Twilight

Good evening ladies. I'm only going to try a little bit because the site has been nuts today. Nothing interesting to report. Jackie, I hope your mom gets better soon. I'm sure she is very confused. Poor woman. I'll keep her in my prayers. I hope DD gets her approval soon. I can only imagine the frustration you are going through while waiting. Phyl, this site has sucked today, you are right. I'm going to take kids to Minot tomorrow to go school shopping. DS starts next Wednesday. I had a stressful day today because all teachers at my old school went back to school today. I didn't cry but came close. It was a tough day for me. It will be good to be gone tomorrow. I'm going to sign off. Will probably be back late tomorrow night. Have a great Tuesday ladies!

Mini, I've been really bad about drinking the last two weeks. In turn, I haven't lost anything the last two weeks. Would you like to help each other stay accountable? I'll keep track of my liquids today and you keep track of yours. I'll pm you tonight my liquid for the day and you can do the same. I would do it here, but it would feel like hijacking the thread. Anyone else want to join? Feel free.

Happy Sunday ladies. I hope everyone has enjoyed their weekends. Karri, I want to see this room. I always wanted to do something fun in mine but the custodians would have had an absolute caniption (sp?) so I had plain blue walls. I didn't complain though because most of the other rooms have this ugly butterscotchy color that made me want to gag. At least I had blue. Candice, glad you had fun at the cottage. Did you do the big hike? How were the birds....I mean mosquitos. I have to say I'm envious of you. Jackie, so glad you are getting better care for your mom. It had to be heartbreaking to go through that. Thank God you had someone you could turn to in all of this. It sounds like you have an amazing doctor, even if he has moved away. Now your stress level can come down a bit and you can breath. As for the chx salad, I LOVE it. You get a little bit of sweet, but not too sweet, in every bite. My dh says he thinks he would like it better if it was made with Miracle Whip. I use MW for everything but this and my broc/caul salad. Canned chx just doesn't have enough oomph I guess. I'm going to try it with MW next time and I'll report back. Denise, what browser are you using and when was the last time you updated it? I use mozilla but I know Internet Explorer has had some recent changes. Maybe you need to update to get the fonts to work again....just a thought. And now who is Minnie, at first I thought a dog cuz you were playing fetch but then thought cat because she was up on the mantel. I'm guessing cat. Mine don't play though so the idea of one playing fetch seems strange. Okay....dh and I are going on a long bike ride so that maybe I can get my attitude adjusted. I have been over cranky for about a week. TOM is going to be here any day I just know it. He's taking his own sweet time though....grrrrr. I'll talk to you all tonight. Enjoy your Sunday.

Ask if he does the fills or if that is handled by someone else. If it is someone else, I would make sure I met with them and really liked them. I saw my surgeon for a 15-20 minute visit on my intro day. They say I talked to him in the operating room but I don't remember it, and I haven't seen him since. I had never met the woman who does my fills and I have heard horror stories about how snotty some people's fill nurses or PA's can be. Mine is a dream and I couldn't ask for better but it would have been nice to know I was never going to see my surgeon again. Also, who do you call for questions.....the surgeon, the coordinator, the dietician, the fill office....and who is next in line if you don't get satisfaction there. You don't think there will be problems but I was always calling my coordinator with questions that would have been better addressed by someone else. Who do you call if there is a problem with a fill and the clinic is closed? Is there always a bariatric person on call? Things like that. Good luck with your appointment.

