aubrie

I was thin once. At age 24 I weighed 118, so I know what it feels like. I know how nice it is to pick cute clothes off the rack. I have to also say, I also know what it's like to have lots of friends. When I was thin I had numerous friends and had a very active social life. Shopping, movies, trips, lunch out, interesting outtings, dinner parties, Saturday morning coffe, with girlfriends. I think the most disturbing thing I have found about becoming very large is that I ended up with very few friends. It has broken my heart on more than one occasion. I would make the same moves towards friendships when I met someone new, and got very little as a response. I found myself in tears and lonely more than once. I've sat in movie theaters alone with tears streaming down my face on several occasions, wishing I had someone to share a chick flick with. Over time, I quit asking because the rejection was to painful. Currently, I have 2 or 3 quality friends that I treasure, that don't measure my worth by my weight. Unfortunately, one of those lives about 100 miles away. But I remember a day when I had 10 times that. It's VERY sad, but true. The girls in my office seem to resent my weight loss. They don't even mention it. They NEVER include me in anything. The men on the other hand, compliment me regularly and have just about become my cheerleading squad. It's the weirdest thing I think I have ever experienced. I was a sociology major in college, and this is a very interesting observation in social behavior. Time will tell, If other women become more receptive to me as I continue to lose. I suspect they will, but it will definately leave a bitter taste in my mouth, and I will probably be a lot more distrustful and guarded with any friendships that do develop. I hate that. My husband has been pretty concerned and fretful about all this, but I'm sure he'll be relieved when the tides change. It will take the pressure off him to be "everything" to me. I'm starting to ramble here so I'm going to shut up, but this is a damn good thread!

It is my understanding, but don't quote me, that it gets absorbed by the intestines and you end up passing it like normal gas.

I haven't tried this yet, and am not sure if it works, but I've read somewhere on this board that in many buffet places you can show your bariatric ID card and many will only charge you for a child's buffet. Sounds fair, but I don't know the extent of the practice. Wouldn't that be nice if everyone did it?

If it's hurting her, why continue to talk about it? That's like rubbing salt in a wound. Do you have any local girlfriends that you can talk to about it? I don't discuss my surgery with anyone. For me it's very private, and I only talk to my family about it if they ask. BUT I do regularly attend a support group for WLS patients. It's my psychological outlet for talking about it and getting the POSITIVE support I need to keep going. For me it's easier to talk to people who really understand. Also why I use this message board regularly...... Find a supportive ear for this besides your sister, before it causes irreparable damage. Talk to her about everything else. You may really need her one day, and a wall between you does nobody any good.

I have a recipe that is similar. Also cook a chayote squash (green, shaped like a tear drop with a dimple in the bottom) along with the cauliflower. Mash and add the cream cheese or regular cream. bake in ramekins with gruyere cheese on top. It is also VERY yummy

I agree with Shiela. Chicken breast and pork are difficult. They are both to dry. chicken thighs are just fine. I can't eat bread with a sandwhich, but if I eat it like plain toast, it goes down okay. Other than that, at 4 1/2 months out and two fills, those are the only problems I have so far.

Ditto. Flying made me tighter. Everthing got stuck for about three days after flying. I brought a lot of "emergency" food with me, just in case I had limited choices. Believe me I used almost all of it. I brought applesauce cups, instant, high protein, Quaker weight control oatmeal, tuna cups, slim fast, and protein powder. I was gone a week and LOST a pound.

I have short term disability. An EXCELLENT policy. It kicks in after missing 7 consecutive days of work. (including weekends) I was out for two weeks, so I filed a claim. the bastards wouldn't honor it because it was "elective" surgery. I had 5 letters from 5 different doctors recommending the surgery!!!! Elective?????

God love all the sweet little grandmas...... That was just precious. My family just thinks it's a fate worse than death not to be able to drink anything carbonated. I didn't drink cokes anyway..... Now beer I miss.... but I feel so much better and I miss it less and less all the time.

Watcher.... I think I might see where you are going with this. If you are spending tremendous amounts of energy, time and money to change your eating habits and behavior, and become healthy and positive, and stick to a difficult challenge in your life, I can see why you would not want to date someone who was not of your same mindset. Spending a lot of time with someonw who has poor eating habits, likes junk food, doesn't exercise, etc. etc. would just be a negative temptation for you. I can see where you are coming from. You just have more important priorities right now, and that's as it should be. Now.....should you turn down flat a guy who exceeds your expections in every other way???? They are typically few and far between, so you have quite a dilemma.

Kudos to you!!! You did it!!! I'm so proud of you. You go girl!!

