Still Banded and back in the Zone

Emily & me riding bikes while camping.



Just a quick update.  I am still around and my second band is finally working for me!  I was rebanded last July after my band slipped.  Since then it has been a major struggle to get on track.  This has been  a physical and emotional roller coaster for me, but I think I am finally in the green zone. I am at my lowest weight ever - 177, and seen to be losing at a steady pace of 1-2 pounds per week.  It took this long, but I am feeling great.  My band is tight and I have trouble with a lot of food.  My doctor says he is very happy with my weight and would be happy if I maintained this weight.  I want to lose another 10-15 pounds though.  Anyway, I thought I would check in.  I hope to visit more frequently and keep up with all your blogs.  It's so great to see all your familiar faces!

Take care,
Dawn

Banded Again

Well I am starting all over!  My band was replaced on Wednesday July, 20th.  My surgeon could not revise the old band - it slipped too far.  He said I had the size of a grapefruit sticking above the band - no wonder I was in pain!  I think the slip was there for quite sometime now that I look back and think about what I was experiencing.  Hubby has not gone through any of the tightness or constant Pbing that I was.  He has done so well with his band.  Anyway, I went into emergency on Monday, and was admitted the next day.  They kept me on fluids all of Tuesday.  I was operated on at 1:15pm Wed. & was out of the O.R. by 3 pm.  Let me tell you, this one hurts way more than the first time.  I am having the shoulder pain this time & a killer headache that won't go away.  I also had a lot of nauseaa. The doc put in a LapBand this time.  He was afraid if he put in another Realize band, it would eventually follow the same pattern as the old band and slip again.  He said he is pretty confident that he positioned it in a good spot and that it should not slip.  He said I should keep the band on the loose side.  He definitely feels I had the slip because my band was too tight.  He told me to go slow with this band.  By the way, he is not my original surgeon, he is his partner, so I only saw this doc two times before.  I like him a lot but he is leaving the practice :(. 

So I am on a clear liquid diet until tomorrow.  The Full Liquid for 10 days, then on to mushies.......  WooHoo I forgot how much fun this was - Not!

It's Been a Long Time......

I want to thank Jen- http://jenslapbandjourney.blogspot.com/  for reaching out to me.  I can't believe it's been almost 6 months since my last post. I really miss all of you.  So much has happened in the last six months.  I started a new job as a controller at an auto dealer.  I worked there for a few months and decided to quit.  The stress of the job was too much for me and I was really getting burned out.  Hubby told me to quit - so I did.  Sounds foolish, right?  I gave up a great job.  I now work part time in the consumer relations department for a bakery located 5 minutes from my house.  I love the time I get to spend with Emily this summer.  We had to completely revamp our family budget and we are ..... wait for it.... COUPONING! Oh yes we are!  It's a fun hobby and we are really saving a bunch of money.   We also started camping.  We bought a 27ft travel trailer and we absolutely love it!  We are still geocaching too - that's a lot of fun.  We are growing a garden this summer too.  We planted tomatoes, a variety of peppers, eggplant, squash, strawberries, onions and watermelon.  It's doing great and I love taking care of it and watching it all grow!

On to band news:

Unfortunately not so much has happened on the weight loss front.  I am still the same weight as I was 6 months ago.  Hubby has gained a few pounds, he needs a fill and he will be back on track.  So for the bad news - I found out today that my band has slipped.  I have been having a lot of problems with my band.  I thought I was too tight, so I had some fluid remove a few weeks ago.  That didn't help much.  Last week we were on vacation in the Outer Banks and I could barely eat and had excruciating abdominal pain.  At first I thought it was gas.  It felt like someone was grabbing my insides and twisting them.  I got an appt with the Doc as soon as I was back from vacation.  He took more fluid out & sent me for an Upper GI.  I got results today.  My band is at a 108 degree angle. It should be at 45 degrees.  I must have surgery to remove & replace it. It gets better.... My insurance will not cover the procedure.  So, the patient advocate at my practice said if I am admitted through Emergency, insurance will pay.  Great, right?  Even better, my surgeon is on vacation until the 27th of July.  I can't get in to see him until the 28th!  In the mean time I was prescribed vicodin and an anti-nausea medication, and told to stick to a soft diet.  So, I am probably going to visit the emergency room in the next day or two and go from there.  I will not last another week like this!

