SpideyMom

Hi, Lili! Great to hear from you. I'm glad to hear that Lisa is doing well, despite a little tummy upset yesterday. She sounds like the type who doesn't want to stay down -- always on the go! Me, I'm looking forward to a week of doing nothing. You are a brave woman for watching the surgery on YouTube. Don't think I could do that!! I hope that hasn't scared you off of getting yours done, Lili! Oh, and I hear you about the weight loss slowing. It must be terribly hard to keep on the Optifast for as long as you've been doing it, without going off now and again. My preop diet officially starts on April 30 (one week before May 7 surgery), but I get six Slim Fast shakes a day. I've really grown to like them, actually, and look forward to having them in the morning and sometimes in the evening. I must confess a funny thing... it is tax time again here in the U.S., which is horribly stressful for me. Thankfully my dear husband prepares them each year, while I pace the room frantically. He was doing them tonight, and I really felt the need for a good stiff drink, I was so wound up. So when I had my evening chocolate Slim Fast, I slipped a shot of coconut rum into it! It was fantastic! And did the job quite nicely, I must say. :tt2::frown2: Yes, I know, naughty, naughty! :cool2: But my dh and I got a good laugh over it. Hope all is continuing well with everyone! Cheers!

Oh, I am baaaaaad..... I must confess. I was stressing out about taxes tonight (my dh does them, and I pace the floor), and I really wanted a good stiff drink. I actually put a shot of coconut rum into my chocolate SlimFast tonight! :tt2::frown2: And let me tell you, OH was it GOOD! :cool2: My dh and I got a good laugh out of it. I don't plan on making it a habit, but I will keep it in mind, perhaps for Cinco de Mayo when I am on my preop diet! Cheers!

LOVE IT! :smile:

The SAME exact thing happened to me yesterday!!! I ate so much I had to lie down because I felt sick from eating too much. And I also justified it as a "last supper." I totally was questioning whether I can succeed. But we must have some belief that we can or we wouldn't be back on here the very next day, would we? :smile: There is strength in numbers. We can do this with each other's support!

Hey, John, our posts overlapped. I agree with your thoughts on anxiousness! Fingers crossed for your medical clearance by Friday! :smile:

Melissa, Hallelujah, and Amy, I am experiencing the same exact feelings! I am seeing a therapist who has been helping me with my decision to do this, and I've talked with her about my flip-flop feelings. She has dealt with other WLS clients and she said this is all completely normal. She also deals with addicts of all kinds and says that they sometimes go through the same thing before they make the decision to go clean -- just like that woman on Intervention. What my therapist suggested to me was to focus on all the positive remarks that people have about LapBand and try not to read too much about the negative. There will always be positives and negatives about everything! So, I'm trying to focus on the weight loss success stories that people post on here, look at all their amazing pictures, and imagine myself as being thin! I'm going to be giving up refined sugar because I'm addicted to it, and it's hard for me to think about that. So, I just focus on the day today and try to make small changes now so that when I get to my surgery date it won't be so overwhelming. Think happy, think thoughts, my fellow BANDitos!! :smile:

Welcome all new BANDitos! I wasn't online over the weekend, so I'm just now catching up on posts. My doc insists on a whole week. I'm having my surgery on a Thursday,though, so I am also taking that Thurs. and Friday, for a total of 10 calendar days (7 working days). I'm very lucky -- my boss is amazing. She is so supportive of me doing this, and she wanted me to take the extra two days so that I could rest. How could I say no? :smile: But, I have heard of people going back after just 4 days or so if they have a sit-down job. I wouldn't go back too soon if you are on your feet or having to lift anything, especially dogs that could scratch your incisions! Maybe a coworker could help you with the dog lifting for a while? Happy Monday!

You're welcome! :drool: Happy weekend!

John, how do we add to the calendar? (ie, Where is it?) Thanks!:thumbup: EDIT: Nevermind! I found it! For anyone else who doesn't know where to find it, the calendar link is at the top of the page in the blue toolbox bar, between "Blogs" and "New Posts."

Gosh, I hadn't thought about Cinco de Mayo! Perhaps we could all pour our Protein drinks in margarita glasses, with a lime wedge on the side, and pretend we're celebrating! :thumbup: MacLynn, you'll definitely have to have a Bandito Margarita after waiting for 8 months -- wow! Cut and paste is much easier! Thanks for letting us know!

