shellyj.

sure you can eat it. i sprinkle cinn. or nutmeg or cocoa powder for flavors. *i* think its a good low cal sweet tooth fix! i use lite

banded monday worked that friday. if i could have i wished i could have had that friday too. i was SOOOOO tired!

one other thing that i have been eating a lot of is cilantro..i have always used it for salsa and mexican but its soooooo good on: a regular salad a sandwich cooked in eggs

hey pumpkin, i have never tried pilates and have never like videos before. if you do try it let me know how you like it! jacqui, i have also been looking for a good weight set. we are trying to make a home gym. why cant it just be 70 degrees everyday! when it gets really hot and dry here i cant do much outside either! leatha and kat, i dont have a PS2 or game system in general...well ok i DO have a atari and an original nintendo but i dont think dance revolution was made for that! i was thinking of buying the hubby a game system...maybe i should with an alterior motive!

what about making a homeade fruit smoothie and adding protien powder to it?

well thats AWESOME! congrats on going to the gym! i too didnt use exercise the first few months of banding and lost then i hit a major plateau and realized i HAD to do both in order to lose like i wanted. NOW i exercise to feel the way i want! i feel like a million bucks when i exercise! good luck! keep it up!

it has been to cold to continue to get my exercise outside! i would love some ideas or product reviews on indoor exercise!!! we have been doing: the biggest loser workout video. it REALLY is a workout! and its designed for folks who arent a size 4, or a size 12 even, well atleast not when they start. you can customize your workouts. we really like it! medicine ball, 12 lb: we have used this for a while- throwing it, waiste twists, sit-up - throws, incorporating into the biggest loser... i LOVE it! resistance bands: calvin uses. i dont. he seems to like them though. recumbant bike: does anyone know the desired heart rate for fat burning? i have been riding this for an hour at a time. its a great workout i crank my MP3 and GO!!!! full size punching bag: i am just getting into using this. will let ya'll know how it goes. i need some training, i got one at goodwill for $20 but i need find some exercises or see what the 'proper form' is, i dont want to hurt myself! gym membership, going unused:paranoid : i work from home and its to cold to drive :nervous what have you been doing indoors to workout? i like and need variety!!!

lately i have been eating: lite cool whip and sprinkle cocoa powder on top! lite cool whip and sprinkle nutmeg and cinn on top, or both! egg whites OMG i forgot how good and low cal. they are! 6 whites with 1 yoke is 150 calories and it keeps me satisfied soooo long. hummus: i have eaten for years but lately i am skipping the cracker and just eating it with a spoon. walnuts and brazil nuts: i have been buying them in the shell cause it takes longer to eat and i dont eat nearly as many. now that its cold i just made huge pots of each: pea Soup, black bean soup and lentils...i froze them in small containers and i have ingredient controlled yummy lunches for the winter.

hey alex, it is so hard living with an empty band. i did get a small fill a month ago and while i still have no restriction- it did help with the constant hunger...it is taking the edge off and i am at a happy medium with my band. for me my biggest 'trigger for a bad day' is....lack of planning. everynight i think out what i am gonna eat the next day. on days i my routine changes i always eat WAY more calories and carbs.

thanks for posting your struggles. i am dealing with long term effects of having a band placed as well. i am worried that eventually it may have to be removed. for now my dr sees no reason to remove it. i just can not have restriction, thats when my problems begin. thanks again and please keep posting your updates so we (I) can see how you are doing! michelle

i have been unfilled many times. my dr's always make you wait 3 weeks as well for a refill to make sure the irritation is gone and swelling is down. its tough without restriction but leaving a to tight fill could cause worse damage. good luck!

garland mom, thanks for sharing your story. i am sorry you had these complications and lost your band. i hope the removal solves all of your reflux and pressure issues. i am also having esophogus issues and just hoping they dont have to remove it. did you self pay for the removal? please keep us updated and how your and your esoph. do post banding. michelle

for me wheetsin, its defintally the pain before the PB or the pain of letting it go down instead of just PB'ing that hurts the most. my sweet spot to me is: if i am happy about the quality and variety of foods i was eating. like jachut, i could always eat bread and i could eat salads, steak, or pork! i couldnt eat much and i couldnt eat fast. by the time i got the food down i was tired from chewing and satisfied. i could drink in the a.m. and only had to worry about a PB if i was being careless. i lost 100 the first year. YOU decide what proper restriction is for you. according to my dr if i could eat pork or steak i needed a fill (WTF?) i was losing and still enjoying food and i think thats important. i like to eat- i want to eat and dont want to worry about pb'ing at breakfast! after 3+ years i have learned that having a band changed the way my espohogus works and now i must leave it empty in order to not have to have it removed. i have learned that the DR's dont have all the answers (or sometimes ANY!) and the fact remains that we really dont know WHAT to expect long term! i have learned that exercise is just as important as restriction!

