DeLarla

Do you all notice extra restriction when your pants are too tight? And BLAH to the fact that my stupid pants are too tight!

So I'm awake trying to figure out why my belly was hurting. Then last night I never really got restricted. I think I've lost my restriction, and maybe the bottom portion of my belly is irritated because it's not used to having stuff down there. Heck, I don't know, but I'm not restricted any more, and it happened fast. I'm gonna swallow a big pill now and I hope I get that awful feeling. I was a little better to my band yesterday and will try to stick within my portions. I'm going on vaca next week and it would be nice to drop a pound. Aloe Vera juice simply gags me, like my whole body shudders, but I guess that does sound really healing. How do you get that stuff down?

Silly me, I only ate a few bites of salad yesterday due to my tight pants. Why the hell have I sent over $10,000 on surgical procedures when I could have a had a new wardrobe instead? All kidding aside, tight pants give me reflux symptoms (no, it is not the acidic gallon of soda so shut up.)

That looks awesome - like oh what a feeling! Rock n' roll, Daddy-o,

Uht oh, Uht oh It's off to Radiology I go; This band will drive me nuts I know; Uht Oh, Uht Oh, Uht Oh, Uht... You write the next verse. Everybody sing along!

Alex, at least you can make me laugh through all this! But you better be careful, because if we went anywhere, it would be New Jersey. Hi-dee-ho, Good Neighbor! Scary, huh? Thanks for at least putting me at ease with my diet-barium drink. It was about 2 baby cups that you get on top of cough medicine, so probably only a couple ounces. I'm going to make a follow-up with my gastro for a good long talk. This time I'll go armed with a list so I don't get stage fright. I want to ask him to confer with other doctors to put me at ease. Thanks for the really badly needed laugh

Wow, I keep thinking about all those stitches floating around in me. Dr. Billy didn't even tell me (I don't think he had the heart to) but he told Penni, and Penni's the one that told me Billy found a bunch of floating stitches. And it burns me because Dr. Lopez had JUST BEEN IN THERE a month prior! So Lopez saw 5-7 floating stitches and just left them there? Did he forget his surgical triceps or whatever-the-heck those tweezers are called? Michelle, you've really opened my eyes. If stitches can cause erosion, and Lopez leaves them floating all over the place... sigh.

Ahh, makes sense now. But not an option for me so I'll go pout.

My sister mailed my father a legal document, then attempted to coerce him into signing it. After a heated fight, she'll probably never talk to him again because he refused to sign it. My "SISTER" has been going to a support group called NAMI (since our mother is very mentally ill.") Well, big Sis decided she wants to be Mom's legal guardian, so she thought she'd have my Dad sign a document stating my brother and I are mentally ill and she's the only competent one. She then explained how she'd send the signed document to "the judge" who would grant her guardianship. Uh, what judge? She doesn't have an attorney and is making stuff up as she goes along. She even diagnosed me so ya'll finally know what makes DeLarla Delusional, I have Sporadic Hypertension which Distorts Emotions Generating Dishonesty and Deflection (SHDEGDD.) See, she's been "training under professionals for a month" so she's highly qualified to make such a diagnosis in addition to her new law degree! Here's a cut and paste of my dear sister's e-mail to me, which is what she tried convincing my dad of. Dad told her to POUND SAND. (From my darling sister) "I'm currently enrolled in NAMI, the country's number one educational resource for people with chemically imbalanced family members. I started training under professors a month before mom was arrested. When questioned why I was there, in front of the class, I said to deal with and educate myself on my mother's illness, my sister's sporadic hypertension which distorts emotions generating dishonesty and deflection, and my brother's delusional narcissism." Poor Brother Fred got such a boring disease. Lots of people have Delusional Narcissism, but I'm special. The funniest part is that my sister carries a full-length mirror from California to Las Vegas every time she comes. I have mirrors everywhere in my house, but I guess you can't see your shins or shoes (but you can see your ass from an enormous 3-way) so she brings a full length mirror when she comes to Vegas for the night. But my brother is the Narcissist, remember that.

Yes, my morning coffee is under 800 calories. Penni's isn't though! HAHA. Oops, I've lost my last marble and thought it might be here. Bye.

But what made Dennis unfill the entire thing? Why not just a little unfill?

So Glad To See You Back! I've been on pins n' needles waiting to hear from you, Michelle. Francesca sounds so much worse, and I'm really worried, but so glad you're okay. As far as the stitch, can you explain how it caused erosion? Did it enter the band area, like a splinter? Please tell Dr. Ortiz that Billy found several floating stitches that had no business floating around my port area (when he removed the last port.) If stitches aren't supposed to be floating around there, then Lopez just left them swimming near my port????? Sheesh! Heal fast and start showing the rest of us how it's done. I need to get back on the weight loss train with you. Welcome home P.S. You helped me through my situation more than anything... your words kept playing over n' over, even while you were in surgery, so thanks for helping me let Kitty go so sweetly.

I'm just sick and tired of being sick and tired. I WANT A LOCAL BAND DOCTOR! I refuse to continue spending my "otherwise vacation and spending money" on flying here and there every time I need a doctor. Maybe now this Gastroenterologist will help me, but that doesn't give me a port. The results were bitter-sweet because now that I know I'm not leaking, I want a f-ing fill. Yes, I'm cussing! But I don't have a port, and I can't/won't/can't/won't bring myself to even begin to think about paying for another port replacement surgery. No, no, no! So, looks like I gotta work with the restriction Mother Nature left me with. Right now my band hurts, like I have an ulcer. I took Ranitidine. I've been "abusing my temple" lately, and it's time to stop (as I sip Diet Pepsi, HAHAHAHA.) I just want a local band doctor. That's all. But I can't have one. So I'm stuck.

