ReneBean

They want to be sure you aren't going to get all freaked out when you lose the weight and do something self destructive. That can range from eating to the point of pain/slippage to suidcide. Or - to simply eating around the band. They just want to be sure that putting the band in won't cause more problems than it solves. If you can't handle the changes in the way you eat and live - then they really shouldn't put a band in. Let's face it - if we didn't have some food vs emotion issues, we probably would never have gotten to the point where we needed the band. It wouldn't be so horrible for us all to have 3 mos of counselling - but I wouldn't want to have to wait for that to get my band done. :]

Great NSV's - both the swimming in the jeans and the mouths of babes. Plus - the flirting from the loan officer! Wow - THREE NSV's in one post! You Rock!

So many "last straws" that it is hard to count. ... 1) Being diagnosed with Venous Stasis - basically and old fat ladies disease. 2) Hitting the highest size in the clothing stores - 5x - 32/34 and having a hard time finding clothes that fit, even then... 3) Being passed over for promotion for someone younger and thinner. 4) Waking up and having to stagger from the pain in my feet and ankles every day. And more. Let's not even talk about airplanes and car seatbelts that just barely squeezed over my belly...just daily life being the size of two lumberjacks.... From 348 to 295 doesn't seem like much - but it's LIGHT YEARS in difference of quality of life. Now I am only the size of 2 normal women... I can't wait for 195... :]

Great for you!!! I finally AM eligible for Lap Band - according to my insurance, your BMI has to be under 50. I now have a BMI of 49 down from 59. :]

I had an NSV of sorts... went to my sisters for dinner. I had what to ME was a huge amount of food - a nearly full plate. I looked over at my Sister when she sat down and her plate was HEAPED with food - I mean stuff sliding off the plate full. I guess I had a pretty horrified expression - cause DS started justifying the food. I just laughed and said there was NO WAY I could eat that much. I couldn't even come close to finishing my nearly full plate. It just goes to show how our perceptions change. Last year I was right there with my Sis and that heaped plate. :]

Oooo, ME!! ME!! I will babysit... I promise, the kids will survive... :] Somehow, I don't think you will have any problem finding tons of willing sitters... and people that won't judge you, either. Good luck with your surgery!

Bonding is good. Those who play together, stay together. :]

So long as you don't have really tight restriction - a small pill should work. Anything bigger than a tylenol caplet, I break in half. Just don't do that with a time release med without consulting your pharmacist. They will tell you if crushing or cutting a pill could harm you... Good luck!

Congrats, Gigi and Girlin! You'll do great. If the urge to eat get's strong - just think of trying on bikinis in june.... it works. :]

**I found Unjury to be particularly nasty. You might try Six Star. You can get it at Walmart... Good luck!

I told everybody that I was going to be a Pop Star when I was done... I was going to go by the stage name Char pei... (sp)

*Sigh* The truth shall set you free - from the ability to get a band~! Gosh - I guess you should have set your mind back about 2 mos and answered as if you were still smoking! Find another doc, if you can - or rattle the brains of the one you saw. I am not sure that I would link him to this rant... Ranting and Raving is usually NOT considered sane... even though sometimes it is all that keeps us that way! Good luck!!

No problems with the metal detector - but I will second the tight band thing. I never try to eat anything ON the plane and I am very careful for the rest of the day after flying. Definitly eat BEFORE you fly, especially if your restriction is tight to begin with. :]

