We are a group of individuals who weigh or have weighed 300+, or near there. This group was formed to provide a place for others like us to find support and hope. We are aware of the distinct problems that come with weighing over 300 lbs.

We want to invite everyone to join us in our journey.
We share laughter and tears.
We share what works for us and what doesn't.
We often use a "Topic of the Day" for discussion.

Motivational Monday
Tuesday Tips
Wednesday Wish List .. and What you are doing to obtain it.
Thankful Thursday
FUN Friday ... don't wait until you lose your weight.
Sit-up Saturdays - any physical activity
Share your Success Sunday

These are not required topics ...just ideas to share. We often find them very helpful. We also share heartaches and fears ... joys and celebrations.

We have several extra threads going on simutaneously such as Monthly Challenges, Weekly Weigh-ins, Recipes, Bios, and more. Please feel free to check them all out.

We have found this thread to be more than just a support group...
we have found it to become a home. We invite you to join us.

WELCOME!

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Greetings Chickies!

I'm just doing a quick pop-in and noticed you were on post 32 so I started a new one!

I did BAD last night. Red Lobster Cheddar Bay Biscuits. Need I say more?

But today is another day and I'm done beating myself up...so try, try again!

I just got done checking out the new photos! Kayley! glad to see you back! Luan- wish I'd done before pictures...and looked as good then as you do now! and AMMI! You Look FABULOUSO on your Gazelle! Inspriational even!

To those on the move - Keep up the good work!
To those stalled - Keep up the good work too!!! You'll get there!

Hello my darlings!!

Lilion--Thanks for the encouragement on my cat. I'll get over the guilt eventually, I'm sure.

Weighing in on Wednesday sounds like a good idea. I'll have to consider that.

Didnt know that about the "green gunk"--good to know so I dont waste my $$ on copays in the future. I'm feeling much better now, thankfully.

Sounds like you had a fun weekend! I am a champion shopper like that, too. Seems like if I am just walking the trails or something I get a lot more tired than if I am shopping! I can shop all day and not get tired--I even outlast my skinny friends. Great to hear you got some good bargains! I love a deal like that. What is DS going to be for Halloween? My nephew wants to be Link from the Legend of Zelda video games and my niece wants to be a princess (again!!! ). At least they will be cheap costumes because the Link costume we can make pretty easy and my niece already has a lot of princess dress up clothes that she can wear. I love Halloween!! (sorry, I've been dying to use some of these Halloween smilies!! )

After your busy weekend I'm glad you allowed yourself to relax yesterday. It was a good day for it, with the weather being a little colder.

Annie--I usually try to go to Curves 5x/week. I know they say 3x/wk but I guess I took that as them saying to come at least 3x/wk. I told the manager there I had come 5x that week and she was proud of me--she didnt say anything about it being bad that I came that often. She used to be an aerobics instrctor so I would think she would know...but who knows, maybe I am wrong. Who can figure out this excercise stuff??

Lavandel--Super on the -10 so far!! You are rocking it, girl!! Great to hear you are sticking to your plan 100%! Yay for you!! Even if you cant excercise the plan is what is really important. I tried excercising at Curves 5x in a week and just eating whatever I wanted, just to see if I would lose weight just because of the excercise. I didnt lose 1 lb!! But when I stick to my plan and dont excercise much, I know I am sure to lose. Weight Watchers (the plan I'm on) doesnt even suggest starting to excercise until like your 3rd or 5th week anyway. So you are doing great!!

Oh, and I'm glad you asked what the acronyms mean (TOM, etc) as I was lost on that for a while too and thought I was just really dim! The one that really got me was the FFM!

Melissa--Oh, Melissa I am so sorry you are up 2! What is the deal with that dang scale???? You have been doing so well and excercising so much it just doesnt make sense that 2 lbs can be fat--it just doesnt make sense!! There must be some water retention going on or something, although I cant imagine where it would be coming from as it sounds like you are making good choices. I just can understand it. I will be sending you good vibes for some of this:

Great to hear you are still excercising! You are doing so great, I really hope you show a loss next time you weigh!

Jen--E coli?? Yipes! That sounds pretty scary. I really hope you start to feel better soon. Being naseated and constantly running to the restroom is the WORST! Well, I guess since you cant eat a whole lot and are "eliminating" anything you DO eat, the lack of excercise shouldnt set you back THAT much.

Amanda--Sorry to hear you werent pleased with the loss. I know, 1 or 2 lbs doesnt seem like much to me either sometimes.

