FibroDiva

I had my surgery August 01, 2013.

It's frustrating about the sagging Forsythia, it's not enough for the doctor to be concerned or to be covered by insurance, but it's enough for me to notice. Also, I've lost all fat in my face and don't recognize myself.

It sucks that you are getting keloids. I'm not prone to them, but all my scars heal really dark compared to my skin tone. I've noticed a lot of drapey saggy skin on my thighs as well, as well as my arms. Proportionally those areas have more weight on them than some of my other areas. Grr.

Well the FDA finally held the hearing. Oh, I forgot to post the original meeting of Dec 10, 2013 was rescheduled to March 26, 2014. The March meeting was fantastic. The FDA really wants to know how Fibromyalgia symptoms affect our quailty of life and what we think about medication.

I testified at the FDA Public Meeting on Patient Focused Fibromyalgia Drug Development and spoke about my experiences as a post-op patient. After the meeting I posted all the questions which the FDA needs community responses online [Click here for questions].

If you are a WLS patient with Fibromyalgia, please take a moment, click on the link above and copy and paste these questions to a word document, answer them and then go to http://www.regulatio...013-N-1041-0004 and paste your answers as comments onto the FDA docket. The comment now button is in the upper right corner of the FDA’s page.

The comment period closes on May 26, 2014. The FDA really needs to know that there is a subgroup of people with Fibromyalgia who need their medication in chewable, dissolvable or liquid forms.

Doesn't sound like either of these devices, the tongue patch or the balloon, do anything to teach good eating habits so when they are removed won't the people regain any weight loss?

Sounds like the only thing guaranteed to be permanently loss is money.

​Keep up the great work. Maybe you can talk to someone at the doctor's office about still seeing the heavier version of you.

Thanks for the suggestion. I actually have an appointment next week and never thought about talking to the doctor about this issue.

Wish me luck. I'm venturing out into the cold to meet with the personal trainer at Planet Fitness. I don't need luck with the personal trainer, I need luck venturing out into the cold with Fibromyalgia.

As the weather gets colder, my Fibro is getting worse and I'm finding it hard to exercise.

Well as the weather gets colder, I find that my Fibro is keeping me bedridden and unable to exercise.

Vicky says, "my Yaya [grandma] can wear Express, Old Navy, and JCPenny. Don't tell her what I got her for Christmas."

it was hard but this is what I ate: the tur part of turducken, honey baked ham, sweet potatoes, homemade mac n cheese, green beans, gumbo and some of nephew Darren's peach crack [i mean cobbler]. Actually, I think I manged to get one bite of each item for Thanksgiving dinner and the other bite for Black Friday lunch.

just mess the food on your plate.

You can say I am trying to control my eating and intake.

Have wonderful holiday and I am happy your family is safe.

Thanks dylanmiles23. As I was reading your response a picture of my 21 month old granddaughter popped into my head. When she is finished eating she begins playing with her food :-)

Thanks for the sentiment about my family. As I move forward through the holiday season I will concentrate on the fact that they are safe and not on the temptation of food.

Last month I found tall jeans at Old Navy. They are labeled as "Long". I bought size 16. Now, one month later those size 16s are too big. :-)

Just found out that Water Tower Place in Chicago has a Tall Girl shop. Going to check them out after Thanksgiving.

Thank goodness your daughter and her beautiful family are safe. I am a stress and emotional eater so I know where you are coming from. You are correct. Breaking the diet and eating things you shouldn't will not help your daughter nor will they help you. Change your thought process on this. Think that sticking to the plan will make you healthy and that health will get you a chance to visit with your daughter and her family. Stay focused and pray for those who suffered major losses in the tornados. Good luck in your struggles.

Thank you so much for the words of encouragement. I've been following my daughter's news station online and changed my thought process like you suggested. If I focus on my weight loss process and concentrate on preparing for Thanksgiving, my daughter and granddaughter will come and get me and take me back to Peoria where I will be able to spend the holiday week with them. We are going to volunteer to help those who loss so much.

