vinesqueen

Hi Paula, I don't have any advice either, but wanted to give you a ((((hugs))))) Crystal

Oh what I would give to have been in that line behind you!

Hu-ray! Thanks for posting this! The NSVs are so very important to show depth and texture for your journey!

Hmmm, I think the only tip I can offer for succes is this: Don't have a brain tumor! :faint: (Stupid Petunia is causing real problems right now)

bumping as requested

there is a longish thread about this in the Lounge. I'll see if I can find it and bump it. You can find that thread at http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=13153

Drinking ads empty calories, and there are some studies that show that it retards your weight loss. Some folks handle their alchol just fine after banding, other people find that they have a greatly diminished capacity for the stuff. Where it might have taken 3 or 4 drinks to get you buzzed before surgery, you might find that ONE is plenty. This might because you have lost weight, the booze sits in your pouch, or you just aren't used to drinking. I don't know of any formal stuidies, but becareful drinking after banding. You definatley do NOT want to be puking for any reason!

Of course you don't have to choose just 10! give us the list baby!

welcome to the Banded Gentry!

Also, if your throid pannel comes back "normal" don't give up. It might be your cortisol levels that are out of whack.

Originally Posted by vinesqueen Hi there! I'm not the spokes model for the Turtle Tribe for nothing... Turtle Tribe? Well, I'm spokesperson for the Honu branch of it (look up meaning of honu if you don't know it) Here at LBT, the Turtle Tribe only refers to the Slow Losers, those who lose much less than the 1-2 pounds we are told to expect. I know there are Native American traditions where the Turtle has a specific spitual meaning, but here it's just the slow losers. You might even find that you will need to increase your calories to lose weight. Yes, I know that doesn't make a lick of sense, but that's why I recommend seeing a specialist, and not just internet souces. Well, the "going into starvation mode" stuff, if that's what you mean, is nonsense. You have to be in a serious calorie deficit for several weeks, at least, for your body to hit "starvation mode". It is still calories in vs. calories out. That's physics. Exercise helps in many ways. I used to have a yahoogroup called bandsterworkout, but since no one ever wanted to post, and I was tired of doing most of the posts, I killed it. Yes, I'm a gym rat, and am taking three classes this fall in "PE" (now called Kinesiology Activity). Actually, here I was talking about some people need to increase their calories if they are working out. I know that when I was working a different program that the nutriionist didn't want anyone to go below a certian amount of calories. I know that I had better restults when I was eating more than 1200 calories than if I was eating less. Unfortuantly the "calories in vs caloires out" does not work for everyone. There are certian metabolic and hormonal conditions where it doesn't matter what you eat. I personally am breaking the laws of thermodyamics daily. So, if on the other hand, nothing is working, and the band really isn't working for you, then it is time to start demanding answers from your doctors. Do not let any one push you away and tell you that you need to eat less, especially if you are already eating less! Demand answers from your doctors, DEMAND them I say! The only thing you can "demand" from your doc is a proper fill. And most US docs won't give you one right away...they'll "sneak up on it", as opposed to the MX docs doing it right the first time. My clinic likes to give a good big fill right off, and then they back it down. If fills are not working, then you most certianly can and should demand answers. If you are not losing at any rate, if you are not losing at any calorie intake, then you most certianly should demand answers. I don't think you need "tough love." I'm not a big fan of that approche myself. I don't buy into the "I hurt you because I love you." To me, that is abuse. Anyway.... Tough love isn't abuse or hurting. It is telling the truth without candy coating or whining or other nonsense. If someone is eating a pint of ice cream every day and wonders why they're not losing, welll....duuuuhhhh. And I'll remind them of that, and be polite about it. I'll never use harsh language or rude words or anything like that....but I will point out where people are rationalizing behavior that is counterproductive. You do know that "rationalize" means "rational lies"? And, yes, I've done that myself. Well, a lot of folks like to be harsh and cruel, under the guise of "tough love." I was raised by wolves, so I have a different take on things. cheers dan Be kind to yourself.

