pizzicato66

Hi - I'm back and haven't been logging for a few days (I've been obsessively working on mover estimates, an itinerary for my house-hunting trip this weekend, and building spreadsheets of potential rentals instead of obsessively logging my food. But, I'm SO restricted right now, I KNOW I'm not overdoing it too much (other than some sugar-free/fat-free ice cream this weekend - I threw the rest away). I'm down 1 lb from last week, so I figure I'm on track. Hopefully I'll pick up speed again soon. And yes, I'm going now to start today's log!

Ahh.... the Protein shake debate. My doc says no shakes after the initial liquid phase, and even then it was SF instant breakfast with milk. Everyone's different, but I find I do best if I keep my calories in the 900-1100 range. The past few months, I've been straying from the standard diet from my doc (3 small protein meals and 3 glasses of skim milk a day, minimum 56 grams of protein a day) and have been ranging as high as 1700 a day, and I've slowed down, a LOT. Because I just had my fill done yesterday it means my cals are a lot lower because it's just soup, instant breakfast and sugar-free beverages for me. Good luck on your path!

Holy restriction, batman! I'm really feeling the fill this time! I think most of it is swelling from the adjustment (always takes a few days up to a week for my stomach to stop complaining post-fill), but this is probably the best restriction I've felt in a long time! It's 10:30 am and I've managed to nurse in a travel mug of coffee and just over half my 8 oz light yogurt smoothie. That's a whopping 120 cals so far today. Wowee! Lesson learned last night - instant mashed potatoes are NOT liquids, no matter how much milk you add. And coolwhip is a BAD idea right after a fill! No pb's or other trouble, but it felt really weird. So far, I don't think I'll have any trouble being good this weekend. I'd be shocked if I don't get darned close to onederland this week. If I keep this restriction, I'll be there by the end of the month, if not sooner! I'm riding this post-fill restriction for all it's worth!

Thanks, Frangi! Congrats to you for the "triple play!"

Thanks gang! The call is at 1pm CST today, and I'm going to do a little brushing up on terminology, just in case. The recruiter says it's more about chemistry and that I should just charm the pants off of them. Thank god I'm comfortable jabbering on the phone with strangers! I'll update when there's news...

Well gang, I'm back from California and the interviews went well, although one of them was bizarre, when I interviewed with the president of the company and had to sell myself when he was set against me because I didn't have industry experience. Everyone else that I talked with had great feedback though, so maybe they'll convince him (I don't think they would have paid to fly me out unless they'd already done that, more or less). I'm supposed to hear on that job (in LA) by end of day today. In San Diego, I did meet with the first director who wanted to hire me, but his boss is insisting on getting someone with a certification I don't have, so we were both disappointed. However, they also had me interview with 2 other managers - one I expected, the other was a surprise. As it turned out, the one that I had been scheduled with told me right away I was better suited for the other manager, and she seemed pretty positive about me, so they had me come back an hour later to interview with her director. He's one of those "cheshire cat" types that don't say much or give any indication of what he's thinking, so I have no idea what he thought. The recruiter there knows the timeline is tight because of the job in LA, so hopefully they'll get back to me today too. In any case, I should know something by the end of the week. I lined up a few apartments I liked so we'll see what happens! It is LOVELY out there this time of year! :-)

Wow - I really am impressed that you're diving in (and a tad jealous, but I'll get there eventually). Confession.. I've been playing about with my belly fat/rolls trying to figure out what a TT would do for me. I have a feeling eventually I'll be at a point where I could get rid of most of my scars from the banding (maybe a couple of the teeny higher pokeholes would stay), and I would probably get rid of my appendectomy scar from HS!! Because it was in the 80's and because I was so close to having my appendix rupture (and because it grew with my belly), it's pretty big, with staple-marks all along it, so it would be nice to get rid of it once and for all. For now, it's all hidden under my belly-flap, but if things tightened up, it would be nice to have it gone! Anybody else spend time at the mirror flopping stuff around? C'mon... admit it!!

Okay... I'm back from my fill and sipping some SF instant Breakfast with skim milk for lunch (cafeteria didn't have any non-lumpy soups). After about 10 minutes of poking around for the right spot on my port (I didn't have my usual doc today) I'm up just over another CC (can't remember if she did 1.2 or 1.4) so I'm somewhere just under 7CCs out of 10. So far it feels good and I'm definitely more restricted! I'll have to pick up some soup on the way home tonight, unless I get creative and make my own (good way to use up some of the stuff in the cupboard that I can't donate to the food shelf). Hmm... maybe I should! SO, the new challenge for me this week is to see how long I can happily stay in liquids and kick-start the loss again (been stuck at 205 for a few weeks and being naughtier about food lately). Besides, it will give my tummy a nice long rest after the adjustment since it really likes to swell and get gassy post-fill - I know, nice visual!