You all made this so much easier. I feel different, peaceful. Like I did something really, really right in my life. I raised something from birth - smaller than my palm - all they way through. When we moved from California to Vegas, he slept the entire 6 hour haul. Then as we entered the city, he yawned, stretched and got up on the dashboard checking out his new digs. I raised an amazing baby, and I did it right. Nobody can ever take that from me, and it feels amazing.

No fun crying alone! Losing my kitty gave me some weird new powers. He left them for me. He gave me all his wisdom and kitty intuition, I know he did. Suddenly I can think straight, see straight, talk straight. I got more accomplished this morning than all last month. Mee-owwww. Before my Kitty was only with me at home, but now he's with me all day. He's still here, right here. ^ ^ MOMMY LOVES YOU KITTY MILO

Dave, please post the name and address of the hospital. I can't take knowing my Sweet lil Betty Boop friend is in pain. How are you holding out? All my love, Lis

Cracking up here... according to my Upper GI, no leaks. I'll go start a thread. Doot doot doot doot doot doot doot doot Hi ho, Hi ho.

I was going to "try" to respond, but that Garth song tore me up. That's awesome, thanks for the tears (semi-sweet ones, anyway.)

Sorry, but I don't even need to read the post since the Subject Line is enough for me to say YES, YOUR DOC IS A CRACKHEAD.

TOLD YOU SO, TOLD YOU SO, TOLD YOU SO, TOLD YOU SO! What a GREAT POST that we all really needed right now!

Tell me you actually didn't say that only "sometimes" they are overrated. I'll trade you my delusional sister and raise you my bi-polar aunt. Fold? That's why Slumber rules! My Slumber Sisters are the best, like sisters are supposed to be.

Hi everyone, CARMENTORRES sent me a PM asking me to post this for her since she doesn't know how to start a thread. Show her some LBT love, babies! hi i have not yet had my surgery but i am extremely nervous, i go in for my consult today from 4:30-7:30 i know that i have to do something and i have tried every diet and excercise program there is, with no success. i know that there are risks . but dont know what those are. if you know how to post this so everyone can see it, i would appreciate any feedback i can get from you and everyone, i am new to this site and do not know how to post a message for everyone to see.

Thanks, Penni. Today I'm okay, it's weird. Yesterday was torture trying to make the right decision. Maybe it's the Xanax, and every so often I choke back tears, but now I'm surrounded by a certain peaceful sense of being. I choked terribly when I lost my Cockateil. Then Chris and I had matching vivid dreams that our little birdy just left US to be with Gramma B (Chris's mom.) When Chris told me Gramma B. and Max were waiting for Kitty Milo, things seemed right. I've heard Milo cry three times this morning and went to find him. It hurts, but he's okay now. He's okay. Thanks everyone. I never posted the hell I went through when he was sick and didn't think I'd be able to talk about it, but I'm working double-time convincing myself that death is part of life. It's hard, but Milo's death was a beautiful, heartwarming experience since he left tucked sweetly against my heart. I'll never forget that, and that's what I'll focus on during rough times... sweet furbaby tucked in my heart. And Sachi's nurturing concern had her face to face with me all night. 50 pound Pitbull snuggled so deep in my face because she's sad, but she also knows Mamma needed that, with Vooey right at my feet and Chris watching over us, crying himself.

Alex, for example, the rumor was, that Diane was rushed to an American hospital because Mexico couldn't help her. Reality is that she was taken to an American hospital based on the fact her insurance would cover it. Good lesson learned! But going back to what Kathy said, I'm in the same boat as her when it comes to all the options (or lack thereof) how to get band care. It's like pulling teeth while on fire while jumping through hoops while being placed on hold for days and getting nothing but pre-recorded voice-prompted message machines. Where do we go? Who do we call? For me, I gave up on Mexico. I went to my primary doc in a fit of exhaution, and he gave in and referred me to a Gastroenterologist. Tick tock, tick tock, it took a month to see the Gastro, who had never seen a band. I showed him the picture, explained the process, etc. I even told him that I needed an Upper GI and explained what he was looking for. I told him the barium had to flow through the band, and if there was any flow around, our any leaks, then I'd need an endoscopy to confirm erosion. I was really lucky, cuz he's someone I saw years ago for anxiety that used to be a PA but has since completed medical school and chose gastro! So we had a little history. He wrote down names of band surgeons both locally and told me not to worry since even surgeons that aren't experienced with removing an eroded band DO have experience with other similar things (like fixing bullet wounds or coils for hernia repair.) So tomorrow is my Upper GI. I'll tell ya'll what happens next.

This whole thread went awry. It's just a "venting thread" about anxiety. A place to support our friends that are being unbanded and give a much-needed scream about our own individual worries. If someone doesn't have the need to vent, then there's no reason to join in. I agree that there are many happy bandsters, and I agree that stress can cause a lot of symptoms and really screw with our heads. And I agree that some of us might be jumping to early conclusions. But I've been lurking the boards and there are so many different threads where people are "freaking out" that I decided to open up a thread for those of us with similar anxieties. Alex, most of what we heard here at LBT about Diane Beck was B.S. I talked to her personally, and she couldn't believe the gossip and untruths being said about her experience. The fact is, a bunch of us are worried about our bands, then a few of us start eroding. I felt the need to vent, and apparently others did as well. So vent we shall.