The old corset closes almost loosley now. I have begun wearing the new one and have gotten the hang of wriggling it over my head and lacing it up in time for work. I can lace to 26" comfortably and keep it there all day through driving and work. Laying on the couch is still tricky so I have taken to watching TV on my bed lying on my stomach or sitting on the coffee table (hey it's my house I can do what I want.)
I haven't been taking my corset off in my sleep despite lacing it a little tighter. My body has started to really adjust to wearing it so often. Also, I have been doing leg lifts and sit ups in the morning before donning to keep some muscle tone in my abdomen. I think I will start doing lunges and squats to trim down my legs and hips. My hip area is about 37" and although I like the contrast of the hip/waist ratio, I would like to slim down to a more reasonable 35".

Hopefully I will get my waist to 24" by Christmas.