My team did all the pre-op tests in one day. We had a meeting about how the band actually works, I met with the nutritionist, then I saw the surgeon, next the psych, and finally the coordinator again to make sure everything was good. Finally that evening was the support group meeting. It was one day off and I killed all the birds with one stone. I didn't have to do the sleep apnea because I have no history of it and they didn't think it was necessary, but they would have done it that night had I needed it. That might be beneficial for you. I don't think skipping all of those appointments and just banding is ethical, IMHO. They have a responsibility to ensure that everyone knows what they are getting into. Try to find a surgeon that will work with your limited time off. You don't mention how many days it is, but my surgery was done on a Thurs., I took Fri. off and was back at work on Monday. I am a teacher and did sit down a little more that week than usual but total my days off of work were only 3 for the surgery and 4 the rest of the year (school year) for aftercare and fills. Good luck

Glad I could make you feel better. The work is to come. You have the tool, but a hammer can't make a house without the carpenter. Drink drink drink. That has been so key for me. It works for my weight loss, it works for my cravings, it works for my mood elevation. I feel better when I'm hydrated. I exercise more when I'm hydrated, and when I have a serious craving, I always tell myself that I can have it....AFTER a bottle of Water and the requisite 30 minute wait. Usually by 30 minutes the craving is gone. You have been doing really well. Don't be too hard on yourself. Think of the 4 bags of potatoes you have lost. IMPRESSIVE!

Phyl, Sounds like a lovely day with a great guy! Congrats on 44 years! that is such an accomplishment. I'm so glad we did something special for my parent's 40th since Dad didn't make it to 50. I'm sure it was a beautiful view of the city. And weight loss 2 boot! How much better can it get. I just lost the space bar off of my laptop. I'm pretty sure it is still under extended warrenty but it sure makes it a bi^@* to type! Maybe I'll be quiet now. Who knows. Now about pineapple juice. For me it has always worked more like baking soda mixing with water. It unclogs the drain but it doesn't go down, if you get the drift. You're a stronger woman than I Phyl. I couldn't stand that feeling. Good luck! Gonna run. Have a great day ladies.

I know you all hate to hear it, and it's more than frustrating, but the lapband typical results are the average of 2 pounds lost per week. If you have lost 10 pounds in a month, you are right on course. Also if you lose 4 pounds one week, then the next you may not lose any. 8 a month is par...so you're doing alright. Someone on here said that the pre-op takes EVERYTHING out of you and it does. And so you gain a few pounds just putting it all back the first week or so. Don't panic. I started with a bmi of 40 and have found that when I stressed about it the scale refused to move. My biggest 'staller' has always been not getting enough no-cal liquids. I have been able to steadily lose 2 pounds a week and have been at 8-10 pounds every month. good luck to you all, if I can help any more, please let me know. This isn't easy but it is possible. Don't lose faith in yourself. You CAN do this.

Denise, Sounds like you had quite a day. I'd send flowers but I'm sure that wouldn't be what you really need. Maybe send your secretary flowers....from some....let's see.....we can call him a paramour. It might be funny. You could send them once every few weeks and really get the office talking. My dad had some great ideas of how to torture co-workers without being caught. Let me know if you want other ideas....some of them were REALLY good. My chx salad. However many cans of chicken, a bag of craisins, a can of pineapple (I use tidbits, my sister uses crushed), about 3 green onions chopped, a couple ribs of celery chopped small. Enough mayo to make it moist, but not soggy (start on the light side because it's amazing how just a little too much makes it soggy), dijon mustard, salt, and pepper to taste. Oh...and a small bag (about a cup) of slivered almonds. Mix together and chill. I LOVE it on kashi crackers or just in a bowl. The sausages I LOVE are Aidelle's pineapple bacon. The asiago are alright (those are member's mark) and the Aidelle's sun dried tomato are good (a little spice that's interesting not strong). But the pineapple bacon are addictive. I wish we had a Sam's club closer. 5 hours one direction, 7 hours the other. Okay, went to my ds's play. Wasn't impressed, but he did a nice job. I'll talk to you all later. Waiting for Phelp's to swim. 15 minutes. I'll check back soon.

