deckedout

Kari, Great idea about the shakes, I was drinking those, but lately they seem clumpy and gross to me. I did eat cheese this morning, and it was pretty nice. By the time I ate it and drove my son to school, he missed the bus, and then made it to my coffee shop, it had been long enough to drink the coffee. then, I really didn't drink much of it and ended up throwing it out. Mary, congrats on the jeans. I would have (and did when I went to a concert this summer) laid on the bed and zipped them up just to see if they would. Age makes this less comfortable than it used to be, seems like I always wore my jeans tight enough that the only way to get them on was lying down and using a hanger to zip them. My NSV today was a coworker who stopped me in the hall and said I was "shrinking" (I was wearing heels so I don't think she was talking about my height). On a slightly sad note, today I wore one of my favorite pair of slacks (they have many of the qualities that Clinton and Stacy talk about on What Not to Wear) and I was swimming in them! Well, I still wore them cause they are about all I have, but if I didn't have my jacket on, they looked ridiculous. I guess I have to take them in and have them altered. I haven't lost enough in inches to fit into most of my smaller stuff, but my bigger clothes look dumb. Oh, the trials. Listen to me complain, what an idiot, I could be getting to big for those clothes like I was before! Ruthie, great fitting into your little people car. DH always says everything is made for midgets (he is 6'5" ) while I am busy trying to reach the pedals since I'm only 5'2". Have a great night. We've almost made it through the first week of school here!

Yummmm cheese! good idea. Beth, Josh is going to be about 6 hours away by car. I figure he'll be wearing a lot of dirty clothes. Those are some great ideas about breakfast. I can drink my mocha for about an hour before it is all finished, maybe I should add some cheese after that? I never have enjoyed breakfast, seem waste when I could sleep an extra 15 minutes. Yeah, I can see, but I like to read everything and most words are still blurry. Like road signs and stuff, not the computer. Hopefully, it will still even out. I think I just get frustrated too easily. Off to watch a Tivoed "Bones" and drink a crystal light. Oh, one thing I really like for breakfast is the oatmeal in the single servings, just add boiling water. Its great, but not easy to eat as you drive down the road. Maybe I need to adjust my schedule?

Michelle, God I hope I don't cry. Josh will be soooo mad. He is just a baby ya know, I started him in kindergarden when he was 5, so he just turned 18. Boo hoo. then again, some days its see ya later, don't let the door hit ya in the butt!

We started back on Tuesday. I greeted 81 6th graders. Yes, they are small. I"ve been trying to be good, I am so tired when I get home, and unfortunately, hungry. Yuck. I might need another fill soon, but I have to drop my son off a college next week, so it will have to wait. I also broke down and got lasik eye surgery on Friday. I figured seeing as I am now to the point I can write these medical expenses off, I better do it all at once. Anyway, I am now in bandster hell and lasik hell, who would have figured. I lose 6 lbs in 2 days after my fill, and have lost nothing since. I know I shouldn't be bothered, but of course I am. Also, my vision corrected to 20/40 in one eye and 20/30 in the other, and since I am a picky picky person (who knew?) I am going crazy at not being able to see EVERYTHING perfectly. They can't correct it further for 3 months, cause I guess I have to heal. HUMMMMM this is sounding very familiar! Anyway, school has started and I am excited about the new opportunities ahead. My youngest started his sophomore year, and as I said, my older boy goes off to college on the 15th. OH yeah, I also had my first PB on Monday. Naturally, I waited until I was STARVING to eat cause I was too busy and then Panda EXpress Orange Chicken sounded so good. BACK AWAY FROM THE CHICKEN! 3 bites later, I learned my lesson and my son got a nice lunch. I hope everyone else is enjoying this wonderful, exciting time. I still haven't figured out breakfast, falling into the old habit of a Grande Carmal Mocha. Man, those are good. but alas, no protein.

This was my very first fill as well as my first time with Dr. Fitzpatrick. I believe she works in both locations. She told my DH that he could get his fill added to if it wasn't enough in Eugene, if he didn't mind the ride, or wait til she was in Portland again on Sept. 14.

I had a good day today too! Back at work and a coworker told me that my face was slimming way down. Another friend of one of my sons didn't even know who I was until I announced my name to the group I was teaching! How exciting. I pulled some size 14 capris out, but they are still a little tight and I wasn't brave enough to wear them, so I went with a skirt. I have lost 23 lbs but am still wearing the same size 16 I did before. Makes me wonder how tight they must have been (yuck) without me even realizing it! Hubby is Mr. Druppy drawers, he is down 40lbs. Oh, to lose like a man does (not that I would want to be a man, just lose like one) I knew going back to work would be hard on the water intake, and the kids aren't even back yet. I've only drank about 20 oz so far today. Gonna try an push a bunch before dinner. We are having Garlic and Herb Talipia (from Walmart), Parmesan noodles, and salad. Yummm! What are people eatting for breakfast? Today I made Oatmeal, but it is really hard to eat on the run. Everyone, keep up the great work. Sounds like every one is doing really well today.

