Well hiya ladieS!

Long time no write for me - but my excuse is the job is keeping me soooo busy! The new avatar is a pic my daughter took on graduation day which was about a month ago!

My weight is still very slowly coming down, feeling better for it and would like to get a little more off a little more quickly!!

Well so many doing so well, its great to see

Battle - you are winning the battle!!

Annie - OMG you are so amazing!! You will be thinner than me and soon!!! Well done hun. Hope you are managing ok with no major effects of the OP? I thought about that surgery a lot, but was worried about the long term effects so am interested to hear how it goes for you, weight loss wise you are an example to be reckoned with!

Nancy - WOW! YOu rock hun!! You are doing so great too, am so pleased for you to get to 100 off what an amazing acheivement!!!

Rat - oh the seat belt thing must have been a joy! I will cry when I get on a plane with room in my belt. I think asking for extenders is soo embarrasing I have done it a number of times.....I now just avoid holidaying abroad to not face that in front of my husband...its very sad how being big limits us!

Sharon - Hi and well done on your weight, you are looking very foxy!!

Ammi - Huge hugs with your recent skin problem, must have been a nightmare I really hope things are improving for you hun....hugs xx

Well those of you that don't know me I've been off and on here whilst completing my nurse training...have now been a qualified staff nurse for 3.5 months working full time on an oncology/haematology ward. Its great and I can definitely vouch for not letting a big weight around your middle stop you living your dreams. I used to wait to do my training until I was slimmer and then I just thought sod it I'm doing it anyway!! 12 hour shifts were very hard and still are, but I am pleased I got on with it and now am doing the job I do love..

I wish you all fun and happiness in the run up to Christmas. I am going to be around more if I can possibly find the time because I love reading about how everyone is doing. Will sign up for exercise for January too, want to get swimming again...

Love to all - Em xxx

Morning Ladies...

Rat WTG on the seatbelt thing!!! I have not flown since high school and I can not imagine trying it. Sucks cause I miss out on all sorts of trips! I am scared I won't fit. So we drive everywhere.

Monday was my first day for writing down everything I ate. I have not counted the calories yet...but I think i did okay. I will have to see when I get the calories in. Thanks to all for inspiring me to WRITE STUFF DOWN!!

Karenj: Welcome! I hope you love it here as much as I do. Everyone is so great. Sorry sweetie that you suffer from depression. I used to be in your shoes. I suffered from depression, agoraphobia and panic disorder so badly that I was put on Disability by CA state Dr. and ID state Dr.'s but, I am better now. So there is hope and hang in there. It was a long hard battle but with the proper meds, diet, exercise and good sleep I no longer have to take any meds and I haven't had any of the former symptoms in months. I also am working full time now which is something I haven't done since 2000 in November. So, again, hang in there and be patient and caring to yourself. Don't beat yourself up. How exciting about your new exercise equiptment. I hope it gets to you soon and you enjoy it.

Sharon: woo hoo on -5 and on feeling better. Sorry that you had to loose it while sick but hugs to you.

Sandy: YESSSSSS! I'm so happy that you lost 4 more pounds. You are doing so well. Keep on sweetie. You can do this thang!

Emily: Love your new avatar pic. So happy to see you back. I just love it when people come back and at least check in periodically. You were missed. Congrats on graduating and your new job. You look lovely.

Cyn: Good job writing everything down. Hope it all adds up great.

Well, It is almost 7 and I have a ton of paper work on my desk that I'd like to get to before work starts at 8 so I am going to head on out the door to work now. It is so chilly here. Not quite like where our Canadian sisters live but chilly none the less. Snow likey tonight which will actually warm things up a bit. I have an all day long meeting today and hopefully it won't bore me to death. lol. Drink enough water, stay op and move your booties.
Blessings,
Annie

Hello My Peeps,

I'm still in San Antonio at the conference. Today is a slow day at the conference for me, so I'm chilling and catching up on emails.

Battle, hope that plumbing thing is fixed soon and they don't have to mess with the walls. At least you don't own the place... phew. I'm glad the scale wh00sh finally happened! Our bodies act so similar. I'm glad mine isn't the only one that holds on and on and on and then finally lets go of fat.

Hiya Johnnie, I hope the scale is nice to you at the docs! This crazy texas weather is something I don't miss. I have no idea how to dress for the day.. hehe.

Heather, I had to travel a lot at my high weight too. I did the same thing on the plane this trip... put the tray table up and down cuz I could!! It went down with room to spare.. w00h00! When I was traveling at my highest weight, I actually bought seatbelt extenders. There's a place on the web to buy them. I have 3 that will fit most airplane types out there.

Story, I hope your infection goes away soon! You could be tired and drained from the infection. Your weight loss is doing great!! Keep up the great work.

Wow sandy, you are busy doing stuff for some good causes. You make me tired reading all about it! Wow about your blood clot in your leg!! I'm glad that's over with for you. Those are scary things. Yay on down 4 lbs!!

GGG good luck on the scale wh00shing! I'll be traveling back to DC on Thursday. It's the hurry up and wait thing that drives me nuts.