I'm glad you were able to do your excercise and not be sore! That sure is a great accomplishment and a super NSV!

Its getting cold here in NE, too. They are expecting snow in some parts of NE but thankfully not here. Its too early for snow, dangit!! We are supposed to have our first freeze tonight, though. My friend was talking about getting her furnace ready to go for tonight (pilot lit, etc) and I was like "furnace? what furnace?" I am SOOOO stingy when it comes to turning on the heat. My goal each year is to not turn it on until Dec 1st!! Last year I didnt even turn it on when it snowed in Nov (only like 1"). And I live in a basement apt. I just think natural gas prices are outrageous and dont want to pay them until I have to!

newsnerd--That is awesome that George Clooney was in your town! Awesome! That's pretty cool when something like that happens. Now, I'm sure our Luan sees celebrities all the time, but when you live in places like NE and NC we tend to get pretty excited! One time Harrison Ford's plane had to do an emergency landing at Epply Airfield in Omaha. He was spotted at a strip club in Lincoln!!

Ayanna--I, too, used to struggle with eating out for the same reasons--living alone, washing dishes, etc. But I find that if I stay strictly OP there isnt a whole lot of places I can eat out at, so I am forced to eat at home.

I wish you luck getting your excercise in! You will find that once you get in the habit it wont be so much of a chore, just like drinking enough water, etc.

Katt--Thanks for the support on my apt and my cat. Boy do I do a lot of complaining on here, huh???

Yeah, I think maybe I have just stuffed all those bad feelings about myself down so far that they no longer surface much anymore. But I know they are still there. I think I just dont deal with them because they are painful. But its not like I dont have them. No wonder a lot of us struggle with depression, too!

Good job staying OP and excercing so much! You are doing great! I certainly hope you are wrong about the plateau!

Michelle--I'm sorry to hear you didnt see a loss this time. That can be very frustrating. Try not to be TOO hard on yourself, my dear. It can be so difficult when you are sick.

I'm sorry your ankle started hurting when you tried to walk. I dont blame you for letting it all out. One day a couple weeks ago I came home and laid in bed and cried and I had no idea why I was so upset. I definitely think that is important to let it all out sometimes.

Sharon--Glad to hear your son got a kick out of my outfit! That is cute that he thought it was you! I guess our hair color is a lot alike!

Yes, Wilhelm being cared for is the only thing that is keeping me from feeling completely and utterly guilty about getting him declawed. Poor baby--I just feel bad that I am doing this to him so late in his life. I mean, he's like 3 years old and I just feel bad that if this was going to have to be done it wasnt done when he was a baby.

I'm sorry to hear the meds arent working for you! What are they for, depression? I take Effexor and I really like it. Just a suggestion. That is so frustrating when you have such bad side effects like that!! Is your DH walking on eggshells around you now??

Kim--Good for you for being realistic about your schedule. Just look at this way--what you are doing now is a LOT better than what you were doing before!!!

Kayley--HEY glad to see you are back!! I'm back too!!

I'm sorry to hear Andrew had some complications but I am glad he is better now. That is great that he is able to go back to work.

I'm sorry to hear your schedule is so hectic but it sounds like you are enjoying it! Are you still working at the newspaper?

That is a great idea to start buying stuff for your new place now. It is such a burden having to buy all that crap when you are first starting out, in addition to have to pay 1st mos rent, deposit, renting a truck, etc. Dont forget to check the thrift stores because you can get really good deals there sometimes!!

Hey, how much have you lost total? You can really see it in your face!

toofatforu--I'm sorry you are feeling down today! I hope you start to feel better soon. I know how frustrating that can be.

Ammi--Sorry to hear you are so busy as I sure enjoy your posts, but on still getting your excercise in! I'm sure you look so cute on the Gazelle!!

Oooo oooo!! "Lost" is on tonight!! I am SOOOOO excited!!! After watching the 1st episode of the season I have more questions now that ever!!!

Valerie--Glad to see you could at least post a little bit today even with your tight schedule as I enjoy reading your posts!

Good for you for sleeping in!! I dont know what the weather has been like in OH but it has been dreary and cold here. Today we have a high of 48!! I real scorcher, huh?? I love sleeping in cold weather...

I wish you luck in seeing the 260s. You have done so well!


As for me, I am super tired again today. I think a lot of this is stress. I didnt work out at Curves last night because I had to pick up some prescriptions and do some other stuff and I just didnt have time. Apparently I am a masochist because I decided just YESTERDAY that I am having a garage sale this weekend. I need to get rid of all of my Mary Kay invetory before I move because I dont want to have to lug it with me and I could really use the money right now. I also have some other clothes and stuff to sell, too. Not sure how the sale is going to work out with me living in an apt, but no one really uses our front entrance much so hopefully I can just have it on the front porch of our building.

