babsyintx

Hi, Paula: Glad you agree with me Denise: I do like Constantine and I actually think he should remake "I think I love you", which happens to be one of my favorite songs. I just think that he is over the top with the dramatics. Maybe he should just lick the microphone for more effect.... I think he would do better if he toned it down a bit. Sometimes mystery is better... By the way, my former life was in the talent/music industry in Europe. I owned a production and casting agency in Amsterdam. I worked mostly with kids and teens. Not that this makes me anymore qualified to judge the show since people from all across America make this decision....One of my young protegees I discovered at a casting when he was age 12 is finally making it in the music industry. I cut a demo with him in 1998 and got him an audition with Sony in Europe. I was the first one to get him on tv. You can go to his website which is www.BRACEmusic.nl. Most of it is in Dutch, but there are some videos of his new releases. I am very proud of him. His mom and I still talk and email eachother. Take a look when you get a chance. Babs in TX

Hi Guys, My predictions and my opinions. Ya gonna hear them whether you like it or not! LOL Constantine is such an artificial Broadway wanna be. If he wins, I will never watch Idol again. I can see him doing "Starlight Express" on rollerskates or some corny off broadway show, but come on! The only reason he would win is that a lot of googly teenage girls with pimples and glasses with text messaging keep voting for him. Unfortunately this is the target market for him and he is marketing himself well, so he will make the top three for sure. Bo is hot!! He really doesnt need the show at all at this stage. One of the reasons why he stated tonight that he didnt care one way or another whether he was voted off was because he would just go back to doing what he enjoyed so well. He knows he doesnt need the show anymore. I like his attitude, but dunno if America wants to hear this or wants the beggars.who give puppy eyes like Constantine.. He will make the top three, unless he really messes up with song selection. Carrie Underwood has got the right stuff. Beautiful, talented and she appeals to cornbelt, working class middle America. She does need to stick to her country genre if she wants to win the competition. Pat Benatar is not for her.. Nadia at best was a mediocre singer. She really had trouble holding a note for more than 3 seconds. I seriously thought she had asthma or some other issue. She certainly had flair and was flamboyance but I dont see her becoming much more than a lounge singer. Scott... I have nothing to say about him that is positive. Has an inflated ego, inconsistent and pitchy and I have no idea how he has survived this long. Anthony Federov reminds me of Barry Manilow. He might have appeal on Nickelodeon but he does have the same appeal as Constantine with young. teenage girls with hormone issues. He looks a little like Aaron Carter. Not idol material and not very marketable except on Disney Channel. Vonzell is great, but she has the same problem as the beautiful African american diva from last season (I cant remember her name, but she looked like Natalie Cole and had a buff body) She has an exceptional voice and she radiates confidence, but she doesnt have the certain something that separates her from the pack. I hope she gets to the top three, but not likely. Anwar: I love Anwar, but up til now, he has been a little meek. Great voice, but needs to work on his presence. Hes just a little too sweet and lacks the competitive edge. So my take on this: Carrie wins, Constantine second, Bo third, Anwar then Vonzell in this order. They shouldnt have gotten rid of Jessica. She was the best singer of the lot but had the appearance of a bulldog. Simon hit it on the head. She did not have the likeability factor going for her. Babs in TX

Hi Zoe, Like the boot. I'm hanging in there. I am getting all my ducks in a row and will fight tooth and nail. I am still optimistic. Hey, at least I can get the TT..... Babs in TX

Hi Everyone, Heres another update about my plastic surgery fight. IT seems that 3 medical directors at SHPS (the precert people for my insurance) got together today and yesterday to discuss my case. They are approving the abdominoplasty, but will not cover the thighplasty. My plastic surgeon called the medical director today for a peer to peer review and tried to convince the director of medical necessity. They are not convinced. THe next step is an external review by a consultant (plastic surgeon). I personally spoke with the medical director today at SHPS. I thought if I spoke to him myself I might make some headway and not need to go through the external appeal process. He explained why they turned me down. Said the photos and medical documentation from my surgeon did not clearly support the need to have a thighplasty. He didnt think that there was enough evidence that this procedure was medically necessary based on wha he received. He indicated that 3 directors collectively agreed on this decision. Actually, he was pretty nice about everything, although I did not agree with his position in the matter. We both agreed that they would not submit to the external consultant yet and we would wait a week so I could produce new photos and additional support documentation from my PCP about the infections and some historical data. I have already given them a letter from my PCP and a letter from my OBGYN. The medical director suggested that I write a letter myself and just have my PCP sign it where I document the dates that I received antibiotics and any other conservative non surgical treatments. I still have two appeals left. One to the external consultant, another peer to peer review between my plastic surgeon and the consultant and the possibility to appeal directly with Motorola in AZ if this doesnt work. SO worse case scenario is that if I dont win, I can still have the stomach fixed. So i guess its progress. I will not give up without a fight, but its clear that I wont have firm resolution on this in the next few weeks. Babs in TX

