Zoe

Mary, how was the weekend?

Good luck, Heather. You're doing the right thing. And about your "slow" weight loss -- yes, it can be discouraging, but those pounds are gone forever. You're losing at a reasonable rate, and the scale numbers are going down. A teeny tiny unfill might make a big difference. Let us know how your appointment went.

Hamu, you've received some great comments here. I just wanted to add a few words for you and Kelly, because Ben & Jerry are two of my favorite guys (since I don't see much of Ernest & Julio these days). Most B&J ice cream is 300 calories per serving; four servings per pint. So a whole pint -- and for me, that used to be the size of my real serving -- is 1200 calories. I believe that you need 3500 extra unused calories to make a pound. I am still the ice cream queen, even after banding. I eat a lot less of it than I used to, but I still love the stuff. You can eat ice cream and still lose weight! Just don't make a habit of hanging out with Ben & Jerry on a regular basis; like certain friends we all have, they're fine to visit occasionally but you don't want to see too much of them. Ever since I stopped buying cartons of ice cream I've done a lot better. I just keep frozen fruit bars and fat-free Fudgsicles in the fridge -- if I'm craving something else, I make myself go out and buy one scoop. It's not perfect bandster behavior, but it's a way of taming the beast.

Wow! Lookin' good, everyone! These photos are so inspiring; every time I check the picture thread, I wind up resolving to be a better bandster. Say, have you seen Greg's tiny little waist? Looks like he wears about a 32 now.

I don't mean to criticize you, Nita -- it's just that there are plenty of us who have real co-morbidities, and I wish there had been a way for me to cheat the docs to LOWER my blood pressure and make my back and joint pain disappear, not falsely intensify them. Of course there are people who want to lose weight for valid "cosmetic" reasons (justifiably afraid that they may develop weight-related health problems if they don't take corrective action) who are desperate enough to fake symptoms in order to get insurance to pay for surgery designed to eliminate those symptoms in the first place. Does the end justify the means? Each one of us has to decide. But if anyone fakes symptoms, artificially inflates his weight or reduces height and then gets turned down by an insurance company, he has no right to complain, especially when insurers tighten their qualifications for surgery because the companies are paying a lot of "false" claims.

Congratulations! I think a lot of us have experienced fickle bands. I wolfed down a bowl of guacamole without any problem a few weeks ago, then got a nasty PB from salad the next day. Funny how it's never big helpings of salad that go down easy, it's always stuff like chocolate cake, ice cream, and tortilla chips.

Crystal, this is sad news. But luckily you're wrong about one thing: there are wheelchairs -- more like four-legged carts -- for old and disabled dogs; see the bottom of the page at http://www.abledogs.net/faq.html for links. Whatever you decide, you might want to check http://www.srdogs.com/index.html for support. Good luck with this difficult choice; I know you have your dog's best interests at heart.

Four mastiffs?! Cool. That's, what, 600 lbs. of dog? My Sophie (Lab x maniac) has a wonderful Tibetan Mastiff buddy, and she often plays with a couple of English Mastiffs on the beach. Check out http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=5054 for some bandster animal posts. Welcome to LBT!

bumping for newbies

Gotta ask about your screen name -- do you have a Mastiff dog? What kind (English, Tibetan, Neapolitan, plain old Mastiff)? We have lots of dog nuts here, including me.

Hi Sam! Welcome to LBT. I know that no one should compare weight-loss stats, but yours are damn impressive! I'm sure you'll get to your goal by your band anniversary date next February.

Welcome, Stephani. Some doctors are jerks (not the first word that came to my mind), that's for sure. It's great that you got past your bad experience with doc #1 and decided to find an alternative. We have a great group of people here from all walks of life, including waaaay too many Texans! (just kidding) Good luck, and congrats on moving forward.

Excellent! See you on the banded side of life. . .

Welcome -- and congratulations on your loss!

I sent you a PM with some suggestions. I've never been treated like that at MIBC. I'm appalled that the guy couldn't even tell you the amount of your fill. He seems to have a cavalier attitude, as if you and your concerns aren't important. This stinks! How are you feeling now?

I make weird sounds all the time -- kind of like the Tuvalan throat singers. Oh well, better above deck noises than below.

