Elizabeth68

My mother used to have them and i was excited that i never did -- until i lost the weight and they appeared from where they were hidden. They are huge and bulging and while they don't hurt, they are not cute at all. i have an appt Monday to figure out what i can do with them.

i've been banded since Nov 14 and drank a diet coke daily along with sparkling Water. since the band, i just cant tolerate the carbonation like i used to. If it's later in the day/evening (i'm tight until 2 pm or so), i can tolerate it pretty well. it simply means i sip my cocktails more slowly! i choose not to drink carbonated beverages as my liquids throughout the day, however, as it is uncomfortable for me to drink normally. i was told it would be unlikely i could tolerate them and she was right!

30 pounds in 3 months post op is amazing! congratulations! I am 16 months post-op and am down 110 pounds. I never believed I would actually lose this much. it's such a HUGE number when you weigh what i did and seems impossible. I knew only 50% reached half their goal (or whatever the stat is, that's the one I remember), and i knew i'd be on the failing side. Then an amazing thing happened -- I kept losing! I was strict with my diet, never bought bad slider foods (until recently) and started to work out the first time in my life. I found cool trainers that got me, really encouraged me and were fun. I started taking spin classes (seriously!) and found that I loved them. I go out sometimes and drink too many calories, but then simply stay off of it for a while. I accept all compliments from others and enjoy them. I've dumped some friends who have tried to sabotage my success and made new ones whose interests align with my new ones. I'm the thinnest I've been since i remember. I had to have been this thin once, but i have always had such a bad self-body image that i didn't appreciate the great body i had. I'm getting used to the one i have now. I have excess skin i don't want, but i will eventually likely take care of that. Once i lost weight, my vericose veins appeared in my legs. I have an appt next week with a surgeon to see what I can do there. So far, I've lost 9 inches off my bust, 9 off my chest, 13 off my waist, 9 off my hips, 6 off my thighs, 4 off my calves and 3 off of my arms. I went from a 20 Women;s pant to a regular 10 and have never been this size ever (the exercise helps). I went from a 22 Women's jacket to a regular 12. Sat in a middle coach seat last week on a flight and no one cringed when i sat down next to them. i take the stairs by choice, when only a couple of flights. I'm not winded when i run a short distance. When i cheat (and of course i sometimes do), i don't feel everyone is staring at me when i order that dessert. I can actually describe myself as happy. Go figure. I still have a bit i want to lose and it's been slow recently (occasional dessert doesn't help), but i know i will get there. Nothing in my spring wardrobe fits, so I have to break the budget again but i want to look my best. Eventually, i'll start dating again, but the focus is still on me right now. Surgery was the best decision i have ever made. It helped me through those times when i normally would have given up. Kept me on track during long plateaus and sometimes forced me to keep going when i really wanted to blow everything on that steak dinner (yeah, that's not happening). Letsgetskinny, i loved your post. Keep up the good work and congratulations!

I bought a pair of lululemon yoga pants today. I never fit into this brand before and damn, they look good! I look good! And i also love the "no more ugly shirts" thing. I promised myself no more tops to swim in. No more bulky, no super loose and if it doesn't make me look as thin as I am becoming, then I can't buy it. It's been hard as I still gravitate towards larger styles, but no more. If it's not fabulous, it's not coming home with me.

Good luck with your first fill after 3 years! You've been so successful thus far! BTW, take a step back a sec and look at your sentence about how you've gained 10 pounds in 6 months. I assume you were like me before the band where i regularly seemed to gain that much but never did anything about it. Bravo to you!

BTW, i meant thanks to those in this thread and forum as a whole in my comment above. I didn't mean to imply anyone in this thread had stalled! so sorry!

