NtvTxn

I'm 53 and sadly, I have a lot of fun when by just making one statement, I can get so many involved and admit it or not, it's like a free for all. It's a sick game. On FB I can just post a interesting news story, and say nothing but....."I am speechless" - no comments about agreeing, disagreeing....nothing. Then I sit back and wait for the fun to begin. I've had one or two that will have close to 70 comments of people debating, arguing, call it whatever you want. I know, I should probably shop more or do volunteer work. I'd like to say my tail is tucked, but it's all in fun and makes so many people so passionate about 'whatever'. A friend from HS calls and says, I see you're stirring the pot. Seriously, have a great morning!

Bless your heart, you are a Badger fan too I bet. I gave you more credit than that - the Republic of Texas, you can't miss it. I have a framed map of the Republic of TX hanging here in my LR, I actually had it framed at Michael's in Wausau!! C'mon down, you'd love shopping at the Galleria in Dallas or Houston. Not even the Mall Of American can compare. I'm serious....or rent a beach house in Padre or Galveston. It's like heaven.

There are small, east Texas towns that think anyone not from that county, even other Texans, are foreigners....actually they call them 'outsiders'. I'm serious!!! We lived in one of those little towns for 20 years, we had friends, had a business all that jazz, but we were ALWAYS outsiders. The one saving grace is, we conceived and had a child in that little town, she was 'one of them'. LOL

Who the h*ll is Alex???!!

The thing is this.... with those of us thrilled and the other side, who are not. It's kind of like being pregnant, people can tell you what it is like, some are miserable and sick, others feel better than ever. You can talk about indigestion, feeling the baby kick for the first time, how it is to have a basketball sitting on your bladder when you are 8 months along.....you just cannot understand what it is like until you are pregnant....or in this case, until you have the surgery. That is the bottom line.

This is truly a topic I don't "get" - I've never for a moment regretted doing this, but I'd like to understand this feeling. I attend 3 or 4 different support groups a month and being this far out, I am always one of a few 'veterans' in attendance. This subject is sometimes brought up, normally by pre-op patients who are curious or recently post-op patients. I want to be compassionate but I do not understand. I am thrilled that I eat less. Dr. D never wants his patients to eat more than a cup of food at a meal. I cannot eat a full cup, I pray it will never change. I hope that at 3 years, I'm at full capacity. Time will tell. I still eat, and at this point, I do not feel like I'm on a diet at all. I just eat less. I sit at a restaurant and see a table of four adults or two adults with a child or two and everyone gets a huge plate of food, and normally they all eat all or most of it. It is disgusting to me, I think it is disgusting because I know that was ME. My husband and I would each get our own big plate....share???!!! Surely you jest!!! I am so glad I don't and cannot eat like that any more. I hated that 'I am stuffed' feeling, now if I've eaten to much it is magnified to really uncomfortable, but it seldom happens theses days. I try and always eat under my sleeve, meaning, I eat LESS than it can hold. Just because I can eat more, doesn't mean I should. I love it that I can nibble and pick like I've seen friends do for years, get full and be satisfied. I wish I could understand the regrets, people have said, they wish they'd never had the surgery but NOBODY has ever said they wish they were fat again; that they'd get their full capacity stomach put back IN, if possible. Would any of you do that, I guess that would be my question.

They may not behave like me, but I assure you, if they are Native Texans, they THINK like me. I have trashed WI, but I haven't trashed Mexico and I would never trash Texas, ever. Really, I'm good for now, but thanks for asking. Have a great morning!

