SkyeBlu

Carol...YAY on the pre-surgery date. You are over one of the biggest hurdles! Have a blast in Orlando! Dawg...your support of P'nut in it's self is inspirational, add your current BMI...WWOOHOOOO!!! MoO...Doesn't it feel so amazing to "feel good"! Just wait...it only gets better!!! P'nut...I just want to tell you how thankfull I am that you are putting as much effort into this group as you are. It is greatly appreciated! We are all doing such a good job KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK! Ok babble time.... Yesterday Duke was feeling pretty decent (can I say chemo is disgusting...a necessary evil...but still Disgusting, what it puts your body through...OMG) anyway...so Duke was up to going to dinner with me and the boys, so we go to one of our favorite hole in the wall restaurants here in Reno, well unfortunately there is one of the nations largest volleyball tournaments in town this weekend and two teams were at our pizza place. So picture this, my 12 & 15 year old sons surrounded by 40+ 13-17 beauties. It was hysterical! At one point early in the meal 3 of the girls walk by our table smiling at Devin (15yo) Dev looks at Duke and I and says "i'm a married spud, I'm a married spud" (what Mr. Potato Head says to himself as he walks into the barbie isle in Toy Story 2) we both almost wet ourselves laughing at this point. The night continued from there, we sat and laughed, talked, goofed and teased between the 4 of us. It was so nice...it was "normal". Last night as we are getting in bed Duke says to me "we have done a really good job rasing our boys, they are neet kids" he also thanked me for a "normal" evening. This morning both of the boys thanked me for taking them out that is was nice to just have a "normal" night out. Thinking about it myself...it was nice to have a family night out. Now...I have a NSV.... I got a wild burr late last night tore my closet apart. I tried on every single piece of clothing! I sorted stuff into 4 groups...FITS and I WILL wear it...FITS and I MAY wear it...DOESN'T FIT because it is loose or big...DOESN'T FIT but it will in the near future. I can safely say I AM a size 14. Every single 20,18 & 16 got chunked last night into a big ole' Goodwill bag!! If it was put into the "I may wear" pile...it got chunked into the Goodwill bag. If it was in the "will fit in the future" pile it was first evaluated for will I or may I wear it in the future then placed righfully into the closet or..yep you guessed it...chunked into the Goodwill bag!!! Oh yeah...I even fit into some of my 12's...woohooo! Ok last babble...got a fill today! I now have 1.25cc in a 4cc band. Doc says I am doing a GREAT job and to keep up with how well I am doing. YAY ME! Ok babble session over! Love you all *muah* *muah* I love this place!!!

Regroup....regroup....lol :grouphug:

Duke is having a rough go with the chemo so once I have him dialed in a little better I will be taking on the insurance system, until then I will be relying on samples as well

Ok i'm about to flipping lose my mind!! Over the past months between the stress of work, home and the adjustments of my band I have been a bit stressed, borderline overloaded, and anxious. When the events of Dukes cancer diagnosis, surgery etc came down the pike I damn near had a full on mental breakdown. After Dukes 2nd day home I found myself sitting in my car sobbing hysterically because I had just verbally assaulted an 80 year old woman for standing to close to me in the pharmacy, as I was sitting there I was feeling so sad, lost and out of controll. I put my car in drive and bee-lined for my doctors office. She is a wonderfull woman who has an amazing staff, they got me right in and spent quite a bit of time talking with me and helping me take a deep breath. Between my doctor and I we made the decision to put me on Effexor for anxiety and depression. I have been on it nearly a month now and my insurance just declined the perscription because "they don't see how I can be that depressed" ARE THEY FRIGGIN KIDDING ME??? Their suggestion is this......I need to go off the effexor....stay off for 30 days...THEN go on a "generic" anti-depressent for 60-90 days THEN if that doesn't work I can go back on Effexor. One of the side effects with effexor is if you go off it too fast it causes a re-occurance of the original symptoms at an accelerated/higer rate (i'm thinking wheee fun). My question for them is this....will they post my bail when I become "clock-tower" material?????? I so absolutely am disgusted by the insurance system.

