anonemouse

You are very welcome!

Always! And here's an emoticon, because the message was too short! :clap2:

Always! And here's an emoticon, because the message was too short! :clap2:

If you are anywhere close to Memphis, Dr. McGrath-Weaver at St. Francis Hospital might take you. I don't know if she takes patients that were banded in Mexico, but I know she takes patients that were banded by other US surgeons, so it's a possibility that she might take you.

I did. It definitely doesn't help her image to yank your kids into all of this, and criticize your parenting skills. Good luck!

I agree. All of this goes for US doctors, too. I wish I had had this when I was first looking into surgeons. In my case, though, I didn't have a lot of choice of who to pick, because my insurance plan only covered two bariatric surgeons in the entire state of Tennessee. And I REALLY wish I had paid attention to the post-op diet posts before I had surgery. I was literally eating well-chewed soft solid food two days after I had surgery. (I love my surgeon to death, but she didn't place too much importance on the post-op diet, apparently, since she directed me to start eating solids as soon as I started feeling hungry.) At this point, all I can do is hope I didn't do any damage to my band.

I agree. All of this goes for US doctors, too. I wish I had had this when I was first looking into surgeons. In my case, though, I didn't have a lot of choice of who to pick, because my insurance plan only covered two bariatric surgeons in the entire state of Tennessee. And I REALLY wish I had paid attention to the post-op diet posts before I had surgery. I was literally eating well-chewed soft solid food two days after I had surgery. (I love my surgeon to death, but she didn't place too much importance on the post-op diet, apparently, since she directed me to start eating solids as soon as I started feeling hungry.) At this point, all I can do is hope I didn't do any damage to my band.

Yup. I think we've got someone here who thought it would be cool to mess with a weight-loss board.

Good for you! I'm rooting for you!

I'll ditto that preference. Sugar-free is NASTY. No sugar added is alright, depending on the type. Fudge-sicle or fruit pops are usually okay, anything else is generally icky.

Yeah, but you're a giant, too! :heh: Most women just aren't lucky enough to have your body type.

She should definitely get checked out for Cushing's syndrom/disease, IMO. I'm not saying that is what's wrong, but if she isn't losing weight and isn't taking in a lot of calories, that would be a place to start. It also sounds like she just isn't tolerating the band, period.

Bariatric Eating - Protein, Vitamins, Gastric Bypass & Lap Band Info, Post-op Recipes, and Help sells a protein drink/mix sampler that has a lot of different brands in it. They vary in quality and in how good they are, but it can give you a decent idea of what's available. There are two different versions available, one with a book and one without. I got the one without, since it was $20 less, and since the book was RNY-centered.

I got the Matrix chocolate, whey Gourmet Chocolate Peanut Butter, and nectar Fuzzy Navel ones at Netrition.com - The Internet's Premier Nutrition Superstore!. That place has the best prices that I've found, and they'll ship any amount of stuff for just $5 or $6. It's a little difficult to search, though. The Matrix and Nectar products are under the brand name Syntrax and the Whey Gourmet is under PVL. I got the IDS Multi-Pro Whey Vanilla-Cinnamon at AllStarHealth.com - Vitamins and Nutritional supplements at Discounted Prices (under the brand name IDS), since I couldn't find it at Netrition. They sell it in 5 gallon tubs, but you can also buy it from Bariatric Eating - Protein, Vitamins, Gastric Bypass & Lap Band Info, Post-op recipes, and Help in a smaller size.

Good thing you didn't. Might have gotten accused of ganging up on her.

I actually think that's the best way to pick a goal weight. Just go with what you feel. If you get to a certain weight and think you still need to lose weight, go for it. If you decide that you would be perfectly happy at the weight you are at, that's wonderful. My goal is actually one that I chose randomly, mainly because it's the weight I remember when I got weighed in 7th grade gym. (Btw, this smilie shows exactly how I felt about that situation: Stupid policy of weighing people in front of their classmates!) If I don't get to that goal, I'll be perfectly happy, since I'll still be lighter than I have been in years.

Oy. That thread just made me shake my head. And the post about switching to red wine instead of drinking cocktails to avoid getting drunk was genious. Fact is, you can't help anyone who doesn't want help. They have to come to the realization that they are alcoholics or food addicts or (insert addiction here). Hell, why do people think we avoided having our picture taken and most of us didn't own full-length mirrors? It was because it was a heck of a lot easier to delude ourselves and avoid the knowledge that we were FAT if we couldn't SEE our fat.

I don't think anyone has said that they aren't valid. On the contrary, they are very valid. We would just prefer that people be honest about their reasons. Some people aren't, choosing instead to attack those people that have been able to reach low goal weights, essentially calling them "scrawny" and "ugly." If someone isn't sure that they would be able to maintain a normal weight, and so choose a goal weight that would make them overweight, they should be honest about that. This is a support group, after all. We won't attack anyone for being honest. It doesn't help or support anyone when they attack people who have managed, through very hard work, to reach a low goal weight and maintain. Tact would be nice, too. Instead of saying "that weight looks scrawny and ugly," they could say, "I wouldn't feel comfortable at that weight." That way, they aren't insulting the people who do weigh that much.

I really think that it is a height thing, though, for some people. For you, 160 pounds is a completely healthy weight. If you weighed 120 pounds, you'd have a BMI of somewhere around 17, which is considered to be significantly underweight. If I had a goal weight of 160 pounds, my BMI would be over 28. Which, at this point, would be nice, but it's still significantly overweight for my height. At 120 pounds, I would have a BMI of over 21, which is still squarely within my healthy weight range.

No, don't go back to lurking!

Yeah, I bitch and yell at them in the privacy of my car. I don't usually do anything else, like make rude gestures or honk at them or anything. Most of that is because I live in the middle of Redneck BFE, where everyone and their mothers own guns. Or, I'm driving in Memphis. And you just don't want to piss of the folks in Memphis.

Oh, yeah, it is an interesting topic. I was just making that comment about the people that are freaking out about it and wanting to ban the books. Don't they have anything better to freak out about?

Why do so many bandsters set their goal weights so high? I mean, many of the ones that I've seen aren't anywhere near a healthy weight. Yes, it might be healthier than their starting weight, but it still isn't a normal weight. Is it a fear of failure? Is it because the doctors set their patients' goal weights high in order to fudge their weight-loss statistics? Why not aim for a healthy weight? Why aim for a weight that is still considered to be "obese," in many cases? I can understand someone deciding that the weight they are currently at is one that they feel good at, but I just don't understand making the logic of "well, I just wouldn't look right if I weighed less than X pounds."

Yep, check with your surgeon and nutritionist. They should be able to give you a list of the types of foods that you can have. But congrats!

I don't get what people are fussing about, honestly. It's a character in a book, for crying out loud. Some people are bigoted idiots, though, I guess.