Comparison Photos

May 2007

September 2007

4 Months Banded

Weight loss: 14.8kg

Stats.

Chest: -10cm

Abdom: -8.5cm

Waist: -12.5cm

Tummy: -6cm

Hip: -13cm

Thigh: -8cm

Knee: -8cm

Ankle: -2.5cm

Upper Arm: -7cm

Neck: -4cm

------------------

Total : -79.5cm lost

I can't tell you how happy I am. This has already made a big impact on my life. I feel so much better and my kids are constantly telling me how great I look and how my belly isn't so big anymore. My Husband is thrilled and very proud of me and keeps talking about the future in terms of me being even thinner, and what he can't wait to see me wear when I am skinnier.

I am so glad I did this. 4 months on through all the drama and ups and downs, I definitely wouldn't change a thing. I love my band (Freddy).....

Tarn xxxx

It's Finally Moving

Finally.....

Finally the weight is moving..... I can't believe it has taken this long to start to get the results I was expecting. I know I had lost some weight, and I was happy with ANY that I lost but I had 2 months there that I had no results at all.

I am now down to 101.4kg.... that is a weight loss of 14.4kg and half of that has been in the last 4-5weeks, I am stoked. My work clothes are getting really loose, my bras are seriously useless they are that loose and even my shoes are loose (go figure).

I'm Happy ... Happy ... Happy ...!!!

I am still pissed off with the inconsistency of the band (aka Freddy) and it's effect on my eating patterns. I either have GOOD days or BAD days, nothing in between. I am either eating and enjoying my soup, crackers, mince meals, porridge and what not..... or chucking every fucking thing down the shitter ...... whats with that. One day I feel like I have perfect restriction, the next is like my friggin stomach is zip-tied closed.

I had my first heartburn session (since banding) yesterday, I got up and felt like I could stomach some porridge, so cooked some up. Okay I correct myself here. I cooked a tiny piddly arsed amount of porridge up and sprinkled with brown sugar and proceeded to eat ...s l o w l y. Now a few weeks ago I ran out of brown sugar and couldn't buy any at Coles so started using a squirt of maple syrup instead. Oh My F God it tastes like heaven. Anyways found the sugar a few weeks later (but could only buy brand name not el-cheapo version) but still used the maple syrup till I ran out a few days ago, hence used said brown sugar. The CSR brand must be so much stronger that the no name because I had the worst heartburn ever....EVER (even counting pregnancy heartburn).

So Surprisingly enough I chucked (it's like a daily ritual these days) and the acid in my throat was horrendous. 2x Zantac and a Losec later (thank fuck I work in a chemist) It was still giving me curry. I was right as rain a few hours later, but god it was awful. Whilst it was burning I actually rang Dr Fill and made an appointment to have some fill taken out, 24 hrs later I have changed my mind....AGAIN.... I am going to stick it out and if the heartburn happens again I will have some out... if not, the weight loss stays

God this is hard, at least with Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig you could have the day off. Who said this was the cheaters version....LIARS !!!!!!!

Cheerio

Tarn xxx

Getting There

It feels like ages since I posted....sorry guys.

I have been busy and just haven't felt like talking about my band. I, as you know have had a lot of restriction but still struggled to loose weight, so I decided to peace out and not think about it (other than when I am eating of course). So I stopped visiting Lapband Threads, fellow bandster's blogs, and stopped reading emails from my bandsters support group, and just acted like a "normal" person for a few weeks.

And guess what??????

It seems to have worked, in 3 weeks I have lost 4kg. By not concentrating on the band and defining myself as a bandster I was able to chill out and let it take it's natural course.

Now this is not to say I haven't missed the support, because I definitely have, but I think I was toooo focused on it. I have now been banded for 4 months and lost 13 kg, it doesn't sound nearly as impressive as some of you wonderful banded people out there, but I am more than happy. I decided a few weeks ago that this was a 2 year journey, and I WILL reach my goal weight, it may just take the whole 2 years but that's ok with me........

Photos will follow soon

Tarn xxx

Friday Ferals

I'm not sure if I have told you about the people I work with......

I work in a small community pharmacy, in a very small shopping village. Saying that we are very busy, each day there is the pharmacist and 3 of us girls working, and we are NON STOP. I have worked in larger and posher pharmacies that have not been as busy or as productive as this one, but I definitely like this place better than any others I have worked.

