vinesqueen

WOW WOW WOW!!!!! Me next! ME next! Oh wait, I have to actually lose weight first. Amazing!!!

search the food thread for mushie recipies. There are some great ethnic recipes on board as well, you might try searching on that.

oh. oh. oh. All I can think are words that will probably get me kicked from the forum. They all begin with F and end in K. Okay, its' just one word that starts with an F and ends with a K

Yeah, I hope so too!

But what else can you blame if you are doing everything, and I mean everything, to lose weight and you still aren't losing? I spent a full month at about 700 calories and only lost 1.5 pounds for the entire month. I was very active as well. I've had my thyroid levels checked several times, but my regular doc said because they were in the "low" normal range that she wasn't going to do anything about it. One of my nieces was on thyroid meds and 50 pounds just practially fell off of her. My grandmother also has thyroid problems and has been on meds for years. So, if the Thyroid meds don't help, they are going to look at other body chemistry things like my cortisol levels as well. I really really appreicate all the input and experiences with thyroid meds.

I cannot edit my original post, so I'll use this for my continuing list until I can't edit that one any more... I guess there is a limit to how many time you can edit a post! :eek: 12/09/05 Well, tonight I make my semi-professional debute again! We had our dance department dance review Wednesday night, and pix will be forthcoming. We were great, several people told us that we were the best group on stage, so that was awesome! :eek: I went out on stage, in front of an audience of maybe 300 or 400 people, and I OWNED the stage. I wasn't the slightest bit nervous, and I'm quite amazed at that, believe you me! I made eye contact with many of the audience, and I had the biggest smile on my face the whole time. Not only did I look like I was having a great time, I WAS having a great time! The next NSV is my costume... my top was a crop tant top that I've added bead work too to make it sparkle. But the important part of that sentence is CROP TOP! Yes, that's right, I was wearing a belly shirt on stage, exposing my ample belly to the public, with my surgery scars clearly visible! And I did it on purpose! Okay, this next one isn't an NSV, not really, and it properly goes on the "Skniny Bitches" thread, but here it is We had just come off stage after doing our two numbers and we were all still amped up on adrenalline. We were talking about how we had done, bla bla bla. A group of ballet dancers were there, I mean, right there and one of the skinny blond said to another skinny blond the snottiest comment I've heard in a long time. Okay, all the ballet dancers were skinny blonds, but that's besides the point. She said, in a loud voice "well, at least we weren't shaking our Bon-Bons." In the snottiest possible voice mind you. So, I simply said, with sugar in my voice, "well that's because you can't shake your Bon-Bon." And then I smiled so sweetly at her. (then she said that I was probably right, and the group of them walked away) So, I suppose that makes me a fat bitch, but I just decided that I wasn't in the mood to take crap from anyone. So, the next part of the Bellydancing NSV is that I'll be dancing againg tonight at a local restaurant, and yes, I'll be dancing for tips, so Big Paul, you'd better leave now so you get here in time, and yes, you'll probably need to take out a second mortgage So, finally, I'm doing this when I weigh 240 pound and not waiting until I get closer to goal. I'm doing this at size 22/24 and not when I get to my goal of 12/14 12/22/05 I'm less invisible. Last year at this same time I felt so invisible when walking through the halls at school. Now guys hold the door open for me, and men and women smile more at me. Perhaps they just needed a couple of years to get used to me, or perhaps I am more self asured and confident. Confidence attracts confidence. This time last year I could not breathe. I was in and out of the hospital and making near daily trips to the ER, having several nebulizer treatments every single day. Since I've been home just about a week, I've used my inhaler much more often than usual of late. I've used it 3 times in a week. This is a weird NSV, but I finally have doctors seriously trying to figure out why I'm not having the sort of weight loss I should. I guess I had to go on the Supermodel Diet for a month before they would take me seriously. 1/4/6 Today I went skiing for the first time in 5 or 6 years! Woot! It was a lot of fun, and I fit into my ski pants from 5 or 6 years ago. I'm so happy! Okay, this was a MAJOR NSV for the DH too because he went skiing too! Spudboy and I had to talk him into it, but he did it! I'm so proud of him! I didn't use my puffer once while skiing, but was wicked cold because my gloves weren't good ski gloves. Oh, and I didn't have a Water proof jacket either... So, 3 for the price of one. 1/13/06 I just got back from several days in DC, for a scholarship symposium and job fair. I have a conditional job offer for when I graduate, if I can obtain a security clearance! Woot! That's an NSV, since it would be a major job! I have a whole string of NSVs, the very most important one is that I went to DC WITHOUT AN INHALER. What's more, I didn't even need it. This is super significant because this time last year, and for several years prior, I couldn't go anywhere without at least 2 inhalers on my person. I had an inhaler in every single piece of clothing that had a pocket. Last year this time I had spent 10 days of the Christmas vacation in hospital, don't know how many trips to the various ERs. I didn't even realize that I didn't have an inhaler until the puddle jumper from Salt Lake to Pokey, AFTER my trip was almost done. I was constantly being mistaken for a much younger woman, and when I would talk about my son, people assumed I was talking about a baby or a very small boy. Oh if they only knew! 1/18/06 In class yesterday I realized that my belly wasn't even touching the desk in two of my classes!

