PhotoNut

Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday to you! Happy Birthday my dear friend whom I've been neglecting (I will write, I promise, or maybe I'll call!) Happy Birthday to you! :happybday: :happybday: :happybday:

Because you need a fill!!! *rofl*

Ah food. You can always rely on food to cover up the issues in our lives. To sooth the frustrations, calm the tension, restore peace, and make us all feel good once again. Mmmm.. turn on that broiler Paul, bring on the cheese Nana. This thread needs lots and lots of cheese!

*rolls her eyes* There he goes again. It's not easy living with that Dawg. :cool: *laughs*

DL! You are brilliant! Truly brilliant! (and funny too) :cool: I shall make it my goal to do likewise. Confusion is always a great source of entertainment.

Evil! You're all pure EVIL! :cool:~~~~

Geesh Paul, its not good for you to hold it that long ya know. So um, when are you going in for that unfill? Hiya Sunshine! :wave: Let's see.. what have I been doing to shake those pounds. You're talking about the same 5 pounds that have gone away and come back again for the last two months? Hm.. Nothing.. absolutely nothing. Maybe I need a fill. :cool:

Ok, sounds like youre on top of things. Do try to up your Protein intake to at least 60-75g per day. Are you drinking with your meal? You know not to right? And 1,000 calories a day is very reasonable for us. I'm glad he upped you a bit. Have you tried the Gorton's Grilled Fish Fillets? Two of those are only 200 calories, and served with 1/2 cup of peas and carrots, or green Beans, and you won't be hungry! Promise! :cool:

I agree! Grats on the weightloss. And your Dr is smart not to fill you when your weight loss is going so well. Currently, you are losing at twice the average rate. That's excellent! You say he upped your calories. Are you exercising a lot? If so, that could account for the increase in hunger and rightfully so. You could just need more fuel and it sounds like your Dr recognized this. So, the question is... how are you doing on getting in a min of 60g of Protein per day? Are you succeeding? Or are you eating more carbs? Carbs will make you hungry while good solid protein (red meat, chicken, fish) will satisfy that need for fuel and takes longer to digest, so you stay full longer. Don't ever look for restriction to be the only answer to hunger. Have you seen this checklist for determining whether or not you need a fill? Check it out carefully, there are many adjustment options and not all are in regard to the fill in our bands. http://lapbandtransformation.com/Adjustments.htm

I like everyone on LBT too. I also like wine, which probably accounts for why I like everyone on LBT. *snort, giggle, grin*

Ditto what Telly just said. Others were saying why they thought she wasn't coming around. As somone who was closely involved in that "realy nasty period of time" I felt the same right as others to express my opinion. I basically said no more than you did Penni. I don't miss the "heated" posts. If we are limited to only posting on threads where we all have the same opinion, there wont be much activity on LBT. :cool: Everyone who posted their opinion did so in a straight forward, non aggressive manner. It was the responses to those straight forward and non aggressive posts that were indeed the aggressive, fingerpointing, and mudslinging ones. Perspective is everything. I hope that everyone can see that.

Wow, talk about talking out of both sides of your mouth. Tell ya what, you go ahead and move on if this one bothers you. I haven't said anything uncivil nor untrue. If you don't like it. Move on but stop telling me off because I don't agree with you, 3loves. And I have to say, you're really being a fine example of that which you claim to be. A very fine example.

:spit: This really did make me spit my Water out in a spew of laughter. :pound: Go back and view the entire thread. You, 3loves, are the only one going crazy here. Too funny. You do not know me. You have never once had a conversation with me. You don't know what my relationship with DeLarla or anyone else here has been. You don't know ME. You are the one slinging crap now. You are the only one on this thread shouting and trying to turn a civil conversation into more. Relax will ya? Maybe you're the one who needs to get back to life if chit chat on a message board upsets you this much. But um.. thanks for the laugh. I needed it today! :cool:

I can see yours, Diane. You can't see mine?

Ok, so leave me out of the number of posts thing. That wasn't my comment. And I know I have a lot per day. I love to talk to people! Specially people like you, Mandy. :cool:

Before I talk about my band and my fills, I want to remind everyone that there is really no way to compare what will give one person proper restriction to what will give another proper restriction -- even if you have the same exact band. All of us are built differently, our stomachs are different sizes and shapes, the amount of fat we have around our stomachs is different, and we react differently to different types of foods and different amounts of fills. So, that said... I have a 10cm band that holds 4cc. My first fill was put in about 6 weeks after surgery. About 6 months later I had an additional .5cc put in. That is when I started having problems. I didn't mind the getting stuck as much as the constant "pain" around my port and lower left stomach. I put quotes around the word pain because it wasn't painful, just uncomfortable like a sore muscle. Anyway, when the Dr took out my fill I asked how much was in the band. He said 1.3cc, which was confusing because I know he told me he put in .5cc on that second time around. But he assures me that's what he put in. *shrugs* So, I guess just .3cc was enough to make that big of a difference. I went from being able to eat a 6 ounce steak, baked potato and veggies, to the troubles I was having... all over .3cc! Crazy huh?

