Woodys

Mysherrijo: Its not the skins on the citrus fruits that we are to avoid, its the membrane that covers the individual sections of fruit.....apparently, according to my Dr., we can't chew them enough to properly break them down before swallowing. I have had oranges and was careful not to eat any membrane that might be tough but I haven't had a problem otherwise. I eat grapefruit and avoid the membrane entirely. The only objection my Dr. has about grapes is the skin. It does depend on the type and quality of the grape, but some do have tough skins that we can't chew to a pulp so blockage is feared. That's what I know........... Carol

Lila....I hate cottage cheese, so I was having a hard time with the pre-op fast until my husband (Al) started making smoothies for me....1/2 cup cottage cheese, 1/2 low (or no) fat yogurt, 1 pack sweetner (or more to taste, 1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder and about 1/2 cup or more of ice. Mix up in the blender until everything is smooth in consistency.....add more ice if you think its too thick for you. Yummmmmmmmm.........it tastes just like liquid cheesecake. Other flavourings were........2 tbsp of diet jam/a crystal light single/real vanilla extract.......worked out great for me.....made the fast a whole lot more tolerable. Carol

You need to let your Sister deal with this herself. She will hit rock bottom with this guy and then wise up and get rid of him. If you interfere and cause them to break up she will never learn that a guy like this should not be part of her life. She will also hold it against you.....you need to mind your own business and let your Sister handle this. Carol

Re: "I think the doctors should encourage with providing guidelines and not hard/fast rules. It seems to be very confusing for people who are just out of the gate with their band and they have a lot of misguided information that is confusing them. Especially when you see people that are plateaued because they are not taking in enough calories and their body is in 'starvation mode'" I disagree: if you read a lot of the threads and posts here you can see that a lot of confusion comes from not enough specific information from the Dr's accompanied by hard and fast rules. I do agree with proper guidelines, that is absolutely necessary, and they need to include a component of sample menus so that the visual can make an effect. I have read time and time again where a banded individual has been confused with the info given them by their Dr's regarding the eating plan post-op.....they receive "wishy washy" guidelines which leaves too big a risk for error. Mostly this is about what, how much, and how often can they eat....I've seen it go the other way....rather than not consuming enough calories and going into starvation mode, they are consuming too many with all the wrong foods and left still feeling hungry. Unfortunately I read answers to these posts and I clearly see them being given incorrect and damaging information at this site, which tells me that too many bandsters have also received insufficient guidelines from their Drs. We all operate differently...some of us are confident enough to seek out the information and experiment to find what works best for us, but then there are the others who can only be successful by following hard and fast rules so that they know exactly what is expected of them. Not all of us understand, or even care to know the theory of thermetics.....we want someone to tell us how to do it right and set it out for us...that is what the Dr needs to provide. What works for you may not necessarily be right for others. I can not eat in the morning, not even a shake....my band won't allow it....so I have two substantial meals a day and two Snacks......that is what works for me. Carol

Leatha....I was like this with Jim and Tammy Faye Baker...this was a long time ago but when the sex scandal hit the "Praise The Lord" ministry I craved every bit of information there was available on it....and then when the sex scandal started to reveal misappropriated donor funds then I got even worse! I think it was because, even thought they were "entertaining" that something was really wrong with the way they were living and how all the rest of us "donor" schleps were living. Carol

Carlene.....I can find humour in just about anything! Carol

OMG....the one piece gym suit.....and why oh why did we ever remove the belt and the stitching in the darts?.....it only made it look like a big balloon!

LOL Carlene...that almost killed me, nevermind the thread! Carol

Eating with all the family.....what ever happened to that? If we weren't home in time to sit at the table with the rest of the family for dinner then we got NONE!.....and Mom meant it! And....we use to whine when we had to sit in the formal dining room on Sunday nights to dinner of roast beef, yorkshire pudding, brussel sprouts, roast potatoes and other veg, etc....every SUNDAY...the same dinner.....we complained like hell.....cripes...would love to have those roast beef Sundays back again....LOL Carol

Yes Wheetsin.....that is mimeograph...that is what we kids got high on before felt tip pens....LOL. Carol

I try to read as many posts as possible given the small amount of time I have for the internet....and I can tell you.....reading selected posts during the past week has been an absolute pleasure.....we are back to lapband / support business again. The only negative post I have come across is this one. Sorry.....but that's my opinion. Carol

Thanks for the quick info. The closet WW is 1/2 hour away...which doesn't seem like a long way to drive, but we have bad winters up here for snow and icy road conditions so for almost 4 months no one will drive that distance unless they absolutely have to. Carol

Carbon Paper Onion Skin Mimeograph Simon Says Brown Bottled Orange Crush Hostess nickle bag of chips with coin prizes from a penny to a quarter Going to the Saturday afternoon matinee and seeing two features with a cartoon in between with your $2.00 allowance...buying popcorn and a soft drink and still coming home with change in your pocket Bell bottoms fur vest tent dresses in bright orange and lime green flowers love beads peace sign "Wow Man" Being told by your parents to mind your "P's and Q's" without a psychological or analytical discussion first on the consequences or impact to either party if you didn't Waking up Saturday morning to the aroma of fresh brewed coffee made in a stove top purcolator. Geesh......those were the good old days Carol

LOL........I have a red face now! I thought it meant that someone had reported one of my posts.....which I was concerned about even though I haven't posted any nasty or controversial ones....LOL Thanks Carol

What is the green button for beside your member name? Some are green, some are grey? Carol

