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Emotional eating is one of the biggest causes of overeating, weight gain, and weight re-gain. April is Emotional Overeating Awareness month and to commemorate this, I'm offering a free teleclass to answer your questions about how to take control of emotional eating and struggles with food, weight and healthy lifestyle. The teleseminar will take place on Wednesday, April 22, 2009 at noon Pacific and 3pm Eastern. Creating change isn’t automatic and it isn’t always easy. However, it DOESN’T need to be a struggle. Join me for this free teleseminar where I'll answer your questions about how to end emotional eating battles and make peace with food—once and for all. Just go here to register and submit your question.

Alot of wonderful advice and great success stories here to help you. We've all been where you are at right now. You have to decide if you're ready to make the changes with yes...another different kind of tool for weight loss. No matter how we decided to lose the weight, we always use a tool of some kind....but bottom line, if you're not ready to make these changes, then you will fail! I'm almost 1yr post-op and yes you can lose at first while eating junk/fast food. But eventually, with the band, it will catch up and cause weight gain. You're doing great research and have the right questions...now...are you ready to ACCEPT the changes and challenges? Are your current weight and feelings worth it? Here's my honesty. I was DETERMINED to make it work when I decided to have the band placed. Yes I was concerned of failing and gaining it back (still am), but, I NEVER once complained about what all it will take to make it happen. And doubting yourself does not help. I'm not "bashing" you personally. I just hear from others "whine, whine, whine because of not weight loss here..." so I don't want you to get into that frame of mind at the start. Find the peace you need before if you do get the band. You need that peace to go to when things get tough/challenging! I wish you best and like I told my neighbor the other day, MAKE this happen...don't waste time pondering or you'll never get there!

Want, that is fantastic news! I’m so glad that you are still feeling restriction! It sounds like it just might have been the tech missing your port last time, or maybe when he unfilled to check how much was in there he did forget to put it all back in. Strange as it may seem!! You might want to, just for right now stick with liquids for maybe a day or so until your swelling goes down. It sounds like you had a pretty bad episode with the jerky. I’ve never had problems with jerky TG because I just love it! I can get by with just an oz of it and be good for a quick fix until dinner, or I will drink a slim fast first, and then top it off with that. It seems to be carrying me all the way until dinner time! That is so wonderful, and I’m enjoying this very much. Congrats also on your fullness!! That is so awsome and I do hope it helps to get your scale to co-operate!! :rolleyes2: JR, hello! Thanks for joining us. J Regarding the Slim Shots, I just pop one open and get it down my throat as quickly as possible. They taste pretty bad! Then I swish some Water through my mouth to get some of that taste out. Right after taking it, I’ll eat a meal (which the box suggests to do) and I seem to fill up pretty fast. Even faster than with just my band! I really like that because I seem to eat more than I should. Of course it is still way less than pre-band; it’s still more than I think my body needs for survival. Since doing this, included with discontinuing my steroidal inhaler and plenty of exercise, I’m starting a downward trend again. I’m pretty wary though this time. It’s familiar territory, and one in which I seem to keep finding myself in. It’s like I’m in some kind of crazy revolving door! Enough already!! I’m going down for good this time. I will be back down to that 227 that I left so long ago now. LOL!! I think I want to see that 227 more than I want to see that darned 199 for goodness sake! Heh, anyway, I’ll let you know when I get there. ;o) The reason I’m telling you all this is because, as you can see I can feel your pain. Yours is a revolving 5 pounds, mine is 10. Ten up and ten down... 145-155 over and over and over…. Blah! Thanks for asking about the interview, very sweet! J Unfortunately I don’t qualify for the position. I still need to take a few more classes to be reachable… It’s pretty sad too because I believe I was the top candidate. I sent my interviewer an email later that day after my interview explaining all the classes I have, vs. how many I should have. She replied and said, it didn’t look very good but she would investigate. Now one thing I know is, a manager won’t “investigate” unless they want to bring you aboard. I know though it won’t happen. There really is no getting around that, unfortunately. As a side note too, I want to reiterate that loving my band has not much do to at all with this thread. I TOO STILL LOVE MY BAND!! It has helped me in so many different ways, like preventing some serious weight gain. True I gained, but in the grandest scheme, it’s tantamount to what I could put on. Trust me, I know. I’ve gained 120 in one year before. Well, it’s been a year since I’ve stopped losing and it could be so much worse than my 30 right now. Pbrown, its really hard to get to the sweet spot. I guage mine by how much I can eat, not by how hungry I get or how fast. I’m pretty tight and I have a darnedest time eating (slow and chewing to hog heaven), yet I still seem to get stuck pretty easily. I just don’t think the band works exactly the same for everyone. I wish I was one of the lucky ones where the band helps to suppress hunger, but I’m not. That is why I have decided to find alternatives to do that for me. IDK, I just have a really hard time ignoring my hunger pains. *sigh* Welcome BTW!!

