I'm back, and I'm on Pre-Op Yet Again :)

OK, so it looks like it has been almost a year since I last posted. So much has happened in that time, but the main point of this post is that I'm going under the knife yet again. After having my 2 beautiful baby boy twins in December 14, I never got my restriction back and never felt satiated again. I had fills/unfills of .1 cc and it would either cause me to be so tight I couldn't drink water or so loose that I could eat anything. So, since Dec 14, I have been jumping through the insurance hurdles to have my band removed. Thankfully, in Feb 15, I was able to have it done. Barely any pain, thankfully! It was nothing like when the band was originally put in and I had unbelievable pain.  Well, after that removal, I decided to pursue a revision surgery, and am thankful that I was granted approval. So, yesterday, I started my 2 week pre-op and will have revision to sleeve on 8/3. I really never thought I would have to go through yet another surgery to be healthy, but here I am. I am doing this not just for my health, but to be here for my beautiful baby boys and husband. I'm not sure how many people are still blogging at this point, so I might be talking to myself, and that's ok. I like to have a diary of where I've been and where I'm heading, so hopefully I can continue to keep updates coming in the midst of my busy life with the munchkins. Here are a couple of pics :)

8 months:

10 months:

 

1 year: 

16 months:

I'm the worst blogger....

I, apparently, am not a good blogger like I intended to be when I first got this band. I thought I would be funny and witty like Amy from Cheese and Sunkist blog, but no such luck. I just can't seem to bring myself to blog all the time; however, I am here and following others and really struggling with my band after giving birth to my twins in December. I had gotten all of my fluid removed after finding out I was pregnant with twins and have been trying to get back that "green" area where I felt a good restriction without being too tight...alas, it hasn't been easy and I'm still not there.  Yesterday, I went to get a fill yet again...after just having some removed about a month and a half ago. I had .2 removed then because I was getting stuck and everything was hard to eat so I had started eating the "slider" foods just to eat. Well, after having that .2 removed, I lost my restriction almost completely and was able to eat whatever again...doesn't mean I should have eaten whatever, but I did :(  Anyway, I went back yesterday for a fill and we decided to add back .15 as they thought maybe my band was just irritated before. Well, when we viewed me drinking the barium under flouro, my doc noticed a small pouch dilation and that I was having reflux, even though I couldn't feel it. What the? So, they left the fill in, but I'm taking it back to basics and going through the mushies, then soft food and trying to focus on the number of times I chew and small bites. I never realized how small of bites you were supposed to take...they told me yesterday the bites should be the size of a man's thumb nail!!! Well, for sure, that hasn't been the size of any of my bites ;)  So, I'm now on My Fitness Pal and trying to track and follow my old weight watchers routine, but focusing on proteins and veggies more. I really hope I can work this thing and lose the pregnancy weight, as well as continuing on to try to lose more. Otherwise, it looks like I may have to have some sort of revision surgery. I'd really like to succeed with this band and need to realize its a tool and not just a quick fix...as those of us know who have one. Thanks for letting me rant. Hope to be back to blogging more often to keep me accountable...but in the meantime...here is a pic of me and my boys that are now 7 1/2 months old...just love them!

GO NY GIANTS!!!

 A little sleepy in the below pic, but I just love their eyes!

I'm back!!! With 2 new baby boys.... :)

I know it's been a super long time since I've written, which I see has been the norm for a bunch of the blogs I follow, but I promise there was good reason. I had a complete unfill back in June 2013 as I found out I was pregnant with twin boys. I went through a hell of a pregnancy towards week 27. I had severe hip pain, my pelvic bone separated, got pregnancy-induced carpal tunnel syndrome and my knees were giving out. However, I wouldn't change any of that because on 12/18/13 (albeit 6 weeks early), we welcomed 2 baby boys into the world: Christian John 7:15PM, 18.5 inches and 4 lbs 3 ozs and Logan Elijah 7:24PM, 17.5 inches and 3lbs 12 ozs. They spent 3 weeks in the NICU, but came home with us after the new year. I have been super busy trying to care for these babies and have been so blessed, but SOOOO busy :)  Here is a pic of our boys at 4 months:

Some of you had asked how the band affected pregnancy because you were also worried about it. I had absolutely no band related issues at all. The only thing was that I gained a majority of my weight back because I was instructed to get the total unfill since there were 2. 

