Good morning! I had to go to a retirement party tonight. I bought a new outfit and thought it was so cute, until I saw these pics! They really are not very flattering! I look okay, but I still look fat! I am at 190! I want to be like 160. I am still the fat girl after all I have lost! UGH! I hate when you want to look cute in something and it just doesn't happen! LOL! On a better note, my contacts came today so now I do not have to wear glasses. My right eye prescription was not in, but the doc gave me a sample one so I could start wearing them. They feel odd, but I am getting used to them!! I spent 300 bucks at New York and Company today. I got 5 new outfits, all XL in size! Well, a few positives and a few bummers for this post ! HA! Here are the pics from our night out! The first one is preop! http://share.shutterfly.com/osi.jsp?i=EeINmThi4ZM2kg Kimberly

I just looked at your profile to check out your new photos and I have one word: WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOWWWWWWWWW!!! Looking great Judy! Angie http://www.geocities.com/tiger_angie

You know, half the time I love Susan Maria and half the time she makes me just grumble at the bluntness that she shows. While I definitely agree with her sentiment, and it is very true that we MUST do certain things post op, everyone is not the same. Everyone has a different mentality, emotions, mental blocks. Everyone deals with things differently. And saying that drinking your neighbor's toile****er in order to be a size 10...that's obvious exaggeration. Yes, we should be very, very happy that we were able to get the surgery, and even more happy that the market for protein has taken such a lovely turn as to try and actually ACCOMODATE the many different palates of the millions of people who have had surgery. And while some surgeons may not understand why a protein shake that we can't even drink more than 5 sips of before we are full is bothersome, other surgeons do understand. They know that life change is NOT just about the body, it is also solidly rooted in the mind. Tough Love doesn't work for everyone. I will admit that hearing a story about someone whose calcium levels were so low that their body was leeching calcium from their bones, at only 1 year post op, is definitely enough to make me double check my vitamin schedule and make sure I didn't miss any calcium. And I take the Vista Vitamins from Susan's website, because normal vitamins stop me up like nobody's business, to the point of tearing my insides up when I need to go to the bathroom. Perhaps it is an American thing and a sense of entitlement, I do not know. The whole "pursuit of happiness" thing. If you are just as miserable after the surgery because of the fact that you cannot find a protein drink that 1) you cannot drink enough of; or 2) that doesn't make you throw up constantly, you are defeating the goal. Fortunately there are people out there who see this market as a place to exercise variety. Just because a surgeon says "I don't understand why you care what it tastes like!," doesn't mean that surgeon has ever tasted these drinks, day after day, with a reduced stomach that can only handle certain things. IMO, walk in my shoes before you start saying that it's shouldn't be an issue. And most surgeons haven't walked in these shoes. They may see the facts, they may see what they have done for us, but it is, to me, a great deal of arrogance on their part for them to say that we should be willing to drink anything and everything in order to do exactly what they say - regardless of the fact that so many say something entirely different. That's my opposite rant. ~Stacy

Denise, I'm sorry that you've had problems with your surgery and will pray that they find out what's causing your troubles. I agree with Nona, at the risk of being flamed, this needs to be posted on the main messageboard. ~barb ps- Congrats on your positive note even though this has been quite an ordeal for you, your strength of character, and of course, the weight loss.

After I started my Nascabol (B12 gel for your nose) I started feeling alot better.