Hi, I'm Tammy. I have been "husky", "big-boned", or fat all of my life. While growing up I kept hearing, "Your mom was 96 pounds on her wedding day" yet she became severely obese after her divorce from my dad. And all of my bad eating habits I learned from her.

I have a teenage daughter and I monitor her chats, e-mails, Facebook and MySpace page. Last fall she was chatting with a friend and they were shooting song lyrics back and forth. Her friend sent her a Veggie Tales song, "Everbody's got a water buffalo. Yours is fast but mine is slow." And my daughter's response was, "My mom's a water buffalo." Her friend laughed and asked, "Really?". And my daughter said, "Yeah, she's fat enough to be one."

Now I know my 14 year old did not mean intend to be hurtful towards me. However, those words really stung. And they were an eye opening moment to the hazardous lifestyle I was living. I had hypertension for the past 3 years, but nothing else was medical wrong with me. I was just fat. So I immediately started looking for a weight loss seminar. We went to Mobile and the whole experience was a disaster and I left feeling like a worthless fat woman who couldn't afford to get the help I needed. So I gave up temporarily.

I found this website and started reading the postings. They were inspiring, enlightening, and hopeful. This spring I found out about Dr. Avara in Ocean Springs and started e-mailing people who used him. I even attended a Support Group Meeting at Pine Grove. This past May I went on our annual Honduras mission trip, but this year neither my husband nor my daughter could go with me. So I went alone. I didn't have anybody to help me with my weight issues. I had to carry around a wooden chair with me all week because it was the only one that would hold me. And my eyes were opened to how much I had relied on my immediate family to help me with my obesity problems. And I came back from Honduras this year determined not to be anybody's burden. So I e-mailed Dr. Avara's office about insurance and self-pay issues.

My insurance will pay for gastric bypass but not Lap Band. So I looked at our budget and realized that my car is paid off. So if I took out a loan, it would be like making a car note. And we could do that. So I called the finance company that Dr. Avara's office mentioned and was approved. And the snowball just rolled downhill and gained momentum from there. Within a month I had a surgery date. I am now 3 and a half weeks post-op and just can't figure out why I didn't do this sooner. As wives and mothers we always take care of our family and for some reason we only allow ourselves to enjoy the tablescraps. Well - this was my birthday gift to myself and I have not felt any guilt, at any time. My husband and my daughter are both very supportive as are all of my friends. And I love posting on my blog and just telling my friends to go read it. That way I don't have to send out 100 e-mails every time something happens. LOL!

I am very cautious about my meals, because I don't want to ruin my surgery. I won't have my first fill for a couple of more weeks, but that's ok. I still have made a couple of mistakes and knew it immediately. My greatest problem is just sitting down to eat and staying focused on the meal in front of me. Not worrying about work, or anything else. I get distracted easily and foget to monitor my speed of eating and the size of my bites. But at least I am aware that is my problem. So I can work on it.

I've lost 10 pound pre-op, but should have lost more.
I've lost another 10 pounds since surgery
I've dropped 1 size, and maybe even 2 sizes.
I am off my Lasix (water pill) and my blood pressure medication that I have been on for 3 years.
I stopped using my CPAP machine last week.

And I know that God deserves all of the honor and praise for all of those achievements. Because everytime I tried to lose weight without his help, it just didn't work.

That's me in a nutshell. 

Thanks for listening,
Tammy

You are doing well on your liquid diet!  Congrats....I was thinking, since we have our surgery on the same day, wanna race? LOL....just kidding. 

Hey everyone. I just updated my  blog on my profile. Check it out if you'd like.

My name is Anita.  I am going to have RNY on September 16, 2008 at UAB.  My doctor is Ronald Clements.  I have been working toward my surgery since March of this year.  I am told that the time from my first visit in May until my surgery in September has been a short one compared to many.  I smoked cigarettes and quit on May 22, 2008.  I can not for the life of me figure out why I smoked for 30 years....those things are nasty and smell nasty!!!!  I have been overweight all my life....fat for most of my adult life.  I have 7 grand(est)children whom I love and adore.  One day after attempting to play badmitton with them in the back yard I knew that if I didn't lose weight I was literally going to die.  I was too fat to play, and my quality of life was nill.  I decided right then and there that I didn't want to die, that I wanted to play with my babies as long as I could, I wanted to be able to walk to the football stadium from a mile away to go to the games, I want to be more active, I just wanted to live!  

Like most everybody, I have yo-yo dieted my way into morbid obesity, with co-morbidies of sleep apnea, IBS, diverticulitis, diabetes...you name it, I've got it and I'm miserable.  I am praying this new tool will help me to lose this weight and keep it off.  In preparation for my surgery I have quit smoking, I have an exercise regimen, take vitamins and calcium citrate and I swim a lot.  In fact, I've taught my 4 year old grandson to swim this summer.  I have tried to eat right, but failed miserably at that in this interim and am praying that won't effect my surgery date. 

I am committed to this surgery and my tool as if I'm getting married again.  I so want to do things right.  I so want to eat and play like everyone else.  I do want to eat to live as opposed of living to eat. 

I found this board in doing my research....isn't that the way most of us found it?  There is a wealth of information here!  From what I can tell, the pros can help us at every turn....real people who have been there and done that.  I love it!  More than loving it, I appreciate it....always an ear with someone who shares our struggles to hear us....gotta love it!

My advise: if you are planning on having your adjustments in the states and not in Mexico, make sure you contact a program prior to your surgery.  Many programs in the states do not follow patients that have procedures out of the country.