vinesqueen

I only watched one episode, but I'm not a huge fan of reality shows. I do, however, LOVE ballroom dancing. I'm hoping that this show will be monsterously popular, spawning a whole new ballroom dance craze. I just can never get that time change right for the fox trot, just can't do it.

Hey Mvpo, I haven't really had any tests yet, they did one test, but according to what I've read, and what my aunt said (she's a doctor) they did the test wrong, so I'm not being treated in any way for the Cushings yet. I didn't know that weight gain was one of the primary, but I"m still learning about it. Not much that I've found, other than one support board that isn't like LBT, and a few other sites that just rehash the NIH site information, or quote it directly. I think being able to maintain any thing has been amazing.

This is one of the things I got for my birthday. Something I did for myself. Because I've had so many different health issues, I felt that I needed something really strong for healing. I'm on several prayer lists, (thanks everyone!) and even though I'm a Pagan, I welcome the prayers from all my friends who are soemthing else, and the well wishes from those that are athiests. All are equally powerful, and all are equally welcome. This is located at my third chakra, solarplexes but on my back. The blue is the color of love, the healing color, red for the physical healing I need, yellow for rational thought and because it is the color for the chakra. So anyway, I decided that I shouldn't actually wait until I was 80 to get my first tattoo, I figured 44 was good enough. Oh, and could a Moderator please resize this bad girl? Thanks Donali!

I've given up coffee several times. It was sort of funny, when ever I would forget that I'd given it up, I would always spill the cup, knock it right over. Interesting that.

Ah, see, I don't view this as a diet, the band is not a diet, it is a lifestyle change, as far as I'm concerned. I too believed that if I worked this hard enough, that I would be one with stellar weight loss, because I worked the hell out of my band. Which is why it didn't make sense. I know my fellow Turtles are also working the hell out of their bands too, and I just want to give a voice. I want us to use our collective strength to find answers. To not just view this as yet another failed diet gimic, because there has to be a reason. Which is why I'm putting out this Call to Action!

Nykee, my dear, you have come such a far way! I remember your early posts where you were in so much heart ache, wondering if you had done the right thing, wondering if you could do the right thing. You have come so very far! We are all so very proud of you, not just for the weight you have lost, but for the amazing ability to change your lifestyle. I am so proud of you. Well done Nykee!

Wheetsin, I think if you were NOT worried I'd be worried. You are about to embark on an entirely new lifestyle that no one can prepair you for until you actually experinece. I think it must be the same way for astronauts. They have read everything they could get their hands on, they talked with other people who've been to outerspace, but until they actually go, they can't grok the experince. And that's sort of what banding takes, you cannot grok it until you do it.

I've lost two sizes at most. I was in 22/24 and now I'm in 20/22. I use a belt for my jeans, so that's a bonus. I've lost a lot from my legs and arms, all my pants now look like I'm wearing clown pants becaue there is so much room in the butt and thighs, but my waist hasn't changed that much. I've lost something like 6 inches off my bust and 8 inches off my hips, but only 4 inches off my belly. I have amazing muscle definition to my legs and arms (especially my forearms), but I'm still amazingly fat through the trunk. It's one of the signs/symptoms of Cushing's. I was also stuffing myself into cloths that were too small, so I had that oh-so attractive Michilan Man look. Very sexy...

Hi Kelli, yup, I really am doing the deal. And certianly no offense taken! It doesn't make sense, on any level. Logically if you consume more calories than you expend, you would gain weight. If you expend more than you consume, you would lose weight. " If you were to burn 500 calories more than you consume each day, you would lose approximately one pound each week" http://www.caloriesperhour.com/faqs_pound.html That would seem to be a law of mass convertion or something. But I guess I'm living outside the law... Yes, I have done my utmost to be a model banster, and I have worked my band as hard as I can. But I don't lose weight. I've tried everything to try to lose weight. I was too tight for a month but refulesed to so any soft food, it wasn't until finals week that I started to add a can of Atkin's protien drink. I lost 1.5 pounds that month, and when I went back to 1000 - 1200 calories I gained 10 pounds. I'm not sure exactly what you are asking, other than saying my story doesn't make sense? You are absolutely right, it doesn't make sense. That's why it has taken so long for it to get diagnosed. I have been diagnosed with Cushing's and now comes the long testing process of determining the treatment.

Yay! Double Woot!

265 pounds, 11 months 2 weeks, 5%, 120 minutes, 5 fills & 2 unfills, no diet drugs, caucasian, 32 pounds lost.

Well, I'm a year out, shy a couple of weeks, and I still wear everything I wore pre-op. Man, I sure am whiney today.

Kellie, I've watched my older sister quit and quit and quit. My other sibs have no intention of ever quiting, but I've watched her struggle. They say quitting nicotine is harder that kicking any other drug, and from the struggles I've seen, I sort of have to believe it. I wish I had something sage to tell you, but all i can offer is support from afar. If my sister can finally manage to quit, if my mother could quit chain smoking, I know you can too. I know that you are motivated and you can do this.

