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I remember back in the 80s when the rabid folks (pun intended) belonging to PETA thought it would be really brilliant to "rescue" bunny rabbits from an "evil" lab. They let all of the bright, white rabbits out of their cages outdoors. Keep in mind that these were DOMESTICATED animals who relied on humans for food, Water, and medical care. They also didn't blend in so well into the background (you think?). What became of the cute, fuzzy little BRIGHT WHITE bunny wabbits you wonder? Well, the ones that weren't run over by traffic were easily spotted and devoured by a variety of wildlife. DOH! So glad we could count on the good people at PETA once again to "save" the animals! NOT! By the way, I worked for an "evil lab" where our bunnies were spoiled rotten and lived long and happy lives. Under our care, they were never flattened by cars or eaten alive...imagine that!

I don't know if it helps or not, but salad was definitely not on the recommended list of mushy foods from my doctor (salad really isn't mushy...unless it's sat around in dressing for a long while)! LOL! Seriously, I was told to stick to soft foods like fat free puddings, yogurt, cottage cheese, refried Beans, etc. during the mushy phase. I agree with everyone else that you need to check with your own doctor and do whatever he/she recommends! Good luck!!!

I agree that it is crucial for you to follow your doctor's recommendations as closely as you can to avoid possible complications. None of us are perfect though, so don't waste your time and energy "beating yourself up." Just focus on getting back on track to ensure that you have the best surgical experience possible. Remember that the most critical part of the bandster journey is working on "rewiring" our minds so we can change the habits that made us overweight in the first place. It's a long journey and you will face more difficult times along the way (trust me)! :biggrin1: First up is the post-op diet which varies from surgeon to surgeon. For me, it was several weeks of liquids only, then soft, mushy foods for several weeks, then a gradual introduction of solids that took another couple of weeks. This is followed by the bandster "hell" period that lasts from the time the stomach swelling goes down until you have had several fills. It's not called that for nothing! For me, it took about three fills and around 6-7 months until I had a decent level of restriction. This varies according to the fill protocol used by your doctor of course. I've read a lot of posts lately where people are "surprised" that they are hungry about 4-8 weeks out from surgery. There is an abundance of information on this site about the same issues that are posted over and over again. People who follow the nutrition guidelines provided by the lap-band manufacturers and certified surgeons seem to reap the best results with the fewest complications. You may find these links helpful as you begin your journey: Lap-Band Surgery FAQs and References - Lap Band Talk Forum - The largest forum for Lap Band Surgery Discussion and Lap Band Surgery Support http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f13/how-lap-band-actually-works-fills-refills-41738/ food - Lap Band Talk Forum - The largest forum for Lap Band Surgery Discussion and Lap Band Surgery Support This thread has information about each stage of eating and recipes. LAP-BAND® - ALB Life After Surgery (I don't know what type of band you're getting, but there's a wealth of information on this site as well). Good luck--I hope all goes well for you! :clap2:

I agree--I usually write something like "I'm looking forward to meeting with you to discuss my qualifications at your earliest convenience." Good luck! :clap2:

I see what you mean about the "chicken and the egg" idea, but I don't think that the majority of Americans actually have weapons in their homes. Many people don't want guns around when they have children in the house. I also don't think that most criminals commit crimes using guns. Most break-ins are done when people aren't even home by drug addicts seeking things to hock for more drug money. Most of the shootings I hear about turn out to be drug or gang-related and typically involve two criminals out to get one another (a drug deal gone bad, revenge killings, etc.). I don't have any hard facts to back that opinion--I'm just going on information from the reports I hear on the news. I don't have a weapon in the house currently, but I want to maintain the right to purchase and carry a weapon if that is something I decide to do someday. I can't shrug off the nagging feeling that it can't be a good thing for only the government, the military, and the criminals to have all of the weapons...

Very neat tool! Poor Barack Obama was the furthest away from me on the little chart. Interesting!!! Thanks for sharing the link!

