Drop The Baggage

Good eats the Bariatric Way

2009-08-18T11:33:00.009-04:00

One of the things I feared about getting bariatric surgery was not being able to be a "foodie" anymore. After all, I need to eat healthy for the rest of my life, and there are certain things I should avoid entirely (like white bread, white rice, white pasta, etc - stuff like that can really gum up the works in the beginning, but honestly, it's not that good for anyone).

I digress. I'm quickly discovering that there is plenty of room for love of cooking and recipe development after bariatric surgery. In fact, it has focused my desire to develop healthy recipes that are tasty for not only the Weight Loss Surgery patient, but the family as well.

With that in mind, I had a great dinner on Sunday with my geeky friends. I decided to make three courses, and had the extra challenge of not only making all three courses bariatric friendly, but vegetarian, as many of my friends don't eat meat. Luckily I didn't have to go vegan, because there IS cheese and dairy in the meal!

Following is the video I did of the recipes. After that, I'll put in the recipes if you want to try them yourselves:

Recipes

Summer Corn Salad

(This recipe is large; it'll feed up to 12 "normal-eating" people, so you might want to cut it if you have fewer mouths to feed - guess one ear of corn for each person)

12 ears fresh corn on the cob (you can use frozen or canned, but fresh is best)
1 medium-sized box grape tomatoes
1 medium-sized vidalia onion
1/4 to 1/2 cup chopped fresh basil (put in what you like - no strict measurements here)
2 to 4 tbsp white vinegar
1/4 to 1/2 c. olive oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

Boil corn for 7 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool, then cut corn off the cob (helpful hint - if you have a small cutting board, lay it in a rectangular casserole or cake pan - that way, when you cut off the corn, it will fall into the pan and not go everywhere). Clean and cut grape tomatoes in half, adding them to the corn. Dice onion and add to mixture. Chop fresh basil (make sure it's fresh - the dried stuff does NOT suffice) and add to mixture. Mix in white vinegar, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Cover and refrigerate, allowing mixture to sit for at least an hour before serving - this allows the flavors to mingle well.

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

Main Course: Cheesy Quorn Casserole

(Note: Quorn is a vegetable product that was developed to mimic chicken, both flavor and texture, and I find it much better tasting than soy "chick'n" products - you can find nutritional information here: http://www.coheso.com/nutridata/Quorn/Chicken_Patties/item_details.html).

Mix:
1 Package Quorn Patties, diced
1/2 large bag frozen hash browns (or "home fry" cut)
1 bag broccoli (to taste)
1/2 bag shredded cheddar cheese
1 can cheddar cheese soup
1/2 pint Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt (this is GREAT protein)

(If you feel there is not enough moisture in the mixture, add more of the yogurt; also, this casserole lends itself well to change - if you want more of a mexican feel, add black beans and salsa. Also note that while this casserole is "homemade," it is made from things bought at a grocery store - I'm not a purist - if there is something at the store that tastes as good as you could do from 'scratch' then USE it!)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Bake casserole uncovered for 45 minutes or until potatoes are soft. Add remainder of the bag of shredded cheese to the top of the casserole, and return to oven for 3 to 5 minutes to melt the cheese.

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

Dessert:

Roasted Pears with Sweetened Ricotta and Caramel

I got this recipe from a WONDERFUL bariatric recipes website: The World According to Eggface. Shelly is a wonderful cook, and also a great example of how Bariatric Surgery can change a person's life, and I HIGHLY recommend her site.

For the Pear recipe, I stuck pretty close to Shelly's, though I added a touch of sugar free hazelnut syrup to the Ricotta Mixture. Here is my picture:

What's great is that all of the above recipes are made with no added sugar, or I used sugar free products. Both the main dish and dessert are packed with protein, as Quorn, Broccoli, Cheese, and Greek Yogurt all are high protein ingredients.

Happy Eating!

Catching up!

2009-08-17T22:57:00.003-04:00

I didn't post in my blog for a long time. It made me sad to even think about, because I had been rejected by my insurance for the surgery I needed to get my health back. But, after a lot of struggle, I found a lender. And through a lot of research, I found Dr. Armando Joya. Yes, I left the country for my surgery. I had a Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico with Dr. Joya and his team. And I would not change a thing, because it was a great experience with a top notch medical team and hospital.

