faithmd

Why can't people just say "thank you for the nice gift" and then STFU. And tell their family to STFU, too!

Oooo, thanks! That's the other one I couldn't remember. I'm off to join it and give it a try. I like fitday, and I like it a lot better for my lifestyle than sparkpeople, but I'm happy to try something else.

Good luck at your appointment tomorrow, I hope it all goes well for you. Here's a link to the forum where you'll find lots of good info, including some questions to ask your doctor, I hope it helps: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=73

I hope this helps somewhat, ask anything you need to and welcome to posting and most importantly, CONGRATS on being a BANDSTER!!! Hopefully I'll get a date soon!

The band is intended to be filled to provide restriction. Your doctor banded you and never told you how it worked? You got banded and never learned how the band works? Now *I'm* confused! Some people never get a "fill" and find that the restriction that just having the band placed provides is enough for thier weightloss needs, but they are a rare person. Most need fills (more than one) and some unfills to find the "sweet spot." The first fill doesn't come until at least four weeks and most usually six weeks after banding. Most people say it takes two or three or more fills to get to their "sweet spot" where their restriction is such that they feel satisfied after eating 1/2-3/4 cup of food and can eat most solid foods with the appropriate chewing and small bites.

Thanks everyone!! Wow WasaBB, I didn't even realize that! If only I could keep this up, but I know it will only last so long. I need this tool to help me keep up the loss. I'm looking forward to working with it and making the most of it.

Keep us updated, I'll be interested to follow this thread. Good luck at your appointment!

Good luck, Ray! I wish you the best in your surgery, and remember, walk, walk, walk after surgery to get rid of the gas pains. I was just approved today, so I'm waiting for a date, I'm hoping to be a May bandster as well. You'll have to look for the May bandster thread and for the just for guys thread. I love to hunt, we have girl's deer camp each year and last year I felt too bad and too fat to be able to carry my gear in and be comfortable (I was about 360# and 5'7"). I did it the year before at about 330#, but those last 40 lbs did it for me. I hunt with a 30-.06 and love nothing more than the crisp mornings watching the sun come up over the frosty and snow covered brush in my blind just waiting. I agree I'd love to elk hunt, but in my state, you get one chance. And to get a permit is a near impossibility. But maybe one day I'll go on a big game hunt for one. Take care!

It does sound like you are too tight, I am not yet banded so I can't offer insight from a banded person, but from the other posts I've read similar to yours, most banded people say that this far out from a fill, if you can't eat good food, you are probably too tight. Staying too tight can lead to all kinds of problems like erosion and slippage, etc. I would suggest you call your doc, he may choose to just do a slight unfill.

Here's the link to the forum where you'll find that and some other good info, too: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/forumdisplay.php?f=73

It sure does help, thank you for explaining. I do not know a lot about Sparkpeople, I have signed up for it and tried it out, but I didn't like the format (though it is really nice looking) as I work nights and it structured your food into the daily meals. Which for any normal person would work great. They (sparkpeople) also email you tips and newsletters. I don't like that, but I can see how that would be great for some folks. I use www.fitday.com and I love it. They are both free services and are private, no one can see your profile, it's sort of like a virtual journal. You can track your food intake and your activities and your weight and other things. It is VERY helpful! I don't think I could have lost the past 40 or so pounds without it. I do not count calories, but as long as I put in every single bite, I find it keeps me in line to about 1500-2200 calories a day (I'm not yet banded). Before I started using it I was easily eating 2500-3000 a day. I also have changed my food choices and I avoid as much refined, simple carbohydrate as possible. Anything with high fructose corn syrup or enriched flour is a no no. I try for whole grains and instead of mashed potatoes, if I feel I need a starch I'll have sweet potatoes. You certainly can eat through your band with a lot of the higher calorie mushies, you won't ever feel full from what I understand about how the band works. Do you drink with meals? Remember they say that washes the food out of the pouch and so your satisfied feeling doesn't last. Do you eat Protein first, then veggies, then carbs? I know some do not feel that makes a difference, but some do, I figured it was worth a try, and for me it does. Hope this helps.

I agree, that is a HUGE decision. I can certainly understand that he may be scared, or may just feel that since he's there and loves her like his own, then why does he have to "prove" it by signing a piece of paper? (Not my feeling, just a possible thought process.) My brother in law adopted two children of his former wife and not too long after he finalized the adoption she left. He then paid for child support for the next 12 years, that wasn't fair at all. I am absolutely not saying that you would do this, but I can see how a man could be concerned as it does happen.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed for all of you. I was just approved today on my second try. I guess even though I had a 12 month diet requirement, I'm fortunate that it took only one night for approval. I hope you all find out soon!!

