Cocoabean

I was ready to eat my dog during the post op phase! He was just lucky he could move faster than I. Just a couple more days til you see your doc. You can make it! Don't risk hurting yourself. Stick it out.

Have you considered getting treatment for depression? You might find your motivation increasing if you get help! I've fought it for years. You don't have to be miserable. Seek help. Go to your PCP to start!

Here's a couple recent pics of me with my sis, and me with the hub. From our trip to Sedona. That's Butters showing us his back! I added them to my album a few days ago.

Christie, the difference is amazing. Well done! It appears your relationship with Steve is a good one! :thumbup: I am on vacation this week, yay! We are doing an "around the county tour." Camping a three campgrounds over the course of the week. Barring any bad happenings at MIL's, all should be fun. Butters is all packed and ready to go! Bobbie, WHY are you puking? Even if you aren't making the best choices, stick to proper band procedures of small bites, chew chew chew, and paying attention while eating (I added the last one). I am a grazer, also. My doctor doesn't have a problem with me eating several times a day, as long as it is planned foods and not brainless choices. Not that I always succeed, but it is a good goal. Bob, we are going back to the fair today, maybe I'll try your liquid diet. :smilielol5: Humming Bird, thanks for the good wishes about the family stuff. I have always been a realist, and I hate to see people delude themselves. My oldest SIL is 67. She is just now losing her mother, how fortunate is she to have had her all these years? And this SIL is truly a wonderful person. She goes over to Mom's every morning for a visit, takes her shopping every weekend. They are best friends. So, I understand how devistated SIL will be, but she does need to see reality. My father was 67 when I lost him, my mother was 73. I come from a family of nurses (not myself), so there were no delusions that the end of life was upon them. I suppose it is different in a family without any medical understanding....? OK, enough rambling about my troubles. Here's a good story....I take ambien to help me sleep. Sometimes I sleep eat (ignoring band rules, of course)--you know how the commercials say, episodes of activity with no memory of the event? So the other night I got up and ate part of a loaf of nice SOFT French Bread. Well, guess who was stuck for over an hour! DORK! None of the usual unsticking tricks worked. I haven't slimed and urped that much since shortly after I first experienced restriction. So, had towels in bed for the slime. Hurled up a bunch of slime, MISSED the towels. Had to change the sheets at 10:30 pm. I had a little extra restriction for a few days. What a moron. Hubby says he's going to start locking me in the bedroom at night. And how was YOUR week?

Wow Bob, you look amazing! Good work! Unfill? I've been there. When I got stuck on mashed potatoes, I knew I was in trouble. Lost 7 lbs in one week. That was not good at the weight I was at. Rough week here, Mom-in-law was in the hospital again. two sisters-in-law very angry that the docs "aren't doing anything." I am sorry, she is 94 years old, has congestive heart failure, severe anemia (had her second transfusion), and is refusing to eat. Just what is it they are supposed to be doing? Ah well, I am thinking it is just a matter of time. Family time is going to be such a joy, NOT! Ah well, these are things we must go through in our lives. Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Gum is against my surgeon's rules. Plus I don't like it, so that makes it an easy rule for me to follow.

HB, I love the comforter! Very nice. Christie, glad you can eat. Its so strange to think we'd ever WANT to eat But I've been there, where every bite is torture. Bobbie!! Tee hee! Yes, they are...I was very happy to cancel the appointment! I still have a few years til I turn 50 and get the screening one...whew!!

All right, I am mad... I posted yesterday but it went to la la land. I guess I didn't hit submit! drat. Leigha, yay for you! Woot woot! Bobbie, nice to see you again! Anne, counting down! A friend of mine is having RNY on 7/8. Bob, hope you are enjoying you liquid diet, I bet your babies miss you. My GI troubles seem to have resolved...yay! So with my PCP's permission, I cancelled the colonoscopy I had scheduled. We went to the county fair yesterday. It is our annual kick off to summer. I had deep fried mushrooms. Very yummy, very rich, and very not good for me. Hubby ate most of them. We also shared a BBQ pork sandwich. Very yummy and without the bread band-friendly. Then there was the beer. Oh yeah...lots and lots of it. But spread out over the day, so I did not get drunk. Just consumed too many calories. My BP seems to be creeping upwards, until this morning when it was 87/55. I suspect the beer and lack of water yesterday to be part of that. So, I am chugging water this morning. I hope everyone has a great Sunday!!!

Bob, hope you have a great trip! Your babies will miss you, I am sure! Anne, you must be relieved to have the decision made! For what it is worth, I'd have done the same. :eek: Well, I spent an hour today pouring over my budget report trying to find $5k before I realized I had transposed numbers! DOH!! What a dork. In the middle of that, the other manager I work for also asked for a budget report. Then a technician showed up with his travel receipts wanting me to help him with his voucher. My desk looked like a tornado had gone through. Can you say Karma for me going on a boondoggle yesterday? sheesh. Ah well, it's all good.

I am not an expert on Graves, but I had a hyperactive nodule that was treated with radio-iodine. I now take levoxyl daily. It had no impact on my lapband. You'll want to be sure you tell your surgeon. I don't believe the autoimmunity disqualifies you. Are they thinking of giving you radio-iodine treatment, or are you just goung with drug treatment for now? You'll probably need to adjust your dosage more often as you lose weight.

