deckedout

Hi all! How is everyone doing on the Valentine's Challenge? I don't think I'm going to make my goal. I guess I set it too high, but I was down another pound today so at least I'm going in the right direction. I have been stuck at home for two weeks with a cold first and then snow storms, so I have not been able to exercise much. Yesterday was my first time swimming since Tuesday the 9th! I have been really tight for the past few days, I don't know if my TOM is coming early this month (it has only been 21 days) or if my cold is making me tight. Does anyone get tight with a cold? My family has also been sick with the flu, my older son came down with it 2 day after he went back to college, nothing like being sick sitting in the dorm! Mysherrijo, I'm glad to see you are back, I was wondering were you have been. I know what you mean about the PBing and wondering about a fill, I put my last fill off about 5 weeks longer than I should have because I would PB at lunch. I finally figured out that broccoli is no good, and if I stay with softer food at lunch when I have hardly any time to eat, then I do much better. I was trying to eat much too fast because I really only have a 15 minute lunch by the time I cook my food. Now I drink a soup at hand and eat some cottage cheese, it fills me up and I don't get stuck. I also eat yogurt. Hope everyone is doing well.

Hi all! I haven't been on for a while as things have been kind of crazy weatherwise around here and my hubby bought me a computer game. I was home sick on Wednesday,Thursday we had a snow day (I'm a teacher), Friday I worked but my son was home sick. Monday was a holiday and today is another snowday! Nuts. And, it is supposed to freeze up again tonight and it will probably be another snowday tomorrow. The hardest part about being home is keeping myself from eating every few minutes. So, I've been playing the puzzle game my hubby got me to try and stay out of the kitchen. HAve to FIGHT that head hunger. Audree, sorry about your rough night last night. Just goes to show, even water and other liquids can be filling.

Miniperarl: DH and I went to Dr. Ortiz and it was 2 weeks for us, from the time we made the appointment unti surgery day. We wanted a Monday but that was full, so we went for Tuesday. It was great. Ive never had such a great experience with a doctor before.

:huggie: Happy 6 months! I posted this on the July bandster thread, but I wanted to share with more who are interested. I was going to post pictures today, but DH can't find them. Hopefully, they're in the camera bag at work. We did find a couple, and if I can't find the others I'll post these. In the last 6 months I have learned a few things about myself. 1. I don't actually have to think about food all the time. 2. I can watch TV and NOT eat! 3. I can swim a mile at 5:30 in the morning. 4. I can get up at 5 AM and function all day long. 5. I can work out 2 times a day and still have energy to cook dinner, clean house and make sure my son does his chores and homework. 6. I can eat small meals. 7. I can wait 15 minutes after my lunch break starts to eat without starving. 8. I can lose weight! 9. I am NOT good at taking a compliment. I'm never quite sure what to say when people say, "Wow, you look great." or "YOu have lost a lot of weight", and "You are the only one who lost weight over Christmas!" I am very happy with my decision to lose weight with the aid of the lap-band. Something that I had decided not to tell people about when I first had it done, I now freely tell people when they ask. If I had been a smoker and had needed a perscription in order to quit, would I be wrong? I don't think so. And, I always thought, at least a smoker CAN go "cold turkey" even though it might not be easy (and I'm sure it isn't) I could never go cold turkey with food, ya always got to eat right! Who cares what those "ladies" from the View think anyway. I thank God for finding the band for my husband and myself, and that we had the resources to afford to do this for ourselves. In the last 6 months I have lost 37 lbs and gone from boarderline high blood pressure to normal blood pressure. From a lazy, tired old lady, to someone who has energy and is looking for things to do. Hubby has lost 75 lbs. He has not taken his blood pressure medicine for 2 months and his bp has remained in the normal range. He works out every morning. Plays basketball with his friends from work and we have gone skiing 3 times so far this year. In the last 6 months, we have been given a new lease on life. We have reinvented ourselves. Last night, I was wearing a t-shirt that was a little tight and when I raised my arms my belly showed. My hubby asked if I was going to get a belly ring. I was joking around saying yes, when my 15 year old son said, "oh my god mom, your skinny!" Ha, but out of the mouths of babes. He has never seen my this small in his life! Hopefully soon he will see me smaller. <!-- / message --><!-- sig -->__________________

I teach language arts/social studies to 6th graders. I love it. I can think of many things worse than being a fat teacher. Number 1 would be a bad teacher who doesn't care, like the one who fell asleep in class. I couldn't teach 3rd graders, but I am thinking of moving up to 9th grade. I think the transition years are so important. I love my 6th graders, they start out as such babies, but learn so much over the year.

