JustWatchMe

kayzoog, loved reading your blog. Congratulations on your success!

Thanks for this post. I'm going to Italy in 5-1/2 weeks. My big wish is that I will be able to fly without the seatbelt extender, and keep up with all the walking on our tours. I will also see my oldest daughter that day for the first time since the beginning of January, when she left for a semester abroad. I miss her so much and Skype is great, but it's still been very hard. My younger daughter helped me during my surgery week and then went back to college. I'll see her over Easter. They are two of my four rocks of support, and I want to make them proud of me. My NSVs so far: Wearing blouses I haven't worn in a year. Walking 36 minutes on the treadmill at 3mph, adding a minute each day. Off NSAIDS. Off Prevacid. Off one blood pressure medicine (of two). Shoes are getting looser. Feet and legs are not swelling anymore. No back pain. Waking up energized instead of sluggish. Feeling in control of what I put in my mouth - priceless!

I never in a million years would have thought that exercise in my fifties would be anything but drudgery for me, but my walking on a treadmill every day and adding a minute each day is getting me motivated. I won't lie, the first few times were really hard since I am so sedentary, and I absolutely can't do it in the morning... but every day when I get home from work I walk my treadmill and it is like a little challenge each day that I feel so good about. I have 4 days to go before I reach two miles per day, and that feels great. Who knows, maybe some day I'll do a 5k. (One can dream...) Good luck!

My surgery team also stressed this, and specifically my surgeon, in a humorous way. He said I would need a new addiction now. I can shop, I can buy shoes, I can gamble, but I can't overeat. The psychologist was more serious, and said I needed to figure out what can give me joy. food has always given me joy, and now I'll need to figure out something else, or I'll go back to overeating. I lost a lot of weight many years ago (not WLS) and dropped from 305 to 156 over two years. As I went down in size, I attended 12-step meetings several days a week, jogged on a track for three miles twice a week, and shopped for clothes every other minute. While also working full time and going to night school. I was single then, and had to fill the hours with activity or else I knew I would eat. The new skinny me met my husband at my high school reunion and we married a year later. I gained eleven pounds on my honeymoon, thirty with each of my two daughters, and it's been up from there ever since. I stopped all my healthy habits and dropped OA because he thought it was brainwashing, and I was too insecure to fight for myself. I did the "acceptable" Weight Watchers dozens of times since then, all ending in failure. At 302 pounds, I began to research WLS, and I am currently 3-1/2 weeks post-banding and have dropped 36 pounds since February. Boy, this got long. LOL What I actually wanted to say was that during my shopping frenzy as a thinning person, I racked up some hefty credit card bills. One day my BFF and I were in Nordstrom's just passing through. We were dressed in sweats and weren't shopping there, just walking through. I saw a gorgeous evening gown and ran over to it. I'm talking beaded, floor length, stunning. The kind of dress that could only be worn to the Academy Awards. It was a size 10. We fawned over it and a saleslady came over and asked if I wanted to try it on. My friend and I busted out laughing, and said no thanks. She said, go ahead. Just try it on. I'll get you some pumps too. Well, I tried on that gorgeous dress and the shoes, and it fit. I stood there and my BFF and I just couldn't believe it. I felt like a movie star. That saleslady knew we were just walking by, but she gave me a gift I will never forget. For the first time in my life, I felt beautiful. Not thinner, not better than before, but beautiful. That dress was several thousand dollars. It went back on the mannequin, and a few weeks later was gone from the display. I learned two things that day. I was beautiful. And I didn't have to spend a penny to try something on. Afterwards, I modified my spending addiction into a trying-on addiction. I'd go to stores, try on some blouses and pants, and put them back. Once every couple of weeks I would purchase something affordable, instead of purchasing everything. I am an addict, and I've given up overeating. I have no doubt my compulsive personality will seek out something new. I'm not in my twenties anymore, so the things I seek will be different. I expect I'll learn a lot about myself this time. I hope some of this helps somebody. It was eye-opening for me to write it.

I've got almost three weeks to go (six total) before transitioning from full liquids to regular foods. No fill until four days after that. I'm daydreaming about what I will eat but I know I'll have to take it easy. Thoughts? (Sorry, this is a real marathon and I'm doing well but getting impatient!)

"I have committed to take care of my body and soul as nobody would do it for me. " This hit home for me. Thank you for posting!

Great news! You're on your way!

I hope you feel better soon. Good luck and keep us posted.

