Marimaru

Mostly I get up and walk around. Moving the arms around helps also, I don't do the chicken dance, but rather kind of twist back and forth at the waist and that seems to work. But I don't recommend drinking. Some people swear by having a little bit of meat tenderizer or Papaya enzyme, but I've never tried either one.

There's a couple of reason not to drink with your meal. The first, is that it pushes the food through the band, therefore kind of rendering it useless. If the food gets pushed through, you can eat more. The second, is that for many of us who have decent restriction, drinking right after eating something (either during or right after a meal) will cause a big problem, and often cause dinner to come back up. So that's why :confused:

I can see where you are coming from to some extent. I didn't spend months doing research before I got my band, but sometimes there are some 'fundamental' questions asked that make you wonder. But on the other hand, it also makes me wonder how much information a doctor actually gives out before putting someone under the knife, you know? I think they assume sometimes that in the 'age of the internet' people should know more, or something.

I think this is a good idea just for the sake of perspective. Tommy, I see what you are saying, but I think the point really is that alot of us really don't know how we look from the outside. Whenever I see someone that I *think* is my size, I make my fiancee tell me how far off I am (bigger/smaller, etc). 5' 6" 225lbs Size 16 Jeans (some 18s, but I wont buy them!) Large shirts 'fit' but I don't like things that snug on my stomach so I wear XL (16/18? I'm not sure, I don't buy shirts sized like that) 8 and 1/2 shoe, some W, some not. 38DDD bra 7 3/4 Ring size.

You might talk to your band doctor. Evidently gall bladder issues are common among people who lose alot of weight (WLS or not). Your surgeon might be a little more intuned to the issue at hand (unless that's the doc you were talking about?).

I gained pretty steadily since I was 10, then at 16/17 I had a large burst (right after being put on Depo, but since I was in denial, I didn't put the two together), and then pretty steady again aftre that burst... so for the most part it kind of snuck up on me, but I think that might have something to do with my refusal to acknowledge it.

wannabelean, I sent you a PM

I have mild gall bladder symptoms but no stones, so my doctor is pretty much ignoring me. Hopefully I can get some attention to it before I have an attack! But it definately sounds like the gall bladder to me. In my experience, a) you'd definately know if there was a problem with your food in that amount of time and unless you are really stuck, there's shouldn't be a reason for food to be above your band for that long.

I have a big bottle of that stuff. I love how my skin feels after I shave. I also use it as hair conditioner sometimes. My hair is always super soft after that.

It's nice huh? Every now and then there's something that I just gotta have now, and I do have a little bit. What's funniest is when I think I want something really bad and I go to grab it at the store and it doesn't sound good anymore so I don't get it, lol.

I have to say that I also don't buy into the idea that you have to double your Water intake to counter caffiene. I think my mom would be all shrivelled up if that was the case!! lol.... But I can see where you wouldn't want a caffinated beverage as your ONLY source of liquid...

Another thing to consider is the "three stick rule". Many bandsters subscribe to this. 'if you have poke me more than three times, then you need to stop and put me under a flouro (xray) machine to fine th port'.

That's not silly at all!! I think that's a BIG one for most of us!

I'd thought about weight loss surgery, but never mentioned it to my fiancee, because I didn't have a means to even try and get it (no insurance, no money). My mom and I were talking about someone we knew who had the bypass, and I told her about the band. She said "you should do that, I'll pay for it". So I called my fiancee that night and told him I was having it done. The first words out of his mouth were "you should do whatever is going to make you happy". I never did get him to tell me what he really thought, lol. But he never went back on that. We did have some issues with him being worried that I would lose weight and decide that I didn't need to 'settle' for him anymore. I told him that he talked to me when I was at my highest weight and I didn't need anyone who was only talking to me because I was thinner.

there's also a cleaner that Home Depot sells called Formula 505. it's purple/blue. My mom is a 'clean freak' and I was helping her clean her house one day and did her glass shower with that stuff and a sponge and she flipped because it got all the spots off, lol. I love my magic eraser too. I have a nasty old porcelain sink in my apartment, and it got out pretty much everything but the set in stains and the paint that has been on it for who-knows-how-long.

I like more flavor now. Not that everything is bland, but I like spicy things spicier, etc. *shrug*

Alot of sushi places you can as for rice paper instead of the nori, which pretty much just melts away when you put it in your mouth. My favorite thing that I've found is sushi bowls, where they lay the sashimi on top of a bowl of rice instead of making rolls or pieces. I love tuna the best, but salmon is very soft and chewable. :confused:

Wow, external force to help with Lent, lol. I think that I am going to give up eating Snacks past 8pm. It's something that I should do anyway, so it's partially selfish, but since I can't do it for myself, maybe I can do it for a higher power. Here's to March 1st! I'm Christian in the most basic sense of the word, but I don't go to church.

I also went to Dr. Rumbaut. He and his staff all speak fluent English, and it's very important to him that you are comfortable with the procedure. After I'd scheduled my surgery, he called me just to make sure I didn't have any questions. The facilities are wonderful, and the rooms are nicer than anything I've seen in a hospital in the states. I also got a follow call and email from his assistant within a couple weeks of coming home to see how I was doing. :eek:

Lots of people lose lots of tastes for things after banding, but wine wasn't one of them for me. I know there have been weeks where my eating has been fine but drinking screwed me up. Just gotta moderate... :eek:

Shawn, Before having your doctor start giving you Vitamin shots, you should have him check your blood to see which Vitamins you need... you know? As for cereal, I actually do better eating it dry. I HATE soggy cereal, and if the milk is in it, I feel like my Breakfast is a timebomb; either I'll eat too fast and get stuck, or it'll get soggy and gross. I just measure how much is a serving and put it in a cup and take my time munching on it. :eek:

I complained of this a while back and Renebean explained it to me like this: You know how pregnant women get back pain? It's the same thing!! Our bodies are used to dealing with our weight in a certain alignment, and when we lose, that alignment shifts and our muscles have to go and get used to that. It makes perfect sense to me... especially now that I'm stuck and my back doesn't hurt, lol..

congrats!!!!

That's great! I love being able to read something like that and say "phew, it's not all in my head!" One of these days you'll bite the bullet and spend a weekend going through those withdrawal symptoms and then I bet after all that is over you'll feel better. :couch2:

I have a gym membership but lots of people around her have anjoyed the "walk away the pounds" dvd's that are out. You might give that a try?