Alexandra

Donali, you're in my thoughts too. If anyone can get through this with ease and flair, it will be you! I'm holding the thought that your surgery will be uneventful and fast, and you'll be back among us in short order. Beautifully said, and I agree completely. Donali, here are some big long distance (((hugs))) from me, before your tummy gets all sore again!! Lots of love from your pal in NJ. Heal fast!!

Yay for you indeed!! :D

Aren't we all, though, aren't we all. I do this sometimes, mostly at dinner, and ALWAYS with certain trigger foods. Tonight we had Chinese food, which used to be a major-league pigout for me. I have always been a sucker for Chinese: I love the variety, the multi-course aspect, the sharing, and the fact that the way the meal goes no one can tell how much you're eating. Well, now I have a police captain inside me who CAN tell how much I'm eating. With other foods I'm happy to listen to him and stop at the right time, but I just can't seem to change the shovel-it-in approach to Chinese. So now I'm in pain. It helps to be reminded that such an approach can really hurt us in more ways than just keeping weight on. And reminded, and reminded, and reminded.

Oh, Laura, how awful! You have my sympathies. But you're not alone, you know. I once lost it right on the street outside my office, since I'd gone outside hoping a walk would help. Nope. Thankfully there was no one watching. (As far as I know...)

Me, too, Lisa. I hope Francesca has her troubles fixed, both mechanical and otherwise!!

Yes, right here!! :D And she doesn't seem to be posting too much these days at Spotlight, either. (And thank you for keeping the name-calling to a bare minimum. I REALLY don't want any ugliness to come here to real-people-land.)

Raggedy, call your dept of insurance and ask if there are any standards for carrier plans in your state. Find out if you have any recourse with regard to appeals of exclusions, and who you should appeal to. There is a department of insurance in every state, and a body of regulations that govern health plans. Find out what set of regulations govern yours and read it. If nothing else, someone at the Dept of Insurance will be able to tell you if you have options for appeal or if, really, there is nothing you can do. But I doubt the latter is the case.

Jennye, believe it or not I HAD THIS!! I had it when I was just out of college, in 1983. It is HORRIBLE!! I have never experienced such pain. My heart goes out to you (or whoever has it, if it's not you). My doctor at the time was flummoxed by the inflammation and boils, and prescribed lancing. He sent me to a surgeon to have it done, which was hands down the worst experience of my life. I'm not sure he used any anaesthesia at all, local or otherwise. Once the lancing was completed, the packed wounds took weeks to heal. Then, wouldn't you know it, the condition returned. For some reason, this time the doctor decided to give me antibiotics, and it worked like a charm!! Why the hell he couldn't have done that the first time, I will never know. I guess it was a powerful antibiotic--I can't recall the name but think it started with an R--because it kicked the condition and it never returned. For months I was scared it would come back so I carried the drug with me at all times while traveling overseas. But it never did come back. I forgot to mention: The surgeon at one point recommended surgical removal of all my underarm hair follicles as a preventive measure!! I still have scars from the lancing, can you imagine if I'd agreed to THAT? I hope your docs are more imaginative. Good luck!!

Darcy, there's nothing to say except GOOD LUCK!! We're all thinking of you (as you can tell) and can't wait to hear you're all done. Take it easy, and we'll keep your place warm for you!! :D

Wow, Sunnyone, you have your hands full. Congratulations on your banding and I hope you have LOTS of help with all your family transitions. I can sympathize. I was 7 months pregnant when my mother had her last stroke. Hard as it is to do what's needed at such a time, it's even harder when our own strength is not fully there. Take care of yourself and know that you will always have time to exercise later.

I drink right before eating all the time. I don't understand the logic--if there is any--behind not drinking a half-hour before eating. And Michelle, not to worry!! The only reason we're told not to drink with our meals is that it can make us feel hungry again faster. It's not unsafe or anything. If you're happy with your progress and don't feel like it's compromising your goals, there's nothing wrong with drinking while you eat. I'm with Donali. Enough already with the other board. (Though I will say I got a little frisson of glee when I saw Jessie's post. )

AARRRGGGHHH! I can't STAND my keyboard!! It has "browser" keys that send me back if I hit them accidentally, and I've lost so many posts-in-progress that way!! Donali, this made me want to give you a hug. You continue to be thoughtful and caring in the face of petty nastiness, and YOU are the better person. We <3 U!! Are endoscopies routine? I've never had one. How exactly is that done? I'll ask my doc tomorrow at the support group meeting if he plans to do one annually on everyone. Teresa, LOL!!!! Another nomination for quote of the week!

Hi Shelly, Welcome to LBT!! Good luck with your insurance, and please keep us posted as to when/whether you get an approval. I've heard Pennsylvania is among the worst states for banding coverage. Nice to meet you. Please come again!

Lisa, for what it's worth, I think they overreacted. But every board has its gestalt, its atmosphere, and it really helps to lurk a long time before posting. I think you took them a bit by surprise. What she has said repeatedly is that they SHOULD only eat that amount. That's what throws everybody off, and deservedly so. It's ludicrous to lay down one rule for all banded people with all different goals and all different physical realities without AT LEAST the catchall qualifier "your mileage may vary." The 1/2 cup thing may be true for people with really good restriction, and may indeed someday be true for you, too. You (and she) just don't know for sure.