Xena, I hope your sinus headache left. I am sooooo jealous you saw Billy Joel! I've loved his stuff since he was barely known.

Annie, ugh, braces. I had those as a kid. I can't imagine having them as an adult. I still remember how sore my teeth were after an adjustment. Hang in there! You are doing so fabulous!!! At least during my traveling, I didn't have to deal with PMS. Phew.

Karenj, welcome!!! I also suffer from depression issues. I hope you didn't cancel your Dr's appt. Good deal getting a walk in! Post often here, these are a great bunch of peeps.

Hiya Sharon, congratz on your loss!!! I'm so glad you are feeling better. It's hard enough to be sick, and then not get support from your family. Ice storms are really bad because most of the power lines are above ground. The ice gets so heavy, it just snaps the big lines. I have a generator, two alternate heat sources and gas water heater for times like that. We haven't had an ice storm in Wash DC yet this year.

hello Emilymay! Congrats on your dream job! I know it's hard, but rewarding. The nursing industry needs more people as passionate as you.

Cyn, Keep up the good work on writing things down! You can do it!

Hugs and luv to all!
Ratkitten

Just checked with my family in Oklahoma, and they are all okay, and only one is without power. I remember many ice storms, and there were always power outages growing up. It seemed like we got more ice than we ever did snow. I remember them discussing burying powerlines, and it was always too expensive. Went through the same thing in Florida after hurricanes. They always discussed burying the lines, but it never got done because of money to do it, and more money to repair them if something went wrong. If the electricity went out here, at least we would still have heat. In Oklahoma, a lot of people have all electric homes.

Battle – You are looking great! I can’t imagine there would be a single person who doesn’t notice now.

Megawatt – I love the corset!

I have been really busy and I will continue to be for the next two weeks. We are having our annual audit early (starting Monday) at work and I am not ready at all. I will probably have to work all weekend to get everything done. Then I am driving down to visit with my parents for the Saturday and Sunday before Christmas to see my step-mother’s relatives. Then on Sunday night we are all driving back and my parents will be staying at my place for Christmas! As of yet I have no decorations up and the house is not guest ready, so there is lots to do there.

I have been battling some bad body image issues the last week or so. It is so strange how for so long I can feel so confident and then I get down lower than I have been in a long time and all of a sudden I am feeling the need to wear long sleeves in the gym to cover up my arms (skin sag issues). I didn’t end up doing that, but I did go buy some new t-shirts to work out in that are plain black and have longer arms (had to buy men’s – why is it that all the women’s’ shirts have such short arms?). I wonder if part of it is that I am now back to a weight where I was historically very unhappy with myself. On the way up, it was at about 300 that I discovered size acceptance and stopped hating myself for my size. I definitely have some body image work to do. I refuse to be negative about how my body parts look – especially in an exercise class!

Anyway, I can’t type and eat lunch at the same time so I better go.

Story: WTG on the -6 Hope the antibiotics and Claritin have kicked in and you are feeling better.

Annie: I hope your mouth feels better today and that your butt is not sore now from sitting all day today.

Karen: This is a great place to be with lots of support. Please don't put your doctor visit off, not feeling up to going is exactly why you should go.

Sharon: Glad you are feeling better & congrats on the 5 pounds gone.

Sandy: Congrats on your 4 pound loss also, especially while PMSing

Emily: Nice to meet you, I look forward to seeing you more often.

Cyn: Keep up the good work writing everything down, next step is counting calories. I find it makes a big difference for me.

Nancy: Keep positive about those body parts, yours are looking great girl!!

WI at the doc today was 340 That's 20 pounds gone since I last saw him 6 weeks ago and 50 pounds gone total. I'm celebrating by drinking water & staying OP

Johnnie

Hi everyone,

I'm feeling a little tired, but not too bad. I needed another couple of hours sleep. Maybe tonight.

Today I met with a new professional contact, and there was a subtle difference in the way I was looked at and treated. Today's contact saw that I was a woman, and he really looked at me. It's been many years, and I had forgotten how this feels. At some point I became a blob, both to myself and other people. I was a head floating above a body that was choking on its own fat. It was harder to be taken seriously. It happened incrementally, so I didn't realize on most days that I'd become the boiled frog. I'm sure it's just as much me as them. When I felt like a blob, I gave out blob vibes. Now that I'm happier, healthier, and more confident, I hold myself in a different way. People smile more at me, they are more courteous, they listen with different ears to what I am saying. I'm still very large, but must have stepped over some invisible threshold recently.

I dunno.
-------
EmilyMay, I love the new avatar. You are beaming. You have achieved a wonderful thing by finishing your studies and finding a new position. You are an inspiration.

Cyn, good job on writing down what you ate. Soon it will become habit.

Sharon, congratulations on losing 5 lbs. That's a big loss! Sorry you were sick, but now you're feeling better, and a loss is a loss.

Annie, have a great OP day today at work.

Rat, hi to you in San Antonio.

Catherine, glad your family in OK is ok.