My dr has always been very supportive until recently. I was banded 06/16/07. Lost 110 lbs. Then in Oct 08 had a fill of .25cc. That evening I had no restriction at all. I called my dr. He said it was my imagination. Went back to dr in Jan 09. Only had 2cc in band He put 5cc in. Jan 09 got 2cc. March 1 cc for a total of 8cc in an 11cc band. Still have no restriction. Had upper GI last week, no slippage everything fine. Sat. had scope. No problems. So in my opinion the problem has to be the port or tube. The dr. says no the problem is in my head. But this is my body and I know how I felt (with restriction) prior to what over happened in October. What is your opinion? Has anyone elst had this problem? What should I do?

Hang in there, I'm right behind you time wise, but you are way ahead of me weight loss wise. So be proud of that fact! I see that you are only in your 30's. Could the weight gain be due to it being that time or near that time of the month? I don't have that excuse any more. :scared2:

Hey Jim I also noticed a lack of men on this board - was not sure if it was a tendency of men to not use the board, or the ratio of men vs women in the banding process. I am right behind you mate - got banded 4/10. Post-op days 3 & 4 were hell for me. Sunday (day3) I found I could not keep any liquids down, so monday 630am i jumped into my car and drove the 2 hours to my doctor, he took 1.2 cc outta the tube ('priming' residue) and I felt immediate relief. so, day 4 was marginally better (managed to keep about a half glass of Water down) and then improved each day since.. I am interested in what you are experiencing, so will follow your discussion. You might also attribute the weight gain to the exercise - assuming you were starting-up. (is that not what they always tell you at Weight Watchers - you are building muscle ?) Anyway, good on ya mate. kevin

Glad to hear your fill went well. So glad that I ran across your blog. I'm scheduled to have my first fill after a 7 month hiatus on Monday, April 20th. Even though I've been filled before, I'm a little scared about my upcoming fill. I suppose my weight gain that the nurse will most definitely address will overshadow my apprehension for the fill. Congrats on your first fill! :scared2:

I can relate, I've lost about 13lbs since Dec. But gained 3 back so now it's 10. And I have never been a sweet eater but I polished off a whole bag of robin eggs(malted milk balls) between sunday and monday. I guess I have that wanting to munch thing going on with the quitting smoking. I took ya'lls advice with the Chantix and it does make it much more bearable. It's more of a want then a need now. And I've never been good at not getting what I want, Spoiled yes but true never the less. I think I need a swift kick in the a** to get back on track, you'ld think that 3lb weight gain would have done it. __________________ Yum.........robin eggs.....I could polish off a bag every Easter, but I didn't eat any this year...........not eating them or PEEPS was a victory for me. Hang in there! You will get through this time. I go for a fill tomorrow. I have restriction, but it seems like when I am three weeks out from having a fill ....I need another one. I hope I reach a sweet spot this time.

I can relate, I've lost about 13lbs since Dec. But gained 3 back so now it's 10. And I have never been a sweet eater but I polished off a whole bag of robin eggs(malted milk balls) between sunday and monday. I guess I have that wanting to munch thing going on with the quitting smoking. I took ya'lls advice with the Chantix and it does make it much more bearable. It's more of a want then a need now. And I've never been good at not getting what I want, Spoiled yes but true never the less. I think I need a swift kick in the a** to get back on track, you'ld think that 3lb weight gain would have done it.