Hi Alex, The shirt look great on you. Your face looks different too. Much thinner. And you look very happy too!!! Everybody needs the frilly stuff! Babs in TX

Hi Lisa, Cant make it between 5 and 6 your time. But I love ya!!! I know lots of folks think that I dont battel food demons cause I lost a lot of weight, but I do every single day. That has not changed. I have been on a plateau for 6 weeks and I want to scream!!! I have been sneaking a teaspoon of Peanut Butter here and a handful of chips there. I thought I was being wise about using butter spray on my healthy pop popcorn and found out that my 15 second sprays were adding up to over 100 calories! So I kicked the can to the curb.... Donali made a great suggestion. Go out and take a belly dancing class. Finger paint. Take a stripper class. There are lots of things that will get you out of the house and away from the refrigerator. Hugs, Babs in TX 334/180/170 -154 and stuck!!!!

Hi Birdee, Keep your chin up! I have been feeling the way you have for a few months now. I am not being as compliant as I should be and I still have weight to lose. Sometimes the journey takes so long that you want to give up. But you shouldnt because you can do this. Take it day by day and you will get there. Babs in TX

HI Guys, I started with the hounding already. Called this evening to follow up with the discussion I had with the case manager earlier today. Apparently, they did take my case back to the medical director during the day. He spoke with the first medical director that reviewed the case and they agreed to honor the previous approval for the abdminoplasty. SO yeah!!!! It must have been the threats that I would sue them for backing out of the previous approval that got them off their butts... It is not clear what they will do about the thighs yet. I will know more tomorrow. So the good news is that the previous approval prevails for the stomach!!! OK, we are halfway there.... Probably will still have to do peer to peer review (which is considered second appeal) on the thighs though. I'll let you know tomorrow!!!! Babs in TX

Hi Penni, Cut yourself some slack honey!!! I was wondering if you need another fill? Just curiious about how your restriction is... Babs in TX

Hi Christina, Well meaning nutritionist who doesnt know much about lapbanding. The six meal a day concept does work to help your body stay on an even keel and burn calories more efficiently, but for bandsters, I personally dont think it is the way to go. I would say most of us here already obsess about food, preparation and the time it takes to eat it. I would say that there are probably more lapband surgeons that encourage 3 meals a day and a snack . Its up to you because it really boils down to calories in and calories expended. I prefer to have my 1200 calories a day divided into three meals and a snack. And regarding the 4 egg meal, I have great restriction and could still eat that quantity. Four eggs really only equates to a 4-5 oz portion of soft food and for an unrestricted newbie, that is an acceptable amount of food. Although you might try to eat more solid Protein to give you fullness for longer. Eggs dont usuallly fill me up too long. I only eat 1-2 as a serving now that I have restriction. Babs in TX 334/180 -154 new goal: 170 or less....

HI Brenda, You know what you need to do. Look how well you have already done!!! I know that some days just seem like you will never get where you want to go. I am fighting food demons daily and trying to stick to the plan to get where I want to go as well. Got my trusty Water bottle sitting next to me here at my desk..... Babs in TX

Hi Penni, You have my permission to hurt him. But lets wait until after the peer to peer review. If he doesnt approve the thighplasty, I will personally kick his ass. The wrath of Babs! Sounds like a movie. I am trying to keep my chin up. I have credit card and will travel to some other country and have it done, so not all is lost. It could be worse..... Babs the Invincible Bitch who is hell on wheels when someone gets on my band side.....

Hi Everyone, An update on my plastic surgery saga. I was approved by my insurance company for an abdominoplasty which was originally scheduled for May 5th 2005. I decided to change plastic surgeons and went for a new consult a few weeks ago. The new surgeon was willing to do multiple procedures at the same time. Originally I wanted to have a medial thighplasty and TT at the same time, but the first surgeon (who works alone) did not want to do this. Surgeon 2 has no problems with this because he tag teams with a partner and they work together and are able to complete the surgery in half the time this way. I figured it was better to have both surgeries done together so I would only have to be in pain and recover one time. I was also going to pay to have a breast augmentation with implants and then I would never have to go back and have additional surgeries. The new surgeon submitted photos and letters from my PCP, OBGYN and clinical notes on why I need a medial thigh lift. He also resubmitted documentation and photos for the abdominoplasty since although there was already a previous approval, it was now a new surgeon and a new surgery date of June 15th. I am devastated. I was turned down for the original approval for the TT and they also turned down the thighplasty. They turned down everything! I asked how this could happen, since I was assured that my previous approval could not be turned down for the abdominoplasty just because I changed surgeons. Apparently a diifferent medical director looked at the case and decided I no longer needed an abdominoplasty and the thigh were a no no as well. My case manager is in the process of finding out if we can use the previous authorization for the one surgeon and switch it to another for the abdominoplasty. I will have to go through the appeals process now for the thighs. This consists of a peer to peer review between my doctor and the medical director. I am both angry and really sad. I have been crying for the last hour. I have hope that this will resolve itself. I am hoping at the very least that the TT will be approved (since it was already with dr. #1) but I really dont have the money to pay for a thighplasty and the problems with my thighs are worse than any other body area. I was planning on paying for the breast augmentation. I dont understand how they can approve a procedure several weeks ago and turn it down a few weeks later. Does this make any sense? Its humiliating enough to know that some dumb director is looking at pic of my hanging stomach, saggy thighs and deflated boobs and assessing medical necessity. THe case manager read the notes to me from the medical director and he adds insult to misery by saying although my thigh are large, he doesnt see how a thighplasty will help me. My plastic surgeon says that he needs to remove at least 4 pounds from each thigh. How can a medical director think that removing this excess skin which has a lot of breakdown already not be medically necessary? I am depressed....