I'm very pleased that my Fibromyalgia doctor insisted that I go to physical therapy. After about 3 weeks of Fibro oriented PT, my physical therapist then began working in the exercises that my personal trainer suggested. I do see that I am gaining strength and toning. However I can not get rid of the Bat Wings and cottage cheese thighs. They are not as bad as I had feared but they are there.

I've been posting handouts that my personal trainer gave me when I was preop. I started an album that you can see by clicking here. If you cannot view and/or download the items just let me know and I can send you the PDFs.

thank you, THANK YOU!

You're welcome. And Holly Clare if you can think of any, please feel free to add to the list.

gals...I'm looking forward to being able to enjoy shopping for clothes. it's been many a year. )

I've decided to reward myself for weight loss by putting a little money away each month. Once I hit goal then I will go all out on clothes shopping

So now that I'm down a size or two, now I can't find Tall Women/Girls clothing.

How wonderful. Aren't grandchildren just so good to have..I have two myself. Congrats on your success,...

That is sooo sweet. Bet that made your day.

Thanks Carlotta and Marha761. I'm still beaming. Grandchildren are the best.

Thanks ladies. Now I'm not so frustrated. I think I'm going to weight until I hit 199 pounds and then go shopping again. I'm at 214 and I'm looking kinda frail so when I hit 199 I can reassess how much more I might want to lose.

Miss Mac, that is so funny. I agree Wendy Williams in not a 6/8. My daughter is a 6/8 and a good wind storm would blow her over. :-)

Dr. Jay concluded the workshop with a mention about treatment that I found particularly interesting. Dr. Jay said . . .

"Fibromyalgia is more difficult to treat because people with FM commonly have significant hypersensitivity to the prescribed medications.

FDA-approved agents to treat fibromyalgia are pregabalin, a gabapentinoid, and two serotonin–norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors, duloxetine and milnacipran. These drugs should be started low and slowly titrated [increased] in patients."

Dr. Jay informed the Master Class students that, Fibromyalgia is currently a clinical entity within the spectrum of central sensitivity syndromes, which includes chronic fatigue syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome, temporomandibular disorder, restless leg syndrome and periodic limb movements in sleep, idiopathic low back pain, multiple chemical hypersensitivity, headache (tension-type, migraine, mixed), interstitial cystitis, chronic pelvic pain and endometriosis, and myofascial pain syndrome.

In addressing the issue of disability and Fibro, Dr. Jay stated . . .

Fibromyalgia has a negative effect on careers, mental health, and personal relationships, with increased work absences, decreased productivity, and higher direct/indirect medical and other costs.

Dr. Jay informed attendees that, the pain of FM can wax and wane, and, intensity may vary, as may physical location of pain.

He listed the usual symptoms of Fibromyalgia: fatigue and sleep disorder, tenderness, stiffness, mood disturbances, cognitive difficulties, and admitted that FM can be the cause of multiple areas of functional impairment.

Dr. Jay emphasized that physicians and other healthcare providers realize that people with Fibromyalgia often have difficulty climbing stairs, walking two blocks, and with activities of daily living.

Dr. Jay made sure to emphasize several times that people with fibromyalgia must be treated within a medical model. He provided "students" with the new 2010 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) diagnostic criteria for Fibro stating the new ACR diagnostic criteria requires three conditions be met:

1) a widespread pain index (WPI) ≥7 and symptom severity (SS) scale score ≥5 or WPI 3 to 6 and SS scale score ≥9;

2) symptoms have been present at a similar level for at least 3 months; and

3) the patient doe not have a disorder that would otherwise explain the pain.

Note: I was just a wee bit disappointed that as a patient, I knew something doctors didn't know. The Fibro Diva Report discussed the new 2010 ACR diagnostic criteria for FM this past summer.