AshevilleEddie

All is well in Bandland again! I'm now at 6.5 cc after fill #2. As there was a little bruising after last week's fill, I did feel it this time, but it still didn't hurt.

Well, I'm going in tomorrow morning for another fill. I'm still able to eat way too much, so I called this morning and asked if I should come back in. The only thing I can think of is that when I had the first one it was early in the morning and I'm normally more restricted in the morning anyway. Wish me luck!

Pamela, Sean was in the Navy for 8 1/2 years before his roommates outed him. I don't usually tell his story for him, but even though we weren't together then (we met 3 1/2 years after his discharge) and I can never completely understand what he went through since I wasn't in the military, I do know how it continues to affect him 12 years later. So I know where Susanne is coming from. Plus I have the added perspective of having grown up Southern Baptist and being in denial and subsequently closeted for so many years. Please let Susanne she's not alone. The fill has been an odd thing. Some meals if feels like I can barely choke down two bites of food. Other times, it's like I don't even have the band, much less a fill too. But in all fairness, I'm not consistently back on solids yet so once I am that will be a more accurate assessment. One thing I did realize today was that before the fill I had fallen back into the bad habits of taking bites that are way too large and eating way too fast. They say it takes at least six weeks to break/create a habit. Thank goodness this, as my doc says, is a marathon, not a sprint...

Oooh, Michael Phelps! Yummy! :hungry: Not usually my type, but I could make do. Damn, the nice ones are always married or Str8...

Well, I had my first fill this morning. I had worked myself up into such a nervous tizzy that I had a nasty headache. It was all for nothing! Not only did the needle not hurt, I didn't even feel it at all! I had had a 4 cc fill during surgery, but when my doc aspirated the saline, there were only 3 cc there. I don’t know where it went, but he didn’t seem surprised or concerned, so neither was I. It was a very odd sensation though when he pulled the needle out of the port. Sort of a pulling/pressure feeling, but absolutely no pain. I now have good restriction again, so I’m quite happy. The down side is that it’s back to liquids/mushies for a few days. Ugh. (not a word, Mark ) Chris, thank you for your public apology to Juli. I appreciate that you’ve taken responsibility for your actions, whether intentional or not. I’m not a moderator, but I started this thread as a safe place for GLBT folks to be able to post without fear or shame. I feel very responsible for it and every member of it, and I will not allow anyone to hijack it for any other motive. I’m sure the mods would agree with me. IMO, as long as you treat others here with respect and dignity you are welcome to post here any time. I value your perspective as a GLBT-friendly Str8 man and I think you have much you can share with the rest of us. Thanks for understanding. Lucy…swimming?? Honestly. I’m just over 5 weeks out and still have some port area tenderness. I can’t do anything that requires me to lie on my stomach. Yes, you heard right, not anything! Now, if I don’t have to be flat on my tummy, that’s another story! :heh: Anyone have weekend plans? We’re actually staying home this weekend! Miracle of miracles…

Hi family, Glad to see more new folks here (ConSafo, Chris, LadyBlue). Welcome! I haven't been getting any e-mail notices about new posts to my subscribed threads, so I'm glad I checked in tonight. Pamela, what kind of trip do you have in mind and is there a specific geographic region you want to stay within? Since we're such big RVers, we plan a lot of destination trips, as well as "purpose" trips (where we have a specific purpose, i.e., relaxation, adventure, etc). If geography is not an issue, I know several places in the southeast, again depending on what you're trying to accomplish. Feel free to PM or e-mail me if you'd like. Sunta, I was wondering where you'd been. Hanging out in R&R?? I still lurk there myself, just haven't felt very confrontational lately so I haven't posted anything in a while. Good luck with your interview. I know you'll do great!! Let me know if you run out of Ativan, I keep my script filled! Hey Mark, my fill is tomorrow morning at 10:30 (my time). I'll report tomorrow afternoon. If it's bad maybe you won't be so jealous...

