WASaBubbleButt

Did you see that it only contains 6gms of Protein per scoop? That's going to get a bit expensive, isn't it? It is 25 calories per 6gms of protein. The calories to protein ratio is good but I'll bet the price won't be per serving. Product Detail (RESOURCE ® Beneprotein ® Instant Protein Powder) - Novartis Medical Nutrition U.S.

That's great. I didn't know it was possible to make whey into something that dissolves into nothingness. I'm going to have to check it out.

Congrats! Feels good to end a plateau. How did you do it?

I would hope so too but you know there does seem to be a common problem with most surgeons. Look at the newbies on any banding forum. They don't know anything! By the time I had my own surgery I read until my head hurt, I researched, I asked questions, I did my work. I had a pretty good idea of what I needed to know in order to make the decision and I had some idea of what to expect after surgery. The questions from the newbies still amaze me sometimes. They don't know if they have a post op diet, they don't know the difference between clears and fulls, they don't know the absolute basics. How many are shocked that they have no restriction before a fill? I think it is a combination of information overload to patients and doctors not explaining anything. How many docs explain WHY the post op diet is so critical? People think it is a matter of swelling and as soon as they can eat food, they do. If swelling has gone down enough that solids go down, they believe they are good to go. They have no idea what it is that is healing. If docs would take some time and explain about the reasons for the post op diet the chances are more folks would stick to it. I spend a lot of time explaining the "whys" of things. Why is the post op diet critical, why is a fill that is too tight dangerous, etc. Why aren't the doctors explaining this? I've read too many people comment that they learned more about how the band works and why we do the things we do on the boards than they ever learned from their docs. While I completely and totally agree with you about following your own surgeon's advice, I'm not really sure they are giving out the information that people need. People will spend months researching a car they are considering - but surgery... they leave it up to their doc to make the decisions. I don't get it.

No, I use Benefiber. Never tried Beneprotein. How much Protein does it have? Do you know what kind of protein? I can't see how it could be whey protein, that wouldn't dissolve into nothingness the way Benefiber does.

Thanks, Wheetsin. I just ordered it. Couldn't beat the price. :Banane10:

I am usually reading 4-5 books at any given time. I find I stay on my treadmill a lot longer if I can read, watch DVDs, anything to get my mind off of how much I dislike my treadmill (I feel a bit like Fred Flinstone running and running and not going anywhere). I was hoping to have a book thread where we can share titles of books and our own reviews. Books are soooo expensive and I don't want to waste money on boring books. Sunta told me she was reading a book that I had heard of but hadn't heard reviews one way or another. It is: "THE CHRIST CONSPIRACY, The Greatest Story Ever Told" by S. Acharya. The title is self descriptive, so far it is quite interesting but I haven't read much of it yet as I just received it. Perhaps Sunta can shed more light on details. "The Dark Side of Christian History" by Helen Ellerbe This book is excellent so far. Besides, there are lots of pictures. The drawings and artwork really do go a long way to give you the creeps about historical Christianity. It makes you wonder if that is really what it looked like way back when. The way people were tortured, etc. I am always and repeatedly shocked by how primitive people were way back when and how they came to believe what they did. "Stiff" by Mary Roach Okay, this one isn't going to appeal to a huge audience but I find it fascinating. I am almost done with this one and I'll likely read it again. There are so many facts and pieces of trivia about how dead bodies have been used, treated, tested, and experiemented on throughout early history (last 200 years). Before reading this book I had no clue that dead folks were put on airplanes, the airplanes were then crashed, and they wanted to see the damage to the bodies depending on the type of crash and location of seat. Early one brave dude wanted to use human fat for burning street lights in New York. He thought with 250 folks dying in New York daily they would have more than enough "fat" fuel for street lamps. I'm thinking "odor" but maybe I'm alone. Just the study of dead folks is really interesting, it's quite an eye opener what people have done with dead bodies. One guy attempted to sew a living monkey head on a dead human body to see if the body would keep on ticking. It didn't. Since I enjoyed this book so much I purchased another by the same author: "SPOOK" by Mary Roach I haven't even started this one yet but it is the scientific study of the afterlife. I have no opinion on it one way or another just yet. But I love the author's amazingly dry sense of humor. She's very funny and it is easy to pass the time away on my treadmill while reading her writing thus, I purchased this book. BTW, if anyone posts a title and you don't mind used copies, check out: AddALL book search and price comparison It is probably one of the most comprehensive sites to find new, used, and out of print books I have found. For some time I was buying up all kinds of great books when people didn't realize what they were selling. For example, I purchased one book on ebay (found it on AddALL originally) that was selling for $9.95 but it is actually worth about $800.00. I spent a great number of (fun) hours finding treasures like this with the idea of reselling them but I just never get around to reselling them. I end up buying more antique trunks to hide them in from hubby. For some strange notion he believes I have far too many books and they take up too much room. AddALL is one place to find such treasures. Some people don't want to take the time to see what they are selling. Not only can you get great deals on used books but you can find many great titles that are worth a great deal of money and those selling them don't realize this. However, one has to know titles and book quality before this will work well. Usually people specialize in specific types of books. For me it is antiquarian medical and slavery books. Anyone else reading anything fun right now?

