Cleo's Mom

Thanks, Green. I didn't know you are from Canada. You do have a good system but the right wing has done what it does very well - reduce everything to a few, scary (untrue) sound-bites. Iraq war? If we don't invade, mushroom clouds will erupt in our country. Universal health care? The government will take over health care and tell you what doctor to visit and what medical procedures you can have. Canada's health care?: You have to wait forever for procedures. Government funding for poor people: Socialism (but not when it's for corporations), Elect John Kerry? - we will be attacked again if he's elected. So, you see how they operate. Say something fearful and untrue and say it over and over again and people remember that and repeat it. They demonize government. Government is not the enemy. The government is the people - we are the government and we, the voters spoke loudly and rejected the failed policies of the republicans and conservatives. Let's move on. P.S. Did you see sicko. Great movie!!

BJean - you can get involved now by contacting the offices of your representatives and ask them to support the president's budget, health care plan and in the future his energy plans. Keep the pressure on. Or join the email list of moveon.org. They always send great information. Good luck. I know it's not easy being blue surrounded by red!

Did anyone hear the bizarre 9-11 call she made last fall when she was pregnant with the octuplets? She's hysterical because her 5 year old, who was playing in the front yard, went missing. She says she can't find him and keeps saying she wants to kill herself. The 9-11 operator tells her to quit saying that - that her other kids don't need to hear her saying that. And to calm down. As it turns out, he was on a walk with the nanny. She didn't notice the nanny was gone too? Plus where did she get money for a nanny? And of course there are the rumors that she's had lip collagen injections to look like Angelina. Yeah, she's nuts.

Thanks, I really enjoyed it, too. I live in a very republican county but that didn't stop us volunteers from going door to door, making phone calls and whatever else was called for. I feel like I am part of history. And I did it for my husband who knew he was dying when bush was re-elected in 2004 and we had worked for John Kerry. I made him a promise that I would continue to volunteer. For me and for him. He died in Oct. 2005 and now I give out a scholarship every year, in his memory, to a democratic student at the high school at which he taught.

It just went up to 72% today. Try to keep up.

Can I have your social security checks because that is the biggest socialist program in the country and there isn't a republican with the balls to attack it. And it works and lifts many elderly out of poverty. BUT BACK TO THE STIMULUS PACKAGE. Where were the cries of socialism from the hypocritical republicans when they were falling all over each other in October 2008 (under bush) to get to DC to bail out Wall Street to the tune of $350 billion - much of which we have learned now has been used to give huge bonuses to the failing corporate executives? Why, John McCain suspended his campaign to rush and bail out his corporate friends. Were was his outrage about these bonuses? He seems more concerned that there is a few thousand in funding for blueberries. He seriously looks increasingly like sour grapes. Someone needs to tell him the campaign is over. In fact the whole republican party is in shambles. If their best is bloated, drug-abusing, loud-mouthed Limbaugh, air-head, aerial wolf shooting Palin, bizzare Bobby Jindal, erratic John McCain and crazy (you da man) michelle bachman then I, for one, am going to enjoy sitting back and watching this boat sink.

I am very proud that I not only voted for him but that I worked for his campaign. :thumbup:

Having difficulty breathing after surgery can be a symptom of a blood clot and that is life threatening. You need to call your surgeon ASAP to see what he says.

It's your body - you don't have to agree to this method. If my doctor attempts to do it this way, I will refuse and insist on the old way.

Yes, he went in the bedroom and shot the woman in the back of the head. I don't know where the 4 year old daughter was at this point, but the 9 year old daughter came out of her room and asked the boy about the loud boom and he didn't answer so they went downstairs and boarded the bus outside the home (in rural area) and the two of them went off to school. The 4 year old daughter found her mom and went outside running and there were some workers there (utility workers or something) who she told and then the police were called.

I'll repeat what I replied to another post on post-surgery who was self pay and had to replace a defective band. You wouldn't put up with a brand new car that quit working after 11 months and just pay for a new one. Of course Inamed is going to say they have no responsibility. But you have rights. Contact your state's consumer protection agency and see what they say. Then contact an attorney who specializes in defective products. Even if you paid for new one yourself you can try to get your money back. Many attorneys will get paid only if you win. Find one. Don't let these big companies who make tons of money get away with this. Trust me, they will settle with you before you even get to court. Do you think they want their product slammed all over the internet? Or if you don't want to get an attorney you can file a suit in small claims court (the amount you can sue for varies from state to state, so check).

