Wenjea

Yippee! I hit the 50 pounds gone for good this morning!!!! It feels great!!! I am only 6 pounds from my first goal which was to hit the halfway mark and within 8 pounds of my second goal which was to weigh less then my husband. Setting small goals like this really keep you motivated cuz you can see the results. I saw the orthopedic shoulder specialist today and he said I had two things going on that weren't good. First the tendonitis is still swollen and has caused my shoulder to freeze up. Second, I have a large Calcium deposit that they might have to remove and it will leave a large hole in my rotator cuff so they will have to repair that also. We are going to try some non-surgical things first to break up the calcium. So they shot my very sore arm with a very large needle of novicane, cortizone, and steroids. Then I went to Physical therapy and had electrical currents ran through the muscles. Is this sounding fun yet? I still can't lift it on my own but the pain is a lot less.

Hi there! I'm actually typing with both hands now. As long as I don't move my elbow away from my side it doesn't hurt much. I went to see the PT yesterday and she has me doing exercises for my shoulder. I see the shoulder guy doctor man on Thursday morning to make sure nothing to serious is going on. The pain is much better now as long as I don't lift my elbow away from my body. I slept through the whole night last night which was a first. I need to start walking again also so please someone, kick me in the behind!

I was off line for a few days letting my shoulder heal and it took me forever to catch up on all of you and all your writings. My shoulder is improving a little bit each day. The PT has me doing exercises with it to keep it from freezing up. I see the shoulder specialists tomorrow so I'm hoping for some pain relief in shot form. I broke into a new decade, love to see those "9" numbers. I'm getting close to my halfway mark but it is going slowly. My plan was to start back to the gym next week when my kids went to school but my shoulder has set me back a few weeks so it's back to walking only. With all that talk about hair falling out I started to pay attention to mine and noticed that it was shedding also. I drink protein shakes every day and take my vitamins so I think it just happens to everyone to some extent. I have days where my port will be sore still. I'm not sure why. I have been sliming and PBing alot more since my last fill. I have gone back to mushys and very soft foods especially in the morning and for lunch. I have to eat really small bits of meat at a time to keep it down. I have to pay for fills now so even though I'm scheduled for another one in October I am going to wait till then to decide if I really need one or not. When my weight loss slows or stalls or even bounces back up I find that it is usually because I am not eating enough calories and my body is going into starvation mode. I start eating more healthy foods and I start to drop again. Good luck Everyone! You all are doing so great and if I could figure out how I would show you my before and now pics, even if I am only in my underwear.

I spent the morning at the hospital emergency room in a great amount of shoulder pain. It's seems I pulled a major tendon in all the packing and loading of the moving truck Wednesday. After two sleepless nights I went in at 5am this morning. I am now sporting a sling for a week and pain meds and muscle relaxers. If it is still painful on Monday they will give me a cortizone shot in it. What we do for our kids! My blood pressure was way up from being in pain. Have you ever heard of that? Macysgranny - way to go on your weight loss, you must be doing everything right!

Dawneb- congratulations on onederland! I've got to get off this plateau and start moving again in that direction. I spent my morning at the hospital emergency room. Seems I pulled the tendon on my right shoulder moving all that heavy furniture and boxes for my son. My arm is in a sling and I'm on pain meds and muscle relaxers. If it's not calmed downed in a few days then they will shoot it with cortizone. This is hard to type one handed with the left hand!

Pancakes are tough to get down which is surprising because they are so soft and mushy but they plug me every time. Watermelon is always getting stuck also . . . what's up with that!

Melissa - I'm glad your daughter is back but am a little sad today because i sent my son off across the country in a moving truck with his new wife. I totally held it together until that last hug and then i started sobbing . . . I am excited for their adventure but sad for myself since they will be gone for four years. I want to eat chocolate to make myself feel better. I will see them at Christmas though so that's not to far. Twinmommy - you are doing great on your weight loss! I have hit another plateau and of course I also weigh every morning . . .naked . . . after I pee. . . . cuz I can't help myself. My last plateau lasted for almost three weeks so I think that every once in awhile my body takes a time out to readjust the fat around to different places. LOL I like the idea of a one year reunion. How about New York! Great shopping! Great discount places! And lots of walking! I am finding it a lot harder to eat volume after my second fill. After about four spoon fulls stuff seems to be in my esophagus and I'm in the bathroom PBing it up. Do you think we could become balimic from this? My doc likes to put in more fill every month but since it's $120 a pop I think I will wait and see how my weight loss is going before I get another one.

Mer - this week is crazy with getting Jordan and Katie packed to move to Pittsburgh for Dental school. They leave Thursday and Friday I drive to Portland to pack up Jims mom for a retirement home but then I'm back and ready to walk so lets plan on some walking next week. I am planning on going to the support meeting next Monday with Sue so I hope you come. If you don't like the idea of driving there by yourself then we can meet you in the Target parking lot on Union and let you hop in our car. Hope your summer is going well. I bet you look terrific! I got my second fill yesterday with .5cc so here we go again . . . don't like being on liquid only even if it is only for two days. I have a killer headache today from getting all that sugar out of my system I ate while on vacation. oops!

