Pinkylee

Are we a matched group or what? Depression is such a devestating thing! I can always trace an argument, inappropriate thought or word in my life back to depression. According to Oprah and her vast army of experts only 8 minutes of heart pounding, sweat producing exercise will tame the ugly beast for up to 24 hours. That's kinda hard to do when you are dealing with other ailments. I've been down since having the virus. Finally climbing out and back at the exercise. I'm bouncing again and my new low number has hidden the last week. It's beginning to look at little old too. Hope everyone is experieincing some kind of turn around. Things are looking up for us this week. We leased the condo yesterday!!! A sweet couple who previously owned one of the condos. If I thought there was a shrink out there that could help a bandster deal with life in general after 10 months of hard work, I'd go. This is hard to sort out. Sigh. Skin gets baggier and my family is tiring of "the band the band the band. I think the reality of the new "me" is also a little hard for fmaily to take as well. I managed a jolly persona to hide my fat and I was fun to be around. I'm reinventing me and it is hard work. I don't like some of the raw material.

Mary - Welcome! Of all things, very tender beef is easiest. It is the one meat I can chew to smitherines. Chicken somehow gets stuck. I love chopped salads and lately I've been eating cold cereal in the mornings. (after 9:30 a.m) Regina, congrats on the new milestone. My Dad had surgery recently and recovery seemed to take forever. My Mom's comment was "it's not his time yet". He did recover in due time and so will you. I bought a smaller size bra today More for incentive than anything. Maybe it will keep my mind off my suddenly very "crepe" neck and what's left of my double chin.

Barbara12 - frustrated with the changes in this forum is right! I have found that if I go to Search and type in Junebies, click on last page, I get here sooner. Are things running slower than normal??? Yoga! I wanna! Along with Pilates. I have a rather fleshy mid section, but if I can tighten it up a bit, maybe I can avoid that very painful and time consuming (and clostly) TTuck. Anyone know what an abdomnoplasty recovery is like? My insurance might pay for that one! All of this tightness I blame on Allergies, stress and of course forgetting to take smaller bites and chew chew chew. I got in to some bad habits while I was more "open". I'm sure a lot of this would go away if I'd slow down. Just smelling fresh mowed grass makes my ears tingle, throat tighten, etc. I have been eating better today and I feel better. Have fun decompressing.

Barbara465 good luck on that fill - today and seven days from now! I'm considering a slight unfill. Not that I don't have hunger - my stomach is growling audibly 2 - 3 hours after each meal. Lately, every bite I take before around 7 in the evening is likely to bite back. I'm going to be extremely careful the next few days and see if I can avoid the adjustment. This 10 month mark seems to be a bit bumpy for a lot of us.

Poodles, You as a person are worthy of good health. Only you can decide what is best. Take care.

Regina, I am praying for you. Thanks for continuing to update us. Alkl the best to you. Poodles, Giving up is not a good option, but taking a break is. A total unfill and regaining your health sounds like a good thing. I've considered it myself. I'm tired of getting stuck, especially on healthy choices! I actually have no worries compared to what you've been through. Takie care of yourself. The band is an amazing tool and timing is everything. Your house renovations and physically and emotionally draining job have dealt you a tough time. Stay with us!!!

Dancing - So glad you are getting back to normal. I am finally without fever and body aches. Still not too thrilled with solid food but I'm managing. (Queso, bday cake and wine - pretty nice mushies for DH's bday) I don't dare claim that new low I saw on Saturday morning. Barbara4 - Ditto. I am no longer in a fight with the scales. Hitting goal weight is still important to me, but it will consume me no longer. Lisa - sorry about MIL. Major cleanups are draining enough. Socalgal3 - thanks for reminder on supplements. You've weathered a lot of trauma and pulled through. Your vitamin regimine probably helped in many of these. I haven't been as careful as I should - may be why I caught this last bug.

I have some sort of bug. Fever, body aches, diarrhea. Doesn't sound like gall bladder. No real pain, just aches all over. Always happens on Friday. If these sound like symptoms regarding band problems, please post. Thanks

Regina - So relieved for you. Continue to take care! Cathy - WTGG. You look 10 years younger. Re - All the tightness. I've even had lots of evening PBing. So much that I've considered an unfill (a first for me). Must be a disturbance in the force. All the best to each of you. Pbing, liquids and mushies do nothing for weight loss. Not fair! (must be that new cheese soup I like so well) My hats off to you gals who deal with sensitivity to fills. Socalgal3 - So do you feel like Job yet? His faith never wavered and he won in the end - you sound determined to win. And you are. Look at that ticker! Good to hear from you Melissa and Janelle.