So anyway, I have tons to do. And I havent even started packing for my move yet!! And I dont know for sure if I am getting that apt yet and I have already given my notice at my current place and I have to give notice at my work tommorrow but I dont know if I even have a place to move to yet and UUUGGGG!!! I am just having a lot of anxiety right now. Its like all these things I didnt think of keep coming up and my funds to move are running out and ARG!! I had to pay $70 for 2 prescriptions yesterday because my insurance SUCKS!!! My insurance at my old job was MUCH better. But it will be a LOT worse when I dont have insurance so I want to get them filled now under insurance while I still can. And then Wilhelm's declaw is another $175 and... I did get 1 of my credit cards paid off so that will help if I need some extra $ to fall back on, so that's good.

I excercised Monday but didnt yesterday and probably wont today. I just have so much to do I just need to get home after work and get it done. I know exercise is a good stress reliever, but its hard for me to see that when I need to be spending that time doing something else. I have a hard time relaxing or sleeping when I have so much to do and just have a constant on-edge feeling. But then I feel guilty for not excercising and that just compounds the stress. At least I am still OP but I worry about not excercising, like it is going to really affect my weight loss. I am just so tired!! But I am sticking 100% to plan. I just dont want to get out of the excercise habit. Maybe I should start doing a workout video in the morning before work. I cant do Curves before work because it is too far from my house for me to drive there, workout, and then drive back home to get ready and go to work (they dont have showers there). Yeah, I think that is what I will do.

I dropped Wilhelm off at the vet today for his declawing. He was not amused. They took him out to weigh him and his tail was puffed up and his fur on his back was standing up and he was growling! No wonder my other vet called him "Crabby Cat".

Oh, I saw my niece's face last night. Apparently Wilhelm got her pretty good. She's got a bruise about the size of a nickel under her chin.

Oh BTW--Does anyone know how to take the measurements of a coat? I am selling my winter coat on eBay and someone wants the measurements of it and I have no idea how to do that. Do you just measure the chest and hips straight across and multiply by 2 and then measure the shoulders and sleeves? Or should I measure the inside of it?

Yeah, I am totally a masochist trying to do all this at once. But it will get done--I tend to perform better under stress. But I have to stop doing this to myself. Its not like I procrastinate, its just that I dont think that far in the future sometimes.

Hi All!

Jen, Did the dr rule out diverticulitis? I have it and I was sick for 6 weeks before it was
finally diagnoised. They had to do a scope up the bum test. It was't pleasant, but it wasn't terrible. So, no more blackberries for me and I have to be careful about tomatoes, Can't have eggplant and cukes with the seeds. I hope they get this under control for you soon.


Melissa, Sorry about :badscale: I had a bad experience yesterday that I'll talk about later
when I'm done with personals. Try to hang in there....that's what I keep telling myself.

Amanda, you're so lucky to have access to It's cold and icky here today too and we may have snow tonight or tomorrow. Kinda early even for Indiana.

Ammi, I love the pics of you and the gazelle. I can't wait til DH gets ours together.

Ok, ya know how a few weeks ago we talked about not seeing ourselves as heavy or thinner? Well, I watched the video of my daughter's wedding last night. I was so upset!
I look like a huge basketball with a head! I've never seen myself this big in my mind. It was so depressing! I didn't go do anything regressive or anything like that, but it's so over whelming when I watched the video. I don't have any pics to post yet. It may be a couple weeks, but I will post them so I have something to compare to down the road.
Surely, I'm not the only one who was shocked at self photos or videos. All I could do was
It's like how did I really get here.
I'm so upset with myself ......ashamed actually, of my weight. DH says to stay focused on small goals and victories, like the tank shell fitting over my hips, no gain at tom, etc. I know all that in my head, but it's my heart that's killin me at the moment.
I guess I want someone to tell me these emotions will pass and I'll get a handle on it by getting mad at myself or something, but right now the shame is devestating.

Thanks for being here to listen. DH isn't really sympethitic and that's ok. He has his weight issues too, and is supportive. It's probably a good thing that he doesn't encourage me to feel sorry for myself. Who knows where that would lead. He encourages me to walk etc.
Anyway, thanks again for listening. I hope I can get some suggestions on how redirect these negative emotions into something positive.