Do you recall where you read the article?

I can't remember if he is the same doc that someone else wrote about or not. Does he have a lot of banding experience?

Has anyone read any books by Bill Cosby? I'm a big Cosby fan, I love to hear him speak. I usually agree with him on a majority of topics. I just ordered this from Amazon: [ame=http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595550925/103-9584899-1103801]Amazon.com: Come On People: On the Path from Victims to Victors: Books: Bill Cosby,Alvin F. Poussaint[/ame] Come On People: On the Path from Victims to Victors Editorial Reviews Book Description Bill Cosby and Alvin F. Poussaint have a powerful message for families and communities as they lay out their visions for strengthening America, or for that matter the world. They address the crises of people who are stuck because of feelings of low self-esteem, abandonment, anger, fearfulness, sadness, and feelings of being used, undefended and unprotected. These feelings often impede their ability to move forward. The authors aim to help empower people make the daunting transition from victims to victors. Come On, People! is always engaging, and loaded with heart-piercing stories of the problems facing many communities. I just plain like the way he thinks thus, I ordered the book. Anyone read it?

That is a concept I really disagree with. They make various sizes of bands because each person has a different size stomach and some need a larger band, some need a smaller band. There are some docs that are of the opinion that if you have a band that is too large for you, you might reach a point where you can't get proper restriction. I'm really not sure how accurate that is. I don't blame him for not using the AP band, it's new and the kinks aren't worked out of it yet just like every new band that comes on the market. But I don't quite understand using the biggest band for everyone. It would be like getting a bra that is 4 sizes too big and hoping you'll grow into it. It just doesn't make sense. But since the current thinking is that erosion is from a band that is too small I know of one doc that isn't taking chances and he's using the large band on everyone. But doctors who use the appropriate size band don't necessarily have higher erosion rates. May I ask who your doc is?

Just be careful of the skin on hot wings. chicken skin is evil.

Yep, feeling like you are going mad is the first stage of post op. :Banane10: It gets worse. :Banane10: Sorry, but it does. But it will pass and you'll be telling some newbie in a few short weeks that what THEY are going through is normal and to be expected. I think the feeling of "going mad" is part of the initiation to bandland. HA! Just think, hard as all this is it will be soooooo worth it! You'll lose weight, feel better, your self esteem will increase, life will be even better than it already is!

I completely agree with you. However, you kinda have to decide on a medical school OR transplants, can't have both. :Banane10: Personally, I prefer transplants. But if that isn't possible for any reason a medical school would be totally doable. My weird sister is afraid to donate organs. She's afraid if she does then in her "next life" (she's Catholic!) she will be born without whatever organ she donates. Figure out that logic!

It completely depends on your doc's post op diet. If you are doing clears then absolutely not. If you are doing full liquids you can usually have anything that will go through a straw. pudding wouldn't typically go through a straw so that might have to wait for soft foods. Please, don't mess with your doc's post op diet. It's really quite critical for a lot of reasons.

Only one word of caution and it comes from personal experience. If you do barf after eating spicy foods it burns at least triple coming up vs. when it was going down. So chew well and don't overeat! :Banane10:

You have 7cc in a 10cc band? Why didn't your doc just put a smaller band on you? If it was so large that he had to fill it that much just to keep it in place, that sounds like a pretty big band for you. Does he use a 10cc band on everyone? Or is it the new AP band?

It's very normal. You just made a huge life changing decision, had surgery, and now there is no going back. You might get really emotional for the silliest of reasons. Tears for no reason at all. It's all normal. The first month is what most seem to find the hardest. On a traditional diet you can cheat, binge, whatever. Now you CAN'T. Large quantities of food are not possible. It's a much bigger adjustment than most realize. Also, the first month I'll bet a cyber dollar you even consider having the band removed. One moment you'll think, "OMG, what in heaven's name did I do to myself? A BAND around my stomach? What was I thinking?" Then the very next moment you'll be thrilled you finally got it done. Just know, it's all normal and those feelings will go away. Hang in there, things will be better. And give your daughter a hug, tell her your sorry, and send her to the store for more S/F pudding. :Banane10:

