::tracy::

The 11th - not long to go. i am really quite excited! thanks for the support everyone - it has been great!

It has improved today, still not gone but better. Thanks

I have had the headache for two days - i know it will pass but man - it is a shocker!! Thanks

Hi Tia, How has your first day gone on optifast? It wasn't as bad as i thought it would be - i can't say it was the nicest tasting, but i have tasted worse things. 1 day down - 13 to go! tracy

Hiya - it is kind of cool having someone doing it on the same day. No, i haven't tasted it yet - i have brought one of everything - hoping variety will make it a bit more interesting. I keep telling myself it is only 2 weeks. And no - you are not the only one - i have eaten like the world is about to end!

I just purchased all my optifast today - i am tempted to mix one up and taste it - to see just how bad it is - then again - i don't want to think about it until Tuesday - so i think i will wait until then and let it be a surprise!

Hi Misty, I believe all chest pain should be seen to by a doctor - i think it is unsafe to draw conclusions as to what it maybe. Tracy

Hi Tia, Mine is 11 Dec too!! I am absolutely stumped about what to say sitting around the xmas dinner table, perhaps a little fib "i ate to much at lunch". And starting mushies that day - i can assure you i won't be trying out eating infront of the family - oh my goodness, what if it goes horribly wrong and i end up vomiting from eating too fast! I have a party to go to on xmas eve, which is a dinner, i might however send hubby to the dinner then come afterwards - or alternatively say i am feeling a little off my food - or something along those lines. My work xmas party is when i will be recovering so no excuses there, i just won't go - as for the rest - well i don't know what i am going to say. Why does everything have to revolve around food? It is no surprise we end up fat. Tracy

Hi all, Well my big day is drawing near - this time next week i will be starting my optifast diet - for the two weeks pre-op. Haha - i still haven't informed work i will be requiring time off - however i am sure it won't be an issue - i will make up some little fib. i am a bit nervous about xmas etc ... i don't mind the not eating but i am more worried about what others will say to me - question me etc. i really am so excited though, inspite of all the nervousness and worry - this will be a great new beginning - and i will be looking and feeling fabulous in no time! ps - i was one of the lucky ones - southern cross is making a nice generous donation towards my surgical costs.

Hi there peoples .... i have been lurking around your site here for a while, reading all your stories and feeling very inspired by your successes ... so given now i know so much about you'll ... i thought it would be rude to continue on without introducing myself. My name is Tracy - 32 years old - from a little old place down under - New Zealand I am joining your bandster club on 11 Dec - so i am excited/nervous about that. My story of how i got here is the same as most everyone elses - yo-yo diets until i got to the weight i am now. It is nice to read your stories and to listen to you'll blow off steam - i feel the EXACT same frustrations - i strike the same types of selfish thoughtless people in my day to day life. As cliche as it sounds - it is good to not feel quite so alone. I have read about all the positively disgusting things - PB's - which quite ironically makes me vomit a little into my mouth thinking about. hair loss - thats scares me. Post-op pain - well i am planning on being at work 6 days after so i am hoping i have one of those nice stories to relay post surgery about my quick recovery ... and the list goes on. However none of it phases me. I want to grow old with my beloved hubby - and at the weight i am at - that just won't happen. So - that me - i look forward to reading more of your successes and being able to share my own very soon. Tracy

Thanks for the kind words - all very best to you also!

Hi Sades, thanks for the reply - wow it sounds like you are doing great so far! how has the pain been - like on a scale of one to ten. i am such a baby when it comes to pain. Oh yeah and i have been totally doing the "last supper" thing ... i feel dreadful!! tracy

My date is Dec 11. Am very nervous, it is happening so quickly. But at the same time I can't wait!! Christmas dinner won't be the same this year - i just have to come up with an excuse as to why i am not eating.

I am in Hawke's Bay - I am using a local surgeon. I have an appointment to see the dietician on the 7th. The surgeon said you have to diet for 2 weeks before - the dietician said it is optifast - which sounds positively disgusting. Then that is what I have for 2 weeks afterwards also. Good luck for Monday - I hope it all goes well.

Well, it went well - provisional date booked for surgery - 11 Dec - though that is still to be confirmed. The surgeon was really nice - he explained everything very well. I have to go have an ultrasound to check out the size of my liver and to also have a look at my gallbladder as i have a family history of gallstones. He said he might take that out while he is there depending on what he finds in the ultrasound. I have to go see a dietician also, I have phoned, I am waiting to confirm an appointment time. I go back to the surgeon on 27th of Nov. So things are moving ahead - there will be no xmas lunch for me this year!!

thats what i thought - how is the progress going with the doc/surgeon visits? i have my appointment to see the surgeon for the first time tmrw - a little bit nervous!

Check out the TV3 website. Has a little blurb on it.

i didn't think erosion was anything to do with the band - rather your stomach eroding into the band