Hi Penni, Last week, I went to visit a retirement communitiy for my inlaws. I was walking the in the court yard area and saw thousands of swarming insects. There must have been about 100,000 plus in a big cloud. I asked the leasing agent what that was and she toldme it was pollenating bees and that they do that every year. I have never in my life seen so many bees and wondered if they were some kind of hazard or if they would bite people. She said an exterminator came and said that there was nothing that they could do. They would go away in a few weeks. Yuccccchhhh!!!!! Babs in TX

Hi Penni, THis is such a tragedy. Jacob will need therapy and should get to someone as soon as possible to help him with his grief. My husbands best friends had a girlfriend in college that died in a car accident. Doug (the best friend) was devastated since they were to be married also. I know DOug very well and it took it many many years to get over the tragedy. As far as I know, he did not have another real relationship during his 20's for fear of intimacy and loss. Doug finally got married (at age 40) to a lovely woman named Christie. It is my belief that Doug remained single for so long because of his fear of loss. So sad when people die young.... I am really sorry for the loss. Babs in TX

Hi Flower, I reached my original goal about a month ago and now I am working on a new goal. I started out at 334 pounds and now weight 180. I am trying to get below 170 before I have plastic surgery in June to remove some excess skin and fat. There are so many things I can do now that I could not before. I did not get on airplanes for fear of not being able to fit in the seats. I did not go to amusement parks. Couldnt fit on the rides and I got tired from all the walking. I went to Six Flags yesterday here in TX and went on every ride over and over again! Wow! What a rush. My kids and I are enjoying the newfound freedom and I am trying to make up for lost time. I have been obese since I was a teenager, so I am totally in a new element here and everyday brings new surprises. I am thrilled with my band. I feel confident that I will get to the 160's or lower if I work reallly hard on the remaining pounds. THe last 10-20 are the hardest!!! Babs in TX 334/180/170 -154 new goal: 170 or less....

OOps, I meant 7 pounds per month, not week! Babs in TX

HI, Well, my numbers are skewed, but if you look at averages, this is what you would get: First 12 months of banding I lost 120 pounds which would be an average of 2.30 pounds per week. If I look at overall averages as of April 23rd, I will be banded 22 months. I have lost 154 pounds so far, so this means my total monthly average is 7 pounds per month which puts me in the normal 1-2 pounds per week. In the last 10 months, I have lost only 34 pounds which is an average of 3.4 pounds per month. THen I would be below average in my weight loss for a second year goal. But if I lose another 10 pounds and I lose another 10 pounds from my plastic surgery, that would then put me at 54 pounds lost the second year, which would be in the normal range of one pound a week. I think I need to go with the 22 month and average of 7 pound per week or I will drive myself crazy!!! LOL Babs in TX 334/180/170 -154

Hi Penni, Never thought to ask. But I will tell you my secret if you tell me yours.... LOL. Oh, I forgot to tell you I own a brothel in Las Vegas. Just kidding!!! I'm a headhunter, which could be close to the same.... Babs in TX

Hi Julie, You will get conflicting answers on this even from health professionals. A bandster portion will vary depending on whether you are eating mushies or solids. Eating a 3 oz portion of meat, 1/2 cup of veggies and a little carb sounds just about right. But if you were eating chili, you might be able to eat more cause its part liquid, which goes right through the band. As far as eating 3 times a day, some docs feel that they want bandsters to avoid grazing, since that may be a reason why some of us are obese. The guideline is if you eat a meal as a bandster, it should keep you full for 3-4 hours before you are hungry. Its hard to tell if you have the right level of restriction if you are eating 6-7 times a day. And chances are if you are eating that many times, it will be smaller mini meals which may not fill you up. Of course, there are dieticians that might say that eating more frequently is better for your metabolism. Less highs and lows and your body is more efficient etc... I think that most banding docs and their dieticians would probably prefer that their patients stick to the three meal a day and a snack program. It works for me and thats all I know!!! LOL Babs in TX 334/180/170 -154