Nancy: It is amazing how quickly it goes from feeling confident and attractive to feeling like a gross pig. I wish I had the antidote, but if I did I'd take some myself. FWIW, you look great.

Johnnie, congrats on the weight loss! You must be walking on air. Great job.

Hi Peeps

Much packing to get done tonight but the scale didn't whoosh - it gave up a quarter of a pound but it all is good.

Obviously at this point I have power - we lost power last night for about 10 hours in the ice storm. Fortunatley the temps warmed up a bit today while we got quite a bit of rain. Now the sun is going down and we are in for it they say since it is still raining. Making Mexico look even better.

Gotta run - need to pack while I can see what color things are. BTW - big NSV when I tried on some formal clothes I haven't had on in about a year - fit very nicely - not tight anywhere - I remember last time the sleeves were so tight - and they are sheer - I was so self-conscious. Not this time.

Hugs,
Carol

Hiya, folks! Well, the sinus headache is no more. We've been having such weird weather...85 one day, cold and rainy the next, back up to 75, then cold and rainy again...and that wreaks havoc with my sinuses.

Ratkitty - You would have loved the Billy Joel concert. He did quite a few from his earliest albums. My favorite moment of the night was when he did "Piano Man" and he stopped singing and let the whole crowd sing to him..."sing us a song, you're the piano man...sing us a song tonight....etc" That has to be an incredible moment for an artist hearing an entire arena full of people singing your song back at you.

Sharon - WTG on those 5 pounds down.

Battle - I do think as we lose weight and become more confident we exude a different vibe that people react to more positively. There is no question that overweight women are marginalized because of our appearance but I do believe at least part of it transcends just the appearance and has to do with our own feelings about ourselves. Anyway, I am glad you are feeling so good about yourself.


Nancy - I hear you on the body image issues. In past attempts at losing weight I would make progress and start feeling really good and confident and then somehow I would go right back to feeling fat and horrible. As always, I admire your ability and willingness to tune into what you are feeling and delve into it. I am sure that had gobs to do with the success you have had thus far.

Hello again Peeps!

Oh my Xena.. I would have LOVED that at the BJ concert. *dr00ls in jealousy*

Yay GGG! You have a safe trip, ok??

Battle and Nancy - Mentally, I swing between feeling blobbish to confident. When I am confident, I notice people treat me very differently. Then there that invisible physical size threshold that Battle talked about... I see it too! Everytime there is a noticable change in my appearance, I see how people treat me different. The first time that happened to me, I got angry. I'm not different inside! That was a long time ago and I wasn't prepared for that reaciton. Now I'm not so concerned with those reactions. As stated a bit in the sexuality thread, I'm going to have to face that I am female and not an "it" anymore when I lose more weight.

Hugs and Luv,
Ratkity

Rat: Have fun at the conference and don't work too hard.

Nancy and Battle: Hugs to you both. I have been there so many times and know it will come again. Just keep on plugging away and know that you are both so beautiful no matter what size, shape etc.

Johnnie: Yipeee to you on loosing 50 pounds. You are rockin it. Congrats

Carol: Oh, have so much fun on your trip. How exciting that the clothes are going to be fitting nicer allowing you to not be self conscience. Hugs.

Well, my butt survived the day. lol. My mouth is better now too. The meeting all day was..... not necessary in my opinion but oh well I'm the new guy so I just have to roll with it. lol. They served rolls and deli meats and cheeses for lunch with tons of potato chips and some tomato soup with cheese. I had brought some tuna and string cheese for lunch but I didn't eat that. I saved it for tomorrow. I ate a slice of the roast beaf and muenster cheese. no bread and a tiny bit of the tomato soup. It is funny that everyone notices if you don't eat like everyone else. No body said anything to anyone else about their huge sandwhiches and plates piled high with chips and cookies etc. but one person not eating draws attention and invitations to partake in the "good stuff". I was so proud of myself. We were surrounded all day with home baked cookies and I had people asking me to pass them to them. I didn't touch one nor was I tempted. I just have worked too hard to back track now for a taste of a cookie. Any way, it was a great day and I did lots of things that I feel proud of myself for. I like days like this. I never used to have them so I try to cherish them as they come.

Blessings to you all my friends,
annie

Annie So glad you had such a great day. I wasn't terrible, but I wasn't perfect either. BUT, much better than usual.
I got all my fudge made and half pertioned out, the carmel corn all made and packaged up too. Just maybe one more batch of fudge to make and a batch of chocolate covered pretzels.
I'm very sorry I don't have more time for personals. but I have to get out the door. My ride comes in about 5 minutes.
Hope all have a good day.

Annie -- WTG on passing up all that food. It helps so much to know we CAN do that!!!!!

Sandy: Great job making all that stuff. I have to bake a couple doz. cookies tonight for a church bake sale. UGH. lol. I am just so wiped out when I come home from work but I will get the strength someplace. Have a good day.

Heather: It sure is nice to be in charge and not have something else in charge of me. Have a great day.

Blessings to you all,
off to work now.
Annie