*thinking of you* what an ordeal. i am no lawyer and dont have any advice but i will be hoping these antibiotics do the trick. after you take them ALL please see your dr again to see if the infection is gone! michelle

hey alex, i am hoping it doesnt happen to me but it seems almost inevitable. not being negative just realistic based on my past experience...we'll see what the future brings. has your dr tried to pull air out of your band? i saw wear babs posted that her dr pulled out a substantial amount of air. i will be asking my dr as i dont recall him trying to pull out air but i can see where that could cause a fluctuation of restriction. i dont know i am almost afraid of them touching my band!!

YAYYY Babs!!! thats great!! you better believe i will be asking my dr to check for air when i go back on 10-3! you'll be back at goal in no time!! michelle

hey alexandra, i am sorry you had to get another unfill. its frustrating...but i am with you, at least i still have my band. i too am HAPPY with where it got me, i think it will still help me, i am SOOOOOO dissapointed i cant adjust it anymore though. are you worried about what will happen now if you swell and your band is empty? the dr unfilled me 1.8 leaving me with 0 cc's and i swear i am starting to feel signs of restriction. so if i (we) never refill but for whatever reason start to get restriction again or irritated then removal is whats left?!?! i am glad your feeling better, the relief of an unfill is euphoric. michelle

YAY!! thats wonderful news! i hope you have an uneventful month and are able to put this past you! thats where i am too babs!!!

hey babs! i am so glad your new dr is working hard for you! let us know what he finds in the endo. michelle

thats great news megan! the endo gives peace of mind for sure. i can feel your enthusiam and i hope this is your sweet spot! i am supposed to get a fill 10-3 i am hoping that i get a mild curb in appetite. after that i will wait a month or so and get the motility test and barium swallow. if it looks good then i am not getting another fill!

megan- please let us know how the scope goes! alex- i hope your swelling continues to go down! i am open to any ideas we can come up with, so far all i have is eat less and exercise more.

ok so maybe this changes my answer...when i am walking down the street when i see someone who i think is HOT, generally they are... manly, probably overweight but in general not MO or SMO. i like a tall man, a thicker build. i want him to be able to pick me up, throw me down and... just kidding. in general though you dont see someones 'personality' when your walking down the street checking them out so its strictly superficial. the man i married is perfect (for me) inside and out! :clap2: :clap2: :clap2:

i voted that i dont care how big they are etc. its the inside that RAELLY matters. i wouldnt want someone who had given up and was on an all out binge everyday and steadily gaining though. its a pretty sad existance, its where i was before i heard about the band.

oh megan, i am soooo sorry to hear of yet another long term bandster having these problems!!! i am at the same place you are. i am TIRED! i am tired of waiting after the unfills for a refill only to have to get unfilled again. i am tired of all the tests, poking and prodding. i am tired of all the money i have spent on these tests and fills/unfills. i am tired of the lack of information- no dr's knows what it could be, no dr's have heard this happening (yet here we are) and most of all i am tired of all the emotion that goes into it- hoping it works *this time* only to be let down again. i am just sick of it ALL!!! i know the bewilderment you feel at the smaller amounts of fill required. at one time i was at 3.4 cc's and had good restriction. currently 1.8 cc's seals me off to the point of choking on saliva. babs and i talked the other day about scar tissue that forms with each of these 'episodes' around where the band is placed and thats the reason you require less of a fill. however my dr said he didnt see any scar tissue. i dont know what to say. the MAIN reason i got the band is so it would be adjustable for the next 10-15-20 years *whenever i needed it* and now i am faced with the facts that i will never have restriction again and adjustments are just a form of emotional and physical torture.

being unfilled you better believe i have been going through some veggie burgers! i have been eating 1 a day for lunch on a slice of health nut bread with flax seeds and as much lettuce and tomatoes as i can pile on top and some light ranch! today i bought 4 boxes at fred meyers, 2 for $5! i got 2 black bean, portabella and original!