I agree with everyone else. It sounds like your hubby has a bit more growing up to do. You are not being mean for asking to get money on the date it was promised. Your SIL should be kissing your two sets of feet because the two of you were kind enough to let her have the money in the first place! I'm a bit taken aback by her reaction. Be careful while standing your ground though...in my experience, angry men sometimes do really stupid things. I don't want you to get hurt. Have someone home with you when he gets his stuff (preferably someone like your dad or very large brothers/male friends if you have any). Make sure you have bank accounts/credit cards in your own name as well or your hubby might leave you with nothing! You may want to speak with a lawyer to double-check if there are any other steps you should take to protect yourself financially. You just learned the hard way why relatives should try to avoid loaning money to each other if possible (or if you do loan a relative money, make sure you are able to live comfortably without it because you may never see it again). You also have to be very careful about co-signing loans for the same reason. People have had their credit ruined because the other co-signer was irresponsible. I wish you the best of luck and I hope you are able to move forward without too much drama!!!

Hi there! Sorry to hear about your difficulties with your PS office! I hope you either get them to wake up and smell the coffee or find a practice that seems to give a hoot about their patients! It seems that I'm hearing more and more stories about poor service in medical offices lately! I share a similar frustration, but it isn't boobie related. My jelly belly is keeping me out of smaller sizes. At this point, my top half fits easily into women's size 14/16 tops, but my bottom half can just squeeze into 18Ws! So the pants/skirts that go with suits I've bought recently are left hanging in my closet and I have to wear the new blouses/jackets with my old pants and skirts. I have to hang in there because I haven't lost enough to even think about PS yet! After reading about your trials and tribulations, I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to getting PS lined up!

My father was a police officer. His weapon was stored in our house--the gun in one location, ammo in another. My two brothers were career military men who were trained to shoot weapons of course. I would be perfectly comfortable if any of them decided to carry a weapon as a civilian because they know what they are doing. If I were properly trained, I would not have a problem carrying a legally-obtained, licensed weapon either. Many lives could be saved if someone would have a licensed gun on them when some "psycho shooter" decides to open fire in a public place. A person properly trained to discharge a weapon could take out the nutjob in a nanosecond, thus preventing further carnage. The nutjob should not have been allowed to purchase a gun legally in the first place if the laws we have currently in place were actually followed and all of the loopholes were closed. We have the right to defend our lives and property. If I'm in a life or death struggle, I plan on surviving no matter what it takes. All scumbags can consider themselves warned...

What did those of you who watched the NH political debate on January 5th think about what you heard from the Republican and Democratic presidential candidates? What did you think about the format used by Charles Gibson? Who do you think did the best job getting their message across? Did anything surprise you? Feel free to share these or any other thoughts you had about the debate here...

Right on, Jack! Civilian casualties have always been an unfortunate consequence of war. Wars, by their very nature, are barbaric, violent conflicts. Fire-fights are going on in the streets and buildings of urban, heavily populated areas. In this environment, I don't think it's possible to conduct a perfectly "clean" war where only the bad guys are killed. There's a reason why people say "War is hell." It also should not be assumed that all soldiers are immoral people who are bent on murdering innocent civilians. Many of our servicemen and women would find this belief to be repugnant and extremely offensive. It is no more appropriate to paint all of our servicemen with the same brush as it is to say that all muslims are deranged murderers. It is not right to project the evil actions of a few onto an entire group of people. As far as torture is concerned, it certainly shouldn't be the first strategy employed to compel our enemies to divulge critical information. I think that all efforts should be made to avoid it. However, I think it would be short-sighted (and very, very naive) for any of us to deal in absolutes (we should "always" or "never" do this or that). I can envision multiple scenarios during which the use of more aggressive means may have to be used in order to prevent a catastrophic event.

Welcome! Sorry if people haven't responded. There are so many posts, so little time! It doesn't mean we don't care!

