NanaRenan

Good question, ADMO, and I don't have the answer. I just looked at it the liquids was going to get me used to not chewing and help me be in a different frame of mind post-op.

Today's official (first thing in the AM) weigh-in was 300.6 But, I'm having this illicit love affair with my digital scales right now. I know its cheap and tawdry, but I can't help myself! So, it was peeking out from under the island, giving me this come-hither look awhile ago and I just had to have a quickie!!! It was 298.8!!!:clap2: I'm not gonna jump the gun, here, but I think tomorrow might be the day I roll into "TWOTerville"!!!! :scared:

WTG, BHG!!! btw -- I love the line about Louisiana food! LOL I was raised on the stuff, so I know that's right!

Thanks for letting some of your shameless joy slop over on us!!! I'm so happy for you and SHRIMP -- golly that sounds good! I can't wait! :hungry:

Wow! That sounds doable -- I might even get my daughters to see if they'll do it, too! My mother died from strokes related to her diabetes. My older sister has had double bypass on her heart related to her diabetes. I was only diagnosed with it about 8 months before I got banded, but I would like to see my daughters and grandchildren live without that threat hanging over their lives! Thanks for sharing this.

Remember, you did something that MILLIONS need and are either too afraid to get it or can't afford to get it. And it seems to me it would be a great topic for discussion with a psych group because there's SO much psychology involved in weight issues. But then I'm pretty much an open book kinda gal. What you see is what you get, nothing held back. Not everyone is willing or able to put it all out there like that...and I'm not bragging or anything. It's just my particular way of coping with my own issues. But -- all that aside -- even though I think its all great to be open and up front, if someone told me something, I would keep it in confidence until they told me otherwise.

I think the answer to that question is as individual as the family who's facing it. I have four kids and I did not work full-time outside the home until my youngest was in first grade. And then I only did it for four years before I went BACK to being a SAHM. I don't think I did something right and everyone else is doing it wrong, I think I did what was best for me. Here are some of my reasons: I was raised by a SAHM and frankly, that's about the only really good thing I can see in my upbringing. I thank God she stayed home because she was too old-fashioned to work. My husband's mother worked and he was kept by his grandmother whom he adored. But his mom still worked and mine was in another state, so barring one of them keeping our kids, it would have to be me. I got married at the end of my Junior year and didn't graduate. I did get a G.E.D. but not until just before my first was born. I frankly couldn't make enough to make going to work worthwhile. My husband was fortunate to work for a corporation with good benefits AND have an immediate supervisor who owned a side business and could schedule him to work as much as he was able...for nine years he worked both jobs and would only have one Saturday and Sunday off every five weeks. We called those our B&B days and it ain't Bed and Breakfast, it was beans and bologna. With him working two jobs I had to work twice as hard to make what he made stretch!! I taught myself to sew so I could make mine and the children's clothes and I took in sewing for people. I babysat. I have carpel tunnel from clipping coupons. I've sold Tupperware, Mary Kay and House of Lloyd. I bartered for goods and services. I cooked everything from scratch because we couldn't afford hamburger helper. And frankly, it hurt to have people assume that because I was at home he must make a lot of money. Because all of our friends and family that were double income brought home WAY more than he did -- and they all had only two or three kids. We chose to have four and we did what it took to survive. Bottom line: I'm not a high energy sort of person. If I sell the best 40 hours of me each week, then what's leftover is the scraps. I don't like me when I work. And what little extra income I bring in working full time ended up going to Pizza Hut and Taco Bell because I was too exhausted to shop or cook. Plus I hated not being able to help a friend when they were sick or attend a funeral because I couldn't get off work. Take my kids to the doctor when they needed it. So, that's why I decided to go back to staying home. Plus, my granddaughter had come along and I wanted to be able to keep her for my daughter. We got transferred and we down-sized dramatically on our house so that our payment dropped enough to make my check unneccessary. We ate out less and hung out together more and reconnected as a family. We survived. And I always look at it like this. If something were to happen to my husband's job, or he was suddenly unable to work, I can go out and put in 40 weeks. But if I was already working 40 and spending all of that, how could I generate more hours to work? Sorry for the ramble. Each family has to make the choice what's right for them. It's like losing weight -- if one diet fit all, none of us would be here today. But we each know what we're capable of doing, how much we're willing to sacrifice and hopefully, can correctly assess how our family is impacted and make the best possible decision accordingly.

