bandpal

Here's my favorite recipe for hummus Hummus bi Tahina (Chickpea and Sesame Dip) 125 g (4 oz) chickpeas, soaked for a few hours juice of 2 lemons 3 Tbs. tahina 2 garlic cloves, crushed salt GARNISH 1 Tbs. olive oil 1 tsp. paprika a few sprigs of parsley, finely chopped - Drain the chickpeas and simmer in fresh Water for about an hour or until tender. Reserve the cooking water. - Process the chickpeas in a blender (or food processor) with the lemon juice, tahina, garlic, salt and enough of the cooking liquid to obtain a soft creamy consistency. Serve on a flat plate, garnished with a dribble of olive oil, a dusting of paprika (this is usually done in the shape of a cross) and a little parsley. Serve with warm pita bread for dipping. Serves 4-6.

Hi Everyone, It's Friday night in Israel and my house is filled with squeaky - clean kids and the smells of a big Friday night dinner coming from the kitchen. I'll have a small plate of hummus and tahina while everyone else chows down on pot roast, and then half a bowl of clear Soup two hours later. I walked outside for about 50 minutes under bright sunshine and felt one day, slowly-slowly closer to being 100%. It's great to see new people here - welcome to hungryforchange (congrats on the weight loss!), Karmen (you certainly don't have to be having problems to belong here) and marissa (2 miles in 38 minutes is more than I did today - how is the weather in NC now?) ! Tlwempen - Glad you are feeling better, way to go. Skinnyjill - yep, pangs here too, but definitely a smaller appetite and hungry for longer especially considering the small amounts I have eaten. Towens - hope the port pain is better - I definitely have some sore spots, but I can live with them as long as the kids hold off on the flying hugs, which they are being very good about. MarilynC - Great to have a colleague on board! 8 - 11 is a nice age. I was a fifth grade teacher in Manhattan before heading off to Israel. I didn't have very good luck here- ended up in tough schools with unmanageable situations. I'm much happier in the world of informal education. My Mom and sister are teachers too. Firebolt - send us a sign! How ya' doin'? All the best - have a great weekend!

Thank you, Rain, this was exactly what I was concerned about, I didn't phrase it quite right. Thanks to all who replied.

Dear Kandiceb, travelgirl and foofy, thank you all for your warm replies. - Kandiceb, save a place for me in Banders Hell. I got an fill appointment for January 1, 2008. I'm going to talk to my surgeon's office and see if they can move it up. Anyway, time to practice what I preach... -travelgirl, glad I refreshed you - don't be a lurker! -Foofy, glad the rededication thing resonated with you. I said a short prayer before my first meal today, something I don't ordinarily do. It's amazing how little it took to fill me up. Later today, I dropped in at work for a staff meeting and had no desire to snack at whatever was on the table, and didn't always ask my self "d-mn, when are they going to stop talking so we can eat lunch!." It was a very different connsciousness for me, my focus and concentration were much improved, and I really enjoyed that. Take care, everyone!

Hi, everyone - I'm on my first day of mushies. While I know not to eat and drink at the same time, I'd like to know, from your experience, how much time should go by after eating before it's okay to drink again. :help:

Hi, everyone - I'm on my first day of mushies. While I know not to eat and drink at the same time, I'd like to know, from your experience, how much time should go by after eating before it's okay to drink again. :help:

These are wonderful bios - moving and inspiring. Thank you to all. Here's mine. My name is David. I'm 47 years old and have been married for ten years. I have four children: a 13 year-old boy, a 7 year-old boy, a 5 year-old girl and a three year-old boy, and a pygmy retriever named Motek ("sweetie" in Hebrew). I live in Israel, on a small kibbutz called Ketura (pop. 500) in the middle of the desert, about half an hour's drive from the Red Sea port city of Eilat. I'm a teacher with a BA in Elementary Ed and an MS in Special Ed. I now work in informal education, designing and implementing educational programs for groups which come to visit our kibbutz and stay at our guest house. I love writing (poetry, stories and songs), reading, hiking and bicycling. My DW is in charge of the volunteers on the kibbutz - young people who have come from all over the world to experience the unique kibbutz lifestyle. A kibbutz is a collective agricultural community. All of our earnings go the kibbutz, and we receive a small monthly stipend adjusted for family size. Our housing , utilities, food, health care and the educational needs of our children are totaly provided for by the kibbutz, and many of our other expenses (telephone, transportation, clothing, etc.) are heavily subsidized. It's an incredibly supportive and interrelated community, and a beautiful one, too (see picture below) . We govern ourselves - all kibbutz members have one vote in our general assembly and are free to leave whenever we want. We grow dates, have 500 dairy cows, have a fish farm in the Red Sea and cultivate fresh Water algae from which we extract and process a pigment called astaxanthin, which is very much in demand. http://farm1.static.flickr.com/74/225357730_eb0c1d6a4f.jpg?v=0 I grew up in New York City, and moved to Israel in 1989 with my first wife after I finished college. We lived in the north of the country for seven years, had my oldest son and then divorced. I re-met DW, an old girlfriend living on Ketura a year later, and we soon picked up where we left off, got married and started making babies. My oldest son and my ex moved back to America a few years later, but he and I are very close, and we see him out here every summer and either winter or spring vacation. I have always been fat, attended my first Weightwatchers meeting when I was 14, gained more weight in college, slimmed down for wedding number one, put it right back (plus, of course), slimmed down again for the divorce, put it right back again (plus again, of course). I've gained 100 pounds in the last ten years, which really set me up as far as meeting the criterea for this operation. WW, OA, therapy - nothing has worked. I believe I can do this - I just need a level playing field, and I'm counting on the band to give it to me. It was time for something new, and I'm feeling good about the decision I made (banded one week ago as of tomorrow) and about moving towards my hopes together with all of you.

That's a great accomplishment, Foofy! Congratulations!

A Cast of Thousands Last night DW went to her EMT/ambulance driver course from 4:00 - 9:00pm. With my staples in and feeling lightheaded for most of the day, I wasn't up to riding herd on our two boys, "3-2B" and "lucky number seven", and our girl, "the feisty fiver". No worries - we farmed out "Lucky" and "Feisty" to friends from 16:00 to 18:00, and one of "3"'s day care aides volunteered to come over the house and keep him entertained. At 18:00 all boats came home to port, and then a friend came over and helped me through dinner, baths, pajamas, books and bed. Not half as bad as I had feared; I apologized to DW for kind of hinting to her that she should stay home, what with "me being only four days from an operation". Wanting to be treated special is definitely another binge trigger for me - something to be aware of and to work on. 35 Pinches Staples came out at the clinic: 35 little pinches, in and out of there in fifteen minutes. I kept the staples and the disposable scissors to show the kids, who were duly impressed. On the way out of the clinic, the head nurse, who has weight issues of her own, threw me a wink and said, sotto voce, "just remember, honey, they operated on your stomach, not your head". What great advice, exactly along my lines of thinking. There are lots of tough decisions to make in the future, new ways of thinking and acting to be developed. I'm just counting on the lap-band to level the playing field, and make it easier for me to make the right moves. Planning on Puree From tomorrow on, I'm on mushies: mostly dairy products, cooked vegetables and purees for a week. I lost 16 pounds on the liquid diet. Are the rest of you also moving on from liquids? What are you all eating out there? Rededicating the Temple In a few weeks, Jews will celebrate the holiday of Chanuka, in which the desecrated Temple in Jerusalem was cleansed and rededicated. Before I put that first forkful of pureed carrots in my mouth tomorrow morning, I want to rededicate my own temple, which has been renewed, and cleansed for a week now, after years and years of abuse. May I use it as it was intended: to provide me with strength, nourishment, health and pleasure; not as a black hole for fear, insecurity, anger and depression.

Lukin, I was just glad that the moment had finally come, and that finally I was going to do something new about this problem that I have wrestled with for nearly my entire life. It had been so long since I had such a feeling of hope... good luck with your surgery tomorrow.

Tlwempen, What's this about how "all the walking i been doing is in the house where it is warm!"?! Who took the kids to a parade right after surgery, huh? And who sat there watching everyone chow down on Taco Jons (what is a Taco Jon - no wait, I probably don't want to know that) and held strong? You sound like the meanest bandster from Manderson, WY! Hope the migraines and non hiccups are passing you by. I've felt light-headed too, I kinda put it down to not eating. All the best,

Ovahkummer, When you're ready, run for the train and we'll be there standing outside the caboose with our arms outstretched to pull you aboard. We shall indeed overcome!

That's my hope for us all!

Good Morning, Firebolt, good to hear from you, too! I hear you on the pang... this is going to be slow going, and not always easy. Good for DH for keeping you on the straight and narrow. Us DH's are pretty good guys, you know? That's great you are keeping up on the walking - a half an hour out under the sun today was quite enough for me, thank you. I've seen people where I live come back from hiatal hernia surgery, sounds like you are doing great. Have a great day,

Thanks, 4jin - I think control is never something I'm going to be able to count on, always something I'm going to have to assert. I'm hoping the band will reinforce that control, give me another reason to think twice and make better choices than I have in the past. Good luck with your upcoming appointments and meetings - keep us in the loop!

