cheri52

So , I'm still pondering the rating thing, little slow here on more than one front! I would like to think I'm a very strong 5.9 for the same reasons as Eddie, the marriage thing. But I stayed a bit too long, even though I my reasoning was for the kids. So, maybe it's closer to a 5 . Does it count that he is now in process to be a she and has changed his, or rather, her name legally and all that goes with it??? I think it must have been the (very well hidden) fem qualities that I was attracted to! However, there is one of the male professional dancers on "dancing with the stars that I do find very Hot !!! very cute tight buns and knows how to work them! But, I do find all the women VERY sizziling HOT HOT HOT, so I'm not worried As for wt. well....I'm not moving either which is why I haven't signed in in a while, I just feel like a dud. I'm not gaining but dammmm.... I do seem to have the maintaince thing down. I cancled my fill nov. 19 and reschuled for Dec. 10. I just didn't want any unforseen problems at the table on thanksgiving. I haven't told my family about the band and don't intend to. Did have a nice dinner, didn't feel much restriction. I'm getting a little discouraged with my insurance. it covered most of the surgery,only a fairly small deductable. But now they are sending bills for all kinds of other services. they call the fills "out patient surgery" which has a hefty deductable and I got nailed for the extensive blood work they ordered on my last fill. never got a bill for blood work before. So, not wanting to go back!!! anyone else getting them? I got blue cross, I don't 'get it' .:pray2: I'm so glad you are all here, even if I do just kibbits for a while...Still think of you all as family :kiss2:.

I always loved to cook the whole works and then some! But, last year and this no one wants me to cook, actually, no one wants to help and now they all feel guilty about it , so the excuse is that I "work too hard and shouldn't have to do it" so we are all going out! actually, now we don't have room in the house anyway. My DW as a new plant addiction and has filled every inch , table, nook and crany with potted house plants. It's a freaking jungle! I mean, I love them too and had plenty already, but now......:faint: there are over 40 and many are huge. anyway, I'll probably have lobster:hungry: :whoo::biggrin1:.

Here goes, I think, I got it but not exactly sure at this point. I know while on the ticker page at the end there are 3 codes to use. while on there high lite the code that seems right (can't remember) and then go to edit on your tool bar and click cut( or click cut and then high lite! this is where I get confused!) then, go back to the signature page and put the pointer where you want it and click paste from the edit drop down. I remember I thought I lost it too but when I did a post it just showed up! Good luck ............again.:cry

Juli, Eddie , You ARE what the Dr. ordered!:amen:

congrats to all you newly banded ! This is just the beginning and I'm sure we will all make it to our goals:car: full speed ahead. Janet, I think that you sound determined !!! and thus I have no doubt that you will be a success:whoo:. I think the band may be used by some that for what ever reason, is a poor choice. maybe they don't understand just what it is meant to do, or maybe their family are more wanting it for them than themselves, or maybe it's just a huge case of denial. who knows! this is not a magic bullet, it takes hard work and real life style changes. It encourages us to change by way of some very unpleasent side effects. BUT, you can certainly override it with poor food choices and over indulging in things that slip through no problem. We STILL have to exert some controll over our behavior. Making shakes with "Ben and Jerry's " and sucking down chocolats won't get you there. What the band does that the other programs don't though, is some real help with the physical hunger. It won't come till you start getting fills, but be assured that it will. That will control the volume of food and satisfy you will much less. Now, the head hunger ....well....that's another story, But I am confident that given your honesty with health issues and your apparent will to make this work, I'm sure you will be one of the success stories:clap2:. You GO girl!

Hi Janet,:welcome:to band land! you can get the ticker by clicking on anyone's and it will take you to the site to create your own. then go to the user pc at the top on this page to edit the signature. It can be a little tricky but if I can figure it out anyone can! if you have any trouble just yell. Good luck.