Great story, thanks for sharing. Glad you got the problem fixed -- an extra cc.....?? How weird is that!!?! And congrats on getting to enjoy a trip down memory lane with the burgers and stuff. Now, back to the task at hand!!

That was me -- she of the ginormous liver! :clap2: And, incidentally, I know how you feel at being cancelled -- I was cancelled twice ON SURGERY day, once before I went into OR and once after I went in and was put under. I realize now that that two week delay, God probably allowed it to happen -- cause if my liver was STILL that big, there's no way it would have been small enough on the original date. Sweetie, you CAN do this. You MUST do this. My mother had a stroke in 2000 and died a few weeks later. I came home from being with her for a few weeks and told my husband, "I've seen my future and I don't like it!" I've been trying since then to get surgery!! And I don't think of myself as particularly tenacious or strong willed. Except -- I DO want to live a healthier life. I may not get any more than the 75 years my mother got, but by golly, they're gonna be worth living!!! We're here, we'll hang with you. Cry it out. Then pick yourself up and start over again.

Absolutely -- the Internet was made for whining! LOL It's there when you need to do it and you can walk away if you get tired of hearing it! :pound: I'm feeling good. I came home Wednesday afternoon and I'm getting more mobile and less sore every day. I'm anxious to be up and doing. My daughter just dropped by with the grandkids -- they're off to buy uniforms for back to school. :think I SO would have loved to go with them. And next year I'll be useless cause I'll be wanting to shop for me! LOL

Guess we're all different. I don't care who knows, I figure the truth probably isn't as bad as what they're guessing. Probably came from my childhood. My mother was a seamstress and I can remember grown, mature, professional women turning all whiny and sniveling when mother measured them and wrote the numbers down. As a seamstress myself, I've had so many customers want to argue with me about what size pattern to buy or what size they are. IT'S JUST A NUMBER!

Okay -- banded two days and doing pretty good, except for occasional bouts of what are almost hiccups, not quite burps. Am I drinking too quickly? I'm trying to take teeny sips and space them. But I'm afraid that in concentrating on everything so much I'm unconsciously swallowing more air than I should be.

ditto for me

It takes a long time and that works both ways!! I'm newly banded, but I had significant weight loss in 1988 to have the same affect -- saw a photo of an Easter picnic and wondered, "Who's that in the cool hat?" It was me. Now, I don't know if you've been overweight all of your life, but for those of us who haven't, we have the same HEAD ISSUES on the way UP the scale. Something happens one day and you realize, "Good grief, when did I get so fat?" It'd been happening for years, but your head wasn't paying any attention. Once you convince it of the "new" reality and then that reality changes -- you have to start all over convincing it again. Meanwhilw, BRAVA my friend!!! I'm sure you're GORGEOUS and look GREAT!!

As long as your 'socializing' doesn't revolve around eating contests, you'll be fine. I'm such a talker that before banding I often had to race to gulp down my food because everyone else had been eating while I was talking. Now, I'll just pop it in a take home container and eat on it a couple of more meals. People do it all the time. I remember a manager years ago -- a lovely, trim and elegant lady -- we met for lunch one day at a very nice Mexican resturant and she ordered ONE TACO ala carte. I tho't, "Aha, now we know why she still has her high school figure!" Wish I'd paid more attention and tried adopting that sort of lifestyle back then. Oh, well.....I'm gonna master it now. And expect to eat out every bit as much OR MORE than before surgery!

Probably another 'proud' graduate of the "Public Humiliation as Motivation" school of thought. I've met many of them in my life -- was born and raised by one! But you'd think, having "been a fatty' himself, he'd stop and think, what if my daughter inherits my weight issues -- how would I feel if someone talked to her or my wife like that....?

I think this is my favorite thread on LBT -- I never get tired of reading and rereading it!!! And I can't wait to start adding TO it! I've only been banded since Tuesday, but I've lost 200 lbs MENTALLY already. I can't believe how different I'm THINKING now and how gloomy my future looked, until now I see it through a positive light!! Keep it comin', everybody, lets hear more of what's improved for you.