I am now four weeks out tomorrow. I lost 10 lbs in the pre-surgery liquid diet, and I've lost 15 lbs since. Not as much as I'd have liked, but more than I've lost in a year without this tool. I'm going to embed videos from the vlog to play catch-up. I'm posting on youtube as puhlease1. Come see me!

So, in video, here is my journey thus far:

My first video, from the balcony of my room at the Krystal Vallarta resort in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico:

The first night in Puerto Vallarta, my best friend (who went with me) and I had a bit of a stormy adventure:

Some of my hospital experience - the only thing I regret is not getting pictures of my with the surgical team! They were so great, and I didn't even think about it:

The day after my surgery - it ain't pretty, but it's real ;)

There are more videos at my vlog on youtube, outlining my first weeks since surgery, and sharing some great photos my friend took while we were in Mexico. Subscribe to my site on youtube, too, and you'll get a message when a new vid is posted.

I'm just so excited to be on THIS side of the surgery now. Yes, I'm in debt I didn't want to be in (no more than the copays would have been if my insurance had accepted me though), and this surgery is only a tool. My diet is modified, my exercise routine is important - now I just have a built in tool for portion control.

Life is already feeling better - certainly healthier!

You're taking the easy way out!

2009-05-28T14:13:00.002-04:00

You know, as I titled this, I was feeling pretty damned livid about that statement. I have refrained from telling my father about this struggle I'm having getting weight loss surgery, because I just don't want to hear it - the "I just lost weight with Nutrasystem, you need to try that! Weight loss surgery is for people who have no willpower. It's the easy way out."

Frankly, I just don't want the argument, so with him and all my family members, I'm waiting to tell. But from others, too, I hear, "That's just silly - go on a diet and get more exercise, and lose weight the hard way like the rest of us." You know, for 21 years I've dieted and exercised and I'm still obese.

And besides, that, just who are you (I'm speaking figuratively here about anyone who would say something about it) to tell me that I shouldn't get it because it's EASIER to lose weight with it. Hello?!? That's the POINT.

Think about it - in our very society, we have thousands of tools and technologies to make life easier. I'm not looking at you saying, "You're DRIVING the ten miles to work? That's for people with no willpower. You should be walking to work!"

Or how about, "You have a DISHWASHER? You should be handwashing those dishes - stop taking the easy way out!"

You're having surgery on your knee? Why? You should just do physical therapy for life, and use crutches - surgery is the easy way out. Or Lasik for your eyes? Shame on you! Wear contacs or glasses like the rest of us.

Seriously - why is it that Weight Loss Surgery, when it is SUCH a help to those of us who have struggled with obesity all our lives, seems to be the only technology and tool that people seem to have a PROBLEM with? It's like it offends the sensibilities of both skinny and fat alike that I would deign to take the "easy way out."

Let's talk about that. I began to consider weight loss surgery over a year ago. In January I went to a seminar about it. Since that time, I have had to have a psychological assessment (which I paid for out of pocket because the bariatric psychologist was out of network), a nutritional consult (also out of pocket, same reason), chest xrays, an upper GI (barium sucks, just so you know), huge amounts of bloodwork, an ekg, and an upper endoscopy with the gastroenterologist, who found that I need to get my gallbladder out as well because it looks like a gravel pit.

I have struggled with the surgeon's office staff to get them to call me back. And most recently, I have found that the insurance girl at the surgeon's office told me back in March that my insurance group plan would cover me at a 70% rate. A few days ago, I found out that my insurance group plan excludes weight loss surgery, so I'm not covered at all. The surgeon's office put me through all the pre-op appointments telling me that my insurance would cover as long as I gathered all the information the company required so they could send the packet. And now I find that they never would have covered at all.

So here I sit, NOW in a struggle with the surgeon's office because this was their big mistake, I've paid over $1,000 out of pocket for copays and pre-surgical consults, and I can't even get the surgeon's office to call me back so we can talk about my options, and how they are going to help me with those options, as this was their big mistake.

And yet still I know that I will get this surgery, because I need it, or I will die. If I do not die early, I will have a sucky quality of life. My feet, ankles, knees, and hips are always sore from carrying around this extra weight. I feel gross. I'm going to be a diabetic soon if I don't take off the weight. I worry about fitting into theater seats or airplane seats, or being ridiculed for being fat when I'm out hiking with a friend (Yes, I hike - you think all fat people are just couch potatoes? Wrong).

