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Here is our "orphan"... ZeeBe. She came with the house. She is the elder of the animals, and very mean!

Baby #2... Here is Clare. We bought her on August 11th which is the Feast day of St Clare of Assisi... thats how we got her name. She is so sassy. I sure wish she would STOP peeing in the house. We call her "Clara Bell"

Here are my fur babies. Since we share the names of our animals, I thought Id do the same. Most of you know that we are Roman Catholic. We name our animals after saints that we have developed a devotion to. Here is Gemma (sounds like "Jim-ah") named after St Gemma Galgani. St. Gemma was known for her beauty - as is MY Gemma. She is the most beautiful cat!!!! Can you see her BIG blue eyes?

Kathy, using the metrogel, how smooth looking is your face (this is MY main problem - my skin is so rough looking)? Are you able to go make-up less? ok, the doc prescribed Klaron lotion (sodium sulfacetamide) and Noritate (this is the metronidazole cream). I was using the cream in the AM under my make-up, and the lotion at night. I didnt see any improvement, so I stopped using either one (I know, Im one that flew out of the koo koo's nest. I need to give it more time). Anyone ever heard of Klaron?

Elizabeth, MY problem does not come and go. The little red dots seems to stay. Im with you - I think I need another opinion. Argon, see? I dont have the weird nose redness/bumps. Another reason I think I need another MD's opinion. Janet, I have -every now and then- broken veins on the sides of each nostril. But nothing RELLY obvious. And like I said, its every now and then. The heat makes it worst. When Im REALLY hot, my cheecks get REALLY red and itchy. i dont know. Kathy, I didnt know you had this? The metrogel is the only med you use? What about oral antibiotics? My doc gave me 2 creams and recommended a special soap and Aveeno moisturizer. ???

Strawart, I use the Walmart brand Peri-Colace. Its a stool softner with laxative (Sennosides). Not an immediate result, but a gentle one. When problems arise, Ill have about 3 with my morning coffee for about 3 days... this usually gets me on the right track! Happy Trails to you :biggrin1:

Dealing with one problem at a time... Last month I went to the Dermatologist for pail red blotchy rough spots on my cheeks (not really on my nose, just cheeks). And Rosacea is what she diagnosed me with (**Ive been using 1% hydrocortisone for the past 10 years. Ive just NOW decided it was time to get proper treatment for this problem** i know, i know... :eekB: ) Anyway, the doc gave me a regimen of different creams and moisterizers to try (both otc and scripts). With the instructions of, "some thing work for some, and other things work for others. We just need to find the right treatment for YOU." So that left me feeling a little nervous. So Ive started using all of this new stuff. But the same thing is happening that has occured in the past when I tried to stop the hydrocortisone... my skin gets flakey looking and itches! I look like a shedding lizard when this happens. PLUS I have mulit-colored skin tone. All of this together is NOT pretty. I really dont think Rosacea is the correct diagnosis. Any of you have this? What did your skin look like before treatment? And, what is your treatments?

Be careful what you ask for... Im going get shots of my zoo. 3 cats, 1 house dog, 1 OX (mike's damn dog) and a HUGE racoon that visits every now and then.... do you just want 4 legged animals, or can I post the 2 legged critters as well???? :eekB: **love the pic where the 2 kittys are curled up together**

Thats right! You can NOT hide from the LBT Police. We'll find you... :eekB: ok, I just thought of Candysmooch. She is now declared: M.I.A.

Dee Dee, WELCOME to LapBandTalk.com. In all honesty, we are SO happy to have you around. Although we've had several members that have eroded, some had similear symptoms, while others had NO symptoms of ANY problems (strange?). Can you please tell us what YOUR symptoms of erosion were? And who is/was your surgeon? ...and PART of your stomach is dead - due to your band eroding?? you have just scared the crap out of me. ((((((((HUGS))))))))))

Hey Donna - glad to meet ya! Welcome to LBT. Does your insurance cover WLS, specifically Adjustable Gastric Banding? That's the million dollar question around here. Good luck, and keep us posted.

Where's Donali?? her last day of activity was April 12th.

Oh my goodness..... Sounds like Malawi is good for you. (Maybe THATS where I need to go???) I am SOOOO excited for you doing SOOOO well on your big move. A size 10 jean? Girl, you are now classified as a "skinny minnie"! A BIG WAAAHHHHOOOOO to you!

Please Mr Alex, PLEASE give us our ability to DELETE our own post. I miss it too.

Awe Nana, mom's having to juggle a job and kids (with child care) is a BIG BIG deal. I sure DO wish you luck. And dont be nervous, EVERYONE has a first day at a new job. LOTS and LOTS of support from us ~ GOOD LUCK!

You know Babygirl, I would spend Monday making phone calls. Calling my insurance comp. to see WHO is on my plan within my driving distance. Phone calls are the cheapest way right now. Dont worry. When you find the RIGHT direction in this horrible situation, you will have an abundance of peace. ((((hugs))))))

Hi Cathy! And WeLcOmE to LapBandTalk.com Very nice to meet you. So glad you felt comfortable enough to just jump in and start visiting. Hope you post often. May 17th will be here in a blink of an eye... very quickly! Again, WELCOME!

LOL... thanks for the warning. awe Sunta, sorry you had this experience. Just about every time Ive had fries (Wendy's being my biggest temptation) Ive had to pb them up. Thanks for the reminder!

ok Trish, lets see, youve had... port replacement surgery extreme shoulder pain leak in your band NOW... a port infection in your NEW port. All of this within 1 year. Look at it this way... If this were one of us having these problems, what would you tell us to do? I think youve given this surgeon a very fair chance at improving your health - at the cost of your time and money. With this said, I ABSOLUTELY think you should find another surgeon. You'll never know whether its hard or easy (find a new surgeon), until you start looking. It may be very very simple... ??? Dawn, (darn, I wish I had copied and pasted the link for you) Trish has had a series of problems related to her band. In her thread titled "I need your advise" you can read about her most recent band problems. Im with the others - I wouldve thought that the surgeon wouldve given her some type of oral antibiotic after this recent surgery.

:tired :tired your doctor didnt put you on oral antibiotics? :tired :tired ok, Im keeping my opinion to myself. I promise. luv ya girl!

DeAnn ~ that is absolutely BEAUTIFUL! And your grass is sooooooo green!!!! You must tell what you are using for that gorgeous color.

- Allow members to add, rate, review and discuss Insurers, Govt programs, Hospitals, Lap-band Surgeon, Plastic Surgeon, Dietician/Nutritionist, Primary Care Physician, Psychologist, sleep Center Professional and other professionals I think this will be an awesome AWESOME feature!!! And Alex, what will the "Angel feature" be (I have an idea, but just wanted to see if this is what you were thinking)?? When should we start seeing some of these changes? I cant imagine this place getting any better. GO Alex!

(((hugs))) ...to one of my -most favorite bestest- girlfriends! Already a year?? Where did the time go? Happy Band Day! ((by the way, hows your hole??)

Hey there Ms Kitty! So happy to see you back, safe and settled! Each day will be better and better. I promise. I agree with Jenna about the low heat pad for comfort. And when you feel those gas pains rolling around in your shoulder, try to take a walk. This is not the time to be 'lady' like - so IF you feel the need to 'make air' - GIRL, let it rrriiiiiip! Bet your mouth has never watered for Pop sickles?!?! hehe ((gentle hugs)) WELCOME to Band land!

Susan, you are brilliant for thinking of these score cards. At this moment, Im not going to sign up. You know, its a suga thang. *wink* But I DID want to post my stats for the week... S 248/ J 185 / G 150/ C 183 (-64 lbs total) gained a pound.