Babs, you must be thrilled and relieved that it's finally over and you are on your way to a new you!!! Yes, the sore spot is most likely the port. That seems to be the worse for everyone pain wise. it will get better. So, welcome and congrats!:whoo:

Oh My:p we girls do love boobies! I'm so bummed though cuz mine are shrinking faster than anything else:(. I'm sure you don't care Eddie, but ..............think the gym will help ?LOL I'll be hiking up my thighs to fill in the boobs ! actually, can they do that.....hum.....

a slight continuation! It occured to me over night that maybe the Drs. have an another motive in some of the seemingly excessive (to me:glasses ) weeks of clear liquid diets that some are given pre and post band. Could it be that the individual is more of a health risk due to their higher BMI'S and /or other medical issues and the Dr wants them to lose at a higher rate as long as possible:confused:. Except for my wt. and a few minor aches and inconviences of being large, I really had no other health issues. (just spelling issues, lol )Thus time is on my side. any thoughts out there???

:whoo::whoo::whoo: Juli! I just joined curves today, hoping to catch up to you :rose:........................ they said the band was like a 3 leg stool. exercise is one of them and I was definately missing that. My job is fairly active and I argued that it was enough, but you know what? sometimes I'm wrong! Dana and Caresa, happy to hear from you , you will both be great (and skinny!) in no time!!:clap2:

Linda, this is definately not a mind game. the band does help but you have to work it. it is a tool, not an instant cure. I found for me that I wasn't hungry at all the first week on the clear liquids. I think your stomach has been through so much that it's not hungry. that changed about 6 days out though and I was definately ready for full liquids then. (I looked back on my previous posts and I was wrong on my list of what when ) all the Drs. are different and that may have to do with you also. I'm thinking, but don't really know, that maybe it has to do with how large you are to begin with. I was in with a group of others (we had to go to class) and the ones with a larger amt. to loose were on a different protocol. On my post op plan it was 1 week clear, 2ed week full liquids, which was GREAT I might add, never though I would love tomato soup that much!!! week 3&4 the same plus the addition of a few very specific things , cottage cheese or ricotta, 'thin'mash potatos, cream of wheat or blenderized oatmeal, and pureed fruit such as applesauce. :omg: OMG I though I was in heaven, and I wasn't all that hungry. week 5 started slowly adding small amt. of protein and other 'mushys' wk. 6 NORMAL food with lapband life! It really did seem to go pretty fast. Just about when I though I'd die if it continued I was on to a new week. I have found my portions difinately decreased from my past preband life. I fill up fast and the lasting power is getting better. I have no will power! but..... I do try to make better choices and if I crave pizza I have 1 slice and I'm FULL and satisfied, in the past I could eat at least a half pie myself and have been know to eat the whole! I know I am losing much slower than some, but I also know that with out this band, I would NEVER , NEVER have lost the 37 lbs. that I have. My top wt. in life was 80 lbs. more and the wt. I lost in the past was never easy nor was it lasting. I think the best thing about this is that I really feel in my heart that this will be lasting. I know I can get rid of my big cloths and never need them again! and that is very cool!!!:rose::whoo: You need to look at the longer bigger picture, we didn't get to this point over night. The few months of adjustment is just such a small thing when you think of the rest of your life! and I don't think you could do liquids the rest of your life! even Opra couldn't!!!

Caresa and Dana.....TOMORROW IS THE BIG DAY!!! GOOD LUCK TO YOU BOTH . I'm sure you'll do great, nothing to be nervous about, it's just the 1st day of the rest of your new life :whoo::whoo::whoo:

and Dana!!! I forgot you , good luck to you too... I'm sure you will do okay. :clap2:

Hi Caresa, of course we care! now don't wait so long next time ! Good luck on Thursday , Vicky sounds like me, only I'm not doing the 60 lbs. I try on the food but can't seem to get my butt motivated to do the EXTRA milage the Dr. said I need to do. anyway, enough about me. Keep us posted. I don't always write either but I do check in often and love to hear from everyone. Good luck to you too stevee!!!:whoo: to both of you.

