giveyouthemoon

Just cuz you are doing the research....there is also a procedure called Vertical Gastrectomy. My dr's office is REALLY high on this procedure, a lot of people have had it......from my dr's website:

http://www.lapsf.com/vertical-gastrectomy-weight-loss-surgery.php

Okay so....I've been single for two years.....I've lost 70lbs....and I FINALLY found a man!!!! Whoop!! And yeah, the humping is purty darn goooooood.

lol!!! Or it could just be the fun of a new man.........

But I'm totally loving my band these days!!!

Personally I would *die* on this plan. Cereal is pretty much all carbs and my body would burn through that in seconds and be crying out for more!! To me solid meats work soooooo much better to keep me full!!

Oh yeah...and no way in hayull would Katrinka (my band) let cereal pass through. Nope...that kind of stuff is a huge no go for me....okay, maybe if it was super soaked in milk and super mushy....even then I'd be skeptical!!

I do try to go to my dr's monthly support meetings but it is mostly RNY and verticle gastrectomy patients and they are REALLY down on the band for some reason. So I usually end up leaving there dissatisfied. I echo the sentiment about the necessity of this board. I learned SOOOOO much more here for getting the band and living with the band than I ever did from my doctor!!!

I have this half used jar of marinara........from the first weekend I moved into this place. Yeah....that was almost two years ago. I keep telling myself to throw it out but I don't want that nastiness sitting in my garbage can stinking up the whole house. But every Tuesday (trash day) I keep forgetting to drop it in.

One day....maybe.......

:raises hand: Yup, me. I don't think it's anyone's business at ALL. I kept it a total secret. My family still doesn't know and I'm six months out. My best friend, my cousin who is my support, my sister. That's it. Oh, I just recently told the guy I'm dating who was curious about my scars. This was my decision, done for me. No one needs to know. It's none of their business.

OMG Margo, I'm so in touch with this! It happened to me in October. I was talking to a friend and without thinking *boop* I crossed my legs....and they stayed...and it was comfortable!

OMG being able to cross my legs was something I damn near cried about.

I flew on a plane right after Xmas and I was able to CROSS MY LEGS IN THE AIRPLANE SEAT! I almost passed out with joy.

It's kind of hokey to say....but when you have it, you'll know it. You'll eat a small amount and know you are done and not feel hungry for HOURS.

Hang in there, finding the right level of restriction is an art not a science. Just work with your doctor and you'll find it.

Also, for some of us, for whatever reason, it takes a while before a fill "kicks in". You just had a fill on the 15th. It may not be there yet. I think you'll see a difference with your next fill.

Hang in there.

No barium swallow for me. And I stayed overnight in the most BEAUTIFUL hospital room in San Francisco. The view out my window was like a postcard. The floor was a single occupant and had wood floors. The staff was AMAZING. I didn't want to leave. That hospital is really catering to the WLS people and doing a damn fine job of it.

And no barium. My doctors do that only in worrisome cases. Me, I recovered well, slept well that night and out the next morning.

I am doing liquids today and tomorrow to see if I can't get the old stoma to settle on down a bit.

Wow Sal, yeah, we're on the same page. Today my tummy is so upset and rumbly. It's NOT happy with me. Doing all liquids. The good news is that I just got a low carb cookbook over T'giving and it has a bunch of easy Soup recipes. Yay! I made the BEST black olive Soup today. And it's low carb!! I guess if I have to do liquids (*sigh*) I may as well do YUMMY liquids. But I sure will be happy when Katrinka (my band) settles her little self down.

Get thee to a doctor!!! It could be weight gain or weight loss or could be any number of scary things. Don't mess with it. GO SEE A DOCTOR!!!!

(end of tough love)

Fills are really something that depends on the person. Some people have lots tons of weight with no fill. Some people are all the way up almost to the max. It's all about working with your doctor to find out what works for you.

I'm at 1.2ccs personally. I'd gone up a little bit but was overfilled and miserable. So 1.2 works for me. I have a friend who still has none and she was banded after me and has lost more weight.

Oh yes. I also ate way too much over the holidays. I had a couple days where I was totally surprised at how much I was able to get down. Then the next day (New Year's Day) to be exact, I had THE WORST PB ever in my history. I was eating a Carl's JR Low Carb (lettuce wrapped) burger and my band DID NOT like it.

I guess the band is self regulating? I ate too much and then it gets uppity and makes it tough? Dunno. But I was on a road trip and ended up barfing in a crappy dirty gas station bathroom. Not my finest hour.

And now I can't seem to get through a day without PB'ing. I went back to mushies but that was a no go. So today I'm on liquids. *sigh*

The good news is that I didn't gain any weight. But I also haven't lost any this month....

