beautifultina

Cranberry-mango Salsa 12 oz bag fresh cranberries, picked over and stemmed 1 cup Splenda 2 small ripe mangos, peeled,pitted, and diced 2/3 cup finely diced yellow or red bell pepper 1/3 cup finely diced red onion Zest and juice from 1 small lime 2 jalapeno chilies, seeded and minced (3 tbsp) 2 tbsp olive oil 1 tbsp peeled and finely minced fresh ginger 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/4 cup chopped cilantro Place cranberries and splenda in a food processor (or magic bullet); pulse until berries are coursely chopped. Transfer mixture to a meduim bowl. Add remaining ingredients, except cilantro. Stir until blended and splenda is disolved. Cover and refrigerate. (make salsa at least 6 hours ahead, for flavors to develop.) Stir in cilantro just before serving. makes 4 cups enjoy

glad this was brought up. I am about 15 weeks post op and have already had two fills. I have lost approxamately 40 pounds. I still feel no restriction. I actually felt more restriction after my surgery than i have since having my fills. I am concerned in that my surgeon put a 4 cc band on me and i have already had 2, 1 cc fills. I am HALF FULL and still not feeling restricted !!! WHAT is wrong with me? It is taking sheer will power to push myself away from the table!! My surgeon even did an UPPER GI to assure me that I really am Banded. I feel that the only thing i have to show for from my surgery is 5 small, well-healing scars on my abdomen and huge doctor bills that keep pileing in. I am starting to wonder in my mind if I should have opted for the gastric bypass instead. I am not feeling very encouraged at all.

Bensmum...you and your family are in for the time of your life up at LAKE TAHOE. I absolutely love it up there. I am from Reno and the Lake is only 45 min away for me. i find it to be a place where I actually feel closer to God. (no , I don't think it's just the elevation!!) LOL :laugh It is breathtakingly beautiful and I pray that you too will find it this way. My only word of caution AVOID THE BUFFETS!! Wishing you and your family and my new family members here on Lap Band Talk the Happiest and Safest of THANKSGIVINGS!!!!! May God continue to bless you along your journey.:Bunny

ok i USED to have a cool one. but i seem to have lost it and now i cant remember how to put on on. can anyone walk me through it . if you can also give me hints on how to update it with out losing it. i have the web site and cant figure out how to attach it to my signature. thanks for your help!!

I am trying to explain to a friend soe of the things that the lap band can help as far as co morbitities are concerned. i started a list but know that more are out there. please help. Diabetes Melitus hypertension coronary heart disease stroke Congestive Heart Failure Restrictive lung disease Sleep Apnea Degenerative Arthritis Infertility GERD Increased risk of Breast or Uteran Cancer Varicose Veins Psychological Incapacity

i think ashtma would fall under that

HA HA HA I went to EMT school in Colubus, GA. My instructor's name was Nate Bader. He was a Master Paramedic. When we had clinicals we had to formally address him as Master Bader. SO NOT KIDDING!! I remember hollering across the ER for MASTER BADER! I still see the patients reactions to hearing us call out his name! picking myself up off the floor from laughing so hard.

i have been told the number one rule to never break is EXERCISE EVERYDAY!!! I have broken it myself and was pleasantly reminded by my personal trainer that she could tell that i havent been exercising. I found an atricle about eating after surgery i will try to share it with you here: After surgery, you will find that you need to make changes in your eating patterns, not only to prevent pain and vomiting, but also to produce the desired weightloss. Perhaps even more important is the development of appropriate eating habits to prevent band slippage and obstruction of the stoma( the opening for food leaving the upper stomach). EAT SLOWLY AND CHEW FOODS UNTIL THEY REACH A MUSHY CONSISTENCY. Swallowing food in chunks may block the opening and prevent the passage of food. the following are some hints to help you eat more slowly. 1.Set aside 30-45 minutes to eat each meal. 2. Actually count the number of times you chew each bite. Aim for 30. 3. Make an EAT SLOWLY sign and place on the table infront of you . 4. Explain to family members why you must eat slowly so they will not urge you to eat faster. 5. Take small bites of food. You may want to try eating with a baby spoon. 6. Pay attention to taste. Learn to savor each bite, noticing its flavor, texture, and consistency. 7. Chew well. Ground or very soft food may be necessary if you have dentures. Stop eating as soon as you are full. Besides causing you to vomit, extra food over a period of time may stretch your stomach. Indications of fullness may be: 1. A feeling of pressure or fullness in the center of your abdomen just below the rib cage. 2. Feelings of nausea. 3. Pain in your shoulder area or upper chest. If you start vomiting, and it continues throughout the day, stop eating solid foods and just sip clear liquids(gelain, clear juice, broth, and tea). The vomiting may indicate that your outlet is blocked. If intermittent vomiting comtinues for more than 24 hours, contact your doctor. Most vomiting episodes can be prevented. The causes of vomiting are: 1. Eating too fast and not chewing food properly. 2. Eating too much at a meal. 3. Drinking liquids right after eating. 4. Lying down after a meal. 5. Eating foods that don't agree with you.

