betty_s

@@jktefft yes! try them out! and if you dont like one flavor, try some others. and if you heat the cookie dough one in the oven for a few mins, it tastes like a fresh baked cookie!!

@@enjoythetime thanks!! i cant take all the credit. i dont know if you have instagram, but i follow questnutrition and they have TONS of recipes on their account. plus, if you order stuff straight from their website, they send you little recipe packets.

so, other than sf popsicles, fudgesicles, and sf pudding, i havent really had anything sweet for awhile, even pre-op. i try not to have these every night, or even a few times a week, because they do trigger my sweet tooth. well, it was my T.O.M. (sorry men), and i was CRAVING something sweet and chocolaty, and i knew these wouldn't hit the spot, so i made up a recipe that was AMAZING, plus it had 10 g of Protein. again, this isn't something i will eat every night or even every week, because it triggered my sweet tooth, but i had a very low carb day and just went with it:
1/2 Quest bar brownie
2 T of nonfat cool whip
drizzle of SF caramel
I cut the quest bar in half and stuck it in the toaster oven at 375* for about 3-4 mins, until it was warm and soft. Took it out and topped it with about 2 T of cool whip and just a drizzle of sf caramel Syrup (by smuckers).
I cant even tell you how amazing this was. I knew i was satisfied with what i ate, but my inner fat kid wanted me to make 3 more! If you have a hard time controlling your sweet tooth, this might not be the dessert for you, but if you REALLY want a treat, i def recommend this!
approx nutrition: 125 CALS, 21 CARBS (11 NET CARBS), 3 FAT, 10 PROTEIN.

I've lost 50 pounds several times over... the problem is KEEPING the weight off. If you feel you can be successful in maintaining the weight loss, and continuing to be able to lose more, than you may not need surgery. But, for most folks that is a very, very hard thing to do.
I suspect 99 percent of us finally decided to have surgery after we've seen the weight come off, and return, after years of failed diets. I'm not a youngster, and I decided to have my surgery before I was too old to undergo such a serious elective procedure. The clock is always running.

be patient i was in a lotttt of pain where my port was stitched to my stomach for about a week. I didnt feel back to normal until about 2-2.5 weeks. I ended up taking all my pains meds, and my doctor told me i could take ibuprofen pm at night to help me sleep better instead of writing me a new prescription.

What a waste of time for a surgeon to have to pay all that pesky post-op attention to his patients rather than going right back into the OR where there's more money to be made and the patients don't talk back. I have had probably a dozen interactions with my surgeon in this first year and I'm grateful that he seems to be as committed to the followup band appointments (assessing for fills, etc.) as getting into his scrubs. For the right kind of doctor, being a lapband surgeon provides a nice variety of patient interaction along with the actual surgical activity, but this isn't for every one. We all know surgeons who have no people skills; lapband is not the right field for them. I personally feel the importance of the followup is key to the whole thing -- having the surgeon available as-needed and on your team. They all perform well in the OR, I'm sure -- it's not brain surgery, it's laparoscopic.
Good luck to you. I love, love, love my band! If something ever happened and it had to come out I'd go through it all again. I'm glad to have my whole stomach.

I love chipotle (burrito bowl, no rice) and jimmy johns (unwich). I also have gone to which wich, but thats not as fast. When I'm in a pinch i've done grill chicken wrap from Sonic & just ate the chicken. I've also had a whopper from burger king, but that was before any fills. Now i have problems with burger patties.

Maybe a waste of his time. But not mine. Thrilled with my decision.

I'm gonna have to try those grilled nuggets.

They also have grilled nuggets and fruit bowls!

They also have grilled nuggets and fruit bowls!

They also have grilled nuggets and fruit bowls!

Chick-fil-A has great grilled chicken nuggets.

be patient i was in a lotttt of pain where my port was stitched to my stomach for about a week. I didnt feel back to normal until about 2-2.5 weeks. I ended up taking all my pains meds, and my doctor told me i could take ibuprofen pm at night to help me sleep better instead of writing me a new prescription.

be patient i was in a lotttt of pain where my port was stitched to my stomach for about a week. I didnt feel back to normal until about 2-2.5 weeks. I ended up taking all my pains meds, and my doctor told me i could take ibuprofen pm at night to help me sleep better instead of writing me a new prescription.

so i know this may sound weird, but the more weight i lose, the more my bones ACHE! i'm down 57 lbs and my collarbones KILL ME, some days more than other.
i was wondering if anyone else dealt with an issue like this? i may mention it at my next doctors appt in october.

i had a Vitamin D prescription, so my D levels should be pretty good right now.. maybe i need to get it rechecked!

thats the thing, i was active before. i had awful back pain before, because my stomach was too big, but now its my collarbones that ache. the more i lose the more it hurts! and i actually cut back the last two weeks on the gym because life has gotten in the way..

I also have alot of residual issues from all the damage I did to myself. Plus the doctor told me that I was moving differently than before because the body is now so different and it will take time to get used to the 'new' way of walking and moving.

Your body has been so used to carrying a lot of weight it has to go through an adjustment period. I had no feeling between my shoulder blades or my left leg for a long time.

I don't know but I have been at goal for awhile and still have alot of aches and pains. Losing massive weight helped my health so much, but didn't solve this issue.

Maybe it's because you're moving around a lot more now?

In spite of my damaged disc issue, I am standing and walking straighter because that ol' 53" belly isn't pulling me forward and down.

No. My aches and pains disappeared as I lost. But my butt has lost it's cushioning and hard surfaces hurt when I sit too long. Who knew butts had bones? Lol

I'm still achy. I get up and walk like a 90 year old until I'm stretched out. Seems moreso now though. Our surgeon won't do blood work until 6 mos post op. That's another 4 months away. ::sigh:: I'm going to ask our family dr to do blood work next month. I need my thyroid and hormone levels checked anyway. He can check vit D and vit B's while he's at it. I hate that our surgeon is waiting so long after to do them. :/