The easy way out? No way. But even if it were - SO FREAKIN WHAT? when you stop flying or driving and start walking to your destination...when you start hand washing your dishes...swimming across the lake instead of boating...raising your own livestock and slaughtering it yourself instead of buying it in convenient packages in the grocery store...or your own crops...considering any type of surgery that could help you with quality of life...well, when you do any of those things, you remember - you are taking the EASY way out.

And that's okay.

Sleep Studies

2009-04-15T23:10:00.001-04:00

Okay, first let me say that sleep studies are NOT conducive to actually being able to sleep. Just so you know if you ever need to go have one done.

I wore my pajamas straight to the study, as it was only 1 mile from my house and I didn't want to have to change there again. When they say loose-fitting, they mean it, because you have to drop sensors down your pant leg to be taped to your lower calves, and up under your shirt to be taped to your back. They scrub your head in 9 spots with some very gritty stuff - I thought I'd have bald patches, but he assured me that was not the case - I'd have throttled the little twerp if there had been any. Then they put this goop/paste on all those spots, and stick the sensors down with medical tape.

Speaking of little twerps, this is a small lab - I get in there, and there is one lab tech - that's it - nobody else in the building and he's a 23 year old squirrel hunting goofball (No offense to squirrel hunters out there, but he happened to tell me in his constant chatter that he likes hunting squirrels) - guess it takes one to know one, because he was pretty squirrely.

Once I've got wires protruding from my scalp, chest, back. legs, and stupid things stuck in my nostrils and tucked behind my ears, as well as a mini microphone also stuck up my dang nostrils, he has the nerve when testing to tell me to breathe through my nose? HOW THE BLOODY HELL am I supposed to do that when I have stuff blocking both nostrils, eh?? OY. I hope I got boogies on it and he had to clean it off.

So, I'm trussed up like a christmas turkey, and then he tells me he has to do some tests, and to lay on my back and listen. He intercoms and tells me to look up, down, right, left, breathe through my nose (again, are they really this goofy?), through my mouth, say ah three times, twirl around and bow (that last one isn't true, but it should have been), and then after all that, says, "Okay, you can go to sleep now."

Riiiight. He proceeds then from the next room to bang around and thump around and I toss and turn and just begin to get sleepy and dose off when...I have to pee. arrrrgh!

So, he has to unhook me from the machines, but I get to take all of the lovely corded decoration with me to the bathroom. Then, I get situated back in bed around 12:30 a.m. and he proceeds from the next room to phone one of his friends - his voice drones on and on, and I finally say, "Look, are you going to talk much longer, because I can't sleep." He apologizes (apparently either the people before me have been deaf or just didn't want to say anything about it). His voice goes quiet, so I finally drift in and out of sleep for four more hours, at which time I hear (which makes me jump), "Okay, the sleep study is over." You know, a "good morning" would have been nice at 5:30 a.m.

I have to do all the little eye rolls and ah's again, then he comes in and begins peeling the sensors off - pulling them out of my hair (I said, "OW, GENTLY!" a couple of times when I thought he was going to pull my hair out by the roots). What does this job of his require, just 1 month in tech school or something? He's a nice kid, but dang, dude.

Then, after that, I realize, "Crap, I forgot to tell him I had a sensitivity to silicone and some other polymers." I asked him if there was any silicone in the gels he'd used on me or in the tape - yep. Grrreeeaaat. It's a good thing I'm not getting a lapband, because I can only imagine what silicone would do to my insides, as on the outside I now have two inch round red marks where the tape and sensors were stuck on my face and forehead, and everywhere else. I look like the muppet manamanas gave me hickeys:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MRxrqrNQY3s

My friends at work are saying, "Awww" and then giggling - just can't help it - they are pretty amusing

apparently a doctor will look at the results (thank goodness it isn't the kid doing it) and I should hear in a few days.

The interminable wait

2009-03-30T12:39:00.002-04:00

I've been told this is the most frustrating time - the time when you're waiting for your insurance to tell you yes or no regarding your chosen WLS - and it IS. The wait seems it has been forever since I made the decision to explore WLS to deciding on what kind of surgery is right for me, to sitting here hoping against hope that my insurance will say yes. And here I wait.