I would think the the manufacturer of the band offers some type of warranty or guarantee for the band. My first step, before I paid anymore for something defective, would be to contact your state consumer protection agency. They could give you more info and direct you as to what to do. Or your could contact a lawyer who specializes in defective products. It's not too late even if you already paid. You can seek to get that money back. If I were you, I would not accept this. You can bet that if insurance paid for this they would be taking legal action against the manufacturer if they had to pay for a replacement.

I don't want to change my username - just change it from all caps to lower case. How do I do that? Thanks.

Thank you.

breaking news on threats to birth control access and information visit birthcontrolwatch.org What if one day you woke up to a news story like this? Feb 24: Tony Perkins, President of the formerly anti-abortion Family Research Council, admitted to the Associated Press that the organization's previously stated mission of saving the "unborn" had been ceded to other priorities. Perkins, who opposes preventing abortion through contraception, says, "The issue is whether taxpayers should fund, and thereby encourage, behavior that's risky and morally questionable," by which Perkins means having sex. The acknowledgment that his moral agenda trumps his professed desire to reduce the numbers of unwanted pregnancies, comes on the heels of a new report released today by the Guttmacher Institute, a non-partisan policy institute frequently cited by both sides of the abortion debate. The report found that increasing access to contraception is the most effective approach to reducing unwanted pregnancy rates and the need for abortion. That report specifically concluded that making contraception available to low income women reduces the number of abortions by nearly 40%. When birth control isn't available unintended pregnancy increases by 2 million and the number of abortions spikes by more than 800,000 each year. Researchers noted that providing contraception saves taxpayers 4 times as much as not providing it. Some 91% of Americans favor contraception and so were startled to discover that groups which claim to be against abortion oppose the very strategy that results in significant declines in abortion. Instead, in a further shock, they support policies that researchers show lead to sharp increases in unintended pregnancy and abortion rate. Many ordinary self-described "pro-life" Americans were confused by news of the seemingly incomprehensible, yet universally-held, position of groups that have, for decades, promoted themselves as opponents of abortion. In light of the new information, other groups formerly considered anti-abortion indicated that deep and long-held political grudges played a primary role in their unwillingness to support policies that reduce abortion. Troy Newman of Operation Rescue told the AP, "It's another Planned Parenthood bailout," referring to largest provider of prevention services in the US, "It covers their overhead." Sometimes referred to as "The Pro-life Paradox," researchers and women's health advocates in recent years have drawn attention to the disparities between the mission statements of so-called "anti-abortion" groups and the effects of their policies. For example, the countries considered the most "pro-choice," where contraception is widely available and abortion is legal, and often free of charge, are those that also have the lowest abortion rates in the world. The countries with the highest rates of abortion are those that have adopted the policies of the so-called "anti-abortion" movement and have banned abortion and opposed efforts to make contraception more widely available. Now, of course, comes that part in the movie where you realize the main character has been dreaming. Screechy music... Of course, the report is true, as are the quotes in this story, but the so-called anti-abortion movement refuses to admit that its long held political and fundraising habits have worked too well to now be abandoned, and so continues to resist common cause (and common sense). And the equally habit worn media continues to cover this story as if there are really two equally sincere but unfortunately opposed voices. Americans want this common sense approach. The fringe doesn't. In fact, 80 percent of voters believe that women won't achieve full equality without access to family planning and 72 percent want federal funding to help pay for birth control for low-income women. Now that the enabler in chief is out of office, hopefully the marginal will be marginalized, and along with them their media enablers. This is what I have been saying but said much better here. The fringe will never prevail. Mainstream America rejects their extreme positions.

Maybe it's somewhere else on this forum, but I am not going to wade through 187 pages of posts - but you said that 17 years ago you had 5 children. If you don't mind, would you tell us how many children you have and how and when the 3 hard to adopt children came into your life - and what made them hard to adopt?

