GETTING TO KNOW YOU!

Hi everyone. I was just thinking. I have seen a few new faces and names on our board and i think it would be nice to introduce ourselves briefly {we have profiles but this is a little easier} Just a little something about ourselves so we make sure we know who everyone is. Even if you are just a lurker, just something like Name, age, where from, ocupation,if you had surgery when , if your scheduled when, docs name how much you have lost, family info and some interests...It might make some people just feel more comfortable and bring out more posters. I will start: My name is LisaMarie, I am 34 years old. I am from Manhattan. I am married now 12 years {with the pain since i was 15 } I have 4 beautiful children agaes 14, 10, 3 and 2 soon to be 14, 11, 4 and 3....I am a registered nurse. I had my surgery Halloween 2005 by Dr DeCsepel at St Vincents Hospital and i am down 68 pounds and counting. I am a very big sports fan {Lets Go Rangers and Lets Go Yankees} i enjoy going to games with my kids. I have also picked up a new hobby SHOPPING....I love these boards they have provided me with much support and friendship. Feel free to email me anytime. And i look forward to talking to you all again at our chat sessions. Monday, Wed at 8pm and Mondays at 2pm. Ok so who is next???? LisaMarie

I am! Nice idea LisaMarie! My name is Amy and I am pre op for the open RNY at Albany Med with Dr. Rosati. My surgery date was just scheduled for April 27th. I haven't heard from insurance yet. I am an RN, working in Public Health (a visiting nurse). I am married (15 years) and have two kids, Zack, almost 13, and Jonah, 8. We live in a converted barn in upstate NY, next door to my mom, who is a great source of support. I had to lose 10% of my weight pre op as a prereq for the surgery. Now that I have, it's just a waiting game. I'm definitely nervous, but also very excited about the changes that are about to come up in my life. Who's next? Amy

HI FOlks I am yet another LISA (aka: fr1endly2). I am a 43 year old mom of three kids ages 3, 8, and 11. I have been married for 16 years this june. I reside on eastern Long Island and work as a family daycare provider in my home. I had my surgery with Dr. Ahmad on June 1, 2005 and i am currently down 135 lbs. I had no complications and had LAP RNY. I am 10 lbs from my surgeons goal and happy i opted this surgery for myself. I am in great health now...feel great and have tons of energy. I also had to loose weight pre op and thankful i did! THE sooner i started looseing the quicker i got into normal sizes which i am still shocked about. WHOS NEXT? LISA

Hellooo. My name is Tavia and I am 27 years old. I live on the north shore of long island. I am married to a wonderful man and have a three year old son who is the light of my life. I had my initial surgery on 2/2/2005. I have had some bumps on the road but I am slowly but surely getting better. Anyway, I have a undergrad and grad degree from NYU in film production. For my thesis film, I recieved a grant from kodak to make it, which was nice. I actually did work on a couple of films that were released nationwide while I was in school. I am a big movie buff you can say! I am a very annoying person to watch films with though, I must say. Since my son was born, I stay at home to care for him. As much as I love the film business, I am planning to go back to school for something else when my son is a little older. I feel the film business is too time-consuming and would take me away from the important thing in my life, my son. That is pretty much me in a nutshell! whos next?

Thanks LisaMarie, Hi, I'm Linda, I'm 55 & the mother of three girls, married 16 years next month. I am a Psychiatric nurse working in Home Care with a company that specializes in patients with mental health problems. I had my surgery in July, started at 252, I'm 160 now. My Dr is Dr Kini @ Mt Sinai. I love animals, MUSIC, travel, flea markets, & most of all my friends here at OH! Linda

Hi all!! ANOTHER Lisa here!! Im 41 years old, married to a wonderful man who is my rock for almost 5 years! We do not have any children but do have a cat that acts like a dog at times!! I had my surgery done by Dr Garber on 2/7/05 and have lost 154 lbs. (184lbs in total) I feel wonderful and am so glad that I choosen to have this surgery. I am doing things and going places that for years i was afraid to do! I can sit in ANY chair I want!! that is a big one for me! My husband and I went to Aruba in Oct '05 and what a great feeling is was to sit in the airplane sit and not have to ask for an extender or spill over to the next chair!! I have another 40 or so lbs to loose to reach my goal...my surgeon never gave me a goal so I set one for myself!! I am finding that these last 40lbs are getting harder and harder to loose. I am planning on kicking up my exercise and water in take!! I love this board, it has been such a support to me throughout my journey and I have meet so many wonderful people here!! Lisa 371/341/187/140