I'm so sorry for you! I don't understand your Dr. at all !!! It seems to me he/she missed the point. My dr has never refussed me a fill and especially for being hungry. was the 23 lbs just since surgery? ( that is GREAT , by the way:whoo:) or the total?? have you told him how crazy starved you are? maybe don't go so crazy with the food that you gain, but maybe slow down a bit just for now if that is the game he is playing. I just can't imagine why he is doing that to you. I go for another on 10/3. I'm afraid I have no will power, that is why I got this thing! haven't found the sweet spot yet, but I do feel fuller longer. I was making the mistake of having what my nut. said was "thin protein" yogurt for breakfast. it goes through the band too quick and leaves me hungry 2 hrs. later. I had a more solid breakfast and it lasted well past lunch before I was hungry. Before the fills,and now if I'm hungry, I have an approved snack between meals, the dr and nut approved having a Protein , string cheese, cottage cheese, something like that untill we find the right amount of fill. they want me to stay away from shakes and Soups as they go right through the band. they are good when you are healing but after that you want to slow down the process. good luck. I think you need to really have a heart to heart with the DR. and insist. But , this is only my opinion.....

Well that is a very good question!! I guess cuz the Drs. are all different. It seems that there should be some sort of uniform protocol for all these issues. Maybe they want to do blood work?? I just don't know, as I've had 3 fills and I have not had any eating restrictions for the before. Now after, that is a different story. After I am only allowed liquids (not clear) for the first 24 hrs. Mushy for the next 24 and then regular food. and they do mean ONLY liquids . I cheated on only 1 small bite of chicken that I though I could chew till very pulverized but :omg: OMG was that the biggest mistake of my current life!!! I got a very quick and complete lesson in ugly painfull side affects:eek:. felt like a creature from the black lagoon! the last 2 fills went well, NO cheating !!! I got it!!! I didn't think it hurt that bad, she had a little trouble finding the center of the port but it really wasn't much more than having blood taken. I don't see it as a big deal pain wise. Good luck and be good after!

Hay Jude, Travel doesn't seem like a problem to me, But then I'm one of the crazy ones that drove myself the 100 miles home 2 days later!( not with the dr's blessing) I did drive much more carefully (and slowly :rolleyes )and I was back to work in 10 days. I was careful that I didn't do any lifting as per my Dr.s orders, but basically I was good to go! I think it may be an individual thing, you need to know your body. I have always bounced back quickly. Good luck on the 15th, and have a great time with your son! OH! ALSO.... it would hugely depend on weather or not the surgery was able to go laparoscopic or open. and that will greatly depend more on you and how much wt you can lose presurgery :confused: !!!

Edd, You poor thing!!! It DOES get better, really. It does seem like a very long time for clear liquids. we were put on clear liquids only for the first week, week 2 was full liquids, which includes..da da....tomato soup! Also yogurt (no fruit), other strained low fat cream soups, diet pudding and sherbet. week 3 & 4 (limited "mushy") all the above plus cottage cheese, ricotta, "thin" mash potato, cream of wheat or blenderized oatmeal, and prueed fruit (applesauce ok) , week 5 (full mushy), same PLUS add egg, fish, ground turkey.....all the above with protein shakes..... week 6 no more shakes, "normal" food for our new life!!!:clap2: But, once I got to week 3 it felt " almost normal" for me as I eat those things anyway, and, I was SOooooo.... gratefull to have something else!!! you may want to clarify with the Dr./nut. what he/she means as liquids, are you sure you can't have soup?? it just has to be smooth. I hope you are getting enough protein, we had to have 3 shakes with 20gr. ea of protein powder (or same) daily from day two. Keep up the good work, it will be over before you know it.