It hasn't been long, really - it is the end of March, and I only began thinking about weight loss surgery in December, went to a seminar in January, etc. I suppose I just hoped things would be further in the process. I'm tired of the fight with my weight and need this tool to at least help make the fight a bit less impossible, and I'm ready for help!

Insurance *sigh*

Those No Good, Very Bad, Waiting on Insurance Blues

2009-03-23T19:45:00.002-04:00

I am the type of person who, once I decide to do something, researches it into the ground, and then I just do it. Maybe it's that directness that comes of having been raised in the Midwest, but whatever it is does NOT instill patience when waiting for insurance to decide whether they will cover my Vertical Sleeve or not.

It is likely that they will say no. I will appeal, of course, and hopefully they'll turn around, but I'm trying not to get my hopes up too high, as most insurance companies still consider the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy to be "investigational" even though there are years of statistics showing that it has great success, and often less complications than other weight loss surgeries.

I'm preparing materials for an appeal just in case. But I'm also researching other options - like going to Mexico. It is just not in any budget of mine to be able to self-pay in this country. My friend got the same surgery in July, 2008, right here, and ended up having to pay out of pocket. For the same surgeon I'm hoping to work with, plus the hospital bills, etc., she has had to get a loan for well over $30,000. She'll be paying for years on that. I can't make a monthly payment high enough to sustain a loan like that, not to mention that my former marriage didn't leave me in the best of credit situations - I seriously doubt I could get a loan for over $10,000. I might not be able to get one even for that.

But, I'm going to try - for a $10,000 loan, because that's about what it's going to cost me for the procedure in Mexico - including airfare, hotel, hospital, transportation, AND surgery. That's a big difference. A lot of people gasp and have a lot of fear when they hear you might opt to leave the country for surgery - especially to....Mexico?? But you know, there is risk with ANY surgery, whether it's here in this country or anywhere else in the world. And, a few of the top bariatric surgeons in the world are in...yep, Mexico. Frankly, if I have to pay for this surgery out of pocket, I'd rather do it for 1/3 of the price while recouperating in an oceanside hotel than for exhorbitant amounts of money while staring at the walls of my own apartment.

Makes me want even more to see our nation's health care system overhauled, but it's not likely to affect ME anytime soon, so I've got to deal with what I've got - first trying to get my insurance to realize this is PREVENTATIVE care, before the even more elevated cholesterol, before the Type II diabetes, the heart attacks, the further deterioration of my joints (hips, feet, and knees especially), the sleep apnea.....

We shall see - hopefully SOON! I would so love to be able to have this surgery by my birthday at the end of May, or at least have a DATE for it.

One lovely thing - my friend Jan, who is one of the few people outside of some coworkers that knows of my plans, said that if I end up going to Mexico, she could get tickets and go with me, to help, and possibly rejuvenate herself in the interim. I nearly got teary-eyed when she said that. That she'd be willing to pay for a flight, and possibly a couple of nights extra in the hotel (so she doesn't have to camp out in the hospital) for ME. I have some lovely friends.

Am I getting Weight Loss Surgery for Selfish Reasons?

2009-03-15T22:32:00.003-04:00

You BET I am.

Recently, there was a discussion on the forums of my favorite Weight Loss Surgery site, Bariatric TV, sparked by an absolutely lovely woman named Yvonne posting her Before and After pictures. She was apologetic at first about posting an after picture that is very sexy. Apparently, she has been vilified in the past for the sexy pictures and sexy clothes, as if it is somehow wrong to want to be beautiful as well as healthy.

We who have chosen the Weight Loss Surgery route might feel as if we're caught between several opinions, all of them telling us that we might have a weakness for getting WLS. But even within the WLS community, there is sniping and snarkiness about WHY we might choose WLS. On the one hand, you have great, positive people like Mo'Nique, who encourage people who are obese to work toward health, but also embrace their fuller figures and be positive about their beauty just the way they are. Mo'Nique has great attitudes, but often those who agree with her can go to the point that if you don't embrace yourself as-is, you are too insecure.

On the other end are the people in support of Weight Loss Surgery for health reasons. This is wonderful. But often, we are made to feel even within the WLS community as if we are wrong, or vain, or selfish for wanting to be sexy as well as healthy.

