divaofsongs

Hello everyone, I have not posted in several months but I wanted to say hello and check in with everyone. I am now down 110 pounds with 126 to go but feeling really great. I miss chatting and posting but I have a new position at work which requires about 60 hours a week so I have been super busy. I hope all is well with everyone. I was just reading through the posts and it looks like everyone is doing great. Congrats to all on your successes.

Hello everyone, it has been a while since I've posted. How is everyone? Just wanted to check and say hello.

I can't figure out how to post the after image but I have to tell you that I would give myself a hysterectomy with a meat fork to look even remotely like the "me now" photo at 325 pounds. I think they need to add a whole lot more width and girth to the before picture which you will find below.

ROFLMAO! That is funny.

LMFAO!!!!!!!!!! This thread is far more entertaining than the movie I rented. "Don't get your charcoal underwear in a twist!" That is classic. I went to the website for the charcoal panties and there is an instructional video that shows how to position the charcoal liner in "just the right spot" so it can catch the fart and filter the odor before it hits the air. WTF? I think I might get some of these for my DH the next time we go out for Mexican food. He always gets beans, even though he knows he'll clear the house later. Pick A Quote or Make Your Own "I may get food stuck in my stoma but at least my farts won't put you in a coma." "It may take me a little longer to reach goal but at least I don't have to put deodorant drops in the toilet bowl." "I may gag and sometimes yack but at least my farts are not considered a terrorist attack." Hehehehehe, I definetely am taunting silly, childish rhymes.

I am just starting to be able to feel my port. I have lost almost 70 pounds and still have about 150 pounds to go. Yesterday, I leaned against a desk at work and it hurt a little because I was pressing on the port.

It is funny..................NOW, and everytime I think about it, I laugh. But, at the time, I was totally embarrassed. I just kept thinking, "What if they are on their way to get a family portrait or something." I think the funniest part was watching the mother gag, over and over again, almost causing herself to throw up, as she pulled the slimy mess from her daughter's hair. Anyone who has ever slimed before knows that stuff is like neverending strands of goop. It is really hard to get a breaking point. I thought for sure she was going to be joining me for a puke fest but she managed to get her daughter cleaned up without adding to the incident.

My worst PB'ing episode ever was at Cracker Barrel. I was eating scrambled eggs too fast and got that familiar feeling of "Oh my God, it's coming up, like it or not." I got up and walked quickly towards the bathroom. As I was walking, my mouth was filling up with slime. I got to the bathroom door and as I reached to open it, a little girl jumped in front of me and stopped. I couldn't open the door........... I looked down at her with that "Deer in the headlights" look and BAMMMM! Threw up right in her hair!:biggrin: She was so cute too, before the slime covered scrambled eggs landed in her little pigtails. Her mother was mortified! She looked at me with disgust and disbelief and grabbed her daughter. She yelled,:thumbup: "What is wrong with you? Are you crazy?" I offered to clean the slime covered eggs from her little girls hair as I continued to slime and gag in the neighboring stall but she was too pissed to accept my offer. (Some people are so ungrateful!) As I was leaving the bathroom, I saw her and her family standing by the front door. All of them had on their Sunday best. Appearantly, they were all on their way to church or something. I felt awful. I am very careful now, I don't eat eggs in public anymore.

No less than 7 times a day. Once in the morning before I use the bathroom, then once after I am done using the bathroom; before I eat lunch, after I eat lunch; before I eat dinner, after I eat dinner; before I go to bed; and a few times in between. If I wake up in the middle of the night to pee, I weigh myself then too. UNREAL! After reading my own post, I am throwing the scale in the attic!

My doctor was against it. He wanted me to have GBS. He made the most ignorant remark to me the other day, he said, "Lap-band is the most dangerous surgery you can have." Dohhhh, what a moron.

Hi everyone, I am sorry I haven't been able to post lately but I have been super busy. Just wanted to pop in and say hello.

Hello everyone, I have only lost 50 pounds so far, but I think there is a difference. Let me know what you think. I took this picture yesterday after trying on a blouse I bought a year ago and it finally fit me. My face looks awful because I have been sick with the flu, just look at the bod... LOL. By the way, everyone looks awesome.

I met WASA on this board before I had my surgery and was trying to find a decently priced GOOD surgeon and was speaking with WASA about it. By the way, I contacted her, she did not contact me. We spoke for hours, several times, and NOT ONCE did she EVER try to push me to go to her doctor. She helped me research the best doctor for ME, which was in the states, not Mexico. I asked her about her doctor and she gave me her opinion but told me I needed to do my own research and find the right doctor for me. She never tried to encourage or coerce me in any way. WASA truly cared about me and my well-being with NO STRINGS ATTACHED. She is a wonderful, caring person and wants to see what its best for people who are really trying to change their lives. If indeed she was a patient coordinator, then she sure isn't doing a very good job trying to get people to use "her" doctor. Which by the way, I researched Dr. Aceves and he is a fantastic doctor. I would use him in a NY minute. I chose to have my surgery in the USA, but not because I felt I would get inadequate care in another country.

Hello Everyone! Sorry I have not posted in a while but in addition to working and going to school, my dad has been in the hospital with acute pancreatitis so my world has been shaken. I had my second fill on Tuesday and the weight loss has taken off again. I have officially lost 50 pounds now since the day of my surgery, December 13th 2007. I am so tight now I can barely swallow but I love it. I have 6.75 cc's in a 14cc band. It really makes me slow down and pay attention to what and how much I am eating. Just wanted to drop in and say hi.

It was really great meeting all of you. I can't wait til we do it again!