Hi, Cali. If you click on your ticker to go back to all your data, there is a little circle to check if you want your weight displayed. I know because I chose not to display mine right now! :thumbup: MacLynn, welcome! I know it must be frustrating that your trip has been cancelled. I just got off the phone planning something for May 1 when the phone rang and it was my surgeon's office telling me I could have surgery on April 30. Grrrr.... I had to put it off until May 7. I know that's just a week, but when you're waiting so anxiously, you want it done yesterday!!! But, we're glad to have you here with us as a Mayo Bandito! :tt2:

Sure, happy to do it! But, like I said, I know it could be a lot better if we could just find a graphics person! :thumbup:

Ok, I gave it another shot (it's Friday, what the heck). Here's a sombrero. But I can't get it any closer or on top. So, again, I put out a call for graphic experts.... help!!!:thumbup: If you want to add this to your posts, copy the following, BUT you need to add a [ before IMG (note there are two IMGs one at the beginning and one in the middle) with no spaces. If you don't add those brackets, it won't work and it will just print out the line of code. IMG]http://i224.photobucket.com/albums/dd182/Cpdude43/sombreropin.jpg[/img] IMG]http://img902.mytextgraphics.com/birthstonetext/2009/04/09/4d5af4d019594ecd29bdc098053c7b3d.gif[/img] But again, maybe someone else can come up with something fancier (and I can get back to my real work :tt2:). Cheers!

Sure, no problem -- happy to help! Go here: Graphical Tickers and Trackers: Weight Loss, Trying To Conceive, Pregnancy... Choose "Weight Loss" (the first one in the left-hand column) and it will walk you through making your ticker step-by-step! If you want to do a countdown to your surgery, choose "Event," which is the 7th one down in the right-hand column. Good luck and have fun! :thumbup:)

Hi, everyone! Congrats on all the May dates! :tt2: I go in on May 7. :thumbup: Come on over to the May 2009 board, where we formed a group called the Mayo BANDitos! We're now working on a siggie tag for the bottom of our posts, so if you are good with graphics, please, we need your help! :tt2: Looking forward to getting to know all of you as we start our journey together! Cheers!

Congratulations and welcome! :thumbup: I know exactly how you feel... excited and nervous all at the same time. I just got approved this week also, and will be going in the day before you! Welcome to the journey, fellow Mayo Bandito!

Hey, John, thanks. I looked and looked, but can't seem to find a text maker that offers graphics with it. Then I tried adding some clip art, but it won't add. Maybe someone else is more advanced at doing these graphic things than I am! Anyone? Happy Friday, mi Banditos!

Hallelujah, you crack me up about baby's got back! I am shaped the same way. Maybe that's why I only have to do one week. :sad: If you are allowed some choice as to what kind of Protein drink you can have, I just tried

Hi! I've noticed that a lot of the other groups have signature banners for the group name. I looked around and figured out how to do these things, and I thought I'd throw a few out there for us to choose. (I can make more, too, or anyone else can make more also!) The possibilities are endless. :sad: If you want to try your hand at some, go to mytextgraphics.com. It's free and you don't have to sign up to get the html code.

Hello, ladies! How is everyone doing? I wanted to pop on here and tell Lili -- I'm thinking of you today as Lisa gets banded! What an exciting day for you both! Please stop by when you can and let us know how it went. (((HUGS))) :sad: And I would love to hear updates from the rest of you. You're all a great encouragement to me! I just got my date approved yesterday, and I'm very excited now -- 4 weeks from today! :thumbup:

Thanks, John! Same here! :glare:

Hi, Amy. I have to do one week of nothing but SlimFast. I can do 6 or 7 cans of Optima or High Protein each day, nothing else. The Slim Fast is good, and I have agree with John, it's hard not to chug them!:glare: It's interesting to me how different each doctor is! I'm learning so much on this forum.

I'm so excited, I'm about to burst! I just got a call from the surgeon's office and I am definitely approved! My insurance company (CareFirst BlueChoice) approved me in just one HOUR! She said no one has ever been approved that fast. I guess they figured I really, really need it with all my comorbidities. So, May 7 it definitely is! :glare: I go for my final pre-op consultation w/the surgeon on April 28, then start my pre-op Slim Fast diet on April 30. Yummy.... Have a great day, everyone!

OMG, I can't believe it! I just got a call from my surgeon's assistant, and she sent in all my paperwork this morning and got a call just an hour later approving me!! She said they have never had anyone approved so fast. Gosh, I guess the insurance company really thinks I desperately need this, huh?! I have CareFirst BlueChoice, btw. And I didn't have to do a 6-month diet because I had done Weight Watchers for the last two years and was able to get records of my attendance to show the insurance company. So there is hope for a quick process! Never in my wildest dreams did I think it would be approved SO quickly though! I'm on cloud 9! :glare:

Oh, yeah, the sipping! I forgot about the sipping. :glare: I love to chug water also, especially in the morning. Good idea about rinsing out your mouth after a meal! I heard one woman in a support group say she brushes her teeth after each meal... and then watches the clock like a hawk! lol Hallelujah, Hallelujah, on your date! Hopefully I will be the day after you. It does feel good to have a date on the calendar to work toward. Regarding the chewing, I agree, smaller bites are better. I was eating stir fry last night and took some big bites that after 30 chews, it still needed a lot more chewing to get to the consistency of applesauce, as my doc says it should be. WOW... the enormity of all of the life changes facing all of us are overwhelming!! But I am so determined that this is IT. The rest of my life is going to be healthy!