Regina, lots of prayers are heading your way. I loved the "Dummies" link Barbara. Lots of good info there. Some contradictory to our band rules but a big reminder on following the rules. The water load is something I did in the early days and it did work for me. I'm going to try it again. Obviously all pouches are not the same, but the experience behind the info is compelling. Swelling (for all sorts of reasons) has got to be the culprit for being too tight. Why else would we have the come and go effect? Follow your instincts. We are all different. The crummy thing is, why does it have to happen near the weekend? Socalgal, I tried the gum for sugar cravings and it does work. After about a minute you have such a bitter taste in your mouth, you don't want anything but water for 20 minutes! LOL. I am trying to remember that sugar cravings are tied to depression and there are better things out there to chase it away besides food. The gum is another tool in my arsenal.

Congrats everyone on the new fills and the losses. Dancing Queen. Trust me, your arms look great along with the rest of you. Thanks Lisa for the reminder that exercise can be about every day life.

Regina and Barbara - You guys look fantastic!!! Thanks for posting those pictures. It's given me more determination to stick with it! Socalgal This last cold spell has sent me into a slump, but I'm walking tonight and hope to chase away all of it. Good luck with finding a solution. Exercise has been on the back burner with some recent pressing projects, but I'm not going to give myself another excuse (no matter how cold it is - or how early I need to be on the road) DD has lost 15 pounds in 2.5 weeks! I'm so proud of her. She's now my motivator. Junebies - You Rock! I'm getting my roots touched up tomorrow and then hopefully DH will help me post a new pic. It's a bumber to be so gray.

Seems like those that did pre-op diet lose better. Perhaps you get in that losing "mode". No pre-op for me unless you count the 24 hour clear liquid fast before surgery. I did lose 4.5 pounds. Socalgal - don't the 180's feel grand? I have noticed our "connection" and I say lets keep going. I'm so delighted to be off the plateau that I'm changing my ticker within hours of my early morning weigh in. I'm down 2.5 from my earliest "low". Somehow claiming it makes me work harder to keep it! Wonder what the next "decade" will feel like? Ditto on congrats Regina. You may be the first Junebie to reach your goal weight! Poodles - hope the back in better. If you're interested, PM me and I'll try to explain an exercise I learned that has been so helpful.

Thanks Socalgal. I've ordered it. I'll share it with DM. If it works on her, we better buy stock in the company. I watched her eat 7 slices of cake and cheese cake at her birthday party. I guess I come by my sweet tooth honestly. LOL Barbara, so true. The money I've spent in "snake oil treatment" for weight loss could have funded a decent trip around the world! All this walking and legs are not so painful! A miracle. It helps to be walking on a special trail through Memorial Park. The best things in life really are free.

Lunch while chatting on phone with DD and I got stuck! I've got to learn how to be pleasant while chew chew chewing! Regina I'm gonna try it as soon as I can! Correlates with my thought process about PS this a.m. Who needs to spend time and money if they can avoid it? Thanks!!!!

Scales are inching downward after their 3 month hiatus. Three mile walk each evening is getting easier. Still doing my walking DVD in the am and turning it into a 20 minute cardio with weights. DD is a great motivator. She really wants to lose 60 pounds by mid-August. She's lost 9 so far!!! I know I could be doing better on the eating portion of this DD challenge. Thanks Momma for jumping on the 30 minute wagon with me.

Coffee - the Irish Cream I got at GloriaJeans Coffee in the mall. Not so great after the first few sips. I did manage some sweet n low (pink) and it wasn't so bad. (I don't like splenda or equal at all) I think I'll just stick with flavored hot teas. Congrats on the good day Momma! We went to see Wicked and it was fantastic! We went to eat Taco salads after. I had grilled fajita beef. I ate the meat, a few bites of cheese, the guac and sour cream and a tiny amount of tomatoe slices. I could have ordered no guac, no sour cream, no cheese and chicken rather than beef. Every food choice was wrapped around how easy it would be to get down and stay down. I'm flat out eating too fast. My goal this week is to take 30 minutes to eat each meal.