Girl, dry those eyes!! This is your lucky day! First thing tomorrow!!! Call Dr. Fernando Miranda's office and tell them Pam sent you!! They could not have possibly been any more fabulous to me through this whole ordeal with the insurance and problems at the hospitals -- I can't brag on them enough. He's fabulous, his office staff is fabulous.... About Dr. Miranda

Yes, it was and her and some other ladies filed complaint after complaint. For a while he made it really hard on them -- putting them in positions he thought they couldn't physically handle or that would publically humiliate them. They held strong though and finally the company got tired of all the complaints and moved him elsewhere or let him go all together.

Hello, all you Crazys out there! I want to get started on the "GET TO KNOW ME" stuff. I'll be starting new threads here and there for that purpose....and I'll lead off by answering first. You can cut and paste into a reply and change your answers. Answer only what you feel comfortable sharing. EVERYBODY CALLS ME: Pam MY PRIMARY RELATIONSHIPS INCLUDE: hubby of 28 years, Mike, four+ children (Michaela 26 (+ her fiance, Dominic), Phillip 24 (+ his wife, Melissa), Jacob 21 and Gennie 18) and two grandkids, (Sloane, 9 and Desmond, 15 mo.) MY NON-HUMAN FAMILY CONSISTS OF: a 16 lb male grey tabby named "KittyBabyCat" and a 3.5 lb female chihuahua named "Big Tex". (and, yes, they DO think we're crazy at the vets office.) I LIVE IN: Texas, just outside of Houston to be more specific, in Pearland. OCCUPATION(S): I stay at home and care for my grandchildren several days a week while their mommy works. When they aren't here I "work at" sewing, making greeting cards and themed/gift scrapbooks -- some of which is custom ordered and the rest I sell on eBay. I don't make much money, but it keeps me off the streets. :biggrin1: AND away from the table! :hungry: AVOCATION(S): Well, in addition to the sewing and crafting mentioned above, I also love to read, write, cook, visit online forums, work in the yard, decorate, embroider, paint, mosaic and crochet. Okay...that ought to be enough to get us started. Watch for the next thread in the "GET TO KNOW ME" series, coming soon!!

Good for you, Amy, for calling them on their misbehavior. You can't fight ugly with ugly...and especially at someone who didn't even hurt you. These women sound like really hurting people who are using their extra pounds to keep those fires of pain burning, instead of letting go of it. Bitterness is a cancer that poisons the container that holds it, not the object at which it is directed.

Okay, after reading all of this thread, :ranger: this is the conclusion I have come to -- All bread is ASSUMED guilty until proven innocent. And timing/spacing of bites is as important if not more important than size of bites and number of chews.

That's about all I know, Amy. I started the pre-op on Friday, July 27th in anticipation of a August 2, surgery date. But I was sent home on that day due to a paperwork technicality. I stayed faithful to the pre-op diet and was quickly rescheduled for August 7th. But that time, I made it to OR, but they were unable to intubate me and damaged my throat and I had to wait another week to heal. That did it -- I needed to CHEW!! I had a little tender smoked turkey, some mac and cheese and some baked potato from our favorite BBQ place for dinner that night and had a whole wheat bagel with FF cream cheese for Breakfast the next morning. Then I had some homemade soups with not all the chunky stuff removed a couple of times. The scale kept moving down and I thought what I was doing wasn't hurting anything. But evidently, it was enough to interfere with shrinking my liver which was the intention. I want to ask more questions from the dietician and have more facts to share.

Whine away. Michelle! We've been there and know what you're going through. I had several near misses with the OR so I did eventually cheat some and was unapologetic -- felt I deserved it after all poor little me had been through. Until I came out of a two hour surgery -- that should've taken a half hour! It was complicated because my liver was still huge. So hang in there. Look at it this way, you want EVERY potential advantage maximized....right? Get creative with your shakes. I found if I blended some yogurt or Jello into it it improved the taste dramatically. And we'll still be here when you need to whine more!

Thank you, I'm so excited just to be here! I remembered a "worst" story my sister told me. A few years ago the store she worked for had a huge buffet table set out for their Christmas party. People came and went as their lunch breaks permitted. She walked into the room -- there were about 30-40 people in line or seated. The store manager had his plate in hand, but had stopped to chat with someone. He looked up and saw her come in the door and announced in a very loud voice, "Uh-oh, I'd better get in line while I can, Regenia's here!!" As if there'd be no food left when she was done. She said you could have heard a pin drop -- everyone was horrified that someone would be that malicious in front of everyone. At every evaluation he'd bring up OE or WW he'd say, "I used to be a fatty like you, before I did xyz..."