Wheetsin

It's amazing how fast it all goes. I'm very glad to hear that everything went so smoothly, and you don't have any signs of complications - internal or otherwise! You may have already addressed this, but why the VG band?

Well, carbs per say won't do that. You can eat a lot of carbs in the form of sugar water and it go right through. This is probably (generally) most true about breads or bread-based products. Case in point - refried beans have a lot of carbs, and they're on most post-op diets.

Also try Googling "bra size swimwear" or similar. Just got lots of hits that offer bra size bathing suits.

Junonia (www.junonia.com) sells separates so you can order the tops and bottoms in different sizes. I dive and I would recommend their aquatards over a swimsuit for wearing under a wetsuit. (Two models at http://www.junonia.com/thumb.htm?tl=1&ldid=2&sdid=16).

How would you define "advance life"? Would you say that Hans Christian Anderson, Emily Dickinson, Rimbaud, Oscar Wilde, or Alan Turing, just to name a few, have ever "advanced life"? "Homosexuality is regarded as shameful by barbarians and by those who live under despotic governments just as philosophy is regarded as shameful by them, because it is apparently not in the interest of such rulers to have great ideas engendered in their subjects, or powerful friendships or passionate love-all of which homosexuality is particularly apt to produce." - Plato (but I guess he never did anything to advance life, either)

Keep in mind that the band is not designed to give restriction until it is filled. I'd hope your surgeon and/or psychologist were up front with you about this, and helped to set your expectations. Not many people have noteworthy restriction prior to their first fill. As for what to do between now and then - focus on trying to adapt to bandster lifestyle. You have a good acclimation period prepared for you. And don't beat yourself up if you're eating more than whatever quanitty guidelines you have. Again - not realistic until you have restriction. But you can focus on whatever your pre-op requires, and if you hit solids before your first fill, start finding hard proteins that work for you.

I have one and in my case it's scar tissue.

Lots of things could be going on. It could be a browser setting. It could be that the people made the post, and then deleted the pictures --or never actually posted the pictures to begin with. I'm not seeing it on my end, so if you can refer me to a few post numbers that are doing it for you, I will go have a look.

Not only can you do it, but you're going to do it, and you're going to be fantastic!

Send me or Alexandra a PM telling us what's going on. Just as a note, we don't just ban people on request. I don't want you to assume that someone would be banned just because you feel that you need them to be. Send us the information of what is happening and we will look it over. Thanks.

It can happen that the port (no "al" on that) flips. Perhaps that's what the doctor meant by "turned around". The quote above is from a surgeon's site, but I know banded people who are able to forego the operation. With some manipulation, their ports can be accessed via regular means, even while flipped.

I'm going on 14 months out and don't have much of an appetite. Lost it two days pre-op, and never got it back. It could be swelling, it could also be restriction from the band itself. Not everyone experiences that, but some do. I did. Nothing sounds abnormal to me...

For me this is a sign of good restriction, and something that makes me slow down. I used to gurgle/burp non-stop when I was first banded. I will also gurgle and burp when I'm nearing a PB, but when you're there, you know it. So if things are fine and you just happen to be burply and gurgly, I wouldn't think it's anything to be concerned about. If you begin to have pain or the liquids begin coming back up, seek your surgeon's input, that's a reliable sign of being too tight.

Technically your boss isn't even allowed to ask why you're taking the time off. PTO is a non-disclosure absence, meaning while you can be required to submit for approval X time ina dvance, and your request can be denied, they cannot ask, "Why, what are you doing?" Bosses don't know this and do it all the time, but it's a liability. What, specifically were you written up for? What's the exact verbiage for reason/cause? You can be written up for excessive absenteeism, but not if your absences are approved. FMLA is unpaid time that you cannot be fired or replaced for taking. However, I don't think that recurring monthly appointments constitute an FMLA cause. It's geared toward providing for others, not yourself, except in extreme cases (e.g. a peer of mine once used FMLA so that she could undergo dialysis, which took recurring appointments of 7 hours each). The "self" instances is what STD and LTD are for, but a monthly appointment would not fall into either of these. And both require most or all (depending on the company) of your PTO to be expired before their benefits kick in. And your time would have to be consecutive. So technically, if you do not have the PTO, and continue to miss work, I think you could be held accountable. However, if you have the PTO, you can not be questioned on why you're using it... and if you have the PTO AND your manager is approving your use of it/absence, then there's no grounds for corrective action based on absenteeism. I'm not a lawyer nor an HR rep. This info is worth exactly what you paid for it.

Add-ins help too. I can do the Six Star & EAS chocolate with just milk, but I'll usually add a blob of low fat peanut butter. That, too, makes all the difference. Or some DaVinci sugar free "Khalua" flavoring. Mmm. Or even some "Butterfinger" flavored cocoa mix, but just 1/3 packet or so - a little goes a long way. With the vanilla, it's great with about half orange juice, half milk, and a pack of Splenda. I use the "Light" orange juice (half the calories). It's not as sweet as real, but the sweetner makes up for it.

Apocalyptica. Another movie I won't be seeing.

