Shinyhappymommy

Well, I'm up two pounds today, putting me at the same point as last week's official weight. I'm sure it'll be down again soon, but this is crazy-making. Also, dh didn't get the latest position. He continues to apply, and we continue to hope. Oh, and the house we rent is going on the market this week. I just have to trust in God and know that things will work out for the best.

I tried my husband's pants on and they fit me! I've never been able to fit into his pants before. He's a normal-sized man, they are a 36 waist. I'm including a picture of me wearing them. I also tried on my old box of "Melissa's Hopefuls". That was my way of labeling the box something positive instead of Melissa Clothes Too Small. Anyway, I got this box out and tried things on. Everything fit. Some were a tad snug, but I was able to fit into everything in there. That's the last of my skinny clothes. Such a surreal moment. The weird thing about it is that I was a good 30-40 pounds lighter than I am now when I was wearing these things. I must just be dense. :thumbdown:

I got a check in the mail today reimbursing me for all the payments I made to the Surgery Center. I can't believe it! It was for $725 and some change. Wow. I knew that it should be coming, but never thought I'd actually see it. Apparently, this surgery center didn't have things set up right with the insurance company and they weren't allowed to bill for the procedure that I had. Because it was their mistake, the insurance paid them nothing and my liability was nothing. I was actually really bothered by this at first and told the insurance woman that it felt dishonest to me to have the surgery center receive nothing for my surgery. She said that it was the surgery center's fault and that it was between the insurance and the center and that it wasn't something I needed to worry about. It sounded like it's something that happens sometimes and it didn't seem like it was all that big of a deal to them. To me it sure was! This is such a blessing right now because I'm out of work. Also, my husband is trying to relocate and even though his company will move us, it's still going to cost money to move with deposits and everything. Also with Christmas coming up, our savings account is low and so this money is so needed right now. Huge sigh of relief!

Just thought I'd share my latest favorite picture. I know it's in my signature, but here it is full size. Hello collar bones! I have missed you. :thumbup: I put this on the big picture thread in the General Discussion forum, but wanted to put it here too, because you're the most important people to me on this message board community. :crying:

I'm almost eight months out and here is an updated picture at 89 pounds lost. Before is 303 and progress shot is 214. I cannot believe the difference in how I feel about everything in these eight months. I'm so blessed!

89 pounds lost since February. Check out my blog in my signature and go to the posts from February, you can read how fast everything went for me. So happy I made the decision to be banded.

Did you catch Conference today? There were a lot of great talks that I found very comforting. I hope you're doing well.

That's so great! Good job!

lotza, Sorry to hear of the trials you are facing right now. The bright side is that you will be all that much stronger once your are through these things. Really, we do grow from our adversities. I can relate to the wanting a child (for me another child). My first thought is that you're awfully soon after surgery to be considering pregnancy just yet. I'm 8 months out and almost 90 pounds down, with 54 to go and I think that it still might be a little soon for me. But only you know your feelings and what Heavenly Father wants for your family. I guess if you're not pregnant yet, that may be your answer. As you lose weight, you'll likely become more fertile as well. That's really rough about your husband. Is he also overweight? What caused his knee trouble? I have no experience in such things, so I really hope you're able to get some good medical advice from a doctor that will listen to you guys. As far as your weight loss, do you think you need a fill? Are you getting exercise? Are you eating properly and following your band rules? All those things help so much. The weight loss can slow down from time to time, but after a few weeks if nothing is changing, you may look into why it's not coming off. Hang in there. May you be buoyed up from Conference this weekend. I know I'm looking forward to it.

I lost 16 pounds the first week. Insane. If I had known that a liquid diet would do that, I would have done it sooner! LOL Just enjoy it. It's normal. It is probably a lot of water weight, but pretty soon, you'll see some differences that can't be just water. Good luck with your surgery!

Redtulip, Thanks for the kind words. You've had amazing weight loss as well. And just 20 pounds to go? Wow. That must feel amazing. Good luck with the rest of your healing process.

Thanks to you too. :cool2:

clg- For me it was the decision to have surgery that was a turning point in my attitude about weight loss. Well, actually having the surgery, was the turning point. Somehow I needed that level of commitment. It's no longer a diet, or a program. I made this decision for life and so that is why this is so different from a diet program. Also, it is easier when you get full on smaller amounts of food. But like you will read all too often, it's not magic, and people can eat around it and still not have weight loss success. You have to try and try hard, but having the band, for me at least, has put me in a place where my trying hard is paying off for once. To the original poster, Keep reading and look for the positive. Before I decided to have my surgery, I looked through the complications forums, etc. I wanted to know what the potential risks and complications are. I decided it was worth the risk of having problems to try to be one of the successful ones--and there are a lot of successful stories out there. But once I had made my decision, I stayed away from the negative threads as much as possible. There's no reason to work myself up about something that probably won't happen to me. If it does I'll deal with it, but I can't live in fear of the possibility. The process of getting the band and all the changes I've made has really changed my whole life. I feel like I've found a long-lost friend because my personality has emerged again. Hadn't even realized it was missing! But all those years of being lost inside all that fat, really took a toll on my self-perception. Yes, there are complications sometimes. But in a lot of cases (not all, but a lot) there are things you can do to avoid getting in that situation. For example, not having your band overfilled. And if you do have a problem, seeking immediate medical attention. The people who post about these things often admit that themselves, that they should have gone to the doctor sooner, or gotten an unfill, etc. I do read complication posts from time to time now in order to learn from them, what went wrong and how can I avoid this? For me, in just under 8 months, I've lost 89 pounds, gone from a 26/28 to a size 18. I have started exercising very regularly (6 days a week), and made huge changes in my diet. This will be for life. I love this new life.