Thank you both very much! I am trying very hard to adopt a bandster mentality now. I want this to go smoothly. I hope I'll have a May date, it seems my surgeon's office is scheduling about two to three weeks out (or at least they were when I went for my consult back in March).

And for whatever reason the techs seem to think that because its now flavored and they have it refrigerated, that it will taste like a milkshake. BS! It's soooo disgusting, and I think I hate the lemon flavoring more than when it was plain!

And today, I'm a little bit closer: I'm approved! It was my second try, but it's done, I'm approved! I'm waiting for the surgeon's office to call and schedule me now.

I agree with Chickie, I don't think there is an answer as to which one is the "better" surgery. It has to be a personal decision. What might be best for you may not be best for me and vice versa. You just have to weigh the pros and cons as they relate to your lifestyle and make your choice. For more info about the other procedures, obesityhelp.com is a pretty good place to go, they have forums for each of the other procedures as Chickie listed them. Here's a few links to bypass vs band threads here on LBT: Good luck, it is a very personal decision. We're here if you need anything or want to ask questions: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=32584 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=32616 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=32079 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=30997 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=28690 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=23760

You also say you are eating small amounts and exercising, which is wonderful! But to help you out, can I ask what exercise are you doing? How much are you eating, and more specifically what are you eating? Are you tracking everything you eat on www.fitday.com or www.sparkpeople.com or any of the other online weight tracking programs (or keeping a journal)? I know that it has helped me immensely to see what I'm eating. We'll all help if we can, I can only imagine how very frustrated you must feel right now.

That is soooooo awesome!!!!!!!!!!!

Hi Paula, I haven't been banded yet so I can't offer too much, but here's some of the results I found when I did an dadvanced search for thread titles with the word "constipation" in them. You might also want to try searching for constipated. Hope these help! http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=32973 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=30631 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=30412 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=26334

Here's a link to the thread that will tell you all about it. This thread is in a forum called the FAQ's and references forum, there's tons of useful info there: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=15216

Laura, I can't understand what you are going through because I'm not there yet. But I can say hang in there, you will make it through. I know that I have read around here somewhere why you should NEVER get fills earlier than the minumum of 4 weeks, I think WasaBB wrote about it. Anyhoos, it has to do with the fact that your stomach has not yet formed the scar tissure needed to hold the band in place in the back side and that the scar tissue around your sutures may also not be fully formed, filling early is a very good way to have a slip and/or erosion. Try to stick it out, you can do it!!

From wiki: A childlover is a non-sadistic pedophile or ephebophile, though the term may also encompass people who are not primarily attracted to children, or those whose attraction to children is only romantic. The terms girllover and boylover are used to specifically indicate a childlover's sexual orientation. So while it could mean someone who is acting on a sexual attraction to a child, in this website's case (as I have gone there and read some of the archives) it appears that the majority of the posts (actually I couldn't find any that discussed having a sexual relationship with a child) are about loving children and just adoring to spend time with children. Some of the posts are about protecting children. Do I think it's darned weird? You bet I do! But I did take the time to research it a little more before being offended by the post. I'm not saying that's what everyone should do! Absolutely not! But for me, I wanted to understand just what "boylove" in this context referred to. I think most of us who have watched South Park know about NAMBLA and their strangeness. Am I offended by NAMBLA? Yup, pretty much. But I did want to find out what these guys were about in the context of the thread. The concept is beyond my ability to grasp, but I guess that's why it's in Rants.

How sad. Prayers are goin out for her and her family and loved ones. The only other death I had heard of by some very experienced surgeons in my area (the Port Huron team) happened the same way. So sad. This is a good reminder that this surgery is not without its risks, however small they may be. It is still a big consideration in our decision making. I am very sorry for your loss.

I cannot really help with the how to pay for it part of your post as I am not Canandian. I would think it would be quite difficult to keep the surgery from your husband. After all, it is *surgery* and there are incisions. You will have incisions on your stomach and how would you explain those? Even if you stay away from him while you are healing, he will still eventually see the scars and know you had something done. I would think that he should understand your struggle with your weight and be supportive of your desire to do something positive for yourself. Sure, $16,000 is a chunk of money, but what is your health worth? Your happiness? I wish you much luck in your journey, please keep us posted!