TerriDoodle

I agree with Texas Becky. Nobody MADE you stick your hand in that bag. You cannot put the blame on her for your decisions. Take responsibility for your own choices and you will go farther, faster. You could have just as easily told her, "Well, if you don't want the popcorn it will be going in the garbage. Are you sure you don't want to take it home?".....and if she said no, straight to the garbage it should have gone. I think you'd have made more progress with her that way rather than "confronting her"...y'know? She would see that you are strong and determined. Perhaps you might even inspire her! All that being said, I AM sorry you have to deal with someone like that but as others have said, it won't be the first time and you can't go around confronting people all the time because you perceive that they are out to get you! Don't worry....it'll get easier!

Do you recall what Dr. Spivak recommends after you've PB'd?? I don't recall anythiing about that. I've been having a hard time for the past few days and I'm gonna stick with fluids today-- but that's because of advice I've gotten here on LBT, not from Spivak.

So how do you get your protein in on 2 small meals??? I've always wondered about that!

I cannot say enough about Dr. Spivak!! Do an advanced search for "Spivak" in the thread title and you'll get a very good idea of what others think. I dont recall ONE bad comment. Yes, that is my starting, current and goal weight. Moving a bit slow but I'm happy!

KAT - Your post is tearing me apart! It brings back such memories for me of when I was in nursing school. Yes, I'm a drop-out and Pediatrics is what did me in. I know that the anguish I felt then is only a fraction of what you're feeling now because she is your own. My heart goes out to you as much as this stupid laptop will let me. If I were there I'd be crying with you. And now your DD is having such emotional problems dealing with this that she is not thinking straight. OMG. She's not doing Kinsey any good by getting sick herself. Heartbreaking!!! But I'm not going to even get started on the nurses....I'll be here all day raging!! Let me just say that 2 years ago my mother was in the hospital, had a mild stroke while we were out for the night, and they did not even recognize her symptoms. They told us it was due to the anti-nausea medication she was being given and we took their word, and even though my gut was telling me something much more serious was going on, I kept my mouth shut. Her &%*$! doctor even came in and asked US why she was slurring her words and that it "was driving him crazy"!!!! Can you imagine?! Oh....stop me now. My point is that Judy is right.... you have to complain as high up as you can go and NOW and LOUD! I understand, too, that the hospitals are in such a bad way for good nurses that they are having to 'import' them from all over the place. The weekends and nights are particularly bad...so that is when you have to be the most diligent. Take notes on all the orders and medications...and her condition...(like a nurse is supposed to do) and keep the nurses on their toes. Ride 'em every chance you get or they will sit on their asses as much as they can get away with. Do NOT be shy. I am so sorry your family has this burden. Please take comfort in knowing we are all thinking of you and praying, praying, praying. (((hugs))) Jenn - I'm sorry honey. Buy the book....and READ it. Laura - I hope you have a blast today and my God bless your marriage!! Congratulations! Michelle - good to see you! Judy - I think I forgot to congratulat you yesterday on all those disappeariing inches!!! WOW!!!!!!!! I only lost 2" in all of June! I'm so proud of you!! We are lucky to have you as a Violet....you are such an inspiration. Thank you! I'm really feeling blue today. DH woke up bitching even after I poured my heart out last night telling him how much I love him and trying to work out compromises on his long list of complaints that come spewing out like Mt. Vesuvius about once a month. (Great way to communicate, eh?) Before all this started I had asked him if he wanted to take a road trip to Louisiana and he was all pumped about it, or to go to a local nightclub that we've enjoyed to go dancing and he was pumped about that too. But it looks like we will be doing neither now and you'll probably be seeing a lot of me here on LBT this weekend. sorry. You can just ignore me...you have my permission!! Love you all....thanks for listening! Kat -- thinking of you, darlin'!!

For those of you that are kinda iffy about fish....I tried some tonight that was absolutly delicious! I bought it at Sam's and it's called Treasures from the Sea, Parmesan Encrusted Tilapia. OMG!! I'm home!!! On another note, however, I think I'm going to go on fluids for a day or two. Everything is a struggle to get down. Hope it helps.

Welcome! I don't know how anyone goes thru this process without LBT!! It has been invaluable to me and everyone is soooooooooo nice and uber-supportive. I'm glad you found us!

<p> It's way cool. someone in the Shrinking Violets thread had mentioned going to a Zumba class and I didn't know what the heck it was! So I looked it up and found out that the gym that I belong to offers it twice a week!!! the instructor is trained by Zumba, but the gym calls it "Latin Impact" for some reason. I love it. Its one of those classes that you're laughing or at least smiling throughout the whole thing. And believe me, I was sweating my bootie off! Well, almost! :phanvan

I am ridiculously picky about eating fish. If it has the slightest fishy taste I cannot eat it at all. Yuck!! But alas, I find that fish is about the only kind of 'meat' I can eat!! So I've been trying different things. I just finished a filet that I bought at Sam's and it was absolutely delicious! It's in a big package of about 12 filets or so, called Treasures from the Sea, Parmesean Encrusted Tilapia. Buy it!!! 18 mins in the oven, then sprinkled with fresh lemon juice and I wanted more!!

<p>My trainer said that at most you can expect to gain 1# of muscle per month from moderate weight training. Also, that it takes about 2 months before you stop retaining so much water for muscle repair. So what I'm hearing is that after 2 months of training I can expect to see some weight loss from my efforts. My goal weight is 150, but he said realistically I would be somewhere in the neighborhood of 160 after 1 year, but I'd be looking GOOD ! :confused:

Generally I work at the gym on the elliptical and the stationary bike. I mix it up with Latin Impact classes, swimming, water aerobics, and step classes. I'm trying to get to a Spinning class but haven't made it yet.