GoyaChula, first of all you need to discuss this with your band surgeon, but the standard is that you need to wait 12-18 months after being banded before you try to get pregnant. You need to let your body heal and get used to your new lifestyle, and that will give you time to lose the majority, if not all, of your excess weight. I am almost positive that your surgeon will tell you that you need to be on hormonal birth control right now. If you have had fertility issues due to weight gain, you will probably become more fertile as you lose weight. Many bandsters have become pregnant without trying, after years of infertility, because they have lost weight. I got married very young (age 18) and have been married for almost 14 years. I have had bouts over the years of really wanting to get pregnant, but we chose to wait, mostly for financial reasons but also to grow together more as a couple. I understand how it feels when it seems like everybody around you is pregnant or has children. Most of my friends have children, including those several years younger than me. I have always been big but also gained weight during the marriage and hit 302 pounds at my highest point. When I turned 30, I felt ready to get pregnant in every way but physically. I knew I wanted to be at a healthier weight when I got pregnant and that is part of why I got banded. A little over a year later I am 14 pounds from my goal weight, feel great and am trying to conceive with the support of my band doc and my OB/GYN. I would suggest that you and your husband focus on getting healthy now and think again about getting pregnant a year from now (or however long your doctor advises to wait). You have plenty of time. That's my opinion.

Having the band put in was the best thing I have ever done for myself. I have the Lapband not the realize. My doc showed me both and the size of the realize scared me. (really small) My doc said for men he prefers the Lapband because we seem to have bigger stoma's. I have lost weight, gained weight so many times I can't remember. So I decided I wanted to stay healthy for the long run and not go back. I can tell you that if I didn't have a band I would have gained some weight back. Sometimes in my mind I forget I even have a band and try to go back to my old eating habits. The band however always reminds me that 'i'm still here'! No matter what I do I can't eat the volumes like I use to. Good luck on making your decision.:wub:

your reintroducing carbs into your day, going from liquid to that sometimes causes weight gain. They call this period of time between surgery day to first fill, bandster hell, so relax and focus on the beginning of your journey. The doc told me not to focus so much on the scale but to focus on making healthy choices and exercising. So good luck and try not to weigh yourself so much, I still have a problem with that. I weigh myself like 10 times a day but remember they say a person's weight can fluctuate 8 lbs a day, thats a lot, so don't worry.

I just feel like they won't give me the surgery cause of the weight gain

Hannah- do not worry about that weight gain. It's all water weight and just one of the joys (NOT) of being a female. I know it's quite frustrating and disappointing to see a gain. But think of how exciting it will be to see a bigger loss in few days. I'm not trying to down play your feelings/concerns but mearly trying to find the silver lining.

I never did reach my goal weight (140). I got close at 165 but am already back up to 190. I'm not sure how my insurance battle will go - I think it's doubtful since they denied me for 3 reasons (band problems not life-threatening, they don't cover VSG which isn't true, and I'm not over 35 BMI any more). I'll try it but I suspect I'll just get more roadblocks. I'm going back for another fill and band check next week and am doing one of those shake/meal programs my friend likes in the meanwhile. Figure I can keep the stresss off my band without going back to full liquids. I asked myself today if the band was working would I even want a VSG and the answer is no. I didn't even have any symptoms of the dilation or slip or whatever it was other than weight gain. I don't like having to chew to goo and can't stand the food stuck incidents. But I can control those by how I eat. One part of me just wants to go forward and make an appointment with Dr. Aceves and just go for the VSG. I'll lose weight just from the switch alone plus a renewed focus afterward. On the other hand I worry that if I could gain so much weight back with a band maybe a sleeve isn't going to work for me either. And my local doc wants to do it in two surgeries which I definitely don't want. I think I'll move forward with fighting the insurance company and trying to get my band working again at the same time. I'm just so depressed about gaining so much weight back. I really thought the band was the answer for me. Thanks everyone for your thoughts and suggestions. Britt

