Northernsun

Thanks! You have done well yourself! I hope you can find out what is the restriction problem- you have come a long way- focus on that! I had mine in Minneapolis at Fairview hospital with Dr Lederer.

We Minnesotans tend to be a private bunch don't we! I know there are a lot of us out here. I am a happy 14 month bandster and while they said we should go to support groups for bandsters, I am happy using this as my support group. I don't do groups well! Hope all the rest of the Minnesotans are doing well!

Sorry to hear about all the problems right now but as everyone says just follow the drs and all will be ok. i have been on coumadin for almost 2 yrs after have blood clots in both lungs. i was not going in to the er till my dh made me- good thing- i am alive! It started this journey for me- while in the hospital I quit smoking and 8 mo later i got my lap band. Weight loss and changing eatting habits make monitoring your blood very important. After surgery i had to have INR's 2x a week till i stabilized and even now if I change my excersize level or what i am eatting I have to go in more often. Once you are on the blood thinners you should not have any more blood clot trouble so it is a good thing you found out. Good Luck with everything! This is just the start of a new journey!

I used to love the chinese buffet. On a road trip a couple years ago we kept food cost down by always finding the buffet and enjoyed some really good ones in out of the way places. I have not gone since my surgery over a yr ago. What was the purpose? can't eat much and it is a waste but yesterday my co worker went and brought me back the carry out portion of the buffet with all my favorites. The portion would have been what i would have eatten in the first trip up to the buffet an d i could hardly eat a third of it so i have lunch for the next couple days. Now that is a deal i can live with!

I am over a yr out and my Dr said it was alright to have carbination so I ran right out and bought some of the walmart waters i was addicted to ( what happened to all the flavors they used to have? I loved the grapefruit...) and i found i have a hard time drinking them. First i have already found I can't drink iced cold drinks and if I let some of the fizz out I am better. I can see I won't be getting addicted to that again!

Sharon, Welcome! You sound a bit like me! i am 54 with bad knees, apnea, and a history of blood clots in the lungs, and started at 337lbs. 13 and a half months later, i am down 100 lbs, I can climb the stairs and walk like a normal person and do much of what i used to do and i am in the middle of a 2 week retest for my apnea and so far it looks like I might be free of the ball and chain. But most improtant to me is i have regained my joy of life and feel great! There are many of us over 50 here. Good luck!

Congrats! It is fun isn't it!

Thanks a lot everyone! I have been stalled for a bit and have worked hard at the last4 lbs that would not come off- till now. Also, thanks for letting me blow my own horn - I don't do that much I am just the opposite- too hard on myself and by shareing with all of you I saved my self the embarrassment of running down the halls at work hollering 100lbs 100lbs!!

I did it! Go Me! I finally hit the 100 mark! I stepped on that scale 4 times this morning to make sure it was correct. I am on liquids for the next 48 hrs as I had a fill yesterday and I think that pushed me the final few lbs. Also i am wearing a pr of cord jeans I bought on sale ( $9!!) at walmart a couple months ago and could not get into. And finally, it is trying to be spring! How much better can it get! On to Onderland!!:clap2:

Thanks Michelle! There is not a whole lot I can do to stop this so i just have to ride it out. I have the excersize part and pretty much eatting right, it is the mental attitude I have problems with. My moods swing so quickly- sometimes i feel i am doing good and other times i get down on myself because it is not fast enough. My dh tells me all the time how far I have come and I do see it with the increased things I can do again now that the weight is coming off my knees- just sometimes it is hard to believe it.

Hi all! I have been banded just over a yr, am 54 ys old and have lost about 97 lbs. I am kind of stalled but started a excersize program with resistance bands about 2 months ago so i see a bit of a difference but the scale doesn't show much movement lately. I found I need to concentrate on what I am doing at meal times or i overeat and eat too fast, and keep the carbs down and don't use food as a comfort when things go bad. I was doing ok at the last one till recently when after skirting Menopause for the past couple years I have finally jumped in with both feet. I am learning to live with the hot flashes (not too bad ) and the night sweats ( covers on ,covers off, repeat all night!) but the mood swings are driving me nuts! I actually found myself at my friends desk at work munching candy- something I usually don't even like much- after a conversation with a cranky customer. Any "tricks of the trade" so to speak to getting through the next couple yrs without killing anyone or blowing the band would be helpful! Thanks!!

I think we all got the tshirt on that one. And it surprises me with every fruit I try that does that. Grapes almost killed me and I about gave up on oranges and tangerines till I started just chewing them and throwing out the pulpy stuff. Not really worth the work. Only a few more months till watermelon season!

white chedder cheese rice cakes- 40 calories each. There are times I am really tight and they are about the only thing that goes down well with just enough of that salty taste I need. they go with my yougart for breakfast and my afternoon snack with a piece of cheese. i can find them at one walmart i go to and not the other and lately my grocery store has been out so when I do find them i buy a bunch! I Just smile at the weird looks!