I haven't seen anyone say anything ugly. There have been a few hints at ugliness, but none of those were directed at DeLarla. If someone starts a thread on LBT, it should be understood that this is an open forum and everyone has the right to respond on the thread, even if they have a different opinion. Which is what I see everyone doing on this thread. People are being honest about what they experienced. I see nothing wrong with that. There are a lot of people here who have known DeLarla for many years and love her a lot. And that is truly awesome. There are also people here who have been hurt by her, and they have the right to say that they have not missed her and have enjoyed the peace and quiet during her absence. There is nothing ugly in that. I too hope that she finds some peace in her life. And I too hope that she feels she is welcome to come back to LBT and be that supportive and fun spirited person she has been for many. I just hope that if she does come back, it won't be as it has been in the past - returning on a charging horse, holding up a banner of the people who have emailed her to come back and "save LBT" from those who are trying to take over. LBT is here for everyone, not just the few that were here years ago. There are many new people here, with many different personality types. Just because some of those people are more outspoken, it doesn't mean they have some subversive plan to take over the place! I do hope that we can all stop hinting at a "common demoninator" for the conflicts that arise on LBT. Frankly, I'm tired of that kind of talk. Either put up or shut up. Show us the threads with the posts to back it up if it's that important to you. The fact is, we are a family and there will be some spats now and then. But since DeLarla has been gone, I haven't seen anyone called a F*cking C*nt, told they were as nasty as an infected HIV needle, or threated by their spouse. Nuff said.

Paul, you should be the LapBand Poster boy. I swear, the change in your appearance is phenominal! And Telly should be the LapBand Poster girl! So sorry to hear about the misery with the overfill, Paul. How much did you have them add? My last fill was only .5 and I started having problems getting stuck on meat and broccoli, and also having pains in various areas of my stomach, so my Dr took my fill out completely. I had stopped eating hard Proteins and he wanted me to have some time of bringing those back into my diet without that risk of further irritation. Think you'll do the same, or are you just going to ask for a slight unfill?

Actually, I have missed you Kare. I never had a problem with you. Sincerely.

What I do is cook the chicken in a broth so the meat is very moist already. I would think that trying to get dry meat down with liquids could backfire on you. Say the meat gets stuck, and then you try to wash it down with liquids. Well, the Fluid could possibly force the meat into a tighter situation or it could flush it through. Either way its going to be very painful. Not including liquids with my meals has been one of the hardest things for me to do. I'll tell you one thing though... don't EVER take a drink of something COLD right after eating a bite of meat. Your banded belly will shrink like a guy diving into a cold pool, if you get my meaning. Nothing will go thru then! *laughs*

Typically after swelling goes down and prior to getting the first fill we are able to eat as we did before banding. The hunger could increase as well. The thing to remember is that this is not the time to be concerned about weight loss but rather about the healing process. Even though you can it doesn't mean you should. Putting stress on your pouch, the stitches around the band, your esophagus, etc can cause serious problems. Just approach each new food with caution and chew well. Eat where you have few distractions. Be aware of any sign your body gives that you might be running into issues with the type of food you are eating, or even perhaps that you are full. I have been banded almost 8 months and have had a few occassions where I've experienced the golfball feeling but have never PB'd. Contrary to what many say, I don't think this is a necessary thing to go thru when banded. To me, its having a reasonable amount of restriction and eating carefully that eliminate that need.

PB'ing (productive burping) A misleading term but one widely used to describe an incident where food gets stuck because it wasn't chewed well enough or the texture is such that it makes it difficult to pass through the band. This usually produces a feeling much likened to a golfball stuck in your chest, behind the breastplate, and is sometimes accompanied by a mass production of slime by the body as it tries to lubricate the food and get it unstuck. Sometimes, this can pass on it's own with a bit of stretching your arms up in the air or bending over. Sometimes it causes nausea and wretching. Not good. We don't want the stitches around the band to be subject to such strain. Other times, a simple 'burp' occurs which brings back up the food which was stuck. This is not the usual vomiting as the only thing that comes up is the food that has not yet begun the digesting process and perhaps some slime. The key is to be aware of which foods to avoid, and to pay attention while you eat. Take small bites, chew well, and be very in tune with your body. Your new feeling of being "full" is going to be that pressure behind the breastplate. Pushing more food down past that point is likely to end up with a BP episode. Food which commonly give bandsters the most problems: Breads (the dough, no matter how well chewed, will glom together in gooey ball and can get stuck) Red meats and chicken (cook these in crockpots so they are very tender and moist, and take very small bites, chewing well. dont be afraid to spit out a piece that is a bit grissly or fatty) Fiberous fruits and veggies, and skins (potato skins, broccoli, pineapple, oranges, plum skins, grapes) Everyone is different, so you will want to carefully test each of these foods. The more restriction you have, the more likely they are to be a problem.

The beautiful Mrs. Sabre: (Ten years younger, my dear! Ten years younger!)

Oh my goodness, Kim. I just looked at the pictures of the house. What a traumatic experience this must be for them. There is so much in a home that can never be replaced. Pictures, gifts, things you've collected, a favorite coffee cup or pan, the perfect pillow that it took you years to find, nicknacks, letters.. goodness, how overwhelming this must be for them. My heart goes out to them and I pray they are blessed beyond belief throughout their recovery.

I did a little shopping today for my SWS. This theme isn't so easy to buy for! But I'll get it done and to my SWS in plenty of time!