Alexandra

It's so cool that we have some serious interest in this! I'm getting psyched. :banana

Hi Fidget! Sounds like you have a great game plan there. Good luck with your plans and we'll save a place in bandland for you!! Love SD, by the way. My bro lives out there so I've visited a few times. You have, hands down, the best weather in the U.S.

If you're talking about elsewhere on the Web, I occasionally spend time at a debate site for moms of an intellectual bent. Other than that I just work, sleep, play with my kids, yell at my kids, feed my kids, read to my kids, .... (And once in a while I kiss my husband.)

It's virtually impossible--maybe even completely impossible--to stretch your pouch with liquids. At this point even the thickest liquids flow right through your wide-open stoma into the stomach below. Even when you get on to solid foods you may find that you can eat almost normally without feeling any special sense of fullness. The band really doesn't work for the vast majority of people until there has been an adjustment to tighten it. You're not alone, and believe me, things will be different once you've had an adjustment or two.

Thanks for remembering! I went to the doc this morning and all went very well. He took out .4ccs and said I'd probably feel a big difference from that. So far it's hard to tell, too early. The real test will be tonight, and whether I can lie down for any length of time without reflux.

I've heard of lots of people having hernias repaired at the time of the band placement surgery. Good luck!!

Everyone's metabolism is different, but it's not at all unusual to slow down or even plateau for a while even when eating very little. It's just the way our bodies work. If you feel satisfied on a small amount of food for several hours after a meal, you most likely don't need a fill. If you're eating what you listed above--that sounds to me like a great menu. Your weight will probably start to drop again, especially if you're exercising and drinking lots of Water. Don't worry--you're doing great!

Good luck and good on you for being persistent! As an insurance broker I know that 99% of the delays are due to paperwork sitting around on someone's desk. Congratulations on getting it moving!!

The moderators had a very interesting and fruitful discussion last night, and in the next few days you will be seeing some guidelines for the future. At this point we're just proofreading and fine-tuning. But one doesn't need any fine-tuning and is too important to wait. That is the first law of online etiquette: NO PERSONAL ATTACKS. Please, please, please, everyone, keep the discourse civil. Rumors and attacks must be stopped in their tracks and the only way to do that is not to respond. Moderators really will not be editing or deleting posts so PLEASE think before you post. Thank you. That is all.

All of those suggestions are great. They're all things I've used in my dieting past, and definitely work when you work them. What has worked for me is plain old negative reinforcement: behavioral therapy. That is, MY BAND. When I eat too much it just plain hurts, and a few episodes of that really help to make me think twice about overdoing it again. It takes time, but really and truly now when I hear that voice in my head telling me I want something to eat, there is just as loud a voice shouting it down, saying OF COURSE NOT, there simply isn't room. And that's the end of it. So in addition to all of the tips listed above, have some faith in the effect of being banded long-term. It's really helped to tame the munchie monster inside me.

No one ever said this was a democracy. Alex the owner invited other people to be moderators, I'm sure because the site has now over 2000 members. None of the sites I've ever been on have held elections for moderator spots. Usually they have to be dragged into the jobs kicking and screaming. I've been doing it because I love this board and for no other reason. Until very recently it was not at all time-consuming.

There is a LOT to be said for having a thick skin and not seeing slams where not are intended. We should always assume that the poster is saying everything with good intentions.

...Whipping out my permanent marker to write all over my Day Timer... Ya-HOOO!! I'm gonna get to meet me some LBT-ers!!! :banana :banana :banana :banana

I'll be able to get details when this year's walk is organized. It's going to happen, we don't have to do anything except wait for announcements about it.

A total aside: I was just looking around that Walk from Obesity website, and saw among the list of doctors' names the doctor who superrvised my Optifast program back in 1990. I would LOVE to see him again and show him that the band can do what an artificial starvation diet couldn't. (Though as an obesity expert, I hope and trust he's moved on from that by now.)

IMO Newark Liberty airport is the best one to use. It's easily accessible from NJ and NY. But that's getting a little ahead of ourselves. Hoboken and other towns right on the river are every bit as expensive as NYC. Doesn't anyone have budget restraints? I won't have to shell out for the hotel but even so I hate to suggest anything in three digits for one night's accommodation. Pat, what does going to AC as high rollers mean? I'm certainly not a high roller in any sense of the word.

Connorsmom, I certainly go through a mini-last-supper syndrome every time I have a fill scheduled. It's definitely not just you! You know what works--get yourself Water to drink at all times and stop picking!! But I'll venture to say that even with all your picking you're not really eating enough to do any serious damage. It may feel like that, but think back to pre-banding and compare. Blossom, yes indeed a lot of bandsters find that meat has to be mixed with something to go down at all if they have good restriction. It's called "food lube" and I guess the trick is to not overdose on high-fat lubrication. You too are not at all alone in this.

Scott: "unzip the mental fat suit" I LOVE IT!!

Bright, go ahead and book your flight. I know a few bandsters around here and if nothing else materializes, we'll get together to show you a good time.

That is a good weekend, indeed! Bright, the main negative for NYC is the hotel cost. Rooms at the Roosevelt (which I LOVE, btw) can go for upwards of $200/night. If we go somewhere in NJ we can save scads of money on the hotel, and it's going to have a restaurant and a pool and whatever anyway. And NYC is an easy commute in from here.

Someone tell me what's meant by "bash," anyway. To my mind, we pick a weekend and a hotel, people come from wherever and we have a couple of collective meals and/or expeditions. No speakers, nothing fancy, nothing obligatory. Just a social weekend for people with something in common, right?

Tarafeena, this site is first and foremost a place for bandsters to gather and talk about banding. As with any other groups of adults, stuff happens. Stick around and please post!

I'm not available the last week of August through Labor Day, but later in September would be perfect. That's the best time of year in NYC, as far as I'm concerned.

Now this is something I could get behind. New York is my hometown and I could definitely help set something up. Actually, New Jersey would probably be even better--something with a free shuttle service from Newark Airport. Sign me up! I'd even make a few phone calls. My area has loads of hotels springing up for corporate business and I know they're desperate for business. Anyone averse to a short bus ride from the airport? And we're an easy ride from the city so all of its attractions are right nearby.

No. It's a purely voluntary position.