I am very excited. As I posted earlier, DH and I both got fills on Friday. As of this morning, DH has lost 12 lbs and I have lost 6! I cannot believe it! :omg: I thought we were both being pretty good about watching calories and all that, but neither of us was losing ANY weight in the past 3 weeks waiting for the fill. Crazy, but now it all seems to be coming off. I know this will not keep up, but it is lovily while it does.

I got the name of my fill doctor from Dr. Ortiz's office in Mexico. They were able to give me someone great who works less than half an hour away. Make sure to check with your Doctor's office, they should be able to give you names.

Beth, Sorry you had a rough day! Try some warm broth or chicken Soup without any chunks! Maybe a Protein shake will take away the hunger. I just got my fill today and was starving cause we couldn't eat before we went and the slim fast shake really helped. Remember, you might be a little swollen, so drink WARM things, not ice cold cause that will tighten things up again. Go really easy tonight, and try mushies again tomorrow. Maybe some hot tea or chocolate would feel good. Feel Better.

I just got my first fill today from Dr. Fitzpatrick, and she is great. Both my DH and I went together, and she talked with us for a long time about what we were experiencing and what to expect as we travel on this journey. DH went first for his fill. He has a VG band which holds 10CC. She had DH drink some Water, "to remember what it feels like" then started filling him up. They talked out what he was feeling and when he felt the water back up, she took some out and worked with it until he could feel the water go through the band. Then she had him drink some gulps of water and sit and drink water while it was my turn. He ended up with a fill of 4.6 cc. Next it was my turn. She had me lay on the table and take a deep breath then push out my muscle so she could feel the port. She didn't numb me, but found the port in 1 poke (same with DH). Once the needle was in, she helped me sit up and then started the fill, mine was done exactly the same was as DH, except that I couldn't feel it go through the port as much as backing up in the back of my throat. I ended up with 1.6 cc in a 10 CM band which holds 4cc. Since Dr. Fitzpatrick is leaving town on Sunday, she said she didn't want to be worried about us, so she gave us her cell phone number and asked us to call tomorrow, even if we feel great, just so she wouldn't wonder, isn't that great! Also, we had our bands done in Mx by Dr. Ortiz, and she was VERY impressed with how well they were done. The ports were easy to find (right below the port scar on the left hand side) and very easy to access. She said she would have to write Dr. Ortiz a letter and let him know what a great job he did!:biggrin1: Today, we are on Clear liquids and tomorrow we start mushies for one day, then on to solids. The whole appointment took 1 1/2 hours, which I had planned on because she wanted to get thorough with everything. The filling of the port part probably took 10 minutes for me and 15 for DH. all in all, it was an excellent experience. Both DH and I are doing great tonight and the poke didn't hurt anywhere near as much as I thought it would! I am really hoping that I will start seeing the scale start taking the downward direction again, as I had gained 4 lbs since my lowest!:mad: I hope that everyone else has a smooth ride with their fill like my DH and I did!:clap2:

I have been forcing myself to get up and get moving, including going to the gym in the morning, but so far (okay, to be honest this is only day 2) it has been going well. Yesterday, I took one dog to the groomers, 1 to the vet, got my nails done, including the feet, then sat like a bump on a log, but by then it was 4. I haven't cooked dinner in so long my kids can't remember what a home cooked meal tastes like. Of course, every summer is like this for me. I go back to work on Monday, after my first fill on Friday, and am a little worried about drinking water at work. I can't just leave 30 6th graders every 10 minutes to Pee! Anyway, when I feel like a bump, I just remind myself of all the things I'm doing now that I didn't before. Plus, I'll just get up and go for a walk, they just opened a Kohl's and a Cost Plus right down the street, so I can walk and window shop. Looking forward to my fill on Friday, have been stuck for 3 weeks, even gaining a little. Off to book club, have a great day!

I have an appointment with Dr. Fitzpatrick next Friday, at her Portand office. She also has an office in Eugene or Salem, I can't remember which. I was banded in MX by Dr. Ortiz and got her name from his office. The only problem I have already noticed is that when we (DH and I were both banded at the same time) tried to move up our fill appointment cause we can both eat A LOT, she wasn't going to be in that office for 2 weeks, I suppose she could have gone on vacation? Anyway, I'll let everyone know how it goes next week.

I am also a teacher, 6th grade language arts. Students come back the day after Labor Day, but teachers go back a week earlier. I am also sending my middle child off to college on 9/15.

