JustWatchMe

Today I rode a horse and it was awesome! I then rode in a paddleboat. As my daughter said, "Mom, just get in. You're skinny now -- live your life!"

Carolinagirl is such an inspiration to me. Thanks for all your support!

I wonder if households without overeaters lock up food. I know for all my life, starting as a teen, whenever I bought treats, even for the family, I would buy two. One for me and one for them. I couldn't bear to share and take the risk that my stash might get wiped out. I always felt ashamed of that.

Wow, I thought my family of origin was the only one that had food locked up. When my brother and I became teenagers, my dad also had a cabinet in the basement with a padlock that contained shampoo. Why? My brother showered at least twice a day and used it by the gallon.

218.4 July final.

Thanks, everyone. I'm taking my daughters on a weekend getaway this weekend that we all need. Our summer has been way too stressful and it's time to decompress before they head back to college. Some hiking and horseback riding and shopping and pampering are in order. Maybe I'll get my hair styled in the resort salon. My younger daughter always wants me to have it straightened. Thanks for the emotional boost. Love this board.

Exercise helps. I started a walking regimen the day after surgery. I was sore at my port but returned to work Monday after a Thursday outpatient surgery. The gas pains took four or five days to subside. Karate chops on the shoulder blades helped. Enlist someone to do that for you. Good luck.

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I'm so sad my arthritis won't let me ride without pain. My right knee can't handle the up bend. . I last tried about thirty pounds ago.

Congratulations!!

Cart, horse. In my case horse, cart. I tried the marriage counseling a year ago without success. The situation at home became ever more volatile and toxic. I shook off my food fog in February, got banded in March, and filed for divorce and moved out in July. Stress levels were through the roof for the entire last year. Now I can finally breathe and sleep at night. I waited too long, but I did the best I could at the time. Good luck to you.

If your psychiatrist makes a suggestion, consider it a requirement. I was supposed to have two sessions and then be cleared for surgery. At my first session he suggested I stop eating in front of the tv. At my second session I admitted that I hadn't had success changing that habit. He decided not to clear me for surgery. WHAT!? So I needed to get my act together and show progress by the next month. Was I ticked off? You bet. But in retrospect it was necessary and a real eye opener for me. I spent the next three weeks really focusing on mindful eating and NO tv eating. When I saw him the third time he cleared me. That change in habit made me realize that the band does not work by itself. I was only going to be as successful as the effort I put into this myself. 82 pounds later, I can say that I don't miss tv eating one bit, and I have a strong respect for my band and the discipline it requires. Good luck. You got this!

A week ago I filed for divorce and my college age girls and I moved out. It is by far the hardest thing I have ever done. I won't lie. I got my LapBand this year because I knew that until I got out of my food fog and gained control of my life, I was doomed to remain paralyzed in this increasingly unhealthy relationship. I thank God every day for the health benefits, including the mental health benefits, of WLS. For me, the personal power that came with taking charge of my body was the final tool in the toolbox I needed in order to leave. When I was morbidly obese and overeating every single day as an emotional escape, I didn't have the ability to get myself and my girls out. When I stopped self medicating with food, I took my personal power back. For me, this was never just about weight loss or looking good or even just about getting healthy. It was about finding my courage. I'd like to hear from others who have ended a marriage or long term relationship after reclaiming their personal power and mental and physical health. As scary as this is, the three of us can now breathe and we will come out of this stronger.

07/29/2014 220.8

@@SecretBander, OneDerful!!!!!!!!

@@GRE110, I think each person's protocol is set by their surgeon's office based on their experience with the number of patients they see, not necessarily each patient's individual tolerance levels. What I mean is, my instructions are different from your instructions which are different from Susie's instructions. In my case, my surgeon's office requires six weeks of full liquids following surgery. I was told that this is not only for purposes of a long healing timeframe, but also for maximum weight loss in the starting phase. I was not a happy camper when I heard that I had to be on liquids for six weeks. But now that it is behind me, I will tell you that it was very beneficial for me to have that long stretch. I focused on exercise, calorie counting, and easing into the food stage. When I was finally allowed real food, I was truly able to take it slowly and every meal was well within the nutritionist's guidelines. Although I was tempted to bend the rules during the six weeks, I did not. I used that month and a half to build good habits. For me personally, this is the end of the road. I went into WLS with the conviction that this time, I will follow directions. Doing it my own way has never worked for me in the long run before. I'm running out of time to get it right. So far so good. Good luck to you, and don't beat yourself up. But know that there are rules for a reason. They are there to help you succeed.

