kyethra

If it is still really sore down the road, there are adhesive lidocaine patches that might help if doc says its ok. Lidoderm its called. I use those every day just about-- not for my port or anything related to the band, I was on them way before that. But I do use it for abdominal issues and I really like them.

Thanks! But I'm not doing anything. Except I've stopped eating this past week so everytime I turn around I weigh less. I wouldn't be surprised if I gain back a few pounds once I start eating again.

LOL. I do the same thing sometimes, hold up my arm flab and try to see what is underneath. I'll probably get mine done at least. BUT I've always wanted to get them done at some point. Those suckers have always had some loose skin and stuff. As Jachut said, nobody outside of hollywood has a perfect body. Well, ok, maybe a few people do, but they are sort of unique. And even in Hollywood they aren't always perfect. With editing and the way they airbrush magazine covers and stuff it always just looks that way. Personally, I kind of want my rate of weight loss to slow down. For one I am losing a pound a day (well more this past week cause I'm on liquids waiting for another surgery). Its freaking me out! And also because I am noticing some looseness and stuff in places where there wasn't that before. Thats cause I had fat there before. I think that slower loss sometimes helps with elasticsticy. Or so I hear. My mum lost about 120 pounds a few years ago and she is 35 years older than me. She doesn't have much loose skin, but she says she does have some on her upper arms and abdomen. I got a glimpse of her arms once and they really weren't that bad either. Normally she is really self conscious about that though. She always has been even before they had any loose skin. Just her thinking they looked bad when they didn't. But I am hoping that if she didn't get much loose skin-- and she doesn't really exercise either, but she does garden, than I won't. She lost the weight nice and slow too and she thinks that helped her. While I can think about getting tons of plastic surgery now just fine I suspect when the time comes I will be wimpier.

I'm glad you are doing betting sophie! I take the most potent sleep drug out there and I always wash it down with some water after I drink the solution. I like to feel it go through my band before I lie down. Besides, the stuff tastes nasty. I think its a good idea to let all meds go through and have another drink or two before lying down.

Generally, I think there is a big difference between big political morals like abortion and political policy in general that is just for helping people. I don't like political morals. I think abortion should be legal because even if it was illegal women would still have back alley abortions. Those are bad things because those tend to be dangerous and women bleed to death and stuff from them. To me the issue of abortion itself and the merits and morals and all that is completely separate from that fact. To me it seems silly that it has progressed to the big political debate that it is. Abortion isn't about to be made illegal. Neither is alchohol. We tried that. I get gun control as a political issue at least. I think a lot of the times people on both sides of an issue can get bogged down with talking points and stuff and lose sight of what is truly important. I feel that that is advancing the quality of life for everyone in general. Medicine is closely related to that. Right now I know someone who can't get medicaid because she works a few hours a week. She officially makes too much. she is still poor. So no medical care for her until she becomes a senior citizen. Helping oneself and pulling up by the boot straps is a nice idea, but even Horatio Alger's Ragged Dick had plenty of help on the way up. Also, some people just aren't able to help themselves as much. I feel in a civilized society though that our goal is to try and help everyone, even if it means I have to pay a few more taxes.

I was really surprised by how the band cut my hunger levels. Currently I am on liquids again but thats because my gall bladder comes out next week. So the weight is just falling off. One thing I noticed though is that we need to get some healthier eating habits in my house. my DH is wonderful and very supportive and all that. But wow does he love junk food! Since he has been on his own for meals this past month I suppose he now eats most of his meals via drive throughs. Or pizza. Or there is the box of doughnuts he picked up. And candy bards. And mountain dew to wash it all down. We were never healthy eaters before I got banded but we did eat vegtables and salads and cook meals and so forth. At least there was some good nutritional content there and we had been working on getting more veggies in. I'm actually a little worried about how his eating all this junk food is going to affect his health- cholesterol or whatever. He has a normal weight and doesn't have problems with that-- though the past six months he as been complaining about jean "shrinkage" so I tell him to start doing sit ups. I think he just leaves the top button unbottoned instead. I also worry about all the food being too tempting for me. But I think once we start eating meals together again we can focus on cooking some better choices.

