DivaStyleCoach

I am so glad to hear you and your family are okay! We had a hurricane many years ago in New England and lost power (plus a tree in our front yard) and the next morning we were making Breakfast on our gas grill (bacon, eggs, biscuits, rice)...we fed about 6 families that morning. :girl_hug: It's amazing how people will pull together after a crisis...I'm really happy your family suffered no damage. :rolleyes2:

Amen to that, Enigma! Part of my curiosity is concerning how people who don't know us now (or didn't know us when we were heavy) will treat us. Unfortunately, I think some will treat us better once we are "normal" sized women (notice I put that in quotes) than they would have (or did) when we were heavy. :girl_hug: I know for me, I'd like to do the "Pretty Woman" thing - walk into a few stores where I've been treated less-than-well as a full-figured woman and let them know that now I'm smaller, I won't be spending any of my wardrobe money on them! I plan to save almost all of what I would normally spend (I will have to buy a few things during my transition) and do a big shopping spree at the end when I reach my goal. :rolleyes2: I'm eagerly anticipating going into some stores that I wouldn't necessarily shop in, paying some prices I might not ordinarily pay (for better-quality clothes) and having myself a really good time! :girl_hug:

Thanks, everybody, for the info - I am starting to plan my time off and all the replies have helped me immensely. :thumbdown: Depending on what day I have the surgery, I'll take the rest of that week and then a full week after. I.E. Surgery on a Wednesday, take Thursday and Friday and the following week. Surgery on a Monday, take the remainder of the week, maybe 1/2 the following week. Thanks again for all the great info - I have a desk job, no heavy lifting. The most strenuous thing I do at work is walk to and from the train station when I'm getting there. Since the walking is good for me, I think I'll be good to go!:thumbup:

Good afternoon Everyone, Just got in from my nutritional consult - everything went very well, thanks to everyone at LBT! The dietician said I was extremely knowledgeable and prepared for the process, and said my consult was easier because I already knew so much about the process, the diet and the eating changes I would have to implement. :thumbdown: Thanks LBT for making me look good, and I can't wait until I get a consult with the doctor, and then a banding date!:thumbup:

Good afternoon Sistas, Just came back from my nutritional consult, and everything went very well. :thumbup: Many many thanks to LBT and all of the groups I post to - everyone has taught me so much that I flew through the consult! :thumbup: The nutritionist was impressed with my level of knowledge and told me that I came in so well-prepared that it made her job easier...she also gave me the recommended diet for the post-band patients. Essentials from the plan include: 1st 2 weeks: any amount of "free fluids", small amounts of Fluid with calories (6 oz total per day), chewable vitamins/minerals/calcium. All supplements must be chewable, crushable or liquid for 2 months after surgery. 2 - 4 weeks Post Op: any amount of "free fluids", eliminate shakes / Protein drinks, change diet to include Mushies, between 1/4 and 1/2 cup per serving 3 - 6 times per day. Calories under 1000, protein 50 - 60 (no more than 70) g per day. No concentrated sweets, no alcohol or caffeine, no carbonated beverages at all. (I'll miss my ginger ale!:biggrin:) Week 5 + Post Op: solid foods, 1/2 cup (4 oz) per meal, 3 - 5 times per day. Low fat, no or low sugar, 3 - 4 hours apart. Goal is 50 - 60 g protein per day, 64 oz Water per day. Suggest avoiding tough meats, meats with gristle, seeds and skins of fruit and veggies, and spicy foods. I've even got a list of low fat / low sugar foods and a chart showing protein content of certain foods. :thumbdown: The nutritionist asked me questions about how my eating habits would change, what things I would do differently, and helped me find answers when I got stuck. All in all, it was a VERY positive experience.:crying: If you'd like to see the materials I was given, let me know - I'll scan them in, turn them into a PDF, and email them to you... LBT has been so wonderful for me - it's a great resource and I'll be recommending it to anyone I know looking for good information on the process. :thumbup: Now I just have to wait for them to schedule my consult with the doctor, and hopefully I'll get a date to be banded very soon!!!:thumbup:

Absolutely... My father was Choctaw, African-American and White (light skinned, cute black man, big barrel chest, don't-mess-with-me attitude and a voice that could shake the house when he was mad!) My mother was African-American and Creek (on my grandma Louise's side, tough, smart woman who was born too early - she wanted to be an accountant, but was told no one would trust a black woman with their money so she went into nursing instead) My grandmother Louise was African-American, Creek, Jewish and White (also lighter skinned, had beautiful hair she could sit on, tough, no-nonsense lady) And then there's me - one of the 'melting pots' of the family who has a little bit of all of them!:thumbup:

