momcof3

I got a call from Kaiser too today - they changed my appt from 11:30 am to 1:45 pm this Thursday, but they didn't change the date. Dr. Im must have had something come up in the morning. My 30 yr class reunion is in October in Glendale AZ but I don't think I am going. Can't think of anyone I have to see - I only recently reconnected with them via Facebook.

I know they said 1/4 to 1/3 cup protein 3x a day for us bandsters, but when I told my doctor is the weight loss program at the Elk Grove Kaiser that, she said it is not enough calories to remain healthy and that I need two snacks a day. Can you imagine only eating 1 cup of food a day for the rest of your life? Not me - hence I want some taken out of my band.

wow I am impressed on how you keep track of everything everyday - that takes a lot of work. Have you ever had your resting metabolic rate taken? The Kaiser program I am in right now has us at 960 cal a day, but we are working up to 1200 a day. I also have to have bloodwork done every 3 weeks while on the 960 calories to make sure everything is ok. 650 calories a day seems too low - is that what your program says to eat for the sleeve? Have you tried eating more calories? I know for myself eating too little causes my weight loss to stop as my body thinks I am starving and holds on to everything I eat. Our bodies are all different but it is just a thought. I'm supposed to be getting a call from Robin on Tuesday morning as I have my appt with Dr. Im on Thursday. I'm still not sure what I am going to say to her - gonna be honest about the program I am in and no doubt she won't be happy with me.

Stacey - it will get easier to not drink with your meal and wait the hour - once I tried to take a drink of water right after I ate and it made me pb and my food came up. Water can't get through a full pouch - sort of like a clogged drain. I didn't give up my diet Coke until the day before my band surgery - I cut down but couldn't give it up. I haven't had any soda or caffeine since then and Aug 26 will be my 2 yr bandiversary. It took me a while to not associate certain activities with having a Diet Coke - I would think about going through a drive through to get one, but I never did.

Andrew - I think Dr. Im will listen to you. At the surgeon appointment he will ask you which surgery you want to have and why. He also reviews your medical history and will have you lay down and will feel your abdomen. Write down any questions you want to ask him so you don't forget to ask them. I lost 3 lbs this week - which after subtracting the 1 lb I gained over the last two weeks takes me to 80 lbs since orientation in May 2008. My son's girlfriend is going with us camping now too - so I am taking 3 15 yr olds, a 13 yr old, a 12 yr old, and two 11 yr olds plus three little dogs. They are really excited and I am excited for them but not so much for me.

Andrew - my surgeon was Dr. Im and he is great. What time is your appointment on the 22nd in Vacaville with him? I have a 11:30 am appointment with him in Vacaville the same day. If you have any specific questions about him let me know. John - the three boys are sleeping in a small tent and the three girls, three dogs and myself are sleeping in the RV. I just plugged in the RV in front of my house to get the refrigerator/freezer cold so I can load the food in the morning after a quick trip to Sam's.

Go Ash and Chrissy - We'll get to Onederland soon John - it is so close. Were there alot of people at orientation Stacey? You are on your way. I'm going camping tomorrow and coming back Friday - taking the RV and a small tent to the Stockton Delta KOA which is actually a little west of Lodi - I am taking my three kids, three other kids, and my three dogs - and maybe my son's girlfriend. I may be completely crazy by Friday evening. I have an appt tomorrow morning with the psychologist in Elk Grove who specializes in Eating Disorders and issues. I haven't seen her since March but I need to touch bases with her again. I'll be checking in while I'm gone as the campground has wireless internet.

definitely let us know what they say. once you hit the right tightness though, you don't need fills and unfills. I would think they would consider it medical if you had erosion, slipping or it was affecting your health. I went to bed with a headache, it woke me up a couple of times and I woke up with the same headache - I am hoping it goes away soon. I am wondering if I inhaled too much cleaning product yesterday?

Tina - I was reading about revisions from band to sleeve and they said there were less complications when the band and port are taken out and then after that heals they do the sleeve. I can't remember the main point of it but you might want to check it out - not sure how Kaiser does it. I'm interested to see what they tell you - I would be surprised if they will pay for it if their is no medical reason to have the band removed.

gosh Tina you're cleaning house at 9:30 at night? Where do you get the energy. I cleaned the downstairs bathroom including shower when I got home today, but then I dozed in the recliner. you go girl!

I don't remember hearing any music when I walked into the operating room and I didn't wake up until I was in the Recovery room. I remember Dr. Im coming in and saying something to me about having a picture of my band that I could take home with me. I was wheeled down for the barium swallow, stood up for it, and then I was put in the hallway in my wheelchair waiting for someone to come get me. I thought I was going to throw up so they got a wet towel and a throw up container. It wasn't until a few days after I got home that I remembered about the picture and then I also wondered if it really happened or I was dreaming. I e-mailed Dr. Im and he said yes he did talk to me and they mailed me the photo. I had surgery at 8 am, barium swallow at 10:30 and was in the car on my way home at noon. Good news - I only gained .3 this last week - so the 2 lbs I was up this morning got flushed out today. I am going to try really hard to stay on program this week so I can lose a couple more pounds before I see Dr. Im on July 22.

I am up to 120 oz of water so far today and I think I am done with that. I have had 4 shakes and one bar. I am hoping not to be up tonight, but we'll see. I have to get bloodwork at 7:10 before the meeting. I really like Dr. Im although I haven't had many long conversations with him. He is pretty much no nonsense to the point. Hope you feel better Dispo - when is Dr Baggs due back?

I had Dr. Im as my main surgeon and Dr. Baggs was the second surgeon in the room for my band surgery. I only have the option of e-mailing Dr. Im though. Is there a way to e-mail a doctor that is not listed on your Kaiser on-line portal? I have already drank 90 oz of water today and feel like I am wearing out the carpet going to the restroom. Hopefully it makes a difference tonight on the scale - I was up 2 lbs from last Thursday when I got on the scale this morning.

