libra

The econcomy is a killer right now. This is the highest rate of foreclosed homes in history. People got in over their heads with interest only loans etc. Also with gas and food prices through the roof, people just can't make ends meet anymore. I know we've had to tighten our belts significantly so we can make our bills, and it's still a challenge. Sad and scary times are ahead for our country. We're going to see a lot more families losing their homes before this is all over, I think.

No worries! It was a really funny scene. That vacation was full of really weird events. On the day we checked into the hotel, my husband was carrying our two carry on bags and I was rolling the suitcase to the elevator in the lobby. Out of the corner of my eye I see the front desk clerk laughing hysterically. When I turn to see what she's laughing at, there's my husband in the middle of the lobby with a bag in each hand and his shorts down to his ankles!!!! Apparently his pants fell down and he panicked, and with both bags in his hands, completely froze. I lost it....cracking up to the point of not being able to breathe. After what seemed like a few minutes, my husband snapped out of it, put down the bags and pulled up his shorts. We couldn't stop laughing about that one the whole trip...Well, until the scooter incident. :wink2:

Dear lady in front of me in line at the Wawa, I understand that there are a lot of Breakfast sandwich choices under those lovely warming lamps. Trust me, I can seriously debate the turkey sausage and eggwhite over the bacon, egg and cheese for hours (although as a bandster, I ALWAYS go with the turkey sausage!) But seriously, I'm trying to purchase my single 16 ounce cup of coffee. My lovely morning wake up juice....which by the time I actually get to pay will be lukewarm at best. The next time you need a breakfast on the go, make you selection BEFORE getting on line in consideration of those of us who are NOT morning people and need our hot coffee to function. Sincerely, Undercaffeinated

My husband just called about 15 minutes ago. He was pretty upset and told me some bad news. (No point getting into it, but it got me pretty upset.) I'd love to say that I worked off my stress and anxiety by hopping on a treadmill or doing some crunches.....however, I instead chose to FEED my anxiety with a piece of chocolate cake! I'm not looking for sympathy or anything. I don't expect anyone to say it's okay because the reality is....this is the first time that I (so obviously anyway) chose to stress eat since my surgery nearly two years ago. I'm angry at myself for not making the right choice but it's also a reminder to me that if I don't work at it all the time, I can easily fall back into my old habits. So yes, I'm not gonna be happy with the scale tomorrow. But hopefully, I'm going to learn from this and try not to react so quickly next time. I don't mind an occasional treat (so I'm not beating myself up about a piece of cake) but I'm not happy with stress eating, that's what got me severely obese in the first place. What methods do you use to fight the emotional-eating demons?:thumbup:

Oh, and ebay and craigslist are great places to find clothes. I found some cute summer shirts on ebay for $8 and they're pretty dressy, nice for a night out with a skirt of pair of dressy capris. I've been shopping for a cocktail dress on craigslist and ebay for a wedding I need to go to in October. My cocktail dress from last year's christmas party is too big.

The Old Navy clearance rack is great. You can get shirts for $2.00, skirts and dresses for $10. For some reason though, I can never fit into Old Navy jeans though. (too tight in the tush and too loose in the waist) I get my jeans at Target or a local flea market. There's a woman there who sells designer jeans (calvin klein, ralph lauren, etc) for $10 a pair, and they fit well too!

I've never used the catchphrase "my body, my choice" and don't necessarily believe that phrase truly encompasses how people really feel. I am in no way trying to get into a pissing match with anyone regarding the abortion issue. Everyone has a right to feel the way they feel. I know a man who was in a situation where the mother wanted to terminate the pregnancy and he didn't. He tried to fight it but found he had no legal recourse. I don't feel that's right as the child, fetus, or whatever terminology you care to use, was created by both. I feel that both should have rights regarding the decision of abortion. I also don't feel it's beneficial to discuss when the fetus is considered a human being. If everyone agreed regarding that point, there wouldn't be any abortion "issue." That too, depends on personal beliefs which is where I feel it should stay...personal.

Lots and Lots of PORN. Ha, Just kidding.... I also said writing and listening to my ipod. I'm a music junkie. I started writing lyrics I'm hoping hubby can put to music.

I may have my own opinion for my personal choices but I've always felt that I have no right to impose my morality on anyone else. I suppose that makes me pro-choice. I don't feel it's my place to tell anyone what is right or wrong for them. And, never having had an unplanned pregnancy, etc, I can't really say what I'd do either. It's a very personal choice and shouldn't be decided by government or any religious organization. Only the woman in that circumstance should be allowed to make that choice. I will say, however, that I feel that the father should have some rights there. If the mother doesn't want to keep the child, the father should be given the option of keeping the child before the decision of an abortion is made. I just hate the idea of leaving the father out of the equation.

Actually, A voice did come from above telling everyone to behave. Several as a matter of fact. LOL! We chose, the mods collectively, to keep this thread open because we did see something beneficial coming from it but we needed the personal attacks to stop. I think it's great that with a little reminder, everything went back on track. There is a lot we can learn about ourselves and each other from this thread. I'm glad that everyone "snapped out of it" and got back to making "meaningful" posts.:thumbup:

Are you kidding? I think it's awesome that you're go into this that you're preparing ahead of time. You're gonna feel great and you know it.