Well, I don't know if I have answers yet, or simply new questions. I'm happy either way. Next week I start thyroid medications as soon as we get my thyroid levels back so we know what sort of dose to put me on. I didn't see my regular doc, since she wasn't in the office, but the new one didn't even bat an eye. Even if my thyroid levels come back at the high end of normal, he's still going to put me on the meds. He said he didn't mind putting me into a state of hyperthyoidism for a short period, as long as it wasn't years long. Wow! So, if I don't start dropping weight while taking the thyroid meds, they are going to try other things, like cortisol stuff. (I haven't researched this yet) So, my question to my fellow Turtles is this: have you had your thyroid levels checked, or have you tried something besides diet and excersize? (Diet meaning food intake in general, not a specific diet mentality) I know that Kathy has resorted to the occasional diet pill, but what are some other stratagies Turtles are trying? I know that I was making myself insane trying to figure out why I wasn't having success with cutting my calories and bumping up the activities. I just want to see if we can come up with a plan for Turtles.

I just have to brag and make everyone mad at me. I have the BEST mother-in-law EVER!!!!! I suppose it sort of makes up for being raised by wolves.

oh man! I cannot imagine such behaviour! Yeah, at that point I think I would have told the 13 year old that if he doesn't like the MP3 player you got for him, that you are terribly sorry you didn't give him the ipod and that you will have to take away the offending MP3 player. We wouldn't want him to use a substitue, one that is possibly better than the ipod, for goodness sake. Of course, you will have to make it clear that he's not going to get an ipod, but this way he won't have to deal with the pain of using a non-ipod MP3 player. As for the older one, well not sure how to deal with that.

Even though I haven't been a smashing success with my weight loss, I believe I will bite anyone who trys to remove my band. And we are not talking nibbles, we are talking fercious snarling and great big slavering fangs. And I'll give them rabies too, just for good measure. US docs don't just not want to treat MX patients, they are reluctant to treat patients that went to other US docs. And for a socity that is as moble and transient as ours... trouble for all of us. I do know that with my experience of being banded in Seattle and trying to get fills in SE ID has been a trial. The clinic that I use has recently started trying to create a network with other LapBand docs so that when we travel or move to other parts of the country, we, and by extention, others, will have better aftercare.

Oh! OH! I know, I KNOW!!!!! Get a beer helmet! You know,one of those beer hats where it holds the cans or bottles of been on your head and gravity feeds the beer down. Sort of like a hard-hat looking thing.

Okay, you've asked lots and lots of questions that can easily be answered if you do a simple search 1. I didn't do a pre-op diet. I was too sick. 2. I had my gallbladder out lap, and the pain from that was more than the band. I think. I remember it hurting more than being banded, but I had to have it out because it was full of stones and blocked and I was sick from it. I went shopping the morning after I was banded. 3. Sex... WOOT! okay, don't do anything before you feel like it. And if your hubbie is disturbing your band while making whoopie, well, maybe he's got a promicing career in Porn? 4. Yup you gain weight when you transition from liquids to solids. Weight gain doesn't mean fat gain. Here, your colon has matter in it again. 5. I don't know how long the longest time folks went without a fill. Im a turtle, so I'm not the best person to ask this. Kare Bear and Capt'n Jack spring to mind. 6. I have yet to lose 40 pounds so I cannot answer this.

It is no fun at all being too tight! I'm sorry you are still having issues, but try to sip smaller quantities, take true sips as opposed to big swallows. I'm sure you already know that Put all thoughts of a fill far from you mind. It is possible that if you are still this tight that you might not need a fill for quite a while. We have several bandsters who didn't get a fill until months after they were banded because they didn't NEED a fill. Cheers and welcome to the Banded Gentry!

Hi Belinda, welcome back! Congrats on your 100 pound loss, that is terrific. From what I've learned, it is to be expected that once you lose any sort of significant weight, your band becomes looser becaues there is less internal pressure on the band. As for the acid reflux, you might need to back down a .1cc. I know that that small amount can really affect how tight your band is. You might simply be too tight and might find that the tiny little adjustment might work wonders. Cheers!

Take care Trish, and drive carefully! (sending lots of white light your way!) ((((((((((Trish))))))))))

I'm actually very excited when someone doesn't meet our strict membership guidlines, because it means that they are actually doing really, really well. Jorjet, I know how very hard it is to watch some of our superstars, our rabbits who lose twice as much as we do. There are days and weeks where I absoluetly resent the success of our dear sisters and brothers who have lost SEVEN times what I've lost. You've lost a meer 4 times what I've lost in the same amount of time. And that is very exciting. But depressing at the same time.

