hopeinapril

Hi Shamrocks! WOW! all the folks who have hit oneunderland and under 250, that is awesome! I am so happy for you all! I am actually inspired by everyone. I went to a support group meeting last night and that helped as well. I am back down to my "lowest" band weight and am ready to join the weight loss group! I am thrilled to be back. I really hope that I am done with the up and down at this particular weight. Well, congrats to all you athletic, skinny folks!

Hi Miki: I have my name, that I am a lapband patient, no ng tubes or aspirin. I got mine through laren'shope. I think it is www.laurenshope.com There were several brochures in my doctor's office. Sorry for the late reply, sometimes I miss several days on the board.

Howdy everyone! How are things going? I went to the support group meeting last night. It was interesting. I see all kinds of folks, from those who are doing the diets before hand to some who have reached their goal weight. I'm glad I went because it seems to help keep me on track. Lisa - are you moved in yet? lol, it takes a while. I hope everything is going well. Lynn - how was the vacation? I hope you had a good time. Well, I lost the weight I gained, which is nice. I'm glad to be back where I was. Now, to the loosing weight part of the program! It is nice that my ticker is correct now!

hi Miki: I did get a medic alert necklace. I have what looks like dog tags, but it is a medical alert. It has the alert symbol on one side and my information on the other side.

Howdy! I don't usually sign on while I am work, but felt the urge to do so today. I actually emailed my dietician to see if they ever do outings with their bariatric patients. Will see what he says. Tex - how wonderful to slip and then do something about it. I can't imagine RUNNING!!! I imagine there will be a day when that happens, but I don't see it right now. Thanks for letting me rant last night. Just ignore my last post if you want. I think this is a great place to get stuff out!

Hi everyone! Harley - I love the Moonstruck quote! I have to admit the words I wrote to you would work on me. I am self pay and I remind myself of that a lot. I have to admit that I can't wait to get to one underland. BrandNewLisa - thank you so much! Amanda - a support group field trip for restaurants, what a wonderful idea! I love it. I wonder if I can convince my dietician to do that? Teri - How wonderful! What a terrific goal to have hit at 50 pounds! That is a lot of weight. It looks like you are almost 1/2 way there! Anyway, I had sort of an epiphany today. I was sitting in my office. I felt weak. I thought, well I must need to eat. Then I thought "well, I am not really hungry". (I am borderline anemic). It then occurs to me that I probably need to eat something with lots of Iron in it. On the way home I got a salad. I realize that this may not be a lightening strike for others, but for me to realize that I wasn't really hungry..... WOW. It helps me understand why I always thought I was craving taco bell. (lots of red meat with iron in their stuff!) I got another motivating kick at work today. I found out that the little witch I work with has been lying and gossiping about me. It ticked me off and is motivating me to eat right and exercis. WHY? Because even though she is a size 2, it will piss her off to see me loose weight! :confused_smile::biggrin: It also confirms that I am SO very glad that I didn't tell anyone that I had this surgery! Apparently, their lives are so very boring that they need to talk about mine! I'm glad they didn't have any more information than they already have.

Hi Everyone! Lisa - Thanks for the good wishes. Good to see you on the board. You must be so excited! How thrilling to have your own place. Just think of all the exercise you are getting with packing and such! You are doing a wonderful job with the weight loss. :crying: Oh and the friend thing, it took me a while to get it right. I have to admit that the little $*%&% female that works in my office as well is getting on my nerves. It has actually INSPIRED me to continue to stay the course. Because she is an annoying pain in the butt, I know it will annoy her as I loose weight. I figure it is a lousy excuse, but I'll take any motivation! :confused_smile: I am clearing some stuff out of my office this weekend so I can use my bike. I figure I will not have an excuse not to exercise after that! My son is going to a birthday party on saturday at one of those bounce places. They encourge the parents to join in. So, you can bet that I will be jumping in one of those things along with my son! I figure it will be good exercise and just plain fun! I just hope there is no weight restriction! Anyone have a lot of fun doing any particular exercise? I figure if I can get some fun stuff in, I'll keep at it.

