piercedqt78

We just had an early thanksgiving and I was ok with everything but the stuffing. I had a slice of dark meat turkey (it is more moist), cranberry orange sauce and some sweet potato casserole even had the nuts from the top and for dessert I had are you ready for this???? 1/4 slice of no bake cheesecake and I was done. My four year old ate more but I was satisfied and didn't go raid the fridge for almost 6 hours (dinner time). I had the same but a smaller slice of turkey to make room for a deviled egg. Yum and I passed on the dessert for the leftover round at dinner time. What did I skip? stuffing, rolls and ham (yuck!) There were no mashed potatos on the table as I am the only one that likes them and I just didn't bother. A good way to see what you will be able to have is to go to Boston Market and order a thanksgiging type meal. They have stuffing, turkey and all the fixins think of it as a preview of what you can or can't have. A good portion of their meals are healthy or at least healthier then other fast food places and it is pretty band friendly. ~Mandy

I think someone here mentioned once that if you get on all four like a dog and put your face near the floor it works wonders. Not much help if you are out but it does work to bring whatever it is back up quickly at home. I have tried it and it worked pretty well. ~Mandy

Ok my list is weird but here goes: Little Texas Reba Mcentire (sp?) Garth Brooks Areosmith (several times I LOVE STEVEN TYLER) Clint Black Rob Zombie (met him and Blaso (sp) outside of the venue and they are super cool) Powerman 5000 The last 3 years of Oz Fest (does working the concert count?) Allen Jackson Toby Keith (Makes my heart pitter patter) Jimmy Buffet several times (also have worked his shows) Coolio 2LiveCrew BackStreet Boys Sheryl Crow REO speedwagon (they are from my neighborhood) The bacon brothers (kevin bacon was super nice he walked around the fest and signed autographs and won a stuffed bear for my niece and signed it) Gary Senise and the Lt Dan Band Survivor Not a concert but saw Emeril Live in Chicago Keanu Reeves band (forgot their name he was a real jerk) That is all I can think of for now, if I remember more I will update. ~Mandy

I have a nephew that is getting ready to go to Iraq. I am both proud and scared for him. Thanks for posting and thanks for remembering what they do for us everyday. ~Mandy

I take a bag of pintos and soak them overnight in water. I rinse them well and make sure there are no rocks or dirts clumps in them. Then I put them in my crock pot and add water, about 1/2 full. (it was cover the beans and have about 2 inches of water on top of them.) I cook them on low for about 4 hours and then add more HOT water and bump it up to high for the last 2 hours. For those that like meat, I sometimes add turkey ham cubed in the last 1/2 hour. These are a southern style "soup beans" They are sill mostly whole but sorta have the flavor of refried without the fat. If you want them thicker you can take a wisk and "mash" about 1 cup of the beans and add them back to the pot in the last hour. The protien will thicken the whole pot. ~Mandy

I thought this pretty muched summed up my cats...

www.wlsfriends.com

I was told the same thing, anything smaller than an M&M. I still break tylenol in half and if it is early in the day I take liquid as my band is like an iron fist in the mornings. I just had my PCP call in amoxicillin in liquid form for an ear infection/upper respritory thing I have going on. The bottles are huge and the tech at walgreens looked at my like I was nuts for getting liquid, I explained to her about my surgery and she made a note in my file about pill size restriction. She also said that most meds are made in liquid form, but the script has to specify liquid, you can't just request it that way. ~Mandy

I think that your fears are normal and even healthy. I am sure we all had some fear in the weeks or days before surgery. I just had my 3 month post-op checkup and guess what? I have lost 44 pounds, that's right 44 pounds in just 3 1/2 months. I am wearing clothing that is 3 and 4 whole sizes smaller then I was in July. I tried on the overall shorts that I wore to a 4th of July party and I can put my whole body in one leg now. Was I affraid of surgery? You bet. Am I glad I did it? Yes, Yes, Yes!!! I wish I could scream it from the mountain tops, I LOVE MY BAND!!!!! Like others have said, most of the people here are still in their journey. Those that are at goal are out living life to the fullest. I have even noticed that as I progress, I am here less and less. I love lapbandtalk and the people here are really the greatest you will find, but I have spent a lot of years hiding in my home and sitting in front of a computer, because it did't judge me for being fat. Now I am out walking, enjoying my daughter at the park, and even helping out at the local grade school. Living the life that being fat made impossible. So you get your band, lose your weight and reclaim your life. In the mean time, we are here for support, friendship and a place to vent when you need too. ~Mandy

1) a live chicken for the eggs and when I am sick of eggs for the chicken 2) cheese (a really big block so it lasts a while) 3) propel (can't live without that even at home) 4) wheat thins gotta love em' 5) all beef slim jims 6) oatmeal cookies (store bought ones are fine with me) 7) food for the chicken (hey she is giving me eggs and eventually a nice chicken dinner) 8) water (an island is going to be surrounded by salt water) 9) turkey 10) mashed taters yum!