Jamie, I'm sorry you're going through a rough time with dh's health (and you too, Ezma). Hang in there. Some of my favorite snacks: Turkey Pepperoni with a small chunk of cheese inside. I just wrap it up in half like a little taco. I use cheddar, but mozarella would be tasty and healthier. Turkey pepperoni is surprisingly low in fat and high in Protein. It's a bit drier than the real stuff, but it's pretty good. Tuna and cream cheese on crackers: This will be healthier if put on whole grain crackers, but I'll admit I often use Club or Ritz. Kashi makes some TLC crackers that work well. I can't buy these in my town, so I don't get to use them very often. Okay, enough excuses. How I make these is to spread some 1/3 less fat cream cheese (Neufchatel Cheese) onto a cracker and then flake some Sweet-n-Spicy Starfish Tuna (from the foil pouch) onto the cream cheese. They are delicious. My kids love them as well. You could use any flavored tuna, salmon, etc. I've seen these made with Smoked Salmon and topped with capers. Apples are coming in season, an apple with a string cheese is such a great snack. I alternate bites, so I get both apple and cheese together. Yummy. One of my best breakfasts could also be used as a snack: cottage cheese and either canned pears (no sugar) or cubed cantaloupe. Cantaloupe is about gone for the season, but I've been enjoying it all summer long. Of course you'll have to disregard any of these that go against your own dietary goals and guidelines, but these are just some of the foods I enjoy. Hope it was helpful.

That's pretty funny. Wouldn't that just be crazy if it were actually the case? I had dh leave the scale out for this week and so this morning, I'm happy to report, I was down two from yesterday, giving me a one-pound loss from last week's official weigh in. I'm continuing to up my exercise intensity. I just started a lower body workout today that really kicked my butt! I'm also on week 3 of Couch to 5K. I'm still determined and working hard. Not feeling too frustrated about any of it. It'll come. That's me this week. We'll see next week. Also, we're waiting to hear on another position my dh interviewed for on Monday. We'll know by the end of the week. It's in Spokane, Washington. I'll let you guys know.

It does pass. I think it was two weeks after surgery I could finally say that it didn't feel like I'd even had surgery. Those first two weeks were rough at times. It has faded quickly with the thrill of the weight loss and the emergence of a new lifestyle. It will get better. Just hang in there!

Unfortunately my scale wasn't my friend today. I'm up a pound from last week. Sigh! You guys are so great. Thanks for sharing your troubles and triumphs.

Hi! I'm visiting from your neighboring February forum. :cool2: I'm glad to hear that the surgery went well. You have an amazing attitude and with that you will go a long way. I'm curious about the post-op diet. Do you have to do all the same stages again? Are they any shorter this time because of the scar tissue already in place? I love my band and would have it replaced in a heartbeat if I had to. It has changed my life, or rather it has helped me to change my life.

Yay, Tapshoes! I'm so happy for you. May the trend continue. My weigh-in is tomorrow. I'm hoping for two more pounds, for a total of 90 lost. Please, please, please, please. . .

There are too many Tara Renees and I don't see your picture. You can add me. A search for Melissa Mickelson gives you my profile first. And my picture is there. I may come back later and remove my last name from this post. Or maybe not. We'll see. I love facebook. Any fellow Febsters on there are welcome to add me as well.

You need to get an unfill, ASAP if you can't drink water. You could end up dehydrated. Please seek medical attention now.

You know yourself best, but do you feel like it's something to be concerned about? I understand that acid reflux is a bad sign with the band, so it wouldn't hurt to check with your surgeon.

I'm not saying this is the perfect way to approach exercise, but it is what worked for me. Right after surgery, I didn't feel like doing a whole lot of walking, but bit by bit, I incorporated more and more. My early walking was very sporadic, maybe once or twice a week. I could only go about 1/2 mile before my back really hurt, etc. Most of my early weight loss came from the eating changes I was making. About 5 months out, something switched inside of me and I started exercising every day, increasing my workouts day by day. Now I'm exercising about an hour a day, 6 days a week and I never plan on stopping. What I did when I started: I walked 1.5-2 miles, alternating days, of shorter walk, longer walk. I also incorporated the workout video of T-tapp. I did a combination of both T-tapp and walking every day. The video really helped me strengthen and build muscles. Incidentally, I hit a plateau for the first six weeks after beginning my exercise. My body changed, but the numbers on the scale really hovered around the same spot. Finally the numbers are changing again, and I continue to exercise. Now instead of just walking, I'm doing the Couch to 5 K program. I'm currently at the end of week 2. It's amazing to me, that I, who used to not even be able to walk 1/2 mile without pain, am starting a running program. It's so awesome! I still do the T-tapp workouts to keep up on my muscle building. Just start small and do what you can. This isn't the Biggest Loser, this is real life.

Are you on liquids? I would be doing liquids only for at least 24 hours, and then very soft foods for another day after that. If going on liquids doesn't do the trick, you may need a slight unfill. I've never heard anything about Benadryl strips helping with swelling.

I have similar feelings and my mother died ten years ago. I know she would have really been proud of me and thrilled for my success. It's okay to be sad about that. But it's also important to move forward and enjoy the amazing success we are having. Your wound of losing her is so fresh, though, you're bound to still need a while. I'm so sorry for your loss.