I'm so sorry to hear that. You had been fearing a slip for a while, hadn't you? I know you (I think?) had been having some reflux problems, but had you not been able to get food down?

Fill and weigh in today. BMI is at a solid 37, down from something like 55. I'm soooooooooor over winter. Come on, spring!

What kind did you try, and how did you make it? I'm going to guess you mixed it with water...? I cannot tolerate them unless I mix then with milk, even if it's the Carb Countdown fat free milk. It really makes a big difference. (And I don't like milk... up until I tried mixing a protein drink in it, out of pure desperation, I'd not had any for nearly 15 years). I don't know if something like that milk is allowed on your pre-op, this kind has something like 90 cal, 0 fat, 3 carb. Part of it (IMO) is the texture. Something that's watery, but tastes like chocolate or whatever, just isn't right. It's like drinking a non carbonated drink out of a can. Part of it is taste - the milk "creams" out the flavor a bit - sort of blends things together. For me this made 100% of the difference. If you can't find one with a flavor you can stand, try "Six Star". It's by fat the best I've found, and I've tried A LOT. Well, let me specify. The EAS whey makes the best chocolate. The Six Star makes the best vanilla, and second best chocolate. IMO.

Call it faith-based sizing. We want to believe—hell, we really do believe—we're a size 6 or 8 because the label says so even when the scale disagrees. By Susanna Schrobsdorff Newsweek Updated: 4:09 p.m. CT Oct 18, 2006 Who who can fit into a subzero? Nicole Richie can.

I used to dress (and I don't mean "get dressed", I mean dress) before I gained the weight. But when I was at or near my highest, you wouldn't have caught me dead in a pair of heels. For one, because I looked ridiculous in anything you would wear heels with. Even jeans. For two, my shoe size had gone up to a 12 and sometimes a 13. Good luck finding a cute heel in that size. And if you do manage, it's going to be plastic. And it is harder to walk in heels when you're heavier. It went from second nature, to oh my gumby my feet are killing me! And situational depression, and I just quit caring. Ugh! I really hit a low. I remember once, after our house was built and we were making plans to occupy, I had to stop by the realtor's office to pick up the key. Our realtor wasn't there, but one of her coworkers I'd never met was. When I told her I needed the key to the house, she asked why. I said, "So we can start moving in...?" And she was like, "Oh! You're the owner? I thought you were the cleaning lady." I'm still a big handful of sizes from my "ideal" size, but I've picked it up. I'm back in heels, actually styling my hair, and actually putting togeter outfits. Doing all the things I abandoned as the weight packed on. I forgot how fun accessories can be! And in my case, I'm not trying to attract a man. I've been married for (going on) 10 years. To me, when I wear nice things, I feel good. I feel human. I still don't feel attractive, and that's ok - because feeling good is enough. I do believe that how you present yourself can completely impact how you feel. It's hard to wear a nice, well put-together outfit, know you look nice, and still feel crappy. I lost touch with feeling good about myself for a long time. It's hard to feel good when you don't even feel human. And I'm loving getting back into it. Speaking of, Avenue has some pretty cute dresses this season. I'm thinking about picking this up. It surprisingly looked really cute on (except for my flabby arms - can you say "cover up"?)

I've never eaten rhubarb. But that berry sounds really cool! (But I eat lemons now...)

You deeply misunderstood, or twisted, what I said. I never said christians deserve "something" negative. I truly don't understand the logic behind it "being acceptable to discriminate against christians." I already stated that it wouldn't have bothered me, because I don't equate the accurate scenario representing the characters and background story, as much as I do it equating the sequence of events. Obviously I didn't make the comment, so I cannot begin to guess what the speaker's intentions were. I can only speak for my interpretation. Why does it have to be "right" and "wrong"? Why would "all christians" even come into play?

You guys will like this. Our neighborhood - up until about a year ago - provided free trash removal once per week, with no limit on the number of bags. Large/bulky items are picked up once a month, yard waste three times a year but you can hire a separate company any time. About a year ago they changed the rules. We're now given one tub for recycling paper and plastic, that is picked up once a week. We're also limited to 2 trash bags per week. Cardboard will be picked up if it's placed under the tub, but not if it's in the tub (or if it's beside the tub, or...) The biggest change I have seen in the last year is that most of our neighbors who used to put out piles of 13g kitchen trash bags now put out 2 55g contractor bags. We aren't allowed to have compost bins/piles, nor are we allowed to have vegetable gardens, though we can have flowerbeds, plant trees, etc. We're also not allowed to have sheds, in-ground pools or permanent above-ground pools, but we can have hot tubs. We live in a suburb area. The much smaller city that we border implemented a recycling program about 10 years ago. Ours is an extension of theirs. Our city didn't do it sooner because, "Their taxes are higher and they can afford it."

I know, and that makes me sad because electricty is 100% renewable. It is green. But we're not allowing it to be, we're dirtying it up. The technology is out there and readily available. I guess it just cuts into profits too much. It's sad that some states produce over 50% electrictiy from nuclear sources, many in the 20% - 30% range, but there are still many at 0%. And renewables have a high of about 25%.