Look at your new pic girl, Looking sassy in your red hair, LOVE IT! I was looking at it going has she ever posted then I saw your b4 pic. Woohoo!! I am sitting at 154 keep bouncing around that number this week. But I am wearing size 6. Thats never happened till this week, crap size 8 and 10 before that never happen either. keep it up maria

Denise, bless your heart! You haven't been able to catch a bone with these complications. I have paid special attention to your postings since our surgeries were the same day, and I am so sorry that you have continued to face obstacles. I hate the heck out of that for you. Know that we are here for you and wishing you the best. I certainly hope you can get this treated and can be DONE with your complications! There's lots of living to do and just no time for these setbacks. You'll be on the mend soon, I pray! Kathryn

Hi August family, [Put your feet up and grab a drink if you have time...it's a long post!] I don't post terribly often, mostly from a time perspective since I am on the boards in short spurts throughout the day. But I keep up with everyone and draw so much from everything I read! I feel so close to all of you and wish I could post as often as I'd like. You really are a family to me and I am so appreciative of everyone's love and candor and encouragement. It is especially neat to read everything that goes on with you since we have our surgery month in common, and we all experience similar things - variations on a theme, so to speak. Today marks nine months since my surgery. I will post at a year, too, I am sure, but since nine months is the same as a pregnancy gestation, I felt like I'd talk about how this nine months has changed me. I am not "fully cooked" just yet, as a term baby would be, but the parallel seemed a little intriguing. Here goes: I have been terribly blessed in my journey. I have had no complications, I don't get sick, and I don't dump per se (though if I test sugar/fat too much, my body lets me know, so I don't test too often). I have had plenty of energy, good labs, the whole works. Fortunate does not begin to describe how I feel or how much I owe my surgeon, Dr. Davidson, and the myriad support people in my life. Every day, I do my best to fulfill my part of the deal. I take my vitamins and calcium, drink plenty of water, get protein first, and exercise. I work out 5-6 times a week. I figure that I can't complain about not losing if I'm not keeping up with what I'm supposed to do. Now I am far from perfect in my eating - but I try to get protein first regardless, and occasionally I venture into the land of imperfect foods. However, I make sure I've gotten what I need beforehand. I work hard to get in fresh things (veggies and fruits) as much as possible, as well. Spring and summer are so wonderful when it comes to fresh produce! I went for my nine-month appointment yesterday and have lost 100 pounds since surgery. That makes 112 pounds since I first started the surgical journey. It never fails to amaze me how skewed our perspective can be after WLS. I know 100 pounds is a lot, and would seem like a mammoth amount to people who don't live and breathe these surgery numbers. I struggle a little bit with comparisons to people who "only" need to lose 100 or so pounds and/or can reach goal sooner. I know those comparisons can be completely lethal, and I have sense enough to be grateful for what I've accomplished rather than whining about what I still need to do. I am much less caught up in the comparisons than I once was. After all, what's the rush? I'm not going anywhere...whether I'd reached goal by now or not, I am still working the plan and there is no real hurry. THAT SAID - I am delighted with this loss. I still can't believe how much it is. And I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I couldn't have done this any other way. I work every day to remind myself that I deserve this smaller, healthier body and that it won't be snatched from me in the night. It still seems like such a dream, after a lifetime of being M.O., to be semi-normal. Amazing! The loss has been bizarre. Some weeks I'll lose nothing or one pound; the next week I'll lose three. I know that's part of the game, and I know that all of you can identify! It can be frustrating, especially when I can't account for not losing (two weeks can be identical in nearly all ways, and I can lose one of those weeks and maintain the next - whatever!), but I know that's how the body deals with weight loss. It's all fine with me. I do take measurements and that's a good gauge as well. Two WLS moments, of sorts, that I wanted to share: -First, my cousin got married in Orlando on April 23. I am sure all of you have had, at one time or another, a wedding/banquet/prom/work function or something similar to attend, and you've thought, "By the time of that event, I KNOW I will have lost some weight!" (If you've