under bust: 35.5 Waist:39 Hips: 38.5 Weight:187.5

Ok my new name is Sloopy pottydunkin-chickenlips I am a modern woman with a hyphenated last name. My porn name?? Sasha Lyman cute huh? ~Mandy

I know ladysplenda uses mannatech and loves it, she has reccomended it to several people here. Maybe contact her? ~Mandy

Ok, I am just over 3 months post-op and I am suddenly having some issues with food. I seem to be having problems with everything I eat, but only the first few bites. The first few bites of everything I eat seems to get stuck or come back up, I know I am supposed to do liquids for a day and then resume food, but after the stuck feeling goes away or it comes back up I can eat a normal banded portion. Most of the time the food seems to stick almost in my throat not anywhere near my stomach. I am drinking a protien smoothis right now and I am going to have soup for dinner tonight. If this isn't better by lunch tomorrow I am calling my doctor. Oh and my whole family is sick right now. Maybe I am comming down with it too? Would that make all of this happen? My daughter has an ear infection and an upper respritory infection too. I am not too tight as I had my fill and then partial unfill over a month ago and all has been fine until now. I am on depo so it is not time for my monthly visitor, can't think of any other reason for these issuse. ~Mandy

Stress??? What's that?? My husband works on call 24/7 and I have a 4 year old that has trouble staying well, alleriges in the spring and summer and ear/upper respritory infections in the fall and winter. She also has food allergies. Things have been crazy around here lately, I didn't even think about the stress affecting my band, thanks, Parvathi, for reminding me that stress can be a factor. I am going to take a long hot bath and make myself some sugarfree hot chocolate. ~Mandy

When I did synvisc it was 3 injections, but the hyalgen was 5. I did synvisc 2 times and finished my 2nd round of hyalgen the week after my surgery. I found a pain management group that do the injections under sedation and they use a dye injection to make sure it gets 100% into the joint. It has really helped. I have also tried pain patches, they make one that is called lidoderm and it is non narcotic. I used them for 6 weeks while I waited to have the hyalgen approved and they really helped with the pain. Maybe there is an alternative to the celebrex? ~Mandy

My surgeon says anything the size of an m&m or smaller will go down fine. You do need to ask about the celebrex though, I was told no NSAIDS and I believe that falls into that catagory. I have severe Osteoarthritis in my left knee and have discovered that hyalgan injections have been a life saver, I also did synvisc injections but had a bad reaction to them. I am completly off all meds for pain and swelling and losing weight is also helping. Hope this helps~Mandy

My grocery bill has dropped by almost 1/3. There is far less junk food in the house, even my husband is taking healthier foods to eat at work. I don't buy soda or chips at all anymore and my daughter hasn't even ask for them. We replaced chips with wheat thins and popcorn from the air popper. We are drinking fresh brewed decaf tea and propel or low sugar powerade. My daughter is happier and less cranky and she is sleeping better. My husband will drink soda if we go out but not at home and he takes gatorade to work. My little one had a plum for dessert last night and has asked for another one with lunch today. I am amazed at how much money we used to spend on fast food and junk. It has been a really long time since Mcd's crossed my lips and I plan to make it even longer. My favorite fast food is chipotle or baja fresh and it is usually black beans and a little sour cream for lunch. Anyone else find that they are saving a ton of money on food? ~Mandy

The liquid diet is to help shrink the liver. From what I have read about 50% of surgeons require the liquid diet, mine did. You always have the option of finding a different surgeon. But, most of us have been on liquids and survived. I did it and I think it actually made the post op diet easier. After the third day on liquids I was no longer hungry. Then after surgery there was no hunger pain. I was on sugar-free liquids on top of just liquids. That was really hard for me as I am not able to tolerate sugar substitutes. If I have even a single packet of Equal I have a migraine for several days. I discovered the Propel was my best friend as was warm chicken broth, eaten out of a bowl with a spoon, I tricked my body into believing I was eating "real food". I also had egg drop soup with the eggs strained out, that was also a post-op staple for me. I was banded on July 28th and I am down over 40 pounds, I think the 10 days of liquids was well worth it and I am sure that one day you will look back and say the same thing. Best of luck in whatever you do. ~Mandy

I'm a 43, pretty right on the money. ~Mandy

Also most meds are made in liquid form. I asked my local family owned pharmacy to get some cold meds in liquid and they said no problem. They will be in next week. I ordered them so I would have them in case of an emergency. ~Mandy

I asked my band doctor about pills and he says as long as they are smaller than an M&M you are fine to take them, with lots of water of course. They will dissolve and go right down. Anything larger needs to be either broken in half or crushed. ~Mandy

I told him that I was doing the same thing as I was before the challenge. Only now I was telling others my results each week. I am working my band to the best of my ability regardless of a competition. I am just happy to have 24/7 support here, my docs office only meets once each month and it is 45 mins from my house. ~Mandy

We rock!! I told my doctor about the challenge today and he said that while he didn;t condone the "competive weightloss" he was glad that one of his patients was doing so well~Mandy

No problem, it only takes a second and I love to have a face with a post. I think I am losing my mind right along with the weight I am losing. I am soooo forgetful pictures help keep me straight. ~Mandy