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Broke down and had a second fill today. Went from 2.5cc's to 4cc's. Still on liquids. I forgot how hard this is! How did I do 4 weeks of liquids surrounding my surgery?!

My weight has crept up a little in the past 6 months. About 15lbs. Trying to get back to the low 160's before *fingers crossed* a tummy tuck in Sept. Having my sister and her kids live with us was rough - lots of snacks, unhealthly cooking, going out to eat, etc. Also noticed my portion sizes do seem to be getting bigger. That's why I decided to get a fill. We'll see how it goes ....

woot!

maintaining

Add me to the list - no more gall bladder.

I started having "episodes" last month and had maybe 5-6 in as many weeks. It would start about 1-2 hours after eating. Nausea, dizziness, upper abdominal pain and vomiting. I saw Dr Geiss and he had me drink barium to check my band. Everything looked "PERFECT". They told me to go have some blood work done with my regular doctor because they were worried about the dizziness symptom.  Then to have an ultra sound and sonogram with a doc at North Shore. I went away for a few days and when I returned, saw my doctor but before I could get any tests done I had the worst attack yet. It started at about 6pm and at 3am Joe finally made me go to the emergency room.

By the time we got there, I was in a lot of pain and dry heaving. They did a cat-scan and ultra sound and confirmed I had gall stones. They also did an MRI to check for stones in the bile duct because they were worried about the amount of pain I was in and something about my blood work and low blood pressure & low pulse. MRI came out ok so they went in and removed my gall bladder on Tues afternoon. (St Patty's Day)

Surgery was quick but as has happened in the past, I had a hard time with nausea while coming out of anesthesia. The nausea and vomiting continued thru the night. Pain has never been too bad but I've certainly had a harder time recovering from this than my band placement. I sailed thru the band so I guess I thought this would be the same. I'm really sore and tired still but doing better.
 
Other updates:

I had a PS consult with a surgeon that Dr Geiss recommended. He was nice but I don't think I will use him. His office did help me get approval from my insurance for the panni portion of the TT so that's promising and exciting! I have a consult with Dr Schulman in NYC for April. My original appointment was this past week but I had to cancel due to the gall bladder removal.

My weight has been pretty stable. I'm at 161lbs right now. I've been floating between 159-164 for the past few months. I'm looking forward to the warm weather so I can start working out a little more, to tone up. I'm pretty happy with my current size. The PS I saw said they will remove 10-12lbs of skin with a TT!! Amazing.

I was reading over my blog today and decided it was time to do an update.

My one year bandiversary just passed. It's crazy to think how much different my life is now! My energy level alone is off the charts. My yard is stunning, my house is cleaner, my boyfriend is healthier,  I planted a veggie garden this year, buying new clothes is FUN, no high cholesterol,  high blood pressure, or sleep apnea. The possibility of having to look for a new job soon is certainly not as scary as it would have been at 300lbs!!

I last saw Dr Geiss in June and don't have anything scheduled for the near future. I'm still holding strong with very little fill.

I still haven't started therapy (hey! I've been putting this off for YEARS - lol) or gone to any PS consults. Things have changed recently for me financially, so PS is on the back burner. I look at PS in my case as reconstructive vs cosmetic. I will find a way to get it done.  I guess starting consults is a good idea anyway, so I'll know what I'll be facing.

Weight: 295lbs ---->  167lbs
Bust: 44DD ---->  36DD
Top: 26/28 or 3X  ----> Large
Pants: 26/28 -----> 12
Shoe: 10 ----> 9-9.5

I made it to my [original] goal today and just wanted to mark the date.

174.5lbs!!!

I still have some work ahead of me as I'd like to lose another 15-20lbs but I feel like a million bucks today! I never thought I'd get here, especially in only 10 months!!!

Next stop - Plastic Surgery! I'd like to start some consultations this summer - and win the lotto so I can get a complete over haul - lol.