Like Whipp, I always make the same ones over and over: I resolve to find seek balance in my life I resolve to be kinder to everyone and to myself. Oh sure, they aren't as glamorous as Whipp's but then, I'm not feeling particularly glamourous

Carrol of the Bells, http://www.daisychurch.com/cluck/play.html

This was so funny! when we saw it on TV I thought I was going to pee myself...

Well, I'm a belly dancer, and not a topless dancer, but I'm going to get a costume like one of these.... http://www.pyramidimports.com/bellydancing/bdc1092.htm http://home.maine.rr.com/lila1/plussizecostumes.htm I'll bare my belly, but not my nibbles on stage... no, no, no

Well, considering everything, okay. I don't have a leak, so that is very very good news. I had .5 ccs taken out of my band, they want to give it a rest because being super tight didn't do any good. You would think that at a month of 700 calories I should have lost 10 pounds at least. But I'm only down 1.5. So I guess I would have been one of the survivors of the Donnar Party. I'll start on Thyroid medication next week, once they get the results from the tests. The doc said that even if I was on the high end of normal they were going to put me on the thyroid medication. The fill nurse gave me a whole packet for tracking my meals and my calories, and the therapist in the office took them all away from me She said that I'm only supposed to eat right now. That I've been making great choices, but the band wasn't doing its job. That there had to be something else, maybe thyroid levels, maybe cortisol levels. They are going to see how I do on just a light and reasonable fill with the the meds, and send me for additional testing if those meds don't do any good. The first thing I did after getting some of my fill out, was to go have a burrito at Taco Bell. I ate most of an entire burrito, and I felt soooo good afterwards. For the last couple of nights my entire dinner was 1 jalipeno popper, 2 nuggets of General Tso chicken, and 2 tablespoons of fried rice. my 4th meal was the creamed spinach, that I PB'd up half of.

Sorry Joyce, but hell no! I've been way too tight since before thanksgiving, and today I had an unfill, so I'm back down to 1.5 ccs. They wanted to give my band a rest since I wasn't losing weight at 700 calories. 1.5 pounds in a month of 700 calories a day. If I'd been at that restriction much longer I was going to develop some very bad habbits. Being too tight doesn't surve any purpose, and can be more damaging than not being tight enough. It rocks that you've lost so much weight, for for some of us who have other issues beyond calories in-calories out, being too tight won't solve anything but make us miserable. Okay, DOLLLL!!!! Oh my gawd! are you okay! I still think you need to get a slight unfill since I hate the thought of you having to fight your band on top of everthing. If you are too tight now, I don't see how getting you to a place that isn't too tight is going to make you stress eat or gain weight.

I typically gain 10 pounds every time I'm on it. Not Water weight. But it's like this for me, risk death or gain weight? Some people really feel good, some people don't gain weight, my mother always feels better when she take it, I however, always feel like crap, like I"m going to go into a homicidal rage, but I can breathe again. Talk to your doc about this. We can offer our experiences, but that's all we can really do. Your doc is the one who knows what's going on with your body.

One thing that people don't quite understand that a big BIG part of being banded is the mental things that go along with it. I don't know if we can ever be completely prepaired for the emotions that come up.

Sorry, I've been traveling, and now I'm home again! Yay! Since I'm traveling, I'm using my laptop and for some reason, I just can't stay logged onto LBT long enough to post anything longer than a sentence. And when do I just write a sentence??? So, yesterday I got to my morning doctor appointment, fasted as directed. Well, After I get there, fighting through the rush hour traffic, they tell me that I didn't have an apointment but that I should come back later in the week, since my doc wasn't even in the office on Mondays. I was very angry, since that just wasn't going to work for me. I was there for answers, and I was going to get answers. Well, long story short, the new doc I saw looked at my weight loss chart that I so thoughtfully provided, listened to my Band song and dance and agreed that I should go on thyroid medications, depending on what the tests showed. I'll have the results next week, and will start the meds next week. Today I go to my clinic and have some of this fill pulled out, since I'm so freaking tight. I know that there are people out there that are perfectly happy on 700 calories a day, but I feel like crap, and I am having trouble mentally adjusting to eating only tablespoons at a time, especially when I get stuck all the freaking time. It's not good when you are afraid to eat because you know it is going to cause pain. Of course, entire diet empires have been built on avoiding food because it cause pain either physically or emotionially. It's pretty interesting. Since I decided to face my situation, how just banding and excersizing alone is not going to help me lose the weight I want, I feel so much more peaceful. I've only been obsessive about my food a few times, which is quite an improvement. I have done everything I personally could, and still wasn't losing weight. Because I determined that this was something beyond me, time to call in every single professional I can to help.