Never got back last night and now I only have a sec before work, but:

WELCOME SITA!

:wave: Everybody. I'm still OP & have started walking at work. Gabe's trainer called and I'm going out next Tuesday night to see him. See you later!

Hi All,

Sorry I haven’t posted for a couple of days, one day I was just really down and spent most of the day in bed. That will teach me to not take my anti depressants! And yesterday I was out most of the day and then just wanted to just chat online and relax when I did go on the PC. But here I am now. Reporting that for 3 out of the 4 days this week I have been good, but yesterday was a ‘free’ day. In other words I didn’t stick OP. All is OK today though and I’ve exercised well, so I shouldn’t see a gain or anything when I weigh on Monday.

RK - I am the same as you a I think, I don’t like to ask for help. But I accept too that I need everybody here to help me stay on track, and to help me feel better about myself when I haven’t. 3 cheers for the 3FC site and all who use it :cp: :cheer: :cheer2:

Sorry that you’ve been congested and haven’t been able to wear your cpap mask. I hope the meds you took helped clear things up and you wore the mask and had a good nights sleep. There’s nothing worse than feeling ultra tired especially when you have to exercise and just don’t want to!

Debbie - :yikes: don’t bet your life on me fitting on those rides, those seats are darn small :yes: I do appreciate your faith in me, and I promise I’ll try my best to lose as much weight as I can before I go away.

I never realised that dial scales were hard to find over there. Maybe you could order one from the UK and have it shipped there. We have plenty over here! I use one and love it. So have you decided on which weight to take as your reading out of the 3 you mentioned?

Annie - STOP looking at the top end of your ticker and getting depressed. Ok you got to that weight, but it wasn’t coz you are just a glutton. None of us have got big because we just love food. Of course that helped, lol, but you know what I mean, there has always been a health issue, or comfort eating involved. So don’t look at that top figure, look at the figure you are now because that is something you should be SO proud of.

Nancy - well with the rate that this year is flying by it won’t be long until we are seeing in 2008 and hopefully it will be a much calmer less eventful year for you :hug:

BattleAx - good on you for not giving in to that binge. I should come here when I feel like overeating, but I tend to come afterwards and then feel a bit sad because like you, I want to have some NSVs and enjoy feeling good about myself not bad :hug:

Lesley - sorry that you’ve got a load of birthdays coming up too, so much cake, so much temptation!! Let’s make a deal, we’ll have one small slice of all the cakes, but no more. And then we can increase our exercise to make up for it :yes:

Luan - so sorry to hear about your grandmother having not only to deal with losing her husband but now having to deal with that side of the family being so money grubbing and devious to boot. I hope they won’t get away with all their underhandedness.

Great news about finding your brother though, does he live far from you? Will you be able to meet up with him in person soon?

Story - I’m glad you seem to have got your meds sorted out now and also that your tummy has adjusted to the latest ‘fill’ you had done. How many more will you have done until it’s where it needs to be?

Heather - thanks for answering my question, and you are so right about it being easier to stay on the path than to go off it and try to get back on it. Every time after I have gone off it I feel like I am starving when I am back on it. It’s like my body is saying HEY, you fed me so well the last day or so, what are doing not feeding me now! It’s awful to feel so empty and having to watch the clock until it’s meal time :yes:

By they way I love that you are using your name on here now, not Wyllen. Heather is such a pretty name.

Sita - hello and :wel3fc: I look forward to learning more about you and cheering as you lose those lbs :yes:

Catherine - glad you make it to Toronto safely, maybe the more you fly the easier you will find the journey :crossed:

Val - I am so glad that you got the job in the bank, :woohoo: I know how much you wanted it. And how great that your boss is a hot air balloon pilot. I wonder if she’ll offer to take you up in a balloon one day? Maybe the friendlier you get with her and she learns how you are losing weight and all she will make the balloon trip be a reward for you :yes:

Vicki - good for you for posting those photos of yourself. I know you don’t like looking at the before pics, but at least feeling the way you do about them should assure you that you will NEVER let yourself get back to that size. I look at my before pics and I just can’t believe it’s me. I knew I felt fat, I knew all my size 32 clothes were getting snug and that I couldn’t buy any bigger ones, but I still didn’t realise just how bad I looked.

I am doing good today :hug: I even did an hour on my Gazelle because my ankle wasn’t playing up, so that put a big smile on my face :yes: :D

Sharon - yay that the numbers are dropping on the scales :cp: I don’t want to get on mine after that kebab yesterday lol. I’m a naughty girl, well I was, but I’m being good again today. I hope to chat with you later, and YES I was asleep when you sent me that message on MSN :rofl: Don’t get up that early when Beth’s not in school :no:

Time to go make lunch now FINALLY lol, I think it will be wonton soup today, mmmm. Take care all and bye for now,

Hugs,

Ammi :chicken:

Thank you for the hello everyone.