Hi Shamrocks! Tess - thanks for the well wishes! Christine - thanks for the well wishes as well! Have a great trip. Just think how wonderful it will be when you come back. Especially if you are 240 something! Harley - have a great vacation. I love the suggestions here. As for the bitch slapping.....well, I have 2 comments.......1. Do you want to loose your oneunderland status? 2. didn't you pay for this all yourself? Get back on the horse. I do quite often! :smile2: Fenton - "Alcohol is a gateway drug to chips" I LOVE it! As always you make me laugh out loud in front of my computer. (hey, doesn't laughter cause you to use calories as well? YEAH)

I've had 2 fills for a total of 6 cc in my realize band. I still don't have very much restriction. I'm hoping the next one is the charm.

Thanks Fenton. I accept all psychic hand holding. Way to go Lynn!!!! I'll join Fenton and all others in the chant! Lynn, Lynn, Lynn.......woohoo!!!!!

Hi Lynn: Thanks for the well wishes. I expect it is nothing. Since I work with lawyers, I am well aware that doctors can't tell you everything will be OK, because they really don't know. Caelyn - questions are the best way to learn. Educate yourself as much as you can. You can never know too much.

PEOPLE, PEOPLE! I have lost a mere 12 pounds since my 3//25/08 surgery. The numbers that you all are seeing are FABULOUS! You body will always, at some point, plateau. Part of it is survival mechanism. If you chart weight loss, you will see it is a jumpy thing. It is also the reason that I don't get on the @#(& scale every day. Now, having that, I think the other suggestions made are very sensible. Tracking what you eat is a pain, but it is very revealing. Also, give yourself a break! Fenton - you don't duplicate your stories much. We have quite a few new folks showing up and they might not know about the snowboarding. I think it is wonderful that you are getting a custom board. Kerri- who knows maybe the skinny chick was a chubby chick once and was thinking "you go"! Or, quite possibly she was thinking, "holy crap my thighs are rubbing". I have noticed that body image seems to have little to do with the actual reality. I think you are wonderful for getting out to the gym. Besides, that is how many chubby people get skinny.... Amanda - I liked you post, even though it was long. It looked really cool. Bummer about the trial. I suspect it is a criminal trial because civil trials rarely last that long. I'm sure your trainer will work with you. Trisha - you have done wonderful! I have only one question to ask - Are you eating enough Protein? Protein is a wonderful thing. It helps you feel full. OK, I saw that doctor about a different medical issue that has cropped up for me. The good news is that it is most likely not much. The bad news is I still have to get a biopsy. YUCK! More good news is that it absolutely won't affect my band in any way! The doctor is in the same group as the doctor who did my lapband. She asked about my progress and I fessed up that I had lost only 12 pounds and she said don't give up. I kind of thought that was funny because how the heck can I give up? Unless they take it back out, it is there to stay......so I have to continue down the path! I have to tell you that if someone wants my band, they will have to restrain me. While I am large, I can be very mean. I guess having lots of male cousins and a brother can do that to you! :tongue:

Hi everyone! Caelyn: You can choose to have a lapband or realize band, but the doctor will choose which size. They pick the one that will suit your insides the best. You should know also that how much fluid they put in the band will vary per person. Two people can have the exact same band with the exact same cc of saline inside and they will have very different feelings as far as restriction goes. There is a man on another thread I frequent who has surgery in early March and has not had any fills at all and is still loosing weight. He is a very large man with a substantial amount of weight to loose and it could be that he has some restriction with only the band in. I think it is difficult to predict how much you will need in the way of fills before you actually have the surgery. In all honesty there are few differences between the 2 bands. I think Lynn described them very well. Hope this helps!

I love this forum. I came here today with a question and this completely answered it. I have only lost 12 pounds since my 3/25/08 surgery and it has been frustrating. I recently went back to an old "food plan" which was very balanced, but Protein heavy. I think this was the key for me. Thanks for posting this information!!!!

Caelyn: Hi! When you say that you don't understand the problems with restriction, what do you mean? I don't have much restriction, so for me that is a problem. Some folks have too much restriction and have trouble eating. Is that what you mean?

Wow Kerri, you look great! I love the bathing suit! What a great NSV. You actually reminded me that I did wear a bathing suit on my vacation a week ago. It is funny, but I don't think I have even worn a bathing suit for a few years! Fenton, I just love your posts, you crack me up! You did mention the snow board thing before. It was obvious that you were passionate about it. How absolutely wonderful to get a custom board. I know you will be in twounderland by the time you can use it! Well, I am drinking crystal light, waiting for the storm. I absolutely love storms. All that power and the light show......wonderful!