not had a fill yet but would love to see the answer to this good question so i will have to come back.

i truely feel awful for my confession about thinking bad things about other large people and i want to apologize to anyone who found it to be offensive.

i thought i too was the only one who asks friends and loved ones to comapre me to other large people i see. Most times they will say no you arent THAT big. I think they are just trying to be nice. I would like to see a software program where you could input your picture with your height and weight and it could show you a picture of yourself at your goal weight. THAT would be something that would TRUELY motivate me. I have to also confess that when I see large women that I will say awful things (never outloud mind you) like: my god if i ever get that fat i would just be too embarrassed to leave the house or you would think that she was too fat to fit down the isle of a grocery store or maybe she has a frequent flyer progam at Mc Donald's. then i look down and see that i too am as big if not bigger than the person i am putting down in my head and realize that i need to grow up and shut up!! thank you for the therapy here. i need to realize that at least they are out there trying and making a difference in thier lives. like i said i need to grow up as far as my self image is concerned.

i had a similar dream the night before my surgery. i kept dreaming that i woke up from my surgery with out a band, they saqid to me in my dream.. you are just too fat and we cant even lift your fatty liver to get to your gigantic black hole of a stomach. i cried in my dream and i was woken up by harry (my SO) because i was actually crying in my sleep with tears and the runny nose and it woke him up! lol they are just our worst fears being dealt with. don't worry. just do what you have to. i am trying my best not to ruin my chance that i have been given with this band.

my doctor made me lose 10 % of my excess body fat before allowing me to have the surgery. it was not an insurance requirement. Every insurance is different and so is every doc. nothing is written in stone (would be sooooo much easier if it were). best of luck with your fill.

we were told not to chew gum at all. i forgot all about my band and chewed a piece for about 15 min and spit it out when i realized what i was doing....i had a stomach ache from all the gas in my stomach from chewing the gum.hard lesson to learn. gas x chewables ARE my friend.

Kathy...I get the hiccups (actually i get the schreeches...i sound like a teradactal [? spelling? ~ bird dinosoar] making a mateing call now when i get the hiccups) after only two or three bites of food... i am 35 days post op and not yet had a fill (i am fearful of getting one). Could it really be a warning sign that I am full?? I hope that could be; would be a good one..it sure would be obvious to me and those within a 50 foot radius of me.

Vine...you are an inspiration to all. you stay up front and you keep your great smile on your face and you show your class of skinny 20 somethings that you can do and you will do it with grace and style!! YOU GO GIRL!!! I went and saw a personal trainer today. I am 35 days post op today and have been very very lack luster on my exercise. I need to bump it up! She told me aobut preparing my meals ahead of time and measureing everything out and when it is done get up clean up and walk away. makes sense and sounds easy. I just hope it will be when it comes time to actually push myself away from the table. I made my oatmeal for breakfast and meausred my serving sizes into small plastic containers with my splenda and my cinnamon seasoning. they are ready to go! I even made a few things of SF jello to assist myself in being prepared for the up comming week. My next goal is to figure out my lunches and pre measure everything so that I will be ready to roll when the times comes for me to get out the door in the morning. back to my point about my personal trainer she told me that to lose weight i need to exercise for a MINIMUM of 30 min 5 days a week. any less than that and i am setting myself up for future failure with my lapband. (by the way my personal trainer is also the woman who approves or denies approvals for the lap band for our local veteran's hospital) She has been with it for 5 years and said there are two characteristics of people who make thier goal and keep the weight off...1 they exercise on a regular basis and keep it a part of thier everyday life after they met thier goal. 2) those who avoid alcohol. the drinking is some how tied to gaining the weight back after goal is met. She was a plethera of knowledge for me and i tried like hell to absorb everything she said like a sponge. today my exercise will be going swimming... (not flaoting around like i normally do) but swimming for 30 minutes. best of luck to you all in your continued sucesses !!

