I had to see my gastric doc today even though I've been avoiding her since I had my first colonoscopy 2 years ago, a colonoscopy that was never satisfactorily completed. This was the colonoscopy from hell. It appears that I have an unusually long and twisty colon and the team that was hanging out inside my butt was not at all generous with the kind of meds that are supposed to keep the whole experience light and fun. Anyhow, they never did manage to see the end of my colon even though they made a number of runs at it and kept me in the colon room for a really long time. (I know that they kept me there for an abnormally long time because the recovery nurse told me so.)

The upshot of the failed colonoscopy was that she wanted me to have a barium enema. Her office made the appointment. I cancelled. I was traumatised, you see.

So since my last visit my kid brother has died of bowel cancer and that increases my own odds exponentially and I have an enlarged liver to boot.

I had to see her today and I had to tell her about the lapband. Turns out that I am her first ever lapband patient. She knew nothing much about it. And because I am not morbidly obese, she wanted to know why I didn't just diet and exercise. Why did I spend 16Gs on surgery? She was starting to treat me like a nut. I was starting to feel like a nut and defensive as well.

Then she feels my liver and boy does it feel fat! It seems that fat people often have fat livers. Mine is a monster! It is almost a third over sized. I am horrified by the news about my liver. As for my bowel, I feel kinda casual. This doc is interested in 'em both but more interested in the bowel.

Going to a specialist is always stressful but I guess I found that I was extra stressed by having to both explain and defend my choice of weight loss surgery over simple diet and exercise. To tell you the truth, this left a bit of a foul taste in my mouth. I did let her push my port though. :rolleyes

Let's hear it for our brave and well-built men in (and out) of a fireman's uniform! I just got a Fire Fighter's calendar forwarded thru email. Woo-hoo!

BTW Cloe - whatdaya have against hot stuff in their 20's?? Discrimination just makes no sense to me when it comes to our hansome, brave, studly fire fighters.

Actually my own significant other is nine years younger than I am and registers as very good looking on the good lookin' scale. :kiss2: When I met him he was a diamond in the rough. I had to clean him up and teach him how to dress.

It's become a bit of a chore to keep up with him now that I am in the land of old fartdom and sometimes I wish I was with some broke down old geezer with bad eyesight and forests of nose and ear hair! Life would be a little easier. Still, we've been together for over 20 years now. Maybe love is blind.... :bandit Or maybe the dude just lurvs sausages. :hungry: He is German on his mother's side.

Your so brave, green. mr. neenagh is 10 years OLDER and i feel like i'm having trouble keeping up. Pple keep telling me in a suprised tone, "your husband is sooo handsome" as their eyes travel critically over my face!

I married one who is just younger enough than me to not kick the bucket before me. (You know how women supposedly outlive their men.)

Green if mine was 9 or 10 years younger than me right about now he'd be looking for replacement material.

Of course when I become svelt again, Katie bar the door! (An old Okie term for you Soviet Canuckistanians.)

Not only does Green grumble but so does her cat. He was sitting on the window sill beside where she works on her computer. She had the window cracked open. The inside cat likes to smell the great outdoors. She heard the cat hiss and spit and figured that there must be another cat out there. Turns out the animal was chasing off an old man who was delivering flyers, probably trying to eke out his meager pension. This is a big black cat. Green is sure that the effect was quite sinister.

I married one who is just younger enough than me to not kick the bucket before me. (You know how women supposedly outlive their men.)

Green if mine was 9 or 10 years younger than me right about now he'd be looking for replacement material.

Of course when I become svelt again, Katie bar the door! (An old Okie term for you Soviet Canuckistanians.)

Yep, we women do tend to outlast our men. I had an aunt who married a guy who was 11 years younger than herself. She still outlasted him, alas! And went quite bananas after he was gone. She lived on for quite a few years....

That Okie term is cute.:success1:

I still have no restriction. I ate a hamburger the other night with no problem. I wonder if my band is leaking.

The ground beef would be no problem for me, but the bun.....stuck city!!! Maybe you may need another fill but sometimes it depends on the time of day or the actual day. Are you losing at a rate of 1 to 2 lbs a week? I'm in the process to schedule another fill with a Dr in Ottawa. The Doc in Ottawa started doing fills in October, hope he's had enough practice.

Ugh! I can eat bread with no trouble.

me too Green, i can eat just about everything, the only thing i have trouble with is lettuce. I hav'nt slimed or PB on anything yet and i hope i can keep it that way.

Maria

green it sound like you really do need another fill.

I think it's so funny how everyone is sooo different. Maria can't eat lettuce, but I can stuff it in no problem. I can do ground beef well, but I do have to be careful with bread. I find roasts to be the hardest(pork and beef).

For me its chicken and as i found out at lunch time today TUNA.

I can eat everything! My third scheduled fill is coming up next week but the TLBC fill tech is being very conservative with my fills. Maybe this is because I had problems drinking water after my first fill and had to ask her for a defill.

The rest of my graduating class received 5 cc for the first fill. I received four. At the time of the second fill I was topped up to 5 cc but the rest of the gang are cruising on 6 cc, I believe. One of the gang claims to eat a lot of subway sandwhiches, but it seems that she also PBs a lot.

Perhaps I shouldn't be in a flap over this issue. I know that I have lost weight since I have been banded and that my appetite is not as out of control. I am eating more carefully but I would like to feel some sense of restriction. I am afraid that I will return to my old eating habits otherwise. I guess that I am in a flap....

don't compare yourself to your compartriots though Green.....don't forget it is all individual for the most part...and may just be a coinicidence that they are getting the same fills. They also base it on your average weight loss per week/month etc...and whether or not you feel "tight" and have troubles with certain foods etc...and yes...whether you had a prob and needed a defill. So, as difficult as it is, try not compare since each situation will be different!

Thanx, Yoda. It is just that I feel no restriction and that I can eat bread with no aggravation that leaves me feeling freaked out!!