Wow! I'm from Toms River. I didn't realize there were some many from our neck of the woods. Go figure. Dr. Nusbaum has been trying like crazy to be able to get a fill center open in Community Medical Center as it's also a St. Barnabas. He keeps getting shut down because they tell him there's no need for one in our area. He told me to call regularly and harass the administrators. Maybe we should all call so that they realize there is a need for one locally. He figured he's come to this area once or twice a week, depending on need, for fills and follow-ups.

My coffee intake has increased. Don't think it has anything to do with the band...more to do with my 4 year old making me tired all the time...LOL! I also don't drink it while eating...coffee first...then breakfast.

Paula's food is like a heart attack on a plate! My mom HAD to make her corn casserole last Thanksgiving. It was awesome but I actually couldn't get off the chair. My stomach looked like a giant balloon of lead, felt like it too. Confession.... My husband thinks Rachel Ray is hot! He actually said that she reminds him of me. (I tried not to be insulted...LOL) I told him that I'm NEVER that perky...thank god. You know, why couldn't he say that I remind him of Angelina Jolie or Scarlett Johanssen? That would be a compliment...but no...I get Rachel Ray. And an aside....why can't we say "extra virgin olive oil?" I hate when she says ...E-V-O-O.

Try to realize that we, as a whole, are much more critical on ourselves than our friends and loved ones. She's probably perfectly accepting of your weight and not at all accepting of her own. We, women especially, always look at ourselves negatively. I wouldn't take it as she's disgusted by you. I'd actually be more concerned with you said were some extreme measures she's taken to get the weight off. I'd be more concerned for her well being than worrying about her true feelings about your size.

That's right, typically US health insurance companies have a specific list of what needs to have been done in order to qualify for surgery. Anything from a psychiatric evaluation, to 6 months of a medically supervised diet and others can be necessary depending on the insurance company. I actually had to write a paper about how my excess weight effected me both physically and emotionally. I had to include the fact that I had diabetes and heart disease in my family and how I feel that the surgery would help me to avoid future health issues. My doctor also had to turn in a similar letter. Oh, and the nutritionist had to turn in a letter stating that I understood what foods were healthy and how to prepare healthy meals. Basically, you run around like crazy until you have everything the insurance company needs. All of that running was probably a good thing for me as it made me really confident that I could accomplish this and really put in perspective the changes I was going to have to make in order to be successful.

Amen to that!:wink_smile:

Mine don't exactly stay in place like they used to. I used to be a 42DD and am now a 36D, not much change in cup size, just less back fat! Yay! Victoria's Secret have bras that do amazing things! You can look like you have perky ones by just strapping on one of those suckers!

I have some saggy skin, mostly in my legs but to be honest, when I look at a picture of myself at my highest, I know I look waaaaayyyy better now. I do some "strategic dressing" to hide the saggy parts and show of what's more toned. Even the thinnest people have trouble areas. Maybe at some point I'd have something done surgically for my thighs but in the meantime, I just work with my wardrobe. My aunt who hasn't seen me in months came for a visit yesterday. We were sitting at the table looking at old photos and I caught her staring at me. She said, "I'm so sorry to stare but you look so beautiful, like a movie star" That did it. I'm not worried about a little saggy skin after receiving a compliment like that.

Okay, it's bad that the thread has been hijacked. (sorry) but it's REALLY bad that the topic has become CANDY on a WLS site. LOL!!! I actually ate a Violet Crumble in my dream last night...ha!

I can honestly tell you that WLS cured my mom's diabetes. It's true that all of those diet programs are nonsense. I should know, I think I tried them all and seriously consider them part of the reason I made it to 300 pounds. They teach the pattern of yo-yo dieting that gets us to this point. If I find that I've gained 10 pounds over the holidays, maybe I'd consider weight watchers to get the weight off. But as for a whole life change, they just don't cut it. I think it's great for people to be able to get the surgery before following the "path of destruction" that many of us have followed. Many experts feel that the yo-yo dieting and constant weight loss and gain is actually damaging to our bodies. Having the surgery sooner can only be beneficial as far as I can tell. I wish I could have had it done sooner. I would like to have gotten those years back where I was too embarrassed to go dancing with friends, or go to the beach. I missed a lot in my early twenties that I can't get back now. There's no point in wasting a minute of your life if you don't have to.

Oh, I can TOTALLY relate to that one! I would love my boobs to stay where they belong. They behaved much better before I lost weight.

I was diagnosed in 1993 and my meds haven't changed since. I was kinda hoping with the weight loss they would, but I get bloodwork every three months and my levels are the same. There are no real issues with hypothyroid. Once they find what dosage you need, you just take the meds. Everything's fine.

Why should someone have to wait until they're morbidly obese to have the chance to do something about it? Why should anyone have to be forced to go through the same yoyo dieting that brought me to 300 pounds? I wish I had the opportunity to do this sooner. I would have liked to have been able to do this before I got to such a desperate state. I feel like I lost several years of my life being unhealthy and unhappy. I would never want anyone else to have to go through that if they don't have to. I choose not to judge anyone's choices in life as a general rule. WLS is the same. To each his own.

Ah, honeycomb...mmmmmm yummy. I made a Violet Crumble last two weeks just breaking a little piece off for myself at the end of every day. It's hands down my favorite candy. No Crunchies in the US that I know of. They're good too? Don't tempt me! I've got to get to goal before I get my treat!!!!!:thumbs_up: