barbara465

Welcome to bandland. There is no group in our area, but I would start one if there is demand. I live in Atascocita by the country club. If we get some interest I'm willing to put something together. I have a group that meets downtown for lunch on the 2nd Wednesday, but nothing close to home. There is a group that meets at the Woodlands, North Houston group, at 6:30. Next meeting is: December 7, 2006 6:30 p.m. to ? Cafe Express 9595 Six Pines Dr., Suite 150 The Woodlands, TX 77380

I eat soup because its easy to take to work. I try to have leftovers from dinner, but it doesn't always work that way. I try to find those soups that have some Protein in them so I can get some bulk. On the days I make a meat wrap I get full faster. I think for me its getting hard protein in that's the trick. We also have chili con queso with fat free Beans for lunch as well. Again, it gets the protein in, but slides through the band. Maybe I should try cheese and crackers and meat and crackers instead. The few times I've had an overfill have kept me from wanting restriction that makes me feel it. I just want a happy balance of restriction, will power, and the right food choices. I'm going to work on this as for me I think its the key.

1500 calories is my upper limit according to Sparks. I want to stay around 1,000/day. I usually have a snack in the afternoon of sugar free pudding. I sometimes have a snack after dinner. I do pretty good during the work week. The weekends is hit or miss with me. We tend to not eat or eat too much. One of the things I'm doing is just eating my Activia for Breakfast around 9:30. If I'm really hungry I may have some whole wheat crackers with a little Peanut Butter on them between breakfast and lunch. I eat lunch early at 11:30 and at that time I'm starving. I have an afternoon snack and then we eat dinner at 5:30. I may have a snack at 7:00 pm. I think I need to do something different for breakfast and eat more Protein for lunch. I have Soup if I don't have leftovers from dinner. Dinner is usually pretty good and I try to eat hard protein for it. I have to watch my portions as I can eat more that 4-6 oz. I also get hungry, even though I'm drinking at least 3 bottles of Water while at work and another one at home. I don't get hard stop signals so I try to be careful so one doesn't sneak up on me. I am now limiting the time to eat dinner to 30 minutes. I have gotten full and stopped eating, but I can eat lots before that happens. I really don't think I have restriction like most of you. I know what the pain is like if I get too big a fill so I know I'm capable of getting restriction. I think another fill is in order. I may go ahead and schedule one for the end of November so I'll have an appointment.

OK I logged my food intake yesterday into Sparkpeople. I ate 1500 calories yesterday, and most of it after dinner. I was shocked. I had a few of those snack size candy bars - yikes! I'll do better today. Tuesday is my day to weigh. I am at the number I claimed several weeks ago. I will start from this and see what happens. I'm still able to eat too much and my will power is wanning. I'll give it until the end of the week before making a decision for a fill. Barbara 12, Pinkylee, and I are meeting for lunch on Wednesday. If anyone wants to join us PM me for details. We are meeting in downtown Houston. I'm looking forward to it.

Take some deep breathes. You don't have to make decisions now. Let him "show" you how he has changed and can change. HOWEVER, please be careful. Don't divulge any of your secrets or negotiations with your lawyer. Don't trust him with those details. Try to keep putting money aside somewhere where he can't get to it. Keep your plans to yourself so you have somewhere safe to fall if the worse happens. Give yourself some space and time. Get yourself back on an even keel so you can make decisions in a rationale manner. In other words, take care of yourself and your emotional needs. The other stuff will be there when you're ready to deal with it.

Good luck tomorrow. You will feel so much better getting a slight unfill. You should feel it almost immediately. You will be able to drink normally and life will be good. I have found that I have to get small fills. I don't get over .3 at a time. Others can get .5 or more and be just fine. Not me. I also don't react until about 6-10 days after a fill. Everyone is different and you will learn what works for you. However, don't let yourself go too long being overfilled. Its not good for you. Glad you took that step to get an unfill. Feel better soon.