Question for you, when you eroded what were your symptoms? What led you to know something was wrong? Was it a serious erosion or the beginning of one? Would you mind providing more details? Also, do you think there is any chance at all that your band was too small for your stomach or did you have a fill that in looking back... might have been too tight? Sorry, I really want to gather information on erosion so anytime I have an opportunity to ask, I do. The thinking used to be that NSAIDs caused erosion, then they discovered that wasn't true. Then they thought it was coffee and caffeine, that wasn't it either. Then they thought it was smoking. Nope, not that either. Now they think it is caused by a band that is too tight. Either the surgeon put a band on that was too small for the patient or that the patient got a fill that was too tight for too long. This is the theory that makes the most sense to me. Ever see an abused dog that has a collar on that is too tight? After months of this the collar starts to erode into their neck and it has to be surgically removed and repaired. The same thinking could apply here as well. Also, why is it that some docs have such a high erosion rate (7-10%) and other docs have such low erosion rates (my doc is 0.0016%)? That kind of a difference can't be the patient base the doc attracts, that sounds like surgeon issues to me. The numbers lead me to believe that. Of course, then there is infection. Poor sterile technique during a fill can cause a port infection and the infection can travel up the tubing to the actual band. My doc has one eroded patient. The patient had her band for a few years and went to a US RN for a fill. The fill was clearly too tight and the patient knew it. She could barely drink liquids but she refused a slight unfill as she was losing weight like crazy and wanted to get to goal faster. So she went for months and months with a fill where she could hardly drink Water. I suspect her "too tight" fill is likely what caused her erosion from hearing her story on the boards but clearly, nobody will ever know for sure. But this begs the question... is it the patient or the doc? How is it that my doc has one erosion in 1600+ bands and some other docs have a 4-10% erosion stat when according to Inamed global stats are 1.3%? If their infection stats were that high in comparison to other docs we would blame the doc. I'm not so sure it is any different here with the exception of fills that are too tight and the patient won't get a slight unfill. I really question if you might have misunderstood this. I think you might have it backwards. Erosion is currently thought to be the doc's fault in general. Slips are typically the patient's fault. Not always, but usually. People that don't chew well, take bites too big, PB a great deal, keep fills that are too tight, etc... they are the folks that tend to slip more than others. I think there are some slips that nobody knows why it happens. But many times slips happen in people that didn't follow the post op diet, they don't chew food well, they eat things they know they can't tolerate, overeat, etc. Another reason I suspect you might have the slips/erosion backwards is that it isn't the sutures that really hold the band into place, it's the scar tissue that forms around the band. The stomach is sewn up and over the band but the scar tissue that forms during the post op diet is what really secures the band into place. Theoretically, you should be able to remove the sutures after the scar tissue has formed and the band should stay in place.

That is a mistake I made when I had a bit of an emergency. I kept calling around to EVERY ER in my area and not a single doc knew what to do with my port. It never dawned on me to go to an ER and request a chemo nurse. A good lesson for everyone that needs an emergency unfill in the middle of the night. Just because the ER doc doesn't know what to do, a chemo nurse would have experience with certain kinds of ports and s/he could do it. They would just need to be warned not to poke the tubing.

BTW, the poll is private, nobody will know how you voted.