I thought I would post a few recent pictures for you guys too  -



Camping - Father's day weekend



My Niece's wedding reception in March



Geocaching - May




At Cape Hatteras Lighthouse - July



New York - April

So Jen, you picked a the right day to reach out to me, and I thank you.  I am probably going to need a lot of support in the coming months and I would like to start hanging out with you guys again.  I hope that's  OK?

Our One Year Bandiversary

January 27, 2011; DH & my one year Bandiversary. What a year it’s been!



2008 - At Our Heaviest



2010 - Happier & Healthier

Our bands did what they were supposed to do; we both lost weight, we are both off of our blood pressure medicine, we both have more energy; we both look & feel younger and are much more attractive.


DH met his goal within 6 months of getting his band. He weighed 268 lbs at his highest. Today he weighs 180 lbs. I’ll do the math – 88 pounds in 6 months . The band was definitely the right choice for him! He can eat anything – just not in the mass quantities as he did pre-band. He is happier & healthier than I’ve seen him in many years. I am so proud & somewhat in awe of him and his success.

I started on this journey at 238 lbs. One year later I weigh 184 lbs. The band has worked for me too, just not as well as it did for DH. Don’t get me wrong, I am so glad I had the surgery. I just wish I would be closer to my goal weight of 150 lbs. Correction – I was closer to my goal weight – but I gained 7 pounds since December 17th. I’m not happy, but it is what it is. The Dr. gave me a 1/4cc fill today & told me not to worry. He said overall I am doing great & the combination of a new medication for my pinched nerve pain (Lyrica – causes weight gain), the stress of my new job & the holidays got the best of me. Dr. Ceppa still has faith in me that I will lose the weight & get back on track. I am going back to basics; journaling, weighing my food & focusing on protein. I need to become a good blogger again too. It’s what works for me. I know many believe the band should keep my portions in control for me – this is not the case. I need to “diet” to be successful at losing.

I want to thank all of you that encouraged DH & me over this past year. Without you & your blogs, I would have been lost on my journey. We love our bands and would recommend this surgery to anyone that has a serious weight problem. Our bands brought us back to life.

Geocaching - Fun & Great Exercise too!

We went out today for the second time and found three caches!  It was a lot of fun.  It was cold out but we all bundled up.  Here are some pics from our found caches:

Not Quite in Control

If you look at my weight chart, you can see that my weight is going in the wrong direction.  I attribute this to the holidays - but also to my eating habits of late.  This new job is stressful - I love it - but it's a different computer system & I have to learn all over again.  Stess is always my trigger to eat wrong.  Not an excuse - it's just how it is with me.  I guess the fact that I can identify this trigger is a good thing.  Now I just have to get it under control.  I am visiting the vending machine for cookies & licorice instead of eating something more healthy when I'm hungry.  Not to mention my dealership celebrates everyone's birthday with a cake for all to share.  There have been at least six birthdays since I started at the end of November.  I had cake about three times.  There is also a popcorn machine in our showroom.  It smells like a movie theatre quite often & it makes me so hungry!!!!

My back pain is an ongoing saga in my life.  I had a course of three epidural steroid in jections for my two herniated disks and pinched nerve.  The first shot helped immensly, the second & third not so much.  I am now back to a pain level of about 8 out of 10 - I am suffering.  I made the comment that sometimes I wish my leg had no feeling & I could just drag it beside me - that is how much pain I am in most of the time.  The pain center wants me to see a neurosurgeon.  I want no parts of surgery.  There is no guarantee it will help & I just started a new job.  They also recommend I try a drug called Lyrica.  It is mainly prescribed for Diabetic nerve pain & Epilepsy. But they found that it also works in Sciatia that causes nerve pain.  So I started this drug on Wed.  It made me a bit loopy at first, but I am adjusting to it now.  One of the main side effects (there are quite a few & I am a bit concerned about them) is weight gain.  I am worried about that.  I worked too hard to gain my weight back.  But if the drug helps, I feel I need to take it - a real catch 22!  So far I notice a bit of pain relief.  I am keeping my fingers crossed that this drug will work for me.  It needs to build up in your system & takes a few weeks to make a real difference.  I am on the lowest dose right now.  I am mentally drained by this whole thing. And physically I am a wreck.

