Parvathi

I'm from upstate SC, but moved to Australia 5 years ago, so have absolutely no decent info on band doctors in SC - sorry

Wow - that's amazing!! Thanks for replying, Paulax

I too, love my salads. But umm, I tend to fill them with horrible for me stuff lol. A typical salad for me is mixed baby asian greens (huge serve, cause it mushes up good in the end lol), 4 or 5 green/black olives, a slice of onion chopped, a few baby carrots diced, alfalfa sprouts, bean shoots, chopped lowfat leg ham or tuna or chicken, a bit of shredded cheese, diced celery if I have some, as well as diced capsicum .. but then I smother the lot in ranch dressing with hot sauce lol. So while it has plenty of nutrients in it, its loaded with fat from the olives, cheese and dressing. It is without a doubt though, my favorite food. Most nights (when I'm not on this freakin liquid diet lol), I'll have a salad, even if I fix something else for the family. Luckily its one of those things I've not had any trouble getting down. Earlier this year, I actually went for 2 whole months, having a bowl of salad for dinner every night, without even realizing til a friend started making fun of me.

I can eat anything that deli counter throws at me; but my favorites are salami, kalamata olives, sundried tomatoes and triple smoked leg ham. I only seem to have trouble with cheese when its melted (ie, no way in the world would I try one of those fried mozerella cheese stick things lol), but can do stuff like mac n cheese in small portions, as long as it's creamy. Okay, that last paragraph got totally off the deli topic lol - sorry.

I started to read this whole thread, but then decided it'd just get me frustrated lol. So I thought I'd throw in my 2 cents on the subject and hopefully, be done with it As an ex-pat, now living in Australia where I feel safe to walk the streets at night, I've gained plenty of new perspective that I did not have when I was sitting in small town SC voting. Growing up, I campaigned with my Grandfather for our local Republican congressmen and such. I even sat my freckled arse in a dunking booth and endured freezing cold Water for the cause. Then I grew up. When it was my turn to vote at the age of 18, I voted for Clinton. I later kicked myself lol. Not because he had an affair, honestly, I could care less about that. But because I feel he didn't have his eye on the ball as much as he could have. Now, I don't consider myself a republican, nor do I consider myself a democrat. I consider myself the most informed individual I can possibly be on the subject and vote accordingly (via absentee ballot). I was raised to believe that you show respect for the President of the United States. Even though I may not agree with things President Bush has done, nor did I agree with many things President Clinton did, I respect them both for having the courage to accept the position. It would not be an easy job. It would be, for the most part, a thankless job. Either way, people are going to hate you, all over the world. I feel that most politicians enter into the line of service, to do good. It's the politics and red tape and bureaucracy that keeps them from doing that. My husband worked in government for several years. He told me stories of how the politician he worked for was a good man and how he had things he wanted to get done in office. He had steps in place to get those things done. Unfortunately, the people that were employed in his office either a) didn't want those specific things done b)didn't want to work. They would say in the office for anyone to hear, "He'll be out of office in another two years - we'll just keep putting it off tail then." Sadly, it seems to happen all the time. I feel that worldwide, people are losing confidence and respect in not only the office of President of the United States, but in the USA as a whole, at an incredible speed, which saddens me. I of course, don't have the answers. I just hope and pray that the man or women that does, puts their hand up for the job and the American people are informed enough to do the right thing and vote them into office.

Hey Kelley - Welcome to LBT and congratulations on your new band. Making it through the liquid stage can be rough! Feeling a bit hungrier though is normal, as the swelling in your stomach from surgery has probably now gone down. If you have any questions, feel free to ask away. That's what we're all here for

Like leatha_g, I had a slippage that didn't repair itself completely when they unfilled me, so they took my back out and replaced it in the same surgery. Everything went fine and has been much easier to heal from than the original banding (maybe I have a higher tolerance for pain now, or maybe its because they didn't have to sew in a new port?) I had to do liquids the first time around to shrink the liver, but this time, due to how much weight I've already lost, the surgeon said it was unnecessary. Each surgeon is different though and especially if they're going to be poking around in there (for the exploratory surgery), you want to stick w/ what the surgeon suggests. They have their reasons Also keep in mind that if they replace the band, its like being banded all over again, so you'll probably have to follow the liquids, then mushies, then solids thing, as I am doing now. Good luck with it all and I hope she finds the issue!

If you decide to jump in, pop a waterproof bandage over top of where you got your fill.

*hugs* sorry you had to go through that. I can't offer much other than to say some people are real assholes. Try not to let him get to you.

Hi cindyn, I haven't seen that one used, thus far :/ What is it in relation to? Here's a page with some of the acronyms you may see floating around here though...

I believe I read it was the bypass he had, but who believes what they read these days? lol Yea, I agree with you that she probably didn't have any surgery at all and is just unwell. Was just saying I could see why someone would do it as a preventitive measure.