Sandy

Hey ladies... once again I only have a minute. Boy this week has been nutso!! Back to better times next week after my big scrapbook retreat this coming weekend. One of our assignments is to create a 2 page layout about ourselves. Hmmm.. this could be too interesting! I started working on it last night and am not nearly ready for it! *L* Tonight hubby and I are going to the movies to see "Trailer Park Boys" Yeah! For those that arent familiar they are 3 trashy guys who smoke dope, drink and get into a lot of trouble. It started as a cheap cable show about 2 hours from here and now they have hit the big screen. I certainly am not their biggest fan but hubby likes them and well, he did have surgery for me last week

Anyhoo... nice to see you Kayley! Lavendel WTG on the 10lbs!! keep it up! I am out of time... I'll try to get back tonight between the movie and the Biggest Loser!

Brenda

I got a call from the vet around 1:30. I was at lunch so I didnt get the message until 2:30. The vet said the declaw went fine but afterward Wilhelm started to have trouble breathing. He started to turn blue so they intubated (sp?) but he kept getting worse and his heart stopped. They were unable to rescucitate him and he died. They did an x-ray and apparently he had an enlarged heart that he's probably had since birth. The vet said its not something they could've detected w/o an x-ray (I believe him--this is the 1st time he's treated him so its not like he's worried about liability for not catching it earlier). He said even without the surgery it would've ultimately led to his premature death at some point.

I am just beside myself. I am consumed with guilt. He deserved so much better than to die in the panicked state he did, with tubes in throat and all these strange people around working on him in a strange place. And the one person, the ONE person he depended on for everything--food, shelter, comfort--the only person he had ever known--was no where to be found. It is MY selfishness that caused this. ME. He didnt deserve to die like this. He was only 3 years old. But it is my fault. And I have to live with that.

Oh Amy. . . I'm so sorry to hear about your cat. I can imagine how difficult it is for you right now and I'm certainly thinking about you. Please don't feel like this is your fault. There are just things that we have to do sometimes in our lives that require making decisions that are difficult. Please let me know if there's anything I can do. I know we're not close together right now, but we will be when you move.

Oh Amy! I'm so, so sorry to hear about Wilhelm. I know you are blaming yourself, but you shouldn't really! Declawing is such a simple procedure and you even chose the least invasive, more costly, method to try to save him any undue stress. You had no way of knowing and you KNOW that to be true. I'm sure he wasn't panicked and afraid - he was probably still sedated, at least to some extent. I'm sure he didn't suffer. I'm so sorry!

Amy - OMG I am so sorry! Please don't blame yourself. When you did this it was with the intention of taking care of him and making sure he had a great home. There was no way you could have known the procedure would result in his death. It isn't your fault.

Amy, What sad and shocking news. Nancy's right. You were doing your best to do the best for him. There is no way the vet or you, could have seen this coming. I am just so so sorry. My thoughts are with you, Honey.

Hello All,

I actually have no emails, so thought I would write another post. Yay two in one day

Kayley – I looked at your photos, you can really see a difference in your face, it has so much shape now Apart from that of course you and Andrew looked like you were having a fab time in the pics.

Lilion – thanks so much, I like to hear myself being described as fabuloso I just wish Daren had taken ‘before’ photos of me on the rider too because believe me, it was a tight squeeze on the thing when I first started.

I have said it before, I will say it again, as our diets are actually life style changes, and as our lives are never going to be ones where we can never go out and enjoy a nice meal, fattening or not, well then it’s perfectly ok to have those meals out now. I am glad you don’t feel bad about it, there really is no need to.

Lavandel – 10 lbs in two weeks, that is awesome I bet you are still smiling about it.

Amy – Oh dear Amy, I am so very very sorry to hear about your darling kitty. I am so upset for you, I even cried. I lost a cat many years ago and I have never ever had the heart to have another one since. I really feel your pain. Try not to feel guilty, if he had had to have any surgery done ever it would have happened, it just happened to happen now. And like the vet said, even without surgery it would have happened. You were getting him declawed so that he could go to a good home with your sister, you were doing what was best for him. So please please don’t feel guilty

Sandy – I am sorry you got so upset seeing yourself on the video of your daughter’s wedding. Try to think positively though, you are doing something to remedy your weight now, and you should be proud of that, so very proud. One day in the not too distant future you will be looking at that video and you will be reminded of how big you were, but also how slim you are and you will feel proud of all the weight you lost Also back to the present, don’t be ashamed of your size. None of us get to being over 300 lbs just because we love food, and are gluttons. There is normally another issue involved, be it comfort eating, or health issues etc. So not only do we have to learn how to lose the weight, we have to learn how to deal with the issues that made us get this big in the first place. So please please don’t be ashamed of yourself

Thanks for the compliments on my rider pictures. I hope you get to try yours out soon, nag hubby to put it together. I did mine myself, well 90% of it anyway, so it will be a doddle for your hubby to do.