Thanks, Towens - I enjoy writing, but I'm not a writer. I'm a former teacher working in informal education, designing and implementing programs for an educational tourism seminar center. I think it's important to share about feelings - acting on them got us to where we are today. I hope the band just makes it hard for me to carry through on harmful thoughts and urges, gives me a little more time to make better decisions. Hope your comfort level is rising and the headaches are fading.

Cast Away at the Clinic Today I hit the streets for the first times since becoming a lapbander, traveling by bus to my local clinic for a post op appointment with my GP. Winters are mild by us (it was 68 and sunny this morning when I left the house) , but the wind comming up the valley can pack a punch. Nevertheless, I wore shorts and a thin sport shirt because this was my first chance to weigh in since the operation. Nice reception at the clinic both from the nurses and the scale: down to 124 Kilo from 130 pre-op. My appointment was delayed by a steady succession of snively young children in and out of the doctor's office; but when he saw me half an hour later, he was pleased, and set me an appointment to have my staples pulled on Tuesday. Back at the medical secretary's desk, I got the latest installment of one of the more amusing side-stories of my lapbanding. My insurance carrier was supposed to, upon approving the procedure, order and procure the lapband and ship it to my clinic, where I was supposed to sign for it and hand deliver it to the hospital. I had to sign a promissory note swearing to have the operation within a year and to pay for then lapband if it wasn't used for it's attended purpose (which begs the question: exactly what else can you use a lap-band for?). Since they only approved the surgery two days before the operation, the band did not arrive in time. "No biggie", said the good folk at my friendly little climic, "just go, ask to use one of theirs and tell them you'll give them yours". "Indeed a biggie", said the hospital people when I showed up bandless. In the end: another promissory note and some dramatics on my part solved everything. Now the band is on its way to my clinic; when it gets here I'll have it messengered up to the hospital. I bet I'm the only person whose ever been banded while their band is still in the mail! Anyway, because of the delay in my appointment, I missed the bus back and was stranded on the highway, shivering in the wind for 40 minutes until DW pulled up to rescue me. I must've looked pretty miserable, because when I woke up from my nap, there was a full pot of her homeade chicken Soup on the stove, and let me tell you, folks - they don't call it Jewish penicillin for nothin'! Sick with Worry? My three and seven year old boys are obviously so happy to have me at home that they have vowed not to let me out of their sights. My little guy came down with strep throat the night I came back from the hospital, and today "lucky number seven" tossed his Cookies at school and had to be airlifted home. sleep is somewhat irregular and I've had a headache or two, but besides that, we're good here - manageable pain, liquids going down OK (broth, oj, clear chicken soup, herbal tea, decaf coffee and H20). "Feelings, nothing more than feelings..." Today was the first day since the operation in which I experienced feelings which would've driven me to binge. Getting stuck out on the road and having two kids at home when I wanted to be relaxing at home by myself - that would 've caused me to beat a quick path to the refrigerator, for sure. I know that the lapband is not a magic pill and that I have to let it help me by not abusing food, which got me to where I was. I was struck by a quote I read here a few days ago: "I believe there are some people who are always destined to become obese, due to their personalities... you can see that people have allowed their obesity to occur because of the way they view things, life and their own behaviour." I believe this, and I know I have to be aware of my character flaws and act differently if I don't want to keep on doing the same things I've always done. What stands out today? Self pity. Sh-t happens, kids get sick, I signed on for all of this and more when I joyfully chose to become a parent, and , as DW said today, "we all share our lives with other people - what are you going to do?". That's all for now - good luck, everybody! __________________ - Bandpal 130/124/68

