MeganA

Is anyone else addicted to it? I sit in aww as the chef's make all sorts of food I could never eat. I read cookbooks like they were smutty romance novels. I sat at my friends the other day and read her cookbooks during the Oscars. I'm addicted to food!!!! Remember how I said I am obsessive compulsive? I think I just figured out that this may be feeding my obesession. Ack!!! Anyone else have any thoughts? Megan

Thanks for the well wishes, everyone! I'm feeling much better. Geezer Sue- I think your first thought makes a lot of sense. Thanks again... Megan

Thanks Carol!!! That dip was sooo yummy! Megan

I started getting a little heartburn a few days before I got the stomach flu a couple of weeks ago. I took some Prilosec OTC for a couple of days and it went away. Then I got the flu, and I stopped taking it. The heartburn came back a few days after I started feeling better. But I would feel sick after I ate every time...no matter what I ate. It wasn't a sick in my little stomach- but sick in my big stomach. I thought it was the fact that I was eating crap-so I tried to watch it...still felt yucky. I even thought that maybe I had done something to my band after throwing up, but I could feel that it had nothing to do with the area of my band. I also was really tight, and even tried going to liquids for a day or so. That didn't work either. So, a week or so ago, I started taking the Prilosec again. What a relief. I now feel so much better and have no heartburn. But, I also don't have the sickness feeling after I eat. And the real kicker- my restriction is way less. I guess my stomach was kicking up the acid and causing trouble. This post has a point...maybe the amount of acid in our stomach causes our restiction to vary. Hmmm...something to think about. Megan

Hi everyone. I just want to let everyone know that *I* asked Alexandra to delete the poll and the discussion that followed. I asked her to do so because, with the moderators decision to close the poll, it is unfair to those who could only read the information and not vote what they think. I've also asked Alexandra to close this thread. I just didn't want anyone to wonder what happened to the thread. Thanks Megan

You guys are "lucky"!!! My band says, "hey megan, what aren't you gonna eat tonight!!!wwoooo hoo..I"m wide open!!!" I can't wait for my fill in a couple weeks. I never would have thought I'd say I'm jealous of the golf ball and PBing. The band rules. Literally. Megan

Moderators and board owner Alex- I'm requesting a FULL INVESTIGATION of these allegations. This is seriously dangerous territory. Megan

Kathy- I remember being very resentful right before and after I got banded. I finally decided I was worthwhile enough to take this step towards my health, and I felt like no one else got it. I felt like everyone else just wanted a piece of me all the time. It's a very stressful time- there are so many thoughts and fears about the surgery and what happens after. Can you ask your DH for some quiet time where he takes the kids for a while so you have some time to yourself to relax a little? This too shall pass... Lisa- Maybe I should come to Vegas a couple of days early so we can obsess about everything together. I *do* find great comfort that there is someone else out there like me and that I'm not alone. Thanks for your honesty and for letting me use some of your words. Does anyone have experience with Overeaters Anonymous? I've often thought of going but need more information before I can do it. I am a frady cat about anything new. Exept men. I love new men. megan

