Great!! we have 194 Hugs from Germany Vanessa

Let's play, Lost 97lbs Let's do this!!!!! Stephanie

ok so you guys can see i had my surgery in Dec 04 but we at the dec 04 boards have been doing a running tally of how much we all have lost ..(we are up to 2,894 pounds so far.) we wanted to see how everyone else was doing soooo we thought it would be fun to ask the Jan 05 people to start doing the same thing ..kinda like an online "biggest loser" sorta thing..o.k. so we are competitive..lol if you wanna play just post how much you have lost so far and i'll check back every couple days and see whose winning..uhh i mean how you guys are doing..by the way this is all in fun so please don't send me an email saying this is not a race or something.we are just trying to get back to basics and maybe it will help motivate us to stay on track.. OXOXOXO Liz 353/175/150?

Amen! Congrats on the awesome job! Linda

One year ago today, I had surgery. The past year has been quite the ride for me. I had a difficult time for nine months after surgery. On two occasions last September, I truly regretted having had this surgery. However, I am now truly happy that I had this surgery. I am no longer on insulin. I am no longer diabetic. I do not have high blood pressure. I look better and feel better about myself. I no longer take walks with my dog. I now RUN with my dog. I exercise regularly and with a few exceptions over the holidays, I follow a healthy eating plan as recommended by my surgeon. I no longer wear a size 24. I now wear a size 4. The negatives of this surgery...I do not dump on sugar (darn the bad luck!) and it isn't magic. My appetite is back. Am I estatic over my weight loss?...you betcha! Am I thrilled with the way I look and feel?...oh yeah! Would I do this again?..in a heartbeat. But the one thing that I have gained the most from this surgery are the friends that I have made through OH and the support group that I attend at Mt. Diablo Hospital. You have all helped me more than you will ever know. Thank you Dianne