barbara465

I am a big collector, but scaling back. I collect Longaberger baskets, Christopher Radko ornaments, Patricia Breen ornaments, and Mark Robert's Fairies. I have really trimmed as I used to have 400 stuffed bears, Department 56, Harbour Lights Lighthouses, Charming Tails, and Cherished Teddies. I think this goes hand in hand with over eating. :confused:

That's right for the October challenge. Some of us are going to eat 4-6 meals instead of 3. We are trying to spread out our calories during the day and see if that helps with weight loss. My doctor recommends 3 meals a day and no Snacks. That doesn't seem to be working for me. There's been lots of talk about dieting, restriction, mushies vs solids, etc. I am confused at the moment at to what I have with the band. Right now, I have no restriction. I say that only because I haven't tested it to its limits. I've come close I think, but I haven't felt the magic signal of fullness. I've gotten full, but after I've eaten more than I think I should. I also haven't been brave enough to try a few things I know cause others problems. Saturday we had pizza. First time since banded. I ate the toppings off the pizza, but not the crust. I was too scared to try that. I think maybe I could have eaten it as nothing seems to bother me. So, I guess in theory I can eat anything as before being banded, just less. Well, maybe less as I haven't pushed it to see. Steak and baked potato last night. It was good. Didn't eat as much as before, but definitely had enough. I think the October challenge will help me redirect my energies into positive actions. I am also going for a fill, a little itty bitty fill, so it will be interesting to see if I get restriction. I haven't lost since the unfill so I'm ready. Hope everyone has a great week. Today and tomorrow at work, then off for a few days of fun. Can't wait.

So you know that it could be say that "care takers" are the most obsese people in the nation. That would lend itself to a Democratic landslide. Let's see how this plays. I'm one of the few lone democrats in Texas! It gets lonely down here. :confused:

Leila you are an inspiration to me. Thanks for the good information. I really appreciate it. I'm trying so hard to change and eat more balanced. I am able to eat more than I think I should. SInce I have had two bouts with overfills I can see where that would effect my protein intake. I'm not losing lots of hair, but I am losing. Makes sense that its a reaction to past behavior. I'll watch that as I move forward. I have thought for a while that fluro fills was an overkill. Not that I don't mind having them that way. At least I know going home that everything is OK. The day I was so restricted and went in there the fluro showed I was getting things down. That's the day I was really confused. I began to think it was my esphogus or something in my throat. However, as soon as they took some out I was better. I mean really better. My throat stopped gurgling, the pain was gone. It was so instant. I knew then it didn't matter that the fluro showed everything was fine. It wasn't. My experiences have been somewhat different, but not unusual. I am able to eat breakfast, eggs and bacon, cereal, yogurt, coffee, etc. I don't have trouble eating, no spit cups required, and no golf ball feelings. I only have restriction by my own fear and my own self control. It will be nice to have a fill that makes me stop, yet doesn't make me PB. The future is uncertain, but I still love the band. I would not have gotten this far without it. I just need to find the right restriction, eat the right food, and enjoy. I'm going into the October challenge with the thought that its now time to put it all together - balance, water, and exercise. Leila have they scheduled your surgery yet? I know it will be a relief to have the tumors out. I hope you are accepting the rest of what is happening. It is never easy, but your health is important. I had my hysterectomy at 30. I was so glad when it was all over as I had been sick for a year that I never thought of the loss of my female organs. Let us know how you are doing. Keep it together Junebies. We are all different, having different experiences, yet bound by the sameness of the band. We can do this.

Carol, I don't think most of us "diet". We are only supposed to be able to eat X amount once we have restriction. SOme of us don't have restriction yet, so we modify what we eat to fit a certain calorie amount. I am eating pretty much everything. I eat my protein first, then my vegetables. If I'm still hungry I eat my carbs. I just changed the order of my eating and slowed down. I go out to eat and yes I do eat slow. No one notices that I've only eaten a 1/3 of what they have. Everyone approaches this a little different. I want to enjoy normal foods, but in smaller amounts. I don't want sweets to rule my life or great amounts of food. I don't want to think about this all the time. That's my goal. Hang in there. Balance will come when restriction is reached. Making good choices will always be better than having all our intake in cake and cookies.

Poodles I notice that everything is liquid or mushies. Are you not able to eat solid food at all? Sounds like you are getting in good foods and not high calories. The band is supposed to work with solids so I'm curious. I can eat just about anything. I chew, chew, chew. Not sure I'm losing right now, but I'll get a fill after next week and hopefully get some restriction.

