DeniseG

I am jealous that you guys can eat sausage!!! I can't eat anything in the pork family

I don't recommend PBing but, don't be afraid of it. Don't try to make yourself do it of course, but, if you feel your food is going down and you are still hungry, try eating a little more. PBing, for me, first starts with a heartburn like feeling. Almost like you took a pill and it went down the wrong way. If you feel this feeling. Stop eating immediately and wait until you don't feel that feeling anymore. The first time it happened to me I was at work and thought the pain was a heart attack. It is not a pleasant feeling, but, unfortunately you will more then likely have it happen after you start getting fills

It's like baby spit up but, slimey

I haven't watched the show. Are you judged on how fast you lose weight. If so, that sucks. Not everyone loses the same weight no matter how hard they try

i am wanting to get some feedback the level of restriction people have. 1. when you drink first thing in the am is it more like: c. i can drink room temp. cold beverages (about 20 oz. in a hour or less) But, only after about an hour after waking 2. for breakfast i eat: PLEASE also list the time of breakfast! a. protien shake-sometimes, if I am in a hurry, I wouldn't call it a Protein shake technically, it is instant breakfast b. mushies- oatmeal, cream of wheat, scram eggs, yogurt keeps pouch full for hours I wouldn't say for hours. I can't eat eggs, they won't go down at any hour no matter how they are cooked. Oatmeal is what I usually eat 3. do you ever have acid reflux, indigestion? d. occasionally 1-2 times a month 4. how much can you eat of the following (round-a-bout): protien shake: no restriction unless it is very thick *chicken-I can only eat saucy, as in Soups or casserole. If I eat plain I can eat one bite and that is it. *salad:Can eat until it goes out of style. I feel no restriction when eating salad-unless there are eggs, bacon or non veggies in it *sandwich-can't eat sandwich bread at all, can eat about 3 bites if it is toasted, can eat a small piece of french bread. If I eat bread before food everything will get stuck *chicken, soft veggie, carb or another veggie (i know this varies with the order you eat in BUT please go buy how you typically eat?): I avoid chicken, it is just too hard to fool with. As far as meat, I am real limited. Grouper, Salmon, shrimp (basically anything seafood) goes down fine-Salmon, sometimes not, if it is overcooked. Ribeye steak--minus the fat, goes down okay. Veggies, go down good for me for the most part. With the exception of mushy veggies--peas, corn potatoes. Carbs, it depends on what it is. It is a trial/error 5. are you happy with your restriction? b. no but i have good restriction 6. when you pb why is it: choose all that apply a. because i ate to fast b. because i tried to eat solids c. because i wasnt paying attention to eating d. no reason I could come up with lol 7. how often do you pb? d. once a week 8. how much liquids do you get in in a day? b. i struggle to get in 64 oz. (because i'm lazy) Well actually with the time you have to wait between meals it can be a struggle 9. do you eat in the correct order (protien first, veggies, then carb): d. most of the time i eat in the correct order (70%) but its a struggle 10. do you drink with meals: b. nope __________________

hey edistogirl, you and I have the same doctor. He is great!!! Denise

Although I liked the other option that wasn't chosen, I am "happy to hear of your loss" if someone didn't know where you were coming from (no pun intended, what I mean is if they only saw your shirt from the back) might think you were talking about someone who has died, and the political climate we are in, who knows, they might think you were talking about soldiers in Iraq. I personally think it is clever, but, people can be overly sensitive sometimes. So, on that, I guess I would have to pick big fat loser, since the person wearing the shirt who seem to be who it was referring to. Denise Will purple show up on black?? just asking. Is it a pale purple??

I thought about having dermabrasion (sp) done on them, but, I don't know if it is effective on keloid scars. I guess for some people they aren't a big deal but, I have very fair skin and it is very visible. All of my scars turned to keloid except one, and that one is the tinyist scar anyway. I have tried over the counter creams and ointments with no difference. Other then being very visible, the main problem I have with mine is I am very heavy chested and my bra lays right on top of one of them so, it has a tendency to hurt all the time. Sorry for being such a poo poo at the party lol Denise

