Lisa99

I agree that there should be a flat tax. I'm in the same bracket as you Wheetsin and it annoys the HECK out of me that people who make tons more than we do have attorneys that get them out of paying most of their rightful taxes. The other thing that gets my blood boiling is the marriage tax. Just because we're married and our salaries are combined we're taxed at a higher rate!! Grrrrr

My surgeon uses the 4cc band and the 10cc band. He decides which to use one he is in surgery and looks at the anatomy of the stomach. I have the 4cc, DH has the 10cc. As for the amount of fill they can hold, I have no clue since I'm fairly newly banded.

0 - 12 - Fat baby and stayed that way until I was about 12 (a favorite uncle used to "lovingly" call me "fat cat" when i was little...everybody thought it was funny, I didn't). 12 - 23 - was an athlete and cheerleader in school so I lost all of the baby fat and kept it off. After high school, got married and had a son. From 15 - 23 weight was 125. 23 - marriage started falling apart and within a year I weighed 175!! Divorced at 25 and my weight dropped back to 140ish. 29 - remarried to my DH, weighed about 140. He's a big guy and I found myself eating more than I ever had. We also ate out A LOT. Over the years the weight crept up. We dieted together several times and were successful but it never stayed off. 45 - Heaviest of my life at just over 200. Decided to follow in DH footsteps and get the lapband. Best decision of my life!

1 scrambled omega 3 egg with turkey sausage, onion, mushroom and tomato mixed in.

I agree with Jack completely! I had a craving for McD's FFs a few weeks ago. Gave in and bought them, ate one, chewed it to goo and it was the most revolting thing I've ever eaten. By chewing it that much the texture was awful and all I could taste was the grease. It left a film in my mouth for hours....needless to say, my french fry craving is forever gone!! :clap2: Once you're to the "normal" food stage, what I've found that stops a salty craving is to buy a small single serving bag of baked lays potato chips. By doing a small bag "in the moment" they aren't in the house to cause temptation.

Thanks, that helps a lot.

My eating habits changed radically after the band. During the week I eat nothing "processed" and don't eat dairy, wheat or sugar. I eat a lot of grilled chicken and turkey, salmon, Omega 3 eggs, Protein shakes and tuna. Also eat lots of veggies and fruits. On the weekend I eat more calories and less strictly, but I don't go overboard. It really seems to help me lose the weight to keep calories different from day to day and the weekend is for with cravings (mexican food is for weekends) Good luck,

Hi AZ, I'm so sorry you and your wife are going through this rough time. I too have a husband who travels 100%, and even though I have a career, it gets very lonely. We don't have children so I can't even imagine what it would be like to be a stay-at-home mom with a husband who travels. Since it sounds like you're comfortable financially, have you thought about giving your wife some "me" time? Maybe start with giving her a week at a spa (if she's into that kind of thing) so that she can get back in touch with the person beyond the mom and wife. You might want to follow up with having a nanny come in one day a week so your wife can get out of the house. Being a wife and a mom is a wonderful thing, but it is so important to help her remember that she was the wonderful woman that you fell in love with before she became the wife and mom...help her find that person again. Good luck in your journey

Pre-surgery: 16/18 Now: 12/14 Goal: 6

DH had it done last March. Watching him lose 80 pounds eating smaller portions of normal food made me realize that my yoyo dieting could stop if I went the same path as him.

It's like comparing apples and oranges. The stastics he quoted about complications were based on the device used in Europe in the early 1990s. It is not the band used today and the procedure has been improved....but there's always a way to spin something any way one wants.

There is a possibility that DH's company is transferring us to the Middle East (don't know what country yet). Does anyone know how to research fill centers or fill doctors overseas? We're both banded so I need to do some research before we make a decision. Thanks!

Centrum chewables are good too. Just one per day since they are adult vitamins

I was self-pay. The doc's price was $16000 if I financed, but $15000 if I paid by cashier's check by the day of surgery.

MY Dallas-based surgeon had no issues with my starting BMI of 32.3 I had no co-morbidities, but have sleep apnea, have some back issues, have a bad knee and have a family history of heart disease and diabetes. I was self-pay and would do it again in a flash. Good luck!

Two weeks, but I could have scheduled the next week if I would have wanted to.

Only had one but the fill center we go to only does it with fleuro. I really liked being able to see what the restriction looked like.

I think the reason that you're still hungry after the Protein shake is that the shake goes right through the band. It's my understanding from my band doc that the "full receptors" of the stomach are right at the top of the stomach, so if you drink your calories the full receptors really never kick in.

Hi Christina, My stomach regularly does the same thing!! It's REALLY weird feeling and sounds strange. I got my first fill on Thursday and the fleuro showed that there was a lot of air in my stomach and that was causing all of the weird noises. It seems that when I drink I take in air as well...the doc suggested a couple of Gas-X chewables to get rid of the air, but long-term he told me I needed to learn to drink and eat without swallowing as much air. Good luck with the grumbling tummy!

I'll do that!

I had problems eating like a bandster pre-band, just seemed "weird" to be eating like that. Once I got banded I took it more seriously. I don't drink with my meals, but I was still having a problem eating a bite that was too big and not chewing well enough. Didn't cause a problem until I had a fill. First time I ate eggs post-fill I was eating too fast and got some egg stuck. It wasn't a bad one, it went down in about 30 seconds, but after that I got a drinking straw and put it on the table to remind myself just how small the opening really is...that one little trick has helped remind me to slow down, take little bites and chew well.

I haven't been banded long, but I hiccup once or twice when I've had enough.

Welcome to the other side And congrats on reaching your jean size goal!!!! PLEASE don't stop adding muscle, unless of course you're starting to look like Arnold S. Every pound of muscle burns 50 calories/day, but a pound of fat is inert and doesn't burn calories. Also muscle is smaller in mass than fat, so if you're adding muscle that's why the scale shows no weight loss but clothes fit looser!!

Of course you may join! I feel so incredibly liberated this morning...no scales in sight!! ...and thank heavens for a fill! I got my first one yesterday. The fleuro picture shows the restriction opening to be about the size of a drinking straw (I have the 4cc band so it looks like the first fill will be effective). Seeing that picture really helped me understand why it is so important to chew chew chew!

I like the taste of lite Mayo better than the full fat version.