You are right, except you can now control the heat on the broil. That is, you can broil something at a lower heat for a longer period of time. That allows you to cook a thick steak in the middle without the outside getting tough and burnt. Cooking with electric is very different than gas as you probably have already learned. Electric cooking cannot be controlled as gas can. You have to turn things off faster as it continues to cook because the elements are still hot. Good luck

There are endless meal opportunities on a cruise. You can eat all day and all night if you have a mind to. I wouldn't get an unfill unless I was too tight to begin with. I would just try to taste what I wanted, but not eat until I was sick. I'm going on a cruise over Christmas. I don't plan to get an unfill, but I do plan to enjoy the cruise. Remember: it's not all about food.

Yes and no. First, we sometimes don't know how to react to our thinner bodies so yes you hide in the food. No, because eating carbs makes you want to eat more carbs. Its a vicous cycle. I would say the problem is more the second. You know that carbs are your trigger so you will need to stop cold turkey. Stay away from them and you will be fine. Glad to hear your DH gave you a compliment. You must be losing even if you haven't weighed.

Maybe we should add to the 1200 calories/day that 70% of it has to be from protein, hard protein. That seems to be the key. I noticed if I eat hard protein I'm not hungry. We also need to eat solids. Liquids, mushies, soft foods, aren't going to get it for us. We have to learn to exist using Normal foods. I know I need a fill. However, it will be small, and if I PB its coming out. I also read on another thread about spitting into a cup. UGH. If I have to live that way, the band is going. That's not right. You shouldn't have to spit into a cup to avoid your saliva causing a PB. It means you are too tight, eating too fast, or eating the wrong food. Somehow this doesn't have to be this hard. That being said, someone bring my hair back. I'm going to go get the shampoo and the additional vitamins today. Heading for the beach on Wednesday. I don't think that is going to help my situation. Have a great weekend everyone!

Once I have a PB I can't recover. I've tried just liquids, clear, and not thicker liquids. Nope. Water hurts, but I can get it down. The only way to correct it is to get an unfill. I believe we do more harm if we allow the overfill situation to continue. That's been my experience. Immediately after an unfill I can chug a bottle of water. Telly, you really need to be on solid foods. I know its so tempting to go the other route so we can loose, but that's not good for you either. Also, we have to learn to live "normal" eating lives. If we resort to liquids and baby food we are not learning a new way. Not lecturing. I am going to only get tiny fills from now on. That way hopefully I can build up to my restriction. This is from someone who didn't swell after surgery. I didn't have any problems until the first fill. Even at that, I never felt restriction. Just a PB and downhill after that. The fluro shows everything going through just fine, even when I couldn't swallow water. Go figure! Good luck

Some of us can't tolerate big fills. I am one of them. The fluro shows it going through just fine, but just wait 6-9 days. Also, they have done fluro when I couldn't drink but a few sips and it showed me wide open. Don't let the fluro fool you. If you need additional unfill then go get it. Once this situation gets out of control I think its hard to recover. I am now going to get only small fills like .2 or .3. If I have to pay more then so be it. The unfills and the days suffering are not worth it. I am hesitant to admit that I've been losing hair. I am seeing more falling than I want to admit. My hair is short so it wouldn't take much to make me bald. Not sure why this happens as I'm eating my protein and drinking my water. My skin is also drier than normal, which is dry for me. My rosacea is acting up and sometimes I feel like I have hives. Its all the bodies way of telling us we are making changes. I am trying very hard to keep the stress down. Sometimes I don't think we realize we are under stress until it comes out in other ways. Let's all take a step back next week and try to chill. We will hit it hard in October and see if we can shake things up. Do we have a plan? Hang in there. We can do this. Some of us will be slower than others, but we will make it.

Julie, I'm so happy for you. This will be a new adventure and I think an exciting one. You can do it. You know you can. Your weight loss will continue and you will extend your family of friends. Sometimes it is just rewarding to get out of our comfort zone and explore. Have fun, good luck, and keep us posted.

Oh I am so jealous Sandra. You look absolutely marvelous. You look like you are close to goal. WOW, oh WOW. I'm turning green .... but so proud of your hard work.

Rolling my eyes back at you with such an angelic look on my face. Its funny how passionate some get over their doctors. I don't have those kind of feelings. I just choose one, then switched to Dr. St Laurent, then back again when the insurance got all messed up. I had contacted my primary for advice. I told her my choice wasn't a compasionate doctor and I would come to her for my hand holding. She laughed and told me you pick a surgeon for his/her operating ability not their bedside manner. I tend to agree, although its nice when you can find both. I never listen to office help either. I want to talk directly to the doctor. If I can't I move on to a professional that will talk to me. Good news on your weight loss. It's nice to see the scale move downward.