I forgot I was going to tell you all something. I found a quick meal that I find VERY band friendly. I don't know how many people have Schwans around but I love them and they love me because I'm not a huge cook from scratch kind of mom. I'm getting better not working, but I still love them..... Anyways, they have these small bowls called Chicken in asian style sauce. They are sort of a side dish, probably should be served over rice but that's a problem for me now. Well the small bowl says they are 4 servings of 50 cals each...so if I don't put it over rice and just eat it plain I can get probably 2 meals of 100 cals each. This is their description : "Marinated, diced, all-white chicken meat with mushrooms and water chestnuts in a soy and hoisin sauce". And a 1/2 cup serving, which is all I can do right now (a whole bowl would be double this) has 100 cals and 10g protein, 12 g carbs. Not bad for something that takes me less than 10 mins and I can eat it while the kids and Jeff eat stuff that gets me stuck. Just a thought for you all.

I need to figure out how to change my avatar with a picture. I LOVED the Flounder in the beginning but would now like a pic of me I think and then I can take it off my signature. As for changing my font and size, usually I just do the "quick reply" at the bottom of the screen so I rarely go into the screen where you can change those things. So I guess I can't really help there. Okay, yesterday I think I talked to you all about trying to figure out a menu for this workshop that I'm "in charge" of. Well I sent a sample menu to my director and he said I need to think of vegetarians and people who can't eat pork for religious reasons. So I'm going to ask for suggestions, my brain power is out. A couple of considerations....they have hired a couple of lunch ladies who are used to cooking for kids and really like "institutional" type foods. Second, the director would like to eat better than mac and cheese and lunch meat, but we are on a budget...not really tight, but not unlimited....I need 2 breakfasts, 2 lunches, 2 suppers. My original meals were: Breakfast 1: egg bake, some sort of quik bread, melon and berries breakfast 2: french toast, bacon and sausage, and melon Lunch 1: Chicken or tuna salad croissants, asian cabbage crunch salad, baked apples slices. Lunch 2: Left over meats from both dinners on hard rolls, soup or chili, leftover stuff from the other two days (this is our final meal so I was trying to do leftovers without them being "left overs" Dinner 1 (first meal): Pork loin roast, smashed garlic red potatoes, roasted green beans, and cobbler Dinner 2: Baked ham, sweet potato casserole, corn, creamed cucumbers, angel food cake with strawberries and whip cream. snack options: chips and salsa, veggie tray with dips, fresh apples, oranges, and bananas. So I would love any input you all could give me. Any ideas that I don't have to give too much direction for. I want to have a nice menu but nothing outrageous. I hope that makes sense. I also want to have some low cal band friendly options so I can eat too. This summer I really struggled. Any ideas would help. Thanks all.