This happened not too far from where I live (about 60 miles) so it is all over our papers. Apparently this boy was very jealous of his dad's relationship with this woman. Prior to his involvement with her, it was just his dad and him. Enter the girlfriend and her two daughters who moved in - and he didn't deal well with it. Her family said she made a huge effort to win him over. It was also revealed that he told a cousin he was going to kill her and her daughters but no one took him seriously. Where have we heard that before? And the dad buys an 11 year old his own gun. Hunting here is elevated to a sacrament. They are zealots. Male hunters can't wait to take their sons out there to kill something. So, the kid knew about guns, knew what they could do, and knew how to use it. Of course his dad and family says it was an accident. Yeah, you shoot someone in the back of the head and then board the bus to school with the woman's daughter (who heard the boom and asked him what happened and he didn't answer so off the two of them went to board the bus) - and that is an accident? In our state he has to be tried as an adult. It's all very sad.

I'm surprised that with your stance on what are not acceptable contraceptives that you would not have known about depo-provera before you let your doctor give you a shot. He wouldn't have given you the shot without your originating the request for it. It's not like doctors go around just giving this to women who just gave birth. If many of the common types of birth control, to you, are abortifacients, then it was your responsibilty to know about this. Even I would not have allowed a doctor to give me this without knowing what it would do and I accept all forms of contraception.

I had a sleep study done a couple of years ago and then one more recently. With the first one, on the second night where they try the mask I had my only anxiety attack of my life and they had to call my husband to take me home. With the second study, they used a nasal pillow and I only got through the night with xanax. For my surgery, they had a different doctor look at the results and he said I only had mild sleep apnea and cleared me for surgery. There is no way I can wear that medieval torture device on my face and sleep. For highly motivated people for whom the apnea was affecting the quality of their life (mine wasn't) I can understand their use. But I said I would have to be near death to use it. 50% of people can't tolerate it so you are not alone. If your insurance company requires it - it might just be because they want the anesthesiologist to know what type of machine you use should you run into any trouble. But from what I've read about the CPAP on these boards - most surgeons don't allow it after surgery - it blows too much air into the pouch. Ask you surgeon and insurance company the reason for its use pre-surgery and work with that. The reason might not be what you think. Good luck.

If there's one thing I learned being a breast cancer patient and watching my husband die of esophageal cancer and just being an intelligent person is to be your own advocate for your health. No doctor is ever going to care about you or your health like you do. As many posters can tell you on this and other forums - many doctors are wrong. So I do my own research and ask a lot of questions and I'm sure some of my doctors aren't used to being questioned. Too bad. If you take everything your doctor says as the truth you are jeopardizing your health. What he told you didn't even sound reasonable. I'll give you an example. I get copies of all test results. When I had an upper GI before my WLS it said I had esophagitis. I had had an endoscopy about 3 years earlier that didn't show this. So I was suspicious. I went to my family doctor and told him that while I think an upper GI can show reflux and hiatal hernias it doesn't seem to me that it would be a very good diagnostic tool for esophagitis which is inflammation in the lining of the esophagus. He agreed that an endoscopy is a better test - so he ordered one. And guess what? No esophagitis. That diagnosis might have disqualified me from WLS but because I am a proactive patient I followed up.

Your approach to this issue is rooted in a rigid religious dogma that is not shared by the majority of Americans who support a woman's right to choose to have an abortion or give birth and keep the baby or put it up for adoption. That is why so called prolifers like you will never win this battle and make abortion criminal. Instead, if you are really interested in making a difference and reducing the number of abortions and not just throwing everyone in jail in a fire and brimstone retribution way, then you need to use your energy to promote sensible sex education and birth control because not everyone believes in God. Or that they should abstain from sex outside of marriage. That is a religious belief not one that is held by government of the people....If people have jobs, health insurance, access to birth control and good health care - abortions go down. When they don't - abortions go up. Right now this country has the biggest gap between the rich and everyone else since 1928. Real wages have dropped. All these trying and hard economic times create desperate women. Helping to solve these problems reduces abortion. And teenage girls who think they will just have sex and if they get pregnant will get an abortion won't think any differently if it is illegal. There will always be someone who knows someone who knows this lady....and the result of that will be a dead teenager and her fetus. I don't want that. Do you? Do you think the teen who takes or sells drugs thinks about jail because it is a crime? If that were the case, our drug problem would be solved. Same with criminalizing abortion. You just want punishment instead of solutions which is why your extreme and radical religious approach will never work to change any laws.

