Jonathan

MMmm.... what would I eat it with... just a fork? =)

Still? 8 Weeks later?

What kind of Jello do you use? The stuff I have only has 1 gram of Protein per serving. (And that's probably rounded up =) ) Jello is probably one of those foods that I used to love, but won't with the band. I liked taking big bites and let it jiggle down. When I chew it up enough to slide through, I don't like the texture anymore

I probably have no right posting a NSV right now, since I realize my weightloss is primarily a factor of dehydration, but it's a funny story... First, 3 weeks ago I weighed 340 lbs and had a 54" waist. I now weigh 301 lbs and I was looking for some pants to wear to go to my son's indoor soccer game... ... and I found a 50x30 pair of jeans I'd never worn. I put them on, and they fit! Then I grabbed a 3x shirt (which is *almost* biggish on me) and put it on, and I looked really good =) I said to my wife "Man, I think I could go downtown tonight and get laid in this!" (Jokingly, of course.) She replied, "You could, honey, except for your belly." I stared at her, mouth agape, and she said "NO NO NO NO NO! I meant because of your incisions!!!!!!" Classic...

Hmm... I remember seeing some girls in short skirts dancing on a green field... almost as if they were cheering about something... Was there a football game too??

I had clam chowder today =) 6 ounces or so... the Campbell's Soup at Hand. Believe it or not, it, and any creamy or non-creamy soup is on my "stage 1" list. And it did go down fine. In fact, to be honest, unless it was just a coincidence, it's what really opened me up. I did have to keep it warm though. Again, thank goodness for microwaves. Speaking of "Soup at Hand"... is that stuff perfect for us or what? No chunks! My "stage 2" foods include mashed potatoes, applesauce, and pudding. GOOD TIMES AHEAD! =)

Even I had no idea how much time I spend around food. Even in "dieting" there's SO much thought into it. Going out to eat takes up 3 hours, at least, if you count getting ready (well, it takes me 3 minutes, but it takes my wife an hour), driving to the restaurant, ordering food, eating it, paying the bill, and driving back home. Since I've been almost a week now where I've spent NO time on food, I'm bored to death. I thought I didn't have enough time in the day. Now I see there's plenty there -- I just wasn't using it. All the same, I'm looking forward to spending 45 minutes eating 1/4 cup of cottage cheese =)

=) Yeah, when things were really bad, there was like a 20 minute period when sex never even crossed my mind. No wonder I was depressed. Seriously though, I just had another 6 ounces of tea. I feel SO much better than I did yesterday. I really appreciate everyone's support... I really needed it.

He's local.. I'll definitely ask him on Monday... I was just curious. =) I will probably wait until he SEES them and gives me the "ok". I'm just really looking forward to it.

I just drank 6 ounces of tea!! And the sun is shining... ... inside and out.

There is one. drinks like that scare me, though. When I was in 6th grade, my parents put me on Optifast. The first morning I had a shake was a school day, and I almost missed the bus because it tasted so bad, and my mom forced me to drink it, through my tears. I gagged, then vomited, and she still made me finish it. Because of that, to this day, a chocolate shake can make me gag, unless it's a REALLY good one. (Nevermind SlimFast.. that's not even an option.) I know Jamba juice is different... I'll give it a try... as long as it's not chocolate flavored =) Any suggestions on something I can get there that's as far away from "slim fast/optifast" as you can get?

I'm with you, Leatha. I'd like to take advantage of this and just get off of the anti-depressant, and I probably will. My mood is much better today. And it's 2:00 PM and I haven't PB'd once. I had about 15 teaspoons of coffee earlier, and I'm on about my 20th teaspoon of beef broth right now, and I have NO pain in my chest. About the tea, do you have to buy it online, or do they sell it at the grocery store? I'll try it for sure. I wish I could drink fast enough to keep things warm. I'm gonna have to put a microwave on my desk soon =)

My doctor doesn't really put a time limit on it... he said it's just a matter of what you can handle and when you can handle it. On average, he said I should be able to go to mushy foods by week 3. I'm craving cottage cheese already =)

Well, dare I get truly hopefuly, and though my coffee is now cold (thank God for microwaves) I've had 12-13 teaspoons of it and although I feel pretty tight, nothing's coming up, and every now and then I can hear it gurgle down. Maybe things are turning around. Hey, since coffee is going down, do you guys think I could try some rib-eye now? Jonathan (Yes, that was a joke.)

I got the 10 cm/4cc band.

Can you describe to me what it felt like when you tried to sip it too fast, or what happened as a result? I'm taking this coffee very slowly, but I've had 6 or 7 teaspoons already.. easily twice what I've tolerated without pb'ing up to this point. I'm starting to feel tight in my chest, but I can "hear" something happening there, which I'm hoping is the liquid passing through the band... I'm starting to get a little hopeful... =)

No, no fill. Should be completely empty.

Thank you, I kept meaning to ask whether hot or cold was better. Think a heating pad might be useful too? I'm sipping coffee right now. So far 3 teaspoons and I'm not dying... there's hope yet...

Oh hell no! I can put up with this maybe another day... *maybe* another week. 4-6 weeks? No, that's not gonna happen. Even if I could handle it physically, I couldn't mentally. I'm gonna go try to drink a little Water and see what happens.. but I feel tighter today than ever.

I saw him yesterday. He said the only thing we can do is keep giving me saline when I need it and wait it out. I *could* go in the hospital, get my saline there, and they could give me steroids too to help reduce the swelling, and I might finally get some pain medication too, but since insurance won't pay for it, and I spent every last dime I had (and borrowed from my mom) for the surgery in the first place, I'm really afraid to. If I still can't keep anything down when I wake up tomorrow, I'll call him again and see if he has any other ideas...

It really is a phenominal achievment. Congratulations.

We're driving up to Dallas tonight. I go in tomorrow morning at 8:45 AM. I'll post again on Tuesday night, likely. Jonathan

He's called me every day. He says that if it persists, I'll have to come in and get rehydrated, but that he and everyone in his practice have had at least a few patients who take up to a week for the swelling to go down enough to get liquids down. He'd be happy to admit me to the hospital now and get me hydrated and run some steriods through me to help with the swelling, but I was self-pay, and I really can't afford it unless it's critical. So for now, I just have to wait it out. :-/

I still feel the same I had 3 teaspoons of chicken broth this morning, and it came up within 2 minutes. I'm miserable and I hurt. :clap: Even this shall pass...

There's an outpatient center in Richardson (Dallas suburb) where the doctors in the Austin office go to do self-pays, because it's $2000 cheaper than having it done in the hospital in Austin. So, as part of the package, they put you up in a hotel room for 2 nights in Dallas so you can recover some before driving home.