What an exciting time for you, sherilynn! You probably know everything you need to ask him or her, after being here for a couple of months. Heck, you probably even know the answers he or she will give you to your questions lol. The most important thing for me in the beginning, was finding a surgeon I felt confident with. Someone with a ton of practical experience in banding that I felt I'd be able to deal with for well, the rest of my life, cause that's how long I intend to keep my band. Good luck with it all and here's hoping your waiting time for the surgery isn't too long.

Happy Bandiversary, Spydr!!! and a huge congrats on your accomplishments over the past year. Here's to many many more

Whilst it helped with the physical side of binge eating (ie, I can't fit a whole pizza in anymore, or a bag of chips), it didn't help with the emotional side of binge eating (ie, if my band weren't tight enough, I'd still do it). As many before me have said, I wish they could band my head.

When my band slipped, I was at a BMI of 25.5 .. not ideal, but *very* close (even though I couldn't see that in the mirror). I didn't think twice about being rebanded to keep from piling on weight (which, of course, I ended up doing between the time I slipped and the time I was rebanded). I can definitely see why someone who struggles with self esteem/self image issues and is constantly being called fat in the media for the whole world to see (as Nicole was, back when she first started filming Simple Life) would choose to take preventitive measures to ensure they didn't become obese. Is it the right thing to do? Who knows. Fact is though, we live in a world where being overweight is not socially acceptable, even though the majority of the US and Aus are technically overweight.

I think alot of us go through that. In March, when I was at my smallest since banding (74kgs), I still felt huge. One thing I've always used to kind of get it through my head where I was actually at, is pictures. I have those horrible preband really BIG pictures. Well, one day I was complaining to my hubby about still being too big and this that and the other. As I was getting ready for work, he grabbed the camera and snapped a pictures - of my ass LOL. When he emailed it to me, I was like .. OMG, WOW!!! It didn't look like the ass of the person I saw in the mirror looking back at me. I think a key part of becoming happy with who we are is working on the head as well as the body. Therapy can do wonders for how you perceive yourself. I only hope that one day, I'll be happy with that self image...

Great news!! Hope that fixes it for you

Hey Credo, Welcome to LBT and congratulations on being banded It sounds like you've got everything under control at this stage, which is great. As your doc said, give the fill some time. One thing that some bandsters find help if its those first few bites that get stuck, is to drink a warm drink before eating - a cuppa tea perhaps. It just loosens things up a bit for some. If you have any questions, just shout out and I'm sure someone here can help.

LOL .. that's what we need to do - schedule a bandsters get together on a remote island! Would be a blast :peep:

<hijacks thread> Hey Jenny!! Long time no see! How are ya? </hijack thread> I've never heard of the soda Water thing but will definitely keep it in mind for those mornings I can't get anything down...

Simple answer - I'm picky. I "interviewed" 3 surgeons before deciding on one. I had scheduled four consults, but after the third one I knew I had found my man lol. The first two surgeons I saw, were very easy to talk to, didn't require me to "jump through hoops" and didn't require a pre-op diet. They made it sound easy as pie, which of course, in a way you want it to be. Then I saw Mr. Crosthwaite. Whilst he wasn't the most personable man in the world, he seemed more than competant. He explained the pros and cons in detail. He told me why he went into this line of work. He told me that he'd prefer if I saw a therapist, that I MUST exercise and that I'd be required to do a pre op diet. And he explained why all of that had to be done. While it made it a bit harder to do, in the long run, I felt there was a reason behind it and it was for my own benefit. I'm not saying Mr. Nottle isn't a good surgeon. I'm sure he is and I've heard nothing but good things about his work. I guess I just needed something different. A revision surgery, in my case, is where they go in and replace the band with a new one. Mine slipped a few months back. I paid nothing out of pocket to have it replaced.

Congratulations on the job! Now you have no excuse not to exercise lol ... that's scary :peep: Regarding the unfills and PBing though - have you had a barium swallow? I just ask because that's what was happening to me before my slippage was diagnosed, just kept getting too tight and being unfilled. Not trying to scare you at all, just don't want to see others end up like me.

Having been here over a year now, I see this struggle creep up atleast once a week. HERE is the best thread and advice I've ever read regarding it - I can't offer any better information than what the wise and wonderful La_Madam did way back then.

I lost count of how many fills I've received ages ago :/ For the first few months after being banded, I saw my doctor weekly, then fortnightly. We took the whole fill process very slow and usually went up in 0.1ml increments after the initial 1.0ml fill. He didn't do it under fluro, but every doctor has their own set of preferences I suppose.

I didn't know that, but for me, the decision came down to a) the band is reversible :peep: the band does not reroute anything c) the band has no dumping d) the band is a safer, more effective, procedure in the long run. We may not lose as fast as the other guys, but it comes off in the end. Guess it all just depends on what you're looking to get out of it?