Ok, here's my post from Friday that went MIA. Take into consideration that it was written three days ago. Thanks Juli for e-mailing it to me so I could re-post it! I'm sitting here in Jax Int'l Airport waiting for my flight to Atlanta, which departs at 7:27 (it's 6:10 right now) so I figured I would post a quick update to my domestic drama. Sean and I have talked a couple more times, but the cell coverage is horrible where he and the kids are, so it? been hard to have much of a discussion. Our argument is still not 100% resolved, but we're ok. We've pretty much agreed to disagree...we'll talk more this weekend - I would really like more of a resolution. Cheri, is your and your wife's blowout resolved? Anyway, my band did not set off any alarms going through security. I've heard so many stories about people setting off the metal detectors, so I was ready to whip out my Inamed card! One thing I have discovered while sitting here is that ciabata bread, no matter how crusty it may be is NOT compatible with my band! I didn't PB, but it was a close call. I hadn't eaten anything since about noon and was getting hungry. The best thing I could find here in the airport was a little sandwich shop. I put all the ham and cheese on one half of one slice of the bread (it was cut in half already) and took a few bites. Bad idea! Oh well, live and learn. BTW, while I don't have any GLBT-friendly destinations to add to the list, I can start a new list of UNfriendly cities...Jacksonville will be at the top of that one! Our GLBT community here tries so hard to exert political clout, but Jax is pretty much run by downtown's First Baptist Church. It's one of the largest churches in the country. In fact, until Jacksonville built their new stadium a few years ago, 1st Baptist possessed the largest seating capacity in NE Florida! They also own about 1/3 of downtown and many City Council members are !st Baptist members. Hell, they even have a working lighthouse on the corner of one of their parking garages! It used to keep residents for miles around awake at night until they got so many complaints they finally decided to turn it off at 10 pm. Seriously. It's so bad that Sean started referring to it as "Six Flags Over Jesus!!" Ok, now that I'm going to hell... Has anyone heard from Yenken? She hasn't posted anything in quite a while. Does everyone have plans for the weekend? How about all you LD Lesbians (Yenken included)? Do you get to see your honies?? Lucy, how are you feeling? Update please! We're going to the Georgia Aquarium tomorrow. Has anyone been? We've been to the Florida Aquarium (in Tampa - it sucks, don't waste your money), the National Aquarium (not bad, but nothing spectacular either) and the South Carolina Aquarium (in Charleston - it's awesome!). We've heard a lot about GA, so we're really looking forward to going. Well, it's now 6:45 and I think I've just about covered every topic imaginable. It's late in the day and my ADHD is starting to show. BTW, here's an ADHD joke for you all: How many people with ADHD does it take to change a light bulb?? Wanna ride a bike? HAHAHA!!

Well, it's official. Unlike Friday at the airport, I experienced my first actual PB yesterday. I made pancakes and scrambled eggs and had gotten about three bites of pancakes with Peanut Butter and syrup down. It just plain got stuck! Very odd since I had eaten some on Saturday morning with no problem at all. Yeah, I know, I shouldn't have been eating pancakes at all, but when we're in the motorhome that's our "traditional" Breakfast. I should have just stuck (pun intended) to the eggs. At any rate, none of the pancakes stayed down. I won't be making that mistake again anytime soon... As for Sean and me, everything's back to normal! All in all it was a good weekend. The Georgia Aquarium wasn't quite what I was expecting, but it was fun nonetheless. And I got early b'day presents from Sean and the kids...a blue IPod Nano from Sean, accessories from Kaitie and a DVD of "The Omen" from Andrew. A somewhat autobiographical gift! Hey, he admitted it!

Ok, that's too weird. I looked on here late last night and my post was there, now it's not. WTF? Obviously, I don't get an e-mail about my own post so I can't re-post it...