I finally got all of my fills back in to bring me right to almost where I was prior to taking the fluid out, so I am now trying to get back on track. I really hope everyone is doing well and would love to hear how you have progressed since I've been gone!

Complete Unfill and Other News!

So, I realize it has been a significant amount of time since I have blogged...several months... Well, let me fill you all in on what has been going on with me. I had a complete unfill in June. Have a gained weight? YEP...Am I okay with that...YEP!  Did I have band issues or PB'ing episodes that caused me to have this unfill? YEP.  Let me fill you in on why I decided a complete unfill was necessary.  Well, hubby and I have been trying for quite some time to get pregnant and I am happy to say that we have now accomplished that task. However, we are not only pregnant with one baby, but we have two boys in the oven :)  We are having TWINS! They are technically due 1/28/14, but since they are twins they move the date to 1/7, which happens to coincide with the date my awesome father passed away. So, we are hoping I can make it to that date and offset the sadness with the happiness of these two boys. For some reason when I got pregnant, not sure if it was hormones or what, my great level of fill was no longer great. I could barely get any real food down at all and was beginning to have problems with "slider" foods as well, even drinks at one point. I talked to the doctor who told me I could have 1/2 the fill removed now and 1/2 later, but he suggested a complete unfill since we knew there were 2 inside me.  I decided that was the way to go.  I have gained approximately 20 lbs since becoming pregnant and expect to gain quite a bit more since they say you need to gain more with twins even if you are overweight to begin with. Here is a pic of me at 4 weeks and last week when I hit 20 weeks.

I apologize for not blogging but we were going through so much emotionally that I just couldn't bring myself to do it until I knew that they were past the most difficult stages. Apparently there is a thing called "vanishing twin syndrome" where one twin could be there at 8 weeks and then they won't be there at 12 weeks because they get reabsorbed back into the body, so needless to say that kind of had me freaked out and worried. I truly do intend to get my fill put back, or at least some, when they are born, but the docs advise I should be careful what I do until I complete the breast feeding stage because the babies need the nutrients. I hope all of you are doing awesome on your journey and yoru lives are as happy as mine is right now :)

Finally!

Well..I've finally hit my biggest scale victory to date. This week I lost 5 lbs, which is absolutely freaking amazing considering where I am in this journey.....BUT, that's not even the victory :)  I have finally reached the # on the scale which is the lowest I've been in my adult life, as a matter of fact I'm even 35 lbs below where I graduated from high school!!! This feels so good. I was quite afraid my band wasn't going to help me get to goal, but when I started tracking my food it said I was eating too little calories to lose the weight. As soon as I increased the # of calories and continued to bump up the walking and mountain bike riding, BAM, it started dropping. I'm down 11 lbs this last month which is awesome considering I had gained 6 while on vacation during that time. I am refocused and ready to do this! I can't wait to be able to go to Great Adventure and other them parks without the fear of whether I will fit on the rides with my extremely physically fit husband....lol...thank you all for your help, support, guidance and just being there with blogs for me to read and gain inspiration! We WILL do this!

OH CRAP...I just noticed ANOTHER victory too!!! I now have less weight to go than I've already lost...WOOO FREAKING HOO!!! I'm down 72.5 and have approximately 70 to go to get to my initial goal weight of 185....not sure if that will be my goal weight or not as I've NEVER been small enough to know if it will look good or not. I still want curves and don't want to be skinny, per se, so I will cross that bridge WHEN I get there....very excited!