Happy 6 months! I was going to post pictures today, but DH can't find them. Hopefully, they're in the camera bag at work. We did find a couple, and if I can't find the others I'll post these. In the last 6 months I have learned a few things about myself. 1. I don't actually have to think about food all the time. 2. I can watch TV and NOT eat! 3. I can swim a mile at 5:30 in the morning. 4. I can get up at 5 AM and function all day long. 5. I can work out 2 times a day and still have energy to cook dinner, clean house and make sure my son does his chores and homework. 6. I can eat small meals. 7. I can wait 15 minutes after my lunch break starts to eat without starving. 8. I can lose weight! 9. I am NOT good at taking a compliment. I'm never quite sure what to say when people say, "Wow, you look great." or "YOu have lost a lot of weight", and "You are the only one who lost weight over Christmas!" I am very happy with my decision to lose weight with the aid of the lap-band. Something that I had decided not to tell people about when I first had it done, I now freely tell people when they ask. If I had been a smoker and had needed a perscription in order to quit, would I be wrong? I don't think so. And, I always thought, at least a smoker CAN go "cold turkey" even though it might not be easy (and I'm sure it isn't) I could never go cold turkey with food, ya always got to eat right! I thank God for finding the band for my husband and myself, and that we had the resources to afford to do this for ourselves. In the last 6 months I have lost 37 lbs and gone from boarderline high blood pressure to normal blood pressure. From a lazy, tired old lady, to someone who has energy and is looking for things to do. Hubby has lost 75 lbs. He has not taken his blood pressure medicine for 2 months and his bp has remained in the normal range. He works out every morning. Plays basketball with his friends from work and we have gone skiing 3 times so far this year. In the last 6 months, we have been given a new lease on life. Last night, I was wearing a t-shirt that was a little tight and when I raised my arms my belly showed. My hubby asked if I was going to get a belly ring. I was joking around saying yes, when my 15 year old son said, "oh my god mom, your skinny!" Ha, but out of the mouths of babes. He has never seen my this small in his life! Hopefully soon he will see me smaller.

I used to get a really strange feeling in my chest. Like my body was trying to adjust to the band being there. For a while, I really didn't think my body was going to "take" to it. But, eventually, the feeling went away. I was also kind of weak for a while, but not the grumpy kind of weak that I get on a diet. I was banded in the summer, so I didn't have to worry about working, I could sleep as late as I wanted. But, I did go on long walks by the river. I miss being able to do that. Reason 101 why I love summer. Today, we're on a snow day. Which is great for me, since I was home sick yesterday, I actually have an extra sick day without having to use a sick day!

Jack, You should write poetry. You are quite the wordsmith. I love reading your replies.

I joined after I was banded; however, I lurked around the site and read everything I could find before I was banded.

Yeah, I was pretty tight after surgery. Never even got hungry for at least the first week. But, that goes away pretty quickly, then you spend the time in "bandster hell" trying to get back to that feeling again. I think I am there now, although I think about food still, and right after surgery I really didn't think about it. I would smell something good and the smell would be enough. Now, I would want to taste it. Enjoy the feeling now. It well be gone. but, once you get good restriction, it will be great.

Kathy, Mornings are really tight for me, and from your post, it sounds like the same may be true for you. Don't push it. Here is what I eat in a day to keep things from backing up. I have had to do this since my last fill, before that, I thought I was tight enough because I would PB after lunch about 2 times a week. Morning: I start with bottle of water. Then I either drink a slimfast, eat a yougurt, or some oatmeal. Then, after an hour, more water. Lunch: Soup, then cottage cheese with fruit. If I have a lot of time to eat, I might do some chicken salad with crackers, but I have to be able to eat very slowly. More water. Afternoon: yogurt or more cottage cheese Dinner: basically, anything I want following bandster rules with the protien first. Last night I had Kalbasha and chili. All evening I drink water. I have replaced my diet pepsi successfully with bottled water. Because mornings are so tight for me I have to stick to the rules, otherwise, I'm miserable. But, I make sure all my choices have protien and because I'm tight, even the liquids fill me up. FOr the oatmeal, I have bought the kind with extra protien, I can't remember the name, or I add Flax seed to what I have which gives it extra protien. I am also thinking of ordering some stuff from bariaticeating.com in order to make sure I'm getting enough protien because I know some days I am not and since I exercise everyday, I really need the protein. Audree and Susan, a warning about watching TV during this time, it seems like EVERY other commerical is about food. That can really add to the head hunger, I know it did for me. YOu are both doing great. Keep it up! I'm home sick today with a terrible cold. First time all year I have really been sick. I am so greatful that the cold companies have come out with so many different cold medicines that aren't in pill form, as I would be worried that the pills might get stuck. So, I am drinking Theraflu for colds and taking little strips for my cough.