I've been wondering about this. I have a friend with cancer who gets regular blood transfusions. Her insurance doesn't cover blood products. (Wierd huh?) It's expensive, so pre-band I was donating and putting the donation in her "account" so she wouldn't have to pay. I haven't done it since I was banded as I was a little concerned. I'm four months out, eat well, and have great blood test results. I've lost 43 pounds. I guess maybe I'll try now and see what happens. I've felt bad for her the last two transfusions that I wasn't able to help.

Before my 1st fill doc says no more than 1 1/2 cups. 1st fill = 1 cup 2nd fill = 3/4 cup He doesn't want me to go below 3/4 cup. In the morning and at at lunch time though, a half cup is usual for me. I'm able to eat more in the evenings.

Could it be filled with air? If it's a pressurized port, maybe the pressure is off.

I'm with FairyFacade. I never really saw myself as big as I really was. If I looked in the mirror, I looked a little overweight. But when I saw photographs of myself I was horrified!! Why the difference? It always confused me. Now I think I'm bigger than I am. I had some old size 18 clothes in my closet. I put off trying them on, as I thought I had a ways to go yet before they would fit. I went through them over the weekend (finally) and many of them are already to big. I missed out wearing them entirely!! I totally misjudged the reality of my size.

I read on the board about the band tightening after a flight. I have to say, it's true. I flew from Corpus Christi to Washington DC last week. The little short flight to Houston at 19,000 ft. didn't do anything, but on the long flight to DC at 30,000+ ft. I could literally feel it tightening up. :huh2:It was a little uncomfortable and I couldn't eat a thing. I rarely get stuck and have never PB'd, but I got stuck several times the 3 days followiing the flight. :confused_smile:It was the oddest sensation. :wink: I can't even really describe it, but I could definately feel it. I guess since the band is under pressure, the change in pressure outside my body affects the pressure inside. Just thought I would verify that.

I'm 4 months post op. I had been doing fine until about a week ago. Now I'm getting some coming out in the shower. Nothing major. But it's also spring time, and I usually shed in the spring anyway. So this may just be coincidence.

I recently looked down and noticed that I had crossed my leg like a lady, like I had years ago. I was dumbfounded. I hadn't even thought about it. It just happened. I was speechless and just kept pointing at my leg. My husband couldn't figure out what I was so excited about. When I told him, I got a big hug.

My DH is very supportive. He's thrilled if I tell him I lost one pound. I've only lost 43 so far, but he's always telling me how good I look, that I got my face back, he's pinching me more and chasing me around the bedroom again. ALL GOOD. But....... sometimes he sees me eating something that HE thinks I shouldn't eat and says (teasing of course) that he's going to call Dr. Chang and tell him. I have to fight going ballistic. I tell him.... "Go ahead call him. I'll get you the number!!!" I know he's teasing, but for some reason that really sets me off.

Married to my first husband for 8 years. He cheated on me and got into drugs and alcohol. I was devastated. Then my high school sweetheart came back into my life and rescued me from the nightmare. All of the fireworks still went off. He got me and my kids out of a bad situation and we ended up together. I guess you could say we cheated, but I ended up marrying him and we've been together now for 18 years. blissfully happy. We have NEVER cheated on eachother. I guess we should have married in the first place!

My ah ha moment? My DH started to cry and told me he was afraid if I didn't stop gaining that he would end up wheeling me around in a wheelchair and that it would break his heart.

Congratulations!!! What a good feeling. I just recently fell under my husbands weight. I wanted to dance in the streets!!! Keep up the good work!!

The United Way had a fund raising campaign. All those who contributed from the County (who is my employer) got their names put in a hat. At the end of the campaign they drew the name of a contributor for the free trip and it WAS ME!!! A local Bail Bondsman was the sponsor.... yes,...... I'm in law enforcement. I work for our local Sheriff.

YES! Fruit is fine. I took fruit out of my diet initially and had a terrible problem with digestion and elimination. I was so consitpated I was miserable. Adding fruit back in the diet helped immensely. I just watch how much and what type. Low calorie fruits are melon and strawberries. Fruit that is high in calorie are pears and pineapple. As mentioned above, just watch the pithy skin on citrus fruit sections. I peel my sections. I eat three or four sections of grapefruit every morning. So it takes me several days to eat an entire grapefruit, but the benefits are remarkable.

I still set a sumptuous table for the holidays, but have varied my recipes a bit. Instead of green bean casserole, I have steamed green beans with almonds. Instead of twice baked potatos with butter, sour cream and cheese, I make whipped sweet potatos. Instead of cake and pie, I serve angel food cake with fresh strawberries. Instead of glazed carrots, they are simply steamed. If I make mashed potatos, I boil them in chicken stock for flavor. They are so tasty, they don't need butter and sour cream. I stuff celery sticks with sugar free, low-fat, peanut butter instead of cream cheese. I make a fresh fruit salad instead of a sweet jello mold. The table is still lovely but the calories on it are greatly reduced. I don't even think my family realizes I made the changes.