I was banded on Dec 13, 2007 and will be getting my first fill this Wednesday. Does anyone have the 14CC band, and if so, how many CC's of saline did you need to get to good restriction? Also, when the APS and APL are filled to capacity, do they both offer the same amount of restriction or is it possible to have a band that is too big for you and never really get to full restriction? I swear, I better get good restriction from this APL or I will grab a knife and a HEFTY TWIST-TIE and do it myself! :tongue:

Since I was banded on December 13, 2007, I have had a real issue with smells also. It seems that I have a heightened sense of smell and I cannot stand the smell of perfumes any longer. I have never had this issue before the band but from the day of my surgery, every perfume smells spoiled to me. I wonder if there is any correlation?

Mal, I am so sorry you were in so much pain. I have a friend that had kidney stones and he thought he was dying too. I have heard it is the WORST pain you can ever have. The good news is that once the stones pass, the pain usually ends quickly. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

I love all the new emoticons, some of them are too funny. I am very vivacious. When I speak to someone in person, I use a lot of hand motions and facial expressions, so using the emoticons help me convey myself more appropriately. I hope you fell better soon, it sucks to gain back weight you have lost. I have gained 4 pounds back but I have neglected to update my ticker because I just got my first fill on Wednesday. Since the fill, I am tighter than a toddler's t-shirt on a grown man, so the 4 pounds should come off quickly, along with a few of their friends. By the way, you are a very beautiful woman. Keep up the great work, you look fabulous.

41 pounds is great, but I lost the majority of that on my pre-op diet. I had not lost anything for close to 2 weeks and had actually gained a few pounds back until I had my first fill this past Wednesday. I was given a 3.25cc fill under flouro and I could immediately feel the tightness. It felt a little like the first week after surgery, just without the pain in my incisions. I now have some restriction and can eat about 3/4 cup of food before I feel full. I now must battle the head hunger, because even though I am full when I finish my meal, I am looking for more to eat within a few hours. Not because I am hungry, but because I like to eat.

I stayed at the Raddison Hotel Denver Southeast on 3200 Parker Rd in Aurora, Co. You have to book the room through Hotels.com with at least a 7 day advance purchase and you can get the room for $59 a night. The regular room rate is over $125.00 per night. It is a really nice hotel, I definetely recommend it.

.......some saline in my band that is. Hello everyone! Sorry I haven't posted in a while but I have been working over 60 hours a week and going to school full time, :svengo:NOT cute. I just wanted to drop in and see how everyone is doing. I had my first fill on Wednesday with Dr. Berger in Flagstaff, AZ. L.A. posted pics of me and her and the "hottie" doc:drool5:. He looks like one of those soap opera docs, you know, the ones that get freaky with the patients when the door is closed (at least that was my initial thought when I saw him.) I told him, if I knew he looked that good, I would have paid the extra money to have him do my band. I would love for him to put his fingers in me!:redface: Every time he came close to me, I had an uncontrollable urge to back my big ol' bootie up to him and bend over,:hurray: LOL!!!!! I got 3.25cc's in my 14cc band and I finally have some restriction. I have not even been hungry since I got the fill, but my stomach sure is making a ridiculous amount of noise. I have named my band "Simba", because it is constantly making my stomach roar like a lion. I work as a sales trainer, and the other night my stomach was so loud that my entire class stopped what they were doing and asked if I was ok because my stomach was making so much noise. I put my hands across my stomach and yelled, "Settle down in there Simba, foods a comin'!" They all looked at me like I was crazy. Poor L.A., she had to put up with my eccentric personality for over 5 hours.:out: Unfortunately for her, I forgot to tell her that when I don't get enough sleep, I act like a moron and laugh at almost anything. Oh, and I talk, talk, talk, I just can't keep my mouth shut for 1 minute. I'm sure that half-way through the trip to Flagstaff, she was looking for some duct tape for my big mouth.:wink2: I wouldn't be suprised if she went home and ordered a straight jacket for our next encounter. Nevertheless, she was an absolute pleasure to spend the afternoon with. Thanks for coming along L.A., maybe next time I can get the docs clothes off, then WHO KNOWS what could happen from there!!!!!:eek: :frown: If I start going to Flagstaff every 3 days, it's only because I really need a FILL! I hope everyone has a great weekend.

I went to my PCP two years ago and asked for diet pills. He refused to give them to me and said, "Your only hope is the gastric bypass surgery. You will NEVER lose the weight you have to lose without surgery. You can try every diet in the book but it will not work for you. Your case is hopeless, so without the gastric bypass, you might as well keep eating what you want until you die, because that is exactly what is going to happen if you don't get the gastric bypass surgery." I said, "What about the Lap-Band?" He replied, "The Lap-Band would NEVER work for you, you are way too big for the band to be effective. Your case requires extreme measures, so don't even waste yur time or money on the Lap-band because you are far too out of control for the band to work. You would just eat around the band and never get proper aftercare because of your fierce addiction to food." I was unable to walk away after that conversation without cursing him out, so let's just say that my PCP is no longer my PCP, and he learned a few "new" words that day. I will not elaborate on WHAT the "new" words were, but I will tell you that when you are truly PISSED, you can make up some doozies from a combination of "not socially appropriate" four-letter, foul words.

Thank you all so very much for the information. I get my first fill under flouro today, so I will let all of you know how it goes. P.S. Would love to hear anymore info or personal stories on the success of the 14cc band.

Thanks for the reply. I have heard others with a 14cc band complaining about its effectiveness, so I just want some concrete facts. I appreciate the information.