BigPaul always makes me feel really good about myself. He's funny and silly but really smart right when you need him to be. DeLarla TellyMelly keeps me motivated on days I think I want to slack and theres always a smile on my face when I'm talking to her, she just keeps me laughing. She brightens my day! Cutiern reminds me of my daughter. I love how she is young, independent, and willing to make financial sacrifices to change her life. Dawg is a great husband. Selfless and supportive. He lives a banded lifestyle, without the band, so that he may succeed along side his wife. Pennie always seems so level-headed and diplomatic. I really admire that. Jack cracks me up with the use of his warped sense of humour in the manner in which he offers practical advice. Humour and practicalilty...great match and I always appreciate his input. (I also like his avatar!!) The best me (Kathy) has one of the most loving and tender hearts I've ever seen. She is always caring and giving to others even when she's needing support for herself. Her love of God and her desire to be a better servant shows in every post. Paula is my sweet Band-daughter and I'm so proud of how genuinely sweet she is and how her caring heart and love of God shows by her actions towards all others Iluvharleys has a good heart and is always so thoughtful, kind and caring always thinking of others in their time of need. NJChick (Eileen) Cracks me up!!!! She brings a smile to my face no matter what the topic. Bandland would be a boring place without her : - ) VinesQueen reminds me never to give up no matter how bad things seem at the time and encourages me that I should dance my heart out no matter whos watching~and I wish she would hurry up and get back on LBT!!! Michelle, without a doubt the most inspirational person to me. Even while having her own family problems, she finds time to come here and offer her help. She's a great person! Susan (PhotoNut) is one of the most supportive and knowledgeable people I've ever known. EmileeKaye is the sweetest, most genuinely nice and wholehearted bandster and online personality I have ever met.. and I have met quite a few. The sun shines on her goodness and it feels really nice to surround myself with people like this. K@t has been my friend and support since the moment I joined this group. She listens and gives without asking in return and makes me feel anything is possible. DeLarla is my vision of independence, strength, wisdom and trust and has always been a person that speaks her mind and has gained a tremendous amount of respect from me as an intelligent and witty person. StrawartS is smart and funny, and she has the strong personality I admire, yet she's kind. Plus, her screen name is a Palindrome. It's spelled the same backward and forward. Very Cool. Kathy (best me) Jenna (princess n thep) is always honest and straight foward. And she is a great booty dancer. Kathy was kind and gentle with me when I was cursing over my first PB. I was shocked by her generous spirit at first, but now I see that that's how she treats everyone. And her baby is pretty cute. And I don't even like babies. The NJ Board: I can't chose just one person because so many have come to my rescue. They give their heart and soul and they do it with compasion and love. *Cheers NJ Board, I Love You ALL* Since I have known Mychevygirl (DeAnn), she has shown incredible inner strength, focus and determination in the midst of extremely trying times. She has kept a positive, happy attitude in spite of the stresses she has endured, and she has a smile that shines through her words because it comes from her heart. FunnyDuddies is a beautiful, intelligent, loving woman who's quit witt and sense of humor is a blessing to those around her. She makes me smile, and I feel so bless to call her my sis. She has also earned my respect and admiration for showing a deep inner strength during times of adversity. MoOrless is another one of my personal inspirers. She has lost weight all on her own. Reading her posts have been a great eye opener, showing me that weight loss is nothing more than willpower and self-control, which she displays very well. She cheers me on as I do my wild goose chases with myself and she keeps me motivated, letting me know daily that every goal I set for myself, no matter how outlandish it may seem, is very possible and attainable. I thank her for believing in me, (a complete stranger). Alex is the best thing ever...he has given us this board as a place to learn, laugh, commiserate, cry,...pretty much whatever we are in need of!! And...he just keeps making it better!!! Thanks, Alex!!!!!!! I have to have a second go at this! MoOrless keeps me going in ways I never thought I'd need. She is working and trying so hard to lose the weight on her own as well as coping with health problems. She finds positive ways around her setbacks that put me to shame and motivate me all at the same time. Kind words and thoughts for others come easily to her and she makes me smile. Alexandra seems to always be there when a thread gets hairy. She has the ability to listen with an open mind and heart, to sympathize and give a reality check in just a few short lines. I have noticed that she remains detached, but flexible. Harleynana (Pat) is one of the smartest, kindest people I have ever met. She talks like a sweet southern belle, but she's also a tough cookie who is generous and supportive without fail. And to all the NJ Chat gals who welcomed me into their midst even though I live in Michigan - your support and friendship has meant the world to me. I love this board. It makes me laugh. It makes me think. It makes me mad. It inspires me. It give me good ideas. It gives me advice. Most of all, it makes me feel I am not alone in this struggle, that I am part of a community with one goal... to reclaim our health and our lives... to live better, and be better. We may not always see eye to eye, but we are all better for knowing each other. mini_me is :first: in my book! Nana~ (aka "plunderbunny") inspires me with her carefree attitude. Because of her, I wore my Pirate gear when we went to see the new Pirates movie. Your style and panache inspire me to be me.

