JaimeSTL

As broke as I feel sometimes, as down and out as we've been in periods of our adulthood, and growing up poor, I can still admit that I don't know TRUE poverty. In the big scheme of things, I feel privileged compared to those who are living in true generation after generation of poverty. I have a job, my husband has a job, we have health insurance, a brand new car, the internet--which is one reason I can go to school. I couldn't take the classes I take without a computer and internet because I take most online. I have a husband who is more than willing to pick up the slack at home while I spend hours upon hours studying. I can admit that, as hard as it is, I have it easy compared to many. How do you pull up your boot straps if you don't even own boots?

Yay!

I think this is a naive attitude. There are many people out there who want to work hard, who want to have a better life, but there are so many obstacles in their way. How do you go to college if you can't pay for it? How do you strive to be better when you don't even know what better is? I do not subscribe to the boot strap theory at all. I think that many people will follow the same life path that their parents and grandparents did because they don't even know where to begin. I can also say from experience that it is very hard to try to work, go to school, raise a family, and deal with everything else. I do all of the above--full time job, full time student, two kids with special needs--and you know what, it really sucks sometimes. If I'd had the resources, I could've finished my degree right out of high school, but I fell into a position where I personally made too much money with my part time after school job to qualify for much in the way of financial aid. My parents didn't make much, hence the need for me to have a job, but that hurt me more in the end when it came to financial aid. The programs we have in place currently aren't good enough if we want to tell those living in serious poverty that it is up to them to pull themselves up and make a better life. They can't even begin to compete with those who have dad signing the checks while they party for four years.

I love books. I'll read almost anything. My favorites are the Harry Potter series (didn't like the movies much though), The Red Tent, To Kill a Mockingbird. I also like chick lit and historical fiction. I'll really read anything though. Lately all I read are my textbooks and some of those are very poorly written. I'm not much of a movie watcher anymore.

Who said that Oprah should tell people to have WLS? I said she shouldn't bash WLS. It isn't for her, it isn't for a lot of people, that's fine. Oprah's attitude is that weight lost "the hard way" is the only weight loss that counts. This is a Lap Band/WLS board after all. You will find that most people here are going to support WLS.

Those who are morbidly obese are NOT healthy, period. Those who are near morbid obesity are NOT healthy. I convinced myself for a long time that I could be happy with my size because I was healthy, no major problems, etc. But the truth is, I did a lot of damage to my body. I am 30 years old, I have two small children, and my father died at age 39 from a massive heart attack. Within the last year or two before my surgery, I developed severe sleep apnea, high blood pressure, and various other weight related problems. I had routine surgery a year ago this month and almost died thanks to my weight. I did NOT do this to look better or to fit into some societal notion of thin. I did this to extend my life and to be here for my children. For the vast majority of WLS patients, their health is first and foremost. I know that your opinions are shaped by your experience, Nanook. I'm sorry your band didn't work out. I think comparing banding or any other WLS to yo-yo dieting is ridiculous at best. I also think that if you ask those who have regained, most will admit it was their own fault, not the fault of the band. It is only a tool. I have found my answer to yo-yo dieting and the weight will not come back for me.

Prefolds are really easy. I never pinned a diaper in 3+ years of cloth diapering. If you use covers like Bummis Super Whisper Wraps or Proraps, they hold everything in. I never had a blow out like with disposibles. You can also get this thing called a Snappi, which will hold the diaper into place too. I think you'd need at least a dozen diapers per day if you go with an all-in-one or pocket system. I always had at least 2 dozen prefolds with about 6 covers per kid. If there is no poo on the cover, you can rinse it and hang to dry and reuse between washes. With a newborn, the more the better so you aren't washing constantly. Help! I'm new to cloth diapers. This link is very informative, with info about folding prefolds too. You can also google "angel fold" and find information.

I think it's pretty important to be healthy. Fat isn't healthy. Most people who get WLS aren't just getting surgery so they can look better and fit into society's ideal of thin. They are getting surgery because they have major medical problems that are directly related to being overweight. For myself and everybody I know who has had WLS, this was a last resort. If Oprah doesn't want to have WLS, fine. But I don't think she should bash it either. WLS has saved a lot of lives and it definitely has its place. It isn't a fad, it has been around for decades now and will continue to be.

You can order them online. There are several places, but I know this one sells them. Cloth Diapers, Cloth Diaper Covers, bumGenius, Bummis, Kissaluvs and MORE from the top Ranked Online Cloth Diaper Store I've also heard that some Targets now carry Bumgenius too. We used cloth on both kids until they potty trained. I got into it because my DS had awful rashes that didn't go away until we tried cloth. I mostly used prefolds and covers, but also some Fuzzi Bunz and ones from various work at home moms. There are so many cute diapers out there. I loved them. We kept a dry pail, threw them in the wash every couple of days, and that was it. Without the chemicals, the poop doesn't smell nearly as bad either.

You look great, Melanie! What an amazing transformation!