We were going to go up and get married (legally) next spring, but after same-sex marriage was legalized, Mitt Romney (who could be our next president) dredged up a 1913 state law that states that if your marriage would not be legal in your home state that you can't get married in MA. You guessed it - FL is one of the states that enacted "Defense of Marriage" legislation. Oh well, maybe one day... I did talk to Sean last night. Things aren't perfect yet, but they're better. I'm going to call him later this morning and see if we can't close this ugly chapter once and for all...

The thing is, it's not really his fault or my fault. It just spun out of control because I was so upset. I'm still pissed (just in general, not at him) but I just want some peace at this point. Problem is, I don't know how to back out of it without feeling like a doormat. Any suggestions?

Great makeup sex...yeah, right. He's probably the least stereotypical Gay man you would ever meet, but he's so like a woman in that if he's mad or upset about something he "can't get in the mood" to have sex. Not me, I'm a typical man. "Hear that freight train? Oh, it's a tornado coming? Well, just a quickie then!" :biggrin1: Anyway, I haven't called him yet. He's going to expect me to apologize and I just can't bring myself to do it. I feel like I was 100% justified to get mad about it. Of course, he said that the time we could have spent together after he got done with the biotch was wasted by my rant. Maybe, who knows? But I was (and still am) pissed about the whole thing. Anyway, moving on to more pleasant subjects, I moved up the date for my first fill. It was supposed to be 7/3 but I called yesterday and they moved it to 6/21. The last few days I've been able to eat waayyy too much, and I've tried to really watch what I'm eating, but when I'm still hungry it's really hard to not eat something. As least I've been pretty good about watching the carbs (with the exception of my stress eating yesterday) so I don't think I'm going to gain anything <fingers crossed>. I'm going to the gym tonight after work and I'm planning on putting in a little extra time on the treadmill.

Hi family, Can I vent a little? Sean and the kids left in the motorhome this morning to go to Atlanta. I'm flying up Friday night after I get off work. We're going to the GA Aquarium on Saturday, then we're all coming home in the MH on Sunday. Here's my beef. I wanted to spend a little time with Sean last night considering I'll be sleeping alone for the next three nights. But NOOO! He had a client call who just had to have her Crackberry set up for remote access LAST NIGHT! It was 9:00 pm and he didn't get done until almost 11:00! I was livid!!! Needless to say, it went downhill from there and I wound up stress eating. That's never been a good thing, but especially since I haven't had nearly as much restriction the last few days. Things weren't any better this morning, and he left without so much as a goodbye kiss. Suffice it to say I am having a shitty week and don't really expect it to get any better. His company is very successful, and I don't want him to sell it or anything. But those damned clients already take up so much of our time, then when shit like this happens I lose it. Ok, rant over. For now...

I'm also one of the ones whose doc says no liquids 30 minutes before or after. But oddly enough (think I've already posted this on here somewhere) he cleared me to eat solids just eight days post-op! I'm going to experiment with the pre-meal drinking though. What travelgirl's doc said about driking right up until beginning to eat makes sense to me. The liquid would go right through the band, but in the meantime it seems to me that it would be "rousing" the nerve endings in the stomach pouch so that when you start to eat they're already stimulated, therefore you may get satisfied from the actual food sooner. Anyone heard anything about this or have any opinions?

Kim, when you say it's just below your rib cage are you referring to below your xiphoid (breastbone)? I'm sure you're still experiencing post-op pain and gas, but if it persists it may be the band resting against your diaphragm. I've referred to it as feeling like I swallowed a brick. I've experienced this off and on since I was banded on 5/16 and that was my doc's explanation. Since I spoke to him I've been to a support group meeting and several other folks have experienced the same thing. I was assured that it does pass...

This is a classic example of YMMV (Your Mileage May Vary). Eight days post-op my doc cleared me to advance to solids. I'm fine, but I also haven't pushed the envelope too much. I was banded on 5/16 and have eaten whole-grain pasta (only a few bites, the meatball filled me up!) and a couple of bites of garlic toast (the crust only) with no problems, but untoasted flour tortillas were a no-go. And I won't even think about rice or untoasted bread. For dinner last night we grilled some ribeyes. I was able to eat about 2 oz, along with some very soft broccoli/cauliflower. The steak was very tender and I cut into bites about the size of a nickel. We went to the movies yesterday and I tried popcorn for the first time. It went down fine, but about five minutes later it felt like I had swallowed some quick-hardening cement! A half a bottle of water flushed it right down and I was fine, but I won't be eating any more popcorn anytime soon.