It's that time of year when all the college kids are heading back. I am sending my son and his new wife to Pittsburgh on Thursday for four years of Dental school. It's a long way across from here in Washington, the state. He is my third to get married and move away from home so I am actually looking forward to reducing the number of people in my house. I will miss them both but am excited for their new life to start. I spent the last week of vacation with my sister-in-law and her family who are all very athletic and body normal and not once did she say anything about my weight loss. How could you not notice almost 50 pounds gone! Everyone else seems to be able to see it. She did ask me about the protein shakes but I just told her I was trying to be more healthy. I said something to my husband about it and he said maybe she didn't think I was that big to start with. Right! I notice if my friends gain 10 pounds . . . .I would notice if they lost 48 pounds!!!! Some of the best support I've gotten is from people who don't have a weight problem but in this case I think it was something they could hold on to as 'I'm better then you' and make themselves feel better. If I lose my weight then they don't have that to hold over me which really means they are pretty insecure in the first place to need that. So what I'm saying is when people around you aren't supportive of your weight loss then it's their problem not yours, they are messed up not you, and we just need to show them a little grace. I'm sure glad she doesn't know about the surgery though! I got my second fill yesterday, .5cc and I really mind the two days of liquid I have to do. Seems pretty minor though considering the weeks we had to do it after surgery. Can't wait for the fall schedule to kick in so I can get some order back in my life with the kids back in school. Yea school!!!

hey guys I'm back! Vacation was great but after four weeks in the sun with nothing to do but eat . . . . I'm ready to get back on track. I didn't lose any but I didn't gain any either. I'm off to get my second fill today and get my head in the right place which after the lecture I'm going to get from my doctor should turn things around. I'm looking forward to the girls going back to school so I can get my self on a schedule of exercise and eating right and remembering to take my vitamins and protein shakes and water!!!! I wore my first pair of pants that weren't from the womens department yesterday. Yippee! okay they were a size 18 but at least there was no W or X on them anywhere! They were from Nordstrom by amber sun, five pocket stretch jeans. The most comfortable pants I've ever worn and most important they were in the regular size department! We gotta get walkin girls so call me!

Oh! for my NSV I wore some new jeans that were NOT from the womens department . . . . no W or X on them anywhere! <br /> <br /> Check them out if you have a Nordstrom by you. they were size 18 in the regular womens department, stretch material, five pocket jeans by Amber sun. I bought them in black on clearance so I don't remember the price but they are the most comfortable pair of jeans I've ever had on. They don't bind anywhere! Check them out especially if you are tall cuz they have long legs. My husband even said my butt looked small in them!!

hi everyone, you are all doing so good with your weight loss. I've been on vacation for a month at my in-laws lake cabin where I just sat around in the sun and ate a bunch of stuff I shouldn't have. The good news is I didn't gain weight, the bad news is I didn't lose either. I go in today for my second fill which I need because I can still eat a lot of food, especially at the end of the day. I'm tight in the morning and my protein shake is about all I can get down. I'm doing horrible on taking my vitamins because I just forget about them. I can't wait for the kids to go back to school so I can get myself on a schedule with regular workouts and disciplined eating. I need a wake-up, slap in the face, get my act together lecture from you all. I'm glad I'm back and back on line!

jsrico - That's the first time I have ever read anything about the saline evaporating. If that really happened then we would be getting fills for the rest of our lives. I have heard that you can stretch your stomach by constantly over eating because it is a muscle but if saline evaporated then what about those expensive boob jobs w/saline. . . . .you slowly shrink over time? Bummer!

hi everyone, I've been on vacation and I'm home for a day and then back again for a couple more weeks. I'm trying to walk and swim a lot in the lake, doing Water arobics and treading water. I lost a few up there and have five more pounds till my first goal which was to weigh the same as my husband. I hated weighing more then him! My second goal is to get to the half way mark and my third goal is to get below 200 and I never want to see that number again!!! I am really starting to notice the hanging skin and soft jelly feel to my body. I hope some of that goes away when I start my exercise classes this fall. I am meeting with an exercise physiologist when I return from vacation to design a program for me to help tighten things up. My arms are really flappy! Anyone else starting to notice the changes?

hi everyone, I'm home from vacation for a day and then back to the sun and fun for two more weeks! I got on line so I could update my ticker and check in with you all. To my surprise I actually lost weight while on vacation!! Like Sue, I get my second fill on the 13th. I surprise myself with how much I can eat sometimes but as far as getting hunger pains . . . I rarely feel hungry. I'm still eating because it's there, or it's time, or everyone else is eating. I wonder if the head game will ever get in control. I'm so thankful I have a band to remind me to get my head in the game. Hi Mer and Sue, I need to walk this morning if either of you are on line.

