cyndilou29

OMG you guys I got checked out yesterday! I was driving and I noticed a car pulling up to beside me quite a bit. I figured it was some jerk so I ignored it. Then he beeped and I thought maybe he was trying to tell me something was wrong with my car so I looked over. He waved, winked, smiled at me, pointed to me and mouthed "you're hot"! It's been a LOOOOOOONNGG time since that happened. I'm happily married but it's nice to get noticed again. Scary in some ways too, but it definitely made me smile. I was feeling pretty down on the band yesterday because I was stuck all day but after that, I'm feeling pretty band-positive again! :whoo: On a side note, does that actually work on ANY woman? Like I'd be all "Oh, I'm hot? Well pull over and let's have a go!". While he made my day, he's obviously an idiot. LOL Just had to share as it made my day and who else can I tell?

What an inspiration (and a beautiful love story)! Thanks for posting it.

NSAID = non steroidal anti inflammatory drug. IE Ibuprofin (Motrin), Aleve, etc

Well thanks for the welcome! It's good to be here, slime and all! Thanks for the post. Sunshine, you are doing AMAZING! You are a big inspiration (or should I say small inspiration as nothing about you is big anymore!) to me as we are similar ages with similar starting and goal BMI. You've done great in such a short time. Good for you. I hope in 6 months I am doing as well as you!

Good luck with your surgery. You're in my thoughts and prayers. Can't wait to hear how you're doing once you're in bandland!

I TOTALLY relate! I just said that to my husband the other day. I ended up taking a HUGE bite of chicken thinking I would just chew, chew, chew but ended up spitting it out because I was scared I'd get stuck. I can't wait for this phase to be over!

It is very difficult to motivate someone els. I know how frustrating this must be for you but you have to remember that this is his body and his issue. You can tell him that you are concerned for his health and if he would like your help, you are there to help him get there. Then don't mention it again or you will be the nagging wife and it won't help him get there. Please don't take this the wrong way but this is his journey, not yours, and he has to make these decisions alone. If he chooses to get healthy he will. If he chooses not to, there is nothing you can do about it. I'm sorry you are dealing with this and I hope you are able to make peace with his decisions.

I'm down 32lbs and am supposed to have my first fill next week but I don't want it. I have great restriction so far.

The doctor told me it's very normal to gain post op prior to your first fill. Most people have very little restriction so they eat a little more and have some swelling which makes the scale go up too. Plus, there is not as much activity. It's okay not to lose too much now. This time is for healing not for losing. You will lose when you get your fills. Just relax and let your body heal. As long as you are following the rules, you will be fine.

Ask your pharmacist to put them in liquid form for you. Almost any drug can be compounded into a liquid as long as it's not an extended release kinda thing. I can't get mine down either. They either come right up or get stuck.

It's very normal to have these concerns pre-op. I couldn't agree more with what everyone else posted. If you lose 100 lbs that's a major accomplishment. Think about carrying around a kid that weighs 100lbs every day. Then think about putting him down! How much easier will it be to walk? You can do this. It's a good thing and whether you lose 100lbs or 250lbs you are going to be healthier. Focus on that if you can. Good luck. I know once you do this you'll be happy you did.

I am with you a hundred percent as far as Inamed and a few others. The problem is the old "one bad apple spoils the whole bunch" situation. There are "dirty" companies in every single business sector but it doesn't mean the ENTIRE sector is awful.

Oh my gosh Sally, I can't imagine how stressful this must be for all of you. I will keep you and your daughter in my prayers. God bless you both

OMG I'm totally having the same issue. One day, I swear it's like I don't even have the band in because I can eat anything and everything. The next day, I'll get stuck on 2 bites of the same thing I ate yesterday with no issues. I thought it was just me. What the heck is that about?

Does it always come up though? Sometimes, I get thick mucous in the back of my throat. Kind of like post nasal drip but much thicker. It goes down my throat and I find it after I eat too much. I've frothed in that I've "thrown up" the frothy gunk but I was wondering if this is related?