I'm totally addicted to "Big Medicine" as well. I find watching everyone's stories to be very inspirational and motivating because they feature "real" people. My son thinks I'm a freak for watching it--I don't think he sees the connection between me and the people on there who are very large and bedridden (I guess that's a good thing)! I don't think he realizes that I am actually obese. Maybe it's because I'm like the energizer bunny and never stop doing things. I've tried to explain that their struggles are the same as mine, but I just happened to intervene and do something about it before I got quite as large as some of them are. I'm looking forward to the new season! I also have to confess that I like "Little D" a lot...I think I'm developing a bit of a crush! Wonder if he's "available" (hee, hee!)?

If it gives you any hope at all, I used to have a lot of joint pain throughout my body. I now only occasionally have pain and I'm only about halfway to goal! I hope that you start noticing some improvement after losing just a small amount of weight! I know a lot of people with joint problems promote swimming as a good exercise. That may be something to consider since swimming is very low impact as compared to running, etc. As far as "getting stuck," I've learned that I only get into trouble if I eat too fast and don't chew my food thoroughly. I try not to eat dry chicken, pork, etc. I always cook lean meats in some type of broth to keep it moist. I also use a lot of fat free mayo, salsa, and chopped tomatoes to season food so it isn't too dry. I avoid regurgitating food by not eating and drinking at the same time and by not eating too much at one time. Once you adopt these practices and they become habit, it's second nature and not hard to do at all. It is still unbelievable to me, but I don't eat white bread anymore. As a former carb addict, I think that is remarkable! There's only two of us in the house, so the bread I buy keeps going bad (I'm thinking of not bothering to buy it anymore). Some people have reported having difficulty eating other carbs like Pasta and processed foods like doughnuts, quick breads, muffins, etc. At this point, I rarely eat pasta and focus on more of a "South Beach" type of diet. It seems to help me keep up my energy. I noticed that when I do eat a meal that is mostly carbs (for example--if I attend a conference and all they are serving for lunch is a pasta dish), my vision gets blurry and I feel like crap the rest of the day. I can actually feel my blood sugar going out of whack. It makes me very sluggish. Ugh! :sick As far as maximizing weight loss, I'm probably not the best person to give advice. My strategy has been "slow and steady wins the race." I would like to reach my goal weight by the end of 2008. I didn't want to lose weight really rapidly like when you have gastric bypass surgery. I'm almost twice your age, so my perspective is a little different. As you get older, I don't think you're in as big of a hurry about things--2 years out of life for a 40-year-old doesn't seem so long as compared to how a 20-year-old would view 2 years! LOL! From my observations, I believe that those who do these things tend to lose weight the fastest (and maintain their weight loss more easily): -have a strong commitment to living a totally different lifestyle than the one that made them overweight to begin with (they continue following their new lifestyle even when weight-loss plateaus hit rather than giving up) -break their weight loss into smaller, easily achievable goals to keep themselves motivated (when you have a ton of weight to lose, it's easy to become discouraged) -strictly follow "bandster" guidelines about diet (low-fat, low-sodium, low-carb, high Protein, lots of low-carb veggies) -avoid fast-food establishments (or choose smart options like salad) -carefully watch their calorie, fat, protein, and carb intake -avoid drinking "empty" calories via alcohol, soda, high-fat milkshakes, etc. -stay away from high calorie foods that are easy for a bandster to eat like ice cream and chocolate -take in at least 64 ounces of Water (in various forms) per day -have a positive attitude and Celebrate their accomplishments with non-food related rewards -exercise regularly (both aerobic exercise and weight training) That's what I've been able to pick up from reading lots of threads and from other bandsters I've met in person for what it's worth!

Are you having a crappy week or what? Geez! I hope you get rid of the ringworm really quickly. Like you have time for these problems...

EEEWWWW! Too much information! LOL!