Head Hunger - I can't always have "fun" things to do, so I count calories. I don't count veggie calories. I try to stay under 1200. Momma - I have rarely had days where getting in enough calories was a problem. yesterday I felt so "in control". Hunger seemed to be my friend. Today is rainy and I'm trying to give up coffee because I hate sugar substitutes in coffee. DRAAAAT! I think I'll try some coffee with a bit of 0 calorie irish creme syrup and see if I can tolerate it better. DD has a connection to a fitness gurue who says "no carb calories" after 3:00 p.m. It's those "small bites" that get me too Barbara. If you knew how many calories are in each animal cracker, you could probably enjoy them and control the snack somewhat. Today I am mega hungry and seem to be open. Good thing DD and I are going to a play today. Hope they don't sell wine!

Mommatrammell: I have the same problem at restaurants. I think it may be "first bite syndrome". The theory is that the first bite has to work to open up mucous buildup and when it doesn't go down, we tighten and cause more sliming. At home I rarely sit down to a meal that I haven't had a few small "tastes" - and maybe cleared the mucous b4 sitting down. It's amazing to me how far I've strayed from the original "rules". I'm attacking these bad habits and getting back to basics If I'm not hungry, if I think about my next meal, I'll get hungry. I've got a case of the head hungers that is almost comical. If I'm busy doing something I like (shopping, etc), I'm not likely to "need" a nibble. I think I can actually mentally make my tummy growl!

That's a lot of dough to get rid of some. If I don't hold my arms up, they don't look so bad. The tummy is altogether another story. From the front, I look "normal". That side view is another story. I'll get back to you on CR when the time is right. I bought a smaller size jeans yesterday. A bit tight, but incentive to stay with the walking and away from the sugar. Have a great weekend everybody!

Junebies are on a roll! Lisa, sorry to hear about the accident. Heal quickly. Congrats on the new look. I SAW A NEW NUMBER THIS MORNING AT 5;30 A.M. or you would have heard me shout. It's been almost 3 months. OK, it's officially only l/2 pound down, but it's mine. I taped a picture of a thin model to my sugar box and it's helping. Haven't had any sugar besides the 2 cups of coffee in the morning since. I'm ready mentally for PS. Financial and weight have a ways to go. I'm hoping for tummy and arms. Sadly, legs will need help for varicose viens. I'm not crazy about going under the knife again, so we'll see. Costa Rica sounds great Socalgal. Do you have an idea on prices in CR?

Melissa, So good to hear from you. Cathygr8, congrats on a wonderful BF. You should write a book. Barbara465 is an inspiration to see also. Got that chance on Tuesday and she looks great! Curves has a walking advertisement. Agreeing with you regarding PBing, etc. Mushies and liquids must increase calorie count. My take on mushies is that anything can become a mushie if you are willing to BE PATIENT, Take Small Bites and chew, chew, chew. If I'm so smart then why did I blend some Progresso clam chowder for lunch today? (I felt like it) I've been having trouble visualizing myself at goal. I opened a clothing catalog and there she was. A model I would love to look like (plus a few (!) years). I have one picture taped to the fridge and the other taped to the sugar bowl. Socalgal, lots of good thoughts you and Mommatrammel's way!

Life is so much better in the oddest of ways with my band! My excess weight ruled in pre-band days. The next progression is an exciting one!

Guess I better join Curves. WTG Barbara!

Poodles I go back and forth on the wine thing. I have to say stick with the red. According to my bartending attorny DD, those who drink red don't end up drunks. White just goes down too easy. Be careful with those sparkling wines. Little healing power in bubbles! Take one swig of a diet coke. Swish it around in your mouth. Feel the cheeks pop? That's what's happening to your pouch with any carbonation. Who needs that? Carbonation (diet coke) can be useful for dissolving a stuck feeling and taking meds you want to go down safely. Don't forget hot tea (although not as fun) does the same thing wine does and maybe quicker. My fav is spiced chai by Bigelow. I order hot tea as soon as we are seated in most restaurants. If they don't have hot tea I ask for a hot water with lemon. Disclaimer: I'm on my third diet wine cooler. It's been a tough week. I made it, but it hasn't been pretty. My family (very discreetly because I don't put up with their bull any more) lets me know they think I'm self absorbed. They are correct. The pre-band me would never say no. I never thought of my own needs. When I reach my limits, I reach my limits. Surprise, the rose has thorns. I've lost significant weight only to realize that the heaviest load is the realization that relationships with family have gotten way out of bounds as well. This is painful at times, but I'm loving my new attitude. It's ok to put me first once in a while. DH's - some are jealous and afraid of our success. Ignore their negative thoughts. You'll never convince them. In the long run, a healthier lifestyle and body are your reward. The admiration and respect of others come when we respect ourselves. Thanks for all the honest posts this week(end). Especially those we don't hear from so often.