aubrie

nuts, peanut butter, yogurt, cheese stick, cottage cheese, high protein milk,

A layered dip with refried beans, salsa, sour cream, guacamole and cheese.

* I can get in and out of a kayak and enjoy that with my husband again *I enjoy dancing again. * I can cross my legs like a lady. * I can buy a bra at Victoria's Secret. :thumbup: * Went from a size 7 to a size 6 shoe. * Can run up and down the stairs with ease. Arthritis pain is reduced to almost nothing. * No longer need the following medications: celebrex, bladder control, Wellbutrin, blood pressure meds. YIPPEE! * No longer snore at night and no back aches in the morning. *Enjoying sex with hubby again! * Prettier more youthful clothes. * My family is REALLY proud of me. * Inspired several obese people at work to have bariatric surgery, and improve their lives too.

I'm two years out now. The first year and a half I went faithfully to water aerobics 3 or 4 times a week. The last 6 months I've gone less and less. Just not into it anymore. I HATE to admit that, and wish I could "kick my own butt", but that's the truth of it. While I haven't gained anything... I'm flabby and can feel the sluggishness creeping in. I'm pretty disgusted with myself. I just need to find another exercise I enjoy. I burned out on water aerobics, but with my arthritis, it's hard to do.

My pre-op diet was a low fat diet for two weeks with two days of liquids prior to surgery. Not as hard core as some of you all have experienced, so it was easy to stick to.

I'm hearing a tad bit of jealousy on her part. When it comes to your health, the ONLY persons you should be listenting to is you and your doctor. period. No ifs, ands or buts. This includes your spouse. It's your body. Your health. That is one thing in this life you CAN control. Everyone thinks they're an expert on weight loss. The interesting thing is that health and weight issues are as individual for each person as a finger print. We do not all neatly fit into the same categories. To do so, or think so, is ignorant. What works for you will not work for the next guy for a miriad of reasons. Stick to your guns. Follow your heart. Do your research. Listen to your DOCTOR. Your friend's concern, is simply that. concern. You would be shocked to hear the multitude of misconceptions that people have about nutrition, weight loss, health, bariatrics, etc. Add that to the individual complexities of each persons situation, and you have a whole lot of inaccurate "advice". thank her. Bless her. and move on!!

the hispanic section of the grocery here also has seafood and shrimp bouillon!!! AWESOME.

I just threw mine out. I noticed when I opened a can of vanilla the other day that it was "chunky" almost like it was curdled. YUCK!! This bums me out as I put vanilla slim fast in my coffee in the morning. It was a source of a little extra protein, vitamins, etc. You get it in however possible right? Now I'm back to putting borden high protein milk in my coffee. I emailed the company regarding this a couple days ago, and they never responded. Real responsible aren't they???? I'm no longer a fan.....

Well friends, yesterday was my 2 year bandaversary.:bored: It's still hard to beleive. while I haven't reached goal. I have lost about 70% of my weight. I had a couple set backs, and had to start over again at one point, but I never gave up. It's been the VERY BEST thing I've ever done just for me. I'm off almost all the medications I was taking. I'm active again. Have my self esteem back. My marriage is good. I have energy. I enjoy shoppiing again. It's all been good. My best advice? Don't ever give up. I'm delighted to have made it this far.

the one thing the lapband journey has done for me is to finally make me AWARE of my body. Before banding I just kind of floated through life and didn't pay attention to anything. I didn't pay attention to subtle signals my body gave me, my portions, my choices, my stress triggers, my health issues...... Just becoming "aware" made such a huge difference.

Sometimes I feel full after just 3 bites, but it's more a function of eating to fast, and I'm actually a little stuck. If I pause between bites I do better, but that's hard to do when you've gone 7 or 8 hours between meals. So you need to determine if you are "stuck" or full. I have a few signals that happen to me. If I am full, I find I get the hiccups. If I continue to eat, I'm uncomfortable and even ease into a state of mild misery, so I've learned to listen to the hiccups. My other signal is a faint feeling of discomfort under my left rib cage. That also means I'm full. Not really pain per se, but an odd pressure on my ribs. My third signal is I began to make the most horrendous and LOUD gurgling noises. Doesn't even sound human. (I know my secretary thinks I'm strange) But that also means, PUT THE FORK DOWN!!!

Yes!!! It's normal. Immediately after surgery you're going to have some swelling and inflammation. Once that goes away, since you have no fill in your band, you WILL get hungry. Then you start the fill process. It's all good. Just be patient.

Some men feel very threatened by a sudden loss of weight. they see you physically changing and have a fear that you will change in other ways as well. They are not sure they are ready for that. they are afraid you will be appealing to other men and will leave them in the dust with your new life. It's intimidating, and causes them to be anxious. If they don't mention it, then it's not really happening. then of course you have the other kind that just chase you around the bedroom!! LOL

I'm finally wearing more youthful clothes. I'm sorry but the crap at Lane Bryant and those other fat people stores are so matronly. I was so relieved to start wearing something different. I'm getting daring with my under garments at Victoria's Secret...... black lace and all!!! I'm finally able to wear my hair shorter and more trendy. I'm trying new things as well.... Like kayaking and hiking. It's so much easier to enjoy the outdoors when you don't hurt all over from exersion. I'm also wearing heels again. Haven't worn them since my 20s. I've noticed that the new friends I make are younger. Went to a stage production of Arabian Nights last week with a new 29 year old friend. She claims she doesn't even notice my age!! I'm old enough to be her mother.

