Vacay Update!

I'm still mid-vacation...lucky me!

We were at the beach house last week and it was beautiful! No tar, no oil, no smell...it was fabulous! I'll share pics when I get back to NJ. I even went to a water park!

We came back to ATL yesterday and I went to my original surgeon's office. I spoke to the Nurse Practitioner and we talked about the problems I've had. She agreed that some fluid had to come out. So, she took out 2cc and that now leaves me at 3.9cc. Sooo, I'm pretty loose, but I think this is what my body needs to heal, especially from the reflux.

I'm at a new low, 192.8 (I left the ticker at 193 b/c I round up) so I finally passed that 70lb mark! 40lb more to go to my ULTIMATE goal. :)

I'll post more when I get back to NJ!

Decisions About the Future of My Band

I had my follow up with the NP at my new doctor's office. We got through all the formalities and she asked "How are you doing?" My answer? "Not so great." I went through the laundry list of issues from last post plus some (having difficulty drinking water, GERD, barely eating mushy food, constantly feeling my band, losing hair etc.) and I'm only at 5.9cc after having up to 6.2cc. I asked her "is it supposed to be this hard? should i be suffering with my band so much?" She said no, absolutely not.

I'll skip giving you the play by play of our conversation, but basically I told her what I was planning and she agreed. I'm leaving to go to our beach house in Panama City Beach on Friday (helloooo 19 hour drive) and after spending a week there, I'm staying in Atlanta for a week. The Monday of the week I'll be home I have an appt. scheduled at my original doctor's office. I'm getting at least 1cc taken out...maybe even 2cc. I just need my band / stomach / esophagus to get better. I'll be back in August and will possibly get some of the fluid added back, but prob. not all.

I'm preparing for a more difficult weight loss. I know it will be harder with a looser band, but I can't take eating like this anymore. I want vegetables, I want rotisserie chicken, I want lean ground hamburger. And, actually, the weight loss might be easier with a looser band. I'll have more energy, feel like working out, and feel like eating healthier / better quality foods than the slider foods I've been eating. I'm tired of being dehydrated. I'm tired of constantly thinking if a certain food will go down. I'm tired of being constantly worried of throwing up.

Ready to get this healing process show on the road.

New NSV!

Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday I have fitness class. Last night my trainer came up to me and said, "You look different!" and I said, "How do you mean?" He said, "You look like you've lost a bunch...have you?" and I only saw him last Wednesday. I said "YES! I have!"

It made me so excited!

One of my coworkers also commented on how much thinner I look and I see the guy every day...maybe I was having a skinny day yesterday ;)

Either way, I'll take it!

Hydrated & Ready to Rock!

So, I'm fully rehydrated since my issue last week. I gained back 3lb, but the dr. said he thought the scale would move up since I had so little fluid in me.

I made some turkey chili over the weekend and I think it would be wonderful, but I put too many crushed red pepper flakes in it! Spi-cy!

I have also found the most delicious mashed potatoes you can buy. Side note: I still have to eat very mushy foods at lunch. Popeye's Chicken! The gravy has bits of meat in it and it has a little kick to it. I highly recommend.

Did anyone catch the "Overweight in America" show that aired on CNBC last Monday? I thought it was excellent! It's a great look at the disease and what we need to do to reverse it.

So, I've had a delayed celebration of making it to Onederland. I didn't want to celebrate when it first showed on my scale bc I didn't know if it was real or not. Well, it's real. I've hit it and I'm so happy. It's amazing how one little number can really work you over psychologically. I love seeing that "1". I still have around 45lb. to go to my ULTIMATE goal and 35lb. to my original goal.

I changed my goal recently b/c I noticed that at under 200 I couldn't see myself the way I'd like to be at 165. I felt like at 155 I would be happier AND it's well into my "normal" range for BMI. 165 was at the very high end. I don't want to be close to being overweight anymore!

NSV!! Clothes for the Sisterhood???

Great news! I'm officially a size 14!

I'd noticed a few pair of my work pants were getting big, but I've been so "out of it" since Friday that I didn't pay too much attention.