Nancy – the rider I have doesn’t have resistance, but you can get other versions of it that have pistons on them which do indeed make the work out harder or easier. Personally I don’t see the need for them because depending on which angle you put your body at makes it’s own resistance. It’s hard to explain, but if you see any of Tony Little promo ads for the rider you will have a better idea.

Brenda – did you enjoy Trailor Park Boys at the movies? Daren loves the series, so I am sure he would love the film.

Hey you haven’t updated your blog in ages, I hope you get around to it soon, I love reading what you write.

Amanda – that’s pretty awesome that you did two hours of water aerobics and didn’t end up sore the next day.

Newsnerd – sorry your having a snowball effect with your transport problems and I guess your finances. Robbing Peter to pay Paul isn’t working this time then? I hope you can sort something out

How’s Clooney Mania in your town now Is he still there? Are you a fan?

Katt - thanks for the congrats on my weight loss. I hope I am congratulating you this week after you weigh in and see you are in the 280s!!

How are you feeling now, have you recovered from the Glandular Fever, I hope so

Michelle – You should be proud of yourself that you even tried to get some walking in despite having a bad ankle. I am sorry you got so upset when you couldn’t do it, did you at least feel a little better after your cry

I know everybody says it’s not good to worry about things, such as your upcoming tests for skin cancer, but as much as that’s good advice, at least if you do worry, then when you get good results you have an immense sense of relief that is the ultimate natural high. Or if, god forbid you have bad results, well it helps that you were expecting it all along So you worry all you need to my friend, and I just hope you get that high at the end of it all

Valerie – I loved all the pics you put on the pic page, I am glad you shared them. Sorry you slept in (was it today) I hate it when that happens.

Annie – yuck I hate cottage cheese, wish I didn’t because a lot of people like yourself seem to love it.

I am so sorry that you are going to need to have surgery to remove that lump on your back. Nooooooooo, I can’t stand it, I am going to be so worried. Hopefully in the end it will all be worth it, but you know my views on surgery…….it SUCKS Any idea when you will have it done?

Ok I better make a move now. I just saw Amy’s post and it’s upset me too much to concentrate on writing any more posts. I just went back and got rid of the trivial stuff I had written to her, wrote my new comments, and now I am going to say goodnight.

Take care all,

Hugs,

Ammi

Amy i am so sorry about your cat.. i love cats dearly so this really touches my heart.

Quote:
Originally Posted by NoLifeWithoutHorses

I'm hoping to get that scale moving again myself. I've been SO religious about eating and exercise. The bugger just CAN"T stall out already. I even saw 2 days of 274, but then it climbed up, and has now settled solidly back in at 275. I wanna see the 260's so bad, and I want it NOW! I'm gonna go give my treadmill a little time. C-YA later!


Well you've sure got MY sympathy! My scale is stuck so badly I am looking for oil can icons on here to put on my ticker and unclog the stupid thing!

Glad you are hanging in there... I too just keep thinking okay, work a little harder and the stupid Fairy Fat Mother will come. Yes I am calling her stupid... I used to be careful about insulting her for fear she would avoid me but she obviously has it in for me anyway.

Valerie, someday our day will come and the scale will actually go DOWN. And we will probably be so surprised we will fall clear off of it!

Ammi, great pix! Wow you are looking great, woman!!

Lavendal I love your new avatar too!!!

Amy I am so sorry to hear about your kitty cat!!!

Greetings to others... I need to go get some dinner. Oh and someone asked if my lack of weight loss could be a medical problem... thanks for the concern but I am fairly sure it is not since I just had lab work and it all came back great. I think it is just the FFM being stubborn.

Val - Hey hey hey!!!! It’s good to BE back! Hopefully, I’ll be able to post more...shhhhh! I’m on the computer right now, at work. No one’s here but me, so I can post without worry. Hehe. I’m so excited about us co-habitating, too! I can’t stop BUYING stuff for the apartment...

Thanks so much for the comments about my pics. I’ve only lost 60 pounds to date, and those pictures were taken back in July. Haven’t taken any in a while, since I’ve been so angry at myself lately...