MelodyJ

Liz---looks like your doing GREAT on your weight loss!! Hopefully, better after a little unfill....that's great that it took so little to help!!!! I'm doing great!! Feel so GOOD....glad I did this!!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -49lbs

Doc--- Welcome!!!! It might be fun to work out a get together..... Let's see who else jumps in!!!! God Bless, MElody Banded 3/20/06 -49lbs

Blk Bandit-- Welcome!! I had my surgery in Dalton, GA---I lived there....moved here about 2 mos ago and am following up w/ Dr Grossbard in Zephyrhills, FL (near Tampa). I only know that Dr. Kim requires $1000 to "join" if you don't have your surgery w/ him for follow up care....I don't think Telly did hers w/ him.....but she'll let ya know I'm sure. Just reassure your fiance....show him statistics and answer his questions... don't poo-poo his fear...it's all in love I'm sure!!! My husband said NO at first...then I came back w/ answers and statistics and he has been totally supportive!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -49lbs

Anesthesia really changes things....texture of hair, skin, hormones as well!!! I actually now have mine regularly which before the weight loss I wouldn't have for months...then would bleed for over a month!?!!?!? :girl_hug: I have now had my period regularly since March?!!? Go figure!!!! In my humble opinion....get it checked out to give you peace of mind..... God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -49lbs

Andrea-- Your welcome!!! Glad your doing well and you lost!!!!!!!! Had a great weekend w/ family! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

Teachntots-- YIPPEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!! I am so PROUD of you!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good job on the exercise!!! So glad you have the time now!! You may want to video the kids exercising with you....might win Funniest Home Videos!!! I cannot eat until about 10:30am....I get up around 7am....my band won't let me....I get stuck! At 10:30am I get a cheestick...take a small bite then chew to goo....put it in my pocket (in the plastic of course :biggrin1: ) and then see a patient ....come out and take another bite....lasts quite a while....and I get no golf balls!!!!!!!!!!!! I was supposed to get a fill on June 7th...but my husband will be out of town....so am waiting til July 5th....I think I'll be ok....so am going to fight the good fight and WIN!!!!!!!!!! Praying you keep exercising and despite bills you LOSE BIG TIME!!!!!!!!!!!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

Amy-- I was thinking that anything w/ ecchinacea helps too!! Ecchinacea is an old time anesthetic....so I buy "herbon" which are cough drops w/ 250mg of ecchinacea....they TRULY numb the throat and make me pain free!!! Maybe they would help???? God Bless and saying prayers!!! Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

You are blessed!!!!!!!! I am the PA-C but can't imagine doing that to myself!!!! So I am stuck w/ going to the dr!!!! LOVE the idea of loosening for good food God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

Vegaswildflower--don't you love the practicality of the dr???? HA!!!! I wish I wouldn't have needed the band and could have stopped before paying so much $$!!! Teachntots---How are you doing????? Haven't heard in a while....praying your getting your exercise in!!!! I'm still losing....but not as fast....but hoping to jump start w/ next fill. Although the dr scheduled it for one month after the first one...well I had to cancel that....so have scheduled a month later for July 5th. My mind is still the struggle at times!!!! But better most days!! My other battle is too big a bites.....UGH!!!!!! And as a medical person learned to inhale my food....so am slowing down.....slowly!!!!!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

dsrjrr-- I have a 4 cc band and my first fill was 2.4cc....he said he's aggressive...he'll make me miserable at first then I'll be happy w/ the weight loss?!?!! He was right....oh did I feel the heartburn, etc....but I keep losing....self-inflicted pb's only (one of these days I'll learn to go slow and chew smaller bites) . Hopes' place: Do you mean maximum ever....that would be 10 cc I believe....if you mean first fill....it's so individual to the surgeon doing the fills....as you've read we all had different fills...they did the surgery it's their call! I was even told I could hold MORE in my 4cc if necessary?!?! I'm hoping that never arises!!! I have a 2nd fill scheduled for July.....I just felt like I was doing well here....and who knows if I'll cancel that fill if I continue to do well?! Hope this helps!! God bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

Exercise is also a mood elevator (recommend aerobic exercise for my depressed patients) and it has SO MANY cardiovascular benefits....don't give up MelAnne....you are kicking my butt!! I walk 2.5mi/day....but that's from completely nothing beyond housewalking!!! Hang in there....the scale will eventually catch up if you are sincerely trying!!!! I just KNOW it! God Bless, MElody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

I didn't either and that's why I got sick again!!! I now tell everyone....just in case they didn't know either!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

Tricia-- GOOD JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have SO MUCH more to lose than you so mine is going quicker....so I am IMPRESSED w/ your faithfulness and perserverance...I think God knew I had to see something quick to encourage me!!!! I don't really understand the 2 week wait for it to kick in....but I seem to be one of them!?!? I felt it immediately when he filled as I gave him back the Water....have one of those "aggressive" fill doctors and he put >2.4cc as that is what he backed off too....then after the 4 days of liquids...2 clear and 2 full and 6lbs off I was excited....well I seemed to revert back to my old ways of head hunger ....but about 2 wks into I couldn't really eat Breakfast as it was getting stuck quick! Now what I do is wait til about 10:30am and eat a cheese stick slowly and by lunch at 12 am able to slowly eat a meal....but I am still making stupid mistakes in eating too big of bites or too fast!?!!! :eek: You would think I would catch on!! Fortunately only have PB'd....or out and out vomited!! about 2 or 3 times!! :eek: I will get the hang of this I told my husband!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs :eek:

Amy-- Just found your post. I am a Physician Asst.....so this is what I know. Cool fluids actually feel better on a sore throat than hot. But you go w/ whatever works. We give tonsillectomy patients popsicles and ice cream for a reason!! Also you can easily handle 1000mg Tylenol.....That's 2 extra strength. You can take Ibuprofen 400-600mg every 8 hours (be careful too soon as this can cause your kidneys to fail)....in between take the tylenol. Personally, I am thinking maybe you had a virus AND strept.... sounds like the flu elevated your temp quickly....and the strept.....I just had strept recently. Don't forget to boil or throw away your toothbrush!!! I did and it re-ocurred!!! People don't get admitted now a days as quickly as it is more comfortable at home as you said. Never did see the name of your antibiotic....but prednisone is wonderful to take down the swelling but since it's a steroid can actually impede your healing....and really should be careful mixing prednisone and ibuprofen very rough on the stomach!! I think followup w/ the ENT is a great idea and important!!! Close follow up as needed!! Even if you only drink a tsp every 5 min that is like an IV.....picking things like gatorade are a great idea as it has some electrolytes and may help!?! I hope you are feeling better and this helps!!!! GOd BLess, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

Anajalillian, Welcome....you made a big step!! You wrote!! Welcome!!! PRaying that you have MUCH success!!! Just listen to your doctors and do as they instruct...they have lots of experience!!! GOd Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -48lbs

Your welcome Andrea....how are you doing now?!?! Been out of town for Memorial Day..... God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs:)

Sorry Lisa have not heard of him....give me details....he's actually closer than my going to Zephyrhills!! Might be good!?!? God BLess, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs

Personally wouldn't take a laxative....warm juices are good .... also Maalox Max has Magnesium (aka milk of magnesia) in it so boy did that start the flood gates for me!!!! And it helped the gas!!!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs

I was told 4oz per meal.....liquids go through much quicker...so if you still feel hunger you could have 2 more I was told.... Hope this helps! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs

Not a coffee drinker....I know caffeine is an appetite stimulant and my dr took me off of it....it's calories and takes up space...once your banded you'll just have to decide if it's something you want to indulge in!! I love the freedom of the band and MY choices!!! It's all about what I want to do and not do and ties in w/ my success!!! :cake: GOd Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs :cake:

Losing the weight would actually help your heart!!!! As Alexandra said....if you are healthy now then it seems like it would be ok.....my humble opinion!!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs

Love chunks-- I'm a medical provider...very interesting article! Many have outsourced for the band on this board!! I pray that this does challenge the US to become more competitive in their pricing!!! God Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs

Amy-- I am a PA....but don't do tons of women's health...have never had an IUD....I didn't think IUD's did much for anything but prevention of pregnancy.....but here's what I got when I googled "IUD": Health Risks: Getting any vaginal infection while using an IUD can increase the risk of developing a serious pelvic infection. This can result in a loss of fertility. For this reason, women need to assess their own risk for infection. If you have multiple partners or if your partner has multiple partners, your chance of infection is much higher. Piercing or perforation of the uterine wall may occur during insertion of the IUD. Over time, an IUD may become imbedded in the uterine wall. An Imbedded IUD is still effective, but it can be painful and may need to be removed. There is a risk of surgery and/or sterility if an IUD becomes imbedded. If a woman becomes pregnant while using an IUD, it is highly recommended that she have the IUD removed, whether or not she wants to carry the pregnancy to term. An IUD increases the risk of having a miscarriage or premature birth. A woman who becomes pregnant while using an IUD is also more likely to have an ectopic pregnancy. An ectopic pregnancy occurs when a fertilized egg attaches and grows outside the uterus. This can be very dangerous and requires emergency medical attention. Side Effects back to top Both the ParaGard and the Mirena IUDs can cause longer, heavier, and more painful menstrual periods, but this is much less common with the Mirena. The increased blood flow may cause anemia. Spotting may occur without serious cause or as a sign of infection. The Mirena IUD can cause ovarian cysts. Some women using the Mirena stop bleeding altogether. Usually their menstrual periods return when the IUD is removed. Mirena can cause weight gain, headaches, increased blood pressure, acne, depression, and decrease in sex drive. HOpefully, this helps....Personally would ask more questions..... GOd Bless, Melody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs

I met my husband at church!!! We met 5 ys before and he moved 4hrs away...think we both had some issues for God to work out! He started calling out of the blue....then pursued me (overweight and all) like crazy.... it was AWESOME!!!!!!! We are still madly in love 2 ys later....well 3 ys counting the dates!!! My advice is just don't compromise....when I stopped looking he appeared!! God Bless, MElody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs

Christy-- GREAT JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I am SO impressed!! I bought the Yoga Booty Ballet.... a TON of DVD's came....I've started teh beginners....have worked out like 10-15min....was DRENCHED in sweat....just a reminder of how out of shape I was/am!! I walk 2.5mi each day.....so I WILL GET THIS DOWN!!!!!!!!! I want inches gone too!!!! GOd Bless, MElody Banded 3/20/06 -47lbs