Yay Amy! Way to go!!! Anne, here's hoping! Do you know if your insurance covers a sleeve? At last check, mine does not. Please keep us posted. And like Leigha said, don't up and leave us for that "other" forum entirely! We are still in the same battle.

I am sorry, i did not notice the forum was Canada when I responded. My bad...

Mine was covered by my insurance.

I appealed the six months with bs ca hmo and won. I submitted weight watchers records from numerous attempts and also used information from Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies. They have some advice on appealing the six month requirement. Best wishes!

Nice! Love it.

I don't think it is so much a case of not allowing as full disclosure. What are the rules, if any? Do they allow the use of medications? Must you disclose their use? Same questions for WLS. Most people in a competition expect an even playing field. Yes, we have to work to lose, but I still think we have an advantage.

I consider the band an advantage. If it didn't help us, would we have gotten it? To enter without disclosing it would not be fair in my humble opinion.

Hi Everyone! Happy Friday to all!!! Yay. Great on the NSVs! I love those! Michael, WELCOME!!! Raiders..BOO :thumbup: I was in stuck city this week. Drat. Got stuck 3 times! Was in a hurry at lunch the other day with all my managers. I was facilitating a meeting for them, and we were running short of time at lunch. So, I was of course, trying to unwisely cram in the last few bites. It came back to bite me in the butt! So, I did the urp into a public toilet, did not have the time to drop the a$$-gasket into the Water first, and you guessed it, splash into the EYE!! WAH!!!! At least none of the managers was a witness to the event or even aware that I was stuck for that matter, so I am thankful for that! But I did get to go to Palm Springs for the meeting for a few days, that was fun, and had some good bonding time in the evenings with them. Except now there is photo evidence of me doing Karaoke to Tequila Sunrise...OY! Ok, I can sing fairly well, but Karaoke isn't easy, and that song sucks! But it was fun. Karen can probably attest to the fact that it takes MUCHO practice to sing a song, not just stand up and read the words, even if you know the tune. Well, I hope everyone has a GREAT weekend!

Hey Humming Bird, Welcome to my world of the low blood pressure! It sure sucks, eh? ick! I never thought I would complain about my pressure being too low. sheesh. I hope you get to feeling better. Christie, yay for you!! Congrats on all the victories! Wowser! Bob, smoking, huh? I quit years ago, must think on it. :confused: Thinking I'll have to pass, though. I am in Palm Springs right now, facilitating a meeting. Better than working for a living, I suppose. Ok, off to bed I go. Hope all are well!!

Oh, forgot to add, celery can be a problem with the strings. If you remove that before pureeing, it should be fine.

If pureed, it should not be a problem. It is the consistency that gets you. You might want to strain the broccoli, it can have fibers that cause problems. Great planning ahead! Best wishes for all that upcoming activity!

Hey Leigha! You are so right about everyone being different! You have done the "research" for your body and found what works for you. You are also very close to goal! Yay! I think some bandsters tend to eat too little without considering the consequences thinking that less is more when it comes to weight loss. For me, when I tried low carb pre-surgery, I had zero energy. I was doing martial arts at the time, and needed the quick bursts that carbs give. If I drop below 1000 calories a day, my loss grinds to a halt. Well, ok, it has mostly stopped anyway, as I am about where I want to be. I think calorie intake is something to look at if losses have stopped and the person doesn't know why.

As a "couch potato" I though I'd chime in on the topic. :cursing: I can't agree more. As I don't have the energy expenditure of an avid exerciser, I can't take in as many calories, but I still don't do a very low calorie diet. I consume around 1200 calories a day. I am still losing at a VERY slow rate. Due to some recent medical issues, I have not been as active as I was up to a couple of months ago. But I often suggest to people here to try upping their daily calories if their losses have come to a standstill and they report consuming less than 1000 a day.

Hi There! Glad to see you got your band. Sorry you had a rough night. :cursing: If your medicine makes you sick, call your doc and ask for a different one. There are many choices out there. The first couple of days are the worst. Each person's recovery is different. I didn't feel much like doing anything beyond walking, walking, walking up and down my hall the first week. I also loved my heating pad on my tummy. I was part of the felt like I'd been "Hit by a Mack Truck" group. I didn't make my first official outing until a week after my surgery. So, take care of yourself, take it easy, and walk, walk, walk! Hope you feel better soon!!

Hey Leigha, way to go! Those last few pounds will be the buggers of the bunch!! My BP is still in the toilet. But yesterday and today I did see the top number reach into triple digits! Yay. My energy level is still pretty low, and I get winded very easily. I have been using the salt shaker with glee, hoping that will bring it up. The 24 hour heart monitor came back normal, so that was good news, but no answer. They are going to do a colonoscopy on June 18, woopie. Since I have still been having some issues with that, and they don't have a definite diagnosis on the c.diff. UGH. The good news? I am down another pound! Need to update my ticker! If this keeps up, I'll reach goal by being sick...yeah, not the best way to go about it. I think Leigha's way is MUCH better! I had once again been tossing about the idea of a fill, until I got uber stuck on the artichoke last night. Plus I am not gaining weight and am so close to goal, I probably don't really need one.