I had my 32 week ob/gyn appointment today. I went from a belly measurement of 28 to 30 centimeters from 2 weeks ago, which although smaller than typical for gestational age she is still growing appropriately. I gained 1.5 pounds in two weeks which is actually pretty decent. My first month without a fill I caught up with all my weight gain expected for the first 5-6 months in a single month. That really scared me to say the least but I am happy I am back on track. Total weight gain so far is 20 pounds from 12 weeks when I had my first ob visit to 32 weeks (not including the 5 pound loss in the first 12 weeks). So net gain is 15 pounds - not too bad considering I have less than 2 months to go. If I gain a pound a week for the next 8 weeks, that is only 23 pounds. Even if I go up to 30, I can live with that and feel like I accomplished something good (gained 67 with my first pregnancy). I should lose most of that before I leave the hospital :0). Anyways, I feel like a dork that I haven't updated my ticker. I just don't have the heart to do it yet. 138 was an unbelievable number for me and beyond my wildest imagination of how low I could really go - 158 just doesn't feel as good, lol. Perhaps I should put a pregnancy disclaimer on there, I looked at your blog and it is just about the same issue, lol. Only real difference being mine is more of a short girls rant instead of tall one. :0) I am just aggravated that I wasted money on stuff I don't/can't/would prefer not to wear. I have a quick question on stretch marks. With my first pregnancy I looked like a roadmap. I went from 126 to 193 in less than a year, and I had them all over my belly, inner thighs, inner arms, breasts. This time I don't have a single stretch mark yet. Has anyone else noticed a lack of stretch marks after losing a lot of weight and getting preggers? I was just wondering if it had to do with already having excess skin to help offset the stretch.

i agree with the other ladies,u should be able to eat some kind of fruit or vegtable and v8 is very nutritious. u may need a small unfill. it can be scary especially when u are afraid to regain weight like alot of us are but sometimes a small unfill may not doom u to weight gain because if you are too tight not it may get worse and cause unneccesary stress when u do conceive and i pray u conceive soon cause trying can also be stressful( i know im trying again after miscarrying at 12 weeks with a d&c). all of it is stressful but the best thing to do is try to relax ,pray and try to manage our weight even during preg with healthy eating. hopefully we all will have very beautiful,healthy babies nine months from now.:smile:

I think you summed it up right there. For me, I don't have a lot of the poor health conditions that come along with being over weight. My blood pressure is 95 over 59, I have a resting heart rate of 58 and a cholesterol of 139. I am healthy as can be. That is of course, until you look at the size of my ass-- it could replace Texas if need be! LOL. My little glitch is my thyroid, and it has reached levels of organ failure and cardiac arrest. The rapid weight gain associated with this prevents me from working out (causing blisters, joint pain, etc) and I am actually one of those weirdos thta LOVES working out. Throw on a recent pregnancy and it has been a recipe for failure. My doctor said that at my highest weight (227.5 at 5'5" and 28 yrs old) I would have a 75% chance of staying the same way or gaining more if I did not have the surgery. I have hypothroidism, and it is virtually a non-functioning thyroid. My endocrinologist has been workign hard at getting my numbers back in line and if all goes well, I should be back to normal in 3 weeks. Woo hoo! That being said, I was sick and tired of having my weight explode every single time my thyroid decided to change. I had the surgery on Thrusday 4/9 in an effort to couterbalance the thyroid issue. Part of it is also my own fault, I eat way too fast. The band helps with that. Most of all, I am a new mom and I have spent way too much time battling my weight. I have my whole life ahead of me and do not plan on wasting a single second. Being at this size and weight is a waste of my time and my life. By having the band, I am able to eat way less than the average person while getting a boost in the weight loss department. Thereby, beign able to work out sooner once I get to a slightly less painful weight for my frame. In this sense, the band is a tool, nothing more. I think you summed it up quite well yourself though--- You've "been miserable for far too long".... Life is short. I for one know I could not do this without the band. Best of luck to you!