I was banded Nov 13, 2014 and it has been the happiest year of my life (at least where weight is concerned). I knew weight loss would still be hard and knew that it would be scary along the way, but this has been amazing. I have lost 90 pounds and am currently enjoying one-derland, through at the same level for a bit longer than desired. I've committed to a trainer three times a week plus other exercise classes. I never in my life would have thought i would be looking forward to a spin class early Sunday mornings and I even work out at the hotel when I travel. Who is this person? Because of my commitment to exercise and truly changing my habits, I'm confident this change is here to stay. I have never been able to say that. I would lose 20 pounds and gain back 40. I'm able to control my portions and while I still enjoy a dessert every now and again, it's a "skinny person" portion. A few bites and I'm satisfied. Over the past year, I've felt that I've not focused so much on the number of pounds, but the accomplishments in the gym and other NSVs. It's helped me so much not to be fixated on the scale itself. I'd hover in a zone for a month then drop 6 pounds really quickly. it's a weird thing, but i'm getting used to it and not getting discouraged when the scale hovers on the same number, like it is now. I hate the excess skin primarily because I let myself get so heavy, but I know i will eventually have some surgeries to improve it all. I'm thankful to live in a time where that is possible and thankful to be able to afford it as well. I would like to lose another 40 pounds, but that may not be possible. Funny thing is that is where I used to be, yet thought i was incredibly overweight. I definitely didn't understand nor like my body before and this process has helped me come to terms with that. It's like a 12-month therapy session! I have my 1-yr esophogram scheduled for tomorrow morning and hopefully everything will be ok. I may get the band loosened slightly because the last fill (just 0.1) may have been too much. I was self-pay so this ends my 1 year of "free" monthly visits and i'll go and see the team quarterly. I congratulate all the others on this thread as it has been an amazing year for so many. Some have lost faster than others and some have stalled, but we've all learned from each other and hopefully will continue on through year 2 as well! So far, I see we are all NYU patients and I can't sing their praises enough, btw. Continued luck everyone!

OMG, congratulations!!! Every day I inch closer to that goal, and it feels just amazing to even have it in sight. You must be beyond happy! Keep up the hard work as it is really paying off. Congratulations and may you have continued success!

i'm glad you are angry! this means you are not internalizing it. Unfortunately, these are the same types of people who will try to derail you once you lose more weight. They will offer you that extra cookie or ice cream even though they would fat shame you when you were heavier. it's all crazy really. You are doing amazing for only 5 weeks out and keep up the great work! Don't let the shmucks get you down!

I love my fitbit! My steps will swing widely based on my work and travel schedule, but I am very focused on it tracking my active minutes and sleep. Lack of sleep is way too common with my work hours, and the less I get, the more I eat. It's a perfect tool to look back on my week to see if I've hit my goal of 7 hours of sleep a night. It really keeps me focused. Also, I've been working out more than I ever have in my life (actually, we are comparing now to zero!) so this is good to keep weekly track of my activity levels. I've fallen in love with spin classes (never thought I'd ever say that!) and cycling doesn't translate into steps. By tracking my activity level, I can make sure i am getting the cardio I need for the week to continue to lose weight. I've had a couple of months of plateaus (Feb, April and June), and I've found that kicking up my cardio will help me break out of that. I definitely recommend the fitbit. I haven't tracked my diet with it, nor do i use FitnessPal. I had tried, i just always lose interest after a day or two. Fitbit requires me to do nothing but wear it, so it works for me. If they can only find a way to track my diet without me having to type in anything or do any work...

Thanks. The liquids I was referring to were Water and tea. I went to see my surgeon today and she took 0.2ccs out of my band. Small amount, but it made all the difference! I'm so surprised since I've had that amount of fill for a month without problems. Now I know what it feels like when I need to have some removed!

I had lap-band surgery in November 2014 and have been receiving small, monthly fills. My last one was about a month ago and really seems to have gotten me to that coveted green zone. I usually don't eat until a shake around lunch time, although for business lunches will order fish, which usually works for me. Today's lunch was salmon and I had an embarrassing PB episode after just a few small bites. The thing is, I can't keep liquids down since then. It doesn't feel like anything is stuck in there, so this is a whole new thing for me. Could this be a slip? Or maybe it's just inflamed and should improve enough to drink Water by morning? Anyone else experience something like this?

my surgeon actually said i could have coffee the same day i had surgery and suggested my sister who came with me bring a cup to post-op! Was wonderful!

