Band_Groupie

Ummm...and how would you know what paper mache' tastes like (you were the kid in my class who ate the paste aren't you?)? LOL. WELCOME to LBT! -BG

CONGRATULATIONS Bander! Keep hydrated and post an update when you're feeling better. -BG

Congrats...that's terrific WL in 7 months! -BG

Best wishes for tomorrow and keep us posted! -BG

There's nothing more motivating than smaller clothes! Now get rid of those too big ones...we're never coming back here again! -BG

Congrats on the WL and the banding! -BG

There...you've taken the first step!!! Good luck in the rest of your journey. -BG

*Post Deleted for Lap Band Book

Halloween is a big deal at our house. The house has been decorated for weeks, the front porch has been ablaze with lights nightly and the giant web is up in the two story foyer. We’ve got our electronic bats, spiders, and ghost ready to hang on the front porch, the black light ready to shine on the web, and the scary music CD’s ready to blast out the window. The neighborhood is rife with giggles as we ‘Phantom Ghost’ each others homes secretly leaving goodies on each other’s porches. We finally got ghosted last night and DS2 is so excited to be able to ghost two new houses tonight with the plastic pumpkins we bought and filled with goodies. We went to the pumpkin patch two weekends ago with our ‘kids’…there’s a huge orchard/pumpkin farm nearby and there are corn mazes, pony rides, cider making and all kinds of activities for the kids. We were laughing as rode the hayride out to the pumpkin patch this year…we were the only ones without a small child, but our 22 yo DD and 14 yo DS2 wouldn’t have missed this for anything…my kids love family traditions. They picked their pumpkins, ran through the maze, and drank their cider just like every other year. Every year we have pumpkin carving night. We each carve a pumpkin while we drink hot cider and I wash the seeds and toast them. I’m always looking for new pumpkin carving kits and ideas to inspire our work. We've done this kit...kind of like the old-school light bright that works with colored pegs you hammer in. We've also used a regular houshold drill to make cool designs. We've done lots of 'silhouette' ones like these...a cat against the moon, a spider, a skeleton, and lots of faces. They're easy if you buy or print a pattern online...you can carve right through the paper pattern as you go. You can also carve words (we've done "BOO" and "OSU" before). Picking the right pumpkin so you can use the stem as part of the design is also something we've done...they make for a pretty interesting faces. I'm looking for some easy clever ideas this year. Here are a few I found. Pi... These masks add a nice touch... Love this... Clever food... Cute, but not sure how it would play out at night... Or if you're really good at carving... I think I found my design. The PBing Pumpkin...it's just too fitting...

Wow JT, I was struck by how similar our dates were (guess that shouldn't surprise me since we were both April Banders). I started my 6 mo. Nov. 10 and started actually dieting the beginning of March (but I only lost 19 pre-op...you must be a pro-dieter!). 49 since banding is an awesome WL!! You do need to keep celebrating those positives. I just did a blog here on how our WL slows down, even stops (lots of plateaus) during 'Goal Limbo' (within 30 pounds of goal). It can be a very frustrating and long phase of WL as our BMI gets lower as we get towards goal and the WL just suddenly slows down to a death march. Hang in there...we made it through Bandster Hell and we can make it through Goal Limbo too! Each pound now is cause for celebration as we creep toward our goal!

WELCOME to LBT! I'm from Cols., but we're in PA now.

I know you see how far you've already come and how great you look now (I know, not what you want to hear, but you DO look great). The biggest part of going on this journey for me has to be the head seeing me as I am and accepting me as I am. I've got a case of Body Dysmorphic Disorder...when I was fat, I didn't think I looked as bad as I did, and when I was at the weight I'm now shooting for, I thought I looked fat. I was hoping that taking pics along the way would help with this and I think it has helped me with the before's to see how far I've come, but after that initial good feeling I immediately go to the things I still don't like...and I know it's going to be that way again when I reach goal. I wish we could pick the areas that the weight comes off...I'm like your sister...it's all still in the hips. I symapthize with you girl, Goal Limbo sucks. Targeted exercise can help with the areas we need to work on (have you worked with a trainer yet to target the areas you want to sculpt?). ...and hey, you've got PS to look forward to...it's kind of like having plans for a vacation, no matter how far away it is, it always gives you something to look forward to and plan for. A lot of my GF's have had PS and I know they were all told to get in the best shape possible/lose as much as they could before having it done; some were even given amounts to lose even...at least that gives you motivation for something to work towards. Maybe you could do a consult soon with the PS to tell you what they can/can't do and what you need to work on yourself?...that would get me excited and motivated for the PS. Come here and whine away...I know I have and will...I feel your pain GF.

Happy Halloween! Have a GREAT weekend! ...and PUT DOWN that Halloween Candy!