Very pretty! And there is no rule saying that you have to use all the furniture in your room all at once. But putting your bed on an angle might work well. No, I think you can go dark. But white walls makes your wood look flat. I have my mother's antique walnut sideboard and table, and they look amazing against my dark green walls. When these pieces were at my mother's place against her white walls, the pieces looked dark and almost featureless. Here's a couple of pix of my kitchen. The first one has my spinning wheel and a corner of the buffet/sideboard, the other is a pix of the prep area. Btw, I have a HUGE kitchen, my table seats 16 with all the leaves pulled out. With both leaves pulled out, it is 9'5" long. Most of my other furniture is still flat-pack or cast offs from other folks.

Congrats Mandy! Now, post your top ten NSVs!

there is absolutely no reason that your period will interfere with your surgery. Medical professionals are used to dealing with this all the time.

And maybe you have rocked your band hard. I know I got a lot of crap on a different "support" when I was talking about how I couldn't lose weight. People called me a lier, saying that I wasn't being honest with myself or anyone else. that I needed psychologocial help to get me over my lies around food bla bla bla... Jodie, familes can be really toxic. I mean, really toxic sometimes. I was raised by wolves, and right now I'm not dealing with my mother simply because I have enough crap in my life with my Cushing's that I don't need her garbage on top. ("this is my middle daughter Crystal, she flunked Calculus" or ".. she just dropped out of college" is not how I want to be introduced to her firends. ) Since you have worked you band, it is time to find a doctor that will look at the underling causes. It is important to find out why you are not loseing weight. You know that you are working your band (DRINK MORE WATER) and you should be losing weight. I'm not suggeting you have Cushing's, but if you haven't been losing weight, then there is something else going on. I know you have bad knees, so you might want to try pilaties and/or Water aerobics. And it may just be that you will just have to wait until you get to school before you can do anything but bide your time.

Anytime Hedwig! I have to call my doc today because I spent a good portion of my afternoon Thursday with the dry heaves. No boozin' for me, just hit a Low.

Hi Judi, I cannot think that a PB would cause head pain. Anytiem soeone experiences a severe headache that is completely unlike any they have had before, they need to call their doctor or be seen by a qualified medical person ASAP. If you cannot get in to see your doctor, please either call your insuance company's nurse hotline (if you have one) or go to the ER, or call your doc and have him or her paged. This is not something to mess around with.

I think it all depends on the hour your band surgery was done, and if you have any serious co-morbidities, or complications from the surgery. I stayed overnight because I had severe asthma, and they just wanted to make sure that I wasn't going to have any trouble from the general. My DH was in hospital for several days post-op because he had complications. He had alot of swelling, but he was also 600 pounds when he was banded. It took a couple of days for the swelling to go down enough to the point where he could swallow anything.

oh no! Greg, please tell Ryan that we all know and miss him. That we all are rooting for him. (we miss you too, but that's a different story) Please let him and Patty both that we really do care.

Sorry I missed this Paula, I don't come to LBT as often, and I lost this thread when I came back. This is from Ask.com about cortisol. I've left all their hot links active for anyone who wants more information http://stress.about.com/od/stresshealth/a/cortisol.htm Cortisol and Your Body Cortisol is an important hormone in the body, secreted by the adrenal glands and involved in the following functions and more: Proper glucose metabolism Regulation of blood pressure Insulin release for blood sugar maintanence Immune function Inflammatory response Normally, it’s present in the body at higher levels in the morning, and at its lowest at night. Although stress isn’t the only reason that cortisol is secreted into the bloodstream, it has been termed “the stress hormone” because it’s also secreted in higher levels during the body’s ‘fight or flight’ response to stress, and is responsible for several stress-related changes in the body. Small increases of cortisol have some positive effects: A quick burst of energy for survival reasons Heightened memory functions A burst of increased immunity Lower sensitivity to pain Helps maintain homeostasis in the body While cortisol is an important and helpful part of the body’s response to stress, it’s important that the body’s relaxation response to be activated so the body’s functions can return to normal. Unfortunately, in our current high-stress culture, the body’s stress response is activated so often that functioning often doesn’t have a chance to return to normal, producing chronic stress. Higher and more prolonged levels of cortisol in the bloodstream (like those associated with chronic stress) have been shown to have negative effects, such as: Impaired cognitive performance Suppressed thyroid function Blood sugar imbalances such as hyperglycemia Decreased bone density Decrease in muscle tissue Higher blood pressure Lowered immunity and inflammatory responses in the body, as well as other health consequences Increased abdominal fat, which is associated with a greater amount of health problems than fat deposited in other areas of the body. Some of the health problems associated with increased stomach fat are heart attacks, strokes, the development of , higher levels of “bad” cholesterol (LDL) and lower levels of “good” cholesterol (HDL), which can lead to other health problems! To keep cortisol levels healthy and under control, the body’s relaxation response should be activated after the fight or flight response occurs. You can learn to relax your body with various stress management techniques, and you can make lifestyle changes in order to keep your body from reacting to stress in the first place. The following have been found by many to be very helpful in relaxing the body and mind, aiding the body in maintaining healthy cortisol levels: Guided Imagery Journaling Self-Hypnosis Exercise Yoga Listening to Music Breathing Exercises Meditation Sex Other Techniques Cortisol secretion varies among individuals. People are biologically ‘wired’ to react differently to stress. One person may secrete higher levels of cortisol than another in the same situation. Studies have also shown that people who secrete higher levels of cortisol in response to stress also tend to eat more food, and food that is higher in carbohydrates than people who secrete less cortisol. If you’re more sensitive to stress, it’s especially important for you to learn stress management techniques and maintain a low-stress lifestyle.

