Phoenix

I don't blame you. We must seem like candidates for the Darwin award. I'm only a week out. I'm only a week out and confused as hell. There's too much information all completely available. Rationalization is entirely too easy. Same band, different doctor. If you got banded by Dr Ortiz, like I did, then I'm on all liquids until the 7th of July. Then, I am to skip the mushy stage and go straight to solids. Um, okay. *blinders on* *peeking around blinders* So how come that person who was banded on the same day is allowed scrambled eggs on day 3? I'm not even supposed to be on cream Soups until day 7. To make matters even more complex, I had two consults in Phoenix. One with Dr. Simpson, one with True Results. True Results post op diet right here on my desk -- I'd be on mushies. Dr. Simpson? Soft solids. And Dr. Ortiz proctored Dr. Simpson, so why the difference???. And how come straight liquids for 21 days? This ice cold Propel Fitness Water is easy to feel going straight down into an empty stomach -- unrestricted by anything that implies ""swelling" or "inflamed". Okay, sorry. I am not ranting, honest. Whining, maybe, but not ranting I'm confused and I'm hungry. I'm confused and hungry and I've had 16 oz of Protein shakes, 16 oz of tomato Soup, 16 oz of coffee and 16 oz of Propel with another 13 days of the same to go. *blinders back on* **and trying to stay out of the Darwinian Doghouse, just wanted you to know how easy it is to get there**

They grow skin now, in sheets. It's a technology much like DNA reproduction. On the upside, there are almost no worries about your body rejecting it. On the downside, it leaves us with fewer ways to help others with the skin we don't need anymore. Fight Club soap, anyone?:grouphug:

Oh thank heaven! Not that we're in gas hell, but that I'm not alone in gas hell! I was getting worried that my body would never be right again. I've learned to burp again. Found that GASX does help for the tail end, but the shoulder pain...Geez Louise! Dumb question, but why is it localized in the left shoulder? Okay, I'll walk, but what does seem to help when the pain is 8/10 is reclining on the couch with the left shoulder down for a few minutes.

If it's infected it could be red, hot, puffy, painful and might have pus. Pink and itchy usually means healing.

Your co-worker gets off on humiliating others. She's no friend. I'm sorry you have to deal with her.

(and breaking wind isn't bad, either) If someone has the magic wand, would you please pass it over? The gas pains are something else. Banded Monday. Not hungry, the tightness feels sort of like being pregnant -- and the port like baby heels. My left shoulder is threatening to abandon the rest of my body though. Any words of wisdom to get the gas pains to quit? Much appreciated!

Also banded the 16th...I haven't dared look! My hands are still pudgy from extra fluids :biggrin: so I've stayed away from the scale. So, I'll wait for them to shrink back to normal before I dare take my first "after" weight. Wishing the best to all the rest of us "Junies"

Got home from Tijuana today. Dr. Ortiz gets two thumbs up in my book! I have a 4 ml band. Not hungry yet, not over the gas pains yet, either. It's hard to burp, but it's better today than yesterday. I can start "not clear" liquids tomorrow. Good luck with the rest of you!

Muscle Milk has several formulas. There is one for people who are trying to bulk up. ( A weight gain type) There is one for regular Protein intake with good fats. Read the label. If it's the type that is 150 calories a scoop (or 300 for two scoops), with 30+ grams of protein, it's great stuff. They also have the light version (available premixed at Costco). Great to grab for Breakfast.

Okay. YIKES! I've had 2 c-sections. I don't like being cut open. Getting a little figety now. *Reminding mice elf that they're not pulling a 9 pound baby out an appropriate sized opening...it's just 2 inches.* Happy all the 6/1 - 6/11 are doing so well! Focusing on your milestones. Congratulations! Please post your little victories 1 week post surgery. It helps all of us Jazzy June people!

Congrats, Jillian! Who did your surgery? I'm in the Valley of the sun, too. One week from today, I'll be home from Mexico and will be able to say the same thing! Glad everything went well, you're on your way!

The bowl can be ceramic, it just has to be COLD (plastic doesn't work) The mousse made with milk won't stay as whipped as cream, it will flatten after a couple of hours, but you can certainly whip it into a decent foam. I'll have to look up a magic bullet, but if it will whip cream, then it will whip milk.

Goodspeed healing. Hope everything goes perfectly! I love the mini goals that people set and think that's a genuinely good way to feel successful. Like any big project, breaking the tasks down into smaller parts makes it seem so much more manageable. Good luck reaching your goals!

Cool. And on your very first post, too. You must be a hit at parties.