Lucy, I have to get back on my soapbox now and I hate to do it because this is a really fun post but you are just flat wrong. The reason generics are cheaper is because they don't have to do any drug discovery. Do you think that God comes down from heaven and says "if you make it like this, you will cure diabetes"? No, it takes hundreds of compounds that fail completely before you find the one that works. Generic companies don't have to do that. They just have to make a copy of the same drug. And they aren't tremendously cheaper either. I was on Seasonale and I paid $178 for it. I went on the generic about a year ago and it cost $159. Not the huge savings you are thinking. When was the last time an antibiotic was made? Um all the time. There are tons of antibiotics in development but after years of overuse and lots of antibacterial soap honestly, "bugs" are resistant to the new ones too. And the "common thread here" is that all these conditions are things that millions of people suffer from. It's called supply and demand. People need cholesterol drugs so companies make them. There are lots of drugs to treat TB but again due to overuse of antibiotics, many don't work anymore. There are many drugs in development but it takes YEARS to hit the market and that is only IF they pass all the clinical trials to prove they are effective and won't kill you. There are many, many companies making drugs that only help a smaller group of people - many of the biogenerics are this. There is an orphan drug act that applies to this. And regarding the 20 year patent? That is from the time the molecule is CREATED. If it takes another 15 years to get to market, that's 5 years of selling time to make up the $100,000,000+ that they spent to create the drug. Then, if there is even the smallest error in the patent they filed, a generic company can come out with a generic right away. How then do they get the $100,000,000 back? Think that doesn't happen? It happens ALL THE TIME. Lastly, if you can't find accounting records for pharmaceutical companies then you are just not looking. Most of them, almost all of them, are publicly traded companies. You can get an annual report with general info and then call investor relations for more detailed information. Do your homework and then see if you feel the same way.

I had to come back and say you are a genius, TerriDoodle! I've been laughing to myself for 2 days now. I told my husband about "squeezins" and he was cracking up (we've both been on Xenical). We went out with friends for dinner and I ordered fish, he got Pasta and our friends got pizza. My hubby said out loud "Wow, that pizza's got a lot of squeezins on it" and our friend said "I know! Doesn't it look yummy?" We were both on the floor! Our other friend was like "what?" We just changed the subject and went on with dinner but in the car we laughed all the way home. You belong in the hall of fame!

Well, interestingly, my plan excluded it from coverage so I decided to go the self-pay route. It was going to be about $16,000 for the surgery and pre-op stuff. However, the hospital still submits all bills and I'm shocked at what they covered. They didn't cover the anesthesia or the band but did cover the surgeon (go figure. Apparently it's okay to have surgery but no anesthesia for me!). They covered the lab work and pre-op visits (except one visit to the nutritionist - $120). Still waiting on whether they cover the hospital room or not but so far they've paid about $6000. Not bad!

Can you guys describe "slime"? What actually happens when you slime? I see it all the time, and I think I know what you mean, but I want to be sure what is happening to me is the same thing.

He'll do well with the band because all I can eat are meat and potatoes! Occasionally I can get some watermelon down or suck on an orange but no apples or kiwi for me. Actually bananas aren't too good for me either. I find that ground meat goes down very well so we do a lot of chilli, shephard's pie (no corn for me though), meatballs, etc. I usually use turkey but you could use lean ground beef. As far as veggies go, they have to be mush for me to get them down so I don't eat as many as I'd like but if he likes green Beans then give him green beans. I eat a lot of peas now. I also eat mashed turnip and zucchini. I'm really tight though so I'm probably not a good one to give advice! Sorry!

If I have even the SMALLEST LITTLE SIP of liquid around or during my meals, I get stuck. It's been really hard for me because I really LOVE to drink with my meals but it's not worth the stuck feeling.

Haven't tried popcorn yet but I can't wait to! I too was REALLY scared to try new food. I'm 4.5 weeks post op and the only thing I've found that makes me really stuck is soft doughy type things. The easiest food for me is tuna but fish makes other people stuck so it really depends.

Doughy, sticky bread type things for me. I had a piece of a cinnamon roll that was literally half the size of my pinky nail and I was stuck all day. Soft bread - same thing. Crusty bread I can do though. Go figure.

I'm 5'5 and started a little heavier than you (245). I'm 30 days post op and down 30 lbs. But really remember everyone IS different. You might lose 50 lbs in 6 months or you might lose 20. My mother is law started at 240 (she is 5'2 I think) and she is down 25 lbs but she was banded in March. Try, if you can, not to focus on that. Try to focus on getting healthy and every lb you go down is getting you a little healthier.

I need a sweater because I'm FREEZING all the time. I always wondered why the "skinnies" were cold all the time - it's because they don't eat!