I posted this in another thread, but wanted to contribute here as well... My band will be called the DIVA Tool - it will be the tool helping me to achieve my most Dynamic Intriguing Vivacious and Audacious self! :smile2: Other possible names are: Katherine - after my DM (Darling Mother) who always wanted the best for me (God rest her soul, I miss her so much) :smile: B.I.T.C.H. - Being In Total Charge of Herself (what I will be AFTER I'm banded):thumbup: Any others?:smile:

Mornin' SNT, I think we should propose a visit to Oprah from a whole bunch of LBT'ers...I don't recall if she's ever done a show on lap bands, and we have such a wide range of people, both genders, all ages, and many geographic areas that I think it would be an interesting show. I bet we could fill up her audience space with LBT'ers - wouldn't THAT be awesome! :thumbup: We could have people that have lost up to 50 pounds, 50 - 100 lbs, 100 - 200 lbs, and 200 plus pounds - we could inspire hundreds or thousands of people to take their health into their own hands and also debunk some of the myths around lap banding. :smile2: I'm up for it - what do you think?

SNT - I believe you are correct... I have the same condition - if I get a scrape, it often doesn't keloid, but incisions will. My abdominal surgery about a year ago left me with a vertical scar that has since hypertrophied (keloid). It is raised and puffy - and some areas are hard.:thumbup: I hate my keloids...I've gotten some scar gel to try and work on them and we'll see what happens. That's why I don't want a bypass - I'm really anti-surgery for me at this point... :smile2:

Done, girlfriend! Good luck!:biggrin:

Dazzle - that's fantastic!:thumbup: My process hasn't been bad - you can see my timeline in my signature. The nutritionists' consult is tomorrow, and I pray they get their report done quickly so I can get my consult with the doc scheduled and then hopefully my surgery!:biggrin:

Yay!:wink2::tongue::w00t: Now if I can just get my process completed, maybe I'll be a Smashing pumpkin myself! Waiting is NOT my strong suit - can ya tell?:crying:

Hey Sista, Does being African-American, Jewish, Choctaw and Creek count?:wink2: Welcome sista!:crying:

Congrats Ladies! Keep us up-to-date on your progress...:crying:

Sending along another prayer for SouthernGirl...anyone heard from her?:crying:

Hey Slim, I'm envious! :wink2: I wish my surgery were scheduled, let alone moved up! Just think, girlfriend - you are starting your new healthier, stronger, slimmer life! No longer will food be calling you in the way that it used to...you will have your band to reinforce your willpower. Have you 'named' your band yet? I think I'm going to call mine the DivaTool, because it's going to help me become my most Dynamic, Intriguing, Vivacious and Audacious self... I made up that definition when I was working as an Image Consultant :crying: Now I can't wait until it really does describe me - head to toe and forever more! Congrats on your upcoming operation, and I pray you have a very easy surgery and a pain-free recovery!:tongue:

Hey Sistas, I've got that issue of Essence, and I must say (all enviousness aside) that Mo looks great!:wink2: I think in the same issue Jennifer Hudson talks about working her tail off - literally - she's lost like 50 lbs in the last few months, and though she doesn't look a LOT smaller, she certainly is curvier. There are some FLY clothes in the issue and some interviews with other curvy sistas. I had to laugh at all the men who said they love full-figured women...where were they when I was lookin'? :crying: I wish I lived closer to NYC so I could attend a couple of those parties that the gentleman in the front of the issue arranges - I bet me and DH would have fun at those...I HATE being the biggest girl in da club, but since I take extra care with my appearance, I'm not worried about how I look so much anymore...being 40-something has done that for me. I have a HOTT black-and-red leather dress that I LOVE to rock :w00t: I'm already saving to get the new one when I reach goal... I am so glad I made the decision to be banded - now if only the docs and the "system" I'm working through would HURRY UP!!!!:tongue:

Hey Sistergrl25, In a couple of the other forums - 'Fitness and Exercise' I've heard responses ranging from light weights at 1 week to others who took a full 6 weeks off. I think it's partly personal preference, and partly what kind of workout you were doing (and the shape you're in) prior to surgery. I know for me - I'll be asking my doc. I'm currently doing weights 4 days a week, and don't want to go to NOTHING for 6 weeks - heck, I'll lose all my new muscle! :wink2: Definately check with your doctor - just to be safe. Good luck!:crying:

Yay! :crying: Hopefully I'll have good news to report soon!