This a.m. I got dressed and felt like I was wearing MC Hammer pants! Soooo, I tried on a couple other pair...HAMMER PANTS! So I went shopping in my closet (b/c you know I keep smaller sizes from my skinnier days) and voila! The 14s fit!

So long, 16s!

Anyone interested in Ann Taylor slacks or an Ann Taylor suit? Size 16. Let me know if interested and I'll take some pictures!

Fills: A Catch 22

Fills are wonderful things, yet nightmares for me.

I'm one of those people who is extra sensitive to fills. Instead of being on 24 or 48 hrs of liquids post-fill, I'm on liquids for about a full week. Then, I sloooowly start adding in mushies. It's like going through the surgery all over again. It stinks because around day 3 I just want something solid in my tummy, but it's wonderful b/c this is the stage where I lose a ton of weight.

For example: it's been around 48 hours since my fill and I have already dropped 4.5 lb. I'm now no longer considered obese! I'm just 2.5 lb away from Onederland, as well! One might think that I'll gain some of this weight back when I start eating mushies & solids, but that's not so, my friends! It hasn't happened yet and I'm not about to start.

Tonight I'm going out with some girls and we're going to learn how to do the Hustle (Queue the music...). Fun times!

eeeeexcellent.

I am now 12lb away from ONEDERLAND and am 10lb away from no longer being obese! Also, 12lb away from my May 31st goal!

I got an unfill last Friday and they took out what was put in back in ATL (.2cc). The effing thing cost me $650 which is ridiculous, but at least I can eat now and I'm still losing weight.

Today is my birthday, as well, so this is all good news and a wonderful present to myself! I haven't weighed this for 2.5 - 3 years, I think.

Yay!

Update!

I've been so busy! The move to NJ is happening next week. Last weekend I went up and found a place to live. I'm going to be paying more for my apartment up there, which is barely over 700 sq. feet than I pay for my townhouse in ATL which is close to 1500 sq ft! Insane.

So I'm pretty stressed about all this. Just trying to get all my stuff ready for the movers to pack is enough to make me want to vomit.

On the weight loss front, I'm down to 222! I haven't been this low in, I'd say, 2.5 years! However, there isn't really a drastic change in my clothes. I've gone down a size, solidly, but I would think that losing over 40lb would be 2 sizes! Not so, my friends. I'm in 16W right now. 16s are a little snug (muffin top!). So, now I just have to wash my jeans each time after I wear them b/c they stretch out and I'm constantly pulling them up by the end of the day.

I'm scheduled for another fill on Thursday (the day the movers load the truck). I don't think they are going to give me a fill, though, because I've lost 8lb in a week and a half.

Weight Loss & Fill

I returned from helping my family w/ my Gramma's death on Thursday. My cousin drove me back and my parents stayed until Saturday. It's sooooo hard to be on a road trip with someone who doesn't know about your Lap Band. Normally, the drive is about 8 hours, but my cousin has a 3 year old, so it was closer to 10 for us. Therefore, we had to get fast food. I've noticed the most band-friendly fast food for me is either Taco Bell or Chickfila. I don't eat it often, but when I have to, those are the places I go. So, I was really hoping for Chickfila, but no dice. Not even a Taco Bell where we pulled off. So I ate Sonic and when I say ate, I mean I grazed. It wasn't going down well, but I was okay with that. It worked.

So, I was really afraid that I would gain weight over the week because a. my Gramma ate HORRIBLY (one of the reasons she passed) and b. what was in the house was rotten so we had to rely on what people brought over (which wasn't much, btw). So, we ate out or ate what people brought over and I was dreading getting on the scale when I got back.

However, I was pleasantly surprised! Not only did I NOT gain weight, but I LOST. I lost 3lb. I've now met another goal and have now lost a total of 34lb in under 3 mo. I'm at 230!

I'm getting a fill this morning and I'm a little concerned they will be conservative with this one since I've lost so much. My argument is going to be that I'm moving and won't have a surgeon there so I need a good fill. I'm hoping for 1.6cc (that will put me at 7 cc total in my 10cc band).