Well, brace yourselves, because I'm not afraid at all to say that I want WLS for my health, yes, but also because I want to feel attractive. I want to look in the mirror and not feel like crying, or to catch my reflection in a window and think, Damn, I look good! I'm tired of catching my reflection and thinking, "who is that fat woman?" and realizing it's ME. I don't feel the size I am, so it still catches me off guard when I see myself full length.

I want the surgery because I want the second half of my life to be more rewarding than the first. Yes, for health. I want to be able to hike without feeling like my lungs will explode. But I also want to be able to wear a swimsuit without feeling like Orca, or like Omar the Tentmaker made my clothes. I want men to feel like whistling when I pass by.

WARNING, SKIP THIS PARAGRAPH IF YOU DON'T WANT SEXUAL CONTENT: I want to (here it comes) be more appealing sexually, AND be more acrobatic at sex. I want to be more unrestrained in the bedroom, and not be constantly thinking about things like, "If I'm on top, will I squish him, or smother him with my ponderous boobs? Is gravity doing horrible things to my face?"

Health is an issue. But my quality of life depends on more than good physical health. It also depends on feeling good about how I look, and having MEN feel good about how I look. The men I'm attracted to. Because when I'm out with friends now, the men who DO hit on me on rare occasions when they do, tend toward the creepy, or the guys who say things like "Hey baby, I like thick girls." That is all well and good, dude, but I don't want to remain a "thick" girl, not to mention that the line itself isn't a great opener.

I'm not saying I haven't had any good relationships - oh wait, yes I AM saying that. I have NEVER been loved as much as I have loved. From the 21 year marriage to an emotionally stunted man who turned out to be gay, to the young widower who wanted to have a "relationship" but didn't want anyone in his life to know I existed, to the "friend with benefits" that lasted for over a year (we ended it a few months ago, because on my end, it was wearing on my confidence and self-esteem to feel that once again I just wasn't "good enough" to be known - nope, this was not all his fault, but it felt that way anyhow).

Weight Loss Surgery, of course, is not the end all and be-all for finding someone to love me - but damn it, it will help, if anything in my feeling much more confident and therefore drawing more positive attention from a different type of man. One that wants to indroduce me to his friends and family, and is proud to have me as his girlfriend. Of course there are men who would be if I were just this size I am now. But I'd be lying if I said I didn't think it would make a big difference in my dating pool to be fit and trim.

Yes, I'm passionate about this. I'm TIRED of people trying to say that it is vanity to want to look good. We're not Narcissus staring at ourselves constantly and talking of how beautiful we are. We are simply human, decent people who DESERVE to look like we FEEL on the inside. I can't wait to take those sexy pictures of myself, like Yvonne, or finally to wear that little black dress (emphasis on little).

And I'm not ashamed. Take that, all you "health only" purists ;)

The EASY Way out?

2009-03-10T22:59:00.002-04:00

For my entire life (well, at least as long as I've struggled with weight - say, age 12?) I have heard that the only way to lose weight is by working very hard and eating in the right caloric range. Period.

Now, I often deviated from that. I tried every diet I heard about. Atkins, Weight Watchers, South Beach, Volumetrics, French Women Don't Get Fat, Stop the Insanity, Protein Power, Carb Addicts Diet, Mayo Clinic Diet (which was not sanctioned by Mayo, but was really low carb), grapefruit diet, Dexatrim, Adipex (prescription speed), Weight Watchers again, raw foods, YOU NAME IT. I tried it. And, I also just got "back to basics." Low cal, lots of exercise. I ate 1200 to 1500 calories a day for months at a time, and exercised at LEAST 1/2 hour to 1 hour per day.

My stepmom, during one of these stints, commented on how my willpower was amazing - that she could never do that. (She's slender and has never been fat, so she's not really had to try, though she always tried to exercise and watch what she ate)

So here I am at age 42, pushing 43, and frankly I'm tired. I have lost and re-gained the same 50 to 100 lbs over and over and over again. I have watched others do the same. I auditioned for The Biggest Loser but then realized I did not want to do that after finding out that a LOT of their alumni have gained most of the weight back. And, after watching people work their asses off only to GAIN two lbs in the weigh-in. And, I've thought, "What the hell? I might as well just be Cathy Bates' character in Fried Green Tomatoes, and just give up and get REALLY fat.