Isn't that a great book? I read it twice. So how ARE things going with you and DH?? I just had a long heart to heart with my dh...things haven't been good for several months. He used to be easy to talk to but not so much anymore. I really tried this time....to just talk and not get into an argument....but he didn't seem willing. Seems like he really likes to fight now where he didn't used to. Male menopause or something. I wish I could make him happy, but apparently I can't. He's watching TV and I'm on my laptop. Same shit, different day.

That's what I'm doing!! :confused: Just lurking and watching.

That's what I did. You ought to see the volumes I wrote during my time in the hole. One of the books that helped me get out was In the Meantime: Finding Yourself and the Love You Want. For whatever it's worth to ya. XOXOXO.

You already know the answer to your own question. You just are too comfortable in "The Hole". Some day you will want to crawl out of the hole and decide that you don't want to fall in it again. Ever. Until then.... at least look around and journal about what it feels like to be in there....so you'll have something to look back on when you walk down that street again in the future.

I like the Boost Glucose Control drinks. They're not low-calorie at 190/8 oz, but they taste delish and have 16g protein. Good enough for me! I also grabbed some protein bars to try. South Beach Meal Replacement Bar, Cinnamon Creme is OK, not wonderful. I'm 1/2way through it and it's getting kinda yucky. LOTS of cinnamon.

Well, Andrea.... you will pretty much not have any choice but to slow down and have small meals! That's the beauty of it! And the adjustment is rather gradual so it's not an overnight thing you have to get used to. I remember thinking "there is no way I could ever do without chicken!".... but I am pretty restricted right now and am having problems with chicken....just like I knew I might ahead of time. But, it's not such a big deal as I thought it might be, mostly because EATING is not such a big deal anymore!! You can get satisfied on so little that if the chicken is sticking, you just move on to dark mean or the salad or your veggies and get full on that! For instance, I was just having some problems with my tuna salad ... so I ate as much as I could, took a break and now I'm having a Protein bar that was in my desk drawer and a peach. No big deal. I know it's hard to wrap your head around it, but honestly you won't be so obsessed about food as you are now. It just loses its luster. Hopefully, your new obsession will be exercise instead! It happens to many of us. You just wait and see! Good luck!

I recall feeling little sharp stabbing pains every once in a while up until 4 wks post op. It's probably nothing, but just remember not to do anything strenuous (like lifting or exercising) until your doc gives you the go ahead.

I guess I'm going to have to break down and start drinking a protein shake once a day. Yuck. With the limited amount of food I'm getting in, my protein intake is rarely above 40g. The good news is that all the bad stuff like cholesterol and sodium are also way below target amounts! I guess I'll go run to the store on my lunch hour and get some now. This tuna is NOT going down! Taking me 30 minutes to eat one lousy ounce...with a few Sun chips. I'm bored with it!

Have they filled you with Omnipaque or are you still with saline? I'm on Day 9 after my 3rd fill and the restriction is holding well.

Yep!! That's what I'm talking about! :paranoid Nuts are iffy for me too. Used to be one of my favorite snacks. Jenn, if you can't chug water then you must really be restricted! You will be wise to go very slowly while venturing into the world of solid foods. But remember that living on mushies is not the answer. They will pass thru your band quickly and defeat the purpose of having solid food stay in your pouch for hours. The answer is to.....yes, that's right....small bites, chew well, eat slowly. Or as Judy says, ......... I did see a post one time that now is making perfect sense to me: Every time you get a fill, the size of your bites you were taking should be cut in half.

Congratulations!! Yes, it's normal to feel 100 different emotions...been there, done that. But speaking from the other side I can tell you that you will LOVE your band!! The feeling of being in control is sooooo worth it.

You're hilarious, Ross!! Welcome to LBT! ....and major congratulations on your progress so far. 72# in 5 months is absolutely incredible!! I'm happy for you!!

Denise -- That is the cutest damn salad I ever saw!!! Sounds like a great recipe, too!

Tracy, my first thought is that perhaps the pork chop was too dry. I have a very difficult time with beef (except filet :rolleyes) and white chicken...never tried pork but I would imagine the texture is somewhere in between those two. I find that I am eating fish at every opportunity as that is pretty reliable and keeps me full a LONG time. I don't like fish much, but tuna is a Godsend. If you are going to try pork again, I would go with teeny tiny bites....and I'm not kidding....like the size of a peanut. And...like Judy said....you've got to pace yourself. Especially when I'm eating a risky food, I take a bite and WAIT like a full minute to see if it's going to go down. I do that with about the first 3-4 bites before I can guage whether or not my level of restriction can really handle this particular food. Then I proceed with caution. This is a very strange behavior when I'm eating out with friends. Everyone's food comes and I take one tiny bite then wait....while they are shoveling it in like there's no tomorrow. (Nobody but family knows I'm banded.) They're like "Huh?? Don't you like your food??" Very awkward. When eating out I stay with very safe foods. Last night however, I kinda PB'd on quiche!!! I made the mistake of including a fairly big bite, as bandsters measure, of crust! I had to excuse myself to the restroom after 3 bites. As I tell my DH....Every day is different!! TracyKS - Glad you've got some restriction now...I think you'll be very pleased with the results. Just don't be surprised if you loosen up again in a couple of weeks. It'll be time to schedule another one!! My fills are free for the first year. Is this pretty much how everyone is or do some of you have to pay (either self pay or insurance)? Just curious. I think after the first year the fills are like $150. Worth every penny.