Rosie, I hear ya on those flairs. I have fibro too. I blame the weather. Seriously! Its been crazy here with the temps going up and down and while I may be young chronilogically, my body thinks I am at least 20 years older or something. The weather starts acting up and old injuries start to ache and I'm feeling it in my joints. I like it when it warms up and stay warmer. Originally I was planning on trying to start exercising around the beginning of May since then I would be able to start abdominals probably. I have an entrapped nerve ending in my abdominal wall so not doing any sit ups or crunches at all is actually strange for me, even when I am in lazy mode I try to get a few in each week because doing those helps my condition. So I have been reminding myself to not do all that lately. I think I would feel wierd going to the gym and just leaving those out. Now that I get to have a second surgery I'm sure my projected gym time table is going to get pushed back a few weeks. I'll get there eventually. I'll also have to start working with my chiro again at that point and maybe physical therapy too. I had a hip injury last summer and I also have these insoles from my podiatrist to help me walk more correctly because I have really high arches and I walk more on the edge of my feet. But the insoles and walking correctly buisiness agrivates the old hip injury... LOL. At the moment I'm still trying to make it all work rather than just choosing which pain I prefer, foot pain or hip pain. I'm a little suspicious of it all. Seems like such trouble. But I figure gyms and workouts and stuff will happen. Sometimes our bodies just need a little more time to get coaxed into all of that. I didn't have any problem with rice when I ate it before. But I had it in a frozen meal-- stuffed pepper caserole. I think sticky white rice must be like bread in the whole sticky nature issue and that is probably why we are supposed to be careful with it. I actually haven't had any problems with bread at all or anything else. I hadn't tried beef yet, but I had had some fish with no problem. I don't eat chicken. I think I am one of those few bandsters to actually go back on clear liquids after starting solids. But its not because of the band at least. Even though I guess I have had a sort of complication from the band-- from the rapid weight loss anyway, I don't regret it. I should be able to get all better and then go on to utilize my band. And even if it was the cause of my problems and I had to have it removed next week instead of my gall bladder I wouldn't have regretted it either. I think that in life people tend to regret the things they didn't do more than the things they did. I probably would regret not giving myself this operuntity and wondering about it as the weight kept piling on more than i would trying it even if it didn't work out for me. One thing it has taught me is that I feel that for me, personally, I really do need WLS to suceed at this. So even if I did have to have my band removed at some point (knock on wood I won't) than I would likely want to convert to verticle sleeve I think. I've spent most of the past year working on my health-- I'm also the resident narcoleptic here-- and for me weight loss is a component of improving my health, both my current health and also preventing more future problems related to that. Ok I'll shut up now. Way more than anyone ever wanted to know, I'm sure. I've yet to learn the art of conciseness.

Ever since I was a teen, my goal size was to keep it less than my age.

So my gall bladder is comming out on Wednesday. The rapid weight loss, first from surgery, then not eating cause I've been too freaking sick to eat, has been interesting. Sure, every time I hop on the scale I'm down. But I'm getting flabby some places. I also almost find it hard to believe I've lost fourty pounds already. Ok, yes I am a size smaller in jeans and so forth, but it is almost too fast to seem completely real. I think I will be pleased if after surgery my weight loss rate slows down some. Maybe I'll even gain a few pounds back. Thats ok too. Right now I just want to focus on being healthy. It was probably the initial rapid weight loss that caused my gall bladder to stop working right, after all. Of course no one thought I would lose so fast initially, esp me and then the chances of my Gall bladder having problems never ever occured to me before surgery either. My surgeon says its pretty low incidence with the band. I'm one of the lucky ones. Now I know that I can't have it removed twice, but it does still make me nervous about continued fast weight loss. Apparently there is one medication, actigal or something like that that is supposed to help prevent stones in this sort of situation. But I don't have stones! Or at least none that showed up on the ultrasound.

I talked to the surgeon's office today. Its the gall bladder! Mine will be removed on the 25th. Its disgusting how happy I was hear that. Normally I am not fond of the hospital or procedures and so forth, but as sick as I have been, I'm so glad that they can just take out my gall bladder and that should make me better. My surgeon's office has been really great about this, actually. And when I said I'm really sick I need help now, they were able to accomodate that and get me in for tests quick or the removal or whatever. A couple of days ago my PCP's nurse called me to let me know that they had taken a look at my ultrasound and since it looked good they were going to cancel the HIDA scan. Instead of screaming at them for being idiots, I just calmly explained I had already had the scan. And when they asked if I was getting better yet I just said, nope, getting sicker every day. So they promised to keep an eye out for the results. Yeesh.