With all the devistation that we are seeing on TV of the Wrath of Katrina, I sincerly hope to see people stepping up to the plate like they did for September 11, and for the Tsunami victims. I would be highly disapointed to hear other countries saying once again that we are the richest nation in the world and don't need any help. I say if other countries are not willing to help us in our time of need then they best learn to keep thier hand at their side and not have it held out to us the next time something awful happens to them. Carma can be a bitch!!! I would like to see major fund raising being done for the entire area..not just New Orleans. If we can extend our hearts and minds and pocketbooks to people of other countries, I can only imagine what Americans can do for thier own! God bless the people who have been affected by this disaster and those who are helping them!!!

ok i am going to try to post some pics of my incisions.wish me luck. these were taken 2 days post op. i am not sure how they will turn out. maybe a mod can look at them and help me to display them so they aren't so distorted. thanks you guys!!

Bring presents for me as it is my birthday!! Just kidding..Reno is too far a drive for me to make it.

Then: Sesame Street..I was convinced that I was going to marry GROVER!!! The Cosby Show Dukes of Hazzard The Electric Company The Muppet Show The CBS EVENING NEWS with DAN RATHER..My dream was to replace him..didn't quite work out for me. Now: ER LAS VEGAS Boston Legal Dr Phil Oprah

I have been a medical assistant for 12 years. I was tired of being laid off every 6-12 months so i decided to go back to school. only problem with that was none of the doctors in my area were willing to work with my school schedule. I took a low paying job at a local grocery store (yes dumb move to work with food). I do cashering and bookkeeping for them. the last three semesters I have not been able to afford to go to school (pay was not enough to pay for romm and board and bills and school). I am trying to get back in this fall to get my RN. If i have to take out student loans i will. I am tired of working so that others may enjoy the fruits of my labor. My birthday is less than a week a way and at 31 this is NO WHERE NEAR where I had planned to be with my life. I am single (as in not married), no kids, never been married. I do live with my boyfriend (who is very good to me). This thread is very cool to read. I enjoy seeing how so many people do so much to give back to the community and thier families. Be grateful for the lives you have.

I don't miss a thing! I too was never a big soda pop drinker. I can hardly wait to see just how much weight I can lose with the band. I feel a new sense of freedom. freedom from my old self and my old ways. I find that not eating has left me more time to do the things i need to and the loss of weight gives me the energy to do them. I do have cravings...big ones.... I do give into them. I eat a few chips and salsa. I eat a couple of bites of ice cream. I eat for my physical health now not my mental health. I used to feed my feelings, now I feed my hunger. Why do I give into a few bites of my favorites? I still have a fear of them overpowering me. I am scared of over eating. I am scared of losing control. I am scared of being a lap band failure. If i control when i give into my cravings i feel that i can also control how much i give in. i have eaten one chip dipped in guacamole and I have also eaten like 7 or 8. I feel that i ate more the longer that i tried to put the craving out my mind. i almost felt obsessed. I realized that one or two bites is so much better for me than the larger portions.

have you tried measuring your foods as you put them on your plate? your new stomach (as I have heard ) can only hold up to 1/2 cup at a time. I measure my food out and once its gone its gone. I get up and walk away. go brush my teeth. If I am still longing to sit and eat i grab a sugar free popcicle and distract myself with something else. try preparing your meals in pre-measured containers and just re heat the container in the microwave. I have been reminded that you can tell a person to exercise and lose weight and it could happen. you need to do it. i could tell you to dig a trench that is 8 feet wide by 15 feet long and give you a plastic spoon to help you. Or i could ask you to dig the same trench and give you a back hoe as a tool to help you. obvioulsy you would choose the back hoe. but the thing is with both.. YOU still have to do the work. Your band is only a tool. Use it to its max potential. Best of luck to you.

GREAT WAY TO THINK ABOUT IT ALEXANDRA!!! I love a positive attitude! I only want mine removed if my life is threated with it in.otherwise..burry me with it and let the people of the future dig me up and guess at the multitude of reasons for it being in my corpse.

Banded on july 26,2005 weight was 303 pounds day of surgery weight now is 283 (august 19) wear a size 26 pant they are now loose and i refuse to buy new threads unitl my boss yells at me for my pants being around my ankles! Height 5'2 1/2" i have 158 more pounds to lose to reach my goal!