Hey Gang! I'll be home for Spring Break, March 10 - 17, and would LOVE to get together. I live in Bellevue when I come home, so I'm hopeful that we can meet at the usual Starbucks or somewhere else...

I'll have to second the NWWLS clinic, and everything else that MollyMolly said!

No, this is the first time I've heard of it. I'll still be in SE ID, but I'll be there in Spirit!

Ah, you posted under the TN forum. That would explain some things. Personally, I only visit the Idaho and Washington threads, since I figure I might find something local to me. So sorry you were freaked out, I can see how that would have been a bit of a shocker. But Blossom is the only bandster I can think of who's died, and she died in an accident when her tractor rolled. I know that many boards have memorial pages or even entire forums dedicated to memorials for members who've passed on. The most we have at LBT is several beloved pets that have passed on. I think the only way to get noticed is to scream and shout. Thanks for shouting Dody. We cannot know what people need unless they tell us. I don't ever expect my husband to be a mind reader, no "if you loved me you would know what was wrong" BS games. Thank you for telling us what you needed and what you need.

I order off the kids menu quite frequenly. And I"m never embarrased about it. Good for you! excellent work.

Okay, I thought I was just weird, since I swear I can feel my band. You have severe heart or lung disease that makes you a poor candidate for surgery. Okay, I had severe lung disease that made me a poor candidate for any sort of surgery, or even life. I was hauled off the the ER by ambulance with a really bad asthma attack days before I was banded, which is exactly why my surgeon went through and banded me. Because I was dieing anyway.

Paula, I'm shocked SHOCKED I tell ya! But yeah, make the DH responsible for the damned dog...

Okay, has anyone had any luck yet? Has anyone taken action, or is it still in the planning stage? I know that standing up to authority figures can be really daunting, since they are the experts, right? Well, I'm the expert on my body, they aren't. They are like skilled mechanics, who know how to tune your expensive sports car, but they dont' know how you handle. So, I see a real Endo doc in two weeks to discuss my Cushings. My DH finally did the research I wanted him to do, and he's amazed at the number of symptoms I have. Hell, I'm amazed at the number of symptoms. Anyway, I'm not crying about it. I'm taking action and not accepting the way things are. So, we all paid a lot of time and money for our bands, even if insurance paid the bills, we paid them too in different currency. We have put a lot of energy into working out bands, and they still do not function for us the same as they do for the Normies or the damn Rabbits. Again I call for the Turtle Tribe to Action! To Action! Courage and Strength my beloved Tribe!

Woot! Congrats on such a great NSV!

P'nut, not all RNY is done where they cut away and remove the stomach or part of the intestines. Some RNY procedures are done where part of the stomach is walled off, sometimes by cutting it and sewing it back together so it maintains integrity. Also, the blood supply is left intact so the walled off bits will survive inside just fine. Some RNY procedures are done where they cut and remove, but not all of them. If they are cut and removed then they can't really be reversed. I wonder how many of your patients who do not lose with the band have Cushing's syndrom or Cusshing's disease, or if not some form of Cushing's, what they are calling "metabolic syndrom X." After being banded for, what, 8 months, and not losing, I went to my PCP who didn't have a clue why I wasn't losing and suggested thyroid medication, which hasn't helped with my weight loss, but I'm not completely exhausted all the time. Since that didn't do the trick I went to see an internist who diagnosed me with Cushing's. I'm currently in the beginning stages of that battery of tests. I know that I and many of my Turtle Tribe are doing everything we can to lose weight but we simply are not successful. We work really hard and see little or no results. I spent a month at 700 calories or less and lost a whopping 1.5 pounds that month, which was only slightly better than I've done at 1600, 1200 or 1000 calories a day. So Dr. P., of the people you have converted to RNY from the band, how many did you send for metabolic testing before you converted them? Did it even occur to you to do metabolic testing? If not, why not? Will you consider having people tested in the future for metabolic issues,? if not, why not? I know that Cushing's is rare, with something like 15 ot 25 out of a million people, but psudo-Cushing's is a tiny bit more common. (I'm sure that comes off sounding accusitory, which it is not, nor is it my intention to pick a fight. I understand the limitations of text, and I appoligise if it comes off with me being a jerk.)

different people feel "full" different ways. Some of us get a head signal that we are "full," while other people get a variety of "soft stop" signs such a burping, hicuping, running noses, and a whole bunch of different signals. I think just about for every bandster there is a different way for us to know. Don't every expect to have that stuffed to the gills feeling, like many people experience after gorging after a feast like Thanksgiving. But you might be surprised to learn that you no longer want that sort of feeling either. Satity is a new concept for many of us, and it takes a while for us to understand what that truely means. Cheers!

I wouldn't have had anyother WLS either. I'm really glad I didn't have any of the malaborptive things like the RNY, DS, etc., because as it turns out, I probably wouldn't have lost with any of those techniques either. I was diagnosed with Cushing's so until I get that resolved I won't be loseing much weight if any more at all. So, that's my story. I'm completely disatisfied with my weight loss. I'm almost a year out and have lost about 25-30 pounds. But I'm completely happy with my band, because I feel like I would have died from my co-morbidities.