Hi Diva, I feel your pain with the need for the Symbicort. I take Advair 250/50 and have for 9 years now. The Drs all try to tell me that it doesn't affect weight but I know it does. I also think that this medication contributed to me having high blood pressure ~ it is listed as a side effect and along with the weight gain (and inability to lose weight), how can you not develop HBP? Because all asthma meds contain some form of an inhaled steroid, we tend to have problems with Water retention (hence weight gain). It's a vicious cycle. If you don't take it, you can't breathe as well and can get very sick...if you do, you have all the nasty side effects to deal with. The steroid is what reduces the inflammation in the lungs that make it hard to breathe. I had slacked off on the Advair and got sick enough I had to go on Prednisone for a week back in Feb. It really slowed things down for me, I didn't gain but I didn't lose for a bit either. Where you taking anything besides the Singulair before the Dr prescribed the Symbicort? I would hate for you to get sick again and have to go on a course of Prednisone to get back on track. If you think the Symbicort is bad.... I know you were teasing with your comment about not taking it unless you are dying, I used to have the same thoughts....until I super sick last year with bronchitis and realized how serious having asthma really is. I didn't realize how many people can and do die from a bad asthma attack and it is so easy to go downhill fast. I was very flippant about carrying my albuterol with me and having trouble knowing when I need to use it. I tend to wait until I am so far gone that the albuterol isn't very effective. Do you use a peak flow meter? I'm trying to get better at using it. I also have most of side effects listed (they are pretty much the same for Advair and Symbicort) but when I quit taking the Advair, I tend to get so sick it doesn't make it worth it. I'm just trying to learn to live with it for now. I am starting allergy shots again today and I am hopeful that if I reduce my allergic reactions that it will in turn help my asthma and maybe I can get off these nasty meds eventually. I enjoy reading your posts and wish you all the best. You are doing great.

Hi all! I am so relieved to read all the posts today. I was banded on the 19th of March, and lost 20lbs very quickly. But, I haven't lost and ounce (and actually have put on 2 lbs) since. I figured that the weight gain was because I am finally on solid foods, and my weight is evening out from so much water weight loss. I also seem to have some swelling over my port sight. I hope I don't have a build up of fluid there, too. That area is a little tender too. Everything else has healed perfectly!

Hello is anyone out there? LOL! I understand it was Easter weekend. I'm sure everyone was out having a good time. Hopefully you were able to stay away from all the chocolate bunnies! :tongue: I am seriously angered right now! I have no clue what on Earth is going on with me! I have been almost perfect for a over a week now and I gained weight!! How is that even possible? I'm starting to suspect it might be the Symbicort inhaler my doctor prescribed me for my asthma. It apparently has cortico steroids in it. I don't have any other ideas... because I have been eating good, and have maintained my exercise routine. I'm even doing more than usual even!! I feel like I'm in a nightmare or something. I even went online and googled "Symbicort weight gain". To my surprise it does seem to be a side effect of this drug. My doctor must have known this when giving it to me. The thing is, all these people mentioned eating alot. I haven't though. I've really been exercising my better judgement and my will power has been above par. I haven't even so much as touched a chip in 9 days now. Why am I gaining weight??? :smile: It gets so frustrating! Anway, back to the Symbicort, apparently it can cause some water retention. I have been drinking massive amounts of water too, so maybe it is that. I have decided to stop taking the Symbicort. I do take Cingulair and for the most part it does help with my Asthma. I just had a rough patch after getting sick this time around and she gave me something more. I cannot deal with Steroids and I'll avoid them at all costs, unless I feel like I'm dying. LOL!! So, hopefully I can remain strong minded and vigilant - and not "give up". I really don't want to, but sometimes it doesn't even seem worth it. Don't worry about me saying that, I know it IS worth it, for my health, my looks, my self-esteem - all that. Ugh... I'll still keep on it. I'm just really feeling down right now. Plus, it seems the Symbicort results in mood swings too. This stuff just isn't for me. On a side note, I have decided to try the Slim Shots, and looks like little coffee creamers. It has helped me with the hunger I get. Maybe Lap-Band + Slim-Shots = Successful-Diva... hehe! I hope! The hunger has been my only issue. However, my choices to curb the hunger have been much better lately. How is everyone else doing out there???