On a fun note- have any of you ever gone geocaching? You use a hand held GPS to find Caches that are hidden in certain areas.  The cache usually contains a log book to sign & and sometimes a little coin or treasure.  There is one at the park behind my house.  DH, DD Emily & I tried to find it last week with no luck.  There was snow on the ground & it was getting dark.  We will try again.  It is rated as somewhat difficult cache to find on this website that we use: GEOCACHING.COM . Anyway this is great family thing to do.  I look forward to getting out, getting exercise & having fun.  I just pray my pain is in control so I can enjoy this activity.

I want to say that I am sorry that I am not here as often as I used to be.  I am unable to blog at work and most evenings I don't have time or someone else in my house is on the computer. I will continue to check in & update my blog.  I need to do this for me.  It's great to read back & see how things have changed in my life.  I hope I don't lose too many followers; but I completely understand if I do.

Take care & and be healthy!

Happy New Year!

Here's to a Healthy & Happy 2011!!   This is the first New Year's that I have not made a resolution to lose weight or start a diet on January 2nd.  I know that my band will keep me in check in 2011 & I am looking forward to losing the rest of my weight and getting to my goal sometime this year.  It will happen, I just need to go back to the band basics:  More protein, no sliders, smaller portions & I will get there.

I am still amazed at the changes that the band has made for DH & me.  We are satisfied on so much less food - yet we enjoy EVERYTHING!  When we were in our surgery prep stage, I was afraid that we would never be able to eat the same again after we got our bands.  That is so not true!  Yes, bread & a few other foods give us trouble, but if we chew & eat slow we do ok.  Our portions are just so much smaller & we are satisfied on less.  Food tastes better to me now.  I think I appreciate it more.  Speaking of food, you should see my kitchen!!!!  DH & I hosted a New Years Eve seafood dinner.  There are tons of leftovers including Chocolate Peanut Butter cake.  I cooked New Years day dinner yesterday.  Here in PA we eat Pork, Saurkraut & homemade (ie: lots of butter & milk) mashed potatoes on New Years day.  There is PA Dutch Folklore that says if you eat this on New Years Day it will bring you luck the rest of the year.  EVERYONE I know in my area has this meal on the first day of the year.  My mother in law made the desserts - yes plural!  Homemade Cherry & Apple crumb pies with vanilla ice cream and Emily made cupcakes that she decorated for New Years.  WOW - This is bad!  But we can only eat a small portions so we are doing ok.  Still, there's a lot of food around!!!!

DH took Emily ice fishing on Friday.  Emily caught both of these bass (it was her first time ice fishing):

They caught a lot of fish!  DH said the ice did not need to be as thick this year in order to hold him - lol!

Checking in

Hi everyone,

I hope all of you had a great Holiday! It is hard to believe that I haven't blogged in almost two months.  A lot has happened recently.  Sadly, not much has happened on the weight loss front though!  I have been the same weight for over 3 months.  I was definitely too tight & had some fluid taken out two weeks ago.  I am still feeling like I am too tight & keep going after the slider foods.  This is not a good thing!  I started a new job on November 22nd.  I was hired by a competing Auto Dealership as a Controller.  This new job is keeping me extremely busy!  I love the job & the people I work with.  It is such a different culture than the Dealership I worked at previously.  Changing jobs was a very good decision for me!  It is so hard to believe the New Year is upon us!  I wish all of you the best of health and hapiness in 2011 & I really miss blogging and will try to check in more often.