COUNT ME IN! :rockon: I'm getting a fill on Saturday so this helps with the encouragement to stay on track!! Hubby starts chemo tomorrow morning (they postponed it today because of a new development that caused the oncologist to change the chemo regimine they are using on him to one that requires more "in" office time). Every day is one day closer to the next 6 months being over. AND....if I stay on track....when he is done with chemo and full of energy again...I will look FABULOUSLY thin and healthy on his arm as we go take on the world! hehe Love you all for listening to me!! BTW....WELCOME WELCOME WELCOME to all the newbies it is wonderfull to have you as part of our group!!!!!!!!

My goal is a pair of black size 9 "Rockies" that I fit into for about 15 minutes a decade ago. They make my a@@ look FABULOUS and hubby loves me in Rockies! I'm back in all my 16's and starting to slide back into all my old 14's that have been hanging in my closet for some time. I moved up all the size 12's from their box in the gargage and am eyeballing them for my next "closet" shopping spree. Skye

YAY DAWG!! GOOD JOB!! Keep up the good work!

Thought I should post this....lol C176 (-34 total -4 this week) P.S. DH starts chemo this next week!!

I let hubby pick out my panties today so this would not be my "normal" day to day choice....black lacy boy shorts with red lace flowers embroidered on them. Normally VS microfiber bikinis...soo comfy and I still feel sexy. As for the bra i'm wearing a black 38DDD Cache bra that is WAAYYYYY to big...I think ya'll just encouraged me to break down and get a new one Skye

My doc gave me a tiny fill .5cc 3 weeks post op and it made a difference because I was pretty well into healing and was get that hungry feeling again. Now I feel so hungry between meals...and hate that I can eat so much. I'm still watching what I put in my mouth and trying dilligently to stay on track.

April, I had my surgery Feb 10th and was wondering the same thing. In the past 3 weeks I have been able to eat about double what I was able to in the first weeks after surgery. I was thinking it is probably the fact that the swelling has finally gone down. But still wasn't sure (and my next visit to the doc is not for weeks) Skye

70 Pounds....that is awesome! Great job!

Hubby made me weigh myself today.... C 180 (-30 total -5 since last weigh in) I was happy with that!! Considering I have very little restriction, have been living off of hospital food, vending machines and take out I will take the 5 lbs lost!! Skye

It is so great to hear that so many of us are doing so well!!! MoOrless...I have "geneticly" high cholesterol too. Since my surgery my cholesterol level has gone way down. One of the things that my doc said to make sure I always do is to read labels! I was amazed at how high the fat content was in so many foods I thought were good for me. He says to read the label before you even choose a food. Worth a try. P'nut...i'm about 30 seconds from meltdown. I went to my primary care physician today and got an anti-depressent perscription. I figured when I verbally assaulted the elderly lady in Rite Aid the other day it was time to get my stress/emotion/anxiety under control. Hubby is doing good. He has come to terms with the chemo and isn't dreading it as much as he was last week. We are taking life day by day right now. I quit my property managment job and am going back to waiting tables 2-3 nights week. We will have to see how that goes. Skye

Thank you everyone for the prayers and well wishes! P'nut...I pop in and read what is going on when I need a moment of sanity :confused: (scary I know that this is where I come for sanity..hehe) We are hanging in there. It is amazing how one word "CANCER" can compltely turn your world upside down. A book I am reading says that cancer is one of the only words that you see in all capital letters. No matter how you say it, word it, or sugar coat it, cancer is a word that defines complete change in how you view life, it is like being sucked into a vaccum and wanting to scream and yell and you can't even hear your own voice. If that is what is going on in my head I can't even imagine what Duke has mulling around in his. I am having major issues with taking on a new role that I NEVER thought would be mine....I am now the protector, the emotional rock, the one that holds it all together. I am not enjoying it! I want so badly to put my head on his chest and just cry like I normally would. And, right now I can't, figuratively and litterally (he has a breast bone to pubic incision that isn't healing well). When I get upset about something I can see the look in his eyes and it is one of guilt, as if this is his fault, like he did something wrong. I have told him it's not like you woke up 2 weeks ago and said "I think I'll go get cancer, that sounds fun". I'm seriously thinking about going to my doc and getting anti-depressants to try and help keep my head on straight. The last thing my family needs right now is for mom to completely lose it! Thank you for letting me vent! Skye

