I'm trying to lose 10 percent of my body weight for surgery (it's a surgery "requirement" meaning i've heard he'll do the surgery anyway if you don't quite make it, but he will inform you that you're at higher risk for open incision.) I want to do it so badly because I don't want to make it seem like I can't stick to a plan.

I got a new scale that says it accurately weighs up to 400lbs, I  weigh myself in the morning and two days ago and I was down to 399 while I was 410 on tuesday the 10th at my consultation. Then I realized, huh...I weigh more over the course of the day sometimes 5lbs more over the FULL day (when I weigh again at night before bed). Which I found out thanks to Dr. Google that is pretty much the norm.

I also remember from my stints in various gyms and with various personal trainers that they recommend weighing in the morning as it is your "real weight."

So, I ask, when do you weigh? What do you take to be your "real weight"?

Waking up at 3:00am and having to STAY UP even though my day was going to start at 7:30 meaning I'd need to be on the road by 6:30 and would be at the hospital all day sucked(baby was wide awake and ready to play!)

Sitting in the lobby while the Starbucks or whatever it was at the outpatient center cooked brownies, or cookies, or muffins while I was not allowed to eat or drink anything until allll my testing was done (at around 2:00) sucked.

Not being able to pee to complete the labs because you have had nothing to drink not even water (in preperation for your upper GI) oddly embarassing and also sucked.

Having the first thing I'd eaten since 9pm the last night be a cup of alkaseltzer and two cups of barium liquid SUCKED (hah at least I got to nod off in the dressing room between my abdominal ultrasound and the Xrays and upper GI).

That turkey sandwich I bought at same Starbucks place in the lobby at two after I had not had ANYTHING to eat all  day.

WAS. SO. AWESOME.

It was the best turkey sandwich I had ever eaten.


*after I ate and drank like two whole gallons of water, let it be known I returned to the lab with my urinalysis :-D

I am not fond of them. While I doubt artificial sweetners are the root of all illnesses of mankind (there's no pancea so I figure splenda doesn't cause all the things some of the health nuts say it does), I just am kind of meeeeh about using them. For starters they taste like chemicals to me not like sweet. And I'd just rather know what is in my food. I mean if it's sugar, well that's not the best for me but at least it's SUGAR, you know and not some chemically sliced off PART of sugar that "still tastes just like sugar."

That being said, I do use Stevia from time to time in things but ultimately I attempt to limit my intake of sugar. A lot of the problems I imagine are also from the fact that you shouldn't be eating A TON of artificial sugars. You can't just eat a billion things that you'd normally have sugar in but just toss in splenda as if cookies and brownies and soda are now "health foods".

Sure the commercials about high fructose corn syrup are probably right, that it's just fine in moderation, but that crap is freaking everywhere...it's even in most white breads these days, I mean what the hell.

Ultimately this is probably going to be the largest stumbling block in my road to weight loss with the DS is that I refuse to use artificial sweetners as substitutes for sugar in things like baked goods and try always to go with store bought items that have sugar in them as opposed to HFCS or aspartame or splenda. I'll just have to work harder NOT to eat AS MUCH.

This is a really interesting piece on sugar:
http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/2008/07/traffic-tickets-for-sugar-does-healthy.html

I'm really fond of the junkfood science blog as she tends to unpack scientific studies and data results as opposed to how they end up presented on your local and network news.

Imagine removing the dressings for the last time as weight loss!

Silver lining and all that.

But seriously. Ouch. I hope you recover quickly.

Lower Cholesterol, less chance of heart attack, totally just bonuses to one sexy hot bra, Tali.

So while in my head and in my heart I know I have all the right reasons to want weight loss surgery. I want to be here long term for my girls, I want to be ACTIVE for that time I'm here, I want to be healthy and do things I've never done before (ride a fair ride with my kids) but...

Lately the only stupid thing that keeps falling out of my mouth when people talk to me about surgery is "AND I'LL GET TO WEAR *****IN' HIGH HEELS!" heh.

Which let's be honest is pretty superficial. In fact I have lots of superficial reasons, mostly revolving around clothing and looking "hot".  Heck, I even have a few superficial reasons for choosing DS over RNY which is the being able to eat AND drink at the same time. Out of all the good reasons that's the thing I say the most "AND I can eat and drink at the same time during meals OMG!"

So what are your superficial reasons?

Anyone who's had a lap procedure (just saying in general) might want to give it at least a year before deciding their scars are too horrible that they need to get mederma.

I remember being very dissatisfied after my gallbladder removal with the way my scars looked they were red and purple and sort of raised for what seemed like forever. But at my consult for DS (4 years later) my surgeon had a difficult time identifying them (especially the smaller ones).

Yeah we have one and I'm 70lbs too heavy to use it! (the weight limit on it is 330lbs which I mean is annoying but bathroom scales are difficult to find that go over 350 ya know. I think it might also have to do with "accuracy" of measurement).

It's okay I still 2 person run with my kids. It's really helped my older daughter with balance and coordination. She's five and on her last report card she got highest scores in everything EXCEPT "performs Physical Education Activities with skill" She got a three, which is average and all, but I think they were trying to tell us she has little grace XD

I had also heard that it's measurements for kids were sometimes off (compared to like pediatrician measurement and categorization) claiming little kids were obese or even morbidly obese when they clearly were not, so I was VERY HAPPY when both of my girls (5 and 3) showed up on screen as being "Healthy Weight" because I really REALLY didn't want to have a depressing conversation with a five year old about how the Wii Fit was wrong and her Doctor says she's perfectly fine (especially since she's really petite).

Either way, it's lots of fun and I can't wait to do all the activities on it with my family

Yay, that's exciting!

We know a friend of hers, he's my husband's business partner. They were both addicts together and both got clean together and have been for some time. She helped him with all his dental work.

She decided to donate to medical services basically from having been an addict and knowing that after YEARS of addiction people tend to not have access to health insurance but lots of health problems.

She said on the phone that she's only paid for one other surgery (Gastric bypass) like this before and she's really excited for me. :)

I have my consultation tomorrow. I'm trying to not to get my hopes up that it'll be quick moving but from what I've heard if you are self-pay you could have surgery in a matter of 4 to 6 weeks, I am certainly hoping that is the case.

I'm raring to go!

People can be way, way smaller on the top than they are on the bottom (or vice versa).

I wear a size 30/32 on bottom if my weight goes up I'm easily in a 34. I can't buy jeans anywhere but Avenue or Catherine's in brick and mortar stores. But I can very easily wear a 26 on top I own a great variety of well fitting tops from Target's plus section even though their heighest sized jeans would not pull up past my knees.