I am two years (nearly) past my divorce. I lost about 50 lbs just after the separation - put it back on again. I look at my father, who has struggled with his weight all his life (we look alike, and I definitely have his genetics). He has had two heart attacks, one bypass surgery, a haital hernia, Type II insulin dependent diabetes, and still, at age 65, struggles with his weight. About a year ago, he went on Nutrisystem. He has lost quite a bit of weight. I HOPE that he can keep it off once he starts eating "normal" food again. He told me that it was either Nutrasystem or the doc said he wanted him to get Weight Loss Surgery. Dum dum DUM *sounds of the scary music inserted*.

It niggled at me. I lost about 30 lbs in Weight Watchers yet again, then stalled. It niggled at me some more. I heard people say, "Weight Loss Surgery" is for the weak. It is the easy way out. It is a cop out. It is.... (fill in the blank). And people spend THOUSANDS of dollars on surgery. It is, on average, about $30,000 for weight loss surgery (averaging all of them here). This makes one balk - but then again, how much money have I spent over the years in tring to lose weight?

But let's think about the stats for an obese person to lose weight the "right" way - with diet and exercise. I recently read (in more than one venue) that only about 5% of those who are classified as obese will lose the weight and keep it off. 5%!! I'm sorry, but that just doesn't sound like it's all my fault if I work so hard and just can't keep it off. I read that once an obese person passes age 35, they stand a 1% chance of losing the weight an keeping it off - without surgery.

So here it is - after years of struggle - a lifetime in fact. And years of beating myself up, crying, working, starving myself - I've decided to get weight loss surgery. Yes me, always in the past considered "the STRONG one." Well I've decided that Weight Loss Surgery does NOT make me weak. It is not the easy way out - it is the NECESSARY way for me to regain my health and regain my LIFE. I do not want to be 65 and still struggling like my father with losing weight.

I have decided that Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy is the surgery for me. It is less invasive than gastric bypass, but gives me the TOOL to eat a lot fewer calories (500 to 800 per day) while not starving. I've petitioned my insurance. If they deny, I'm going to appeal. If they deny again, I'll appeal again and this time with my chosen surgeon trying a face to face with them. If they deny after all that - I'll find a medical loan company to give me a $10,000 loan, and I'll go to Mexico. At least two of the top bariatric surgeons in the world operate out of state-of-the-art hospitals in Mexico, and it's a hellova lot cheaper than here in the United States.

I have spent upwards of $50,000 over my adult life on weight loss foods, tools, programs, books...you name it. I can find a way to spend less than a used car loan on my LIFE. It's not the easy way out, trust me. But it's MY way out.

Out of the relationship, but the pounds are still on?

2008-12-12T20:50:00.003-05:00

Many of us have been there. Whether it was unintentional, or masking something unhappy, eating emotionally...for whatever reason, you've come out of this relationship with more baggage than you went into it with.

In a study by Weight Watchers in America of 25,000 married women, those who claimed to be in an unhappy relationship gained an average of 54 pounds during the first 10 years of marriage. Those who claim happy marriages don't fare much better, nor do men after 10 years of marriage.

Being a mental health professional, and having been athletic since Junior High, one would have thought I'd be an exception to the rule. No, the marriage weight gain hit me, too, in a big way.

My marriage, in its 21 years, was happy at times and miserable at times. I married and had a child at age 19, and within the first 10 years, I went from a curvaceous 36/26/36 figure, gained that average 54 pounds and more, and had started on my road of fad diets, skyrocketing weight, losing it all fast, then gaining again, losing more muscle and gaining more fat every cycle. By the time my husband and I separated, I was tired, my knees ached, and I was sad. I mustered up my courage and stepped on a scale...and right back off. After 21 years of marriage, I had gone from a healthy 5'9" and 145 lbs to 320 lbs!

Some of you may have gained that much or more, some just 20 or 40 pounds. This site is for everyone who has been in a long term relationship and found that they are back in the singles arena, only there is more of you.

It's time to drop the baggage - both the psychological issues that the relationship might have dreged up or caused, and that of regaining physical health. This blog will contain reviews of diets out there, fat-busting techniques, relationship discussions, dating tips, and anything else that one might need to drop the baggage and move forward into a new life.