs but those do not define us or our ability to succeed and overcome our food addictions. The advice I have for you is to take it one day at a time, one meal at a time. Remember, just because you over eat at Breakfast doesn't mean the whole day is wasted. (I used to think like that!) Chin up. Believe in yourself. You've got this!

It's good. I hit my pre-op weight loss goal a few weeks back. I see the doctor next week (I think, don't have my calendar in front of me, lol) and I'm guessing she's going to put me on a liquid or reduced diet until my sugery date...woop woop! Those'll be some good times. Ha ha. I haven't gained any but I haven't lost any more either (well, I've been teetering by about 3lbs). I've kind done OK with the plan they gave me but I do need to ramp up my exercise. Does your doc or center have you on a specific diet?

A couple weeks ago, I hit my pre-op weightloss goal and recived my sugery date with the understanding that it was pending insurance approval. As of today, I had not heard from the center or my insurance company. One phone call later and I was informed that not only am I approved by insurance but that I'm the first on the list for my surgeon. Um, this just got real and I think I may have wet my pants a little. LOL Excited. Nervous. Butterflies everytime I think about it.

Not really too close, but I am Sept 16th. Excited and nervous as heck!! Good luck!!

My Mom is someone who typically doesn't compliment or comment on weight loss. She once told me that it is because she doesn't want to cause the person to stop doing what they are doing. For her, when she would lose weight and start getting compliments, it was a trigger to say "Hey, I look good maybe I can have that food I shouldn't eat" and it would halt the process. So, she would never comment or compliment even me when I would be losing weight for fear of having a negative impact on the person. The other issue could be plain and simple jealousy, as the others have pointed out. If she's jealous that you're losing the weight and she's not then she may be unable to be happy for you or compliment you on your successes. Either way, I'm sure the reason she didn't mention it is more to do with her own demons than anything to do with you. Try to focus on yourself and your success. You know what you've been doing. You know all the hard work. That is the part that matters. Good luck.

I am sure that the subject of this blog sounds funny. Yes, I have made the decision to get banded. I have been in the program for about 4 months now. I have my surgery date but even now, as I type this, I am still having a hard time accepting my decision. Let me explain. I grew up fat. I was a fat kid, I was a fat teenager and I am now a fat adult. If you had talked to me about the word fat maybe 15-20 years ago, I would have been super offended. Now, it’s just a word. Yes, I am fat. In my childhood and teenage years, I was your “typical” fat kid. I was offended by the word fat that I was constantly called. I was always self-conscious and picked on for my weight. I was ashamed. I can recall a time in 7th grade when a class mate complimented me on my jeans. I was questioning why she was even talking to me since she and I were in completely different cliques – she was one of the “cool kids” while I was the new girl – or better yet, the fat new girl – at the school. Alas, when she asked me where I got my “so cute” jeans (and they were) I replied, “Sixteen Plus”. The next thing I heard were snickers and laughs because I was clearly shopping in a store for “plus sized” people. From that moment on, I vowed NEVER to mention store names again. I would shop at stores that had both junior and plus sizes so I never had to bear that “shame” again. This is how much of my adolescence and teenaged years were. Never had a boyfriend – sure, I had plenty boy friends but never a “boyfriend”. I had one such friend who, when we were alone, would confide in me and once even told me he loved me (oh, middle school love…LOL) but would not be seen talking to me in school. High school and college were filled with more of the same. Boy friends – some of whom I liked more than a friend but I would NEVER tell them because they would NEVER “like” the chubby chick as more than just a friend. Enter my early 20’s: I’m not sure when the realization came but I found myself developing a confidence that I had never had before. I had never considered myself ugly, after all I’ve been told “You have such a pretty face” for so long that I knew that if I weren’t fat, I’d be “so pretty”. (That is another blog post in itself.) However, I was dressing better. I was putting more effort in to my appearance. I was deciding that I was worth something. I was approached by a male colleague (whom had no romantic interest) who handed me a newspaper article on plus sized modeling. He suggested it was something I look into. He told me that I was a beautiful girl and should really give it some thought. I was BESIDE myself. A compliment without the caveat that all I had going for me was my “pretty face”. As the time went on, my confidence improved. I began to get attention from the opposite sex. I was complimented and asked on dates, left and right – granted some of these dudes were on the sketchy side – but when a random stranger tells you that you are the most beautiful woman he’s ever seen in his life, it’s always nice no matter what. My dating life ramped up and I found myself eventually in relationships with people who were attracted to me – fat and all. It was then, that I decided to take back the word fat in my life. I was no longer going to look at it as a bad word. Yes, I was fat. So, what?!? I was otherwise healthy and happy. Things were going in the right direction for my life. I accepted myself. I would proudly admit that I bought my “so cute” shirt or pants at Lane Bryant or Fashion Bug Plus! Yep, that’s where I shop and I love my clothes. Yes, I am fat but that’s OK with me. Here I am, a confident fat woman. Take that, society!!! Over the years, I have maintained that attitude. Of course, I have areas of my body that I hate – boobs are for the chest, not the back! LOL But, I always looked at it as I have the ability to change the things about my body that I hate, if I put my mind to it. Enter the current time. I am still that confident woman who accepts the word fat. However, about 3 years ago, I was officially diagnosed with diabetes. Unfortunately, I am all too familiar with this wretched disease as my family is laden with it. I have watched it reach havoc on my Mom as she has had many years where she did not properly take care of herself and this disease. I have done well over the years keeping my diabetes at bay. My A1C is almost always good. Unfortunately, this success comes with medications that I hate and the knowledge that it is only a matter of time before this disease will reap havoc on me, if I do not get rid of it once and for all. The only sure-fire way for me to do that is to get myself to a healthy weight. My husband and I have been married for 5 years this October. It was when he underwent his lap band surgery last year that I began thinking about having the surgery myself. He’s had amazing success that he has worked very hard for. I feel that with him at my side, I can have a similar success. However, I can’t get past the feeling that I am going against “my morals” with this surgery. I feel like I’m taking all that confidence that I worked very hard at and saying “society wins”. It’s silly, I know, because I know I’m not doing this to be skinny – I’m doing this to be healthy. I just still feel like I’m doing something wrong. I have been SUPER hesitant to tell anyone about this choice. Any one I have told has been supportive but I am still uneasy. I don’t know why….. If you have managed to stay with me and read all this, thank you. I know this is super long – especially for my first blog post to the site.

Thank you, all, for the feedback! It's good to see that others can relate. You've all given me some good advice and things to think about. I appreciate it. @Dylan -- No. I never did the modelling. Also, Jim (my husband) has been amazingly supportive through all of this. We have done most of the classes together. At our center, the band is not popular (we call it the "red-headed step child") and where he was post-op, he was able to speak to the band and his success.