How sad, sad, sad that since April 19 I have lost a mere 2 pounds for a total of 12 pounds since surgery. Wonderful Christine. You are so close to breaking the 250 mark! WOOHOO!!!

Congrats Big! That is wonderful. Awesome that you have hit the spot! I am not there yet and a tad bit envious.

Hi Lynn: I am hoping this medical thing doesn't knock me off track. The mental part did for a day or so, but now I am back on track. I'm sure you will do OK on your trip. It sure is tough when you don't control the food. Do they know about your surgery? I am guessing that they don't. I have found that for the most part I have been able to eat in the world. It is the carb loaded places that do give me a little grief. I'm sure you will do well! It kind of sucks that Dr. Wynn wouldn't give you another fill. I haven't been loosing so Dr. Peters had no problem adding 2cc more. He told me it was an aggressive fill. I have to admit that I still don't have much restriction. Occasionally if I eat some meat that is dry or don't chew it well, I get a pain in my shoulder. I really hope Dr. Peters gives me another fill as I don't think I am there yet. Of course, after the "aggressive fill" he didn't want to see me again for 2 months. Too funny! OK - anyone else on the board these days? Just Lynn and I chatting with each other? :sad::frown:

Hi everyone! Long time no chat! Life has been very busy lately and I have barely had time to check my email. It took me a while to read all the posts since I last was here! TheWriteGirl - I so know what you mean! I have 6 cc in a 10 cc band with very little restriction. I have never had a PB (which is good). Occasionally I won't chew well and I get that pain in my shoulder and back. I have lost a mere 12 pounds since surgery. It is kind of frustrating! I have gone back to the "food plan" that my 1st dietician gave me. That is the one that helped me lose the 13 pounds or so prior to surgery. I figure it can't hurt. hair loss - so far so good. It is so aweful for those of you that are encountering this problem. I hope the hair grows back soon. OMG - that hoola hoop video was too funny. All, we need is good music and you have a Cameron Diaz type dance from Charlies' Angels. While I don't have a wii, I'm not sure I'd work out in my underwear. Well, I'm hoping the scale starts to move. My doc doesn't want to see me again until the end of July. I guess I could push it. We will see!

Hi everyone! I guess it is tough for us to get online in the summer! I have been so busy I have barely been checking my email. 366 - Yes, that is one of the terrible things about the band. The hunger does come back after surgery. Then you play the fill game until you hit the sweet spot! I hope Dr. Wynn put you on mushies. I remember that Lynn was able to do mushies at around 2 weeks. I had my second fill and am still hungry at times. I went back to the diet plan I had from the 1st dietician I saw. It seems to be working. I bounced around the same few pounds, but they are coming off SLOWLY now. I have a grand total of 6 cc in my band, but Dr. Peters doesn't want to see me until the end of July. Most things are going really great, but I had another medical issue crop up. I guess that is how life is sometimes. I am really hoping it doesn't side track my weight loss. I am really anxious to get on with it. Well, I hope everyone is having a wonderful June. It sure has been hot!

no wii here either. I'm beginning to think I might buy it once I reach 250......

Hi Caelyn: It sure does seem like it takes a long time to get the surgery point. You will be busy with all the appointments and classes you need to take. Dr. Peters was my surgeon and he is very kind and considerate. I think the smaller flatter port is the port for the realize band. I had the realize band put in me. Dr. Peters will explain both to you and then let you choose.

Hi Big! How wonderful you have restriction! I have some restriction, I just had a 2nd fill about a week ago. I think I will need to get another fill.

Hi everyone! I had a 2nd fill on Wednesday. I'm in the mushies stage again. I seem to actually have some restriction! Yeah, I hope it lasts! For all the folks who have had a tough time, don't worry keep going. I am a poster child for "struggling". Don't be so tough on yourselves. We have a lot of very wonderful people on here who have done an awesome job. I wouldn't compare yourself. If you feel bad, go to the slow loosers board. There are folks there who haven't lost 10 pounds in a year! I hope that with the fill the scale will move again. Have a wonderful weekend everyone!