Sweet! you're beautiful! :whoo:That's all I got to say!!! oh, and also that I'm very impressed that you got them posted, and no excuses about the cell phone, I can't do that one either. It's all beyond me how you get it from there to here, and I have figured out the camera but I can't find any instructions on how you post a picture. So, in my book, you are brilliant! Just a note on the band thing, got my 3ed fill today, so far, fingers crossed, no problems! but that's a learning process too, and I'm hoping I finally got that one...lol:rolleyes:

Well, just thought I'd check in with everyone, that sounds like a GREAT vacation Eddie! have to keep that one in mind. I was just checking back to my last post on the 3rd and it's amazing how a couple days can change things. I am SOoooo ready for that next fill!!:hungry: things have settled down so far as what I can eat, but, yesterday I woke up hungry and have been hungry every 2 hrs since!! been very careful but it's hard. I also find that I can eat more, that can't be good. so, guess I'm ready for Monday. Oh, Edd, thanks for the before and after link! didn't know we had one, now I'll never get to bed:lol: ! I hope you are feeling better, it will all be worth it shortly.

not to worry Margie, pretty sure they go by the wt. you are when you first walk in the door. If they say you are a good candiditate they will not screw it up for you. Good Luck!

thanks Dee, never would have got that one! Andi, Dee is right , don't get discouraged. I was starving before my 1st fill, just getting it "installed" is like buying a new tool, the fills turns on the power! BUT it may take a couple to really start to work. My 1st helped some, the 2ed really made a difference:whoo: . I am scheduled for a 3rd on the 10th, but I'm a little nervous about it because there is a real learning curve to changing your eating habits and the types of food you can eat, not to mention a few very unpleasent side affects at first. didn't really notice any on the 1st but the 2ed was a bit rough! got to say though that hunger isn't one of them! they are getting a little better so I'm sure I'll go for the 3rd. Hang in there, the 3 lbs will surely come off! Edd , good luck !!!

Ok you guys, I just can't stand not knowing any longer, what the h.....is NSV??? I'm feeling very stupid and out of touch! Dez, that is really great, both the years and the size! I remember I was a 16 for about a week when I was about 17, I had just lost a bunch of wt. and was so happy! Naturally, it was short lived. But we'll all be there again. you two sound so cute together, I got 14 years, and they get better every year. Have fun!:hug:

guess we are all really different. I can eat some bread, it's very selective , whole wheat lite rolls are ok but not ww lite bread , but oatmeal lite prep. farm is ok, but not arnolds just got to try if you really want it and you are brave enough (or compulsively crazy like me, lol) one bite usually tells me but I'm stubborn and a slow learner so I usually have to try it a couple more times just to be sure . Pizza, 1 sm thin crust plain pc. went down well, haven't tried any other, the scrambled eggs were fine and the steak was ok, but chicken can give me trouble sometimes. my worst experience was just one bite of swordfish! tuna can be trouble even mixed well, moist and chewed well. Haven't tried pasta! but you know I will! rice ok so far.:nervous Laura, never had to have anything removed, that doesn't sound like a good time to me:eek: lol.

Thanks Kat, I will definately try the warm water. that sounds like what I got going on. you really put a lot of effort:typing: into helping with our issues. We, at least I, really do very much thankyou:angel:. Dana, sorry we scared you. don't think for a minute that I wouldn't do this again. MOST of the time it is all ok, I am just trying to adjust to the new phase, not always that gracefully! It is still the best thing I have ever done for myself!!! I have my same breakfast as before only less, about 3/4 c of plain (whole milk, it's the only one i like) yogurt with a sm. hand full (1/4c measured) special K red berry. that still goes down very well. lunch varies, I'm still working on that! I usually take 1/2c cottage cheese and have it with soy crisp crackers. they are high protein and seem to go down well. then i take some pureed chicken,ham or egg "salad" to have if I get hungry, again with a few of the crackers. 17 are a serving of the crackers, I don't have anywhere near that. Dinner .......??? that is a work in progress! Like the popcorn at night, i know, very bad:bandit Good luck tomorrow! you might check out the "hungry newby "thread.