I know it doesn't help a lot to tell you that it will get better. I know your frustration. I know the feeling of helplessness that you are sure you are failing yet again. I am sorry that you are feeling this way. I am going to give you some ideas to try. This is a copy of a reply I sent in another thread. I wrote it when I was at 4 months and the difference those things made in my journey were phenominal. You can do this, here are some suggestions........ I'm so glad you stopped by and sent out a plea. It is a huge step to even stand up and say you are struggling. How many times in our lives have we not wanted to stand up and say "Help" and instead fed that problem? We all knew that we had a problem with willpower coming in to this. If we could just "say no" we would. If we would just "get moving more" we would. But if we want this band to work we need to do some things to help it along. It is going to take dedication and some tough love for yourself. Just remember that you are worth it! I have been very strict about following the band rules. I don't eat soft foods at meal time. I chew chew chew and I listen to my body when I think I'm full I stop. I make sure I eat my solid Protein first and then veggies. If I'm still hungry I eat my carb. I put my food on a small plate instead of a big one. I make sure that I get in all my Water. These are tough things to make sure I do. But those are the rules and I knew that going in. Notice that exercise was not one of the rules. I have been really bad about that. But as the weight has come off I've been more active in my house. I clean more than I used to. I park further away in parking lots. I take the stairs more. Now that I'm down to a weight where I don't hurt all the time I've amped up the exercise. I told myself that there were going to be no excuses. Honestly once I get out there I enjoy it, but it's the getting out there that is the struggle. I have set myself a goal of getting some sort of exercise every day. Friday night it was not possible, but it has been every other day. On Sunday I even went out when it was sleeting and walked. I cut my time in half because it was cold....but, no excuses, I went. When I made the exercise goal I also decided to start tracking my food intake. I do mine at the daily plate and like it. There are others out there but that was the first one I went to. I've heard of fitday and sparkspeople also. Here I set my goal, I track my food and my exercise and I see where I am spending my food bucks (those are my calories). I think of what I can have as my budget and then I start shopping around more. I'm a little thrifty IRL so it works for me. I make sure my protein goal is met each day and then look at how my calories breakdown by fat/protein/carb. I'm not a lowfat sugarfree freak...I just stay under the blue line everyday. If I'm not under the blue line every day the next day I fix it. by doing it everyday I keep better track of my diet. Honestly, as a fat chick, I had no idea of portions or what the true calorie content in some of these foods are. Heck, some of the baked potatoes I used to eat are higher in cals than I should consume in two meals!! And when you see 1/2 your calories a day coming from fat it's quite an eye opener. My advice, pick one thing and concentrate on it for a week....maybe two. When it becomes second nature and not WORK anymore, add another of these suggestions into your routine. Again, when these are working successfully, you can add another.....until you find what works for you. Oh...the other thing I do is weigh every morning. I may fluctuate up and down a bit, but if I see any more than a 2 pound change I'm looking at my diet and my movement to see what the heck I did. You can do this. You can be successful. You have the tools, and with us you have support. Keep posting and telling us of your triumphs and trials. We are here to support, encourage, and applaud you. Good luck...I look forward to hearing great stuff from you. .......................................................................... I hope this helps somehow. I really do want you to succeed. If we can help that happen, I sure hope we do so. Good luck.

That is absolutely awful Jackie! I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. Your poor mother. I hope she can make the long drive. It will be so hard while she is in such pain. I'll be thinking of you tomorrow.

Hi ladies. No real weight loss to report this week. Actually, that's not a bad thing considering the junk I ate the last week. I was being so awful so I'm thankful I didn't jepordize my weight loss so severely. I think TOM must be getting ready to visit. He can make me such a ..... let's say ..... anger ball. I've been very very ugly to the little quacks as well as dh. GRRRRR I don't think I can talk dh into a trip in January. I'm pushing with next July as it is. He says I have to quit spending so much. I love the idea, but I'm going to have to pass on that one I think. I want to do Vegas though. I've never been.....and Karri could probably swing Vegas over NE Canada. I say it's a wonderful idea! Sorry I can't come. I called my son's pcp today. I don't remember what of the story I've told you all but she quit the clinic this month...before I got the recommendations back from the child psych. Well, then I took him to her partner...the doc in town....and he blew me off. That was this past weekend. Well, I heard she was going to be in the clinic so I called the clinic and that hag they have answering the phones was rude again so I got fed up and called the pcp's cell phone. She was appauled that the doc had refused the meds and said she would get them for him right away. She is so great! I feel so much better...even though I feel horrible about calling this poor woman at home. She's such a wonderful woman though. We will follow her to her new practice in September, but she's taking this month off. hmmm....there was more to say but who knows right now. Hope you all are having a great day. I'll talk to you all soon.