I'm not sure if you remember this post: http://db1119.blogspot.com/2010/01/our-last-fat-christmas.html

This was about a month before our surgeries.  DH & I were hoping we would see a big change in ourselves by this Christmas.  Well,  you be the judge:



12/25/2009



12/25/2010



Some Things DH Said

Here are some things my DH has said to me lately.  I really need to pay attention and listen to what he is saying...believe what he is saying is true...

"You're beautiful" ( said out of the blue at the Dr's office)

"I'm REALLY gonna miss you" (he's leaving for a hunting trip tomorrow)

"You're Smart - don't sell yourself short - they need you more than you need them" ( his pep text to me before 2 job interviews I had this week).

"I will support you in whatever you decide" (my decision to return to school after 27 years).

Simply said - "You look nice" - (he tells me almost everyday)

"I Love You"  (several times a day and after every phone call)

There are a few other *blush* things I can't really share too.

These are things I need to focus on when I start feeling down about myself.  I am really going to try.

My BFF



On the Beach at the Jersey Shore

Meet my BFF.  We have been friends for about eight years.  I hired her to assist part time with some office work at my current employer's place of business.  Little did we know we would become fast friends.  We are very much opposites in many things.  I love bright colors, while she is a true black, white & brown type of girl.  She has her own Harley (I affectionately call her Scoot - short for Scooter trash), I would never ride on anything with less than four wheels.  She is athletic and played on a Men's softball team.  I do not have one ounce of coordination in my whole body and really don't like sports of any kind. She is very outgoing and makes friends very quickly. I am rather quiet and reserved.  It takes me a LONG time to warm up to people.  She is divorced and does not have kids.  I have been married for over half my life to the same man and am a Mom to two lovely girls.  She has tattoos, I do not.  Despite all the differences we are BFF's.  We have the same silly sense of humor & "get" each others stupid jokes & antics.  We both have weight issues, although Scoot can diet & exercise to get into shape - me- not so much.  We both love to shop together even though our tastes in clothing are not quite the same.  We take an annual trip for "girl's weekend" to the beach.  Last year we went to Vegas for 4 days instead of the beach - We had a blast!  She is my "person".  She does not judge, she just listens.  We are different, but we are the same.  She is the sister I never had.

Guess What I'm Wearing??

Tall.Black.Boots. – Normal size – Not extended calf! That is a real NSV for me. I love boots and even the extended calf sizes did not fit me before I lost weight! I took a few pictures (in the bathroom at work – lol) to give you an idea of what they look like.



I weighed in at 172.8 today. I feel good about that. I am very tight and am having trouble eating a lot of foods right now. I am beginning to wonder if there is a correlation between the epidural steroid injections I am getting for my back and band tightness?


DH is upset with me for all of the shopping I am doing lately. He can’t understand why I am buying clothes when, in his words, they won’t fit when you lose another 10 pounds. Well, I think I’ll be ok. I am in a large top & size 14 bottoms – they should fit for a while. I am not one to drop sizes too quickly.

The company I work for is in BAD financial shape. I am very well paid and I will not find another job in my area that pays as well or offers the same level of benefits – there’s just nothing available. I have decided to ride it out. I am sure I will show up one day and the doors will be bolted shut. Either that or they will tell me that they need to let me go. So my plan is to go back to college. I met with admissions and plan on starting in January. I am scared – can I still do this? We’ll see. I never finished college. I do not have a college degree. I have a great deal of experience and have attended seminars and completed certificate programs with our local chamber of commerce. I am afraid that with today’s economy employers will not even consider me without the degree. So that is my plan – I am going to enroll in a Business Administration transfer program at our local community college.  If the stars align just right I will receive my Associate's degree at the same time my DD receives her Master's.  I would not have had the courage to do this pre-band. Wish me luck.
Have a great week everyone.