WOOO HOOOO I'm Obese :)

YAY, I am no longer SUPER obese...lol...my BMI is finally 39.9 so I'm out of the super morbidly obese range...party time!!! That was one of my initial NSV's, so I'm super excited....Now, leave to vacation in the Florida Keys, so I have to keep all those Tropical drinks alone...:) Hopefully, the fact that I'm going scuba diving and going to be walking a lot will help stave off any vacation gain...and on another note...I found the Mountain Bike I want for my, dare I say it, 40th birthday coming up in a few weeks...Blah for age, but Yay for the bike :)  Here's a pic below...I'm a newbie to MTB, but I think I'll love it...hope so!

Well, well, well...it's been awhile ;)

So, no excuses for not blogging. I have not been too busy, nor too depressed, nor anything...I've come to realize I am not the best blogger in the world, but I am definitely one of the best LURKERS :) Since my last post I've lost a couple of lbs..I'm down 58.5 as of now. I was at a plateau for a long while and started using my Fitness tracker this past week, and its telling me that I am probably getting too few calories and that may cause my metabolism to slow...plus now that I look at what I'm tracking, not all the food has been the best choices, but the majority of the time have been pretty good. I'm going to start trying to "Faithfully" track and start drinking my water again and just get back to the basics. I also am still unsure if I'm actually in the "green zone". I hear people talk of this elusive place, and I just don't know if I'm there. Anyway, besides that, I guess its time to post some pix, since it has been awhile. This past weekend we went to Club Pure in Queens, NY to go see a freestyle show (its a type of club / latin house music) and below are some recent pix of me and some friends/freestyle artists, and of course my hubby, who is in the bright blue shirt to the left :)  Still have about 85-100 to go to get to goal!!!

Me and the Guys!

Just Me!

Me & a friend at the Hard Rock Atlantic City 3/8/13 where my husband performed!

My band is strange....

but then again so am I, so hopefully this will be great, long-lasting relationship! What I mean by strange is yet again, I don't know whether I am to filled or not enough. Yesterday I was able to eat Szeuchan (sp?) chicken and white rice (maybe 1-1/2 cups) no problem and right now i could only eat 1 egg, 1/2 sl toast and 1 strip of turkey bacon...which is awesome. I really don't know if I'm eating the amount I'm supposed to, too little or too much. I sometimes feel like I'm eating way too much, but if I think about what I used to eat, it seems so little. Well, that's my rant...so be it! I'm down 1/2 lb since my last post. It's going really slowly right now. I'm still walking 1/2 hour a day at least 5 days a week, but I really need to step up the exercise. It's been so dang cold I haven't felt like doing much. Oh well...off I go to figure out something more physical to do during this snowy, cold weather. Hope you all survived the Blizzard if you were in New England!

Can't Believe It Has Been a Year - 1 Year Bandiversary 1/26/13

Soooo...I meant to write this on the actual date of my "Bandiversary" but it just didn't happen, so here goes. It's been a year since I was banded. To date, I have lost 55.5 lbs. I really must say that I did think it would be more by now. I know I didn't even feel some type of restriction until July and didn't get to full restriction until December 2012 (if I'm even there!!!), but I guess I thought it would be a bit easier. Don't get me wrong, I am very happy with the loss and always do say that I would like to lose more slowly so that my skin will have a fighting chance; however, I think deep inside I really would have liked to see it come off a bit more quickly than this.  I have had 9 fills since I was banded, as my doctor was pretty stingy with the fills in the beginning and towards the end I didn't want as much as they were going to give me because I had heard so many horror stories about being overfilled.  I honestly must say that I don't even know if I am at my green zone at this point because often I can still eat a lot and don't get stuck on a lot of things, including bread/pizza/rice! It's quite strange I tell you...sometimes I can only eat small portions and others I can eat a lot more. I have 8cc's in a 10cc band, so I feel like I should be there by now.  I am truly jealous of those that have "rocked their band" and have done so well. I do exercise by walking 30 -40 minutes at least 5 days a week and I do use dumbbells to tighten up my arms, but other than that I really haven't done much. I have been okay with my eating at times and at other times I have not been so good. I do know that I can do a lot better and that I need to refocus my efforts, control my portions and make better choices. I know this band is a tool and I have to learn to work with it, instead of trying to fight it. 