As far as my plan . . . well. My company pays for my gym membership and it is right across the parking lot. So I am aiming for working out 2-3x a week. Eating healthy and increasing my water intake. I used to drink a gallon of water a day and lately it seems like I only get in 2 or 3 glasses. I was thinking about trying a formal plan like WW but restrictions do not work well for my mind. I'm trying to be successful so I am going with the eat in moderation/eat healthier foods approach.

Today I started with a banana, a whole wheat english muffin and some hot chocolate. I bought some Dexatrim Max last week but have yet to actually take them? Has anyone ever tried them? I just want to take them to control the hunger until my stomache decreases in size.

Hiya chickies!

I have been here and reading, but not posting. Just busy and nothing really going on except that I am going to see my PCP on Tuesday. I went for a blood draw (darn my hypothyroid) and just need to have a sit down with her. I feel like such a downer. I *should* feel good and I don't and I hate it!! I am also one who only needs 6 hours sleep a night and even with 8 hours, I am dragging my butt around. Soooo........needless to say who needs to hear from my mopey self?!?! LOL!

Anyway...congrats to all you losers and hang in there to those struggling. I know its hard, but I know you can all do it.

:hug::hug:

Hey Peggy!!!! When you're down that's the best time to post, keeps your fingers busy & there's ALWAYS someone to support you. I knew thyroid probs could make it hard to lose weight & hair-loss but not moods, ie depression/low energy. hugsxxxx Wish I could offer advice but I know very little, at least you're being seen by Drs so hopefully it won't take ages to get you sorted out.xxxxxx
xxxxsharon
ps Ammi, I'll keep an eye open for you.xxxxx

Originally Posted by voodoo1:
Hey Peggy!!!! When you're down that's the best time to post, keeps your fingers busy & there's ALWAYS someone to support you. I knew thyroid probs could make it hard to lose weight & hair-loss but not moods, ie depression/low energy. hugsxxxx Wish I could offer advice but I know very little, at least you're being seen by Drs so hopefully it won't take ages to get you sorted out.xxxxxx
xxxxsharon

Thanks Sharon. Whenever there is a change in dosage, I get scatterbrained and forgetful and TIRED!! I hate it. The hair loss is driving me batty too. I just feel like a whiner. lol! I don't feel depressed and am *happy*, just tired. I even get comments about how tired I look. Weird!

No more hiding from the docs. They need to get me some answers! lol

Catherine: Thanks for checking in with us. I was wondering how your flight was. Glad you made it safe and sound. Great job doing your school work but, don't forget to enjoy yourself and have some fun. Hugs.

Val: I hope you had a great weigh in today. My weigh in was no change. I am assuming that I am making muscles because, I sure haven't eaten. lol. Yeah to go see Gabe next Tuesday. Have fun.

Heather: Thanks for the information on the DOMS. I have to say that I am feeling less sore today just in time to work out all my muscles again. lol. I am looking forward to the day when they are not so sore.

Vicki: I can't wait to go see the photos of you. I have only used the personal trainer one time and I honestly would never ever have gotten one but it is required when you have surgery from the Dr. I chose. I hear lots of people pay their fee to see the personal trainer and then they never go! I was asking her about once I have used up all my personal training time which is 24 sessions, how about I get a few of some of the time that other people didn't go to. lol. She said she would ask about it.

Debbie: hi hun.

Sharon: Great job that the weight is just coming off so easily. Great job on all the walking too. I think you are going to be doing so well. Hugs.

Ammi: Sorry that you have had a couple of bad days here and there. Hugs to you. Congrats to you on staying op mostly. Give yourself a huge break hun. You have been working so hard and sticking to your program so well. Don't stress. So glad you are feeling a bit better now. Thanks for the pep talk about my ticker too. Hugs.

Phyra: Sounds like you are off to a very good start.

Peggy: I hope your energy level picks up real soon sweetie.

Well, I'm off to brush my teeth and get my shoes on to go work out with the trainer now. I am meeting my DH at 4 p.m. today by his work to check out the gym there. I'm 99% sure I will join it after my free workout.

Hope you all have a great op, exercise and water drinking filled day.

Blessings all,
Annie

Vicki your pictures are awesome! Thanks so much for sharing them with us. I'm so glad you're happy with your surgery. My hairdresser also got tummy work before her weight loss was complete and has never regretted it. I just saw her last night actually, so today I have new hair. :)

Annie - Feel like I haven't said 'hi!" in ages. You're doing so, so, so wonderfully and we're all crazy proud of you and all the changes. Hugs.