YOU THINK I'D BE MORE EXCITED

I have lost 65 pounds since January.  Awesome, right?  Yes. it is a significant loss, yet I am not as exceited as I thought I would be.  I love the band and could not have lost this weight without it. I just feel like, holy shit, I lost 65 pounds and I am STILL overweight.  I STILL need to think about the weight constantly.  How did I ever get this heavy?  Why did I let myself go like this?  I should be happy & I'm not.  It's such an uphill battle & I want to be at the finish line already.  I am not happy with my body or my looks and yet I know I have improved by leaps & bounds in those areas.  I still see a fat person when I look in the mirror.  My belly still looks big to me.  How can that be after losing this much weight?  I should feel good about myself & 80% of the time I do.  But there is that 20% that really hits me hard & makes me feel like I am not ever going to be thin & beautiful.  Sorry, just having one of those days...

I Think it was a flu bug!

Thanks everyone for your kind words & advice. 


I am feeling somewhat better today.  No nausea, but I am still a bit tight. I was able to eat breakfast & lunch without a problem.  I did have some diarrhea this morning & yesterday. (sorry if TMI).  I honestly think it's some kind of bug - yuck!


I am weighing in at 174.6 - 63 pounds down today - I don't recommend losing weight this way by any means - but at least there is a bright side - right?

I feel awful!

Not sure what is going on.  DH & I went to dinner on Friday night.  I had some salad, steak, baked potato & a few bites of a broiled crab cake.  I went home & had TERRIBLE pain in my chest - felt like gas pain.  I did not PB - just had the pain.  

Saturday - Felt a little better - still had some pain.  Took DD Emily shopping.  We went to lunch & I had a few bites of Chicken Tortilla soup & felt pain & nauseous.  Then had a few bites of salad & started sliming.  I did not PB.  We shopped a little more & I felt worse.  I told Emily we had to go home.  I PB'd in a bag as I was driving home - Lovely!  Emily was a trooper through it all.  I went home & laid down - I felt totally wiped out & had pain in the upper right side again.  I ate some ice cream later & it stayed down. I still felt like I was going to vomit for the rest of the night.

Sunday - woke up & felt a bit better.  I ate a few spoonfuls of soup.  I made veggie pizza & ate a piece - it was tight going down, but it stayed in.  Later I had a handful of well-chewed peanuts - I got this horrible nauseous feeling & pb'd them.  I had a popsicle - that went down ok.  Tried another piece of veggie pizza - could only eat a few bites & felt sick - slimed a bit later & had bad stomach pain when I went to bed. 

I woke up today feeling like I have a stomach bug.  I am so nauseous. I drank some coffee & water and am now eating a 100 calorie pack of Lorna Doone's just to get some food in me.  I have no desire to eat.  Food turns my stomach right now.  I see my doctor on Friday for a scheduled visit. If things do not improve today, I will call him.  

Could I have gotten extremely tight over night?  Not sure if maybe steak got stuck on Friday?  Maybe it is a flu bug?  All I know is I feel like crap!

BYOC - Yep I'm still here!

1. If you wrote a biography on your life, what would the title be?


Life Threw Me Curves - - Meet the Stronger Me!
 
2. Would you take $1 million dollars to leave your present life – including friends and family – to start over somewhere else? You’re leaving your physical location to never go back but you can contact them via phone and net and such. (you take your immediate family with you..spouse, kids, etc.)
 
When can I deposit the check?  Heck yeah, I would take it & move somewhere coastal & just make a fresh start - so long as my immeditate family comes too!
 
3. Are you a person everyone trusts or do you have trouble trusting everyone or both?
 
I think I am a trustworthy person.  I am pretty sure my friends, coworkers think that too.  As far as trusting others.....Well, that takes me a while.  I really need to know the person well & even then I do not share myself completely.


4. Looking back, if I asked you what one event changed the course of your life – and you had to answer immediately the first thing that popped into your head…what would it be?


My Mom's cancer & her death.