Cast Away at the Clinic Today I hit the streets for the first times since becoming a lapbander, traveling by bus to my local clinic for a post op appointment with my GP. Winters are mild by us (it was 68 and sunny this morning when I left the house) , but the wind comming up the valley can pack a punch. Nevertheless, I wore shorts and a thin sport shirt because this was my first chance to weigh in since the operation. Nice reception at the clinic both from the nurses and the scale: down to 124 Kilo from 130 pre-op. My appointment was delayed by a steady succession of snively young children in and out of the doctor's office; but when he saw me half an hour later, he was pleased, and set me an appointment to have my staples pulled on Tuesday. Back at the medical secretary's desk, I got the latest installment of one of the more amusing side-stories of my lapbanding. My insurance carrier was supposed to, upon approving the procedure, order and procure the lapband and ship it to my clinic, where I was supposed to sign for it and hand deliver it to the hospital. I had to sign a promissory note swearing to have the operation within a year and to pay for then lapband if it wasn't used for it's intended purpose (which begs the question: exactly what else can you use a lap-band for?). Since they only approved the surgery two days before the operation, the band did not arrive in time. "No biggie" , said the good folk at my friendly little climic, "just go, ask to use one of theirs and tell them you'll give them yours". "Indeed a biggie". said the hospital people when I showed up bandless. In the end: another promissory note and some dramatics on my part solved everything. Now the band is on its way to my clinic; when it gets here I'll have it messengered up to the hospital. I bet I'm the only person whose ever been banded while their band is still in the mail! Anyway, because of the delay in my appointment, I missed the bus back and was stranded on the highway, shivering in the wind for 40 minutes until DW pulled up to rescue me. I must've looked pretty miserable, because when I woke up from my nap, there was a full pot of her homeade chicken soup on the stove, and let me tell you, folks - they don't call it Jewish penicillin for nothin! Sick with Worry? My three and seven year old boys are obviously so happy to have me at home that they have vowed not to let me out of their sights. My little guy came down with strep throat the night I came back from the hospital, and today "lucky number seven" tossed his Cookies at school and had to be airlifted home. sleep is somewhat irregular and I've had a headache or two, but besides that, we're good here - manageable pain, liquids going down OK (broth, oj, clear chicken soup, herbal tea, decaf coffee and H20). Feelings, nothing more than feelings Today was the first day since the operation in which I experienced feelings which would've driven me to binge. Getting stuck out on the road and having two kids at home when I wanted to be relaxing at home by myself - that would 've caused me to beat a quick path to the refrigerator, for sure. I know that the lapband is not a magic pill and that I have to let it help me by not abusing food, which got me to where I was. I was struck by a quote I read here a few days ago: "I believe there are some people who are always destined to become obese, due to their personalities... you can see that people have allowed their obesity to occur because of the way they view things, life and their own behaviour". I believe this, and I know I have to be aware of my character flaws and act differently if I don't want to keep on doing the same things I've always done. What stands out today? Self pity. Sh-t happens: busses are missed. kids get sick, I signed on for all of this and more when I joyfully chose to become a parent, and , as DW said today, "we all share our lives with other people - what are you going to do?" That's all for now - good luck, everybody!

Good to hear from you, CanadianComfort, and welcome to MarilynC! For me, day III post-op nears an end: decaf coffee, hot and cold Water, chicken broth and fastidiously strained fresh squeezed OJ - that was a nice treat, and all per doctor's instructions. Took two short, sundrenched walks with the dog (it was a beautiful day here), a few friends dropped in to see how I was doing, and fun time spent with the family. No complaints here. Post-op pain is manageable, but I got a good tip today: take some pain medication an hour before getting my staples pulled, which I'm set to get done on Monday a.m. I am enjoying this site very much - lots of compassion and wisdom here. I especially appreciated this thread. I think the advice to be conservative after surgery is well heeded: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f109/changing-beliefs-fit-behaviors-45723-new/ Wow, MarilynC, I hope you loved ones appreciate their Christmas gifts this year, and congratulations on your 5 year old's birthday; I got me one of those too... CanadianComfort, I hope the liquids are going down easier. All the best,

BANDPAL - BANDED ON 21.11.07

I am newly banded and want to thank you all for contributing to this thread - it's exactly what I need to hear, and what you're putting out here is exactly what I plan to do - follow my doctor's instructions without deviation, and learn to respect and love the body that I have neglected and persecuted for so long. And step one is letting it heal.

HERE'S ANOTHER ONE... HOOOOAH!

KEEP US POSTED, TISH - WE'RE ROOTING FOR YOU!

CONGRATULATIONS, PATRICIA, AND THANKS - THAT'S SOMETHING TO AIM FOR! AS WE SAY IN HEBREW, " HALLEVAI ALLAI!" OR, "IT SHOULD ONLY HAPPEN TO ME"!!! WHAT WERE THE MILEPOSTS ALONG THE WAY? WHAT SHOULD WE LOOK OUT FOR? TELL US MORE!

Thank you Mbanja - thoughtful, solid advice. It'll come to the wedding with me.