I live in a remote area north of Toronto in Ontario Canada. We don't have anything like WW within our reach. I own a small lady's fitness centre based on the Curves concept. This year I want to change the fitness centre to be a weight loss centre as well. I worked with a dietician to put together a sensible simple program promoting weight loss. I want to operate it similar to WW. I have great faith in the plan, however....I'm not sure what to charge....could you guys help me out and let me know what you pay for WW......are meetings paid in advance....ie: 6 meeting fees at once????...somebody else mentioned this to me. Also....what would you, as a member attending meetings, like to see in your leader? What topics would you like covered at the meetings? What information would you like to receive at the meetings? How long should the meetings be? I would really appreciate your help with this........I want this to be affordable and effective for my members. Thanks, Carol

I live in a remote area north of Toronto in Ontario Canada. We don't have anything like WW within our reach. I own a small lady's fitness centre based on the Curves concept. This year I want to change the fitness centre to be a weight loss centre as well. I worked with a dietician to put together a sensible simple program promoting weight loss. I want to operate it similar to WW. I have great faith in the plan, however....I'm not sure what to charge....could you guys help me out and let me know what you pay for WW......are meetings paid in advance....ie: 6 meeting fees at once????...somebody else mentioned this to me. Also....what would you, as a member attending meetings, like to see in your leader? What topics would you like covered at the meetings? What information would you like to receive at the meetings? How long should the meetings be? I would really appreciate your help with this........I want this to be affordable and effective for my members. Thanks, Carol

You are doing great Edith! I agree....the band is the ultimate! Carol

The detailed description you gave of your Father with respect to how he regards women is answer enough. If appearance is the most important attraction and feature of a woman to him.....then would his support be genuine....or just as shallow as his regard towards women? Only you know that answer for sure. There could be many different reasons that you are losing weight.......does he, or any one else really need to know which method is working for you.....quite frankly, its no one's business but your's. I understand the need to share your experience with someone, or a small network of support individuals who you can express your excitement, your highs and lows, etc........be very selective and choose to tell only those who will be there for you in a strong positive way for the long haul. For those who you wish not to know but ask questions and comment....just tell them that you are working very hard at being careful and sensible with your eating habits and make it clear that you are living this minute by minute every day and don't wish to dwell on it...end of conversation........they don't need to know anymore than that. Good Luck Carol

You answered your own question in your very first sentence! Yes, this procedure costs a lot of money.....however, who told you it was going to be a picnic! You still have to work at it, however....when you do finally reach maximum restriction then it does get easier. You have to still watch what you eat.....no pints or litres of ice cream......but, if you have a bad day, proper restriction will prevent you from doing a lot of damage. And....the band will help to keep the weight off....maintenance should come easier...that is the main reason I got banded...maintenance. You need to help yourself....the forbidden foods that got you fat in the first place didn't do you any favours...so why are you still eating them? Give your band a chance...it takes time to reach a restriction level that will work for you....its an entire process you go through. So....put down the crap food and help yourself through this journey.....suck it up and put up with the change in eating habits you need to acquire. Carol

LOL....I like the "3rd person" comment! Congrats.....stick with it Carol

I'm with you Carol.....I share the exact same attitude. I have been going through pure hell with this band at times.....and nothing is consistent except not being able to eat in the morning. I know I do better when I eat very slow too....but sometimes I just plain forget! But........I'll put up with it as long as it takes the weight off and keeps it off. I can eat pretty good at times so I will do my best to get proper nutrition...but if I'm going to have to continue with the mealtimes when I can't get anything down then so be it! I'd rather the weight be gone! Carol

Thank you very much everyone for your responses. I do have a problem in the a.m. with swelling around my fingers and ankles...always have had this problem.....there does seem to be some logic in your Dr's theory on this one. Now I have another problem....I just can't figure out this band. I could barely get down a cup of tea yesterday morning around 8. Then, at 2:30 I ate an entire toasted sandwich with a bit of swiss cheese and pastrami on it.....the last few bites were a struggle, maybe I shouldn't have pushed it but I did eat the entire sandwich. Then, last night at 8 I sat down to a nice small plate with one strip of smoked salmon, 1/4 of a pickled egg, 2 halves of an artichoke heart, and a few very small pieces of cold chicken. This is the exact same dinner I had the night before and had no problem with it but last night I coudn't get past the second mouthful before experiencing a pain in my chest and then throwing up the entire lot.....I tried once more and the same thing happened....both times a huge burp came with the food. I just can't figure this out? Carol

I too can eat a full sandwich, at times and only when the bread is very toasted. The amount I can eat and what I can eat is very erratic. I can't eat in the a.m. at all......not until at least 3 p.m. Then, sometimes I can eat a full sandwich, yet other times I can't eat much at all. I have 8 cc's in a 10 cc band and most of the time I feel like I have reached maximum restriction but then it scares me when I read that some of you can only eat 4 bites of your meal or only 1/2 of a sandwich. Carol

Hi....with this last fill I can't seem to be able to eating even one small bite of anything in the a.m. and keep it down. I develope a horrible painful gas ball in my chest, it takes forever to pass and sometimes the little bit of food comes with it....this morning I couldn't manage one bite of a soft poached egg. This has happened everyday since Thursday (my last fill). I can't seem to eat anything at all until dinner time, sometimes that is difficult, yet sometimes I can manage to eat a bit more than I thought I could and foods that I thought I couldn't manage I can. Does anyone know why it's difficult for some of us to eat in the a.m.? Carol