DonnaB

You need to call your surgeon. Do it tomorrow morning.

Why don't you get his number and call him? If you do, remember he's going to try to sell you on lipo. Don't make an instant decision because you're talking to the guy. Do all your research and then decide.

Absolutely - I was quoted less than $2000 (a few years ago though so I'm sure it's more now) for chin lipo. I didn't do it because they kept pushing to do more - full face lift, eyelid lift and some other stuff! I'm 44 years old and have virtually NO LINES anywhere on my face - I'm frequently told I look like I'm 30. I guess that's where I got the bad taste in my mouth for plastic surgery. They just push for too much because it puts money in their pockets. Definitely call around to different places and find out what price they quote for a chin lipo. Obviously you need to research to find a good doctor if you actually DO the lipo but you can makes calls pretty easily to find out some prices.

Nope. I wouldn't. Wait until you've recovered, lost weight. See how you look. Chin liposuction doesn't cost very much, even here in Dallas, where plastic surgery is rivalled in frequency only by California. Besides, doesn't it smack a little of nepotism? Or feel a little too much like coersion? Who brought it up? You or him? Sounds like he's just wringing more money out of you. Besides, liposuction hurts.

MelAnne, You need to chill out a bit. We've been down this path before. I'm not trying to tell you to stop whining - I'm telling you to look at the big picture before you start the 'this-isn't-going-to-work-for-me' dance: You've been banded for about 9 weeks now. You've lost 28 pounds. If you average it out, you're losing over 3 pounds per week - WELL OVER the 1 - 2 pounds per week which most lap band doctor's project for weight loss. Break it down further if you like, 28 pounds divided by the 62 days you've been banded comes out to just under a half a pound per day! .45 in fact. The band is working. Stop freaking out. Maybe you should stop weighing yourself. Once a week is plenty. Once a month might be better for your mental health. I'm REALLY not trying to be mean, but I think you should give yourself a rest.

They'll take my milk from me when they pry it from my cold, dead fingers. Even if I DID switch to fat free skim milk! Hrumph. I agree with Jachut: I think it pays to remember doctors have their own biases, misinformation or beliefs on what constitutes a healthy diet - what consitutes perfect human nutrition is not something anybody has the answer to. I think its up to all of us to consider what our doctors tell us, but fit it in with our own personal needs and beliefs.

I got the berry flavored aloe vera juice at Wal-Mart too. Seppi, did you ask the pharmacist to help you find it? I couldn't find it till they showed me where it was. If you buy the berry flavored aloe vera juice, it tastes much better if you add a shot of organic apple juice. Much better. I use organic because it's 100% apple juice without added sugar or chemicals.

Sorry you're having problems with chicken. Are you using anything to 'lubricate' it? It sounds kinda yucky, but there is a brand of poultry gravy mix (I know) which is very tasty and is low in fat and calories. The brand is Tone's. It's also quick, easy, and good enough that I'd eat it even if I wasn't worried about fat and calories. It's worth a try. I buy rotisserie chicken from Sam's Club in the afternoon/evening ($4.88 and someone else cooks it! YA!), put it breast-side down wrapped in heavy duty foil and put it in the oven on 250 till my husband gets home from work. By the time we eat, it's literally falling off the bones, and because it's been breast-side down, the white meat is very, very juicy. I have no problem at all eating it. The next day I take the rest of the chicken, chop or blend it, and make chicken salad with it. Because it's so juicy and 'fall-apart' from the extra time in the oven, it only takes a little bit of mayo to make it into salad. Yum. If I don't want to make chicken salad, I take the leftover chicken and make Gumbo. Either way, a couple of meals with very little effort and very little expense. Win, win. Good luck.