5. Repeat question: Summarize your week in life and in blogland.

I have not been around blogland much - sorry :(.  I have been very busy.  I spent a wonderful weekend at the Jersey Shore with my BFF - we had an awesome time as usual.  I am PMSing & my eating is a bit out of control.  I think I gained 2-3 pounds between the shore trip & PMS - I'm not a happy camper, but it is what it is  & my band will get me through it.  I had the first of 3 Epidural Steroid Injections yesterday for the pinched nerve in my back.  It was not too terribly painful - I hope it gives me relief.  The DR. said it will take 3-4 days to notice any relief.  I hope the steroids do not cause me to gain weight! Have a great week everyone!

Have a great time

To all you BOOBS out there - have a great time in Chicago!  Please post lots of pics - I need to know every little detail!!!!

Today is DH & my 22nd wedding anniversary.  We are going out to dinner somewhere nice tonight to celebrate.

Have a great weekend!

When I was little....

I used to go to bed and pray that I would wake up skinny.  I did not just do this on occassion.  I did this every.single.night for years.  It probably started when I was about 12. 

Most kids daydream about Disneyland or Santa Claus.  Not me, I just wanted to be skinny & be able to wear all the clothes that other girls my age wore.  My Mom used to take me to a "fat girl" store downtown & buy me half sizes in the chubby department.  Oh, how I wanted to shop at the mall instead! 

I think this explains why I am a total shoe whore.  I could wear the cute shoes, just not the outfit to go with them.

So you see, this band is for the little girl inside me ....Her prayers were finally answered.

I am touched that I inspired someone!!!

Just Me http://haveyougainedweight.blogspot.com/ did a post about me & my Junkity Junk!!!  I am so glad it inspired her!  If you are not following Just Me, please do so now - she is awesome & her blog is great!

Hugs bloggies!

Catching up

Hi Bloggies,



I have a bit of catching up to do with you. So here goes:

Great NSV – On Saturday we went to DH’s company picnic. It is held at an amusement park called Dorney Park and Wildwater Kingdom. DH"S employer rents the entire park for the employees. It’s actually two parks; an amusement park and a water park. Well, DH & I did not pack a bathng suit – we NEVER go to the waterpark for fear that someone we know would see us & all of our junkity junk flopping around on the water slides & tubes. Well guess what? We get there & DH says Let’s do it! Huh??? DD Emily wore her suit & she was ready to go. DH & I had to buy suits & towels at the gift shop – he didn’t even care that we had to spend the $$$. He just wanted to have a good time with his wife & 10 year old at the water park for a change. We had a blast! I had to skip a few water slides because of my back, but that was ok with me. We spent 4 hours in the water park – walking around in nothing but bathing suits!!! Wow – that was a stretch for us. DH said several times, I can’t believe we’re doing this. He had a big smile on his face each time he said it! After the waterpark, we headed over to the amusement park and had a great time there also – Emily was so happy!

I had an MRI yesterday. My doctor will have the results in 2-3 days. I hope we can get to the bottom of this because I am tired of the constant pain & the inability to do certain activities. Keep you fingers crossed for me!

I signed up for water aerobics at one of our local schools. I go for one hour twice per week. I figure that this is an exercise that will not cause more problems with my back. I am so excited to go – my first class is tonight!

On the Band Front – I am really tight. I am having a lot of trouble eating. I am trying to wait it out a bit & work with it. I lost a half a pound last week. I expected more; but I did not get all pissed about it. The weight will come off – I know that.

Shopping – my new favorite activity (DH wants to kill me). We have a VF outlet about ten minutes from our house. Every few months they have a tent sale on Lingerie. I stocked up on some new bras & panties – ooh la la! It felt good to actually buy some pretty things that did not look like granny panties or old lady bras!

SHOES!!!!! I found tall black boots at Payless that I really like – they actually zip over my calves! I am waiting for their BOGO sale to get them because I saw a cute pair of clogs too!!!

That’s about it for now! I will leave you with this. I am so thankful every.single.day that DH & I were fortunate to get banded. It totally improved our health & our lives.

Wow!

I am completely overwhelmed by your awesome comments on my VLOG and 60 pounds down post.  You guys brought tears to my eyes!  Thank you so much - I love you all :)