My two cents worth. I WISH I'd done it when my BMI was 32, I wish it had been around and perfected 20 years before my surgery 3 years ago!!! I was off and on a diet for 30 years. I have ALWAYS been able to lose weight. I've lost 5o lbs on three different occasions and lesser amounts, ranging from 15 - 30 on more occasions than I can count. I've been on WW's three different times, I've taken phen/fen, Alli, regular ol' prescription diet pills, Medifast, I've seen a nutritionist and then we have the South Beach, Adkins and the ones I've forgotten about. I lost weight on every single one, every time. That is not the problem, as most of us know, as soon as you get OFF the diet, the weight comes back and so many times with it comes an additional few pounds. I had NO health issues, blood pressure, cholesterol, all ok. No diabetes, sleep apnea or any of the other weight related problems. I'd do it, without hesitation. I don't know how tall you are, but unless I miss my guess, you do not have a huge amount to lose, I went into this 'wanting' to lose about 50 lbs, it came off SOOOOOo quickly that I soon realized two things. I underestimated what I could do with this new little tummy and two, I was fatter than I'd thought. I've lost 84 lbs, I wear 4's and 6's, which is very exciting and a "first" ever!!! I am pretty sure I went from children's size 6X to a jr 13 overnight when I was a kid!!! I was very 'rigid' during the time I was losing, and I have made some of my habits part of my new life and love it. I lost 23 lbs prior to surgery and reached my physician's goal in five months, my goal of five lbs less, a month later. This morning I am 6.5 lbs under HIS goal, I've lost two pounds this week and I'm not sure how! If portion control is what you need, look no further, this has been by far the easiest thing I've ever done to lose weight. I do not think it is the 'easy way out' for a few reasons. One, when you go under the knife to have 85% of your stomach removed, it is not 'easy'. Two, it isn't a cure all, having the digestive tract of a hummingbird or field mouse, like my husband likes to say.....will NOT prevent you from eating poorly, but having the hunger hormone substantially reduced makes it much easier to walk away, to resist when you need or want to....heck, to even throw food away. I know ** gasp ** I made home made pizza last weekend......I DO eat pizza now that I am at goal and easily maintaining, but rather than split a large with my husband I eat one slice, maybe two if it is a small pizza, and there are small pieces. I ate my one piece, he ate several and there were three pieces left over. I did NOT put them into the frig, actually, I put them into baggies, just habit, that is what I've always done. I asked if he'd want them for lunch on Monday, when he said no.....I took the baggies and threw them away. Pizza IS a temptation for me, one that I could probably resist, but why risk it. I seldom eat pizza, once a month or less. My point is.....prior to surgery I'd have NEVER thrown pizza away!!! LOL I still don't get hungry, I have what I call my 'new hunger', it's more of an empty feeling, when I know it's time to put something there. I hope it stays like this forever, I still eat because I like to, it's social and I must, I just eat much, much less. Good luck to you, I hope this helps, there will be some who think your BMI is tooooo low to even consider sleeve surgery, but keep in mind, all of us had YOUR BMI at one time. Why would you wait until it is 40 or 50? Mine was under 36 and I wanted to have fun shopping, mission accomplished. I love it my husband can pick me up......and when I NEED to sound less shallow and vain, I say it was preventive maintenance. All my dad's deceased sisters were heavy....over 300 lbs heavy and none were as tall as me. I fought to stay at 225, a constant "diet" - I knew the older I got, the harder it would be. I haven't regretted my decision at all, it's been a wild ride and I've loved every minute of it. If you do it, enjoy it all. I suspect if you are as 'rigid' as I was during the honeymoon period, you'll reach your goal and beyond in under a year, that is just MY guess because of MY experience. Everyone's is different.

I stated early on, we are an arrogant bunch, you know, everything is bigger and better in Texas. Oh....I'm also a former smoker, quit about fifteen years ago. Good Lord, don't get me started on that topic. You're wrong, I DO know how obnoxious I can be, but really, I'm just giving an opinion, just like everyone else, just so happens, I have the spiritual gift of irritation, but alas, I DO know it.

Oh no, you missed the post where I said anyone outside the Republic of Texas is a foreigner. I was in Wisconsin for six years, it was like a third world country.....living there with the Yankees. BTW, good morning, we're having a great thunder/lightening storm! Cup of coffee #2 and enjoying reading yesterday's topics. Have a good one!

Well maybe, but there is a lot of stupidity on 75!!!! LoL The drive into downtown, once you get there must be nice in the mornings. I love downtown Dallas, but I'm a nut!! We got lost/detoured in Forney a while back, made the mistake of exiting to go to Starbucks, and then the access road to get back on 20 east was closed, hence the detour. Very scenic tour....beautiful country and homes, but made the trip a little longer! LoL

I will do just about anything to avoid 635 anytime, day or night!!! 75 isn't any better. Where are you located? We are in NE Plano, almost in Allen, love it here....but we love Dallas!