Hi Lisa, I met Rumbaut last year at the Texas Bandsters Bash. He is wonderful. While I was doing my research for the band and wasnt sure if insurance would pay, I contacted Rumbaut. He not only gave me his cell phone number, but even called me while he and his family were on vacation in Galveston. He answered all my questions personally, even though he knew I was still waiting on insurance approval. And yeah, hes not hard to look at either. ..... If I needed a port, I would go to him. GOsh, that sounded so Wizard of OZ ish.....! Babs in TX 334/180/170

Hi Wyld, I just had another thought. Most obese people are programmed to feel really bad and experience lots of guilt when they know they are eating foods that are less than healthy. I know that Donali here on this board went through extensive therapy to help her with dealing with food demons and look at food in a new way. Perhaps some therapy is in order? Sometimes we lose faster than our brains are willing to accept. This leads to body dysmorphia, self sabotage etc... It couldnt hurt to talk to someone about what you are thinking... Babs in TX

Hi BRight, Hyperinsulinemia is a pre-diabetic disorder where your body becomes insulin resistant. Causes lots of problems, especially for women because it can also be confused with PCOS, which is polycystic ovarian syndrome. Similar symptoms for both. (Hormone imbalance, less menstrual or inconsistent menstrual cycles, hirutism, fertility issues and weight gain) THe only way to put diabetes or insulin resistance in remission is to lose weight, take meds and/or eat less carbs or all of the above.. If you dont have lots of sugar highs and lows, your body does not have to work so hard to process insulin, thus elimating carbs or limiting carbs in tandem with exercise, weight loss. will keep you from developing full blown diabetes. I still think you need a good fill though...... Babs in TX

Hi Wyld, You are asking a question that will have lots of answers but probably not a definitive one. I know why I sabotage. I still like food too much!!!!!! LOL Even though I can eat less and my conscience mind knows that eating chocolate is bad, I still will eat it anyway. I know that tortilla chips are bad for me, but I still eat 8 or 9 chips a day. I cant seem to break the habit and I am still 10-15 pounds from goal. I guess it boils down to priorities. Am I at a weight where I now have my health back? Yes. Can I do all the things I want to do now? Mostly.. (no bikini modeling in my future) Do I feel the same level of drive to lose the rest of the weight? Probably not....So the question becomes, what was so important at the beginning of the journey that kept you motivated and what motivates you now? Make a list of all the reasons you feel compelled to get to whatever set goal you have defined. If you make the list and it turns out that the motivation is not there to lose more, then drop it for a while and start again when the motivation is there. I find that sabateurs are not really sabateurs at all some of the time. Sometimes you just need a break from the regimented eating plan. FOod is meant to be enjoyed, but it is not your friend unless it is meant to fuel your body. But occasionally, you should be able to enjoy it without worrying about consequences or feeling guilty. Babs in TX 334/180/170 -154

Hi Bright, Dont compare yourself to others. It is harder when you start at a higher BMI. I hear of bandsters that are able to eat 1500-2000 calories a day and still lose 1-2 pounds a week. THat is not me. I dont lose if I eat more than about 1200. It also matters what I eat. If I stay away from the carbs and focus on Protein, I lose quicker. I have hyperinsulinemia and when I look at a carb, I gain weight Also,I am aware that in Ireland, you have limited access to low carb substitutes and Snacks with reduced fat or calories. I had the same problem when I lived in the Netherlands. If I wanted specialty products (which are mostly made in the US or England) I had to pay premium dollar for them. Its really easier (in my opinion) to lose weight in the US where so many options are available for us chocolate junkies such as low carb chocolate bars sweetened with Splenda or other sugar substitutes. We even have low carb chips, low carb Pasta, sauces and other goodies that make the evil word "dieting" easier. (you wouldnt be able to tell though by the large numbers of obese in the us though!) It does seem like you could use more fill. But I will preface that by saying that sometimes more fill doesnt help you to lose the pounds unless you also do a mental adjustment. Today, I am sitting here eating 1/2 can of bumblebee tuna with lemon and some mulitgrain crackers. Total Calories: 210 Breakfast was a low carb yogurt smoothie with 13 grams of protein and 100 calories. SO today, I am back to basics. Sure, I could eat the whole can of tuna if I wanted to, and yeah what I really want is tortilla chips with cheese, but lately the tortillas are stalling my weight loss. Get some more fill, stick to a bandster portion and waterload!!!! You can do it. Some of us have easier journeys than others. I have always had to work hard at it and if I slack up, I lose my momentum and I am prone to gain if I deviate from good bandster habits. Babs in TX