Wow...didn't think THAT would be my title today! This morning I had in mind..."1st day of the Diet" or something else really benign (my insurance requires a 6 month PCP supervised diet/exercise history). OK on with the story. I spent the weekend wildly researching and typing up stuff in anticipation of my PCP appointment today. I put together a form for the Dr. to easily fill in each time. I also put together my family history...wow, was that an eye opener! I woke up nervous...let me back up... I'd been to the PCP last month for my physical follow up. I had just lost 25 lbs. on another low fat diet/fat absorbing pills, so my weight was down some, but I was still Obese (I wanted to make the best case I could to my PCP). My PCP came in and we talked, she supported my looking into the LAP-BAND®® and gave me names of surgeons and I picked up the diet plan to review. Then I went to seminars at two hospitals that are 'Centers of Excellence' for bariatric surgery in town (with my skinny DH) and found out what this was all about...I wasn't certain that I'd be approved by insurance...it's like an evil game. The seminars stated I needed to show I was a diet 'failure', so I quit the diet pills until my official start. I know, this all seems counter-intuitive since I'd just lost some weight, but it's not like I haven't just been a lot heavier, I'm an expert now an yo-yoing...I hate insurance and I'm just starting this (don't they know yo-yoers that are obese have even more health risks?). By the end of the month I was only up a few pounds more (less fast than I normally gain). So I'm back to where I began...I woke up nervous today...weighed myself...quite a few pounds over 35 BMI...but, what if their scale was way different than mine?!...No! I can't be too close to the 35 BMI when I start!!! OK, calm down, I know I've read some things online about this...ankle weights some suggest?...nope, my ethics won't let me go there, sorry...Next-eat a lot before you go...and drink a lot...OK, I can do that...bowls of cereal later I was ready to burst...Next-It's snowing for the first time...layers are good! OK, I need to time the water just right. I had incontinence surgery 3 yrs. ago (hysterectomy and the sling)...let's just say I was back to the Urologist last week and he told me "You're the first patient I've had where the procedure failed! You'll have to use the back door to leave here so my other patients can't see you, Ha Ha!" Lucky me!...I'm not laughing...because if I do...I'LL PEE! Now back to drinking water...water bottle in hand, I get in the car...the Drs. office is 1/2 hr. away...no problem. I'm dancing by the time I get there (the pee dance)! 15 min. wait...I get to the room with the Nurse and she pulls the digital scale to the middle of the open door "I need you on the scale" she yells from outside the room. What?!! Was the scale too close to the cabinet that my fat hips couldn't get on where it was...no?!!! Could we maybe close the door...no?!!! I glance wildly side to side to see who heard and if there was any patient coming down the hall who might be scarred by this site. Right, Left, no one...I can do this. I take off my coat and then she says it..."My you have a lot of layers on!"...."Yeah, it's cold outside." I manage to squeak out. On the scale I go...uh oh...my evil plan worked...too well! AHHH!!! I'm 5 pounds above where I thought I was...my scale at home is too light...I've gained weight (as usual, but are they going to be mad and not support me getting the LAP-BAND®®?)!!! Oh no!!! She flips through my charts. I try to distract her "I feel like I'm back at weigh in's at the group diet meetings-this is so embarressing!" (what did I just say?) Her head doesn't come up from the file...she notices! Are they're going to throw me out in the cold?? She asks me to sit for my Blood Pressure check (it's been high about a year now and they keep talking about putting me on meds.). "Are you nervous?" she asks. "No!" I SCREAM! "Why? Is something wrong?" I blurt! She looks frightened now..."No, your blood pressure is just really high 158/110!" Wild eyes staring into hers I say "Oh, maybe I'm more nervous about the surgery than I think?" She hustles out and closes the door. Oh no! What's going to happen? What's the doc going to say about my weight gain!!!! She's so nice..."Oh, so this will be your first supervised diet/exercise program visit?" she smiles...my heart is starting to calm...No!...she's flipping through the charts!!!...then it happens...I PEE MY PANTS...and once I start it's so hard to stop...SQUEEZE...How many gallons did I need to drink anyway?...SQUEEZE!!! I'd almost forgotten how badly I had to go in all the excitement...she's now talking and looking through my alarming family history...I vaguely remember her talking about hypertension...she's looking through my charts again...NO!...she mentions how long I've had High Blood Pressure...I feel her taking my blood pressure again...then pulling up my pant leg and checking my legs for swelling...NO Ankle weights here!!! (thank God for my ethics)...all I can think about is DO NOT PEE!...next thing I know she's standing at the door beconing me with papers...My mind races...what if I get up and there's a puddle on the table?...darn that evil paper they put on the tables...what to do?...with a smile she waves the form I brought at me...I smile and slowly get up...I turn...I can't believe it...and I say a silent prayer in heaven for the woman (you know it was) who invented the Super-Dooper-Almost-a-Diaper-Pad I'm wearing (which is know hanging heavily low in the crotch of my oh-so-dry pants!). She is walking me back to the reception desk and then presses another paper into my hand...what's this?...a perscription "for your hypertension"....I smile and thank her...(I found out later that this is a comorbidity...I deserve this!!!) I check out..."Where's the ladies room?" I ask.

There's nothing I can't eat or drink (I'd be a grump without my coffee) and my doc allows it all. I have found that carbonation makes me have very 'hard' burps after this last fill and don't do it often anymore just because it's almost a painful burp (not hurting anything, I just don't like the feeling). You'll have to check with your doc on exercise. You will lose the weight as long as you do your part! Best wishes! -BG

Wow! Great WL and really fast! Keep it up! -BG

You'll start feeling better soon. The super glue is actually a good way to prevent infection from getting in...I had it. The glue will start dropping off soon as you heal. Hang in there. -BG

Try a heating pad for your back, and like others here I did sleep on my side. You wont believe how much better you'll feel after a few more days...hang in there, it's all so worth it! If you're getting dizzy, make sure you're getting in enough fluids and calories...don't worry about WL, this time is for healing. Feel better soon! -BG

If I could afford it, I'd get it all lifted, tucked in, cut off LOL! I should probably count my blessings...as a lower BMIer I don't think I'll turn out horrible looking, but we'll see...I still want Spanx to start making bathing suits...do you think knee length bathing suits will make a come-back? So sorry to hear this and I'm glad he's able to be with his mom during this difficult period for you all. Hang in there.

182 today...well, there's one good thing about the flu LOL! JT- good luck with the surgery this week. Did you start having problems with the GB after banding? Seems like a common thing here and I'm wondering why?

Wow! All in a year! Great pics GF...how fun!!

It always takes the head longer than the body to get there. I started feeling it myself as I reached about 35-40 lbs. You're doing great! -BG