I see Dr Geiss next Tues for the first time in about 4 months.  I've lost about 30lbs since my last visit in Feb so I can't imagine they will give me too much crap for not keeping up with my monthly visits. I can’t justify paying a $30 co-pay and driving 45 minutes each way, just to go in and just talk about my weight loss. Still no fills and I'm doing great. Fighting head hunger and my sweet tooth but that's going to be a life long battle, that even a full band doesn't combat.

I EAT TO LIVE, NOT LIVE TO EAT. (kinda - hehe)

 

Just marking another BIG milestone!! 

-100.5lbs!!!!

Just a quick note to mark the date. 198lbs this morning!!!! Woo-Hoo!!!!

I'm really ready for the New Year. I think it's going to be a good one and my 2 resolutions are to start working out more & start seeing a therapist.

I liked the therapist Dr Geiss sent me to for my pre-surgical evaluation. I called her today. She's on bed rest until she gives birth to twins and should be back to work by March. She gave me the name of her partner in case I wanted to get started right away. I'm going to wait until my new insurance kicks in next month and then decide. I doubt it will be covered anyway.

I made it through the holidays and made my mini-goal. On X-Mas I was at 222.5 !!! That's 73lbs down! I'm in size 18 pants now vs 26/28. Bra 38DD now vs 44DD. Tops  18/20 now vs 26/28-30/32. Simply amazing. I look at these clothes and think “there's no way that will fit me.”

It's strange how differently my body is shaped at this weight now vs 12 years ago - I think that was the last time I was in the 215-220 range. I need to start working out religiously!! I also might need to re-evaluate my goal of 180.  That’s about 40+ more lbs and I don't think that's going to do it. 

I just had all my blood work run for the first time since surgery by my PCP. Everything came out perfect!!! Woo-Hoo! Cholesterol is down to 174! She was really impressed. I had to reschedule my last appointment with Dr Giess and my next is on 1/2/08.

I'm still riding it out with no restriction. Since I'm going on vacation right after my appointment, I know a 2nd fill won't be possible until Feb and really ... I know I could be losing faster right now (not that I'm not pleased with my progress!!!) if I was working out more. I think I need to exhaust all resources and then work on the restriction level. I’m comfortable with my diet and portion size at this point. I’ve stepped it up with Vitamins too - Per Day: 2 multi, B12 Dot, Calcium Chew and Fiber-Sure. 

I'm doing great and so proud of myself!!! Happy New Year!

 

 

 

 

I made it through my vacation. I gained 3lbs!!!! BUT it did come off right away. I really tested the waters and ate a lot of bad stuff. Doritos, fried chicken fingers, a bagel ... Ugh!

I got back on track, eating right, as soon as we got home. I haven't worked back into my exercise routine though. It's gotten really cold and I am finding (must be the weight loss?) that  I'm freezing all the time! It's unbearable. I was always hot - always!

My next mini-goal is 225 by X-Mas. That's 15lbs.

I had my first fill on 11/5/07. 2cc's in my 10cc APS Band. I had to really convince them to give it to me. Since I have been consistently losing, they wanted to wait to start the fill process. It was frustrating. I've been eating more and exercising less. I'm experiencing a lot of anxiety over slipping into old patterns. 

My next appointment is on 12/17 - I'm hoping fill # 2 will at least give me a tiny amount of restriction. Even if only for a short time - I still don’t know what it feels like.

 

The scale said 249 this morning!! I wanted to get under 250 by my vacation. We are leaving on Sunday! I am soooo happy.

The weird thing is I'm not really seeing the loss. (45.5lbs to be exact) I guess this is a common problem for people. I haven't taken any pics since the day I started my pre-op diet on 8/16/07. Maybe that will help?

I had my 6 week follow up last week. Everything is going fine. We talked about what I've been eating and exercise. We also talked about a fill. Even though I have NO restriction they didn't want to give me my first fill right before I go away. I'll have to wait until Nov 5th.

I'm anxious about a fill. I've made amazing progress so far, I've even surprised myself! I'm eating like a banster in anticipation of restriction but its getting harder and harder! I've had bread, steak, chicken, asparagus, and a few other "problem" foods with no problem. I'm noticing I'm eating a little faster too. 

I think the holidays are going to be a challenge. Let's hope I have at least a little restriction by then.