JoannMarie

Yay Elayne! You are the woman with the information at your fingertips. I appreciate the information and I hope I can look forward to giving up a medication. That would be great.

It is so GREAT to hear from you, Plevy. Glad to hear you are doing so well and only 6 days out. I have been wondering how you were getting along. Congratulations on the first day of your healthy life!!:biggrin2:

Question for Katarina - will you be driving or flying? I wonder if altitude and pressurizing the cabin of an airplane is a consideration... Question for your doctor?

How 'bout baking the breakfast 1-pot wonder in a muffin tin. Sounds like that may make a good serving size and easy to store in the fridge or freezer. This could also help out my DH as he is always looking for breakfasts he can fix in a hurry. He leaves the house very early (and lets me sleep...).:thumbup:

Mary T and Summer08, Reading your posts I immediately reacted with the thought that I am absolutely a disciplined person. But then ... I have to admit there are areas in my life that prove the opposite. Since retirement from the real work world several years ago I still struggle with structuring my time in order to accomplish those things I wanted to do once I had all this time! That has definitely been a self discipline issue with me. Does this run into other areas? I'll have to think on that one... For me, the main reason I am choosing banding over bypass is because it is less invasive, no rerouting of anything, and reversible if it becomes a serious medical issue. I'm going into this with the commitment to the long haul, but it is reassuring to me to know it can be reversed if absolutely necessary. Thanks for the "food for thought" for Breakfast this morning...

I just went to the Denver Post site and read the article and comments. Thank you Fluffycat for your comment. You spoke well for all of us. I have an artifical knee. Judging from the comments of ignorance, I should just give it back, I guess. Same for pacemakers, stents, shunts, lens implants, and all the other medical devices that have been developed to treat diseases over the years. Thanks for sticking up for us!! :biggrin2::biggrin2:

Orea, you are a wild woman!! I was out cold for my colonoscopy and that was just fine with me! I can watch those shows on TV, but did not care to watch my own colon exploration... If anybody has the chance to read Dave Barry's description of his colonoscopy please do so. It's probably the funniest piece I have ever read.

Oh Long, I've had the hoops to go through, too. I don't think it is any different than most folks, but it does seem like you are left sitting high and dry with not much information for long periods of time. Suddenly you will get a call - they need something else. I'm very proactive and respond to whatever they request as quickly as I can. Then I sit and wait for the next request - weeks at a time. Now I am told I need a sleep study. I can drive 1.5 hours to the hospital for this or have it done locally with my PCP's assistance, but his office needs a formal request from LB doc, then my PCP reviews it, and calls me to schedule it. I took care of my part within 2 hours of getting this request last week. I talked to the PCP's office today - they have not yet received the fax requesting sleep study for me. So first thing in the morning I call the LB office and remind them to send it. LB office has scheduled my consultation with surgeon for 9/3, but I have to have the sleep study first and report on her desk so somebody needs to do something. I am determined to be a squeaky wheel, although a nice squeaky wheel. After all, they hold my band in their hands! (you are probably sorry you asked! Thanks for letting me vent a little!)

Orea, it sounds like you have been through the hoops! Will you be surprised to go to the hospital on surgery day (July 30!!!) and find that they are actually going to do this thing? Some days I feel like that will be my reaction - "Are you serious???" Waiting is a bummer. I'm just trying to keep my spirits up and trying to stay on a reasonable eating/exercise plan while I wait. I enjoy your posts so much, please keep us up to date on what's happening with you. Hugs,

Orea, how are things going with you? You are coming up to your date fast. What kind of prep is your doctor prescribing? You must be getting excited!

God bless you, Marilyn. I am so glad you are here with us - you are going to be a blessing to all of us. I pray we can give you the support you need and deserve. God is in control of your life and He has opened this door for you. I'm sure all your new friends on this site will be praying for you.

Carlene, I am with you on the artificial sweeteners. They leave a very unpleasant aftertaste for me - and esp Splenda. My nephew suggested a product to me and I wonder if you have heard of it. It's called Setia, and it is a natural product, not chemical. You can find it primarily in natural food stores such as Whole Foods Markets (and others). I bought it in Cincinnati where it was in the Supplement aisle - here in Missouri it was in the same aisle with the other sweeteners. They have a small size bottle, and it takes a TINY amount to sweeten a glass of iced tea for instance. The bottle comes with the smallest spoon I have ever seen, and I suggest you go easy even with that spoon! At our local store I also saw it in a box the size of a box you would see Sweet'n'Low or Splenda in. I don't know if you could cook or bake with it. I've just been using it in tea and coffee, have not checked other uses. You might try a small bottle and see if that helps your sweet tooth. OOPS! I gave you the wrong product name. Looked in my purse as we were leaving the house - the name of the product is "Stevia", not setia. Sorry 'bout that. I hope no one was running to the nearest health food market to purchase this!! tee hee.