Thursday March 16th I came home from work and found my husband in bed clutching his stomach. I took him to our doc and she promptly sent us to the ER to have him evaluated for apendicitis. In the ER waiting room he started babbling incoherently and I alterted the nurses, his blood pressure was 50/20. By 10:00pm he was in the OR having his burst apendix removed. Friday and Saturday were spent in the hospital helping him re-coup from laproscopic surgery. Sunday morning my world came to a crashing halt...the surgeon told us that the apendicitis was caused by colon cancer. My 34 year old husband needed an immediate colonectomy/bowel resection to remove the diseased portion of his colon as well as the removal of all lymph nodes in that area. It is now exactly one week later and we have just been home a few hours. Thanks to my parents staying with the boys I was by his side the entire time, spending every day and night there in his room (the nurses even set me up my own bed). We now face a world of possible chemo, possible re-occurance of cancer and the mortality of a man whom I love and adore in ways I can't even put words or expressions to. We have talked long and hard this week about what we want in life and I can say our priorities and goals have drastically changed. I am quitting my job in the morning so I can be here to nurse him to health as well as be the one that he turns to as he goes through the emotional and mental ups and downs of this disease. I will be lurking in the shadows and may even post on occasion but won't be active with the group for a while as I get my home, family and self in order. Good luck to all and God Bless as we all endeavor on this amazing journey we call life! Skye

C-185 (-4 this week) -25 total! Sorry I haven't really been participating this week but i'm in a weird place mentally. Not a "bad" place....just different. I have had to focus so much attention on myself for the first time ever in my life that i'm looking at life in a HUGELY different perspective when it comes to many things. I have spent my entire life worrying about what other people thought....if their needs were met....it they had what they needed, even if often (or most of) the time it was at the cost of what I needed, wanted or desired. I have put up with other peoples rudeness, selfishness and ignorance for so long that I didn't realize that I had shoved so much of myself aside that I actually put myself in the position I was in. I have alowed my family, friends, co-workers (you name it) to believe their needs were 10x's more important than mine and bent over backwards to make sure they were happy. For the first time since I can remember (that didn't involve me being sick/hospitalized/etc) this is MY TIME! I am wanting to shine....to be the center of attention...to have MY needs met....to do something I want to do...to take a big step forward with my head held high and move in a direction that works for me. I love my family very much and have no intention to ever seperate myself from them but things are changing on how we function. I'm cleaning out my closet and my life of things that don't fit and not feeling one bit badly about it. Here's to taking my life down the path that "I" want to travel! Skye

Had a few issues before and after the surgury (alergic reaction to the antibiotics and the morphine) but the banding part went very well! I am now home and resting 2 days post op....it is OFFICIAL I am a bandseter! Yay! What a long journey it has already been! Skye

And that would be why I don't like to post a dissagreement with a comment..... Thank you for the personal attack it just emphasized why I tend to keep quiet. I am very passionate about the future, about our children who are our hope as a society and obviously in my zealous statement I didn't get across what I wanted to state. EDUCATION EDUCATION EDUCATION is the key to our future. The only way we are going to educate our youth on a grand scale is if the government gets involved and helps with the funding THAT was my biggest point! Yes, I think that we need to regulate what is blasted at our kids (it may not be a popular oppinion but it is mine) because unfortunately what they (and we) consider important is WAY out of whack. We regulate the driving age...the world has not gone to hell in a handbasket We regulate building a new house...a vortex to another world hasn't opened We regulate how many people you can legaly marry...dogs haven't started to walk on their hind legs and shop at Wal Mart It has just made us EDUCATE ourselves or THINK about what we are doing and maybe just maybe helped us make a smarter choice for our lives. Skye And Shaw...don't ever asume you know anything about me, what I do or don't read, watch or pay attention to. I just find different things more important than you do and you know what....that is OK!

