Carol Quabeck Boyer

Hi Everyone! My name is Carol and I will be leading the Pittsburgh Chapter. I look forward to meeting my fellow Pittsburgers and getting to know all of you! I had my Sleeve surgery on Dec 19, 2013 and I LOVE it. I am currently down about 57 pounds. My personal goal is to lose between 80 and 100 pounds when all is said and done. I had my Surgery at McGee Womans Hospital by Dr. Carol McCloskey. I will be working on getting a space for us to meet in the next couple of weeks. If you have any suggestions, please let me know! I want to make myself available to you, so you can email me at cmb73@live.com if you have any questions that you might not want to post here. So....where is everyone?!

Does anyone have United Health Care? I have a friend that is trying to get approved for surgery but is being told they don't cover Bariatric Surgery!

GOOD LUCK!!!!!

Hey Lorie!!!! Glad to know you are doing well. 5lbs regain is nothing when you think of the statistics of weight regain. Yes, I know 5 lbs can lead to 10lbs can lead to more, but don't be too hard on yourself. I'm proud of you! Now, if you can only tell me how to get rid of the last 30lbs I am holding on to! I guess I should be happy that I haven't lost. My PCP tells me that my body might just be telling me this is the weight I belong at, but I'm not buying that.

GETTING CLOSE!!! Which surgery are you going to have? I bet you are excited. I'm sure you will not regret your decision!

HI!! I am doing well. I had my surgery in Dec 2013, so I am well out...lol! I've had a bit of trouble losing the last 30lbs that I want to lose, but overall I am very happy with my results!

Hi All! I am still here. Sorry I've dropped the ball as far as this group goes! How is everyone? Where are you all in the process?

Welcome to the group! I am not on here often, but feel free to email me with any questions you might have! cmb73@live.com

Hi Lorie!!! I go to West Mifflin frequently. My husband and I are always at Hot Metal Harley and the Hot Metal Diner. Looks like we have a few of Dr McCloskey patients. I just referred my friend to her too. I absolutely adore her. She made this experience so much easier than I thought it would be!!!

Hi Spazdd! We haven't had a meeting yet. I must admit that I have dropped the ball a bit. If you have any suggestions as to where we might have our first meeting please let me know. Good luck at your appointment today. If you have the chance to tell the staff about our group, please do. Here is a question to the group....I know we are all spread out, but if you had to pick one of these locations for our first get together, which would you choose... Oakland Robinson

So happy you found us! Sounds like you are doing really well! We will all get together soon.

Hi Crosby! I am so excited for you as you begin your journey. We will be having meetings all over the Pittsburgh area so I hope you will be able to join us. In the meantime, if you have any questions, we are here for you! Hi There! Is't Dr. McCloskey THE best?! Magee was awesome, all the people there were amazing. How long were you in the hospital?? The Stalls really stink but you have to keep your head in the game and remember this is a process. Your body will catch up! BrandNew! How are you? I would LOVE to hear about your experience in Mexico. I know so many people that don't have insurance but are very nervous about going to Mexico. I am sure you would be able to help them a lot! I am willing to travel almost anywhere to have a meeting. So, if any of you have any ideas on where we might be able to hold on please let me know. I have my 6 month appointment with Dr McCloskey in a couple of weeks so I am going to ask her about having one at the hospital. Hope you all have an awesome day. I am running a Golf outing tomorrow so I am finishing up some last minute things and will be enjoying the company of my family that is in town from NJ. Get out there and enjoy the gorgeous weather!!!

Hopefully something good will happen...seeking another WLS clinic might be the safest route for you. Best wishes to you and please keep us informed. So I didn't have a NUT as I'm in Canada and had my surgery in Mexico. I'm getting 40-50g Protein and 60ish oz of Water. That's all I focus on. Before I wasn't eating enough carbs and I felt lethargic. It was terrible. Now I usually eat some rice crisp crackers in the afternoon with high protein cheese and that really helps. I would suggest to do what feels right. On Monday I'll be 10 weeks out. I generally eat what I want but keep it simple. I'm not at all interested in sweets or fries foods but I do still eat what tastes good. Do what makes sense. My fav is in the morning I'll slice up some roast beef, tomato, and cheese and throw that in an omelet with one egg and some soy milk and YUMMERS!! Plus it's 14g protein. A good way to start the day!! I don't do shakes or protein supplements. I tried. I hated them all. Made me sick to my stomach. Why live life like that? I don't even feel bad about it. Be happy, that's why we all went through this! Whatever I'm doing must be working as I've lost almost 60lbs and haven't really hit much of a stall. Still lose 1-2lbs a week or every 10 days. I exercise two to three times a week depending on how busy I am. I hope you feel better about your journey. Don't let your nutty NUT tell you otherwise!! Good luck! I TOTALLY agree! I eat anything I want also. I just eat MUCH smaller portions. Whatever the rest of my family eats, I eat. With the exception of fried foods. I did hit a stall, but it has since picked up. You have to feed your body to give it something to burn off. Listen to your body and you will be fine! on another note, I started with a personal trainer on Wednesday and OMG...All I can say is OUCH! She kicked my ass! I'm gonna keep up with it cause as we all know....no pain....no LOSS...lol!

I was not a huge drinker pre op. I would go out every now and then for a few, and to be honest, I don't really miss it. I am almost 8 weeks out. BUT.....in just about 2 weeks my husband and I are going on a cruise. THAT was always a drink-fest! I haven't had any alcohol since surgery and I am afraid to try! I can't see going on the cruise and NOT drinking, so if you were me what would you try drinking? You know those frozen fruity drinks are always being passed around. What do you think is the easiest going down? Please don't get on my about empty calories and all that. I already know. It's vacation....and we are celebrating my 40th!

If you Google Arm Challenge, it will pop up! Sorry, I couldn't get it to post here!

Honestly, I haven't been doing much. I was walking when the weather allowed, and this month I started the 30 day Arm & Thigh Challenge. Wednesday I start at a gym with a personal trainer, so we will see what she has me doing!

I can't believe the difference in my face! 7 weeks out!

I am definitely not eating enough either, which is why my stall won't go away. It's so hard to eat when you don't feel hungry. I tried setting an alarm on my phone to remind me to eat, but sometimes I just can't. This was an issue for me before surgery as well. Not sure what to do to break this habit, but I have to do something. I was at my Uncle's Funeral on Monday and I had my very first negative comment made to me by one of my Husband's Aunt's who I love more than anything by the way! She was drunk, but it still hurt a little. Not sure why people STILL think surgery is the easy way out! They need some education, which I would have given her but figured since she was drunk, it wouldn't really matter! Although I don't post that often, I want you all to know that I keep you all in my thoughts and prayers and thank you all for being here!!!!

I just had my first NSV....We had a death in the family, so I had to go shopping for something to wear to the Funeral. Before surgery I was a size 22/24. The dress I just bought was a size 16!!!!!!

I had my 6 week check up today, although it is really 5 weeks out for me. They were very happy with my progress and my progression in diet. I am pretty much eating regular foods believe it or not....much smaller portions obviously! I am feeling really good. All restrictions were removed, so I can get my butt in the gym! I am super excited!!!