Okay....let me try this again. Karri, you have just elevated your husband to saint status in my eyes. You had better behave well and not do anything to damage yourself between now and the 27th. Behave!!! Jackie, we look forward to seeing you with us next year. I have started saving for my trip already. I'm going to have to be really frugal since I'm not working this year, but we will get it done. I think we've decided to meet at Peaches nxt year. We will have more time to relax and just visit. This year we spent so much time running from one store to another that I don't think we got to really enjoy each other's company to the level that we should have. Don't get me wrong, I LOVED the trip, but I really would have loved to spend more time with the ladies. So get the passport in order, and start saving....we're going to see some great stuff in Canada next July. Janet, I hope you have a great weekend. Enjoy your time off and the fun with the furbabies! We'll be waiting to hear from you. BTW, the article was great. Your doctor sounds like a dream. Your success has some to do with how great he is I'm sure. Not a lot, but some. I've been reading your mentor board. You are a great mentor. Phyl, I was starting to worry about you. I'm glad you made it home safe. Poor Earl. You should offer to start weighing his food for him. Good job on your only 1.3 pounds. That in itself is an amazing accomplishment. You should feel really good about that. Now I thought that the train attendants were supposed to put your bed down and put it up every day. Shame on your attendant for not doing that....especially since you were in a handicap roomette. How rude. But Danielle was amazing...hard to compare. Looking forward to hearing more about your trip. Welcome home. Okay. I'm going to finish watching gymnastics. I'll see you in the morning. Tomorrow is weigh in day. I'll report in then. Goodnight ladies.

grrr...I lost my half hour message!!!! I'll type more later. How frustrating. Watching Olympic mens gymnastics. I LOVE men gymnasts. But why are the US uniforms so ugly? I'm very disappointed. The ladies were wonderful. The men's suck! Okay...gotta go.

I feel bad saying that I'm so excited you are too tight! I know that it is horrific but now you can be sure you have a functioning band in there. I hope the restriction holds. I have to say that a whole cc when you are THAT full seems crazy. I have to say how much change .2 cc's can make. On the other hand, at least you feel a little more relieved. Let us know how it goes the next few days.

Well all, it has been a great day. What can I say. Not going to have to work this year, my husband has been very attentive, I went walking/running tonight, I just feel great all over. I can't tell you all what a load off my shoulders it has been since I heard I wouldn't be going back to school next week. It was such an amazing bit of news. Then tonight I got my butt off the couch and went out walking. I wanted to cop out and didn't. I made myself push through. I talked myself around the giving in and turning around. I ended up running almost a mile of the 4. I felt so good when I got home. Tired, hot, wanting to collapse....but so good. Why I have stopped working out is beyond me. I guess I have forgotten how wonderful it feels when I'm done with it. It is so wonderful to feel like I do when I'm done. I haven't had a great food day. I am still trying to eat things that are going to stick me. Why do I do that? I don't know. Very very frustrating. I will be better tomorrow. I know I can get back on track. I know I can. I guess I've gotten so used to EVERYTHING sticking, that I don't think about what I'm eating. Back to bandster rules tomorrow. GRRRRR. I'll try to have some kashi tonight. Hopefully that will settle things a little bit. I just watched Michael Phelps break the record for most gold medals. How exciting that was! How can you not swell with pride when our athletes do such amazing things? And with another world record time!!! Absolutely amazing. Okay...running for a bit. I'll talk to you all again before bed.

Good morning ladies. I hope everyone slept well. I have sent everyone off to do their thing today and have the house to myself!!!!! I need to clean it and my cars and do laundry and all sorts of stuff but really I think I am going to take a day for myself. I need a break from the chaos that was this past weekend. I just got a call from a really good friend of mine. She got her band yesterday. She says she is doing wonderfully. She sounded so great. She has lost almost 20 pounds from the pre-op diet and feels so great. I'm so excited for her. I've told her about the site but I don't know if she has spent any time here. I don't see any info on her on the August thread. To each their own....some people aren't computer chatters. Phyl, I hope your train ride was uneventful and you are recuperating from your cross country trip. I can't wait to hear all your stories. Karri, congrats on your 5k! Three miles isn't too bad as long as you pay attention to what your body is telling you. Nice time too considering the extensive surgery! Oh...forgot, I just called my school to find out if I had to go back on Monday and the secretary said she was pretty sure they had signed a science teacher!!!!!! My mom will speak to me again! Okay...I'm off to do something...not sure what. Have a great day ladies!