Chewing: You chew, chew, chew because of the restriction. You have more after a fill, but some have restriction just from swelling. Digestive juices are in your lower stomach and not in the "pouch". Chewing allows the food to pass easier from one to the other in the absence of enzymes that break up the food. When food gets stuck between the two several things can happen. One is it can finally go down, but painfully. Or it can come up, referred to as a productive burb, or PB. This is similar to vomiting, only there are no gastric juices. Also, saliva can start over producing and also come up. Usually referred to as sliming. That being said, you shouldn't have to worry much with any of this for a little while. You should be on liquids, then mushies for a period of time before being on solid food. This is the time for you to be healing. Putting "food" into the stomach increases the motion of the stomach and increases your chances for complications. Hope this helps.

People with low self esteem have to use every opportunity to make themselves feel better. Smile sweetly and say, "that's good to know. The slower speed will be safer." Or "you'll need that extra speed to get away from a big, bad ass like me"!

Smooth and Creamy Spicy or Mild?

WOW, I didn't know all of this existed. This is the first I've seen on this subject. I have had two PBs, 6-9 days after a fill. I've slimed as a part of that. After that, I've just stopped eating or drinking. I never thought to spit out my saliva. The thought of having to do this is just gross to me. This just can't be a part of the "normal" existence with my lapband. Please tell me its not so. I've gone for 2 unfills and now know that my fills have to be small and further apart. I'll get the cups for an emergency, but I sure hope I don't have to use them!

I'm sure 60 will feel as good as 60. I don't feel older and have to remind myself sometimes. It doesn't bother me to get older. I do wish I had done this a few years ago. Congrats Barbara on your birthday as well. Go to www.photobucket.com and upload your pictures. Its free and then you can use that connection to upload your pictures to the board. You can also size them to the right size. I think this journey requires our constant attention. We will make it and think of where we will be next June. Most of us will be down in weight and feeling terrific. Can't wait for our reunion!!!

You are so dedicated Pinkylee!!!! I'm trying to get in the mood, but I'm going on vacation part of next week. Plus I turn 60 on Tuesday so I'm not mentally there. I wasn't hungry yesterday and when I did eat, I ate my Protein first. I really notice the difference when I eat hard protein. I get full and stay that way. I've got to find a way to do more of that. Increasing my Water everyday, but no exercise. I'll get there.

Thanks for the clarification. Thank goodness I haven't had to use the cell number or go to the emergency room. I just "assumed" they worked. I based that on talking to another doctor who shared the "on call" with Spiegel. I'm so sorry for your experience and it certainly is one well worth mentioning. I have had experience with the office staff of two of these doctors (not spivak). While both were friendly, neither got it right. Both gave bad information and dropped the ball. They were not medical matters, but insurance. Hope you are on your way now and can have some success with the band.

Oh and as an afterthought. I'm so glad reps. from the various doctor's offices are looking at this thread. Maybe they will take some of the comments back to their offices and make some changes. Wouldn't that be a great side benefit?

Just so everyone is clear - they all practice at the same Surgicenter. I think there are 6 of them and they all have an interest in it. Each doctor has their own instructions for how they want the fills to be handled and what the patient is to do after the fills. I know that Spiegel and Spivak have different aftercare policies concerning fills. I guess I view all of this a little differently. I went for what I considered the best surgeon. I wasn't as concerned about the aftercare. Maybe I should have been. I just made what I hoped was the right decision for me. Each of these doctors have different styles. You need to find what style works the best for you and choose accordingly. I think, my personal opinion, that all of them are getting greedy in this money making machine called lap band. There are TV commercials, bill boards, radio ads, newspaper ads, etc. They all do it so one is not better than the other when it comes to the commercialization of this procedure. Do I wish that Spiegel was more compassionate? Yes. Do I wish his office was more supportive? Yes But I'm happy with the results and with the surgicenter. Did I seek out other doctors? Yes . Did they have ineffective office staff? Yes. Have I looked at my file while at the surgicenter? Yes. Do I ask them questions and play a role in decisions about my fills/unfills? Yes. I have commented here on my personal experience, my personal thoughts. That's the only information I have to go on. I did my research and made my decision. When others are looking for information I will give my two cents. However, the final decision is theirs.

That's an existing condition and I didn't think they could exclude you anymore. That really doesn't sound right. I would check around. If you are saying that Cobra is denying you then they can't. You can't be denied Cobra for the length of time you are entitled to it. If you are saying that they are denying your extending coverage then they are probably within their rights. Keep checking as it all sounds like bull to me!