Mer - I agree! we spend way to much time thinking about food. I don't think thin people give it much thought most of the time. If they have a pig out day then they cut back the next, no big deal. mini mini sermon #(to many to count)

I don't get hungry either. I eat because it's there or because the clock says it's time. I hit a plateau for 2 weeks and the scale didn't budge until I started eating more. Now I have days where I eat a lot and days where I don't eat much at all but on the whole it's so much less then before that the weight eventually comes off. I really don't think thin people give food half the thought that we give it.<br /> <br /> Think of it as a source of fuel that your body needs. You wouldn't put in poor quality fuel into a premium tank. Why do we keep putting junk into our system? We are worth the best so put in the best fuel you have.

I wish I could get all of my protein in. Today I started out with one and managed to get in a protein bar for lunch but that was barely half of what I was supposed to have. I'm sorry I didn't call you back Mer but I didn't get done house hunting with the kids until after 9pm and I was bushed. I can walk in the morning if you want to. Call if you can but not to early cuz the girls are at Sues and i am sleeping in!!!

Sue, are you still on? What are all those little girls up to at the slumber party? I've got to hit the sack soon and I am really looking forward to sleeping in tomorrow morning. I will be thinking of you. Hope you made a copy of big medicine for me tonight!

I'm back! I survived the fourth, rehearsal dinner, and the wedding, even had some cake! part way through the weekend I weighed myself and was up four pounds but this morning I got on the scale and was down five so I guess in all the craziness the pounds came off. My goal this week is to stay on the program and get in my shakes and water and my vitamins. I know I will feel better! It was so ego building to hear at the wedding how good I looked. I was wearing a size 16w dress so I was feeling good!!! I have one more big party to get through this week at my house, a company picnic with about a 100 people coming. The food will be great so I will be tempted yet again to over eat. I am so glad that my band keeps me honest. I have had several PBing incidents so I know it is working. That is a very good thing! Call if you want to walk today. It is supposed to be a scorcher all week so we need to walk in the evenings or at the mall in the coolness.

Hey everyone! I survived the fourth, got through the rehearsal dinner, and even had a few bites of wedding cake! I thought I would be up when I stepped on the scale but I guess all the craziness eats up those calories cuz I was down a few! Now I just need to adjust my ticker. I am so relating to all of you on your comments above. I try to start out everyday on the plan and then before I know it the day is gone and I didn't get my protein in or my water or all my vitamins. I guess if I were super disciplined then I wouldn't of needed a lap band at all! It's a marathon not a sprint! I was so excited to fit into my mother of the groom dress (size 16w) and know that I looked so much better then pre-band. I hope it shows in all the pictures. I got lots of compliments and that felt really great. The most interesting thing was my sisters reaction to my weight loss. I had her go through a bunch of my clothes that were to big and she took a few but she stayed with me for five days and never once asked me about the surgery or how it was going or anything! She kept bringing goodies home like doughnuts and candy, etc. I think she really missed her unhealthy eating partner!

Had to pb some fish tonight. I think I am eating to fast and not waiting long enough between bites. It seems like the one that fills the pouch as it is going in is already being followed by two more and those two have to come back up or I have pain in the tubes. It sure keeps you from overeating doesn't it!

Today was a good day. I went shopping for a rehersal dinner outfit (my son is getting married one week from today) and I bought an XL at Coldwater Creek! Then I went to Nordstrom and bought an XL in the regular department!! I bought size 18 pants in the REGULAR department. No more Womens sizes for me!!!!! I made a pact with myself that I was only buying new clothes that did NOT come with an X after the number. My 2X's and size 20 pants are officially to big and I'm not excited about buying new clothes for a size I don't plan on being in for long but then again I can hardly walk around naked. I think part of this web site should be where we can post pics of clothes for sale, keep it in the family. Anyone have a good idea on how to get the water down. i find that I am really shorting myself on it.

I had my first PBing incident today on a bite of rasberry pie. I was talking and not paying attention and on the third bite everything stuck. The slime started and I ran for the bathroom. It all came up over about the next 20 minutes. It was not pleasant and I hope I don't repeat that again. I guess that is what I get for eating desert when i know I shouldn't!

twinmommy - mine are different all the time and i find that my band can tolerate something one day and not the next, sometimes it seems to shrink between meals. for example, for lunch on Thursday I had a salad on pizza with chunks of chicken and artichoke hears, etc. I ate it slowly, chewed well and it went down without any trouble, one goodsized piece. A few hours later I was snacking on fresh rasberries and everything stuck and I almost PB'd. Today my sister brought over some fresh rasberrie pie and I cut this really small sliver and after three bites the whole thing came right back up. It felt awful for about 20 minutes until it was all out. i'm not sure why the rasberries were sticking cuz I've had them for the last few days and did fine. I'm only getting 60 gr of protein in a day through shakes and I have a hard time with the vitamins too but every day I get up and say this is the day I do everything by the book. . . . . . .right!