When my youngest was a couple of weeks old, my mother decided to come for a visit. My sister, who has always been slender and beautiful, and I went to the airport to pick her up. When she saw us (I was carrying my new son in his carseat) the first thing she said is "Julie, (My sister) you look beautiful. Jane, you look nice too, but wow, Julie, you sure look great." My sister still remembers this as well. She, too, thought it was totally inappropriate. However, in her defense, my mother is an idiot. When I was 10 she used to find the biggest people she could, point them out and tell me I was going to look EXACTLY like that when I got older if I didn't watch myself. BTW, both my sisters are really thin; but my weight was ALWAYS within the average range, just on the high end.

Olive, Congrats on the upcoming wedding! You can do it! 10 lbs by V-day is very doable. Are you exercising? That has really helped me. That, and a proper fill. You have a very exciting few months coming up! Shopping for a wedding dress is lots of fun! I remember looking for mine 20 years ago. When you find that perfect dress it is wonderful. I think maybe you should look for the style that you like but not buy the dress until as close to the wedding as possible, who knows you might beat your goal before the wedding, and those dresses are difficult to alter!

Susan, I am so glad to hear things went well. Make sure to walk a lot. that will help with the gas pains. I am sooo sorry you are hungry. I wasn't hungry for days, that helped a lot. But the head hunger was bad. I had to keep really busy to fight that off. don't forget to drink your water! I hope the rest of your flight goes well.

I, too, never really realized how many of my thoughts were centered around food. Now, I have tried to fill that void with other things. I spend way too much time here reading the board. (Hey guys, write more stuff!) I also read, take bath, do puzzles, clean house (yuck), anything to keep busy. Eventually, you will find your new love. And fill that void.

I can feel my port if I push directly on it. It doesn't hurt, more like pressure. Sometimes I can feel it when I exercise, like when I do a bunch of stomach exercises. It might pull a little, not really the port but where it is attached to the muscle. Nothing that is bothersome. I get much worse pain in my knee from skiing. In the grand skeem of things, it isn't even worth mentioning. The port is up above where my pants go, and below where my bra strap is. I have a low profile port since that is what Dr. Ortiz uses, but the incision and the port itself have NEVER affected my clothing, even immediately after banding. The port is about 2 finger widths below my rib cage, right at the corner.

Hi all, Hopefully we will hear from Susan and Audree soon. I know Audree wasn't sure if she would remember her password and I don't know if Susan has a computer where she is. How is everyone else? I managed to lose 4 lbs last week! That was because of going back to work, I'm sure. It was my first week back to work since my last fill, which seems to (cross my fingers) have gotten me to my "sweet spot". Last night was really rough though. I had tried to eat a hamburger patty earlier in the day, and that didn't work. So, smart me, later in the evening, even though I knew better, I tried some hot wings that my hubby had cooked. Unfortunately, I decide to be a pig, took to big of a bite and accidentally swallowed without chewing! Big mistake, I was stuck and PBing for hours! Tried drinking something hot, cold, alcohol, anything I could think of. It was a bad night. So, today and maybe tomorrow it is liquids and soft food ONLY! Luckily, yesterday I went to the store and stocked up on soup, slim fast and cottage cheese! I hope every one else is enjoying their weekend.

Hey everyone, I had to report a 4 lbs loss last week! WOW! I am 4 lbs closer to my Valentine's goal! Excellent. Being back to work (at school) really has helped. At least I'm active all day. Stephanie, everyone at my school was saying the same thing, one more day would be nice, me included. But it is really nice to get back on a schedule. Sherri, Where are you? I saw you posted on another thread, but haven't seen you here in a while. I hope now that the stone has finally passed, ouch!, you are getting back on track. Do you want to join our Valentine's Day challenge? Everyone, we are all hitting 6 months banded this month. My anniversary is the 11th. What changes have you made in the last 6 months? I am thinking about my changes and will be posting them on the 11th!

