Rae

:clap2: Congratulations on your surgery. It is great to see somebody else from Idaho. Good luck on your weightloss journey. I go to Boise quite often. Which part of Boise do you live?

HELLO IDAHOLOSER...........I am also in Burley. I was banded on May 31, 2005. I have lost 73 pounds. Where did you have your surgery? Welcome to LBT. RAE :clap2:

HI and welcome. I am also in Idaho. Where are you having your surgery? Where in Idaho are you? Good luck on your up coming surgery. RAE

I have stayed below 800 calories for 6 months now. I have never felt better. I get up earlier and do more each day than I have for a long time. I have 2 Protein Shakes a day, take my Vitamins and take my calcium citrate every day. My resriction is good. My first fill was .5 cc and the second one was also .5cc. I can only eat small meals but that is okay I feel full. No pbing or sliming because I stop when I start to feel full. I also drink at least 60 oz. of Water a day. My first goal was to be at 200 lbs. by christmas and I only have a couple of pounds to go to meet that goal. That means a 70 lb. loss since be banded 6 months ago yesterday. Crystal are you taking your vitamins and getting your Protein in every day? If you are too restricted to eat the protein then have a shake. Since you have not had a lot of restriction in the past try different ways to work with this restriction. I wish you lots of luck that it will work for you.

Welcome to LBT 1978tigger. It is nice to see more from Idaho. I am in Burley. Good luck on your surgery and let us know how you are doing. Where are you having your surgery and who is your doctor?

I am Boobie Chickenbutt.......nice to meet you all.

Each seminar is different. It is geared toward that particular surgeon and their requirements. It also gives you the opportunity to question that surgeon on his/her pre-op, post-op and any additional requirements and also you can learn about the after care provided.

Crystal, when are you dancing?? I am due for a trip to Poky. lol

Way to go Crystal !!!!! Congrats to you !!!!!

Great NSV for your DH,Crystal. I bet he is loving it too. And I bet you can not wait to see him also. Tell him "great job and keep up the good work."

Just say "That was a rude question!"

On the outskirts of a small town, there was a big, old pecan tree just inside the cemetery fence. One day, two boys filled up a bucketful of nuts and sat down by the tree, out of sight, and began dividing the nuts. "One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me," said one boy. Several dropped and rolled down toward the fence. Another boy came riding along the road on his bicycle. As he passed, he thought he heard voices from inside the cemetery. He slowed down to investigate. Sure enough, he heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me." He just knew what it was. He jumped back on his bike and rode off. Just around the bend he met an old man with a cane, hobbling along. "Come here quick," said the boy, "you won't believe what I heard! Satan and the Lord are down at the cemetery dividing up the souls." The man said, "Beat it kid, can't you see it's hard for me to walk." When the boy insisted though, the man hobbled to the cemetery. Standing by the fence they heard, "One for you, one for me. One for you, one for me..." The old man whispered, "Boy, you've been tellin' the truth. Let's see if we can see the Lord." Shaking with fear, they peered through the fence, yet were still unable to see anything. The old man and the boy gripped the wrought iron fence tighter and tighter as they tried to get a glimpse of the Lord. At last they heard, "One for you, one for me. That's all. Now let's go get those nuts by the fence and we'll be done." They say the old man made it back to town a full minute ahead of the boy on the bike.

I live in southern Idaho so all my testing was done through my PCP here, I am not sure how you do it if you live in Tacoma. There are a lot to tests but it is a breeze. In fact when I had my UGI they found a hiatal hernia that was fixed at the same time I was banded. I am not sure what you mean by practice diet before surgery but there is a clear liquid diet for 10 days prior to surgery. I was self pay so I did not have to deal with insurance at all. I went to the seminar in March and was banded at the end of May. But I had done a lot of research for about 2 years before I decided to have it done. Keep me up to date on how things are going for you. When are you going to the seminar?

HI........I was banded by Dr. Srikanth from the SWLC. Their meetings are very informational. They talk you through everything and answer ANY questions you have. They also are very helpful in helping you through the process. I am very happy I chose them. Ask if you have any more questions. And Good Luck

Ten--2 letter words...IF IT IS TO BE IT IS UP TO ME

I went to Washington because I was self pay and it was 7,000 cheaper and the doctor had done a lot more bands. He did the field trials for the FDA in the mid 90's. And the after care was much better than in Boise. Gas pain is from the gas they use during surgery to make more room inside you to see. not to worry it is totally normal. Sweet spot is when you get the right amount of fill to give you good restriction. I have had 2 fills so far and they did not hurt. Just a little ping and done. My port is on the left side across from my belly btton. I can feel it if I hold my hand over it other wise I do not know it is there. The purpose of the band is so it can be adjusted for each individual. No it is not filled during surgery, that is why it is called adjustable gastric band. Depends on the meds but yes you can take medicine, pills have to be small or crushed. You will be on liquids and then pureed and mushies for a while to help healing and then on to food. If they do not bring up the pros and cons ASK..if they still do not answer to your satisfaction...........find another doctor! Search this board for answers to your questions also. Email me if you have more questions.

Welcome to LBT. I am in Burley. Keep us up todate on how you are doing.

1. What is your name? Ralene 2. What color shirt are you wearing? white 3. What are you listening to right now? police scanner 4. What was the last thing you ate? Protein shake 5. Do you wish on stars? Yes 6. If you were a crayon, what color would you be? blue 7. How is the weather right now? raining 8. Last person you spoke to on the phone? son 9. Favorite Sport?poker 10. Favorite drink? white russian 11. hair color? blonde and grey 12. Eye color? green green 13. Siblings?3 sisters, 2 brothers 14. Favorite month? October 15. Favorite food? chinese 16. What was the last movie you saw? killer jellyfish 17. Favorite day of the year! last day of harvest 18. What do you do to vent anger? rant and rave 19. What was your favorite toy as a child? bicycle 20. Summer or winter? winter 21. Hugs or Kisses? Hugs 22. Favorite ice cream flavor? peaches and cream 23. Restaurants or home cooking? Any cooking but mine 24. Will everyone care enough to respond? Sure 25. When was the last time you cried? 26. What is under your bed? nothing 27. How long have you been a member of Lapband Talk? I'll have to check 28. What did you do last night? went to bed 29. What are you afraid of? fire 30. Favorite car? avalanche 31. Favorite flower? carnation 32. How many keys on your ring? 1 33. How long have you been at your current job? started farming in 1970 34. Favorite day of the week? Sunday 35. What did you do on your birthday? kids all came home and we went out to eat 36. How many states have you lived in? 2 37.How many cities/towns have you lived in? 2 38. What is your favorite form of exercise? walking 39.Your favorite store for bargains? overstock.com 40. Wasn't this fun? well? 41. Do you have children? 3 boys and 3 girls

You are doing great!! Keep up the good work.

A loss is a loss. Take it as a compliment from you band. You have been working hard, so be happy.

My doctor is in Tacoma, WA. My Mom is 74 and over 400 pounds. He said he would run a bunch of tests on her and if everything was okay, he would have no problem banding her. Surgical Weight Loss Clinic phone # 253-472-9850 and talk to Dr. Fox.

Crystal, how much protein are you getting a day? How much more restriction do you have now verses before your last fill? Rae

This is a time for healing, most fills are not until about 6 weeks out. You will not have restriction just follow the after diet you doctor recommends. Good Luck

Same as RisibleGirl.

Congratulations Crystal. Keep it up. You know the band works in mysterious ways.