Hi Jude, you just had the one pit surgery? Have your adreanals been assessed? I have been researching Cushing's like a woman obsessed since I was diagnosed. Have you done any further testing, any midnight salivaries, 24hour UFC to confirm your suspicions? Just because one Endo says you are cured does NOT mean you have to accept his assessment of you. You are the expert in your body, not the Endo. I went to see a well respected endo who diagnosed me as not having Cushing's "because it's just too rare." The man hadn't even seen me when he'd made his diagnosis. :bananapartyhat: I finally had my Band Surgeon write me a referal to see Dr. Ludlam at OHSU in Portland OR, because I coudn't get any help locally. The last UFC result I had from a week ago was 299 cortisol, with the base top number of 80. Tomorrow I'm going to call and get the results from the rest of that weekend. I had more than three times the normal amount of cortiosl. I am aware of several cases where the inital pit tumor removal does not cure Cushing's 100%, and that there are cases of reocurrences, some times because not all the pit tumor was removed, sometimes because they have secondary adrenal caused Cushings. 70 pounds in 7 months is an amazing gain. I'm just so sorry that once again you were dismissed as a hysterical fat woman who's just looking for an excuse. But please don't dismiss the possibility that your Cushing's has returned. Dr. C might be right, that you might need an extra fill. But given your history, you might not see any result from additional fills. I spent the better part of a year trying to get my fills just right. And for me, NOTHING HAS WORKED. I spent a full month at below 700 calories and I managed to lose 1.5 pounds that month. Which I gained right back when I went back to 1000 calories a day. In fact, I gained 10 pounds in one week at 1000. Not Water weight. I've recently had a good amount of fill removed because when I cycle High, it really affects my restriction level. It does me no good to be super tight because I'm not going to lose weight, and it isn't good for my band for me to be constanly PB-ing. It also isn't good for me psychologically to be in pain from being too tight. http://cushings.invisionzone.com/index.php? is the message board for Cushies. http://cushings-help.com is the main site with a whole lot of useful information. Jude, please trust me when I say I completely understand how you feel about this whole thing. I know the frustration of this being yet another failed diet scheme, another fad that just doesn't work, and will never work. For the time being, I I have had to let go of any thoughts of weight loss with the band, for the time being. I know your fear, because it is the same fear that burns in my breast. The same fear that haunts the corridors of my mind and my heart. The thing that keeps me going is knowing that I'll soon be scheduled for surgery. Surgery that will give me back my life. Please, please, please do not hesitate to PM me. I want you to know that I'm here for you. I want you to know that someone truely does understand what you are going through.

Very interesting. I don't have an ant problem, but I hate them. Just as long as they do their job outside, they can stay outside. As for killing the weeds between the bricks, boiling Water does a great job too.

Well, I voted NO, because I no longer count calories. Last year when I was trying to lose weight, I became completely obsessed with counting calories. And I do mean obsessed with the calorie content of absolutely everything I ate. It of course did no good. I will still take a couple of days a month and just "spot check" to see where my calories are. They typically run 1100 - 1400, on my Low days I eat less, on my High days I eat more.

The way it was explained to me is that your hair grows in cycles. Not all folicles are "on" all the time. They grow hair, then shut down, another batch of folicles turn on, and they grow hair, and round and round the cycle goes. If this cycle is disrupted, such as surgery or other body trauma like giving birth, many people notice an increase in hair loss. Any yes, this does seem to be temporary, unless you have male-pattern baldness in your family. My hair loss is from my Cushing's. When I'm in a High, and producing too much cortisol and probably too much testosterone, I lose hair by the handfuls.