Hi Cheri! Your fill is a day before mine, unless I go in earlier. My husband has had three fills so far. He usually does full liquids for the rest of the day, then plays it by ear the next day. But our doc let us go on solids a week post-op, so he's more "lenient" than others I've heard about. Don't let yourself get hungry. If you're still hungry after you think you've eaten as much as you should, go for the proteins. They'll fill you up faster, but you won't be getting the carbs. And if you don't lose anything between now and then, or even if you were to gain a pound or two, the fill will take care of that. The best way to sabotage yourself is to be hungry - it's just like being on a diet - and if we could all stick to that we wouldn't be on this forum!

Brooke, think hourglass, on a slower scale. The food doesn't just drop all at once into the lower part of the stomach. It kinda "drips" down from the new stomach pouch, that's why you're satisfied longer. Maybe you need another fill. Sometimes it takes a while to get to the "sweet spot." If you don't have restriction you probably do need one. You shouldn't still be hungry so soon after you eat. I understand the thyroid going nuts. Sean has hypothyroidism as well, so I've been through a lot with his. How's your TSH? I was banded on 5/16 and even though my first fill is scheduled for 7/3 I'm thinking about going in early because the last couple of days I haven't had good restriction and have still been hungry after eating as much as 6-8 oz of food. That's just too much. Nonetheless, I weighed today and am down a couple more pounds. I really don't want to move backwards at this point.

Just make sure it's something really disgusting, I was thinking maybe I could send you the liquid vitamins I was taking the first couple of weeks post-op. They're loaded with greens, wheat grass juice, all kinds of yummy stuff! PB that and you'll make Linda Blair proud!! :girl_hug:

OH MY FREAKIN' GOD! Green, you are too much!!:target: But I do have to agree...Lauren, you are a fine dragon-slayer! Take some of that to your family get-together and take out a few of those overgrown lizards for me! :fencing:(Ok, not exactly a dragon-slaying sword, but it'll have to do...)

Hey Lucy! WELCOME TO BANDLAND!! :clap2: And thanks for the update. I'm really glad you made it through ok! Do you have any Gas-X strips? They worked well for me, although if the gas pains are from getting "blown up like you're 10 months pregnant" (as my surgeon's partner so eloquently put it) rather than intestinal gas, they won't do a thing. My pain meds helped a lot with that the first few days. I've seen others post about using heating pads, as well as a few other things I can't remember right off. Don't forget we're here for you! We may not be there to bring you Soup and wipe your butt (metaphorically speaking of course) but you'll find all the love and support you could ever need right here. :hug:

Hiya Brooke! :welcome: I noticed in your profile that you were banded on 2/23 - my husband was banded on 2/21. How are you doing so far? He seems to be losing faster than most folks so I have to make sure I don't compare my progress to his. We all move at our own pace. Anyway, it's great to have you aboard! Make yourself at home!

LOL! Too funny Juli! Hey, where in Ohio are you? Sean if from up there, near Lima...

Hi Kathy! What oral meds are you one? I'm down to 1,000 mg of Metformin twice a day and am going to experiment with cutting out the pm dose starting tonight. In the past I have been on Amaryl, Starlix, Prandin, Avandia (I gained 80 lbs in under a year!:girl_hug: It came off in a few months when I stopped taking it) and Byetta (which worked really well for about 4 months, then was completely useless). As for insulin, I've only used Lantus. Now that I'm off the insulin and am losing, I expect the blood pressure to start normalizing as well. Keep us posted on doc appt, insurance decision, etc. And don't ever give up hope! You're well on your way now.