faithmd

Excellent point, myfoursons. I forgot to mention that, DH did have sampling done and is on the low end of normal himself. I should I remembered that part. Thanks for bringing it up!

Rock, here's another thread (pretty recent) about this subject, maybe there is some more info for you there, too: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/smoking-and-lap-t31218.html And it certainly isn't your fault the approval came so fast. That's a great thing! While smoking is not a great thing for healing, and for blood clots, plenty of people who smoke have surgery every day. I think you;ll just have to talk with your surgeon's office and ask what they think. My fingers are crossed tightly for you!

Hiya Jill, sorry to hear you're having a tough time right now. I remembered reading something in a thread about plateau busters, here's what I found and I do hope it helps: From Audree (BabyGotBack)'s thread Lower BMI bandsters ( http://www.lapbandtalk.com/lower-bmi-bandsters-t26697p2.html?highlight=lower+BMI ) : I just wanted to give everyone a tip that I learned when I was doing a medical weight loss program at Lindora. It is a plateau buster. Breakfast: 1 egg and 1/2 a grapefruit Lunch/Dinner: white fish, spinach and 1/2 a grapefruit Also, a lemon boiled and drank all day You are supposed to eat this until the plateau breaks and I remember it always worked within a few days (I did Lindora like 6 times, I just couldn't keep the weight off).

You've been a type II (diagnosed) for about 5 years? I wouldn't worry too much right now about a lot of permanent damage having been done. I would, however, get thee to a Urologist as the poster above me suggested and see what he/she has to say. It is also possible that Cialis or Levitra would be a better fit for you. My best friend is a Urologist and when the "blue diamond" didn't seem to help my DH he suggested trying the other two. Our PCP gave samples of each and they did seem to work better. But everyone is different. Also, are you on any antidepressants or beta blockers for blood pressure? Those can also cause issues. And yes, I think you will notice some improvement when the weight begins to come off.

I second what they said, and about the ticker, just click on it and you'll go to tickerfactory and be able to change it.

Very exciting!!! I am soooo happy for you, keep us informed of when your date is, will ya?

Hello!!!! I am from Michigan as well. I am waiting for my first consultation with the surgeon (Dr. Obeid at Hurley Bariatrics in Flint) which is scheduled for 3/27 (if they don't change it on me again :rolleyes ). Welcome to LBT!!!

Some also suggest to use actual kitchen tongs. You can get them for anywhere from $1 at the Dollar store (but I don't think I'd use those, they don't lock) to the sky's the limit. I have found some nice ones at Target and Walmart that are the locking type and they run anywhere from $8 to $12 a pair.

Margi, I'm glad you have made a decision and I'm really hoping things go well, and happen quickly for you I promise I'll email you back (life's been sooo crazy). I can't wait to be banded, either.

There is no Better Than Boullion that is higher in Protein. All of the products have 1 gram or less (that I have found). I have been able to find the chicken, beef, vegetable, turkey, lobster, mushroom and ham. I have not seen the clam, chili, organics, nor the vegan ones. Here's the link to the BTB site where you can order it, it is a very good base despite the lack of protein as hoped: http://www.superiortouch.com/btb.htm

Here is links to three to start, good luck!' http://www.lapbandtalk.com/advantages-bypass-t31341.html?t=31341&highlight=vs+bypass http://www.lapbandtalk.com/gastric-bypass-vrs-t30997.html?t=30997&highlight=vs+bypass http://www.lapbandtalk.com/have-200lbs-lose-t30609.html?t=30609&highlight=vs+bypass

Hi Lap Dancer! Just wanted let you know (if you didn't know already )there is a forum that discusses pre/post-op stuff. There's a couple of threads about what to have on hand for post-op, etc. You might want to check them out as well For a flight and a car ride from/to the airport I'd probably make sure I have a nice pillow I could use to cushion myself from the seatbelt. Maybe a couple of those large Therawrap heat wraps that do not require electricity.

Sweeet! I have to remember to ask the docs to take pics for me, too!

I agree, please keep this updated! I really appreciate your cahones in posting these rather personal pics for us. It is exactly what I was wondering about. Now I get the Spydr Kewl!! And goodonya!! The side shot is very dramatic and wow! You are going to look even more fabulous than you did, and than you do now, after the swelling and bruising goes down.

In reading through some of the threads, most people have said they have gone to sleep, though many have said it is difficult to sleep on your side or stomach. Some can sleep on the side that does not have the port. Many have said they slept in a recliner for a few days, though others could not stand to be upright. I hope that you get many more responses, I'm interested to see what more folks say.

Yeah!!!! Congrats on being an official Bandster! Hope the pain goes away very soon.