Hi everyone, I thought I'd share this interview which was on AOL Wellness today: Awaken Your Fat-Burning DNA Dr. Mark Hyman discusses the interaction between genes & weight-loss. Listen to Dr. Hyman's Podcast Dr. Mark Hyman, author of 'UltraMetabolism,' talks with AOL's Book Maven Bethanne Patrick about the role genes play in your diet and weight-loss plan. Here are excerpts from the interview: Bethanne Patrick: Oh, it's great to talk with you and this is so exciting. Your book is about nutrigenomics, can you explain to us what that is and then we'll talk a little bit more about your background. Dr. Mark Hyman: This is a whole new wave of medicine that's emerging based on science and nobody's hearing about it. It's really how food talks to our genes and turns on messages of health or disease, weight loss or weight gain, and it's called nutrigenomics. Bethanne Patrick: Wow that's something I don't think any of us ever really thought about. Is that why I love bacon so much? Dr. Mark Hyman: Probably not. I don't know if it's sending the right messages. Bethanne Patrick: So explain to us, when you say 'food talking to your genes,' what kinds of messages are you describing? Dr. Mark Hyman: Most of us think of our DNA as sort of locked in our body, waiting to be passed onto our children, but in fact your DNA at every moment is interacting with your environment, interacting with every bite of food you take, interacting with your thoughts, your feelings, and various things, so when you take a bite of food, literally, the information -- beyond the calories in the food -- goes right into your cells, into your DNA, and switches on genes, or turns off genes based on what information is in that food. Bethanne Patrick: So, DNA is interactive. Dr. Mark Hyman: It's like the software for your body. If you are not giving it the right messages to start the gene activation that leads to your metabolism, it's going to lead to weight gain and disease. The whole book Ultra Metabolism is based on the notion of this revolution in medicine -- that if we live in a way that's in harmony with our genes, we can fit into our jeans. Bethanne Patrick: You use the analogy that putting the wrong food into your body is like putting diesel fuel into a regular car. Dr. Mark Hyman: Exactly. I mean, would you think of feeding your dog French fries, a Big Mac and a Coke? No. We know that there's something wrong with [feeding] that to a dog. Yet we feed that to our children. These foods are not what [we have] adapted to from an evolutionary point of view. So if we live in a way that's more akin to how our bodies were designed then everything takes care of itself. Bethanne Patrick: Tell me about how you found out about nutrigenomics and ultra metabolism. Do you have a lot of experience in this field? Where does it come from? Dr. Mark Hyman: Well, I always call myself the accidental weight loss doctor because I never started out seeking to help people lose weight. People came to me with health issues, and I saw people who tried everything. My job was to be a medical detective to figure out the underlying causes of their problems. When I took care of the underlying health problems based on this new science nutrigenomics, the pounds took care of themselves. People just lost weight, without even trying. For example, yesterday I saw a woman who came to see me in November because she was tired and fatigued, had digestive issues and had many, many, many other issues and she was overweight. Three months later she came back and she lost 37 pounds. Bethanne Patrick: Wow. Dr. Mark Hyman: I didn't even recognize her and I didn't tell her to lose weight. I never tell people to go on a diet or lose weight, I said 'here's how you eat in a way that works with your body, rather than against it' and when you do that the natural intelligence and wisdom of the body takes care of the rest. Bethanne Patrick: [What are] these seven myths about obesity? What is the starvation myth? Dr. Mark Hyman: The starvation myth is the idea that if we eat less and exercise more we will lose weight, and unfortunately, when we do that, when we starve ourselves or restrict our calories, we trigger a primitive survival response that drives us to compensate by overeating. We all have the experience, for example, of starving yourself all day, skipping Breakfast, light lunch or maybe not at all, and then you get home and what happens? You clean out the refrigerator. Bethanne Patrick: Exactly! Dr. Mark Hyman: And then you feel sick. Of course, we've done that over and over again. Now the first time you might do it you might think, 'Oh well, I shouldn't do this again because it's going to make me feel sick.' But how many times have all of us done that? Why? That's how our bodies are programmed. So if you eat less than your basic needs, if you starve yourself, you'll always backfire, you'll gain the weight back, and you'll probably gain back even a little bit more. People gain an average of five pounds for every diet they go on. Bethanne Patrick: The second one is the calorie myth. What's that about? Dr. Mark Hyman: If you look at how calories actually work in your body, different foods have different properties beyond [their] calories. For example, if I [drink] a Coca-Cola which is pure sugar, it goes straight to my bloodstream. It turns on messages that make me gain weight. If I eat a diet that's full of Fiber and whole foods that has the equivalent amount of calories it has a different effect. Doctor David Ludwig, one of the top scientists and researchers in obesity in the world at Harvard, did a study with three different groups of kids and gave them three different breakfasts: oatmeal, field cut oats and