*susan*

You guys are too funny! But seriously, do you want to live the rest of your life without chocolate? Or do you want to live the rest of your life as a normal person? Normal people eat chocolate, they just do so in reasonable amounts. I see nothing wrong with enjoying the occassional piece of chocolate now and then. After all, we are women and there are certain times when chocolate is not only wanted, it is a necessity for us!

Hello Jeff, and welcome to our forums. We are so glad you found us and decided to join. It is wonderful that you are able to do something about your weight at such a young age. You have the rest of your life ahead of you now to enjoy and be healthy. Keep us posted on how things are progressing.

Wow, Renee, you are doing great. We would love to see some before and after pictures! They are so inspiring.

Hi, my name is Susan and I am a sissy!!

I absolutely love Kohl's. They always seem to have the most amazing sales.

I have heard so many people talk about Trader Joe's and all the wonderful things they have there. I wish we had them here in Florida.

That would be the lovely and infamous ketosis breath. When people eat less carbohydrates, their bodies turn to fat for energy. It is called ketones. There is one type of ketones that cannot be used for this, so it is excreted as waste and can cause our urine and breath to smell bad. Linda, how are the headaches? Any improvement?

Awesome news! It won't be long now. It is normal to be excited, scared and a hundred other emotions all at the same time. Just keep thinking about how much better you are going to feel and how worth it this is going to be.

Woot!! Jane, that is great! You are doing so well. Isn't it amazing how much better we feel as each day passes!

Hi Beth, and welcome! Thank you for posting your story. I am so glad you were able to learn about having surgery in Mexico and found that you could afford to make this wonderful change to your life. We look forward to getting to know you better.

RestlessMonkey, excellent, excellent post!!

Oh hell no!!! Not this girl, you will never catch me without clothes. I go in the closet to change my mind!

Bearded, I agree about the energy. But think about it, when we are on liquids for so long, how can we possibly function normally. Even when I was on full liquids, I struggled to hit 500 calories a day. I was so happy when I moved to solids. My energy level jumped drastically within a day.

Thanks for that website, Daisy! I am definitely going to check that out.

Vegas, more power to you for getting up that early to exercise. When I first joined the gym, we had three free consults with the personal trainer. He told me I needed to get up earlier every morning and do thirty minutes of cardio on my treadmill. He said it would get my metabolism going and I would be amazed and how it affected my energy level for the rest of the day. That all sounds wonderful, but I am a girl who loves her sleep. I cannot force myself out of bed until I absolutely have to get up in order to just make it to work on time.

Judy, congratulations on getting your date! It won't be long now. As the others have said, I am so sorry to hear about your husband's layoff. These are definitely trying times, but I am sure you will get through it. You sound like you guys have a great attitude and a plan in place.

The people who see me everyday haven't commented a whole lot. Some have noted that my clothes are getting pretty loose and it is time to go down a few sizes. However, people that haven't seen me in a few months are now really starting to notice, a few of them have done a double take when they saw me, which I like!

The funny thing is, Daisy, I think we ladies have posted more in here than the guys!

Glad to hear you are feeling better. Once you get to the "screw you" stage, it can be very liberating. Just remember, don't let a few guys spoil it for all of them. There are still a lot of really good men out there and I am sure you will find one that is perfect for you.

You know, I am not even really sure why shopping at Victoria's Secret is so high on my list. I guess it is just because I have never been able to, and just once would like to buy something really feminine and sexy and walk around the mall with that cute little VS bag!

Hi Renee, and welcome, we are glad to have you join us. It sounds like you have had a wonderful experience. When did you get your sleeve?

Goodness, Vegas, it sounds like visiting you guys is going to be a blast! I always wear makeup, even if I am not going anywhere. I have to be really, really sick to not put on makeup or do my hair. I guess I just feel better about myself and more confident when I have everything put together.

No naps for me today, we are getting ready to head to St. Augustine for the day with the kids. I bet I will be wore out and sleep well tonight though.

Interesting, MacMadame. I never knew that, I agree, it is good to know!

I know a bunch of people around here have been having symptoms similar to what I had as well.