Thank you for sharing your story. I think I am going to discuss this with my husband and hope he can get banded as well. He has different insurance than I do. Actually he has his, plus mine as a back-up but his approves a lot faster than mine does (Aetna PPO Plus 3 or 6 months, mine is 12 months). It would be really nice to do this together.

call the psych doctor and ask when they sent your info to the surgeon.

I really like Dove antiperspirant as well. And I've recently found that I love the Ban in the pink container. I think it's supposed to be power stripe or something. It works very well. I start working out on Friday so I'm going to make sure to pack it in my new gym bag (D'oh!...I gotta go buy one!). I start cardiac rehab that day and I'm going an hour a day for three days a week for six weeks. I'm really looking forward to it. I'm wanting to get a jump start on getting fit before surgery so I'll hopefully bounce back better. And I need to get some of this weight off before surgery. It'll make reaching my butt easier after surgery, though I already bought some tongs

Shirley, I *am* determined this time. I can't live this big any longer. It isn't so much about my health (because I have been pretty blessed with fairly good health despite my weight, even my cardiac caths-done for another reason-came back clean as a whistle), as it is about the fact that I have no energy and can't do what I want to. I want to go tubing down the river we have a house on (Muskegon) without being deathly afraid I can't get back in if I dump the tube. I want to be able to walk and not have to stop frequently for breaks, I want to be able to get into an airplane seat and buckle without an extender, without making the guy next to me cringe because I'm fat, and to be able to put down the tray without a problem. I want to dive again without having to put on tons of weights. I also want to make sure that I stay pretty healthy. Thank you for the words of encouragement!

Ghettofarm24 asked almost this exact same question last night. It just struck me. Perhaps look for her thread and see if she got any responses yet? Definitely an EXCELLENT question to ask in your seminar! Let us know what they say, okay? I know on the paperwork my surgeon's office gave me they asked if you plan on having children in the next two (maybe it was three, I've got to go look) years.

You will need to talk with your surgeon and/or the practice's nutritionist to find out exactly what they mean and what they want you to be on. If you use the search function on here and look for pre-op or pre-op diets, or just run through the threads, you will find there is no one answer that is correct. The only correct one is the answer you get from your surgeon. Most (surgeons) believe (based on a couple of studies) that high protein, low carb, low fat diet for two weeks pre-operatiively shrinks the liver so that it can be more safely retracted and held out of the way during surgery. (Some don't require a pre-op diet, it depends on the surgeon.) I won't go into specifics about how the studies also showed that optimal shrinkage took six weeks, but I'm guessing the belief is that two weeks of shrinkage is helpful and safer for the patient. Also the two weeks of liquids preop helps to get you used to the liquids, you won't be eating solids for some time after the surgery as your stitches need to heal and "seat" the band on your newly formed pouch.

This thread is making me aware of some really problematic issues with our restaurant industry. You just can't seem to win. If you want a "Pepsi", half the time a waitress says, "Diet?" (no, you nasty little snot, if I wanted diet, I would have ordered diet...), or they just assume and bring a diet instead of a "regular" Pepsi (I've had this happen plenty of times). If you order a big meal, they look at you sideways or with a "tsk-tsk" look. If you want to order something small or get a to-go container, they hassle you. Sheesh! It's ridiculous!

Heck, that's AWESOME!!! I was just reading your signature that gave your high/current/goal and your surgery date. 150lbs in 16 or so months is absolutely fantastic!!! Goodonya! What am I saying??? Losing any weight is WONDERFUL and an amazing accomplishment to be celebrated (with a sugar free popsicle, of course!). I hope to be there someday.

And definitely join the OSSG group on Yahoo groups. They present the "other side" of weight loss surgery. Both banding and bypass/ds/bpd. You don't hear about a lot of negative things on the bigger boards like obesityhelp, etc... It helps to really get both sides of the story. It's one of the reasons I really like it here on LBT, the folks here represent a cross-section of folks who've had the band. People who have had great success with loss, people who have had slow losses, people who have gotten infections, people who have had to have the band removed for various reasons: eroding, slippage, etc... For me the only things that were positive about Bypass over LapBand were the speed of loss, that the loss doesn't really take hard work at first (of course the negative side of these two things is that it happens because your body is basically being malnourished), and it does have a tendency to keep you a bit more "honest" by making you really uncomfortable/sick if you eat sugars. But I don't really want that kind of discomfort. The studies now are showing that a few years out the loss is about the same. and you can eat through either the bypass or the band. If I'm going to fail (and I don't plan on it), I don't want to have paid for it with a rerouting of my intestines and risking the possibility of malnutrition. Bypass patients have to take soooo many supplements and Vitamins because they can no longer absorb them from their food that it's crazy. But that is a personal decision.