I ate junk this weekend too - had a total of three of my shakes and no bars - but I did eat cookies, cheetos, smores, ice cream - obviously nothing of nutritional value - oh I did have 2 bites of steak and some Wendy's chili today - and I thought the chili was going to come back up. I am definitely too tight to eat things like solid meat and vegetables. Back to my program tomorrow for sure - why can't I stick with anything anymore? I picked up the phone to call my psychologist on Friday but didn't know what I was going to talk to her about so I hung up. I will make the appointment tomorrow and figure it out before I go to see her. Ugh.

Thanks for telling us what happened April. I hope they figure it out soon and your pain subsides. Yay Chrissy - keep working your sleeve. Tina - I have to agree with you - once the honeymoon weight comes off and we have to deal with everything else, the goal is now to get in control of why we eat - and use the band as a safety net - but it is truly up to us to make good choices - I know I can't keep focusing on my band the rest of my life - I have to live life otherwise it isn't much different than focusing on my weight all the time prior to getting my band, I am at the KOA campground in Petaluma until Monday with my kids and our RV - weather is beautiful right now.

Thanks for updating us Chrissy - thinking good thoughts for April. Tamra - if you mean can you say you don't want a fill - yes it is up to if you don't want one. We all need to make sure we let our doctors know if we are pbing alot so they can take some fluid out of the band - a lot of pbing causes serious swelling and inflammation around our bands. So even if you are pbing because you are eating the wrong foods, be careful and proactive.

Just talked to Richmond - I have an appt with Dr. Im on July 22 at 11:30 am in Vacaville. They said Robin will be calling me two days before to see my food logs - I told them I don't do food logs 2 yrs out from surgery. She said to do at least 3 days for her. Not sure what to put on them since I am doing the Medical Weight Loss Managment plan and won't be on real food until Aug 3. They offered me a phone appointment but I said I may want my band adjusted so couldn't do that - I think she assumed I was RNY. Hi Riley - glad to hear from you - don't forget us even though you are in love. (I'm jealous :scared2: ) Was already too hot to walk but we did our mile - sitting in front of my fan on my desk now - luckily it is cool in the building.

I actually have 7 cc in my band and I actually think it is a little too much. Really good restriction can be problematic - if I try to get all my protein in I invariably end up pbing - not a good thing. If I get a chance I am going to call Richmond today to get my 2 yr appt. I heard all the phones Heather - rude - Angel needs to remind people to put their phones on vibrate - I had mine on vibrate and of course forgot to turn it back up when I left so didn't hear when my kids called - they just wanted to know when I was coming home. Oh well it was me time and they were fine. Have a great day - stay cool - I'm going for my morning walk at break right now - probably already hot outside.

Boy you guys are chatty today - maybe the hot weather is keeping us inside. Tamra - how are you able to get down bread and pasta? It's great you lost a few pounds quickly but it doesn't sound like you are getting enough protein - be careful with all the fad diets - I for one got my band so I could stop going on all the different diets. I am quite sure I would not get a revision unless I had a serious problem with my band like erosion - and the odds are on my side that won't happen. And if I had to have my band removed I would wait to see before I had anything done. I don't really think one surgery is better or worse than the other - they are different surgeries and it is a personal choice - whatever surgery you choose you need to follow the program. Weight loss with all three will slow down and eventually stall out - and although we can only eat small amounts at a time with all three surgeries - all three let us eat small amounts all day if we choose to and we can all gain back the weight - it is up to each of us to control our path. I just got back from Sam's Club and I bought some Brown Cow Greek Yogurt - 6 strawberry and 6 blueberry for $9.18 - each have 14 gr of protein. I am not a yogurt fan, but it will be good for my two vegetarian children.

It was nice to see Donna, Heather and Tina today and to meet Stacey. I didn't even know you were there Cole until after you left. I really liked the plastic surgery presentation - although not sure if I will be having any - will have to see later and save up some money. You are so right Pat - it really isn't about food or WLS - it is about the reasons I overeat. I need to make another appt with my therapist - I see her once in a while and it really helps me get back on track.

oops my orientation was 27 months ago not 13 - boy my math is bad today.

Yeah Ash - cool picture. I hope to be there soon. Yes, the weight loss is slower with the band, but that is also why I picked it. I have lost 79 lbs since my orientation 13 mths ago - so it is possible and it may take me another year to lose my last 20-25 lbs but that is okay too. I'm not running a race - this is a lifelong transformation - body and mind. I am going to try out my new bike tonight - I rode a bike even when I was at my highest weight - oh well I knew it looked bad - but oh well I didn't care. I will be there tomorrow but not for the seminar afterwards. Can't wait to see my old friends and meet my new ones.

I am bringing a few 18s and I think 16s to the meeting on Saturday. I got my new beach cruiser bike today - was going to take a bike ride tonight, but it has been a stressful evening with plumbing issues and spilling paint in the garage, but definitely tomorrow evening after the gym.

You look great John - keep up the good work. I lost half a pound last week - wasn't what I was hoping for but I'll take it - pound by pound it will all add up. I have lost 17 lbs in the last about 8 weeks which doesn't seem like much, but once our bodies get used to fewer calories it comes off much slower - if we continued to lose at the fast pace we did in the beginning we would disappear.

I just read an interesting article on the Kaiser Richmond Bariatrics site about the Bariatric Program in Richmond - this is the link http://mydoctor.kaiserpermanente.org/ncal/Images/Bariatric%20Nurs%20Surg%20Pat%20Care%202010%2023-27_tcm28-48827.pdf