My NUT said soups and yogurt and broths and jello and pudding and protein shakes are okay for full liquids. My surgeon told me to stick to 800 calories a day and cut out the protein shakes. I'm compromising the two and have basically had one creamy soup and two shakes per day and buttermilk at night. I'm hungry but doing okay. Staying under 800 calories. April 24th I transition to regular food. That was the term they both used. I can't wait. I also found out from the NUT that this surgeon's protocol is to maximize post-op weight loss and get me a jump start before starting to eat again. It's doing that but boy, is it a long haul.

Nope, I've got my band but on the six-week full liquids protocol. Then regular food, then a fill four days later. What to chew, what to chew...

I was thinking more like lobster in drawn butter. Just kidding. Sorta.

This is my new favorite thread.

Journey, schmourney. Endurance test? Obstacle course? Evolution? Evolution is what I titled my WLS journal. I don't write in it much. The title's rather boring. Maybe I'd write more if it had a snazzier title.

Yep, the dreaded neck gas pain. Right by my collarbone. What helped me was someone gently but rapidly karate chopping the area a few times a day. Sounds weird but it worked. It took a full week for those pains to be totally gone. Good luck.

Slowing down is my next challenge. Still in liquids post op, but eating soup too fast. I actually do better in a restaurant with a friend because I'm talking. But at home or on lunch from work, I'm still going too fast. I want to work on this before I introduce solids on April 24. Don't know how to slow down my morning protein shake, since that's happening as I'm getting ready to leave for the day.

Well said! Great job!

Everybody's different. I did return to work Monday after a surgery Thursday. I'm now three weeks post-op. I was instructed to get on the treadmill daily starting one day after surgery. It did help. I have a desk job but get up and walk around every hour or so. My surgery was outpatient. Good luck!

Great post!

One day at a time. Wow, that's a lot of challenges in a short time. I feel for you. I'm under stress now too, and the surgery was and is giving me a light at the end of my tunnel. No matter what life throws at us, we can handle it better if we're healthier and in control. Your honesty helped me today. Thanks for posting.

I mean 3 weeks to go, thank God. The extra half week is the day of my first fill. Scared myself there for a minute.

Today, day 21 post-op, I'm not particularly hungrier than normal, but my stomach is making LOUD gurgling sounds at work. And of course I'm sitting right next to someone working together on a project. Sometimes you just have to laugh. 3-1/2 weks left to go before solids. Sigh.......

Yes, it is very hard right after surgery, but it does get easier. I found that, believe it or not, getting moving helped everything. Not just post-surgical discomfort, but it also got me revved up and feeling better and motivated. And I hate exercise. But I started walking (only because my nurse coordinator told me I had to) on the treadmill and added a minute each day. It somehow helps with the hunger, and I don't know why. I also found that right around a week post-op, my body started to adjust to the liquid-only, low-calorie amount I was taking in. I personally got a little more boring with my meals instead of fancier, because there's only so much you can do with liquids. But when I started to plan it and stick to it (and drink LOTS of Water all day long) my stomach stopped complaining all day. I'm averaging 800-900 calories a day right now, and you would not believe how boring my intake is. But it's not that hard, compared to the first week, when I was actually consuming around 1300 a day. I hope some of this helps. It's only my experience. Make sure you're drinking enough Protein -- it really holds you longer. And don't flush it through with water until at least 30 minutes after drinking it. I like unjury chocolate Protein powder. Also, Atkins Dark Chocolate Protein shake. Good luck!

I'm glad you posted again. This is such a hard piece of the journey. I'm reading the posts from others further along the road and now my sights are set on the day that my band will actually start helping me feel normal. Right now I'm just struggling along, and it's no different from any other diet -- except that I have that magical day ahead to look forward to when it WILL get easier because the band will get filled and I won't be starving! You know why you're going to succeed? Because you came on here and TOLD everyone you were going for pizza. LOL. You've got what I've got, and that's a self-preservation instinct. We've got this!!!! And stop cooking for others, at least for now. Good Lord, I'd even make them eat elsewhere! LOL

I just re-read your post before the last one. Are you still entertaining others in your home and cooking for them? OMG, take care of yourself!! That would be so hard! Please take a little break, give yourself some TLC, have something soothing to drink and something small to eat, and wait it out. You can do it! Get out of the house for a change of scenery.

cccv4, STOP! You've come a long way already. Don't do it. Have something to drink, something small to eat (a piece of fruit?) and go outside and walk around the block. Give it 20 minutes. You deserve success, and no pizza will do it. If you're miserable, get un-miserable, but please don't make yourself more miserable. Please let us know how you feel in 20 minutes. We are ALL rooting for you!