Oh Happy Day!!!

I woke up with a little surprise from the Weight Loss Gods for me on the scale today. I'm at 233! I blasted through my 30lb loss and this makes me feel good.

What does not make me feel good is how I lost it. I cannot describe to you the anxiety I am suffering because of this move. Being in limbo, trying to rent my house out and not give it away, not knowing when the move is going to happen or where I'll live, but knowing it is definitely happening (or so say my bosses and our CFO) has me in a constant state of anxiousness and I hate it. I can't sleep, I am moving constantly (twitching, bobbing my leg, etc.) and just can't calm down. I don't know what I need to do in order to fix this but I'll tell you this: Xanax is not working.

I still follow my Lap Band Rules: protein first, putting the fork down between bites, chewing like a mad woman, etc. I just think that I'm losing this weight extra fast because I can't sit still and I don't sleep.

So, thank you Weight Loss Gods! However, I'd really like to have just one night of restful sleep.

Loosening Up?

I think the inflammation from my last fill is finally about to subside! Today I was able to eat mushies...kind of. At least I was able to eat teeny amounts, which I'm okay with! As long as it's fairly solid and satisfies me.

So far, I've lost 5lb since the fill. That's just b/c I've been on liquids, but I'm determined to maintain this loss until my next fill!

So, now my grand total loss since 11/13 (when I started pre-op) is 28lbs. Not too shabby.

2nd Fill

Today was my 2nd fill...HOLLA!!!! I needed it desperately. I was eating lots of junk and it would all just slide through my band. Not a good thing, my friends. Although, I have lost 3lb since my last fill. So at least it's moving in the correct direction.

So, my first fill was 3cc. Today I got 2.4cc. This equals a total of 5.4cc in my band. My next appointment is in 3 weeks. They are rushing it just a bit b/c I'm moving and they want to get me in for another fill before I get the heck out of Dodge. What good peeps.

But, seriously, I'm so sad about missing out on my free year of aftercare. I looked in to some places up there and IT IS RIDICULOUS! $300 just to get in and then another $300 for each fill. No ma'am. No ma'am. My company is going to fly me home once a quarter so I'll just have to come home a day early and get a fill at my current surgeon's office.

Anyway, I was able to drink a delicious and thin protein shake this morning.

3 more days!

I'm getting so gosh darn excited. Surprisingly, I'm not nervous at all. Ask me again on Thursday evening, though.

Update on the pre-op diet: I hate it. Protein officially sucks unless it's in shake form. I received 5 samples from Chike nutrition and they are delicious! Otherwise, I hate meals. I basically eat to feel full, definitely not for taste.

I still really need to get my room in order. I don't want to have a lot to do when I get back from recouping at the beach. I need to finish my laundry, change my sheets, and clean / vacuum.

Last night I got my pain meds from the pharmacy. Is it bad when the people at Target Pharmacy know you by name? I think so. I'm hoping that changes over the next few months. I'm hoping that my prescriptions will be greatly reduced due to my weight loss.

Getting Nervous

The countdown has begun...I can't believe it! I'm less than a month away from being banded (hopefully)!!!! My surgery date is November 20th. However, I'm also nervous.

I'm not nervous about the procedure or the change in lifestyle. I'm nervous that it won't happen at all. I worry that they won't be happy with my blood test results and I worry about the financing going through. Now, I can't do much about the blood test results. Que sera sera, but I have been trying to positively influence the outcome of what CareCredit will say. By the time I apply for credit (yes, I'm waiting until the last possible moment), I will have paid off two credit cards. They were never high dollar cards, but boy were they high interest! I'll only have one credit card left and it is a doozie. High debt to equity. That's the one I'm concerned about. However, I pay chunks on it each month so we'll see.

Please keep your fingers crossed for me! I wish a thousand dollars would just fall into my lap so I can pay a large chunk of that cc off. Unlikely, but I'll keep wishing!!!! :)

Also, went to my general dr today and noticed that I lost 4lb! Granted, I've gained weight since I posted my weight on here, but still. It just shows that in the last month I've been moving in the right direction.