I am still happy I got the band, as I have lost 2-3 sizes in clothing and just feel better in general. I guess I'm just a little jealous of the people I know that have been getting sleeved or gastric and they have surpassed my weight loss and they are only out of surgery 3-4 months. I promise myself that I will continue to put forth greater effort in making this band work for me, and I will continue to follow other blogs that give me inspiration, like Lap Band Gal!, Once Upon A Time...In the Land of Cheese and Sunkist and Athena Banded Warrior! 

My 40th birthday (that's just crazy!!!) is right around the corner in a few months, and I have asked my Mom to give me $$$ towards a Mountain Bike so that I can start incorporating a new form of exercise into my life, that I actually think I might enjoy. I've already mapped out some trails that I can start with and me and my husband are ready for some warmer weather.  I really want to thank you all for your support over the year and I hope you keep up with your blogs as well, as you are one of the greatest support systems a person can have!

Does Anyone Else Get Excited to Update Their Ticker?

Of course...only if its going in the direction that you want...lol. Well, today I was able to update my ticker and it shows another 3 lb loss since 2 weeks ago, so I'm super happy.This was over Christmas vacation, so to me that is a big accomplishment! I finally have most of my brain on right and am making pretty good choices.

On a separate  note, does anyone else experience the following after a fill? For some reason right after I get out of my mushy stage, which is about 3-4 days, I can kind of eat more and all types of things. I really can't figure it out, but then in about 1 1/2 to 2 weeks, I finally get the restriction that I expected.  Just curious because this seems to happen to me with all fills...strange.

Also, I want to thank Athena Banded Warrior http://athenabandedwarrior.blogspot.com/ for stopping by and offering up some encouragement. She is a true inspiration to me, and I think I may take up Mountain Biking when it gets a little warmer.  Of course we have no mountains, so it will be more like trail riding or hill climbing when I get strong enough, but it sounds like a great workout that might actually be fun! So thanks for your blog...:)  Hope you all are doing well and heading the right way in this journey. I must say I really did think it would have been a lot easier and not as much work, but anything positive and worth achieving is worth the effort, so I'm going to continue striving!

I'm still here, just been a lurker lately :)

So, I just wanted everyone to know that I'm still here. I really can't think of fabulous things to say like some of the other blogs, so I've been more of a lurker than a poster. However, I didn't want you to think that I've completely fallen off the wagon, although I haven't done great. I am still content with how I'm progressing, albeit slow.  As of 12/14/12, I am down 50.5 lbs. I realize that this is very slow compared to some of the success stories I have read, but I'm still going gradually in the right direction so I'm pretty cool with it. Sometimes I wish it would be faster, but then I think that its okay because it will allow my skin more time to adjust. 

My husband and I have just started a new weight lifting routine during football. We decided that we will lift small weights for 25 reps each time there is a fumble, interception or touchdown. I must tell you I never realized exactly how many times that occurs during a game, but my arms are sore enough today to tell you it's A LOT!! :)  We wound up doing 425 reps by the time we fell asleep!!! I really think this is a good exercise though, as it will begin to tone one of my problem areas. I have always been concerned about my triceps and having loose skin, so the reps I'm doing are focusing directly on that.  Since I don't want to only do it during football, we are thinking of incorporating it into our television time when commercials come on. What do you think?

Well, I hope everyone else is doing fantastic in their journey. As for me, I have a fill scheduled for tomorrow which will bring me to 8cc's in a 10cc band. I still am not sure I'm in the "green zone", although several months ago I thought I was.  This is the one thing I wish I could figure out...lol Wish me luck!