If I ever tried to get private insurance I am sure that 1) it either wouldn't be possible or 2) the rates would be laughabley high. I have narcolepsy for one thing. Then there is my family history. My family isn't insurable. Between the rare genetic diseases and their own rare neurological problems, no one wants to touch that. For some reason insurance companies just don't like those of use with the rare neurological problems... And it took long enough to get the narcolepsy diagnosed because I couldn't afford a sleep study. My insurance wouldn't cover one. Those things cost a couple thousand or so. DH's insurance did pay for them however. I got diagnosed shortly after we got married. My husband has wonderful insurance through his job. its a government job actually as in he works for a large public university. If we had to actually pay retail on my monthly prescriptions, it would be about two thousand dollars a month. I kid not. I'm on some expensive stuff. Back when I was a poor college student I relied on pharmecutical charity care programs. www.needymeds.com is a great database of those sorts of programs btw

I'm a liberal. Everyonce in a while I even think about voting for a green party canidate or two. Growing up, we lived off of the the government. One secret I can tell you is that when people talk about how we are supporting so many people, we aren't exactly letting them live the high life. Disability and so forth generally puts you at the poverty line. Then when I was a teenager my mom accidentally got us on medicare (she applied for government subsideized health insurance. We couldn't ever afford insurance.). That was awesome. My health sure improved a lot after I got to go to the doctor whenever I was sick. And no more crying and yelling and screaming and fighting and other nastiness over what prescriptions to get filled each month and how long I could stretch my asthma meds. Just more breathing. It was a good thing. I discovered that I wasn't actually as pale as I thought I was! And I started growing again. Then thanks to those improved grades and everything I got scholarships and loans and stuff and a college degree. And I know a lot of people also think that everyone living off of government assistant is a teenager mom who keeps popping off more kids or something like that without thinking. But thats not the case for a lot of people. I had two parents. They didn't plan on having disabled kids, that sort of thing just happens. They didn't plan on my father dying. That sort of thing just happens too. I lived in Wales for a year and I thought the whole universal healthcare thing was pretty cool too. Sure that system isn't perfect, but it really does make me wonder what life would be like possibility wise if people weren't afraid of having inadequate health covereage when it came to things liek starting their own buisiness, etc.

I've noticed that I get less attention now that i have more weight. It hasn't bothered me as before the attention was always annoying. And even if it wasn't bad attention I still wouldn't know what to do with it or whether or not someone was being serious potentially (I'm not good with stuff like that) so I just prefer no attention especially as I am happily married. Sometimes I have to remind my DH to slow down and walk with me though instead of walking too fast and walking ahead of me-- this is something he tends to do and it really annoys me at times. He is getting better at it as time goes by, but progress could be faster. One time, a couple of years ago, we were on vacation, and he was doing that. And I noticed this other guy was sort of following me. But I thought maybe he just happened to be walking the same way. Then as I was going down a couple of stairs with my hand on the railing he put his hand on top of mine and asked if I would be interested in going up to his room with him or something like that. I wasn't completely listening to tell the truth, I mostly was freaking out. I most emphacatically said no and that was the end of it. Then maybe a minute later DH (well he was my boyfriend at the time) noticed I wasn't with him. He asked if I was talking to that guy. So I told him what happened. LOL! Well that got him to stick right by my side, holding my hand, arm around me, etc.

If my surgeon has a goal for me, he has never shared it. I'll have to ask about it sometime. I'm a bit suspicious of BMI charts myself because they are a statistical tool. They also don't take body frame size into account. And that can make a big difference. I have a friend who is five feet tall and petitie and feels best at about 100 pounds. For her five pounds really does make a difference on her frame. She says that if she weighs five pounds less she feels like shes a bit too thing but if she gains five pounds she starts to get chubby. Now I'm eight inches taller than her and I have a big frame. Everyone in my family does. Five pounds doesn't make a dent on us one way or another. So we are able to carry extra weight better than smaller people, but we also have to lose more to have a visible difference. A doc once told me I should lose weight to help take pressure off of my abdomonal wall because I have an entrapped nerve ending there- its a painful thing. So I asked how much weight to make a diff, thinking I could do probably 15-20 pounds. He said ideally I should loose as much weight as possible, that maybe 130 would be a good weight for me. I think I was speechless. Afterwards my husband and I were saying that at 130 I would be too thin. And I think thats true. But what about 150? I think that wouldn't be unreasonable. But I also think that maybe 180 would be reasonable too. I think that its impossible to say right now what the best weight is for me because I've never been there. As a teen I was always overweight. And of course I thought I was much much more overweight than I really was because thats how teenage girls think and thats really very sad. Maybe when I get closer to that weight knowing what it should be will be easier. I have a lot more to lose now too, at least 70 pounds I figure. How can I tell with so much to go?