This is a bit babble'ish so I appologize now..... I very rarely dissagree on a point in an open forum but this is something I have to completely dissagree on. "Our government should be concentrating on other issues" What could be more important than our nations health? Each and every year the detrimental effects of the nations growing obesity is costing us BILLIONS of dollars! BILLIONS!! If we're not healthy we are not productive, we don't move forward. Take a look at the unfortunate slow downward spiral our society is on. We can blame it on our leaders, we can blame it on what ever we want. What it comes down to is WE as a society have created a "I have to have xy or z RIGHT NOW" kind of world. The bombardment of ourselves and our families by what is on billboards, tv, raido, internet, you name it, is part of what causing us to have the issues we are having as a nation. We have gotten very selfish and not in a healthy way. I'm not asking for the government to infringe on the right to free speech by any means BUT I think like any other "potentially detrimental" substance (alcohol, cigarettes, etc) there needs to be a level of regulation. food is a "potentially detrimental" substance if used wrong. Millions of Americans die each and every year from the long term effects of living on diets that are full of Dominos pizza, McDonalds, Starbucks, and the like. I think there is a bit of a mix needed to help our growing obesity levels in the US. I agree we ABSOLUTELY need education, where is the money going to come from? We ABSOLUTELY need to take responsibility as individuals and as a society. One of the things I love about being human in the USA, as human beings we are inherently different, we have different oppinions and ideas. Being lucky enough to live in the US we can express our different oppinions and even stand on a mountain top and scream and yell about what ever it is we feel strongly about. Lets see if there are ways we can raise and educate the next generation (and even ourselves now) about what they put in their bodies so they don't end up where we are today because we gave into the McDonalds jingle one to many times. Skye

I can eat pretty much what I want as long as it is chewed to a complete pulp before I swallow it. If I don't have my food to the consistency of a thin paste before it goes down I have issues. What is comes down to (for me) is how much time I really want to spend chewing on one small bite....and is it worth it.

Daily goals *Drink my freakin' H2O! (I am having real issues getting this done) *15 minutes of yoga every morning *Go for a 1/2 hour walk (outside or on the treadmill) *Work on my room/office (remodeling a room in the house that is just for me)even if it is only for 15 minutes *Study or work on my financial goals

Actually my doc speaks very highly about the benefit of jerky for WLS patients (high protien). He just emphasises chewing it very well and eating small pieces! I acutally had some day before yesterday, took it really slow, chewed it to a pulp and it went down just fine.

I have been doing so good on what I put in my body (i'm 17 days post-op)and how I eat, if it isn't the consistancy of a smoothie it doesn't get swallowed (even if it was close to a solid form on entering my body)....then today I think I may have jacked myself up! Hubby and I went to the Reno "Elk Camp" (a huge convention for the Elk Foundation) we were walking around looking at booths when a vendor handed me a piece of Jerky I didn't even think twice about it and popped it in my mouth I chewed it up pretty well and swallowed....as soon as I swallowed it i was thinking "what did I just do" after a bit I got an ache from it so I sipped my Water and kept walking. I am still getting hungry and able to keep stuff down but I feel like there is an elephant parked on my chest and something stuck in my tummy. It doesn't really "hurt" but feels like I either need to burp or like I ate to much even though I have only been doing small sips of smoothies/juice/gatoraide and water since. My throat feels tight and as an added bonus I think I am getting sick. I really hope I didn't mess myself up! Any thoughts? Skye

I average 500-800 calories a day. My doctor recomended 1000-1200 per day but I just can't get that down in a day!