You are a good person. I went to decaf, per the doctor's instructions, prior to surgery and didn't even like the way it tasted until 3 month post op. The dietitian told us at the seminar and I quote "I am not going to ask you to forever give up something I wouldn't give up" - this was concerning coffee. God bless her and Dr. Davidson!!!! LOL I don't drink wine, I suffer from migraines, and I've never drank a lot of anything but iced tea. A glass is sitting here with me as I type! Everyone is different, and when eating out, you can only "eyeball" what you're eating, it get easier the further out you get. My problem is this, I do get an empty feeling, but I don't get hungry, the empty feeling is something I can ignore if I need to or choose to. With that goes the other part, I don't know when I'm full, until I have eaten more than I need to. For instance, I know I can eat one enchilada and about 1 TB of refried beans and 1 TB of rice and that is enough. I CAN eat a little more, but then I take the chance of being uncomfortable, it doesn't take a lot. Therefore I eat a little less than I can hold, I "under eat" my sleeve. I heard about this at a support group meeting I attended before surgery and have always remembered it. Does this make sense? When I order something, or when my husband and I share something, even if I don't ask for a 'to go' box then....I kind of push aside what I'll take home and what I will eat. When I've eaten it, I stop. I love tracking my food, and all the little rituals I do now that are part of my life. It's like a game to me, a game where I am winning.....at least I am right now!

My husband is an IT director, he is always saying his job is 'fighting ignorance, but some times you just can't fix stupid' He says it's ok, it's job security. That is just something we say here at the house, and many times when we are on 635 here in Dallas.....at rush hour! I don't agree about the portion thing though, after having 85% of my tummy removed....it is forced portion control and one bite too many can result in being in pain. I've never thrown up, but have felt sick a few times. Always after eating out, and we get busy visiting and all of a sudden, the last bite or two just was not good. This is what I needed, forced portion control. I love it, I still have really good restriction and if I'm lucky, if we all are, it will always be like this. Even this far out, I feel like I have the digestive tract of a field mouse!! * fingers and toes are crossed *

I am three years out and never, not for one minute did I regret doing this. I've been thrilled and excited beyond believe since I woke up in recovery. I was self pay and did not have a psyc evaluation. I've loved it all, maybe I SHOULD have had one!!! LOL

It is habit now, but when I am home I don't even have a glass on the table, and some times forget that OTHER people DO drink and fail to put ice in glasses for iced tea. When we are at a restaurant, I try and get two glasses of water with lemon down before the meal is served. I can drink until I start eating, then have to wait 30 minutes afterwards.....so I make the most of ice cold water and lemon. It makes me feel better about the coffee I drink. I know I have more than I should, but I'm hydrated and the color of the toilet water is barely more than clear, so I'm saying "it is all good"

Welcome to the loser's bench, where being a loser is a GOOD thing! Good luck, it's a wild ride and it's fun. Enjoy!!

I wasn't assuming anything about what other doctors say, but I DID assume that common sense would prevent anyone from even thinking about a sip of coke prior to reaching goal. Seriously......if there isn't any more self control than that, I don't know what will happen when they are not at goal and are at an office party with tempting things.....things that you can have, or at least I do.....once goal is reached and we get our footing on what our new normal is, what we can splurge on once in a while that doesn't trigger over doing.....but a few weeks out, six weeks, two months. I'd have kicked my own @ss if I had done it, of course I didn't drink one coke a week....not even one coke a month, EVER!! Junk was not my problem, portions were. I've always preferred a big ol' steak and loaded baked potato. Med rare, just past the mooing stage. Of course, I still have that now, but rather than a 10 oz steak, I have 3.5 oz and 2 TB of potato, not loaded, only about half loaded. LoL

I'm really not struggling. Just being rude again.

I think you are SMART, I did NOTHING that I wasn't suppose to do....other than drink from a straw. After I reached goal, I slowly but surely got to my new normal, but until then, I followed the straight and narrow. My nurse said I was "rigid" and she followed that up with "and it working". I was allowed sugar free jello from the start, and he was pretty strict. Follow YOUR doctor's plan though and keep in mind, always err on the side of caution, you can't go wrong!

Heah - (inquisitive tone) Spell check wants Heath, head or hear.

The state department? Oh wow, this is deep!!!

Please, I am having fun. I find no need to "defend" just responding. Don't confuse the two. Born and raised. Don't you just feel blessed? I can't imagine being from somewhere like....I don't know, Wisconsin. Not a happy group for the most part.

I'm giggling....but don't count on it. I seldom eat words and never back pedal. You're reading things into my words, but that's ok, I'm not easily offended. I'm normally the offender, and I know that's shocking.

No, being a Native Texan, that was not a requirement, he could use y'all properly and had a TX accent. We had something in common, I was a displaced Texan living in WI and he'd attended medical school up there....he wasn't a big fan either. Instant bond!! LOL On a side note, my new 'regular' doctor was also a 'Top Doc' in D Magazine, says right there in his bio, 'Fourth generation Texan' That just made me giggle.