Elaine The Great!

The sad thing about Michael Vick is that he is will be back dancing in eht end zone on Monday Night Football football next year, if not sooner. The NFL made a lot of noise about this because of all of the bad press their gangsta superstars are getting lately. They made a bigger issue out of the dog fighting than they did about the permanently paralized bouncer in Vegas. I'd be really surprised if they actually banned any of them for life.

Thanks green! I'll be seeing you around, I'm sure. Elaine

I will get some tomorrow! I can't STAND sweet stuff and that vanilla whey Protein almost makes me gag. I've tried everything. Being able to add it to everything will make like so much simpler! Thank you!!! Elaine

It's now day 9 and I feel worlds better! I'm hungry now though. The creamy liquids are more satisfying but don't stay with me long. I've read through several other threads about that and it appears that others don't limit themselves to the portions. I've only been doing about six oz at a time but others are consuming as much as they want. I'm not sure what the right thing to do is... Cream of chicken and Herb Soup is the best so far. My daughter just brought me some broccoli & cheese soup that I'm sure will be very satisfactory! Most of my discomfort is gone, I'm sleeping on my stomach already, and I'm enjoying this three day weekend of rest. Hope I can stick to liquids a whole 'nother week! Elaine

I absolutely agree with Zannie doing everything in her power to save her marriage. Nobody knows better than I the despair of losing the man you love to another woman, be she a whore, a screaming bitch, or a mother with 4 kids who changed her mind and wants her husband back (as was my case). My point was that in the 9 months of heartbreak and despair it took me to get over being left for another woman, I had many moments of selfish spiteful get-even-pleasure plotting my revenge against the screaming bitch he left me for. I never acted out on any of them, for I, too, always choose the high road. But never underestimate the healing power of knowing that you could, if you wanted to, cause disruption and chaos if you really wanted to. I have and always will refer to the other woman as the "screaming bitch" even though the rational part of me knows that she is much more than that. I choose to hate her; it makes me feel better. She is the enemy. To this day, she has screaming fits every time someone mentions my name in her presence. She is persona non grata with mutual friends, they prefer me to her and I get immense childish immature pleasure from it. But at the end of the day, he chose her and the kids over me. Let me clarify that I was not then nor will I ever be the other woman in that relationship. They had been separated for months when we got together. She was relentless and never gave us a moment's peace and in the end, he went home. Her main problem was that it was ME, someone she has always felt threatened by because he told her once that he has been in love with me since we were teenagers and I never gave him the time of day. Then when they broke up, we got together and she went balistic and began her campaign to get him back. I will never again underestimate the power a woman has to manipulate a man. I've seen it first hand. The "whore" is obviously unbalanced and I believe that in the end, Zannie's husband will reach his breaking point and be done with her. My advice to Zannie is to stick with what she's doing; be rational, set boundaries, don't wheedle, whine, threaten, cry, beg, or bargain. Showing him that she is still his best friend will have far more lasting impact than the whore bringing her estranged husband to beat up the brother in law did. And I still think the restraining order is a splendid idea. I will now bow out of this thread; just wanted to put my two cents in... Elaine

I am now on day 8 post surgery and I am feeling a lot better. Still tire out by the end of the day, but I feel a helluva lot better than I did last week! Today was the first day I really got hungry. Had some mashed potatoes, some cream soup, a popsicle and a Jello, all sugar free of course. Oh and I had the dreaded shake this morning. My sister went to GNC and got me one of the Protein drinks, I forget the name, but I'll be having that this evening. The soup was great. Can't believe Im here talking about eating! Wow... what a change. I should be at some bar somewhere drinking and smoking and flirting! WOW! Can't wait to get back out there and show off the new me! Elaine

Hi everybody, I'm new here. Just banded on 8/24 and still adjusting to the changes happening and those to come. I've been exploring this forum and found myself here this morning. I took my time and read all of the posts related to Zannie's happenings and I must say, I am amazed that there are others (especially you green) who think like me. I've never been married; been the other woman a time or two (ok..or three or four...), has some crazy romances, good and bad, and haved't given much thought to being cheated on until last year. My ex (a friend since 7th grade who finally left his wife and I finally said yes) cheated with his ex after a year of living together and left me to go back to the screaming bitch "for the kids". Right. Anyway, I just had to chime in and say I perfectly understand Zannie wanting to save her marriage. I understand forgiving the cheater. I don't agree with him still being in contact with the "whore", as she has been tagged, but I do understand the concept of it not being the end of the world to be cheated on. I know couples who have come out of it stronger and more committed to each other than ever. I do think that Zannie should plot her revenge, because no matter what anybody says, there really is nothing sweeter. I have mastered the art of getting even and am a firm believer in the saying, "revenge, my dear, is a dish best served cold". Let them think you're over it. Let them get on with their lives thinking they've gotten the best of you and then WHAM! right when they least expect it, something that only you can do. For Lannie, she should start with the restraining order. As for the laptop going on vacation, I'd hide the power cord as soon as we got there. Put it in the vacuum cleaner bag. Wish I could have told her before she left! Looking forward to getting to know you all. I have stories for days. I like knowing that the support is here, but to tell the truth, I don't want to obsess about this band thing and let it become my life. I want it to be the thing that opens the doors to new things IN my life... Life for me is never dull, even at a solid 304 lbs. (294 on day of surgery!) Men, sex, fun, excitement, I have all of that, I just wanted to do this for me. Ok...yeah, I want better men, better sex, better fun and better excitement! Sorry... This is about Zannie. Can't wait til she gets back!This is good stuff...! Elaine

Hey....my ticker didn't work!