I'm still alive! :)

So, its been a minute since I updated...I've had a cold for like 3 weeks and it sucks...haven't felt like doing much. I have been struggling with my weight loss, not making the best choices. I know what I need to do, but haven't been doing very much of it. I finally started walking again, since I've been working so many hours that I didn't even have time for that.  Hopefully this past week will be my last 55+ hour week and I can continue!!! Now I'm back on track again, aftering having gained 7 lbs...I took it off plus .5, so as of today I'm down 43.  I know its slow, but I'm okay with that as long as I'm going in the right direction. It's now Fall and my favorite time of year...no more BBQ's and high calorie drinks...just focused on renewing my goal! Hope all of you are doing well and wish all of the BOOBS safe travels if you are going to Chicago. Hopefully, next year I can go as well!  Here's a pic from the end of August of me, my husband, Mom and Bro-in-law....just to keep you updated on pic progress.

 

Oh yea...and its football season....soooooooo happy about that!  Here is a pic of me from last year with one of my favorite players from the NY Giants - Ahmad Bradshaw!!!!

GO GIANTSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!

 

Down another 2.5 since 8/17

Soooo, I've been out of touch for 2 weeks, but this time with reason. I had to go to class in Colorado and then added 2 days of vacation to go visit my cousin. I got a bit of altitude sickness out there and then must have caught something on the plan ride home because I have been sick as a dog for the last 5 days...can't stop coughing and head is so stuffed up. Finally went to the doctor's 2 days ago and he said I had a bronchial infection but I caught it early, so am finally starting to feel better today! During the last 2 weeks, I've been pretty good, and am down another 2.5 lbs, bringing my total loss to 42.5. I hope all of you have been doing well!

Blog Abandonment for 2 weeks :)

So, I took a bit of time off from posting on here, not sure why, just didn't feel like typing I guess. Anyways, since I last posted I have lost 2.5 more lbs, so today's total loss is 40 lbs....wooo hooo! I'm Very happy about that because I just couldn't seem to hit that #.  I am losing slowly and am very happy with that considering I've kind of been sabotaging myself :)  In the summer, I am quite busy with BBQ's and the beach, and I am a big fan of tropical drinks so that I feel like I'm away on vacation. I have kind of resigned myself to the fact that I suck at summer!!! It's been this way for many years...I do extremely will come Fall to Spring, but Summer gets here and I have no self control....lol...so for that reason, I have decided that as long as I maintain my current loss or even lose a couple of lbs, I will be very happy. Once mid-September gets here, it on! Some of you might not think this is a good game plan, but for me, it really works...so with that said tonight we are hitting the beach bar and boardwalk! Hope all of you have a great weekend!

Just a couple of pix from Friday's Freestyle Bash in Philly

So, its been a minute since I posted so I figured I would add some pix of a Freestyle (its a type of music...lol) event in South Philly that we attended last Friday. My hubby was one of the performers and we had an amazing time!  I did really well all day food wise that day, but WHOA I can't even count how many alcoholic concoctions we drank...last I remember was some green drink of which I didn't even know the name! Anyway, hope you guys are having a successful week!

 Above pic of me and hubby!

The 2nd pic is me and some friends, including my BFF Tiffany in the colorful shirt!

Last pic is of me and one of my favorite Freestyle groups Pain! By the way, the 2 guys on the left were in our wedding :)

WOOP WOOP - Down .5 :)

I used to say I "only" lost .5, but I have learned that .5 is .5 and its a step in the right direction, so now I'm thrilled with any loss.  I am extremely happy about this particular .5 because I lost 5.5 last week, and usually following a big loss I gain,so WOO HOO! :)  I think I have a pretty good restriction right now, with 7.5 cc in my 10 cc band. It finally stretched, as I thought it would. Let me tell you that those initial 2 weeks of getting stuck on just about everything totally sucked, but now I'm good again and can get my proteins in! Hope you all have a fabulous weekend. I have to go to South Philly tonight for my husband's show, so wish me luck on keeping my alcohol consumption in check! LOL

YAY - it was water weight :)

So, after having a pretty tough week and a half because of being stuck, I am finally doing much much better on the food front and not getting stuck. I have been able to get more types of protein down and my lovely band has been helping with the portion size...that's all I ever wanted....lol...so thanks band! I am down 5.5 lbs this week...woo hoo...its the lowest that I have been since I got the band..down 36.5 lbs and very happy. I am ok with going slow...I just want to make sure I continue in the right direction. I decided to include a pic of me and my lovely hubby from our 4th of July BBQ on 7/7. Just a couple pics to show what I look like at the present time...have a great one people!

