January Chat/New Jersey Style

[luv2blab 0]

Nice to meet you. My name is Marcy. I live in North Hanover-Burlington County-NJ. I am 34.

I am married and have 2 kids. I work full-time in the mental health field.

I started the lap band process August 1, 2006.

I am 5'10, 287, 46ddd, size 26 pants and 30 shirts. I carry most of my

weight in my boobs, belly, and thighs. I have always been fluffy

but a sexy plump not obsese until after I had my first child. I used

diet pills, sports, and calorie counting during highschool and up until I got

married. After both kids the weight wouldn't budge just kept climbing.

I tried nutra system,weight watchers, counseling, Curves, and an array

of other short term trials. I am getting older now and I'm worried

about getting diabetes, having a stroke, etc. I don't enjoy buying

clothes anymore like I used to. I don't like being out of breath,

having sleep apnea, sciattica, heel spurs, PCOS, etc etc. I am

very nervous about feeling so hungry after this but I am trying to

look forward to the end result.

[Anwyn 0]

My goodness Kat! Your brother has been through so much. My oldest brother is turning 40 this year. He was paralized 13 years ago in a diving accident (by diving I mean jumping headfirst from a bridge into a cement retaining pond because he was too drunk to notice it was only 16 inches deep). My mom has a hard time with feeling sorry for him, and of course we all do when we get together with our spouses and children and he's still alone. But, he's got his mind and he's only paralyzed from the waist down so it could have been so much worse. Life sure can throw us curveballs, eh?

Your brother is very lucky to have you. Hope he has a great birthday! :huggie:

[Anwyn 0]

Hi Luv! We must have been posting at the same time. Welcome to our chat! What is your surgery date? I started at a similar weight and I will turn 34 this May. Personally, I haven't been nearly as hungry since my operation. I think you'll find that you will still battle cravings and WANT to eat mentally, but actual hunger is satisfied with just a few bites. Good luck to you! :huggie:

[NJChick 3]

Just a quickie.... Here's our Lovely Beanie and I today during lunch :huggie:

[NJChick 3]

Sorry for the massive picture HAAAAAAAAAAA !!!!!!!

[NewBeginnings2018 81]

Wow Kat, what a beautiful post. Sometimes we do take the little things for granted. We need to stop more and be thankful for the things we do have, because you just never know what tomorrow may bring. Your brother is a true survivor!

Eileen and Beanie - love the pic! You two are so cute!!

[nightingale2u 42]

Kat... I sure can understand a wee bit... my brother was in a motorcycle accident 1 day after my father was buried and ended up with a head injury that changed his personality forever. He was a big sweet Teddy Bear before his accident and a hot-tempered...slightly crude... fella with a sprinkling of teddy bear left. He does have his own business and did marry so he is definitely a functioning adult but I grieved for a long time over the loss of my sweet big brother that didn't think grabbing my boobs was funny. He also lacks the capability to really care deeply for those around him now... head injuries suck. Bless your hubby for caring about your brother... it must also be so hard for you with your memories of how he was before having a head injury. Anne... wow... that is a tough one in regards to your brother as well... lots of people get drunk and do stupid things but most are just LUCKY that they don't hurt themselves or somebody else. I imagine he looks back with a lot of regrets.

Eileenie and Beanie... Lookin beautiful ladies!

Hiya Marcy... I for one think it is going to be very handy having an expert in the mental health field in our little group. :rose: Seriously though... you will find lots of support here on your journey to Bandland... looking forward to getting to know you better!

Sherry... Thanks for the heads up on the soup... I have it on the menu for this weekend!

Well... 2 more miles on my total... and Cindy... girl... get that MP3 player out because that can really get your groove thang a moving! I was just a bebopping on that treadmill tonight with Madonna... Foreigner... NSYNC... Aerosmith...etc... it was much better with music!

Kudos to everyone for cutting loose with the exercise... endorphines are your friend. :huggie:

[SherryW 4]

Wow....life really does through you the reality check sometimes. Terrible what has happened to your brothers Kat and Darcy but, thank you for sharing your stories and lives with us. Truly we should all feel blessed for all that we have...health, family, friends, homes, etc. Thank you again for keeping me grounded and thankful.

I'm glad you spotted the changes in the recipe Darcy before you made it. At least now you'll have the right amounts :huggie: Most of the time when I make Soups I alter the recipes a bit here and there. This one didn't need it.

I'm pooped tonight folks....not sleepin good lately I guess or I'm thinking too much while I'm sleepin lol. Don't really know. Tomorrow we're entertaining my account at work so its going to be a long day. Gotta take them for dinner and drinks after work. Fun but it's a long drive home that late at night to go back the next day lol. Anywho....I'm gonna poke around a bit then hit the sack.

Love you folks...and I wish you happy Hump Day tomorrow heh heh *wink*

[ReneBean 3]

Well, today was a fabulous day...

I got to lunch with Eileenie - it was only at the cafeteria in my building - but the company was incredible. The time just flies when we get together and gab.

Then tonight my co-workers and I made the Charthouse run. Mmmmmm. Those people know how to cook Ahi Tuna... They just sear the outside and leave the inside rare. It's like eating a fine steak - without the cholesterol! :]

I also had the Avacado, Mango & Crab stack appetizer. It's good - but better in the summer when the avacados are creamier and the mangos are sweeter. The view was stunning, same as always.

Tomorrow, we are off and we are trying to sneak onto an earlier flight so we can trim a few hours off our day. Then, I get a glorious four day weekend with my most beloved.

Mandy - I did it, too. I ordered my Bracelet. Thanks for the Link.

Betty - we had a great time! One of these days I am going to have to stay the weekend in NJ so we can get together and REALLY gab. :]

Darcy - If I can EVER stop connecting the Travel concept with the Eating With Abandon concept, I will be a very happy camper. When you don't slave away at the dieting thing, a few days of eating with abandon can blow out the progress of the whole month! I can say that I have only indulged in one dessert since I have been here - but there is always the obligatory Cinnabon at the airport... *sigh* Oh! Maybe I won't do that - we are leaving from LaGuardia - and I only get grabbed by the Cinnabon's in Newark. *Whew!* That was a close call.

Cindy - Ooo the Mail Girl. Does your hubby have you wear a special costume?!? LOL! I really enjoy my travel adventures. I was pondering that very thought as I gazed upon the skyline of Manhattan while drinking a Metropolitan Martini this evening. :]

Jules - Hi Sugar!! How's the new gig? I was really excited the first time I learned that I would be travelling here and that I was going to be close enough to meet up with Eileenie. It was the coolest! Still is. :]

Eileenie - we are going to have to DO something about that boss of yours. Maybe we'll have to make him an offer he can't refuse... :]

Sherry - Have fun Schmoozing your account. Hope you get LOTS of rest. You need your beauty sleep to think of fabulous things to say all during lunch. :]

Kat - Thanks for the reminder. Having your health and mental faculties is having a lot indeed. Hugs to you and your brother.

Marcy - Hi!! We have all been where you are. Don't let fear of hunger keep you from this surgery. Truly - once I started to get fills, I was never hungry again. And remember - you have suffered hunger and deprivation on every diet you have ever been on. You can handle it for a few more weeks. Hugs & Welcome!

Anne - Hugs to you and your brother, too. Hope you are feeling a little better. Are those antibiotics working for you?

Chris - Thanks! I'm betting you're pretty cute, yourself! Of course, I don't think we have any pictures... (subtle hint there, in case you missed it! LOL)

Well, somehow time has passed quickly and it is way past my bedtime.

I will try to check in from home - but that internet connection is not very reliable... Hugs and Love to All.

Wannabe JG - Peace Out.

[Iluvharleys 15]

Good Morning Y'all!

Kat - Your story is so sad, it also reminds me of my nephew. He was only 16, out riding around with some friends. He was in the backseat of the car and the kid driving hit one of those steel poles at the corner with the long line attaced to it. Anyway, it came through the back window and got him in the neck. It severed his brain stem. He was in the hospital for months, hooked up to so many machines that you couldn't hardly get near the bed. He lost so much weight he was just bones. They finally sent him to a nursing home to die, said they couldn't do any more for him. The nursing home started working with him alot and he came around. He has his own home, but is single, he walks with a limp and he has a real hard time with his memory. He tried working, but the memory just didn't help with it, so he is on disability, but can still drive a car. He will never be the same person again, but he is alive. It seems funny that just in our small group the three of us have similiar family accidents. My heart goes out to both of you, I know how hard it is to go through something like this.

I'll try to get back here tonight, I was looking at the main board and the time got away from me. I'm not even dressed or my hair isn't done and I only have a little time to do it all in.

Have a great day!

[NJChick 3]

Boooooooooooo !

[~Jules~ 0]

Kat, thank you for sharing your brother's story. It truly makes one appreciate what we have. I am glad he is at least doing as well as he is. Your DH sounds like a gem. You are very lucky.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day today.

[mousecrazy 2]

Kat, thank you for blessing us with story of your brother. Darcy, Anne, Betty, the same for your stories. I always consider these stories as blessings, because they are stories of survival and lessons of gratitude for all of us. God bless these men and their families, and grant all of you patience and endurance.

Beanie and Eileen, you gals are beautiful (as always!)...I'm so happy you were able to visit, even for a brief while.

Darcy, I'm working on my closet, so eventually I'll find my mp3...I like the music you are listening to! We have a radio station that plays a mix like that, so I listen to that pretty often. I love music! I'm getting a few miles in every day, so they are adding up!

Sherry, get your rest. Everything goes better when you are rested, even eating right!

Marcy (Luv), you are a little taller than me, but your weight and sizes are very similar to my starting weight/sizes. It's not an overnight thing, but slowly but surely, the weight is coming off, and I don't have the hunger problem I used to have. I don't have the cravings I used to have. I think it is a partnership between my work and the band's work. Good luck to you in your new partnership...I bet you will have great success! You have certainly found what, in my opinion, is THA BEST group on LBT, right here in the Jersey thread! (pssssst....some of us don't live in NJ)

Jules, how's the bike butt? The new job? I'm looking forward to seeing you next week!

Mary, I see you are reading this thread now, so I will miss your post for now, but good morning, and hope you are having a good day so far!

Kat, good luck with all the party plans. You are an authentic angel!

Love you girls, and be back later!

Cindy

[Kat817 19]

Morning all--

First, I want to thank all of you for understanding my need to get all that out. To talk to my family about my brother is hard, they have the same sorrows I do over it, and I hate making them even sadder---y'all are the BEST!!! I agree, it is very strange that just among us, 3 with very similar injuries---and here at least for now, he is so alone. Not that I would wish this on someone else just to have him company---that sounded bad!

Luv2blab---WELCOME!!! You have found the best, most supportive bunch on this entire site here! You and I started at about the same place (except age---you will be so glad you did it younger!!!). I am 46, 5'9", and beginning weight was 289. Within the next few weeks...months...soon I will hopefully drop below 200. I have been banded almost 9 months. I like Beannie said, made it through the original hunger issues, just like you do with any type of diet, which like you pointed out, you have done!! Then once the fill process began, I have never felt hungry again. It is such an empowering thing!! You can choose what to eat instead of being assaulted by the frantic "gotta have food, and gotta have it NOW!" feeling. It was not a decision I made lightly to be banded, but I am oh so glad I did it, I cannot tell you!!! We will be here, and we will try to help you through the bandster hell of having an empty band. But when the weight starts dropping, you find within yourself a drive to keep it up...you CAN do this!!! I mean, I know we are ALL remarkable women, amazing in every way----but hey if we can all do it---so can you!!

I am going to lunch with a friend today who wants to have the surgery but finances are in her way---sometimes she wants to brainstorm it, others, she doesn't. So will let her set the tone.

I am going to shower while the little one sleeps, will get back to do my personals while my hair (what there is left.... dries.

Kat

[rosalie908@eart 0]

Hi, My surgery is 2/5/07 and I'm a little nervous, not about the procedure but about the aftermath. Can't get it in my head that I'll be thin again and the though to exercising is very distubing. Any advise?