I'm kinda having a similiar experience. I was banded on 2/13/09 - exactly 2 months ago today. I lost 20 lbs the first month (Yay). I felt fabulous. My goal is to lose 3-5 lbs per month. I felt like I was on a roll. I was a little surpised at how much I could eat. There is a model of a stomach with the lap band in my Doc's office and it looks like the stomach is the size of a walnut. I had also been warned that my stomach could accomodate about 6 grapes worth of food. I could easily eat a cup - a cup and a half of food. What I could eat was definitely less than the gobs of food I could eat before but I had this idea in my head that I would take 2 bites of a sandwhich and be about to burst. Au Contraire. I was supposed to get my first fill at 4 weeks out but because of some complications with finding my port we decided to wait 2 more weeks. When I returned 2 weeks later I had GAINED FOUR LBS. I was devastated. My Doc said it was okay - that the band before your first fill is open and attributed the weight gain to this. I received 4 ccs. I felt like a I got full a TAD bit faster but not much. Since then I have become scale obsessed and weigh myself 3-5 times a day (ok - maybe more - basically every time I go by the scale) Week 7 according to my home scale, which can be a little capricious, I lost about 9 lbs. Week 8 I shot back up like 6 lbs and pretty much stayed the same all week. I returned to the doc this past saturday for what I thought would be another fill. I had lost 3 lbs. So basically I was at a total weight loss of 19 lbs (1 lbs less than I was a month ago). The doc asked me how much I could eat, I told him a cup or so, he said that sounds perfect. He said I should be losing about 1-2 lbs a week - no more. I told him that I stay full for 3-4 hours. He said I was doing fine and would not give me a fill. I was so excited about getting a fill because I want to see steady and substantial weight loss - which I feel I'm not getting right now. But my doc insisted I was doing well. I felt a little discouraged yesterday but now I'm feeling okay. I looked through some of the before and after pics on one of the posts and I saw so many people with dramatic weight loss. It was then that I realized that I probably am right on track. One girl lost 100 lbs in nine months. If you break that down that is 10 -12 lbs a month. I've lost 20 in 2 months which would mean 100 lbs in 10 months. To lose 100 lbs in 10 months would be AWESOME. So I'm gonna give it some time and see how it goes.

Okay, I'm shocked and pretty much devastated when I got on my scale this morning and had gained 2 1/2 pounds. I'm moving beyond mushies into soft foods and am eating about 700 to 1000 calories per day, but am having trouble getting down all the liquid while planning arund the food. I had been down to 235.5 from a high of 265 at my sugical consult, but today I a back to 238. I know it seems a small amount in the big picture...but I just went through so much to get to this point in my lap band journey, it just pisses me off to see the scale going in the wrong direction!:cool2: Any words of wisdom from those of you who have been down this road and possibly experienced something similar??