My one year anniversary will be Aug 21, 2004 Weight lost: Started at 282, I got down to 232, but, I have gained 10 pounds. (yes, you can gain weight with the lap band lol) I have a bone spur on my left foot that has really hindered my excercise. I have started biking which has helped take the pressure off my foot, and I enjoy it so, I hope I can start losing weight again. I have had 3 fills, and one slightly unfill, because I was too tight. PBing-It depends on how you describe PBing. Out and out throwing up. About 4 times. Spitting up food that hasn't gone down about twice a week. I try my best to be patient and not spit it up. Would I do it again?? I am not sure. Maybe not if I am being honest. Granted I wasn't losing weight the old way, but, it is hard for me to eat meats so I feel limited in the foods I can eat, and bad food goes down great unfortunately. I am very self conscious about my scars too, they turned into keiloids, so, even after a year, they are very visible. Longest plateau?? I am on it now. 3 months. I actually have been gaining lately, maybe it is muscle lol. I have been depressed lately though, and had been getting into my bad old habits. I find if I eat a healthy breakfast, I will stay that way for the rest of the day. Any set backs? Only set back for me was having too tight of a fill and waiting too long to get it taken out. This was bad for me in two ways........First, I had a tendency to PB, and also, it made me start on the path of eating bad foods which I hadn't done prior to the too tight fill. My advice if you have this situation...........don't wait to get an unfill.

1. Pick a t-shirt color, choose ONE of the below: d. Red 2. Statement on back of shirt, choose ONE of the below: c. "So happy to be a LOSER" 3. What color should the print be, choose ONE of the below: c. Purple 4. Tell us what size you are requesting? xl 5. What is the most you are willing to pay for the shirt including shipping and handling? 20.00

Unfortunately, I don't know the severity of his slippage. I know when he had the slippage, he couldn't keep anything down. It wasn't the "stuck" feeling we normally get. He would eat at 6p and end up having to throw up that food around 3am. Nothing would digest. He couldn't even keep down Water. Also, something that was weird. If say, he drank tea, when he threw up, it was as if it would separate. (water,tea, sugar) He also had severe heartburn all the time. The doctor said, more then likely the slippage was from throwing up (which he was doing several times a day) They were able to see the slippage from the front view on the barium test. He had his band almost completely loosened for about a month 1/2 When that happened after a couple of days, he could eat almost anything. When he went back to the doctor, they were sure that it wouldn't have improved since I believe 80% of slippages need resurgery. All I can say, it must have been a miracle

After suffering since March, I finally had my band loosened. I have gained 5 pounds, but, I feel so much better. At first I wasn't complaining about the tight band because I was losing a lot of weight, but, when I fluctuated between the same 3-5 pounds enough was enough. It is nice to be able to eat without struggling so much. I was worried, because my husband's band slipped, and I didn't want the same thing. He had to have all his Fluid taken out, and may have to have surgery again, we are keeping our fingers crossed since our insurance won't cover that. I just wanted to say thank you for the posts on my husband's constant heartburn a few months ago. We learned from the doctor, that is a warning sign of possible slippage, which they proved on x-ray. Of course, I am not saying heartburn means slippage. It could mean you ate too close to bedtime, and the food was sitting there overnight in the pouch, or it could be something else. I wish, we had done something sooner. We thought it was a bug going around work.

Dishdiva, did you see Dr. Ponce?? that is who I go to. He is a really great doctor. I have not met the others, I am sure they are good too. Yes, the doctor was really suprised when my husband's band went back to normal. I doubt that happens very often. He still has to go back next month and have a second check up. He really wants a fill. He has gained 20 pounds. Of course, he can lose 20 pounds within a month. That stinks lol. It has taken me almost a year to lose 50 lol

Usually I get an e-mail saying that someone has posted, but I didn't this time. Sorry, I wasn't trying to ignore your question. Personally, if your doctor think it has slipped I would definitely follow what ever orders he suggests. You may gain a little wait, but, it is much better and easier to lose it later, then to have to take several weeks off work to have the surgery done again, and then have to start over on "Liquids" again. I have gained 10 pounds since I had my band loosened. I got a bike and am trying to ride it everyday to increase my metabolism. I am depressed about the weight, sure, but, I feel better now that I can have meat and veggies. I can understand your frustration though Denise

Mine and my husband's doctor said it is usually 1 out of 1,000. He is one of the first doctors to perform the surgery and he says it has only happened to two of his patients. I know just in the hospital I get my fills and had my surgery there are 300 lapband patients so, that is a pretty good record. He also works at another hospital that has quite a few more patients. He believes my husband's band slipped because he was too tight and he was throwing up on a daily basis. I think and I am not making this statement based on anyone's post because, I don't know anyone personally here, but based on the lapband people in my area I know.......Some doctors--including mine---are performing so many bands that maybe the message isn't getting out so much about the dangers of throwing up and the band. I know that message is stated over and over here in chat, so we know here, but, I don't think people on the outside are getting that message, or they are choosing to ignore it. From personal experience, before I got my band I had to have a psych evaluation which consisted of the questions you knew how to answer to pass the test. I really would like to see psych doctors take an active role with the lap band. I know for many of us (myself anyway) that is where our weight issues stem from anyway. BTW---my husband went back to the doctor and they did the barium thing again and my doctor had a shocked look on his face.........the band slipped back into the right place. He said, when the band slips there is an 80% chance you will have to have surgery again.........I am hoping it is a miracle!!! But, my husband is a real "murphy" so he might jinx it lol He asked if he had to have the surgery again would it be easier, and the doc said, no, it is the exact same surgery we had initially.