No shoulder pain today... just tired. I feel for you being a teacher! Two of my best friends are teachers. Going through summer withdrawals! I think it's funny. I have to work all year long; they're not getting any sympathy out of me! I finally broke down and made my protein shake. I just wanna go home and lay down!

I'm still here... came back to work Wednesday and it was awful. I left at 3:00 and went home and crashed. Lortab to the rescue. Yesterday was better but had to go to a funeral so didn't get home til 9:00. Gas pains in shoulder were hard but I dosed myself, had a popsicle and went to bed. I'm really tired today. Still not hungry but getting a headache so I'm going to have a shake in a bit. Had some skim milk this morning, water, and nothing else yet. Still a little bloated but a lot of the swelling has gone down. Was looking at before and after photos which made me feel better. I'm just really tired today. Work is quiet; only have a few things to finish up. Looking forward to a long restful weekend! Next weekend we are going out of town for a dollmaking class and a night in the hill country for my sister's birthday.

Centrum chewables (orange) and a Calcium chewable that's like little caramels. They're both good! The bloating I had has subsided a lot. I'm getting mild burp pains, but other than that, I'm good. I feel so much better today! I still feel the gas moving around but the shoulder pain is gone. I can lay on my sides now without feeling any pain. I'm usually a fast healer... I'm going to try to stick to the liquids for two weeks and then go to mushy stage. My sister was in the mushy stage after a few days but I want to do what my doc says. I need to get the Protein for sure because I don't want my hair to start falling out! The broths are soothing and satisfy me for now so I'm going to keep drinking them. And I'll force myself to have the Protein shakes. UGH! I'm going to get them over with first thing in the morning. Oh well! I'm going to do whatever it takes to make this work! Elaine

Thanks! I'll try. I'm loving the broths right now. My sister got her band in April and she kept telling me how nasty the broths were but I love them! Much better than the sweet stuff!

I'm SO ready to lose weight! I'm not hungry at all yet. I'm sipping on liquids and that's enough. I'm doing one shake a day; that's all of that I can stand for now.The powder is so sweet and I am NOT a sweets person. I got the vanilla flavor and adding sugar free Nestle's Quik helps but it's still sweet. I'm going to have to figure out another way to get in the Protein, because I will not be able to drink that sweet crap all day! Any suggestions? Elaine

I was banded 8/24. After I woke up from anesthesia, I had abdominal pain that was treated with IV pain meds. I was given ice chips when I was ready and gradually became more alert. The pain meds helped and I was walked to the restroom to empty my bladder. No problem there but two others who had surgery that morning couldn't void and were catheterized. I was moved to a recliner and given some ice chips to chew on. About an hour later, doctor Hollis came by and told me I could go home. My sister drove me home and we stopped by the pharmacy on the way to get my pain meds. Took the meds and went to bed when i got home. Woke up off and on and moving around was uncomfortable but tolerable. I just kept taking the meds every four hours. The gas was the most painful, the gas that they extend your abdomen with so they have room to work. I'm now on day four and I feel much better. None of it was unbearable; I made sure to stay medicated to avoid that. I have no pain tolerance. I will be returning to work tomorrow. I have a desk job and I don't expect any difficulties. The walk from parking to desk is going to be the challenge; it's a long walk. I will post tomorrow with how that goes... Elaine

I feel much better today. Glad to hear that you are also on the two week liquid diet. I manage one small Protein shake a day and then sip liquids continually after. I started Vitamins yesterday and I feel fine. Others have been encouraging me to start thicker liquids but it's only day four and I don't want anything yet. I'm not hungry, I feel fine! I'm healing and waiting for the rest of the swelling to go down. Like I told my Mom Sunday, I've had hangovers worse than this! I just need to live through it. Juices, Water, & crystal lite tea are enough for for me for now. I'm going to go back to work tomorrow. Today was the day I said I would go back but I wasn't ready. Tomorrow I will be.. I will let you all know how that goes... Thank GOD I work with a great group of people. They are not rushing me or pressuring me at all. I keep calling to make sure everything is going ok and they tell me to quit calling! Elaine Banded 8/24/07 Top wt. 304 Surgery wt. 294 lbs.

I'm new here...glad I found you all! I feel fine, staying medicated on the Lortab and resting. Trying to get in enough fluids but I'm still sore and have no appetite. Haven't experienced any lightheadedness or anything like that. I'm supposed to go back to work tomorrow but not sure if I'll be ready. I'm still very sore and it's a 30 mile drive each way. Hiccups hurt like hell! LOL! All in all, I think I'm doing well. I really didn't expect this much discomfort but I'm managing with the Lortab... My sister had the band in April so she's good support for me. I'm still not sure what I'm supposed to eat or drink but the liquids are fine for now... Elaine