TENTATIVE DATE & WAITING FOR INSURANCE AUTHORIZATIN

HELLO FELLOW OCTOBERITES ... I JUST GOT MY SURGERY DATE TODAY = FRIDAY, 10/28/2005. I HAVE TRI CARE PRIME & THEY ARE VERY GOOD AT AUTHORIZING WLS, SO I'M PATIENTLY/IMPATIENTLY WAITING! I HAVE 48 DAYS TO GO! I'M 5' 2.5" ... WEIGHT 279 ... BMI = 50.0 ... IDEAL WEIGHT = 110 (are they kidding?) BEING 51 1/2 YO, DR BYRNE SAID HE'D BE PLEASED FOR A WEIGHT GOAL OF 140. I'D LIKE TO BE BETWEEN 125 - 140, WITH DREAMS OF BEING 118 WHICH IS WHAT I WAS WHEN I GOT MARRIED THE 1ST TIME AT AGE 19! I'D LIKE TO WEAR A 9-10 AFTER RECONSTRUCTIVE SURGERY. 279 - 161 = 118 (LET'S GO FOR THE GOLD!) I'M NOT THE LEAST BIT SCARED; WHAT COULD BE WORSE THAN THE LAST 30 YEARS? I HAVE FAITH & REAL HOPE FOR THE 1ST TIME IN DECADES THAT I HAVE A GOOD CHANCE AT REGAINING MY HEALTH! GOD BLESS Y'ALL ... DAWN & NICK

48 days will fly by - I know the days are going fast for me....I am so happy for you and I look forward to seeing your progress!!! sammie

WELL MS SAMMIE, I'LL BE CHASING YOU DOWN "LOSER'S LANE"! BE SURE & KEEP US UPDATED; I WILL DEFINITELY KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR SUCCESS SINCE YOU ARE 18 DAYS AHEAD OF ME! GOD BLESS ... DAWN & NICK

So glad your insurance is good! Hooray! I share your sentiment that nothing could be as bad as what we've been suffering for so many years..... I am so excited, I've already chosen several temporary wardrobe looks for when I stop at 150 (100 lb loss) or 130 or 120 (can't even imagine what that would be like). I'll be VERY happy to be ANY of the above! Just being able to function without being exhausted will be reward enough, I said. But just in case, I got braces at age 51 so that my teeth would be straight by the time my surgery got done....is that a trip or what???? I've waited 40 years for both, and now it's here. Wow. Best best wishes. cyn.

OH MY WORD, THAT IS JUST TOO ABOUT YOUR BRACES. WE ARE AGING LIKE A FINE WINE, MS CYN, & IT'S NEVER TOO LATE FOR A LITTLE IMPROVEMENT!!!!! SOME OF THE LADIES ON THE LOOSING SIDE HAVE TOLD ME TO CHECK OUT GOODWILL FOR INEXPENSIVE (&, FROM WHAT I CAN GATHER ... NICE) CLOTHES AS I BEGIN TO QUICKLY LOSE WEIGHT ... DOESN'T THAT SOUND FABULOUS? "QUICKLY LOSE WEIGHT"! ANYWAY, I'M GOING TO CHECK GW OUT THIS WEEKEND TO HELP THE BUDGET. I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL I CAN PACK UP MY "FAT CLOTHES" & GIVE THEM AS A GIFT TO MY HUSBAND TO DEPOSIT IN THE OL' GARBAGE CAN. NO HOLDING ON TO THEM! THERE IS NO ROOM FOR FAILURE HERE! I WAS THINKING ABOUT IT & I CAN'T EVEN REMEMBER HOW IT FELT TO WALK "LIGHTLY" WITHOUT PAIN & HUFFING & PUFFING. BUT, JUST WAIT. NICK & I HAVE PROMISED OUR SELVES LESSONS ... SHAG , BALLROOM , LINE , JITTER BUG WE DON'T CARE, JUST SO WE ARE MOVIN' & GROOVIN' TOGETHER! GOD BLESS & KEEP IN TOUCH ... DAWN & NICK

Hi Dawn, I'm scheduled for 4 days before you///on the 24th! Best wishes for a successful surgery and super fantastic results later on down the road. I just found this forum, and it's so nice to see people in about the same time frame as myself. Good wishes to all! Cheryl

THANK YOU FOR THE GOOD WISHES & BLESSINGS BACK TO YOU, MS CHERYL. ISN'T IT AMAZING THAT WE LIVE IN A TIME WHEN WE CAN ACTUALLY GET MEDICAL HELP FOR THIS PROBLEM! I JUST HEARD FROM A DEAR FRIEND IN CA & SHE HAS 2 FRIENDS WHO HAVE GONE THROUGH WLS & LOOK ABSOLUTELY FANTASTIC. OF COURSE, I WANT TO LOOK HOT BUT HONESTLY, I'M SO THRILLED THAT 95% OF MY HEALTH PROBLEMS WILL EITHER COMPLETELY GO AWAY OR IMPROVE DRAMATICALLY! WOWOWOW! KEEP IN TOUCH ... GOD BLESS ... DAWN & NICK

I've already seen the Goodwill stores, and there is some NEAT stuff in there! Golly, I've even been thinking about the "gypsy" look that I missed because I wouldn't wear "those" clothes being so heavy... We also have a number of consignment shops, and one called My Sister's Closet, where one can purchase very nice suits and business attire at about 1/2 price. I plan to have one nice suit in each size just to keep looking "tidy" as the sizes fall off......my roommate went from a size 32 to a 16W in one year, and she has saved a few things for me. I've already passed on some of my work wear and good shoes to someone who is still working through the 6-month supervision process for insurance. It is so exciting to even be able to make plans like these!

I KNOW ... I'M NOW LOOKING AT CLOTHES ALLLL THE TIME MS CYNDI. MY HUSBAND IS EVEN SAYING THINGS LIKE ... "WOW, I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU IN SOMETHING LIKE THAT!" WHAT AN ENCOURAGEMENT ... WHAT A RUSH! MAYBE YOU KNOW ... I HEARD THAT IF YOU WEAR A "ONESIE" (1-PIECE UNDERGARMENT THAT IS A LIGHT-WEIGHT GIRDLE-TYPE GARMENT THAT GOES FROM UNDER YOUR BREASTS TO JUST ABOVE YOUR KNEES) ... THAT YOU WON'T HAVE AS MUCH PROBLEM WITH LOSE SKIN AS YOU LOOSE WEIGHT. I KNOW WOMEN LOOK FABULOUS IN THEM ON TV (LESS LUMPS & BUMPS UNDER CLOTHING), BUT DO THEY ACTUALLY HELP WITH THE SKIN AS WELL? GOD BLESS DAWN & NICK