The area around your port is swollen but will eventually reduce. It will always be there (helpful to find when filling!), and await the day that i lose enough weight for it to be seen (still hidden among much fat)

I read a great blog piece on the app from my gym today (yes, I actually go to the gym now!) about how weight loss is one of the only areas where we don't accept mistakes. At work, we make mistakes, we learn, we correct them and we move on. In relationships, we have a fight, we work it out and then we move on. We never expect perfection, but we do for weight loss. Its like we fall short of our goals and automatically label ourselves a failure instead of working it out and moving on. I think the fact that you wrote your post today is testament to the fact that you want to work it out and move forward. To that I say go for it! schedule an appointment with your doctor and don't worry about his/her reaction. I'm certain he or she will be happier to see you there to try again than for you to feel too embarrassed to restart. Good luck! You can do this!

so clever! i love that idea because it's only a matter of time before i get that craving as well!

I also self paid as I didn't want to wait 6 months and I knew my firm was re-evaluating healthcare plans. Imagine if I waited 6 months and then a new insurance plan wouldn't cover it anyway! A huge part of weight loss is mind over matter, and if I finally had my mind where I wanted it to be, I didn't want to waste that momentum. I'm looking at this as a not only a well-deserved gift to myself, but as an investment in my health. I am in my mid-40's and feel the effects of a lifetime of obesity on my knees, which will only get worse. Then there's cancer and all those diseases obesity is said to contribute to. Being healthier will reduce my health costs in the future and I think I'll get a great return on my investment. Self pay is invoiced at a discount to the insurance-paid rate, so ask your doctor what self-pay rates they have. Plus, so many "incidentals" are covered by insurance, including pain medication after surgery, all my pre-op visits, etc. I was most concerned whether insurance would pay for any complications from my surgery and it would. That really put my mind at ease. My doctor also includes 12 months of fills and nutritionist visits in the rate I paid, so it covers quite a bit. They also found a small hernia which they fixed when in there. Insurance will cover that extra cost as well, but I 'm going to try to see if they will cover some of the hospital or surgeon costs as well. I think it would have been inevitable that I would need some surgery on that, no? doesn't hurt to try! Now, who will cover my smaller wardrobe?

wow, I had surgery Thurs as well and I cannot imagine vomiting with the pain and soreness. I'm very glad you went back to the dr and hope that means you can now keep the medication down as well. I was trying to stay away from taking it until the hospital meds wore off and OUCH! So now i take it every four hours, but less and less each time. I get the most pain when I move up from a prone position. I never did have strong abs. it's getting better and better every day and has been totally manageable as long as I don't try to do too much.

I've told friends and family, but have chosen not to tell those at work. I wouldn't call it a supportive working environment. I'm so glad to hear yours is; that's wonderful. Family has been great too since they've obviously known me my whole life and have seen my struggles with weight. Friends have fallen into two camps; "normal" folks have been great,and the "skinny" friends I've found that just don't understand. Some of those have been against it and some have had the initial 2-minute discussion and it's never come up again.

I'm using the GNC shakes too. They are sweeter than I expected, but not bad. I ordered a slew online as well recently when they were on sale. The poor delivery guy had his work cut out for him that day! I'm not telling people at work, so I've been emptying them into insulated Water bottles that I sip at my desk. They stay incredibly cold all day (Contigo brand) and I don't have to deal with questions. Sorry to hear this weekend's meetup due to the weather, but I understand. How often does this group meet?

i realize this is not the right thread for this, but I'm having surgery with Dr. Ren Nov 13th! I've been reading this forum for a couple of weeks and just registered. Seeing a few future banders with the same doctor is somehow making this more real for me. My pre-op is tomorrow.