mhazelrigg

I really liked you a lot until just now when I read your post!!! We had SO much snow here! Since it is warm at your house, we will all see you there next February. And we can wear our new bathing suits!

Isn't it amazing how different doctors give us different advice. I was told no straws right after surgery because you tend to take more air in, and it would be uncomfortable. Just Monday I asked my doctor about Diet Cokes. I asked him if I was stretching out my band. He said that I didn't stretch my stomach before with it. But it might cause more belching and if I wanted to have a diet coke each day, moderation was his suggestion. I am also clumsy and I can't have a can around, so I open a bottle of diet Coke every morning and I drink it throughout the day. The only thing is, I think that I drink less water then I did when I gave up pop.

I agree. I have two theories about food. First, food should not hurt. Second, eating and math should never mix. I refuse to count them too. I also tried to count and it took control of my life. I want to learn to eat healthy, but at the same time, enjoy life.

OMG! You look awesome!! I can't wait until I look that good! And the best part, I think, is how confident you look!

So cute!!! I am jealous! My "puppy" is 7 years old and a great trainer! I bet Jasper is going to be great! He will probably good for weight lifting for a while before he is able to go on those walks. What did you buy for your birthday?

So, I am not one to be star struck, but Matt Damon is in my town filming a movie, about my town. And tonight, I saw him. And he saw me. And he probably wanted me, but I have a family to think of. Seriously, he is has been so nice, as most of the people that I work with, or go to church with, have had him film on their property. There are several others here too, but he is my favorite. And he looked at me, in the eyes. And I think that it may have been a break through for me, because the whole time, I wasn't even thinking about food!

OK, This has NOTHING to do with the band. But Matt Damon is in Decatur, and I got to see him today. I am not one to be excited about a star, but he looked at me in the eyes. And quite frankly, I think he wants me. So if you live close to Decatur, and have not seen a movie being shot, it might be worth the drive!

I teach 3rd grade. So my students are a bit more independant. (Sometimes!) I had great wieghtloss before my surgery, now it is slowing down. But that is okay, better to have a little loss than none at all. My doctor is happy with it, so I am too. I would love to work an extended year. We have one school in our district that has a balanced calendar, and there might be a first grade opening there next year, so who knows!!

Cindi, I am a third grade teacher and I had my surgery on a Friday, and went back to work the next Monday. Yep, 3 days. I was so tired on Monday, and it took everything I had to get through the week, but by the next Monday, I felt as though I was back on my game. I think that for me, the sooner I got back to work, the better. I knew that I was going to be tired, so I just tried to tough it out. My kids are a little older and I told them that I wasn't feeling well. They were awesome. You gotta go back sometime!! Could you go back for a day and see how you do, or go for a half day?

I don't know what I was thinking. I know that I am tighter in the morning. But I decided that I would have half a jelly doughnut. I took a bite. It wasn't comfortable. I took another. It hurt like hell. Then I gave the rest of it to the dog. I was in so much pain. The pain was in my back. Then I thought that I should take a drink of Water to wash it down. Then I thought I should burp. Next thing you know, I threw up a couple times. Well after that I wasn't hungry. It is the first time I have thrown up. It was really scary. I have eaten a few times, okay, maybe more than a few times, that it has hurt, but I kept going. I hope that I haven't done permanate damage. Then I really blew it by having Nachos for lunch, and then nothing for dinner. When I was at Target, I came face to face with some yummy looking Peanut Butter cups. But with such a crappy day, I decided to just walk away. I hate weekends! I make such bad choices. And the really scary thing is, I am a teacher and with only 2 weeks of school left, I have to figure this thing out before I really mess up!! Come on VV's. I need some help to get back!

Welcome!! Glad you found us! This forum is an awesome spot for encouragement! I don't think I would have gotten through the last few months without it. Well, maybe I would have, but my doc's office would have really been irratated with me. There has been a couple times that my shoulder has hurt when I haven't chewed well enough. It was really scary the first time, I was on vacation, and I thought maybe I was having a heart attack. But after a few minutes, it was better. I think that we have to learn how to listen to our bodies all over again. I am having my 3rd fill on the 19th. I am not really even sure if I need it, but since I have kind of hit a wall, I want it!!!

Tara, you know, you seem so confident to me. I read some of your work, look at your photography, and admire your artwork and creativity, and I can't imagine you being afraid of anything!! I am a bit older than you, and I wish I could have been as courageous in my 20's as you! I think that I already told you how much I love the picture of the phone booth!! You are so talented! I am proud of you!!

WELCOME!!!!!! Would you like to join me on my journey of having no "9"'s in my weight? I am stuck here, and would love someone to get to the "8"'s with me!! It doesn't matter where we are on our journey, as long as we are doing it together!!