You definitely will feel the effects of the alcohol much sooner. Probably one drink will do it. I've had wine at parties and also an occasional margarita. I try to count the calories and definitely don't eat and drink. The no eating is probably why I feel it faster. Most of the time I just skip drinking because its not worth it to me. For someone young like yourself its OK. Just be aware that you will only need to drink a little to get the effect. :Banane33:

My hair started coming out about a 6 weeks ago. I can just run my fingers through my hair and see many strands clinging to my hand. My hair is short so it's hard to find all the hairs that I'm losing. When I blow dry my hair the strands fly to the bathtub. That's where I really noticed the accumulation. I hope it stops soon. I'm 5 months out so the stress of the surgery makes sense to me.

If you are getting leg cramps take some potassium. I was getting them real bad and started taking a potassium supplement. The leg cramps went away.

I can eat chicken or beef. However, I am real careful with chicken white meat. If it is stringy I don't go near it. I dip everything in low fat gravy or applesauce. I try to keep everything moist and have prepackaged dinners that are very moist and good. Turkey and gravy from Schwan's is an example. I'm also a Libra and also have a Shiu Tzu. His name is Willie for short and weighs 14 lbs. He's hung around me too long.

You should not allow yourself to be overfilled. It is not normal not to be able to drink and eat in moderation. Not being able to keep liquids down is not good and overfills lead to other complications. Some have reported reflux, slippage, etc. from being overfilled. It will not get better by waiting for weeks. I would go in and get a slight unfill. Consult with your doctor, but it isn't good to stay this way too long.

Thanks Christa. I needed some kind words today. I'm going to reevaluate what I'm doing as well. I'll get back into my food log so I can see what I'm eating. I bought a food scale also so I could measure my intake. I guess I need to start back on the protein drink. I have been having an Activia instead so I could stay "regular". It only has 5g of protein so not enough for my morning meal. I think I'm still eating too many soft proteins. I eat soup a lot for lunch. Sometimes I have leftovers. I need to add more meat and cheese (not chili con queso) to my meals. I'm still losing my hair. I've bought Niacin tablets and will start taking them. My leg has really been bothering me so I haven't been good about the exercise. I'll start on my walking tapes tonight and just do a little each day.

Poodles I didn't think that was a lot of food either. Maybe I just am able to eat too much, but that seemed reasonable. I'm getting so frustrated with all of this. I read on here how others are tight, full, etc. and I can eat. I try to limit myself, but I know I don't have restriction like others. That would be OK if I was losing. I don't think I'm losing. I just came off a week of liquids and mushies. I haven't weighed, but I don't think I'll see a loss. I also get irritated reading the board where they are taking coke polls, drinking with meal polls, etc. There's a few simple rules to follow. I know if we could follow rules we wouldn't be fat, but geesh this is ridiculous. Just because some can drink carbonated beverages and some can drink with their meals, should we? Why are so many trying to figure out how to get around the band? This doesn't give support to a new lifestyle for those that are trying. I don't want to PB every day or slime in a cup, but I do want restriction. I'm giving this fill one more week. If I have no repercussions from it and I'm still hungry, I'm going for another fill. I just think I should have a little more restriction than I do. OK I've vented for the day. I had a great weekend. DH and I went shopping and to a party and got one of the 3 Christmas trees out. We put it in the formal living room so we can start decorating it later this week. Have a great Monday.

OK gals seems like lots is going on. Some are too tight, some are getting clensed, some are eating next to nothing, some are eating too much and getting too much, etc. I am eating 3 meals a day, seem to eat lots, but not as much as before fill. Moving to solids tomorrow so we'll see. I'm entering my danger time after a fill so don't know yet what's in store for me. So far so good. Hang in there everyone.

I might be there will you Melissa. I am waiting to see if this fill is enough. If not, I'm going to schedule a little one right before Thanksgiving. It will be my last opportunity before Christmas. I don't want to schedule any in December because I react so late on fills I don't want to take a chance. It might not be a bad thing to rid ourselves of all temptation. I decided I wasn't cooking for Thanksgiving anyway and now maybe only have to warm up soup.

During the time you are recuperating you will get hungry. You are wide open except for any swelling you may have. Most get a fill starting around 4 weeks. Every doctor is different. During your post surgery time you should be concentrating on healing. It is "typically" not the time to worry about weight loss. That will come. You should adhere to your doctor's recommendations for the liquids and mushie stages and how long. Once you are on solid food that's when most go for a fill. There is a thread on here that helps by giving mushie receipes. Look for ways to get full without too many useless calories. Drink your Protein drinks to get the 60 g protein in each day. Good luck. Relax for now. The journey has just begun.

Go where your heart leads you, but keep your head about you. Put the divorce on hold and try to work through the emotions. There will be many and they will conflict as you go through the process. Both of you can't start the healing process until you uncover all the reasons. It will be painful, but it can take you to a new place in your relationship. You need time to regroup and gather your energies. Let him help you with that if he can. At minimum retreat from the day to day for a few and give yourself a rest. All of us are hoping for whatever is best for you. We are not your judges, we are your support. Lean on us anytime. Our prayers and thoughts are with you.

Barbara 12 have you decided yet you might be too tight? It doesn't sound like you are doing well on this fill. I'm still on mushies so I don't know yet. I do seem to get full a little faster, but I still think I can eat too much. I start getting scared at this point because its when I go to solids that I have a problem. I am getting plenty of liquids and have to make many trips to restroom. I should lose weight just walking back and forth to it while at work. Got some walking in yesterday, but not as much as I would have liked. Will try again tonight. Getting the right restriction is key to success of the band. I hope you can get a fill soon Christa. We have lots of stuff going on this weekend so it should be good. The weather is supposed to get a little cooler so that will be nice. Have a great weekend everyone.

I would say as a general rule, run not walk away from the bread dressing. Most bandsters have trouble with gooey bread like textures and I think stuffing falls into that category. You will be on soft foods so some mashed potatoes and gravy, maybe some turkey that's been blended. Don't tempt it so soon out from surgery. My 2 cents.

If getting naked gets you to onederland go for it. :success1: I'm still doing good after the fill. I'm moving on to mushies and will be there until Saturday. I usually don't react for a week or so. I'm feeling a little fuller faster and haven't been able to eat as much soup as before. So maybe I have restriction. We didn't walk last night. I could barely move around from the night before. We are going out tonight, but will get in some walking. Need to keep this old body limbered up and not get stiff. Hope to get a massage on Saturday. Good tip about the Pineapple juice. I would think the acid would be irritating, but I guess that's what you needed. I worry about getting the flu and what that would do with the band. I bought a pair of crop pants for the trip. They are too small so I hope by the time we go on the cruise they will fit. Keeps me motivated.

Carlene I think you have a good heart and a strong mind. You should do and say what you are comfortable with and don't compromise your principles. This is a touchy subject with DH and one where you need to tread lightly. He needs to understand your deep moral dilema and not you just being "stubborn" or other adjectives. Somehow you need him to understand your views and let it go at that. He doesn't need to make excuses for your absence. He just needs to respect your opinion. That being said I hope you find a way that this stops driving a wedge between you and your DH. That would be a shame to ruin your relationship over the doings of Mr. P. Good luck to you as you proceed.

Emmy, First of all congradulations on your successful weight loss journey! From everything I've read and heard from others, the mucus build up can really play havoc with the band. I heard the doctors say warm liquids first to open the band up and drain the mucus helped most of their patients. Stay away from cold liquids. If you are feeling uncomfortable I would go in for a slight unfill. There is no sense "toughing" it out for days only to have to go in at the end anyway. Besides, you can do damage when you let things like this go on. Let your doc do a barium swallow and then you will know if you have slippage or not. Your mind needs to be put at ease. Good luck.

I think Bill Clinton is very smart and ran his own office. I think Hillary is very smart, but won't be able to get the Democrats to rally around her for President. I do think that Obama would make a great President and would be the first black President. Remember what happened when Hillary led the health reform? They practically lynched her. Different standards for men and women. Remember when Ferraro ran for VP? I think we will see a black president before a woman president.

Hiccups are also a sign of being full. Stop eating when you get them. Everyone is different and some get full signals and others don't. I get a little twinge in my left shoulder. Tells me I should stop. Fills are different for everyone as well. I've had quite a few fills, but really don't get that full feeling. If I get overfilled I PB and slime (salivia can't swallow so it comes out like foam).

I have never had a problem with liquids in the morning. I do wait an hour or so after waking up before I attempt to eat. I don't know why except I just don't "feel" like eating first thing.