The thing I like about where I work is that 95% of my customers I know by name, I know their mothers, fathers and their children and because of this there is a casual air about the place, formality isn't necessary and we joke and tease our customers and they love it. Mind you we get as much back as we give, but we also get morning tea bought for us by customers, we get homemade goodies (the best rock cakes in NSW), and even the odd birthday present.

The other thing I love is the people I work with. The owner/pharmacist is a great guy.... he is funny, eccentric, down to earth and very community minded. Loves to tease the hell out of us and is a full on greeny at heart. He walks to work every single day rain hail or shine, if you stop and ask if he wants a lift, its..." no way, I'm fine",he carries a green enviro bag and collects rubbish on the side of the road, just to make the place tidy, he recycles EVERYTHING, every piece of paper, every food scrap, every bottle. Almost everything we print at work (except repeat forms and accounts) is on recycled paper (meaning paper that has printing on the other side).... He is just a gem !!!!

There are about 6 of us girls and a few very casuals (both have worked at the pharmacy for more than 25 years, retired, but still can't let go, and get called in now and then to fill in...we love them) The whole team is great, we socialise together very often, and have an absolute ball at work most days. The best day is Friday, it's also our busiest day. Something seems to go a little crazy about 2pm on a Friday and we all turn feral. The connotations are always re sex, innuendos fly around like crazy and we have discussions that I can only imagine belong in male change rooms..... dirty young and old chicks that I work with.

Today's topic was my visit to the salon 2 weeks ago to get my first ever bald eagle, not a Brazilian, there is only one person I will get on my knees and poke my bare arse to and like fuck I am gonna give HIM a wax pot. So I went for the completely smooth hoha (as Reney calls it), I have had the bikini wax and tiny GT stripe done before, but never nicker free open legged hot waxed..... I went to work the next day telling the girls that I think my hubby is gay because he acted scared of it.....lucky for me it grew on him.

Anyways.... K who is 52 beautiful and a deviot asks today how my baldy is going and if Dave was liking it any better ( I know... we are depraved) and I tell her of my disappointment that it didn't stay smooth for longer. She starts laughing and calls it a hedgehog, coming in late to the conversation L (the pre-reg pharmacist) thinks we are taking about headjobs and proceeds to tell us that her friend calls them hedgehogs. This starts me in a fit of hysterical giggles, I have the other 3 girls and the boss looking at me as if I am a freak, so I have to tell them that maybe she had a speech impediment, hold my nose and say " I lub hedgehogs". Of course this gets the desired effect and the 5 of us are in hysterics, to the point of nearly wetting ourselves. Well the afternoon was a colourful one after that, every time we settled down, someone would say hedgehog.... and off we would go again.

This seems to be the norm for us on a Friday.... I have so many Friday stories I could go on forever..... another time maybe.

I just got a text message from C from work, she has a suggestion for our name at the up and coming local trivia night to support the Westpac rescue helicopter... quote... "Scott said lets call our table the hedgehogs at trivia night"..... don't ya just love office confidentiality....PPFFTT.

Bye from the feral......

Luv Tarn

I Am A Slack Blogger

Well..... I can't help it....

I have been really slack at the moment, I think it has something to do with my energy levels. For 2 weeks I have had a cold/flu and have struggled to get over it. Just when I start to feel better it comes back and I am unwell for a couple of days. I am sick of coughing, sick of snot, and definitely sick of being tired.

As I have said before, I work in a pharmacy, and have done numerous vitamin training courses which are run by the vitamin companies. I am definitely not an expert, but I know a little bit... enough to keep my head above water.

Anyways... I am getting worried about my nutritional input as my restriction is pretty severe, and I am starting to get some side effects. I had the initial hair loss, which I put down to the anaesthetic but at the moment I am loosing handful upon handfuls of hair, to the point that I am getting worried that I will have any left. Then my cold/flu, and my energy levels.

I decided that I really needed some heavy duty advise on supplements, so took myself off to the health food shop. I explained my situation to the organic looking old bat behind the counter, who had a look on her face like I smelt of dog shit (which I didn't). She then with her nose turned up announces

"what a bizarre and extreme length to go to JUST to loose weight, do you know what you have done to your body? You have poisoned it for years to become obese, now you are mutilating it, no wonder your hairs falling out"

What the Fuck !!!!!!