GOOD FOR YOU!!!!! I am so jealous!! I usually weigh myself twice in the morning and twice in the evening. (I do it twice to make sure I get the same thing two times) Sounds a little OCD? Well, I have to admit, that scale hasn't been moving. In fact, it may have even gone up. I haven't weighed myself yet today, and I am thinking about not weighing for the rest of the weekend. SCARY!! I am so addicted to that thing. But I am ready for some results!!! HELP!

Karen, I think that is awesome. There is no point in beating ourselves up over a little indulgence. I think that making the conscience decision to "cheat" is very healthy. It is something that I might have done before, but not been able to stop. That is what makes this band a great tool. I never thought to map out what I wanted out of the band. I am going pretty slow, but I think that this is how it works for me. You are more than half way to your goal!!! I only have a few more pounds until I am there too! We CAN do this!!

Is this a joke? I would hope so! I can't imagine having a thread to help us encourage each other to get back on the wagon after a fall, and then being belittled about it. I personally am happy that this thread exsist! It is nice to know that other people make mistakes and have setbacks just as I do. I guess if I were able to count my food and get off my butt, I wouldn't have needed the band in the first place!

I have not lost any, but my friend's mom, who is banded, lost so much hair that she had to wear a hair piece. I think it is just due to the lack of protien. Have you tried Unjury? They have a website, unjury.com, and they have supplements. They are not bad either, as far as protien goes. Regardless, I would definately call your doctor.

Yeah!!! Thanks for sharing!! It is nice to hear about the great thing this band is doing for us. And to help us remember, when it is not going so great, that we have to Celebrate our new lifestyle!! And good for you for excersising!!!

I am such a nice mom!!! I picked up a package of Reese's Peanut Butter cups for each of my two boys. And since I am almost to my half way point, I thought I would just have one. Then I realized that if I had one, then one boy would have a whole package and one wouldn't. So, in the name of fairness, I ate the other one. And there was no logical explanation to open the other package. In fact, it was open and one was in my mouth before I realized what I had done. So, I had to eat the other one too. Damn kids. They are partially the reason I am in this boat to begin with, now they are like chocolate/peanut butter pushers. I feel bad about eating their candy. I think I am going to run back to the store to get them some ice cream sandwiches. They love those. I think.

Gatorade, cake icing, colored chocolates. They can all make you think that either you, or your children in my case, have swallowed and are extruding some kind of alien. Saline is clear. And if you had a leak, you won't find it in your stool. It will just absorb into your abdomen.

Amy, I am not a doctor, but I used to be a nurse, and before that a lab/med-tech. Maybe I can help. It looks like you might be a little anemic. None of it looks too bad. I know that it can be really scary. Your Hemoglobin and Hematocrit should be around 12.0 and 36.5, so I bet that maybe they suspect some bleeding or anemia. As for the other values, they are just a little out of whack. Your platelets should be under 400 and so that is not a problem. The other thing would be what symptoms you are having? Are you tired, bloody stools, vomiting, things like that. You have to look at all the information. You can't just look at the lab results, they can make it look worse than it is. Also, normal is just a setting on your dryer. In other words, what is normal for me is night not be normal for you. Try not to worry. I know that it is hard, but try to just focus on what your new life with the band will be like!!

When my surg put my band in, he said he fills it up completely and then opens up the port and lets all the Fluid that "wants" to come out, out. He said that it depends on how much restriction is there to begin with. Typically, people with bigger stomachs push more fluids out. I asked him if all surgeons did that, and he said that was how he was taught, but every surgeon is different. I had 1cc of fluid in my band on my first fill. My friend had her first fill and she had 2.5cc's left in her band. I think that everyone is different!

I have a hard time eating citrus, but I think I will try it. But the other thing that I noticed about your post, is that you say you are losing 3-4 lbs a month. I know that is the healthy way, but I really see me losing that amount is a failure. I want more than that! I should learn to be more patient.

I don't cook, don't even know how. (That is man work in my house!!) But I do have kids, and we don't go to much fast food. But when we do, I always pick subway. I have had some serious trouble getting bread down, so I switched to wraps. I had the same trouble! Now I am trying the salads. They use shredded lettuce, so I think it goes down easier. But I live in a very depressed town, and we don't have many choices. McD's, BK and Taco Bell. Probably for the best. There was a time, not too long ago, that I was a firm believer that cars were made so that we could utilze the drive thru, not the other way around. Gibson and Jax, making things and freezing them is a great idea!! Why didn't I think of that?

I am with Tara on this!! I just try to eat smaller portions. About a month ago I was keeping track, and I found that I was obsessing about it. And when I was tracking it, I found that the times that I got more calories in, that is when I lost the weight. My body went into that starvation mode where it was hording every single calorie it could. I don't know what that means the burst from ketosis. Can you explain?