Delarla (I hope you don't mind that I hijacked this), in another thread said "And I don't necessarily disagree with it, I just think it needs a lot more work. Yes, I have a disease, I'm just not sure that the disease is Morbid Obesity. I think the obesity part is a symptom of the disease. I call mine OCOD (Obsessive Compulsive Overeating Disorder.) So I am in agreement to a certain degree, I just think the subject needs a lot more research into categories. "The fact that the band turned off a lot of that "eat eat eat eat eat eat eat eat eat eat eat eat..." chatter seemed evidence to me that at least part of my problem is physical." I am completely different, because the Band did not turn off the chatter. The chatter won't shut up, it never does. It starts after work and gets louder and louder till I finally fall asleep, which is why the problem isn't physical for me. For me it's 100% mental." *********************************************** This really triggered a lot of thoughts with me. When I was at my last therapist's appointment, she diagnosed me with "Obsessive Compulsive tendancies". It has never occured to me that what I have in my head is Obsessive Compulsive behavior. I needed more information, so she explained to me that the Obsession part of OCD is anxiety. Anxiety grows and grows until it is unbearable. The compulsive part is the behavior that is taken to relieve that anxiety. For example: someone who is a germaphobe gets more and more anxious until they wash their hands. This relieves the anxiety for a short period of time. Sometimes it is only fleeting calm, and that person has to wash their hands again and again until the only time they don't feel anxiety is while they are washing thier hands. So, using that example with food, I think I have OCD. My therapist said that I have tendancies, but she stopped short of saying I have the disorder. I was pretty flabbergasted and scared after our appointment. She wanted to put me on some meds to maybe help...but I just don't know if I want to do that yet. I decided I want to try some natural things first. So, armed with ten books from the library I set out to inform myself out of this. That's what I always try to do...if i just know enough about something I can make it go away. That's not compulsive at all...geez. I discovered that what Lisa says is true...my weight is really 100% mental. But I now understand that mental and physical are really one and the same. I don't have control over my "eateateateateat" thoughts. There are hormones and Proteins and all sorts of crap going on in my body that go into my head and tell me to eat. I probably have a lack of saratonin, and that's why carbs are so important to my mental health. Carbs help the body produce or absorb saratonin. So do antidepressents. I read something that made a lot of sense to me. To paraphrase, it said that a person who has the type of anxiety I do actually gets worse on a low carb diet. That is what they usually recommend to people with mental health issues. My particular kind of anxiety, from the book "Healng Anxiety and Depression" is called "overfocused Anxiety/depression". It says "A higher-Protein, lower carb diet (which enhances focus) may cause people with Overfocused Anxiety/Depression to focus more intently on negative thoughts or behaviors." This was a real ah ha moment for me. Every time I have tried to cut carbs or "do Atkins" I become a raging lunatic inside my head. So, now I'm still not sure what I am going to do. everything I read says that aerobic exerices is the #1 way to naturally work towards healing depression and anxiety. There are herbs and teas that I can drink. Therapy also is in the cards for awhile. I guess for once I feel like I have an answer to my weight issue. It isn't my fault, I'm not weak or a failure or lack will power. I have a mental problem that is both physical and mental. My brain chemistry is all f-ed up. No band is going to fix that...in fact I think in some ways it makes it worse. I can't eat enough to change my brain chemistry the way I have in the past. That leads to more anxiety. Also, the changes my body is going through are very strange to me- I weigh less than I have since I was a child. Who am I becoming? I'll keep you posted on what I do and if it helps. If anyone else has any ideas, let me know. I'm all ears. Megan

This thread is EXACTLY why I love this board. I don't think everyone has to agree all the time to be a happy group. I think discussion like this actually helps everyone. I think it's fantastic that people can post what they feel, apologize if they think they have hurt someone, and still maintain their own individual feelings about a subject. That's what makes this board unique. Lisa- I feel a lot like you do with my eating. I'm going to post a new thread about it. megan

Lisa- I didn't know I had any PMs until you said something!! I'm so glad you did. Megan

HOW FUNNY!!!!! I once did that at a wedding. I was a bridesmaid and all the groomsmen stored their beers in my cleavage. Aren't I all class??? Needless to say I was wayyyy drunk. Darn it was funny, though. Thanks for sharing Penni!!!!!! Megan

Babs- FANTASTIC!!!! If I could get rid of my daytime Snacks I wouldn't be too far from your food intake. Hmmm...gives me something to think about. Megan

Lisa- After all the talk about Vegas, I got to thinking about Karen. How is she doing without her band? If you talk to her, would you let her know I was thinking about her? Megan

Welcome Snowy Owl. I'm glad that Abbott would give you a fill! The weight does come off slow, but you're right- it's coming off just the same. Welcome to the site! Megan

Don't drink juice- it's way too acidic for after a PB. Do what LaMadam says. Sip sip sip. Megan

Tina, Good for you for writing the questions and having the courage to click the submit button. I doubt very much there is anything any of us can say that will change your mind about yourself. The person I think you need to talk to is your husband. The concerns you bring up are all very important- and you deserve to have some answers to them. It's very, very hard to talk about these kinds of things. I tend to "freeze" when I have to talk about some issues...I've gotten a lot better now that I feel better about myself. The way I brought up issues to a boyfriend or even just a friend in the past is to write them a letter. Give it to him, and then arrange a time when you can talk about it after he's had time to give it some thought. Make sure the kids are in bed or at a babysitter. This is a very important talk to have, and it may save your marriage and I bet it increases your self esteem. Good luck, and you are a worthwhile, beautiful person who deserves a great sex life no matter what you weigh or how your skin looks. Megan

Lisa- that sucks!!! The first time I had a gas attack I thought I was having a baby. And I hadn't had sex in like a year, so I thought maybe I was the next Virgin Mary. Yeah right...God's gonna pick me to be Mom to his next kid. Now when I get it I take the Gas X chewables and lie in a fetal position singing "you are my sunshine" and breathing like I am in labor until it goes away. Megan