I was soooooo angry. This tofu eating, kaftan wearing, grey haired ugly bitch had to be THE rudest person I have yet to encounter since being banded. I was stunned. She then whipped out a piece of paper and starts writing down what I SHOULD and SHOULDN'T be eating. Saying "Do you know we are the only animals on this earth that drinks milk after weaning..... that stops today!!!! No more meat... you get all your daily protein from the raw vege juices you will be drinking from now on........ You will drink nothing but vegetable juices and water"

I'm like..... whhhhoooooaaaaa.... "UUUMMM excuse me MISS. I am leaving. I did not have this done to take shit from someone like you" and turned on my heals and walked out. I can' t believe it. I went in there for advise and help. I would never treat my customers like that. I may not know as much as this woman does about vitamins , minerals and herbs but at least I am not a first class MOLE.

I walked out of that shop and went to another, and this time was smart enough to keep my FAT trap closed and asked for a tonic that would help with lack of nutrients that can cause hair loss and drained energy. The lady kindly handed me a "whole body tonic" and said to take 15mls each day and concentrate on getting more fruit and veg into my diet.....

I went home and opened my forty dollar bottle of energy and measured 15 mls and mixed with 15mls of unsweetened juice as per instructions. I put it near my mouth and dry retched the biggest dry retch in my life !!! It was FUCKING AWFUL.... I swallowed it and the fucker bounced on the bottom of my stomach and upchucked into the sink, in one motion. Ohmygod it was filthy, ferral, foul, crap, disgusting, vile. I tried it the next day, and the same happened, the third day it stayed down for 2 minutes, but I threw up for an extra 15 after the shit came back out. This morning I decided to give it one last chance, I decided to try it unmixed...shot like. NO WAY BABY was that crap going down my throat. It felt like it swung around my tonsils and sling shot out my mouth.... $40 well spent i would say !!!!!!! NOT

So now I am back on the Berocca and Olive leaf extract, and taking some Goji berries. That shit is going to be used to clean my drains I think........ Lord help the poor drains.

Ciao
Tarnya

Damn Scales

I am FREAKING out.... I don't know what I weigh..... Me, the serial weigher, has had my addiction taken from me. The damn Aldi scales still haven't been fixed, I forgot to get the batteries last week. Every time I go out I think " I will find somewhere to weigh myself or get some new batteries" but I keep forgetting.

The reason I am little worried is that I had a bit of a party weekend. It was my boy's birthdays and we had a party with the relo's on Saturday and a kids party on Sunday and I was a piglet...

Let me explain..... I have 2 sons and at the moment they are both 9. There is 10 days short of 12 months between them. HHMMM Yes you are thinking I am a sex maniac, but really the true explanations is that I am stupid...crazy.....glutton for punishment....and yes maybe I should have just said no (but couldn't help it).

My oldest son was only 5 months old when I found out I was pregnant, and boy was it a surprise. I cried for 2 days after I found out, not because I didn't want another baby, I just didn't want one so soon. After the second day of being a big sooky la la I sucked it up and decided 13 months between children wasn't so bad. They would be buddies, Get it over and done with quickly, they would grow up together...it's not so bad....

Then my body betrayed me and I started having pre-eclampsia symptoms at 26 weeks and thanks to being hospitalized was able to stay pregnant until 30 weeks, so my 13 months age difference became 11 months.......... GREAT !!!

Any way Adam (My oldest) turns 10 on Wednesday, so we had a joint B'Day party for them on Sunday out on a friends 5 acre block. We took the motorbikes out and the BBq and heaps of junk food and about 15 kids and their parents and had wonderful day. I couldn't eat the sausages or the bread rolls and ended up just have some pasta salad and coleslaw, but also managed to taste test the CC's, chips, dip, Camembert, smarties, and all the other goodies I have not kept in my house for a long time (never said I had willpower....)

Tomorrow I WILL buy batteries, just for my own piece of mind if anything. It's funny how you just expect the worst. I am totally sure I only ate a fraction of what I would have eaten pre-banding, but I suffer the guilt thing (and I am not even catholic).

cheers Tarn..xxx

p.s I did get lots of compliments on the day... so I was very happy about that.

Here are my boys doing what they love best !!!!!

Love you Addy and Cam xxxxxx