omelets, exactly the same calories. What's fascinating is that the kids that ate the oatmeal were hungrier, they ate 80 percent more food that day and their biochemistry was different; their cholesterol was higher. Bethanne Patrick: Really? The oatmeal eating group? Dr. Mark Hyman: Oatmeal enters the bloodstream quickly. The omelet group had sort of a slow-burn effect. In other words, the calories were released slowly into the bloodstream and they didn't trigger these hormonal responses and these genetic responses that trigger us to eat more and be hungrier. Bethanne Patrick: The third one is the fat myth. Dr. Mark Hyman: The fat myth is the idea that if we restrict fat we will lose weight. The Women's Health Initiative shows us that low-fat diets don't really help. And I think that the real important point here is that it's the type of fat that you eat that makes the difference. I think one of the things we don't realize is that if we eat a diet full of trans-fat or the steak fats that are in processed food, it really goes to a part of our genes, turns on messages that make us gain weight, that slows metabolism, that makes us have more inflammation, that makes it more likely that we get diabetes. If we eat the right fat [like] Omega-3 from fish oil, flax seeds, walnuts and seaweed, they will turn on the genes that make us lose weight. Bethanne Patrick: The carb myth is sort of is the same thing. Dr. Mark Hyman: I say to people that carbohydrates are the single most important thing you need for long term health and weight loss. That goes in the face of what a lot of people are saying right now. The reason I say that is carbohydrates are the source of all the Vitamins and minerals and what we call phytonutrient or plant chemicals that help us stay healthy. Things like fruits and vegetables, whole grains, Beans, nuts and seeds -- these are all carbohydrates. Bethanne Patrick: But they're good carbohydrates. Dr. Mark Hyman: Absolutely. It's the ones that are processed and refined and full of sugar that are bad for us. Bethanne Patrick: The sumo-wrestler myth is about skipping meals. Love that name. Dr. Mark Hyman: Yeah, well sumo wrestlers are made, not born. The way they're made is actually the way most Americans live. Like a sumo wrestler, they wake up, they may skip breakfast, they do a little activity and then they eat a huge meal and go to bed. When you skip breakfast and eat dinner before you go to bed, you're going to gain weight because your metabolism slows at night. When you fall asleep with a full stomach you're guaranteed to gain weight. Bethanne Patrick: The French paradox myth is myth number six. Why is that? Dr. Mark Hyman: Well, we think that the French are healthy and don't have heart disease because they drink wine and eat butter, and that's not true. Actually, they're getting more sick and more overweight because we're not only spreading Democracy, we're spreading obesity across the globe, including in Europe. What they used to do was eat real unprocessed and whole foods. Bethanne Patrick: So that's the key -- the unprocessed. Dr. Mark Hyman: They ate fresh food. They went to the market place every day and walked, because that was how their villages were set up. They also enjoyed their food. They didn't have the two minute lunch, they had the two hour lunch, and when we have pleasure and enjoyment with food our digestion and metabolism is geared to burn more calories than when we're stressed. When we eat at our desk, we're actually going to shut down our metabolism. Bethanne Patrick: The final myth is the 'Protector Myth.' What is the protector myth? Dr. Mark Hyman: The protector myth is the notion that government regulations and policies around the food industry out there is helping us to stay healthy and protect us from harm. I think that's unfortunately a very sad notion. The food industry makes up 12% of our gross national product and employs 17 percent of the labor force. And it spends 33 billion dollars a year marketing junk food to consumers. Only 2% of the 33 billion dollars is spent on marketing fruits, vegetables and healthy food. We're in a crisis because the only thing you can buy when you go on the road is food that's highly processed, devoid of all nutrients, that's full of calories and that actually turns on genes that make you gain weight and get sick. The entire food industry – the restaurant industry, the diet industry, hospitals, drug industry -- everybody profits from people being sick and overweight. The whole system's backwards. We need to stand up for policy changes that can help, such as getting junk food and vending machines out of schools and stop advertising of junk food to children and so forth. Bethanne Patrick: If people are interested in this, where can they go to get more information? You've got a great website. Dr. Mark Hyman: Yeah, www.ultrametabolism.com/aol, they can actually download a free sneak preview of the book. I've convinced my publisher to offer this online which allows people to get a sneak preview. If they're interested then, they can go ahead and get the book. My DVD is available for the UltraMetabolism PBS show, which they can watch on their local stations or get a copy as well. Get More Health Advice Mark Hyman discusses how to achieve greater health and vitality and lead an age-defying, disease-free life. Listen to Dr. Hyman's Podcast Interview Podcast Interview: Read Your Body's Manual How Does Inflamation Affect Your Weight? chocolate and Other Fats to Help You Slim Down Watch UltraMetabolism Video & Get Special Offer Buy ‘UltraMetabolism' Get More Health Advice From Dr. Hyman Find More Self-Help & Wellness Interviews More Tips and Advice From AOL Coaches