I chose have a bite or two. I don't really crave like I did before. But if I'm out in a restaurant and want a cocktail I have one. Just one. If I want popcorn at the movies I get it. But that's not as satisfying as it used to be. Movie popcorn has been lousy for years. Rethinking that one now. As for "off plan" eating, I try to stay between 800-1000 calories a day. When I go over 1000 I don't lose weight. I'm only halfway to my goal so I want to see a loss each week. I do not beat myself up about food choices, but I'm realistic and know that what I eat translates to the scale. So I have to be vigilant if I want to lose weight. That said, I don't really choose low calorie foods. I just watch my daily total. I naturally like meats, so protein first is easy for me.

@@Leepers, gorgeous!

I've had the most stressful month of my life and I'm concerned about my band. Ten days ago I took a few possessions and my dog, moved out of my house with my college age daughters, and filed for divorce. During the entire month prior to moving day, I was losing weight pretty effortlessly due to a lack of appetite and lots of evening walking. I couldn't eat much at meals and figured it was a combination of relentless stress plus my second fill. It seemed that the band was probably optimally filled because I only got stuck when gobbling food (pork) too fast. I figured at my next appointment at the end of July I would just get checked but not ask for more fill right now. Well then, after our move, my body finally had a mini meltdown. My arthritis flared so badly over four days that I sat up in bed crying, unable to sleep. My left shoulder and right wrist enflamed at the same time. The bones in my feet screamed in pain. My lips broke out in cold sores. Then, as suddenly as these symptoms came on, they lifted. Cold sores gone. Shoulder and wrist and feet okay. But suddenly I can eat. And three pounds of the 10 I dropped this month came back almost overnight. I didn't obsess about it because I know it's temporary. But now I wonder if I should get a fill next week after all. I'm not eating between meals or even hungry between meals, but I can eat more at a meal than I've been able to all month. I'm at that post-crisis point where you suddenly relax for the first time in what seems like forever, and it's so scary because I feel like it can all go down the drain so easily right now. Was my band tighter-feeling all month because of the constant stress level every day? Should I not fill in July and wait it out until August? I feel like I don't even know how to relax without eating. This whole year I've been wound tighter than a rubber band. I'm so scared of turning to food now that I'm not in a constant state of anxiety every day and night. Sounds backwards, I know. But I held it together, did the hard thing, and now that we're okay, I feel like my eating recovery is at risk. I have a lot of business-type things to do gathering financial and legal documents for the attorney, and I do well when I have a "task" in front of me. But daily life is not the hell it was a week ago, and the "coming down" from the crisis is leaving me in an uncertain state. Thanks for listening, and if anyone has any pointers for me, I'm all ears. Feeling pretty shaky.

@@enjoythetime, @@pink dahlia, thank you. I agree that a fill is not a good idea until the stress calms down for a few weeks straight. One foot in front of the other right now. Your support means a lot.

"I know it sounds odd that I'm pursuing this at this time but I really need to do this" @@snowkitten, nope. I totally understand. I GOT my WLS because I knew that I would not have the strength to leave my unhealthy marriage unless I got my food and weight and emotions under control.

This beautiful group of WLS people is currently helping me as I navigate the sadness and uncertainty of divorce. Your post hit me, especially about ALS. My dad died at age 60 from ALS. I lost my dear aunt at 60 from lymphoma. She was my personal champion, a close friend and loved me unconditionally all of my life. I miss these two people so much right now. All I can do is take care of myself the best I can and not turn back to the food. Thanks for this post.

Yes, back to basics. Thank you.

Thank you. Yes, it's time now to slow down and take things one at a time.

Love love love your posts and your amazing pictures!!!!