I'm sitting here with tears in my eyes...you guys have such awesome hubbies!:wink2: I can't wait until I'm banded and have stories like this to tell...though I must say, my DH is wonderful - he likes to make love with the lights on and everything, and he makes me feel really beautiful. I can't wait until I think I'm as beautiful as he thinks I am... He's more interested (right now) in me being healthier. He says he wants me to live forever...what a sweetie! I can't wait until my belly is flat, my arms and legs are tight and muscular, and my butt is lifted and round instead of semi-round!:crying:

Hey Ladies, I'm currently wearing a 40JJ (or occasionally a 42H from Lane Bryant). I buy most of my bras from Bravissimo (www.bravissimo.com) - they are overseas, but had pretty bras in my size - what a revelation!:crying: I hope they don't go too far...I am, like one of the other posters, bigger around (width of breast) than long. They don't hang too far right now, but I would HATE to lose a lot of fullness and have them start hanging. I've been a every-single-day bra wearer since my teens. I had the dreaded double-boob for a while (boob sticking out above the cup) when stores didn't carry anything but DD as their largest size - I hit that landmark in high school. I stuffed myself into DD's for quite a while, and only after visiting a professional fitter did I realize I didn't have to stuff the girls into a smaller package any more. I love underwires - they support me like nothing else. The only thing I've found that supports me better is my leather dress, which I wear braless, because it's got steel boning in the torso - but I digress... I will measure quite often as I reach landmarks in my weight loss - I still have some smaller cup sizes (I kept one or two) and will move to those when I need to. I hate the 'uniboob' look - sports bras have NEVER worked for me. I also stopped wearing the 'minimizer' bras - they seem to compress you and move you to the side - I don't need any more padding under my arms :wink2: I've never tried two bras at a time - even during exercise class - but I could see how perhaps wearing one 'normal' bra and a sports bra (over the top) with no distinctive cups could help keep bouncing at bay... I will say that if you go to a fitter, try to find one that is NOT associated with a particular store - some of them try to fit you into what the store carries, which may or may not be the actual size you need. Also remember - if you go down a band size, the cup gets smaller too - at one of Oprah's bra interventions, many many women were told to get a smaller band size and a larger cup size!

I absolutely :wink2: this forum! I will make sure I ask my doc (I'm sure he's gotten the question before) and I'll talk to hubby as well. We're pretty *ahem* experimental, so it'll be a new challenge finding positions to get into without affecting the port. Guess I'd better tell him to ramp up his bench pressing again so he can hold himself up...:crying: And work on his flexibility:tt1:

My .02 worth... My DH is 46, I'm 45, and he's always been good for 2x per session. First go round, he concentrates on me so that he never worries if I am satisfied.:crying: Occasionally if I'm not feeling frisky, I'll take care of him first, which gets me in the mood, and then we go again. Intercourse can be anywhere from 5 - 20 minutes, depending on position and speed, but if I'm giving him oral, it's a little shorter (depending on my technique). I've noticed that the second time around, he can definately last longer...means we both have to keep up the aerobics so we can keep our endurance up!:wink2:

I don't think you are being too conservative...it would have been better if "Halloween Night" had been held on a night OTHER THAN "Private School night"...how stupid are they to schedule them together?:crying: Just taking this from an economic perspective...it would seem to me that "Private School Night" would include primarily families. Forgive me if this seems biased, but aren't private schools usually for those in the middle-to-high income strata? The kind of folks you want buying season tickets to ball games at your stadium, bringing their kids, and spending money on food as well as tickets? :wink2: DOH! Have "Halloween Night" on a different night than one where you are pretty much GUARANTEED to get families and children JUST IN CASE what happened to you happens to someone else. I personally would have done what you did - mentioned it to a manager. They could have inquired of the ladies in question if they could adjust their costumes to be more covered up.

Exceedingly odd...I get diarrhea during my period, but never constipation. My cramps had leveled off and dwindled before I had my first fibroid tumor complication (it passed spontaneosly) but now they are back. Seems no matter what I eat before my TOM, I'm always getting diarrhea...makes me dread it. :crying: