Shoshanna

After breast reduction surgery I was a Born Again C Cup, eager to spread the gospel of smaller boobs. Fortunately, my mama raised me to consider personal remarks ill-mannered so I never actually accosted the Well Endowed with the good news about plastic surgery. If anyone asked, however, I was there for 'em.

Best wishes for a lucky third time!

I'd like to hear his side of the story. You sound like you have an attitude problem.

A gorilla for an avatar. No accident there.

Too bad boob transfusions aren't possible. I'd have been glad to be a donor.

COOL old Yamaha! Who the heck needs an overpriced HD when you can have a bike like this?

I bought three new bras last week, all exactly the same and size 38C. I am a happy woman. Seventeen years ago I had bilateral breast reduction surgery and it ties with lap banding for the best thing I ever did for myself. It instantly cured 30 years of backaches.

When I bought these last bras I requested the assistance of a fitter. Experience has taught me that fitters make the shopping quicker, easier, and more efficient. That's important to me because I really hate shopping for bras.

I rode my own at 240 and I ride my own at 148. If anyone had negative thoughts about me riding at any weight they had the wisdom and courtesy to keep those thoughts to themselves. I have a 1997 Virago 1100. It's a great bike but it needs one more upper gear to keep it smooth on those long Texas interstates.

My ride is a 1997 Yamaha Virago 1100; my husband has a Honda Shadow. We took a good long trip in late spring but haven't done much riding since due to professional and personal obligations- not to mention the hottest June and July on record. We're hoping to do more riding as the weather cools off.

Are you all camping riders or moteling riders? We do a bit of both, prefer camping because it is cheaper and moteling because I have a passionate fondness for hot showers at the end of a long day.

He's apparently willing to spend money on things you want in order to dangle them just out of your reach. You already belong to the gym, right? And you can't go because he wants you home to put the kids to bed?

Control. Mixed emotions. Mixed signals. Whatever. Couples counseling might help and is often available free or on a sliding scale from community mental health services or at a local synagogue or church.

It's nice to have familial support for one's life changing decisions, but it is not necessary. As Carolina Girl said, we'll support you via this forum. Good luck.

Second hand stores are a great resource for interim clothing.I've bought nearly new and new brand name items for a pittance, like Cruel Girl jeans for $3 and a Coldwater Creek skirt for $2. You have to check regularly to get the best buys, but that's part of the fun. I used to hate shopping but if I miss my weekly round of my favorite stores I feel deprived.

I first broached the subject with my doctor in October 2009. Attended the seminar, met with the nurse in charge of the hopital weight management program, had three monthly appointments with the dietician, then a psyche exam and a fairly lengthy wait for the insurance company to decide in my favor (I didn't need to los quite the required 100 pounds but had co-morbidities like arthritis, GERD, low sleep oxygen, and family history of diabetes). From start to finish, I waited about five months. It seemed endless at the time, but it gave me a chance to settle into a new way of thinking and test my resolve.

Twelve step programs for nicotine addiction exist; it might be a good idea to seek one out. Failing to find a program specifically for nicotine, I suggest NA where no one cares what you used or how much you used. I've never smoked tobacco but I will have 16 years of clean time in NA next month.

My sympathy to you. Sounds like his control issues are in play. Is couples counseling a possibility?

It is at least as hard to lose "fat mentality" as it is to lose physical fat tissue. I'm at goal but still looking on the mirror to see what appears to be fat desposits clinging to various parts of my body. I've spoken about this with the health coach my insurance provides me with and I know that I'm wearing a pair of size nine Wranglers, but... my head is still in fat mode.

Is it a matter of chanting a "I'm not fat ohmmmmmmm" mantra several times a day or are there better ways to move past fat mentality? Perhaps I'm afraid if I start to feel thin I'll get overconfident and back the weight will come.

WHEEEEEE!!!!!

What a fascinating discussion! Thank you all for the information.

Between restricted eating and a thyroid problem, I've experienced significant hairloss over the last couple of years. As a person with hip length hair, I find this particularly distressing. My hairdresser assures me my hair will grow back and since I am not exactly bald, I've learned to live with it. In the meantime, though I am not delighted with the situation by any means.

I suspect my Hair loss is largely due to not getting enough Protein in my diet over the last 2.5 years and urge you to watch your Protein intake carefully. Even with the hair loss, I have absolutely NO REGRETS about my decision to get the band surgery. I wish you the very best of luck and a happy outcome.

I reached my goal of 145 pounds this month and would like to share and interact with folks who are learning to eat for maintenance instead of weight loss.

Now, I am very good at weight loss. I've lost hundreds of pounds over the years. I've not been so good at maintenance since those pounds always came back and brought friends to stay. Anyone got tips they'd like to share?

My band was far too tight to allow eating enough for maintenance (some days it was hard to drink enough water) so last week my doc removed .75 cc. Oh, the feel of Water sliding easily down my throat was wonderful! But eating was still highly restricted so I returned. Dr. Beckstedt explained that it is easier to adjust the band up than it is to adjust the band down and so decided to remove one cc. I almost freaked- I am terrified of regaining the weight. He will be gone next week so I have two weeks to work through life with little restriction.

On one hand, I think this will be good for me, allowing my stomach to relax following a bout of gastroenteritis that caused tightening and giving me a taste of life without strict restriction after 2.5 years of banding. I'm practicing awareness of good nutrition and I am so excited about the prospect of being able to eat a good salad tomorrow after so many many months of having lettuce get caught no matter how well I chewed the stuff.

BUT...

There's that underlying sense of panic that I might revert to old habits and go into one of those blind fugues where I eat everything in sight without being hungry or even wanting to binge. My medical insurance supplies me with access to a nurse who calls me once a month and goes over my health concerns with me. I can also contact her whenever I need some guidance or support. I spoke with her today and what a blessing to have her there. I am also considering reestablishing contact with my in-town counselor for a couple of months to get me through the transition period. Beginning this thread is my third measure and I hope it might help others as well. My fourth measure is to begin blogging regularly, something I have never done, but which I hope will help me keep myself in line.

For those of you who've been maintaining a while: What have been your greatest challenges and how have you dealt with them? What have been your greatest triumphs? What advice/caveats do you have for those just entering this phase of their lives?

For maintenance newbies like me: What strategies do you have in place to help you cope with maintenance issues? What are your fears and goals?

Thanks to everyone who chooses to become part of this thread.

Shoshanna

I don't miss:

my upper thighs chafing

shopping in the plus section with those ugly prints and polyesters

needing a riding block to get on my horse

aching knees

taking a deep breath before leaning down to tie my shoes

Intellectually I am aware that I am now what most of the western world considers a normal size, but I can't quite get my instincts around it. Every time I meet with the scale, I expect it to register numbers that require moving that little silver slidey thing to the 150 mark before I move the other little slidey thing all the way to the far end of the balance beam.

Maybe the problem was TMI too soon and not that you have the band? I confess I wouldn't be particularly keen on a discussion of digestion and dietary measures during the first few dates.

They don't need to understand. You don't need to defend or explain your motives to them. Put your energy into your journey instead of seeking support where there is only dissent. The first step in not allowing your resolve to be undermined is to make the entire topic off-limits at work. You're on your way down the road to a great improvement in your life and it's silly to let yourself be influenced by people who do not have your best interests at heart.

Good luck to you.

I experience a brief wince-worthy moment then it's all over but the bandaid. No lido, no fluro, so far no problems. Dr.Beckstedt has great aim. I don't enjoy the procedure but don't worry about it either.

I actually lost weight while on vacation. It was so hard to find on-the-road food that I can eat that I ended up eating a lot less than usual. I was amazed to realize how much I've always depended upon fast food on a road trip. Giving up all those hamburgers and supersized fries went a long way toward promoting weight loss for me.

But even real restaurants often don't have things I can happily eat. One of my favorites is Soup, but if a place offers Soup, half the time it is some form of Tomato or something chock full of broccoli. Yuck.