Okay, yesterday Sucked!:faint: I went and worked in my classroom for about 3 hours, discovered the desks they were supposed to order (due to growth) never got ordered, so I have 32 6th graders coming and NO desks! Yuck. They are going to get me some tables from the district warehouse, but they will be old and won't match anything in the building, at least until someone orders my desks. We have a brand new school and it is so pretty that EVERYONE wants to be in it. Anyway, did some BB work, they look nice, couldn't arrange desks, then came home and sat on my BUTT! DH now works for District Office so he went back yesterday and had ran around ALL day so he got his exercise but I didn't! I guess I can't count on him:mad: So, I better make sure to get out and do something today. Maybe I'll go ride me bike. Thanks for listening to my rant.

Who is back at school? Those who are back, how are you doing at keeping up your exercise routine? Those who aren't, like me, what kinds of plans have you made and when do you go back? I'll start. I go back on August 28. I plan to go to the gym from 6 to 7:30 PM at least four nights a week and continue to bike and hike on the weekends. :clap2: Come on all of you, we know this is a really tough time of year! Let's help each other!

Beth, I feel your pain! I had hid my scale, but pulled it out and had gained 4 lbs over the weekend! Yikes. I have a fill scheduled for 8/25 which seems like forever from now. Make sure you are drinking LOTS of Water. If I don't drink at least enough to make me pee every hour, I will gain weight. I've managed to take back off 3 of those lbs, so I know it is retaining water 'cause of the heat or not drinking enough water. Anyway, try to stay positive, think about this, eventually the weight WILL come off, maybe not as fast as we would like it to, but this time next year you WILL be a lot smaller than you are now. Before banding, I always had to worry about how fat I would get over the school year, now I am looking forward to losing weight over the school year. SMILE, you are on the dock waiting to board the ship to WEIGHTLOSS Land! Jane 196/185/135

I still have a couple of weeks before I have to go back, but I have already begun to worry. I don't think I can get up at 5, just don't think I would actually do it. DH and I are gonna try to go to the gym about 6. Is it better to exercise before you eat or after? I have one son who is leaving for college in the middle of Sept. and the other is 15, so he can wait to eat, but I need some sort of schedule. I want to walk during my prep, but we usually have meeting, plus once the Pacific Northwest rains start, I know I'll stop, my prep is first thing in the morning, 8-9 and I don't want to go the whole day with wet hair! I have always found the summer time to be great for taking off weight, but once school starts, I fall back into my bad habits. We get 30 minutes for lunch, that isn't easy to do, so I often grab something quick from the lunchroom. None of that stuff is heathly. What are you all doing for lunch? Jane

I am also extremely obsessed! Does anyone else notice that they lose weight AFTER a shower? Yep, .5 lbs sometimes. Also, a hot bath. Somedays I will take it anywhere I can get it. We did hide the scale today. It is too much of a disappointment when you exercise, eat right, drink your Water, and gain 2 lbs. :omg: now, unless I cheat, it is once a week, on Friday mornings. My DH says that way we will have worked all week and it is before the weekend! 2 weeks til my first fill, hopefully then the scale will take a swift dive. :nervous

Matthew1, If you are near Portland, my husband and I are getting our first fills done there. Here is the website link http://www.gastricbands.com/ . I've spoken with Dr. Fitzpatrick on the phone and she seems great. Haven't had a fill yet, and she doesn't use a flora, but has someone she can send you to if you need one, plus she requires one every 6-12 months. Jane

Bandedshopgirl, Here we have the perfect answer, maybe they have something like it where you are? It is called "Dinners on" there is another one, but I don't remember the name of that one. YOu go one night, pay like 150-200 depending on how many meals you want to make, they have all the materials to make good healthy meals for a whole month. YOu take them home, put them in the freezer, then each night you just take out what you want and heat it up. I have never done it cause my DH is a meat and potatoes guy, but the meals look really good, a friend at work did it and brought the left overs the next day. Maybe try a web search and see if they have something like it where you are? My friend said it was a lot of fun putting the meals together, but you can also just order the meals already made if you don't want to do it yourself.:hungry: Jane

Hey Charlie, Nice speaking to you again. Yea, we have fills scheduled for 8/25 but that seems a long way away!

Hi all, I have been lurking here for about a month. DH and I were both banded in TJ by Dr. Ortiz on July 11th. We are both doing well. With pre-op I have lost 18 lbs and DH has lost 30. We are both at pretty much a stand still in the last week and a half or so. Trying to follow all the rules, we are on all food as of Tuesday, but it is hard to get and stay full. Walking about 2-3 miles a day and trying to limit calories. DH is having a much harder time. Maybe cause I have dealt with being overweight my whole life and have been dieting since I was 14 and he only started having a weight problem after we got married 19 years ago. Good luck to us all.