Depo-Provera What is Depo-Provera? Depo-Provera is a long-acting progestin (hormone) form of birth control. It is injected into the muscle every 11 weeks. It is effective 24 hours after your first injection if given in the first 5 days of a normal menstrual period. You will need to receive your injection promptly every 11 weeks in order to continue your contraceptive protection. How does it work to prevent pregnancy? It inhibits the secretion of hormones that stimulate the ovaries. This prevents ovulation. It also thickens your cervical mucus to prevent the entrance of sperm into the uterus. So, nothing about washing a baby out of the cervix. It prevents ovulation. Plus, fertilization takes place in the uterus not the fallopian tubes unless it's an ectopic pregnancy. This is how so much misinformation gets passed on.

TQ: Very good advice and I agree with you but I fear that with two co-workers already knowing about dbeers surgery - it won't be long before they all know. You've heard the saying that two people can keep a secret if one of them is dead. And if they're snotty enough to talk about others they will about her too. I'm not sure how she should handle it then. I guess she could go two ways - just be truthful and ask for their support or tell them that her medical business is just that- her business- and those discussing it could be violating HIPPA.

Band: You already know what you're doing is very dangerous so it doesn't matter if there are others like you. It sounds like the band wasn't right for you. You are manipulating it. Talking about having a syringe and doing your own fills and unfills sends me images of drug users that are out of control. You need help but you need professional help that is beyond the capabilities of anyone on this board. Are you still in touch with your original surgeon? You need to go see him ASAP and tell him what is happening to you. If you don't want to do that - were you required to get a psych evaluation before surgery? Maybe you could see that person. The fear of putting weight back on is very powerful but not at the expense of your health. And you are really hurting yourself, the band, your stomach. You could die from the complications that you are causing yourself and I'm sure you don't want that. Perhaps your band could be removed and you could consider another type of WLS. But it sounds like you still have food issues that you cannot overcome on your own. First you have to stop being ashamed of yourself. You are a human being who made a choice to get healthy and somewhere along the way things got out of control and you are reaching out for help. That's a good thing and the first step. But you need to talk to professionals. Even if you go to a family doctor or another doctor if you don't want to face you surgeon. I wish you the best of luck with this because I can tell you are in emotional and physical pain.

Pattygreen: How many hard to place unwanted children have you adopted? Me? None. I have two biological children but then again I don't want to force women to have unwanted babies. Healthy white infants are not unwanted. Long waiting list of adoptive parents for them. But most of the other babies forced to be born would be. There are way more hard to place infants, babies and older children than there are people willing to adopt them. And they often live very troubled, often criminal, lives. Not all, but many. Because they start life in a dysfunctional setting. You have a very punitive attitude toward women. You want to punish them for having sex and getting pregnant if they choose abortion. You talk of medieval punishment (or maybe more recently in our wild west) and equate it with a reduction in crime. Do you really want to have a debate about life in those days, how people were treated, especially women? You'd lose. Women were chattel. But women still had abortions. Women have always had abortions. They just knew some old lady with a hook and often died as a result. I don't think women having sex today think, "I'll just have an abortion if I get pregnant." It is a very difficult decision for most women but you want to throw them in jail. What would that solve? Has throwing drug dealers in jail solved our drug problem? I'm almost laughing as I type that. Desperate women will still seek abortion but you would rather make it illegal and unsafe and have women die at the hands of butchers, like they used to. You probably think that if a woman seeks an illegal abortion and dies that she deserves it. And you speak nothing about the men who get the women pregnant. If they take her for her illegal abortion should they be thrown in jail too? So then, do we throw the women, the men and the doctors all in jail? And if they're all caught before the abortion - do we throw the pregant women in jail to give birth there and then what? Take the baby from her? Let her keep it? Let her out of jail? Abortion should be rare, safe and legal. We need to do a better job of providing information to young girls and boys about contraception because the debate is over about abstience only education (is that the voice of Bristol Palin I hear in the background saying it is unrealistic?) - it doesn't work. And birth control has to be more readily available to teens. They are not going to stop having sex. So they need to be safe. All women (and men) have the right to have access to free or affordable contraception. That's the way to reduce unwanted pregnancies and thus abortions. Through education and access, not making it criminal.