I have had some similar problems. Someone else posted what they do to keep this problem from happening in an earlier post. Here is what I do: Mornings: Water only and then a protien shake or soft oatmeal Lunch: soft food only, usally a cottage double and a soup at hand ( I only get half and hour for lunch and have to eat quickly) Afternoon snack: yogurt or another cottage double Dinner: Normal (small) dinner usually chicken thigh, chicken breast is too dry and gets stuck, noodles or mashed potatoes, and green beans or corn. If I keep all my foods before dinner soft, I am usually fine. Today I tried a hamburger without the bun for lunch and it was way too much. Hope this helps you.

I could not have done this without the band either. As soon as I hit that first plateu, I would have given up on any diet. And my last plateu lasted 8 weeks! Now I'm losing again, but NO WAY would I stick to a diet for 8 weeks without losing.

LaJuanna, Dr. Ortiz, who was my doctor and is Audree's does not require a six month diet, just a week before surgury. And a BMI of 35.5 is perfectly acceptable. Good luck.

:kiss2: Hey all! I'm seeing lots of other groups are having Valentine's challenges, like losing a certain amount of weight by Valentine's Day. Would you all like to have a challenge? How about if everyone decides how much they want to lose by Valentine's Day and we see how we do? It'll give us a reason to create a new ticker too! Okay, so it"s about seven weeks til Valentine"s day I want to lose 15 lbs, so My challenge is to move from 163- 148! by February 14, 2007.:faint:

Audree and Susan, I know you are both off tomorrow. I'll be thinking of you both for the next few days. Audree, use Dr. Ortiz's computers and let us know how you are doing. I think you'll both do great. Take care of yourselves and keep us informed. You are set for a wonderful change in your lives!

Welcome back Kari, I kind of know what you are talking about, although my little one is 15! If I go home after work, I will get so caught up in everything that needs to be done at home, I won't exercise. I have to go straight to the club. Another thing you might try, although I don't know if it is even practical for you, is leaving for work an hour earlier and working out before you go to work. If your like me, working out in the morning sounds impossible, especially getting up earlier. I'm a real sleeper! But I have been doing it every morning since October 23rd now, and I'm really loving it. Now I've got my hubby doing it. Today was the first day my youngest had to wake up to the alarm himself and get himself off to school with no adult supervision. His older brother is home from college til this weekend, but what help would he be? Anyway, it worked, he got up and got himself off. So hubby and I both worked out 2 X today! From 5:30- 6:30 then got ready for work at the gym and went to work. Then we met there again after work from 330-430. I'm proud of my hubby 'cause he is getting back on track. he gained 9 lbs over the holidays, but now he is ready to rock that band! Hope everyone is ready to start the new year right! Stephanie, how was your first day back at work. Mine was great, except the fire alarm kept going off for some unknown reason. Luckily we didn't actually have to leave, but the noise was quite annoying! Have a great night everyone.

Beth, Hello again. I, too, am staying in tonight. Just can't motivate myself to get out, I guess I'm a stick in the mud too! We've had a busy week. Went to see "Menapause" the play on Wednesday. Went skiing all day Thursday. And bowling and dancing last night. I'm mourning the end of Winter break. One nice thing, only a week and a half til another long weekend, MLK b-day! I had a great NSV today. I've been swimming every morning for the past few months, and my swimming suit is getting too big. When I flip over to do the backstroke, my suit tends to slip. I have to tie it so tight is hurts! Anyway, today we were at Costco and I noticed they had swimming suits, so I bought a new one (dangerous since you can't try anything on) size 12. I brought it home and tried it on and it FIT! I'm very excited. My pants are a size 12 but I was worried that my whole body might not be a size 12. so out with the old, in with the new! I am really looking forward to a whole new me this year! Not only losing weight, but being more active, having more energy, and trying new things. My New Year's Resolutions 1. Lose at least 30 more pounds 2. Be active for at least 30 minutes 3 times a week 3. Try a new active sport (rock climbing maybe?) WHAT are your resolutions?