~~It's Been A Long Time~~

Happy Valentines Day to all the Wonderful NYers!! I have add a "few pounds" ....BUT LIFE IS STILL GRAND AFTER WLS!! Would LOVE to hear from the old timers--you are still out there--I need to hear from you-- and new timers too.....with updates!! Let's hear how your journey is going, the good and the bad. What is your lastest Wow Moment. Tell us how your doing and if you finding it hard to maintain your weight. Thanks to all that post and keep this Wonderful and Very Supportive NY Board going! Keep Posting your Questions as we learn from each.other Alice

Hi Alice It really has been a long time....I'm glad to see you are around, I was very worried when I didnt hear from you, in the past I have sent you e-mails but have not heard from you. sorry about the few pounds but you are well aware of how old habits can creep back into our lives, but as long as you are aware of it you do know what you need to do....I wish you the best, I hope your family is doing well, the last I heard from you was when your daughter was moving. I hope it went well. As for me I doing ok I have had seven surgeries and the last revision was dec 27th 2006 the doctor wants me to have one more but I think I have had enough surgery right now andwill stop here. The one thing I can still say is that Ihave no regrets. my told weight lose is 176lbs from a size 26 to a size 10 still hard looking in the mirror and the person looking back is me. I love what I see but reality still hasn't caught up with the rest of me. but all in all I am much more healthier today then I was 2 years ago. I have come a long way and loving it. Love and miss you Christine

WOW....2 faces that we havent seen in a LONG time!! Im so glad to see that you are both well. I am doing well. Just had my 2 year anniversary and am doing well! I have about another 25 lbs to go, then some plastics (which I am VERY nervous about) Maybe by this summer I will be ready for it!! Please dont be strangers!! Lisa

Congrats on your 2 year re-birth, it's sounds like you are doing wonderful. Yes it is, faces that we haven't seen in a long time. Lisa keep up the good work....wow only 25 more pounds to go. Christine

Hey Gorgeous!! I am so much more mobile now ... I think it's time we met/got together. Do you still have my numbers? If not, let me know and I'll email them. I've had a few computer transitions and don't have yours readily available. I'd love to catch up. I'm here for you, Sweetie!!! Love & Hugs & Kisses, MM

Lisa~~Hi 2yrs--CONGRATULATIONS Glad to hear your doing great with just 25lbs to go to reach your goal. Just do your research, there are a lot of wonderful drs out there. And then you can make a decision if plastics are for you. Alice

HELLO Soooo Happy to see your beautiful face! I am sorry but I didn't get your e-mails. I am sadden to see that you have gone through so much, but able to say you have no regrets. You have done an amazing job with your weight loss! Are all the surgeries related to your micro WLS?? If you are up to it, tells me about them. I thank God everyday for my WLS and the added pounds are what I have to deal with everyday. Doing my best, but they can creep up on you as fast as we have lost the weight during the honeymoon period. You have come a long way now just read the poem and set yourself free. You deserve nothing but the best. THE WOMEN IN THE MIRROR Walking past the mirrored glass, I take a timid peak, I see a woman staring back, I'm too choked up to speak. The puffiness, at last, is gone, The skin pink and glowing, The many pounds that melted off, Finally, now is showing. Hard to believe until recently, This same woman was dying, Stuffing the food to ease the pain, Heartbroken and crying. Life evolved around each snack, She lived for every meal, Anything to numb the hurt, She didn't want to feel. When did she get so pretty? When did God remove the grief? How did this miracle happen? Who provided this relief? What a gift! A second chance! I thank God everyday, For his grace in showing me, There is a better way. I walk, I dance, I make love too, My heart is filled with gladness, I'm out of bondage, I'm out of pain, There is no room for sadness. This woman in the mirror, Smiles softly back at me, She has good cause to be so pleased, She's finally been set free! ----Author Unknown

Hi everyone. Happy Valentines Day. I am doing well. 16mths post op, fluctuate between 125-130 depending on the day. I am in a size 4 and couldnt be happier. I am 5 weeks post op tt that i had done following an abdominal tumor removal. I am back to work as of yesturday and feeling awsome. Wish the weather was better but other then that life is wonderful. Good to see old timers pop on , wish i saw you more often however totally understand how life takes over when our new more active lives kick in. Everyone here is such an inspiration to me and its what keeps me going. I have ventured to other boards however this is my home and nothing compares to NYERS!!! Love ya LisaMarie

Hello My Darling ... You have no idea how often (and how fondly) I think of you. I haven't been on OH much in the past couple of months for a variety of reasons -- mostly just living life, quite healthily and happily (through the grace of God). I'm down nearly 200 lbs and maintaining nicely at around 130 lbs and size 0-4 @ 5'7" ... We are headed for LA this April and I will be speaking at the OH National Convention about my weight loss experiences and life after the DS. I am delighted by my DS but do find it essential to continually monitor myself. This is especially true because of my past weight loss history; I simply won't take chances! I can enjoy almost anything at any given point but I am usually quite careful about my carb intake because that's what works for me. For the most part, I eat a cup or less of dense food in a sitting and don't eat for at least two hours before indulging again. I am sure to take in 100g of protein per day in whatever way possible, lots of liquids (esp decaffeinated, no sugar ones), and maintain an overall sugar-free lifestyle. On occasion I may have a cookie but through the grace of God, it is one cookie -- not one BOX of cookies. I never keep them in the house, either. Cookies or crackers in my cupboard is more like CRACK in my cupboard. Always know your triggers. Otherwise, if I have a particularly carby week (like last week when DH was on vacation, we did pasta a couple of nights -- normally very unlike me), I watch myself much more carefully the next week; concentrating that much harder on protein and veggies just so the carb monster doesn't take me over. I like keeping the addictions at bey and we all know how sneaky them carbs can be. The blessing of the DS is that if I do pasta, I do a rich and creamy sauce -- like an Alfredo -- because we forever malabsorb 80% of our fat intake and mixing it with carbs sort of washes away the badness of the carbs. Through the grace of God I am now able to -- and quite enjoy -- pushing my body to its limits via exercise (especially walking). The more active I am, the better off I am in every way and I eat at least 4x a day to keep my metabolism at full speed. Gone are the days when I starve myself to lose weight. That is probably the biggest blessing of weight loss surgery. I hope this helps. If you'd like to speak privately at any point, we can exchange phone numbers via email. I'd love to speak with you -- and you can bet I'm in a lot better shape than the last time we spoke (the day after my DS)! I've missed you a lot, Alice, and am so glad to see you posting. Good luck and God bless always. & {{{HUGS}}} & MM