I still use mine but I have found that i am taking it off at night more in my sleep. I think what wakes me up then is the quiet. I haven't noticed any effects from pulling it off. i will wake up later and put it back on. I think part of the problem is the fit of the mask since my face is smaller then before but I am in a small mask now. I have had my cpap for aboput 8-9 yrs and am making an appointment to get retested this week. Hopefully it will be totally gone.

I am fighting for every pound it seems and I visit the clinic about every few weeks to have my blood checked ( I am on blood thinners and EVERYTHING affects the levels and I can't seem to hold steady.) I try not to get depressed but that scale is always 4 lbs heavier then mine and at the surgeons it is 4-5 lbs heavier but that is also at end of day and with winter weight clothes. I find myself looking for the lightest weight clothes I can find on the days I go to the dr- stupid I know.

Thanks for all the book suggestions- didnot realize there was an idiots giude to paganism but I guess as long as there are idiots, there will be idiots guides! Here in the northland in the wilds of Minneapolis, we are pretty much shut down and I have a snow day from work so will have time to research the suggestions given, and after I dig out the driveway (DH had to work) maybe I will get the 4 wheel drive out and try half price books. I was raised Jewish but always felt that something was missing. Since I am learning to listen to my body now I guess I should start listening to the rest of me also! When something is right, it feels like it fits - I am still looking.

Not only will you feel good again, soon you will feel wonderful! Someone asked me how was my first year and I told them it was a lot of fun! Watching the pile of clothes on the closet floor grow ( and the ones hanging get less and less!) Getting compliments on how well I am doing- even when I think I am not doing well at all, the ability to WALK! and excersise and climb the stairs....... On another note, I was interested to see just how many people were in this thread. On this subject i am a newbie but would like to learn. I tend to feel more comfy with the general group pagan but was surprised with all the different options in your poll. Any suggestions to start my learning? I am not a group person - spend my day as customer service and off time with just family. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

wow! who did you hire to be in the before picture?! You look great! I did atkins for about 4 yrs and lost 60 lbs before things went bad on me and I started gaining it all back. I still do a modified atkins - more fruit and a bit less meat and occasionally rice or pasta but not often cuz I do have trouble with both. Still can't bring myself to eat a piece of bread!

I do like the 100 calorie popcorn but have developed a real addiction to chedder cheese rice cakes. At 45 cal a piece they give me the salty and crunchy taste i crave and can have a couple with out feeling guilty. Other chips and crackers i try to stay away from- too easy to overdo as we all know chips were invented by the devil!

I am still using the low carb tortillas as a bread substitute but not as often as I used to and a half is enough for me. Of course I have to eat slowly and chew chew chew-

I don't care for the new web site either. It is too "busy" and hard to look at. It is like they tried to fit way too much info on the front page. The streak game is you pick a driver to finish in the top 10 each week - picking a new driver each week and not repeating. You get the points your driver would get for placing and the one with the longest winning streak and /or most points . I just did it for fun but missed puttting in my name for daytona other wise i would have been 3 for 3. thanks for info- will try Foxsports.com

We will go to a race sometime but till then we do sometimes go to the small tracks in our area. To feel the "rumble" try the Car Craft or Back to the 50's car shows. Our whole state fair grounds are full of classic or muscle cars and the cruising makes the ground shake. Aw, the sweet smell of testosterone in the air......... Another great race yesterday! I am kind of impressed with Jeff Burton this year. What is wrong with the engine dept at DEI? A Toyata in the top 10! Guess you have to give them some credit but I still don't like it! Anyone else playing the streak game on NASCAR.com? I had Kurt Bush yesterday and at the end he finally hit the top 10.

Help! Any music I play from CD player or this website plays too fast and sounds like the chipmonks! Anyone know how to adjust this? I have tried but can't figure it out and i am sure it is something easy. This ois only on my work computer thankfully. Must say tho- you haven't lived till you have heard the chipmonks do Janis Joplin!

I am so sorry to hear that. After all the pre stuff was finished and to find that out is heart breaking. Is there any appeal process especially if you have any co morbidities? Which insurance co? i am sure it is less expensive there then in Minneapolis for the surgery. Does your doctor have any kind of payment plan you can do? I was banded a yr ago and i am making my last payment on the part the insurance co didn't cover this month. Worth checking out......

Missy- i am just part way in to Dream Hunter and had high hopes for it as I also love her books. So far it seems that something is just "off"- can't put my finger on it but the characters don't feel right somehow. It is too easy to put down and walk away- something that rarely happened with the dark hunter books. Also waiting for Ash's story!