I can relate to so much of this also. I've lost a little over 100 lbs in under 8 months so I have sagging skin. It seems to have really become an issue lately and I just find it so disgusting. When I look in the mirror, I see the pre-op me. I still see those 100 lbs. When I look at pictures of myself, I can tell I've lost weight. It's weird. But, it is like I'm me again and that fatter me wasn't the same person. Does that make any sense? I'm a paradox these days. My biggest fear is gaining back the weight. Right now, I'm dealing with not having much restriction and a long plateau and it is really freaking me out. I worry that I've lost all the weight I'm going to lose. Even though my life is so much better now, I'm not ready for the weight loss to end. I have so much further to go. My attitude is determined by the scale. If I'm down, I feel great. If I go up, I beat myself up and I'm in a funk all day. I can tell myself that it is ok to have normal fluctuations, but it doesn't help the emotional part.

Things like that make me mad, too, Mac. I was a victim of very uninformed doctors and nurses when I had my first child. I am the first to admit when it comes to breastfeeding advocacy, I'm a militant about it. Our medical community and society in general are anti-breastfeeding. It is yet another example of big business interfering in our lives. Nobody makes money off mothers breastfeeding, but plenty make money off mothers giving formula, especially the doctors who give out bad advice and recommend weaning, supplementing, etc.

I've had extremely heavy periods and spent about a year and a half to almost two years bleeding heavily almost constantly. I had two D&Cs last year, with the last one finally ending the problem. Since then, the periods I've had have just been horribly heavy and painful. Oddly, I hardly ever had periods before all of that started, so it was a very strange change. I have PCOS and my GYN attributed it to the hormonal fluctuations. My periods of late have been heavy, but much shorter than before (from 2 weeks to about a week or little less). It is getting much better as I lose weight.

I do. Jaime’s Weight Loss Surgery Journey

I'm sorry to hear about your port. It sounds like a simple fix, so I would probably want to head it off early. If you go for a fill and he can't access it, that would really stink, especially if you were lacking restriction and really needing that fill. Congratulations on running 20 minutes! That is such a huge accomplishment! I was kind of skeptical about the Cto5K, but I've been following your progress on your blog and it really does work. I'm considering starting it, but thinking about waiting until I lose a little more weight. Yay for periods! I've been having semi-regular periods again too. It's nice to feel normal.

My daughter was breastfed until 3 1/2, never had an ear infection, rarely sick, etc., in that time. Then she weaned, and within a year and a half, she'd had over a dozen ear infections, sick all the time, had to have tubes put in her ears. The thing is, what they won't say, breastfeeding doesn't prevent illness, allergies, obesity, and all that. Formula increases the risk. Breastfeeding just leaves the child at the biological norm for them. If your children (and other breastfed children) have asthma, sleep apnea, etc., they would be worse off and sicker if they'd been formula fed. However, everybody wants to say things like "breastfeeding reduces the risks of _____" when it should be "formula increases the risks of _____."

Welcome to bandland, SNT! I never got the shoulder pain either. Maybe just a tiny bit, but nothing really bad. I was off pain meds altogether by day 3. Posting to say, it really sucks to not have restriction even after a fill. I had good restriction until about a month ago, saw my doctor last week, had a fill last Monday. Still no restriction. He does all fills under fluoro so he saw restriction and said I was "slow to empty." Other than the first day, I haven't noticed a difference. I'm so freaking frustrated because I've been plateau'ed ever since I lost restriction. I'm calling Monday, but not sure what he'll say.

I had a few people tell me that me that they missed nursing after their baby/toddler weaned. Not me. I was ready to throw a freaking party when she finally weaned herself. I was ready to be done a good year or so before she was.

I've done 2 out of 2 nights on the elliptical so far. It is kicking my butt. I'm working on building up my endurance on it, then I'll work more on speed and resistance.

I've only found edamame in the organic section at my grocery store. You could also try a health food store.

I breastfed my youngest for 3 1/2 years, and nursed her anywhere, anytime. I never covered up, but I can guarantee nobody ever saw my breast either. The part not covered by my shirt was covered by the baby's head. I have never seen a nursing mother purposely expose herself, even at a La Leche League meeting or in the parenting group I belonged to, where we all nursed openly. I think that people freak out over even the mere thought of a woman breastfeeding in public. For some, it doesn't even matter if there is exposure or not.

I wish I had the willpower to do a low-carb plan like South Beach. I am not a veggie eater, hate most of them and have a hard time getting down the ones I tolerate. I'm in a funk and can't break out. It was made even worse by finally deciding to ask my doctor for an anti-depressant after a few months of feeling depressed and the stupid medication increasing my appetite and making me crave carbs like crazy. I was even craving soda, which I haven't had since the beginning of February (and I'm proud of myself because I didn't give in!). I thought I was so hungry because I needed a fill, which was also the case. I had my fill on Monday and it was so weird--my pouch would get full but my lower stomach was still growling. I stopped the medication and I'll talk to my doctor again next week. On a good note, I bought an elliptical tonight so I plan to get back on my exercise and hope that boosts my weight loss again.

You and your husband are in my thoughts and prayers, Ezma. Insurance companies suck.

Congrats! That's awesome!