Fair enough, I may have misunderstood. I thought it was directed at me. I suppose it does look like I am arguing about which is better, LBT or OH. And you are right, it is a preference. I point out the issues because that seems to be the place where newbies start out before they find there are many band forums. If they are chased away, that isn't right. My real intent was to point out how others see OH and the pack mentality. It's not good for newbies and they really are the people that count the most on a forum IMHO. Or perhaps I should say they have different or "more" needs than an old timer type person. They are the LAST people that should be chased away. I don't believe anyone has claimed you are a cheerleader, a groupie, etc. To be really honest I PMed Susan earlier tonight when I read your first post here and point blank asked her if you were one of "them" :Banane10: or not. I honestly didn't know. As I have explained earlier, I didn't create the list of cheerleaders, I merely coined the term. I never did have strong opinions about who behaved in that manner. I knew a few of them but didn't know if I agreed with the entire list when I saw it. I really didn't spend enough time over on OH to know one way or another. I just know I was chased away as a newbie so of course I am going to have strong feelings about a few folks. I have to think that some opinions have changed about Sandy since the truth came out. The only claims I have made are things that can be found on line. The stuff I know about her personal life I never posted. There are things I found in my research on line that had absolutely nothing in the world to do with her posting, her false claims, etc. Even I have my limits. :Banane10: I would never post those things, they *are* personal. But her false claims can be easily demonstrated via public records. Those that would continue to defend her knowing what they do now... you have to admit, that would make people look at them with a raised eyebrow. I don't know if you are one or not. I really don't spend much time on OH. At best 5 minutes daily but I usually don't go there at all. I don't personally complain about Wendell because I have nothing to complain about. He's always treated me well, his posts here are informative to newbies, he has been good to me, and he has been there when I was ready to pull my hair out due to band issues. What would I complain about? He's said some things that I tend to disagree with regarding the band and I posted explaining that I disagreed with him and why. But honestly, I can only think of one time and I don't even recall what the issue was. It was something quite minor as I recall. When issues here, on this very thread, were getting a little out of control on all sides I posted and suggested that people stop. I'm not a moderator here, my suggestions mean nothing. It was a request on my part not to let this thread turn into a bitter battle between people. I much prefer a place where we can finally air out differences. That post wasn't directed at any one person and I don't think it came off that way. I directed it to everyone, including Wendell. So your claim doesn't really work. There is no hypocrisy, I like Wendell so why would I say anything negative about him? I am not aware of any laws he has broken, he isn't claiming to be a licensed nurse when he isn't... if he was doing that I'd be writing the same things about him as I do Sandy. I'm not being harsh with any of you. Not in the least. I don't give a rat's back side who anyone's friends are. But those who continue to defend her in light of the information that is public record... that's an issue. That goes to credibility. And no, I'm not saying you are defending her. I know, you are reading between the lines but there is no need. I write what I mean. I may not do it well, but I still write what I mean. Sandy has offended a lot of people in a variety of ways. She has made huge claims that have been proven to be absolute lies. People don't like her, many people on LBT are here because of Sandy. They couldn't stand it on OH. I tend to agree that there are probably many ways of thinking that you and I are similar. Chelle may cringe at this but you know, I think if there was no such place as OH or LBT I might like Chelle in real time. I don't agree with her always but I don't agree with my best friend all the time either. I do think there is that passive aggressive thing going sometimes with her posts but I have issues with my posts too, we all do. I offer my opinion when it isn't always asked for. I'm just glad we finally have a place to air our differences, express our issues, and hopefully move on.

Many meds (especially psych meds) are time released and they CAN'T be crushed! It could be extremely dangerous to crush or break them. A general rule of thumb for pharmaceutical companies is that if the tablet is scored (line through it so it can be broken in half) then it is okay to break or crush. But you really need to talk to your RPh about which ones are okay. Sometimes you have to crush tablets, sometimes you can break them in tiny pieces and swallow that way. But ALWAYS check with your pharmacist before breaking or crushing tablets. An example is one form of Procardia. It's a shell of a tablet and there is a teeny tiny laser hole in there. When you swallow the tablet the medicine kinda "leaks" out of that laser hole throughout a 24 hour period. When the patient poops it out it appears that it was never digested. In reality it's called a "ghost" and it comes out looking the same as it did when it went in. It's just empty when it comes out. If that type of a tablet were broken (blood pressure pill) the entire 24 hours worth of drug would be released all at once and that could potentially be quite dangerous. That's why time released tablets cannot be crushed or broken. If you have a drug that is time released and can't be broken or crushed just talk to your doc and have him change it to something that you can break. You might just have to take it more often. An example is Effexor. There is short acting and long acting. Let's say the patient is taking 150mg of the long acting. Instead of taking 1 long acting tablet/capsule daily you might have to take 75mg of the short acting twice daily. Also, many drugs come in a liquid form but usually the taste and quantity you have to take is hard. If you can break the tablets it's usually easier to take in the long run. Hope that helps.

What if you start binging on veggies? I mean seriously, things like well cooked zucchini and broccoli are foods that will fill you up quickly, you have to chew forever, and you simply won't have room for anything else. That's what I've done in the past. Still do, actually. The calories are low, Fiber is great, they are filling and take a long time to go through. Eat as much as you want.

I have understood your point from the beginning and I was hoping someone with more knowledge would respond. The problem is that each insurance company is different. If you are "fat enough" to qualify and then do the six month manditory dieting some insurance co's might say that you no longer qualify and some might not. I don't know which do what. I don't know the laws about these things. It seems as though if you qualify and the insurance company requires you to lose weight, then you do... it SEEMS like that just can't fly, it would SEEM like that would be something you could fight. One concern I do have for you is that some insurance co's have an appeal limit. You can only submit appeals so many times and then you are done. Period. You've done it once. What if the next time they don't include some silly paper that is required and you are denied again? You'll have to appeal to submit it correctly. Some insurance co's only give you three strikes and you are out. BUT! Insurance is not my forte. I don't know what I'm talking about!!! I am only offering what I have read on the various threads here. I would urge you to PM "Alexandra" and just send her a link to this thread. I doubt she has the time to respond to each and every PM for insurance help but if she reads the thread she might be able to offer some thoughts. She's the best insurance person I know on the forum.