I have to say.... That is THE BEST damned come back I have EVER heard!! :biggrin: Touche!! I like your style!!! :biggrin:

filling for buttermilk pie, mashed butternut squash, pumpkin pie filling, mashed potatoes with gravey, jello, applesauce, whipped sweet potatoes, souffle, flan, creamed spinach, quacamole, salmon mousse, curried deviled egg filling, brocolli cheese soup. Be creative and don't worry about tradition this year...

Cheese is a source of calcium, protein and is easily digested. (Unless of course you are lactose intolerant) it will stay with you for a while and fight hunger. Yogurt is also an excellent source of calcium and protien. My surgeon recommends two full servings of dairy daily. I usually have yogurt or cottage cheese for breakfast. Greek yogurt has even more protein than regular, and is naturally fat free. I eat Brown Cow brand. The live cultures in yogurt will also help with digestion, elimination, and intestinal balance. If you are having trouble with constipation, it does help a little. I have also switched to Borden brand high protein 2% milk. I have one cup every day. A woman desperately needs calcium, so don't even consider giving up your dairy.

I never did drink coke, but loved ginger ale and beer. THAT was an adjustment, but after about 3 months I didn't even miss it. I can't use artificial sweetners, so I don't do crystal light. It gives me extreme headaches. I consider it poison, so I just stick to water, and juice occasionally.

My doctor also says no carbonation. I didn't AT ALL for the first year, but last New Years took three sips of some champagne. NEVER AGAIN. I thought I was going to die. So he was right. It was very painful. As far as the bread and Pasta, he told me I could eat it occasionally, but not on a regular basis, and if I did eat it, it had to be 100% whole wheat or whole grain. I don't have any problem if the bread is grainy, but if it's white it DOES get stuck. It turns into a nasty glue ball. Remember rolling the middle of white bread into balls when you were a kid? It does just that in your stomach, and it will not pass your stoma.....the grainy bread has texture at least breaks up and passes through. I've also been told NOT to eat white rice, EVER, only brown, and never to eat white potatoes only sweet. Not only is the nutrition greater, the texture is better, and it also has something to do with the glycemic index of the food. Your body doesn't turn it to pure sugar, and it takes longer for the body to process it. this keeps your blood sugar stable. It's very interesting. Read up on it.

Brown Cow makes a Greek yogurt. It comes in a four pack of little cups. Each cup is 0% fat and 100 calories. I think it's 12 grams of protein. They have strawberry and blueberry. I found it at my regular grocer, but they DEFINITELY carry it at the health food store.

I couldn't eat it for the first year. Now I can, but have to eat it really slowly. I eat one popped kernal at a time, and let it dissolve on my tongue before chewing and swallowing. Be careful with the skins. If I get a hard, crusty piece, I spit it out. They are sharp enough to cut your gums and get stuck below the gum line, so they must be sharp enough to cut my narrow stoma while passing through the band.

Mizmo, I have to say, I went to the pre-op appointments that were required and didn't mind. Although I wasn't required to go after surgery, it was HIGHLY encouraged that I attend support groups afterward. I will have my 2 year bandaversary tomorrow, and I went to the support groups for the first year. I didn't think it would be necessary, but I realized that there are a lot of issues that come up with this. I was glad I went!!! I recommend it. About 8 months out, I had a lot of issues where I could have used a private psychologist, and I didn't go. In retrospect, I should have gone. I had issues with my face rapidly aging with the loss. I also had some very severe issues with my husbands new response to me. He was actually interested in me again, and I was quite surprised by my bitter resentment. I'm passed that now, but really could have used some help initially. Don't rule it out. You'll be going through a LOT of rapid changes, and sometimes your mind just doesn't keep up with it. It happens so fast. Relationships change. Your social life changes. Your image in the mirror changes. Your self esteem changes. Your interest in things and activities change. Sex changes. It's staggering at times. Just be hyper aware of your mental health, and do what is necessary. Don't second guess or put it off. It will make it easier.

Delighted you came through A-Okay. That is good news. Keep the positive attitude!!

Dumping also includes uncontrollable diahrreah. thus one VERY good reason I chose not to have a bypass.....

You have to work with your band. Like the folks above, soft white bread is a big no no for me. rolls up in a glue ball and sticks solid. Horrible. But if I eat a textured whole grain bread, I do fine. Just small bites. Steak is no problem as long as it's not overcooked. Well done? I'll pass. We went to Maine twice since I've been banded and I did just fine with lobster and all manner of seafood. Again, if shrimp is overcooked, it gets rubbery. If scrambled eggs are just tossed around a pan, I have a little trouble, so I started soft scrambling them. I beat them with milk and then cook them. they are a soft velvety texture instead of sticky. More like a custard. Then I have no problem. If I get stuck eating a dry meat, I always keep fat free gravey, ketchup, and salsa on hand.