Good evening ladies! I'm back. I talked you all up today. During my support I told them all about our trip and how having you guys here was so important to my success. Without you all to be accountable to, I wouldn't be nearly as good. I don't know that I've thanked you all for adopting me lately, but, as Janet said, I wasn't doing well on the December board. Without you all, there is no way that I would be boasting almost 75 pounds lost. I fit nicely in my size 8's. I am proud of me. I could have never said that a year ago. It was a crazy weekend, but I lived through it. According to my wii this morning I hadn't gained anything. Of course I will wait until Thursday for my official weigh in but I could have been much worse. I couldn't believe that I lost over 8 pounds this month....and it included both the trip and the reunion. I almost celebrated with shopping but I abstained. Then when I got home sitting on my doorstep were those leather jackets I ordered from qvc. They are wonderful!!!!! Janet, they are definitely light enough that you would have done okay with them I think. It was good to talk to Phyl today. I'm so glad she had a good time with her sisters. I was so excited to hear that her sisters buried the hatchet. It made her so happy! Okay, I've gotta go. Hope you all had a great day. Oh...and ditto to what Janet asked. I'm waiting to hear from everyone. It must be exciting since it's been so quiet around here. I can't wait to hear!

Hi everyone. Just a quick check in. Looks like it's been pretty quiet around here. I was going to tell you all I talked to Phyl this morning but it looks like she beat me to it! PA took me back to where I was last month. She didn't really think there was a problem because when she stuck into the port there wasn't any flow back so there wasn't an intense amount of pressure???? Anyways, when I explained that just before I got there I stopped and had some beef and barley soup and when I got to the office I lost it, she had to agree that I was too tight. She was excited at my loss. She says I look great. Okay...gonna run for a while. I'll be back tonight.

Hi ladies!!! It is over!!! It was insane! I'm so glad it's over!! I'm glad I'm getting unfilled tomorrow. I've been miserable the last couple of days. I've been pb'ing over an over. Everything seems to stick me. I've been not eating right because of the reunion. I feel like a miserable failure. I've been grazing on candy because anything with any substance is stuck. Doesn't matter how well I chew. I've tried drinking coffee first, eating papaya....I haven't been able to stick with liquids for this time. It's been so frustrating. I sure hope that when I can eat something solid I can get back to the rules. I'm trying now to get down some kashi oatmeal. So far so good. Does stress really cause this kind of restriction? I was fine in Minnesota. I was eating papaya, but never really stuck. grrrrr. I'll let you all know what I find out tomorrow. I'll be less crazy and more focussed tomorrow.

We are entering our first summer as the new us. I don't know about you guys but I am enjoying mine more. I think the fact that the board has dried up a bunch shows us that you all are too. What wonderful things have you all been able to do this summer that you couldn't do last? Anything wonderful planned that you wouldn't have dreamed of last summer? Enjoying the world more? How has losing the 30+ pounds that we have each lost affected your enjoyment of summer? Yesterday I walked on the beach of the lake....rolled up my shorts and just LOVED it. I wasn't self concious that someone would see my thighs....I just enjoyed my world. I bought a swimming suit that didn't cover shoulders and thighs. No skirt this year. I make it a point to go outside every day and enjoy the world. Last year this time I was dying because it was so darned hot and walking from one room to the other left me sweaty. 3 things there....walking doesn't make me sweaty, sweaty is a GOOD thing these days, and I'm not nearly as warm as I was with 50 more pounds of fat on me. How about you all. Share!!!!

Did you get this taken care of? I am so worried for you. I really hope you get this taken care of. Please don't let it take time to adjust. I'm so upset that they let you leave filled that tight when you were throwing up there. That's uncalled for!! Please let us know how you are doing.

If you are there, I would suggest going to the doc's office and sitting there until she is seen. Be the squeaky wheel. Call every half hour until you get the nurse. Sometimes the doc's office doesn't "get it". I don't think they are trying to be difficult, they just don't understand what we are going through. Whatever you do, don't let her wait until Monday.