Hello! My name is Brenda and I live in the Southern Tier area of NY, which is just south of Watkins Glen. I am 59 years old, married to a wonderful man for 41 years on June 26th. I have four grown children and 9 grandchildren. I had WLS July 28th to improve my health and in preparation for future neck or back surgery. I am retired, but very active in our local Little League as the Treasurer. Before retiring, I earned my Associates Degree in accounting at the age of 53 and I worked for our local County Emergency Management Office. Now,I love spending time with my husband, grandchildren, reading, gardening, and fishing. I have lost a total of 116 pounds and am feeling wonderful. I can play with my grandchildren and may even try playing softball for seniors for my church. I have about 50 more pounds to lose to reach my personal goal. Then, I will decide if I want to continue losing or not. I also thank this board for all of the encouragement they gave me while I was waiting for approval from the insurance company after many snags along the way. Without their support, I may have given up, but they would not allow me to. This surgery is the best thing I have ever done for myself. I have no regrets and would do it again in a heartbeat. I am very people oriented so feel free to e-mail me anytime. I don't get on the board as much as I used to because I find myself busy doing things I couldn't do for a long time. Keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. {{{{{HUGS}}}}} Love ya, Brenda 348/232/????

Super Idea, LisaMarie ! My name is Carol, I am approaching 40 yrs. old (April 4 ,2006) . I am from Fort Plain , NY. I am married to a very supportive man ,21 yrs. this August 17 th. I have 3 beautiful children , 1 boy age 20 , two girls ages 18 and 15 . Two of them are experiencing life on there own . I have 2 very precious grandchildren , 1 girl age 1 yr and 1 boy age 3 months. I am a pre -op with a surgery date of April 5,2006 . My surgery is being done open by Dr. Lirio of Schenectady, Ny @ the Ellis hospital . I have not recieved ins. approval yet as I am waiting on clearence from my Hematologist doc before I am able to submitt it to ins. co. I was required to lose 10% of my weight before surgery and my surgeon put me on Medifast January 26 th and I have since lost 42 lbs which succeeds my 10% goal by 9 lbs. so far ! I am very happy about that ! I am currently a Domestic Engineer (Homemaker ) Now , isn't that a much better title ! ! I had to quit my job to take care of my mom 2 yrs ago and she passed away shortly after I quit . I am very anxious to go back to school after my surgery to persue my dream of being a Cosmetologist. I am into gardening and am a big Nascar fan , my favorite driver is Earnhardt Jr. "8" . I am also a big fan of the Yankees....GO Yankees ! I love to do scrapbooking as well . I am very pruod to be a member of OH ! I love my Amos family and would not know what to do without them ! If anyone would like to chat about anything feel free to drop me an email ,anytime ! Next............................................................ and , Carol

Carol, I am also a Fort Plain resident who is in the pre-op stages of open RNY. You look familiar, so perhaps we have seen each other around town! I was very happy to see someone on this web page who lived close by to me and I hope that everything works out good for your surgery for April. I would love to keep in contact with you and find out how things are going and to get your input on what works and what doesn't, although I know that I should follow my surgeons recommendations. I am going with Dr Kenneth Graniero from the Mohawk Valley Weight Loss Surgery Center in Utica. My husband and I have been to the informational meeting and met with him and have all of our paperwork into the insurance company and are awaiting the 1st consult visit with MVWLSC. I am 41 years old, married for 14 years with a son who turns 4 next week. He was our "miracle baby". Please let me know if there is anything that I could help you with and I will keep you in my prayers. If you are interested in talking on the phone my number 993-2596. Good luck on your WLS journey and I wish only the best for you. Sincerely, Laura Beam

LisaMarie, Love this idea you had!!!.. OK I am Debra, I am 40 years old, married and no kids with the exception of my 3 cats and 1 doggie (furbabies), we live in Upstate NY. Just purchased our first home... I had my surgery June 6th of 2005 and down 112 lbs now, only 48 more lbs to go until I reach my goal at 125 lbs. I am feeling really good about my body but still dealing with the "fat" issues and of course the love of my life (FOOD) that wants to come back into my every day life. This will be my cross to carry for the rest of my life but so many good things have come out of this surgery and weight loss. I thank God for it and that I was one of the lucky ones that was able to have it! Also wanted to thank my AMOS family for all the love and support you have given to me along this journey! You ALL are so awesome, love you all! Take care Debra P