YES! Actually, you can whip skim milk. Freeze beaters and metal bowl. Pour in skim milk and whip away. Can also be done with 1%. Heavy cream is nothing but saturated fat. No nutritional value and nasty for the arteries. Have fun experimenting!

Ask your doctor since you're still healing. For the rest of your life??? There's not a thing wrong with an occasional drink. A glass of wine has about 100 calories, but no nutritional value. It's kind of like chocolate. Alcohol is like a super-carbohydrate. Each gram has 7 calories (normal carbs are 4 calories per gram) and your body will burn them first, saving harder to break down calories for last. Blended drinks are calorie laden; full of sugar and alcohol. They should be thought of like french fries or a milk shake -- better to steal a sip than have your own.

Wow...unless you're having triplets :biggrin2: 80 pounds in 4 months isn't smart or easy. That's .75 pounds a DAY. 2625 excess calories to burn every day? That's like 5 hours in spin class or 8 hours doing laps...every day. Discouraged? Sure, if you set goals that no normal humans can reach, that's bound to happen. It would be perfectly reasonable to 30 pounds by your Anniversary and goal by Easter though!

TJ on the 16th, but not Dr. Kuri. His staff was really nice though and I've only heard/read great feedback about him.

Sorry, a "no" here, too. Avocados are mono-unsaturated fats...like olives and nuts they're good fats, but you need to wait until you're at the mushy stage post-op to incorporate them. As *sigh* do I.... Right now, you're pretty much on "no" fats. Good luck with your preparations!

People are allowed their opinions, but their opinions are not more important than your opinions. I've got two detractors. One is on WW, the other is just doom and gloom in general. Here's the deal. a) You haven't seen my dad. He's had type II diabetes for 18 years that I know of. He's had 1 severe heart attack. He has no feet, no sternum and dead kidneys. He lives in assisted living at 67. I'd like to pretend that his genes are not a time bomb in my body, but they are. Yes, of course I can lose weight the "normal way". That isn't the reason I'm having a band put in. c) I'm normal. You and I have watched (Persons A, B, C, D, E, F) lose weight using the cookie diet, WW, Atkins, South Beach you name it...and do a great job of it -- for a while. And then it creeps back on. I want hardware to prevent the backslide. I'm only willing to do the work one. more. time. Easy? The sucky thing is that it's not easy at all. Forevermore, instead of having a glass of wine with dinner, I can have a glass of wine OR dinner. Thanksgiving as it was is permenantly over. I'll never drink a Diet Coke again. That ain't easy, that is what permanent looks like.

Two weeks to go.... I sooooo understand the "Last Supper" mentality as well as the well meaning "You don't need this, it's so EXTREME" talks from people. Thanks everyone for your "Jazzy June" support. Looks like we all need some "you get me" therapy!

Thirteen is a baker's dozen -- just one more of a good thing.

No. You don't punish the innocent with a group spanking to get at the one you want to punish. Rip apart a family on purpose? Put people who don't have it coming in that kind of pain out of spite? That would make you as awful as the interloper. It would be worse than your husband's betrayal because you'd be dumping your kind of pain on 4 others out of spite. You don't seem like that kind of person. Your husband had the responsibility to remain true to you. Your husband is responsible where he puts his weiner. No one else, just him. He messed up badly. He's sorry. He's doing what he needs to do to make your family okay again. Focus on that. She's a red herring...a really stinky one.

DO NOT LET YOUR BRAIN ENVISION THEM BETWEEN THE SHEETS. You have to make that stop. There is no value, truth or anything helpful there. It will just drive you crazy. Turn it off like the bad porn it is. Back to roller coasters...Actually, it's not a bad idea. You'll have moments when you think, "I haven't thought about it in two hours." "I haven't thought about it all morning." "I haven't cried about it in two days." "I haven't checked his e-mail in a week." "I didn't scan the cell bill for her number last month." You'll hit milestones on the way to a new kind of trust. The old, blind one is gone forever. The new one is a re-earned one. You'll learn where you're comfortable in your "field" of trust. Some people find their field to be very small and need a lot of control. Others get back to something they recognize. Just realize that where you're comfortable and when you get there is right for you. It took me about a year and a half.

I like Muscle Milk Protein powders in both chocolate and Vanilla Creme -- bought a bit less expensively in powder form at drugstore.com (and with a GNC card). I learned quickly after starting Medifast that I have an intolerance for soy protein. It's an ugly thing when your skin erupts into zillions of little blisters! I'll be sticking to whey protein. I haven't found anything like chicken or tomato soup with when Proteins, but I'll post back when I have.