Happy Holidays.... Happy Holidays.... While the merry bells keep ringing, may your every wish come true... Well - the Day has passed and all that remains is the rubble - and the love. (and the spinach dip, and the pie... *sigh*) My house looks like a band of elves wrapped a thousand presents in my living room... I guess I will have to get it all back into some semblance of order tonight. All I have done since Friday Night is EAT. We went to the Clay Pit with my S&BIL on Friday - it was awesomely good and I ate like a little pig. Saturday, it was all the candy and junk that my family sent as gifts. I don't think chocolate covered peanuts or coconut stacks are rife with nutrition... but that is pretty much what I ate all day. Sunday was more of the same - thank goodness most of that is gone... I thought I was going to be "Leftover Free" at my house - but my DS sent me home with turkey and stuffing and all the fixin's - including spinach dip, fudge and lemon bars. Mind you, I ate enough food for three bandsters yesterday - just one continuous snack all darned day! I suppose I will be able to pace myself on the leftovers....after they are all gone! I guess I am going to have to get my petute back in for a fill - because after my little bout with the UT infection, I have almost no restriction. I guess all of the weight that I lost was from under my band.... either that or I have eaten so much that I have pouch dilation. I REALLY hope it isn't that - but I can't discount the possibility. And of course - not surprisingly - the scale is having it's own little party and laughing at me. I guess I had better get to work on my standing New Year's resolution a little early this year.... I will have to eliptical that fat into submission. I am done with the antibiotics - that will help some. Those things do HORRIBLE things to me. If they didn't do what they were supposed to do, I would never take them again... *sigh*. Now I guess I have no more excuses not to go to the gym. The holidays are over, the illness has passed - and I just have to drag my fat @$$ back to the gym. I am somewhat inspired in that one of my co-workers is having a band put in tomorrow. I get the benefit of her new inspiration. Plus, I am going to have to present an appropriate example for her, I suppose. In a way, I am jealous - cause she is starting at such a low number. She is incredibly lucky that she doesn't have to wait for another ten years and another hundred pounds to be able to get this done. But I am very happy for her and she is such a cutie that I can't REALLY be jealous for long. Darcy - nothing prettier than Christmas lights in the snow! That's the only sad part about living in TX. No snow - and never at Christmas. Mandy - congrats on the washer! Did you get all your laundry done? I well recall that whole laundrymat thing. *shudder* So glad you don't have to do that anymore. Wish you were new for New Year's, too. Maybe someday we can all meet up somewhere in the middle. :] Can't wait to see the pics of the size 12's! Cindy - glad to hear you are not too traumatized by your retirement. Somehow I knew you wouldn't have time to lounge around eating bon bons... :] And CLEARLY you have avoided the BonBons sucessfully! Wow! 80 Pounds!! You ROCK!!! So, your ring is gorgeous! Did you stay in budget for DH? What a guy - Diamonds. I guess one of these years you are going to have to get him a car or something... :] Love the pics! NatesMom - anytime you stop in is a treat! Congrats on the 70 lbs!!! Woo Hoo - you rock! Eileenie - I actually was talking about the ANIMATED version of the Grinch. LOL! I haven't seen the Jim Carey masterpiece - but I will be SURE to catch the uncut version when I do. :] Oh - and I have been a tragic victim of CRAFT disease for years now! I am thinking good thoughts for your FIL. Hugs! Geez - if we all ran our businesses as badly as the hospitals and Airlines do, we would all be out of business. Why aren't they? There is just something WRONG with that, isn't there? *sigh* Jules - Quit yer lurking, me girlie... come and play with us! Did you serve dinner at a shelter? How did that go? Chris - How was your feast? Hope you had the best possible Christmas! Hugs! Sherry - Hugs!! Hope you had the best Christmas, ever! I surely didn't like the sound of that alarm this morning... Ugh. I say we should all have the whole week between Christmas and New Year's off, don't you? Kat - Hugs!! I know you are taking care of that DH and I hope you are enjoying the best Holiday Season, ever. Betty - Love you too, hon! Glad to hear you had a relaxing time. Nobody needs it more than you!! Oh - and thanks for spitting on all the cookies and stuff. I know I would have eaten them, otherwise. :] Mary - Hugs!! Back at ya, Doll. I hope you had the best Christmas ever. Hug the boys for me. Pat - Hugs!!! We miss you. Hope you can come and play with us again, soon. Well, my Darlings - Another year is coming to a close and we are all a little lighter and a little wiser. I wish it was a LOT wiser - but, hey - I am doing the best that I can.... Thankfully, I have all of you to help me. I can't tell y'all enough how much it means to know you.... I have learned one important thing in life. You can just NEVER have too much love. Hugs and Love!! Irene.

Darcy PRETTY!! That is the hardest part of Christmas, isn't it? Putting it all away... it's kinda sad. :]

And what's so wrong about being Vain? Everybody cares about how they look. Why shouldn't you? Hugs!! Keep your eye on the prize.... :]

Congrats!! Those are all GREAT NSV's. :]

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! TGIF!!!!! I am with Betty - wishing my life away - at least the next four hours or so..... I am more than ready for the Christmas Weekend. I have only the gifts for my Sister's family to wrap and then I am DONE. I have all the other miscelaneous items signed, sealed and delivered. Tonight - we are taking the S & BIL out for dinner - since they have been feeding us delicious curry for weeks, now. After that - I have two glorious days with my darling DH. We have both been sick and are now feeling better so we are going for some serious quality time. :guess I don't plan on too much stuff like "wearing clothes" or "leaving the house" this weekend. I guess I will have to rouse myself enough to shower and dress for Christmas Day...since I am going to my Sister's house and I don't want to scare the children. Patty, Love - I hope you got all your craziness packed up and in the car to go to your Mom's. Hugs!! I hope you get a minute or two of peace this weekend. Don't fret over the letter thing. I warned you - they need you to harass them.... Just start calling every 10 minutes after you get back from your Mom's. xo Chris - What?!? You cook for Thanksgiving AND Christmas??!?! I want to be related to YOU. :] Eileenie - you can't see that Grinch too many times. It's like "It's a Wonderful Life" Mandatory. Betty - xo - I am just not going to worry too much about the sugar intake for the next few days. I know my Sister baked all her gifts this year.... she said something about Lemon Bars... and I have more than a small weakness for Lemon Bars... *sigh* Mary - It sounds like you guys are taking advantage of your snowy weather. I haven't played in the snow for like a hundred years... or at least 25...I think I was in high school the last time.... Congrats on the complete LACK of an Asthma attack! What a great NSV! Well - to all of you that have posted and to all of you that haven't... MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!! May your Holiday be as bright as the star that shone that night so long ago. Love and Hugs!