Yes, that's my bald baby ;)

 Yes, that's a yummy Margarita...holy calories!!! But...Oh so Good!

And lastly, them trying to get my modeling pose...HA!

Still Tight, but Not Nearly Like Before...

Thanks so much to those of you that have written or commented about my recent experience of being too tight and getting stuck a lot. I am happy to report that I have been able to get more types of food down, although not all. I have been able to get my proteins in and vegetables, so I am definitely happier. I still think I might be a little too tight, but I am going to wait a little while longer to see if it stretches at all, as that has happened to me in the past. Sometimes, I have what  I believe is a good restriction and then within 2 weeks, I don't have it anymore. I do know the importance of getting the right foods in and will definitely schedule for a little unfill if I don't feel a change in a week.  What a journey this is, trying to find the "green zone" :)  Wishing all of you success in this journey of ours!

Boooo...up 2, but think it's water weight...

So...I'm up 2 as of today, but I really do think its water weight because all I've been able to eat is soup for the last few days, with lots of sodium. I think I might be a bit overfilled because all of the sudden come Tuesday, I haven't been able to get much down without being stuck.  Funny thing is, well not so funny, but it seems all the fattening stuff still goes down, just not the stuff that's good for me. I have no problem with cupcakes or chips, but I can't get scrambled eggs, chicken, beef, pasta, or anything else down. This morning I was able to get a 1/2 of a granola bar down so hopefully it is stretching a little bit...this whole getting stuck thing sucks! And it hurts :(  Oh well..if it doesn't get better in a week I'll be traveling again to get some taken out. Hope you have a better weekend than my week...lol...have a great one!

Back At it - With Good Restriction (For now :) )

Hello all of you wonderful bloggers and lurkers! It's been a couple of weeks since I posted, so I figure its time to update you on how life has been going for me. Let's see where to start...hmmmm...on 6/29 I weighed in at 295.5, and on 7/6 I weighed in at 294 which is my lowest this time around. I did go get a fill on 7/2 and they put an additional .5 cc's in my band, which now has 7.5 cc's (10 cc band).  I wanted to get it before the 4th of July so that I couldn't go crazy with the food, even though I could still go crazy with the drinks...lol. It helped!  I ate very little on the 4th, although I did have 3 shots of Chocolate Pretzels and about 4 Mike's Hard Lemonades. I did much better than in previous years because we normally play beer pong and I usually end up drinking a lot that way, but it was too stinking hot to be outside, so we had indoor poker and stuff to keep us occupied. I wonder if any of you have the same issue as me...initially I am able to eat a little more after a fill, but then a week later, something kicks in and my restriction seems to be great! Like today for lunch I ate a 1/2 of a hot dog without bun, 1 bite of an egg and a couple of bites of hash browns and was super stuffed! I still feel full and its been 2 hours already. I really hope this is the restriction I was looking for and that it lasts for a long time. Last time I got a fill, I had this feeling for about 2 weeks and then it diminished. I really want this to be the fill that worked! I have been doing pretty good with the exercise as well and getting in a 30-45 minute walk on most days. I am still trying to get all of my water in and am doing well in that area as well. Now, if I could get rid of some of the after dinner snacking/drinks, I think I would be on a great downward spiral. I definitely am starting to feel better physically and am gaining more energy and I have a whole closet full of clothes that fit again, so yay! On another note, my job had me up for a promotion about a month ago and they froze all promotions...booooooo, but I didn't fret and guess what??? Yesterday, my boss called to tell me that they lifted the freeze for a little while and he slipped mine through!!! WOO HOO...nice raise too ;)  This couldn't come at a better time because I just got a new Heating/AC/Hot Water Heater/Insulation and Washer/Dryer in the last month! So good things do come to those who wait and don't freak out...lol  Hope all of you are doing well. I hope to update you this Friday with another loss...Good luck!!!