Wow Christy! Even with the 4 weeks of inactivity, you have lost at a rate of 4.5 a week! That's pretty incredible. Maybe your body is just catching up the last few weeks. It sounds like you are doing what the other successful "losers" are doing. If others are seeing a smaller you, you could be losing inches even though the scales do not show a loss. You have a fill coming up in a couple of weeks. I'll bet by then you will be showing losses and after your fill it probably will be a lot easier for you. Hang in there

Charlene and Denise - I have a great idea for both of you - switch your preferred show to "What Not to Wear" and get some tips on that new wardrobe! Hugs,

Ellen, you will be in my thoughts and prayers today. Please keep up posted on your progress.

PHYL! Is is possible that Thiamine may be related to memory difficulties??? tee-hee! :biggrin2::biggrin2:

I am so sorry you are going through this setback. It makes me wonder where the common sense is - I've spent years and energy on diets losing and regaining the same 20 pounds over and over again, meanwhile adding extra each time. All of us have experienced that frustration. All you do is play havoc with your metabolism and your emotional health. I wish I could have some helpful advice for you. Is self-pay a possibility for you? Most of the WLS facilities have financing available. I would exhaust all possibilities with United Health Care - letters from your doctor, letters from the WLS group you are working with. They may have some tricks up their sleeves that could help you, especially with your current co-morbidities. If your WLS group of choice won't help you, is there another group in your area that would be interested in working with you? In our area there seems to be a lot of competition between WLS groups. This is a relatively new option for people and they all want their share of us. It's hard to do, but sit down and compile your diet history. I was shocked when I did that, starting at age 13 and moving on forward. I knew I had tried hard all my life, but it was surprising to me to see just what the extent had been. Provide a copy of that to anyone that can help you - and to the insurance co. I know that ins companies will often say no - expecting that most people will accept that answer and they are off the hook. I'm not saying that they are being dishonest - just a fact of business. Be the person who persists. Be the person who enlists the help of everyone you can think of. It can't hurt and it might just get you what you need to be a healthy person. Good luck!

Welcome Penny, You have come a long way, lady! I pray that God opens this door for you this week and you get approval for your surgery. I know you will find a lot of support on this thread and others on LBT. Let us know how everything goes for you.

Hi Sue, I noticed that you have lost 30 pounds since banding 2 months ago. WOW! I think you have a lot to feel good about and you have been doing great! Maybe now you are just getting into the long-haul syndrome. I am still waiting for banding so I can't speak from the banding experience, but I'm going to suggest a couple of things I've read from other very successful bandsters. All of these I've read about keep track of food consumed and activity during the day. Just to prepare myself for this life change I have gone to Fitday.com and begun to track my food and activity on a daily basis. (the first day I was shocked at how much I had eaten!) This has helped me look at where I could make changes that would help me maintain, and maybe lose some, before banding. Also, many diet programs and successful bandsters suggest weighing or measuring your food with a good diet scale and eating from a smaller plate. This way you know exactly what you are eating, and can control what goes onto your plate - you won't have to push away good food. I don't know how your banding was paid for, but no matter how, it was a major investment in your health and well-being. Eliminating tempting foods from your house and purchasing more healthy alternatives may actually be more cost effective than what you are doing. You might consider donating to a local food bank rather than throwing the food away. Like I said, I am not speaking as a banded person, but I have been on just about every diet known to man, and most of them make the same suggestions for success in losing weight and keeping it off. Shame on me I did not follow through as I should have on any one of those many diets in the past. I now see that this journey is a life-long journey, and I'm now doing those things I should have been doing all along. "Too soon old, to late smart...":blush: Hugs,

Welcome Pat. This thread is just filled with inspiration! I love it. I'm in the waiting stage, too - my paperwork is in place, scheduling a sleep study as required by my doc, consultation scheduled for early September. Waiting is a bummer, but I'm using the time to learn everything I can - and a lot of it is learned right here. It sounds like you have gotten off to a good start. Good luck on your journey.

I'll be there... have a good weekend and just have fun with your family. God Bless

Dianne, What is your surgery date again? I hope you'll keep us posted as you go along. Meanwhile, have a great time at Branson with your family. There's enough going on there to keep you busy, with or without food! Good luck,

Congratulations, Indio. You look great - and it's obvious you feel great, too!

Okay, Long. Can I come to you in a few months with the same issue??? It's always easier to advise than it is to know what to do when it's MY problem! tee-hee. Go for it Girl! You are so on the road.

Hi Long! Good to see you here! It has been so much fun for me to visit with so many great people on LBT, and discover how our lives overlap from one thread to another. The situation you describe with the women in your small group sounds familiar. I have those people in my life, too, and absolutely do not feel comfortable sharing this experience with them. At this point I feel like I really don't have to say anything and once I am banded and losing I have success speaking for me. You are losing so successfully - how can there be a question? The final key will be reaching your goal and keeping the pounds off. Weight Watchers have the same issues all other obese people have - the trick is not so much losing the weight, it's losing it forever! WW eating plan is very healthy and works for many people. An awful lot of them return year after year to take it off again, though, or they give up -- OR THEY GET BANDED!! Whatever you decide to do now - don't be afraid of their judgement. Judgement is between you and Our Father and they don't have anything to do with it. At some point, that's how it is for all of us. God bless you.