Try the berry flavored aloe vera juice and add a "shot" of organic apple juice to it. Makes it much better. Notice I don't say good - just much better. The reason for the organic apple juice is that it's 100% juice with no sugar or chemicals added. Much better for you.

Ya Dawg! You don't want to lose your curves! (hee hee hee)

Yeah. Hold your breath and wait for THAT to happen.

Interesting question Dawg. My goal weight is 150. I know from past experience that 150 is very trim for my height and body type. Very trim. Notice I don't say skinny - I'd have to get to 148 to be skinny. *eyeroll* Even so, 150 is smack dab in the middle of my "ideal" weight according to the BMI chart. So . . . I think our perspective of what our ideal weight should be, is what has changed, thanks in part to changes in clothing sizing, IMO. I guess what I'm saying is modern skinny isn't what skinny was 25 years ago. Why do you think an additional 21 pound weight loss for yourself is inplausible? Before you started this journey with your wife, I imagine you might have thought an 82 pound weight loss in 6 months was inplausible too, right? So what am I trying to say? Hell, I don't know. Just rattling I guess. Good question though.

Don't do it! It makes me crazy when I read about people who are put on, or feel like they're on, a "fill schedule". Only get a fill when you stop losing weight or you feel like you're starving or seriously dieting to lose. Every BODY is different and so should be the timing and amount of everyone's fills. I got my first fill too soon and have regretted it ever since. I did it because I was at 12 weeks post op, still hadn't had a fill, and I was worried I would be left behind the pack in weight loss! What a stupid reason to have a fill. I wish I hand't done anything! I'm still having problems - even with two subsequent fill adjustments. Read my LBT Journal if you want to see THAT screwed up story! Don't rush yourself. There are only so many fills you can get, so why push it when you don't really need to? Save 'em up for when you NEED them. IMO, if you have good restriction with no fill, it's probably because your stomach is sensitive to the band and when you get a fill you may resensitize or irritate your stomach (like I did) and have to go through swelling and discomfort just like post surgery all over again. Thank you for posting about this - I've wanted to say that for a few weeks now! Thank you.

I'm with em1125, I wouldn't reroute my stomach and intestines for weight loss. Too many complications and a much higher mortality rate than with the lap band. I have a friend who has had RNY and while she tolerated the surgery and recovered well - she lost about 90 pounds - in the past 4 months she's put 40 pounds back on. That's almost half of the total weight she lost. Who knows when the weight gain will stop. She's rearranged her insides and she's back in the obese category. At least with my lapband, if I regain my weight I won't have messed with my insides and have to deal with malabsorption of nutrients, etc. FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE. Talk to another surgeon. In fact, talk to several surgeons. Get a wide range of experience and opinion before you make your decision. It seems like a lot of work but, honestly, do people buy the first car on the lot they look at? Or do they look around a bit first and make sure it's the car they really want? This is your body - you only get the one. Make sure you do what's best for it.

I was on a one week liquid diet - clear liquids for 24 hours prior to surgery. I am 14 weeks post op and have had wine with no problem and a mixed drink - no carbonation - with no problem.

Exedrin Migraine IS an NSAID. :hurt

I pulled my goal number right out of my butt. Or right out of my dreams. OR right out of my dreams about my butt. I DID (after the fact) look at the BMI chart, and discovered that my goal number is squarely in the middle of the "normal" range. My question is: What's NORMAL anyway? Says WHO? I have issues with authority - clearly. :-)

Call your doctor as soon as you can. Your doctor is the person you need to be getting advise from, not LBT. Your doctor needs to be able to keep pertinent information about you in your chart - it may come in handy at a later date. LBT is a great place to ask questions, but the only information you should TRUST should come from your doctor. OK, after having taken such a hard line: Chances are very good that you haven't caused yourself any damage. You should go back to clear liquids for the whole day of the PB, possibly as many as 3 - 7 days of clear liquids. One week post-op is not the time to "hope for the best'. Your doctor will tell you what he wants you to do.

Gina, I'm following your story very closely. I'm starting to see more and more hair on my bathroom counter, in my brush, on my floor, stuck to my clothes, in my car . . . ya, pretty much everywhere. Keep us posted on what's going on with yours. Thanks.

I agree with the other posters. If you keep getting different or add-on expenses, it probably means that the hospital, the surgeon, or BOTH haven't done enough of this type of surgery to be trustworthy. I agree WHOLEHEARTEDLY with TriciaK about doing further research on any possible replacement surgeons. Just because you're 'geared-up' for surgery in a particulary time-frame, doesn't mean that that time-frame is the right or only time-frame for you. Now is not the time to let the decision making process slip through your fingers and throw caution to the wind. Take a step back, re-evaluate, and try again. The band will be there for you when you're completely ready.

Not a ramble, an EXCELLENT NSV! Congrats.

I haven't been able to eat in the morning since my HORRIBLE PB on May 22nd. It was starting to feel normal again and then I got my first fill! Coffee or tea with Splenda and a little bit of half & half is all I can manage until after noon. I'm sure this will get better as I lose weight. I do make sure to get in my protein every day. Not as good at getting in the water every day, I'm working on it.

I'm 5' 9" - used to be 5' 10" Hmmmm. My goal weight is 150, but honestly, if I get to 180 I'll be very happy. 150 is my dream weight. At 150 I can wear junior size 11 pants, I'm super-model skinny and feel like I own the world! At 180, I'll be amazing! How's that for attitude? THANKS FOR ASKING THIS QUESTION!!!!! I wish everyone would put their height in their signature line with their other stats. It makes a big difference.

WOW! THANK YOU SO MUCH DrC! Port infection is my biggest worry with the band - I seem to be obssessing about it. Your information is much appreciated and I finally feel like I can relax about it. A little. lol Thank you, even a little relief from the worrying is a huge release of stress for me.