So we're back on track right? Back on schedule. Back doing what I know is best for my band. I realize the "I can eat whatever I want just in smaller amounts" is SUCH a fallacy. I thrive when I eat the right foods in right amounts and exercise.

Well shoot.....I thought I had posted here but I guess it didn't work....hmmmmmm

AAAAANYHOW, Kare, I took my copy of your CD on a road trip. I hadn't had a chance to listen to it before. OH MY GOSH my best friend and I ROCKED OUT to your CD. It is SOOOOOOOO awesome.

My friend wanted a copy so I burned her one too.

I can hardly wait to get on my treadmill with these awesome tunes!!!!!!!

I got my check today too. I was TOTALLY skeptical about this....but dayum....fitty bucks here at Xmastime is awesome!!!!!!

casinocat74 look at your melt down this way.....we've all got to go through it....you just got there fast. Me, it took me a while before I got there. I was so excited about the band and into the new thing that I didn't think about what I was missing. That came later. And yeah, I melted down BIG TIME.

You have to go through this hon. You have to have moments of "OH MY GOD WHAT DID I DO??!?!?!?!" in order to get to the place where you are good.

Liquids is a tough time. We all had to do it. Gut up girl! You can do it and you'll be SOOOOO happy in the long run!!!! The band is worth it, it really is. Right now you just have to work on your own power. But that lasts only a little while.

Hey, I just discovered sugar free hot chocolate. That is comfort food if there ever was. Get you some. Heck get the real sugar kind!!!

The key to liquid phase is getting creative!!!! Hang in there and keep posting. Your LBT family is here for you!!!

I'm at 231 and my ring went from a 9 to a 7 already on my ring finger, left hand.

However, I tend to get pudgy little hands when I gain. You really have to figure it depending on your hands and yeah, use ring guards if it gets too big.

Okay...so do they really send you money? It seems like a lot of cash for a little effort....what's the catch I wonder?

Anyhow, I did the survey anyway. I figure that if I can help other potential band patients then it's worth it.

I had to drink a bottle of Magnesium Citrate which cleaned me out pretty good the night before surgery. I still had a lot of gas but I didn't have the shoulder pain. I actually attribute the lack of shoulder pain to all the walking I did. I walked and walked and walked in circles around the hospital floor. The nurses were really happy with how much I walked and I never once had pain in my shoulder. That is my number one advice to anyone getting banded. Force yourself to get up and walk, even after you come home from the hospital. It not only keeps the gas moving, it also helps your incisions from feeling tight.

I got mine today!!!! Kare thank you SOOOO much!!!!! I didn't think I made the first "cut" but I guess I did. YOU will be responsible for the next pounds I lose!!!

You rock girl, absolutely ROCK mah world!!!

Ok, do NOT feel bad about feeling bad. Right. I'll let you know I am the BIGGEST baby about pain and it seemed EVERYONE on this board was like "oh I was out running a marathon the next day". I was in absolute AGONY.

My sister....she came to take care of me.....she told me I was whiner than both her twin toddlers. And they are WHINY.

No worries about coughing up mucus. That is actually a GOOD thing. It's from being intubeated for the surgery and you HAVE to get that up. If it says in there you could get pneumonia so cough it out friend!!!

Remember the addage about pain meds. Make sure you are taking them BEFORE you are in pain. Stay ahead of it because once you get to a bad place it's hard to come back. And if you aren't taking your meds, by all means, TAKE THEM!!! Take the full dose. You heal better if you aren't in pain. It helps your mental outlook as well.

Expect to sleep a lot. Your body is healing.

And trust me...it gets SO much better. It took about a week for me until I felt I was going to live.

BIG HUGS FOR YOU!!!!! Fellow whiny babies unite!!!!!! I'm a baby and I'm proud of it!!!!!!

Well, so far the surgeon refuses to see me and referred me to Fisher, who also refuses to see me.

Hmmm....is it a sign? I'm jus' sayin'.......

Funniest Thread : the Bobalooey nicked nipple story

As far as me hooking up with all the HOT men, it's called Basic Instincts. I never leave the house without my pheromone cologne! NEVER.

Me neither girl! I simply adore that stuff! It's part of my daily routine, I hatw when I accidentally forget to put it on in the morning.......

And you are right....as much as anything, it makes *me* feel good.

And to quote something I read, a beautiful actor said "If a woman thinks she is sexy, then she is" So if I feel good then I am one Sex-ah beast!!! LOL!!!

is your boss avaliabe?? I should be avaliable sometime next year and will need to have my first date with someone...

HEY!!! I was here first!!! I'm available RIGHT NOW!! lol!!!!

So De....is he single???

(C'mon, a guy that hot? Of COURSE he's not single!!!)