Its GREAT to hear from everyone. It makes me feel a little more 'normal' hearing everyone update where they are and how they feel. I too am having trouble eating too fast or large of mouthfulls. I realize I need to pre-plan my meals better and really focus on what I'm doing. I'm frustrated by my lack of pounds lost. So many of you are really doing awesome in that department! Congrats to you all! I'll be there soon with you! I did some searching online and enjoyed some 'refresher' info from Dr. Connie Stapleton of MindBody.com. on youtube. I'm also going to purchase a book from Judith Beck "THE COMPLETE BECK DIET FOR LIFE : The Lifetime Solution for Permanent Weight Loss" which I think will help me personally with training myself to eat/think like a thin person. I've observed the differences between my 'normal sized' sister and I. I realize that I need to think and act more like her which involves more planning of my meals so that my hunger is no longer the 'emergency' that I normally feel that it is. Beck refers to planning as being important for many things but one that struck a chord with me was that planning helps b/c you can withstand hunger b/c you know exactly when you will eat next and what you will eat. So mentally it becomes more bearable and less of an 'emergency' to eat now! I also am going to try a tip given by Dr. Stapleton which is to create a tip jar. You cut up 50 (or 100 or as many as you want) of small slips of paper. On each you write down things you can do INSTEAD of eating. When you feel the urge to eat outside of your plan, you go get a slip of paper from the tip jar and do whatever it is that you pulled. It can be as simple as 'go pull 5 weeds from the flower bed' - the idea is that it should be a distraction to go do something else. By the time you're done with the distraction - you may be past your moment of weakness and you're re-training yourself to deal with the urge to eat vs. feeding yourself and your emotion/issue/craving with food. The other major difference between my fit sister and I is that she exercises daily. I swear I have it in my mind that beautiful men and women who look fit - just are - without working out everyday. I'm learning that just isn't the case. So if I want to act like a thin/fit person - I have to exercise daily. At the Harvard conference on Obesity, according to Dr. Stapleton, exercising 60 min per day: prevents weight gain. What do you know, that's what she does - about 5x per week. I mean, we all know this right? Its not earth shattering - I've just got to get wtih it!! I'm also going to post this top 9 list for myself fr Dr. Stapleton. I'm sorry for the long post but wanted to share in case it helps any of you: 1. Make consistently healthy food choices. With the band, we're eating less - 60g Protein per day is important to us. So making the consistent choice to eat the right food source to provide 60g of protien is something I'm going to have to do. Protein, then Vitamin rich & antioxidant rich vegetables and fruit! That means - don't eat food from white flour/white sugar. Don't knock myself down if I screw up and eat some chocolate - in fact plan into my eating to enjoy some of those 'forbidden things' just eat really well 90% of the time! 2. Maintain portion control: for me, no more than 1 cup of food, 3x per day. 3. Have to exercise on a daily basis - I'm a busy working mom - so I really don't have the time. That means I'm going to have to steal 60 mins from somewhere else - some other thing I'm doing - I'm going to have to give it up. Maybe that's watching tv, sleeping in, or some other activity that's going to just have to give way to get replaced by exercise b/c I really DON'T have the time to exercise. I just have to figure out what 60 mins I'm going to have to replace with exercise. 4. Drink Water all day long. I won't drink 30min before or 30 min after. And this is the only way I'm going to stay hydrated. 5. Plan your meals. On Sun, I'm going to cook some ckn breats in a crock pot and portion it out for the upcoming week. I'm going to have cottage cheese, Soup, tuna, etc. on hand and planned for the week. -No grazing. (I do this and I know its where extra calories are coming in) -No sliding (I do this too b/c its comforting. I'm leaning toward mashed potatos, refried Beans, all the easy stuff) 6. Keep a food diary. I'm using calorie-count.com, but there is the daily plate, and so many others. I even read about an iphone app someone is using. Writing it down keeps me accountable but more importantly - when my weight is stalling, I have a clear picture of what may be contributing to it- and I'll also have a history to track what breaks my plateaus so I can use the same strategy later when I need it. 7. Keep an Exercise Log. This is going to allow me to give myself rewards for accomplishing what I dislike the most. I may also purchase a pedometer -studies have some shown people who wear pedometers tend to meet their planned steps per day and end up exercising more b/c they have that 'accountability' and tracker right there on their waist. 8. Get adequate sleep. Its good for my brain, my skin, and for my metabolism. 9. Utilize a healthy support system. That's what this forum and you Lucky Losers are to me! What an amazing group of people you all are - and we need to continue to fully support each other when we're down and when we're up! Sorry again for the long post! Keep up the great work everyone!

Little baby Shane Update - He is still in NICU. He has been put back on the feeding tube and the IV restarted. He has gone from 8 lbs 4 oz to 7 lbs 14 oz. They have determined that although he is large because of my sisters gestational diabetes he is actually a premature baby. He does not have a suck reflect yet. If you rub his cheek he does not turn his head looking to suckle. His bilirubin is down which is great news. It was so high they checked him to brain damage. Thank you all again for keeping him in your thoguhts and prayers. He will not be going home until he is feeding and showing weight gain.