Why are you getting your band removed? Megan

Bigmom- Thanks for the recipe. I'm all for more natural solutions any where I can get them. So all of those fruits are dried? Then you put them in a pan and boil them? Do you add water? Thanks!! Megan

Hey guys. Gas is caused by swollowing air or the digestion of "gas producing foods" like veggies. Constipation can also cause gas to build up. You can try to be really careful not to swollow air when you drink. Don't use a straw- think of the air that sits in that empty straw and then you suck it up when you drink. I take Gas Ex when I am in pain. I also take a stool softener if I haven't gone #2 in the morning. I don't wait for a couple days to see if it will get moving...I take the bull by the horns and get it moving. Otherwise I have been in a fetal position unable to walk and thinking that I am either giving birth or dying because of gas build up. Good luck! Megan

Denise- It's funny that you think my weightloss is "big" when I feel like I've been on the plateau from hell. But, I bought a 50 pound bag of bird seed and could barely get it out of the car. I put it on my shoulder and walked around with it for a few minutes taking in how it used to feel when I was 50 pounds heavier. No wonder I was so tired. You also say that you can't eat onion rings, yet you can eat a donut. Well, I can't eat a donut, that's for sure!!! Isn't it weird how we all react? Oh, here's today's journal: Breakfast Thought I would have yogurt but it tasted nasty so I had a Protein shake instead with banana and Peanut Butter -but made with Water not milk (adds an extra 100 cals or so). (Tip- I get pretty ripe bananas at the store and then peel them, cut them in half, and freeze them. When I add a frozen banana half to my shake it makes it cream and really cold...and adds a little flavor. Very yummy.) Lunch: Tiny piece of lasagna. I am a terrible cook so it's all dried out and I can't eat very much of it. Snack: a handful of cheese It's which I ate too fast and then PBed. Yes, even us experienced bandsters screw up. If you PB something, does it count? 5 almond bark covered pretzels Dinner: 1 cup of chicken Noodle Soup Half a slice of toast with butter and strawberry jelly a handful of mini speckled eggs (easter candy is the devil) two pieces of dove chocoloate Snack: half a cup of broccoli half a cup of califlower fat free dill dip (only has 35 cals per serving vs. the non fat free that has 120!!) I'm doing a little experiment to see if eating raw veggies at night keeps me fuller longer than eating popcorn or something else like that. I am too tight to eat them during the day so maybe this is a good way to get in fruits and veggies? I'll keep you all posted. Cals:1397 I decided to find out how much damage I did yesterday so I plugged in the whole wretched day into fitday. It was only 2100 calories which I guess isn't really all that bad for going out and wooping it up. Megan

Denise : I am so jealous, peas, onion rings, mac and cheese? I haven't been able to eat those things since my surgery. You go girl!!! Um...those things are what is keeping me from losing weight!!! I think I need a fill. I'm at that point where I'm restricted, but food just doesn't sit in the pouch for any length of time, and then I eat again. Breakfast Sunday: (after the tub of onion rings and the cocktails last night, I thought it best to eat something simple) Low fat Yogurt

There is no way I'm going to count the calories in everything I consumed tonight but I *will* report it here. Saturday Breakfast 10:00 1 kashi Go lean frozen waffle...they are really good if you let them sit and soak up some syrup. But what isn't good if you let it soak up sugar? 1/8 c. lite syrup butter lunch 1:30, in the car on the way home from the store 1 chicken leg, no skin 1/4 c. of deli mac and cheese snack: 4:00 A cup of lasagna Dinner Brie with pears and toast half a cup of salad with balsamic vinnagrette ( i don't know how to spell English words must less French ones) two glasses of Reisling wine... two vodka sours with grenadine (I keep ordering a megan on the rocks but I guess the name for my drink hasn't caught on yet) A handful of onion rings a couple of cups of ketchup to make the onion rings slide down. Fellow Bandsters- DO NOT ATTEMPT THIS MENU. IT IS FOR PROFESSIONALS ONLY. I gotta go to bed. I think I have serious gas. Megan

Penni- I think you and I could get into a LOT of trouble. Who else is up for a night out? Last time my sister, friend and I went to the 9 Fine Irishmen Pub in the New York New York Hotel and I have seriously never had more fun. I think I got three guys phone numbers in one night. I think that's more than I've gotten in like ten years total. And then I made out with one of the guys on the nickel slots but who hasn't made out with a stranger there? I guess I stay true to the whole "what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas". Ahh...sweet memories... Megan