So here I am, barely able to get out of bed. I just keep getting sicker. I'm calling my surgeon tomorrow to see about the results of my HIDA scan. I hate being like this. I have things to do. Places to go. Homework to do. Stuff to eat. But now its all on hold. Ugh! Though I did just find out I got into the grad school of my choice and I am happy to brag its the number one program in the country for aspiring librarians. At first I was confused because They sent me a letter saying I got in... to the program I didn't apply for (the online distance one). So I sent an email saying I accept but I was a little confused, what about the program I had applied for, the on campus one (I do live in town...). Email back said oh yeah I did get into that, they just sent the wrong letter. So they'll send the right one. That was nice to see. So I don't really eat anymore. I have one thing every couple of days for nutritional purposes. And I wish I didn't have to, but I suspect its a necesarry evil. Yesterday I had a milk shake with protein stuff in it. I might eat again tomorrow or maybe I will wait until after class on Friday. I'm not sure. Its kind of funny. As I was drinking the milk shake I thought that it probably had a lot of calories and that normally that was the sort of thing I was supposed to be worried about. Not too much of a concern at the moment. Especially since I am still losing weight like crazy. I suppose the don't eat anything diet does that. If this is my gall bladder then they had better take the damn thing out soon. And if it isn't then they need to figure out why I am so sick and fix that soon too! Class will be done with in a couple of weeks. If I am still sick like this then and no solution then I think I might ask about the hospital at that point. Right now I'm having trouble with the bathing myself and things like that because they take so much energy and make me feel ill afterward. I know my focus on class probably sounds crazy but it is a grad course and so grades are super important, especially bit picture and long term. I'm so sick of being sick... Sorry for the rant...

I'm going to ring my surgeon's office tomorrow to see about the results of the scan. Whatever this is I just keep getting sicker. I was running a fever again the past few days, but its gone now. Just a low grade one. I'm actually afriad of food because of the reaction, and it just makes me feel sick for hours after. Plus the idea of eating doesn't sound good at all right now-- currently I am eating every other day, just one thing, and just for nutrition. I'm really having a hard time getting out of bed or even sitting up for two long. When I do I just start feeling all dizzy and then sick and shaky and sweaty and it takes a long time to recover. Maybe I can try a higher dose of zofran... I'll ask when I call tomorrow. I know I am not dehydrated because I am getting tons of fluids in, all clear ones. I also try to have one vitamin a day.

I'm glad you've gotten restriction tammy and also the rest of you who are getting fills! How exciting! I don't know what size band I have-- I suspect smaller based on my degree of restriction immediately post op. But I have no idea! If/when I ever get a fill I'll have to ask about that. Right now my weight loss is cruising along though. I weighed myself today and I reached my first mini goal. Whoo hoo! Almost fourty pounds down too. I was saying to DH last night that I've never lost this much before. A few years ago I lost 30 pounds (actually that was down from about where I am at now) and managed to keep it off for a year. Other than that, forget about it! Once I start excercising I am sure that will help even more.

Personally, I find watching the weight come off sort of adventurous. What will my body look like next? How does it affect different parts of me differently? That sort of thing. Right now I'm thinking that my belly is getting thinner (well at least my upper tire). One arm is the same. My other arm, I noticed the other day, seems to have gotten flabbier! Now in the spirit of full disclosure before I ever lost a pound I already had flabby upper arms with loose crepe like skin. And with my being such a tender young thing, I feel that is a disgrace. But after I looked at the one arm initially I was fascinated by it! Its gross, yet amazing at the same time. I can't wait to see what it all looks like when I am down 50 pounds and more! And when I am at goal I'll get done what I feel I need to get done (or really want to). Right now I voyeuristically eye plastic surgery websites and their before and after photos. I feel confidant that any possibility can be covered.