Peggy - Sorry you're feeling blah. Low level chronic health issues can really take the wind out of your sails, and it can be hard for others (read DOCTORS) to understand just how much it impacts quality of life. Good luck getting some good answers. Hang in there. :)

Ammi - Great to hear that you're having a week you're happy with, even if you're entirely mixed up about the time and such. :)

Sharon - Yay for pounds flying off!!

Catherine - Hope you're getting out from behind the books once in a while and taking T.O. by storm. Here's some more nicknames for it in case you want to really blend in: The Big Smoke, Hogtown, T Dot and Toronto the Good. For maxium effectiveness avoid saying any of them with anything resembling a Southern Belle accent. You like mall walking I think, and the Eaton Centre is not far from where you are. It pales compared to West Edmonton, but still fun to explore. Have lots of fun!

I'm having a slooooow week loss wise. I may be creeping up on another plateau and will have to evaluate things. I really don't think I can do anymore with exercise, so will have to trim on the food side. I have found I have been eating more the last few months with the greatly incresed activity, so may be time to pare it back down a little again. I always get panicky and fearful that I won't be able to finish the job. Our metabolisms can be such an enemy of this process.

Everybody have a great day!

Annie - No loss? No worries! You're in that muscle building phase. Besides, we get another Thursday NEXT week. Yippee!!

Opps-back to work!

Originally Posted by MetaChick:
Peggy - Sorry you're feeling blah. Low level chronic health issues can really take the wind out of your sails, and it can be hard for others (read DOCTORS) to understand just how much it impacts quality of life. Good luck getting some good answers. Hang in there. :)

Thanks Meta. You describe how I feel exactly...wind is out of my sails. I am no shrinking violet, so I will be my best advocate. That is why I got an appointment. I can never speak to the Dr. directly. I think if she sees me and sees my frustration she might actually DO something. She is going to get the "You *do* realize that I avoid the Doctor like the plague don't you? For me to be sitting here wanting a face to face that I am getting to the end of my rope." I absolutely felt FANTASTIC from the time I started living more healthfully in February up until I started with the thyroid meds. Hmmm.....lets connect the dots shall we? LOL!

I will also request a referral to an endocronologist if I do not get some help after this visit.

I am not a whiner by nature...so complaining about how tired I am *all the time* is completely NOT me and it irritates me so I can't imagine how irritating it is to those around me. LOL!

Welcome Sita!

Valerie: Enjoy your time with Gabe. Good for you, staying on plan and doing well!

Ammi: You're doing great, exercising and having more on plan days than not. Keep it up. I am looking forward to you reporting a loss soon.

I see dial scales at the stores here.

Phyra: it's great that your employer has a gym. I, too, do well with the least restrictive eating plan. It's all about finding the path that works for you.

Vicki: Thanks for posting your pics. You look great.

Peggy: Good for you for demanding time with the doctor. Being tired all the time is no fun. It wears on the psychological state as well as the physical state. I hope there is a solution that will work quickly.

Annie: Enjoy your workout. It will be great if the gym you are checking out is what you're looking for, and all goes well.

Voodoo: keep it up!

Debbie: Hi! I'm keeping my fingers crossed that the scale will be kind to you.

Meta: I'm nowhere near you in this process, but I regularly go through periods of no or low loss for a few weeks, then it picks up. I've resisted lowering my calorie level, and won't do it until I am absolutely sure my body is not letting go of weight at all. I'm sure the day is approaching. How many times have you had to lower your caloric intake?

Everyone else: Hi!


I'm doing ok. I haven't weighed myself because I can feel that I have either stayed the same or gained a bit, and don't want to discourage myself. I think the weekend binge and a slowdown in exercise due to extreme busyness has punished me more than usual. My eating this week so far has been decent overall, and I just had a great workout this morning, so soon enough the scale will drop. Early next week TOM is due, so I will weigh in a few days after he arrives. I don't know if anyone else has noticed this, but I seem to gain weight in the middle of my cycle, too.

Hey all!

Sorry I've been absent all week... tons of work for school!! I just wanted to wish everyone here a great weekend because I'll be gone the whole weekend with the boy. :)

Everyone have a great OP weekend!!

Hi everyone :wave:

thanks for all of the nice feedback about my pictures. You all know how to make me feel good.:hug: I'm supposed to be auditing checks for my boss so I'll have to make this fast. :p I'm feeling kind of lazy right now, though.