Don't some of the other "elite" inhabitants of our prisons sometimes "take care of" people like that? Thus eliminating the "cruel and unusual punishment" issue altogether...

I agree with what everyone else said above. Do whatever your doctor tells you to do--they're not making stuff up just to be annoying. You have to "rearrange your brain" so you become determined to make significant lifestyle changes that will bring you to your goal. Remember that if you continue to eat crap, you're going to continue feeling like crap...

Hi there! Why are you looking to order phentermine? Just curious!

What a bummer! So sorry to hear about this latest development. Hang in there and keep applying for anything and everything that appeals to you! I bet you'll find another terrific opportunity!

Here's my advice! Don't drink the Water when you visit all of these people, don't share dishes or utensils, and don't get too close--their fertility might be contagious! LOL! I think there are cycles of people getting married and having babies sometimes. One lady I know must have had a wedding to attend almost every weekend last summer between her friends and family members. Another woman had one baby shower to buy a gift for after another. It was nuts!

Since it's so freakin' cold out, how about a "blue-footed booby?" :faint:

Welcome! I can say that with proper restriction, food no longer runs my life (which is a major miracle)! Do lots of research before making your final decision since not everyone experiences the same positive results I've been blessed with so far! Good luck!!!!!

Considering that I often don't remember why I'm leaving one room to walk into another room and I'm only 41...maybe being microchipped doesn't sound all that far-fetched to me at all! I think the appropriateness of using this technology would depend on what information was encoded on the chip. Would it say something like "If found wandering aimlessly, please return this individual to the nearest hospital or police station" kind of like a video store card I used to have that said to drop the card in the nearest mailbox if it's lost (it listed the store's address). I could definitely see the usefulness of having a microchip implanted if a hospital needed critical medical information about you in an emergency (debilitating stroke, heart attack, accident, seizure, etc. that rendered you unable to communicate). The medications you take, any allergies you have, and your blood type could be included. Your living will or permission to donate organs could also be encoded so there is no doubt about your views of being placed on machinery to keep you alive or whether or not you want to donate your organs. If you don't want to be resuscitated, your organs could be used more quickly to help more people survive. If you do want to be resuscitated, the hospital staff would know that right away. The other issue to consider is how access to the microchip would be handled to ensure that your privacy was protected. What safeguards would be put into place to prevent any Tom, Dick, or Harry from accessing your medical data? I probably wouldn't want to put my Social Security number on the chip or anything like that. As a teacher, it would be admittedly kind of cool to be able to scan all the little darling children to make sure I didn't lose any students on a field trip. LOL! Seriously, it would be helpful to those who work with the really young kids in daycare centers. As with anything in our world today, being able to prevent all abuses is probably impossible. For every good use of a technology, there always seem to be scores of people trying to use it for nefarious purposes, such as: Videotapes/VCRs and DVDs/DVD-Rs--movie piracy, peeping toms, and the porn industry Music CDs/MP3s, etc.--music piracy The Internet--cyberstalkers, pedophiles, spammers, finanacial scams, identity theft, etc. GPS--more stalkers Guns used to commit crimes, the abuse of prescription drugs, publishing programs used for counterfeiting...the list could go on and on! It's an interesting innovation to debate, that's for sure! Hmmm...to chip or not to chip? That is the question! :help:

I'm certain that Wheetsin can quite capably handle a bit of sarcasm--it just isn't necessary in the course of a normal discussion. I feel badly that you weren't able to take advantage of the information you've learned since being banded prior to having the surgery. It is a shame that not all doctors go out of their way to make sure that each patient is well-prepared both mentally and physically. It's too bad there isn't some sort of universal, standardized pre-op program that every bandster must complete before surgery. That's why it's important for everyone to be able to share their experiences on a forum like this because it might help someone else become better informed. On the other hand, I also agree with others who have posted that we should be try not to present our own stories as something that is inevitable for all bandsters. We each have to take our own personal journeys...