I haven't cut my hair yet but I am planning on it this summer sometime. A few years ago I had all my long hair cut off and did the locks of love thing too. And got a cute short haircut. Two other girls in my dorm went out and got the same one So I am thinking I might get something like that again. And I think I will try a lighter shade of hair maybe, like strawberry blond (Its red). And I want blue highlights. I've wanted blue highlights for ages, but with my hair being long it would too much trouble right now I suspect. I had my HIDA scan this morning. I slept during the first part of it. Then they had me get up and walk around for a couple of minutes and come back because my gall bladder was just starting to show up at that point on the scan and they thought that would help. So I did that and I guess it worked. Then the other stuff was injected. At first there was some nausea and a bit of cramping but it subsided. That part of the test didn't take very long, only about 30 mins. I don't know what that means! I should get the results in a few days. I'm nervous that it won't be my gall bladder if that makes any sense. because then what is it? I guess more tests would be scheduled. I've been running a fever the past couple of days again. So today I am just resting. Yesterday some family came to visit since my Birthday had been thursday. We went out to a restaurant for lunch. And I couldn't eat more than a bite or two. But I have it all in container in my fridge for when I do feel like eating. Lately eating hasn't gone too well, so I'm just going to not eat for a couple of days. Not that I was eating much before, LOL. At least its the fast track to weight loss. And I just got accepted into grad school! :clap2: My first choice, the number one Library Science program. So I feel confidant that by the time my classes start in August I'll be slimmer and healthier. I am also wondering if the weight I have lost/ am losing won't be helpful when it comes to looking for assistanships (those interviews). I hear that being morbidly obese makes getting jobs harder, so maybe losing weight helps.

I know all about spasms and choking. I have GERD. I was born with GERD. Then when I was 13 I developed severe asthma. I was trying med after med after med. Also I guess my asthma attacks weren't typical-- not so much wheezing. Mostly I would choke. I just wouldn't be able to breath at all. Finally went to this one specialist who figured it out. Turns out the acid gets into the lungs and stuff. Nasty stuff, that acid. After my reflux was treated my asthma improved a lot. Plus I was able to stop eating tums like candy. Currently I do nexium every day and zantac as needed. Sometimes I would also be on reglan before I was banded. Its supposed to help with gastric mobility.

Did you get diet guidlines from your surgeon's office? Or did you talk to a dietician there? He or she should have told you what sort of things you can and can't eat and how often. And if the occasional breadstick would make the band useless. So would reading different posts on here, I think. What did you actually say to your father after he made that comment? You seem awfully angry and upset about it. I can see how it would annoy you, but you seem more than annoyed. I think you should consider working with a therapist to help you deal with some of the emotional issues that come along with weight and weight loss.

One way to lose weight fast: Get sick and stop eating. And thats mostly the truth of it lately. I'm just getting sicker :sick . It had better be my gall bladder or something else easy to fix. Today I went to eat some ice cream, my most favorite food in the world. Not even very much. I couldn't finish my ice cream (a complete first for me). My tummy wasn't happy with it. And I know if the tummy doesn't like something that the tenderness in the side is going to follow (well is getting to be closer to pain and less like tenderness). Yesterday I got in a slice of pizza. Today was better. Today I got down another slice of pizza, a bit of ice cream, plus most of a kashi frozen meal. Its my one month bandiversary and I'm still loosing about a pound a day. I think that later, when I am all better I will look back on this and maybe be glad for the weight loss being sick gave me.

Its not my band. Surgeon says Xray looked good. But as I am still sick and just getting worse it seems, everyone seems to be thinking gall bladder. I have a HIDA scan scheduled. I'm begining to actually hope it is my gall bladder. That would be fixable. This being sick all the time is good for weight loss. The tenderness I initially only got when people pressed on me is now there sometimes even without people pressing on me. Always after I eat. It hurts! combined with the nausea I am not eating much at all. I didn't intend to lose weight quite like this though.

You can do it! 21 days is a good number. Thats because thats how long it takes (at least) to really break a bad habit. Focus on all the positive things you get from not giving into temptation-- thats positive encouragement. And also on all the negative things that you get when you do give into temptation-- thats negative encouragement. They are complementary types of encouragement.

Boots. And then ya wear one of those travelers belts, you know the kind I mean, and you put some lead weights in that. But I never thought of putting stuff in my bra. If its a big enough bra, a big bosomed woman can hold a lot in there with them. I was actually reading an article the other day about people who had had weight loss surgery (DS I think) and one woman did describe it as being the easy way out. http://www.eastbayexpress.com/2007-01-17/news/life-after-the-knife/print I was especially surprised with how she compared herself to her mother. My mother lost about 120 pounds with diet a few years ago and has kept it off. She is hungry all the time and always thinking about what she can't or can eat and when and how much. I knew I couldn't live like that, that that wasn't something I would learn to get used to. I'm also glad I had the surgery now, when I am rather young. Before more weight related complications came my way.