Right on, Karri! I think this is YOUR week! :-)

Thanks Val! Good luck on your papers!

LBR, welcome back! Glad to see you're recommitted to the logs. I'm caught up, but still sitting between 1200 and 1600 cals a day, so I need to do the next part - actually think before eating and make better choices! Most of what I pick is healthy, but I'll have one or two things with too many carbs or too much fat and it puts me over the top. I'm going for a fill today (probably my last time at the hospital where I had surgery - IF I move this month), so I'm hoping we can crank things down and get it back under control. It won't stop me from making bad choices, but if it makes things uncomfortable for the carbey stuff, it will help! I want to use the liquid phase to get back into the groove too. I've been a tad sore after most fills, so I'm going to strive to stick with the liquids and mushies a bit longer to give my tummy a break and adjust to the fill before getting more adventurous. Maybe it will break some of the old habits creeping back in. We'll see!

Thanks! as to your theory - there's no question. I'm taking the plunge of the big move BECAUSE of the surgery. I was watching Big Medicine and a patient decided to move to a whole new city because she wanted to go where nobody knew her "old self" so she could work on seeing her new, healthy self. It got me thinking. How cool would it be to break out and make a fresh start in a whole new city?! It took a LOT of thinking over the past few months and no small amount of therapy to realize it really was what I wanted. Initially it was CA as a whole, but when posed with a very real opportunity in San Francisco, I realized I wanted to be farther south. The trip out last month sealed it for me that I really wanted to be in San Diego. It's been months in the making, but I'm thrilled to be taking the step, even though I'll miss my family and friends. I know some tears will be shed, but I'm also very excited to take a step as a truly independent girl (no family, spouse or buddies to fall back on). The faithful pup and I will make the big drive and see where it takes us! Thanks for all the good wishes. Hopefully this won't drag out too much longer! Donna

oh, that i had directv, but it's just plain old cable for me! maybe in the new place...

whoa Princess - great work!!!! Check in more often so we can see how you're doing!

rock on, girl! great job on the running! I only got in one lap at the dog park last night, because dearest poochie hurt his pretty brown eye and we ran to the vet. Ouch! He looks so pathetic with his eye all gooped up with medicine and the third lid halfway up. My poor baby...

FUN! I love seeing you so happy! Thanks for sharing the pics! :-)

I'm closer than ever to the job! The recruiter called today and said there IS an offer on the table, but I need to do an interview/conference call with the potential workgroup. The director I'd be working for likes to include his team in the hiring process to ensure the new person will fit the group, so he wants me to go ahead with the interview mostly as a formality (I can't let on that there's an offer standing or that I did the certification to get the job). It sounds like I'm pretty much in unless I blow the call Friday. I'm going to do some brushing up on terminology just in case! I will be SOOOOOO HAPPY when the waiting is over and I can dig in on the planning and moving! I think I may go ahead and book that award flight out for next weekend to house-hunt, now that it feels like a safer bet. But, we wait again for a few more days! I hope they make up their minds right away Friday!!

Bungee is a labradoodle. He's my angel, and I don't know what I did without him! Poor guy got a small (thankfully) scratch on his eye today so we rushed to the emergency vet and he gets eyedrops for a week or so now. Small dent in the moving budget, but you can't take chances with eye injuries and he was pretty uncomfortable. As for the belly dance, go for it!! It's SO much fun and a real confidence-builder. I went to a community ed class taught by a local professional and had a blast! It's great exercise and you feel all girly doing it too :-)

Hang in there, girl! The right situation WILL present itself!

Hi San Diegans! I may be moving to the area VERY soon (waiting on a job offer), so I'll be looking for a fill doc in the area that will take a patient who had surgery elsewhere. Any recommendations? My new job will be in Carmel Valley and I don't know yet where I'll be living (I imagine someplace near the area), so suggestions are welcome! I was banded in August 07 in MN. Thanks!

I just looked this up - polka burns 296 cals an hour for a person weighing 146 lbs. Not bad!! Sadly, I haven't found any polka radio here in the Twin Cities, MN. Not enough dairy cows to listen to it, I guess (cows give more milk when you play polka - seriously!). Come to think of it, I don't have any polka on the ipod - must get that taken care of quick!

Keep up the great work, guys/gals!

Wow- congratulations! You're having quite a week, girl!

Ummm.... so consolations and congratulations?? :-) I caught up my log for today - around 500 so far...

Aww - thanks, you guys! I put all the nervous energy into more organizing and sorting stuff. I had gone through just about everything except the holiday boxes, which I weeded heavily yesterday, and I started assigning corners of the garage for my stuff - one side for things going to family, one corner of holiday stuff going to my friend and her kids, another trunkload of donations in the car, and a corner for the stuff that I'll actually take with me. I want to make sure the mover can tell exactly what's going and what isn't when they come to do an estimate! My sister says I'm OCD, but I'd say I'm very organized, especially when there's money involved!