ever been a bridesmaid, wow, that always happens!) Anyway, my cousin had been engaged for 17 months, so I knew about this wedding for a long time. I was determined to look good for it. I was so sick of showing up to significant events looking very unattractive. Having my surgery in August gave me the confidence that I would have lost some significant poundage by the time the wedding rolled around. It was such a boon to go to the wedding knowing that I looked a whole heckuva lot better than I would have a year ago. Still not where I want to be, but I wasn't the fattest one there by any stretch (and I have been in the past). I felt beautiful and confident that I had done everything I could to look as good as possible that night. And that was the first time I had ever left a major event like that when I was NOT thinking, "Oh, if only I had lost weight for this." What an incredible change! If you're pre-op or newly post-op and haven't yet gone through this, you'll absolutely LOVE this feeling! -Second, I was so generously gifted with a trip to New York City the weekend after the wedding. I am here to tell you that I would have been kicking myself if I had been offered that trip a year ago. I would have wanted to go, but knowing that I couldn't walk for long hauls without aching feet and legs might have kept me home. Not to mention the joys of the plane ride! I was about one Reese's cup away from an extension before surgery. Very, very close - and probably would have had one sooner had pride not gotten in the way. Well, NYC was amazing. Even the plane ride was a testimony to WLS. I had to ride in the middle seat on the plane, which doesn't sound fun even if you're as thin as a model, but it was not bad at all. I didn't have to raise the armrests in order to sit comfortably, which I would have done a year ago. I've flown a few times since surgery, and the slack on the seatbelt is fantastic, but knowing I can seat in the middle seat for a long stretch was comforting above and beyond that. And the walking did not faze me in the least. Granted, I was delighted to sit down after hours of almost-constant walking/being on my feet, but again, that's something I couldn't have done comfortably 100 pounds ago. The lower weight, plus the exercise I've been doing, certainly made the trip more enjoyable. Much like how I felt at the wedding, I loved knowing that I was just overweight and not a standout in the crowd in terms of my appearance. The trip was magical, in large part because of what my WLS has done for me. You can see a recurring theme here, that of feeling "normal" after all this time. More than all the beautiful off-the-rack clothes I'll ever buy, or whatever number I will see on the scale, I am most awed by that feeling of normalcy. Yes, I am still overweight and I have a way to go until I am more comfortable with my body. And you know what? I will probably never be completely, 100% comfortable with it, particularly if I am using the world's standards. That is OK by me. I am 34 years old and have been obese all my life, so I don't have expectations of being centerfold material. There's so much more in life to be concerned with than the minutiae of one's appearance. I will be as toned as possible, and the chips will fall where they may beyond my efforts. To me, having my health is worth a whole lot more than spending a lifetime being dissatisfied with my appearance. There is a fine line to walk between being too concerned with one's appearance and not concerned enough, and I hope I can walk it well. My arms are frightening and I'd love to get them worked on, but I'll cross that bridge later. Hooray for the camouflage that clothes offer us! I could go on all day, but for those of you who are still with me, I thank you for reading my ramblings. They were mostly therapeutic for me, but I trust that someone will get something out of this, just like I take wisdom from every post on here. I send you my best wishes for continued success in your journey, whether you are a seasoned post-op, just beginning the research, or somewhere in between. Contact me with any questions or comments - I promise I don't always write this much, though I am fairly long-winded! - and know that I support everyone here in efforts toward better health and a happier existence. God bless you all! Kathryn Lap RNY 08/12/04 290/278/178/120 P.S. I don't know if my new pics are showing up yet - but they're at the bottom of my profile.

Denice, that is too funny! Kids say the craziest things, I love them! Can't wait to have one of my own (I married a somewhat redhead so I will probably have little redheads awwww!) --Marianne 256/153/140-goal 120-dream

Oh My Denise, My heart goes out to you. You have had such a tough time. I know how scary it is to have complications and I wish you all the best. My thoughts are with you. Please keep us posted. --Marianne 256/153/140-goal 120-dream