My MIL was from the south, too. It really is true - that woman would practically force feed not just me, but EVERYONE who walked into her house. You practically had to slap her to get her to stop offering food... And she did it at all hours of the day. 2 am? She would cook anything you wanted - and anything different that my husband might want... Stay tough - it's only a week... And even if you succumb once or twice - it's only a week. You will survive it in the long run. Hugs!!

Hey - at a buffet - there is no "cost of wasted food" cause it's the same price no matter what you eat. If you go to a restaurant and can't order a small portion and you don't want to take it as leftovers - you just get used to it over time.... some food is going to be thrown away. As a dieting ploy in years gone by - I used to struggle to force myself to leave at least one bite on the plate.... Now, I just get over the fact that sometimes I leave half a plate behind. It's only money. It can't compare to the value on my health. :]

Wow! Such a busy and momentous day... Cindy - CONGRATULATIONS!!! How are you spending your first day as an old retired lady? Kat - yes - officially in Twoterville and damned well never going back to Threedom. That feels pretty good... Maybe as good as your feeling of organization does... :] And I find it hard to believe that you look scary! Hugs! Jules - I am all excited about our get together, now... So - what have you been up to? Are you all set for the big day? Dianne - not crying is a good thing. Have a good trip. I hear hugs from Eileen are thereaputic... :] Hugs!! Eileenie - I am jealous of Dianne. :] Yes, I am feeling much more human, today. I can't wait to be done with the nasty-tasting anitbiotics - but otherwise, all is well. Sherry - I think I must be your evil twin - cause your life sounds amazingly familiar - right down to needing to clean the office and the bedroom... I hope you get it all under control so you can relax a little bit for Christmas. Hugs! Mandy - Sears! (see irene spit on the ground). Yeah - after the THIRD attempt at bringing me my bed - they finally got it all together, and they gave me one of those air-mattress bed thingies as a "sorry we're such a pack of morons" gift. Hopefully the third time will be a charm for you, too. Hugs!! Betty - you know, I kinda figured that you would have some fab plans for New Years - Heck, I thought everybody would... but hey, it was the best day for me, so I threw it out there. Sorry you won't be there....I was hoping to see you again. We'll have to do something a little farther south later on. Oh, and those mice are so darned cute - of course they were a hit! Mary - Talk about a Winter Wonderland! Geesh. It's awful pretty though. Just cuddle up by the fire and enjoy the snow day. You are sick anyway. Just think - you got a sick day - but when you go back to work you won't be any more behind than everybody else! :] Well - not much happening - and that is the way that I like it. I don't want any Drama at Christmas. Heck, I don't want Drama any time, ever. We went to SIL's for dinner last night and ate some of BIL's really excellent curry dishes. I swear, if we ever win the lottery, we are opening a restaurant for him. That stuff is so good. Of course, all I did yesterday was eat - but after not being able to eat anything for two weeks, I figured I was entitled to a small pig-out. ***It's SO funny what I consider "Pigging-Out" now. I am sitting here laughing - cause I ate a WHOLE bowl of rice and greens and ground beef curry. (a normal type bowl). Yep, that is pigging out. In another life, I would have eaten TWO heaping bowls or more. I guess, in the grand scheme of things, I am not going to worry too much. :] Well, my Darlings - I have to slog through the rest of this exciting day... Hugs all round~!!

Oh Laurend I think we ALL had that "OMG" moment - but it passes. I was happy and ready to go right up until they brought my DH into the prep room before they put me under - then I started bawling like a little baby. Mercifully, I was asleep very shortly thereafter. I love my band and wouldn't trade it for all the diet and exercise plans in the world..... Hugs!

Hi! Mandy - Still laughing over the Partridge in the Pear Tree. :] Cindy - WAHOO!!!!! You made it. Today is the last big day. Congrats and keep those Kleenex handy. Hugs. Try to hold it together for another couple of hours and then you can go home and collapse. 2PM sounds great. Can't wait to see you! Mary - enjoy the snow day. Glad to hear the scope went well and you didn't panic and run or anything. Jules - 2PM work for you? I hope so. :] Kat - sounds like your DH is a pretty funny guy... a cold day in hell... hahahaha. Yes - Oh all powerful weather goddess - grant us a White Christmas! Gosh - everybody else must be busy today. Shocking, no? There isn't much going on here. Just sucking down the antibiotics and laying low until the last of the crud passes. I am buried here at work - but that's what I get for taking sick days... *sigh* Fortuneatly it looks like I will be able to get it all caught up by the end of the week so I can enjoy Christmas. The scale is holding steady at 291 (official 295) even though I have eaten chocolate like every day for the last week. My SIL sent a package full of zuccini & pumpkin bread, Rocky Road fudge and other assorted homemade delights. I am trying to ration myself - but DAY-AM that stuff is good. :] Love you guys. TTL **PS - what weird mind sickness is it that makes me keep putting a 3 in the first digit of my weight? I keep having to go back and edit that because when I read it back it jumps out at me.... :paranoid

Aw... How cute! XO

Congrats! Glad you are starting to feel better. Don't worry about calories too much right now - just focus on healing. If you have any severe pain - call your doc. Hugs!