Penni, for my money I think it's better to start small. Lots of planned events--speakers and meals and activities--will put pressure on organizers beyond what attendance may support. What you're talking about is akin to the Bash events already well-developed. I'll answer the poll, and I'm sorry it's not more encouraging. I would LOVE to meet up with LBTers for a face to face. Unfortunately, my vacation time and budget is limited and already allocated for this year. If a confab could be arranged over a weekend within driving distance, AND I could bring my daughters (since my husband works on Sundays), I'd be there with bells on. But anything more than that is just not in the cards. And I'm not terribly interested in speakers, unless they are long-term bandsters. I'd just like a low-key gathering, maybe in a B-sized city with interesting sights and views (Baltimore? Philadelphia? Memphis? Boston? Cleveland?) where we could walk and talk and connect with one another. Planned events could be things like a movie or museum visit (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame? Camden Yards? Mall of America?--kidding about that last one) that would attract us as tourists anyway.

I think this is a GREAT idea, although it's unlikely I'd be able to fly anywhere anytime soon. I'd be there in spirit, though! I have young kids and between school and work schedules and expenses I can't do spur-of-the-moment things outside of driving distance. Arrange one anywhere from Washington DC to Pittsburgh to Boston and I'm there, though!!

Magnolia, fills can take some time to make themselves known so I would wait at least another three weeks before thinking you need another one. I had a fill on June 10 and it wasn't until last week that I really started to feel it--that's two weeks later. Bruising at the port site is a direct result of how much troouble the doctor had getting the needle in. My first two fills, done by an experienced surgeon, resulted in no bruising at all. My third one, done by a doctor new to the practice, created a fairly large bruise because she had to feel around quite a bit before locating the right place. It's nothing to worry about.

I think this is a situation that will get better over time as the band gets more popular. I'm sure Inamed is concerned about it, because it's going to be a bigger and bigger problem as time goes by. What is the usual protocol when someone has a heart valve replacement, a pacemaker, or a hip replacement? Doctors don't balk at treating other implant patients now, but they might very well have when these implants were new and people were just learning the protocols. Banding is going to be big, big business in a few years (unless something even easier and safer is invented). I predict that this problem will improve on its own, but it may take a while.

Michelle, this is the crux of the matter and the source of all the contention. Portion size, to people of sense, does NOT matter unless it is doing damage to your pouch. If you're not losing weight then obviously you'll want to look at your caloric intake, but if you are losing then the portion size and so on is obviously right for you. What we object to is any insistence that a given portion size is right for everyone. It's a common refrain on other boards and in some doctors' instructions, and our point is that it just isn't as clear-cut as all that. Like any eating plan, what works for one may not work for all.

She is beautiful! Congratulations!! She's also HUGE. I took the liberty of resizing. Any chance you want to delete that first pic above? It could slow down the page loading considerably. And how do you pronouce her name? I love it!

This is starting to resemble a parenting board, with all the big send-offs as someone goes into labor. Believe me, the preparation is not quite the same. I didn't really do any bit preparedness bit. I was able to drive on the second day so shopping was no problem. Soups were a big thing, since I was on full liquids from the third or fourth day out. If anything needs managing it's figuring out how you're going to rest during recovery. That can be so hard for some people, especially parents of small children and people with needy spouses--you know, the kind who can't cook, feed, or dress themselves? Take it easy, Gross Darcy, and we'll see you here in Bandland soon!!

HELL, YES!! Megan, you are DEFINITELY a woman after my own heart. This is my nomination for quote of the week!!

Raggedy, if both your and your husband's employers' policies exclude this, ask yourself the following questions: 1. Is either company self-insured, or are these off-the-shelf policies? Does either company have more than 500 employees? 2. Is what you're reading to find the exclusion a standard policy issued by a large insurer? By that I mean the following: a LOT of policy documents include a long list of exclusions that may or may not apply to you specifically. Carriers to whom this might apply are those with multi-state coverage areas, like United, Cigna, Aetna, and so on. State rules always overrule a carrier's standard plan, so if you think there's any chance this is the case check with your state to see what is and is not permitted to be excluded. 3. If the answer to 1 is yes, you can try calling your company's human resources office to see if there's anyone internally you can send an appeal to. 4. If the answer to 2 is yes, more research is needed. You should find out what your state department of insurance requires carriers to provide and what they're required to do in terms of appeals and so on. It may be possible to find someone at the department of insurance who can help you with this specific problem. Good luck!!

I agree about this, and cringe whenever it's raised--again--elsewhere. But it's something that newbies and potential bandsters are curious about, so I thought I'd air it here where there is less chance of a hissing match being started. Michelle, it sounds to me like you've mastered the art of bandster eating already! If you've eaten too much, you'll know it, and if you're eating less than that and aren't hungry you're in good shape. The tricky part is getting our brains, hands, and mouths around to the same knowledge as our banded stomachs. Sounds like you're there already.

This is why I wanted to have the conversation here, because NO ONE would say that on LBT!! I think your take on it is exactly right. And when doctors, nutritionists, or anyone else says we "should" be eating a certain amount, there's so much UNsaid in that directive as to render it useless. Whatever it takes to feel physically satisfied is the right amount for us, whatever that amount is. We love you, Eroded Girl!