Thanks, everyone! I may give Mistic Tan a try. Lisa, the North & Wells branch is probably the closest; unfortunately there's a Coldstone ice cream parlor right there! Tanning beds are not an option for me. I will spare you my melanoma lecture, but everyone who uses one, please be careful. Nivea, Jergens, and Clinique sound worth trying. But since I just spent $15 on the Coppertone stuff, maybe I'll just lower my expectations first, as Kathy suggested. I loved "All I'm interested in is reducing the glare." Ditto! Our legs could have a snow-blindness contest.

I've stayed away from the sun since my father died of skin cancer nearly 20 years ago, and I'm not going under a sunlamp either. But my natural skin color is close to baby blue, and now that summer is here I don't like strutting around like a pale-legged plucked chicken. I bought a bottle of Coppertone light/medium self-tanning lotion and tried it on my legs this morning. The fake tan is uneven, and almost as orange as the QT version (remember that stuff from 30 years ago, anyone?). While I'm not wearing shorts anytime soon, I think the world could handle a glimpse of my ankles now that it's 90 degrees. Have any other pale (not just Caucasian, but library-paste-complected) LBTers had success with tan-in-a-bottle lotions or creams? All recommendations welcome. Thanks!

WooHoo! Who's that gorgeous babe? Congratulations, Megan -- you deserve every bit of your fun and happiness!

I agree. Just before I got my band, I met a friend of a friend who had lost 125 lbs. with a gastric bypass. She wasn't thrilled with the operation, but she was thrilled with the results. As the months passed, I watched as she kept losing a lot of weight. Now, almost a year later, she has regained about 50 lbs. and despairs because there's nothing she can do about her growing appetite. Her stomach pouch has stretched, and she's stuck. Meanwhile I'm on the slow weight-loss track, and I slip now and again (monthly chocolate madness), but I'm confident I can keep losing gradually and also keep the weight off. Not all bypass patients gain back any weight, of course. But I've heard of a few others who have. At least with the band, we have the option of getting a new fill. Here, you'll find that a lot of us considered gastric bypass but decided for lots of reasons to go with the band instead. Some of us weren't nearly heavy enough to qualify for the other surgery. As Jonathan suggested, others hated the idea of permanent change to our GI systems. Other bandsters will weigh in (N.P.I.) with other reasons. Before you proceed, check on the complications rates for both procedures, including slippage and erosion for the band. You have a right to all the information you can gather. Meanwhile, read old posts here on LBT and on any other weight-loss-surgery boards you can find, including those for bypass patients. Start off by reading the "sticky" posts on the major threads here. If you have any questions, please ask. Good luck!

Congratulations! Check out http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=7316

Great thread, Josy! You are brave to confront your feelings. American society being what it is, a lot of large people have entire areas of their lives closed off to them because they are deemed unworthy of sex or love. The worst part is, we start to believe it ourselves. Jack, I think this is the first time someone has quoted Kant on LBT! If you start citing Critique of Pure Reason I'm going to start worrying about you. Shelley, the band is for YOU and your health. What's past is past, including whatever you did or didn't do with your husband. How have you wasted his time? He is a grown-up and made his own choices. Now you're considering a new choice for yourself: a tool to heal and improve your body. Hey, if after you've lost weight you are such a stunning fox that you make your ex-husband kick himself for losing you, fantastic -- but it's really about getting healthy and getting another chance at life. We all have some fear of change. But if you hang around here for a while, you'll find that most bandsters were even more afraid of NOT changing, and that's why we opted for surgery. Sorry for all the pop-psych platitudes -- I guess I'm in ass-kicking mode. I'm about to meet an old friend who hasn't seen me since 60 pounds ago.

aaaagh! You will probably be too busy to eat. Good luck packing -- think of all the calories you're burning by shifting all that stuff around. We're all hoping for the best for you and your family during this chaotic time. I'm sure you'll get some amazing sermon material out of all this!

Margo, you might want to check the "Doctors and Hospitals" forum; search for the surgeon's or hospital's name, and see if any other bandsters have posted experiences with this outfit.

I was at 39.6 with very high blood pressure and chronic back trouble, considered 110 lbs. overweight, but I didn't qualify for insurance payment. (I probably could have gotten up to a 40 BMI just by eating a pile of hash browns before jumping on the scale -- or wearing a padded bra.) Each insurance company and doctor handles it differently. Check with your insurance provider to find out its policy before you take the next step.