I had to come and tell you all that I'm changing my ticker to 232.2 lbs. from 240 lbs. I guess that the swelling from the surgery really is going down because I weighed myself last week and it was 240 which is why I never changed my ticker. I'm not following my low-carb plan 100% because I kind of think that I must need the extra calories and carbs right now. Does that make sense or do you think I'm just finding excuses to eat my wonderful bread and pasta for as long as possible? :dizzy:

Story--did you have GBS? I don't remember:dizzy: I have such a Swiss Cheese brain? Good luck with your goal and :carrot: for how well you've been doing so far.

BattleAx--good luck with the scales next week. :D I know it's kind of depressing, but staying the same is not really something to be bummed out about, if you ask me. ;) Especially if you know that you didn't stay OP or exercise as much as you like to. So if you stay the same don't be sad. :hug:

As far as TOM goes--I've been known to gain 7 lbs. sometimes. :mad: I was so upset you couldn't believe it. I cried and everything. Then TOM arrived and I was like, "Oh." Luckily I had lost it all by the next time I logged my weigh in. I have found that I only do well with my eating plan if I weigh myself every day, but I try to log it in only once a week. Meaning changing my ticker. I actually have a Microsoft Excel file that I used to fill in every day with whatever my weight was that morning. And you want to really talk about obsessive? I also weigh myself at night to see the difference from day to night. I always find it amazing that you can lose 2-3 lbs. a night. :)

Torister--I hope you're feeling better soon and that the doctor is also "smart" enough to connect the dots to why you're feeling down. Hey--what part of MA do you live in? I live in Fall River so I was wondering how close you are. Either way, good luck with the evil doctor. :hug:

Hey Val--:wave: how are you doing? It sounds like everything is coming up roses for you you and I'm very happy about that. :)

I have a question about horses and I know you're the person to ask. How much weight can a horse hold? I ask this because I'm at 232.2 right now and my BF and I are talking about taking riding lessons. I've always wanted to learn but to be honest I never thought it was fair to a horse to have to carry my weight. :rofl: So I want to know if I'm still too big for a horse. Thanks for any help you can give me. :)

MetaChick--thank you so much for telling me about your hairdresser. It made me feel even better about my deciding to have the surgery now instead of later. It's in the back of my mind the question of whether or not I'm going to regret not waiting.

Have you been having a slow weight loss for a while or just this week? If it's just this week it could just be something like TOM coming or your body just chilling for a week. Good luck either way. I know that I was at a plateau for something like a year. :( I ate the same but I couldn't get back to the gym as much because of work so I ended up being really bummed out and I gained 15-20 lbs. back. :cry: And this was just before my surgery! :o I've been talking to my BF and he's said that he'll join the gym so we can go together. :carrot: Well, good luck figuring it out.

Annie--:lol: You make me laugh. It would be great if you could get some of those appointments with the trainer that some of those people blew off. I love working out on the Nautilus equipment. I use that equipment at my gym too.

So did you and the hubby like the gym?

Hi Sharon--how are you doing? I guess your internet connection is still working since we are still seeing you. :) I'm glad. You can help me with information about horses too. I just don't want to approach a horse and make the poor thing gasp in shock. ;)

Congrats:cp: on how your scale is behaving. I am so happy for you and I agree about how hard it is to cook without tasting everything. What if you add too much salt or sugar or basil. :fr: EEK!

Hi Sita--how's everything going right now? The hardest part to working out is walking into the gym for the first time. Here's some:dust: to help you do it. Good luck and know that we've all been there and that's one of the reasons we still come here. It's nice to talk to other people who feel the same things.

Hi Ammi--Good luck with your weigh in on Monday. :)

You are so right about how I felt and thought about those pictures. I wouldn't even look at pictures of myself at that time and there are very few pictures of myself from that time. My BF was looking over the pics he has of my dogs on his computer and he found the ones of me in there too. I wanted to bawl because I was so upset and shocked. I forgot that I looked that bad and it brought out all of my feelings. It is so good though because you're right--it's incentive for me to never go back to being that way again.

Heather--thanks for the input on the trainers. Being able to actually work with one isn't really something that I had thought about, but now it's something I'll have to pay attention to. Is it a personality thing or just the way some of the trainers train? I'm going to check out that thread you told me about later on today. Thanks.

Okay, I've blown off work long enough. It's time I actually get back to earning some pennies since I can't really work and bring as much moola in as I usually do. That's one of the downsides to my operation. Since I don't have the kind of job where I get vacation pay and because it's an elective surgery I can't collect unemployment while I'm out. So I'm doing paperwork at home and designing some fliers at home for my boss. I'm also planning on posting some things on eBay. Well, like I said, I have to go earn some pennies. I hope you all have a great OP day and if you don't, that's okay. Do your best. :grouphug:

:wave: Vicki

good morning everyone... i am back from brownsville texas... just a little bit tired lol!glad to see everyone is doing so well this week!