I really appreciate everyone. I hadn't posted in a while because I had been depressed about my band, and didn't want to be a "negative nancy". Now that I can eat meat again, I am hoping it will cut down on the "bad foods" and I will lose weight again. My husband goes in for a consultation about what to do about his slippage. I hope that it is okay now that he's had it open for about a month. We'll see

Cool test. I'm a social menace (206) of course, most of that was before marriage. Alot of drug/alcohol questions which don't apply to me (not the drug part anyway) so, I guess I was a sexpot lol

I don't need a fill right now. Last one done in March and it is still going strong, but, my doctor has put a halt to all adjustments this month do to pollen. He said that is has been causing to much fluctuation with tightness. WOW anyone elses doctor doing the same thing?? Just curious?

Hey dishdiva, yes, for the most part the pollen has died down. I originally posted that post in early spring. It's hard to tell lol. Yes, I hope Dr. Ponce can help you. I really like him, and he is one of the first doctors to perform the lapband, so he has a lot of experience. I hope it has not slipped, keep us posted Denise

I hear what your saying donali, the bad thing about chat rooms is you can't hear the person to know if they were kidding or not even with the emoticon. And I think it is important to have the lapband for your self and for no one else.

Isn't making fun of someone who made fun of you stooping to their level?? More then likely they made fun of you because they had insecurities themselves about something. Maybe they weren't overweight, but, maybe they had a big overbite, freckles, were too short, or had some other insecurity you couldn't see from the outside. Example child abuse. It may be fun to think you are getting even, but, the best thing to do is realize you have taken the best step for yourself by getting the lapband. Not only will it probably improve your appearance, but, it will also help your health in the long run too. More then likely, the person who made fun, doesn't even remember doing it, and if they did, they would probably apologize if they could. My sister was mad at me for about 10 years about something I said when I was 18 and when she finally told me at 32 I didn't remember it at all, but, I apologized for the pain I caused her

I was always a little overweight as a child (was born close to 11pnds) I remember weighing 81 pounds in 3rd grade but, I was always the tallest kid in the class, so it didn't show as much. I was never teased per say about my weight, there were some that made fun of my rear end. I had a big one (still do, or as they say a bumpy butt lol) it bothered me to some extent, but, I never let it get to me, everyone has their self confidence issues. I wore a 14 as a cheerleader, but, I didn't appear overweight, I was very curvy and a 16 in High school. The hardest part for me as far as that went, was finding a uniform that fit, just about everyone was a 5 or a 7 at the largest. I never blamed myself(maybe I should've) I blamed everyone else for not picking a uniform that wasn't so size specific. No one ever said anything to make me feel bad about my size though. I didn't pack on the pounds until about 29-33 after I got married, I think I just gave up on my appearance I think which was unfair to me and my husband, who never said anything about my weight. Bless his heart.

Make sure before you get your lapband that you have a counselor on board too. With my band, I had to have psychological analysis done (of course, I answered the questions the way they wanted me to--so, I don't know if it helped.) Even with the band, without psychological help, you will still have the same issues. One of my main "eating too much issues" is fear of not having enough money. Whenever I felt I was over my head when it came to bill time I would "eat away" my anxiety. I still have this issue. When it happens and I can't eat, I resort to eating food that I know will go down, which tends to be chocolate, ice cream etc. I have to make sure that my home is "bad food" free during that time.

thanks for showing how you see your pictures........I didn't know how to see them either before then lol I like your 232 pictures. Of course that is what I am stuck on (232)and I still think I am skinnier then I am. (that was a huge problem for me at 282 denial) You do have a great smile, you need to use the bottom one in the pictures on the main page to show that smile off (just my opinion of course)

6 weeks is usually the time people take between adjustments but, one patient my doctor told me has had the band almost a year and has never had a fill. It's the thought that she has the band that has made her lose weight he says. I have had my 3rd adjustment in early March and am still very tight, so, it all depends on the individual. I think everybody is different, I had less of a fill for #1 then my husband and it held me for about 6 weeks He felt he needed another after a couple of weeks. Of course I weighed about 40 pounds more then him