ReneBean

Hugs Audra! It could be worse! I started my lovely cycle the DAY before surgery. ICK. Nothing like getting naked in front of strangers to begin with. Add the period and it is JUST so delightful. Hopefully, yours will be all done by the time of your surgery and it will be one less thing for you to worry about! Hugs and good luck. This will all be behind you, soon!

My husband is MO, too. He also seems to think that one should just "cut back" on eating. When he gets too obnoxious, I just point out how well that method is working for HIM... HUGS! I hope you can get through to him. Right now, I am about THRILLED with my band. I got my first fill - and while I am not so restricted that I am UNABLE to eat any particular food, I am restricted enough that if I eat a small portion, I recognize that I am full, and I stay full for a long time. I CAN eat more than I should - but if I don't, I am not clawing at the walls with that stomache growling empty torment that you get when you diet with no assistance. So long as I can keep my head on straight, this is perfect! Good Luck!

Wow, Jess! That pup is almost as cute as you are! How you doin' Hot Chick? :]

Hugs Mypo. I can tell you that it pays to be a bulldog... I had to fight for a full four months to get my insurance coverage - I appealed and finally got an independent medical review by the State Board of Insurance... In the end - Insurance paid for it all... My total out of pocket was less than $500... TOO AWESOME! Keep your fingers on the phone keypad and remain calm. It will happen for you, too. Keep fighting. :]

Pappadeaux is kind of a high-middle end Cajun Seafood place. I have been in TX for almost 4 yrs and just NOW am trying it. To. Die. For. *sigh* I suppose it's a good thing I never went in until now. I would have a lot more weight to lose!

Gracias! Gracias!!

55% Dixie - an appropriate score for a Texas Transplanted Oregonian/Californian!

Hey Flower Two computers is a great thing - IF you have high speed internet. If you do, then you can get your own computer - even a new one - for less than $300 and it will get you to LBT and back. If you don't have High Speed - it will still be an issue. At my house, we have not yet upgraded to high speed - but DH has lots of things he does in his office while I am using the internet in mine. We have a fairly Enlightened relationship - and because I am the bread winner - nobody whines about perks... Get another computer and visit us often. :]

Oh - who needs Sonic when you have Pappadeaux! I won't even slap - I haven't got a leg to stand on there... and ALAS - no PB's from Key Lime Pie... Hugs! Today, we just won't go to the bad places... :]

*WHEW* Glad to hear it all turned out ok. No more hotdogs for you!! Hugs! :]

Hugs, Anne!! Glad they got you fixed up and you still have a band. Enjoy the drugs! :]

Pat! Stop! You're killing me... that all sounds so good! And I just had my first fill today! I have to do liquids - and I want to eat a cheeseburger. There is definitely something wrong with me... I can only thank God that I only gained a half pound with the stuff I was eating for the last two weeks! Kim - buck up honey. You aren't alone. Good work on eating healthier and good luck with getting back to the gym. Hugs!

Yeah, we all know that Drinking and Driving is bad - but I have found that the only way for me to get in enough Water is to make use of that long commute time to Sip Sip Sip. I put a 1 litre bottle in the car in the morning - and my goal is to drink it all during my drive to and from work. So far, it is working. Between the litre in the car and another litre at home and miscelaneous flavored waters at work - I am getting the hydration I need. Good Luck!!

****WHEW**** So glad that all is well. I am thinking good thoughts for a quick heal on the esophagus. Let's hope that your doc is WRONG. Hugs!

I was desperate enough to do something, anything, rather than just stay where I was. I started researching the ByPass. Once I discovered the Lap Band, it was obvious to me that the band is the best option. My problem is not that someohow my body "over processes" or "over absorbs" the food that I eat... It is that my food intake is just too darned high. So, with another option, why on earth would I chop up my perfectly functioning intestinal tract; increase my risk of death by 100 times, and suffer the potential effects of malabsorbtion and malnutrition? Seemed like plain common sense to me. Even though there may be complications, they are all fixable. Worst case, the band is removed and I am no worse off than I was before, barring a few scars. The potential weight loss is worth that risk, to me. Good luck in your decision. Be sure before you let anybody cut on you for any reason. Hugs!

Maybe if your Mom wouldn't buy off on the trial study thing - you could tell her you won a Half Price surgery from your own surgeon. You could work it out with the doc in advance. Or is there any way you can add your mom to YOUR insurance? (did insurance pay for your surgery?) Take care of Mom - she's the only one you get. Hugs!

Howdy! Welcome to LBT! :]

Hey - if your band gets tighter while you are flying at altitude - it would be the same effect of getting a fill, right? And you are supposed to do liquids after you get a fill because sometimes the fill causes short-term swelling in your stomache. After a day or two, it goes away... Sounds reasonable to me. I haven't noticed it particularly on this current trip (I am in NY vs TX) but I have absolutely NO restriction - so I wouldn't particulary notice a tiny bit.

I use "Flipping" in place of the dreaded F-ing. It works on several levels for me. I work in the mortgage business - and a Flip transaction is a bad thing in the mortgage business - so flipping is bad. Plus - If you want to tell somebody F-U in sign language, it's Flipping the bird... It's Flipping Fabulous!!

Hey Y’All!! I am finally Banded!! I am sitting here with my spirometer and some lovely water and a big ol’jar of liquid Hydrocodon… It’s all good. I slept for a while after I got home – but that was mostly because I had to get up at *shudder* FIVE to go to the surgery center. Doctor Fox and all the folks at the Surgery Center of Richardson were wonderful and I never felt too self-conscious. Thankfully, they knocked me out before they all crowded around and laughed at my big fat belly (lol). <O:p</O:p <O:p</O:p No, really, they were fabulous and the whole thing was a breeze. Who knows what I will have to say tomorrow – but for today, I have no pain and not even any major gas issues. Well, since I just took another hit of Hydrocodon, I might not be entirely lucid, soon, so I will sign off now.<O:p</O:p <O:p</O:p Thanks for all the well wishes, prayers and good thoughts. </O:p Irene

Howdy, Bobbi!! Welcome! Good luck with the whole process!

Hugs Jonathan! We're thinking good thoughts for you tomorrow.

I found out I had Venous Stasis at 40. VS is basically a problem caused by being a big ol' couch potato - but exercise caused severe back pain. It was an ill tiding for the future. If I was only 40 and already beginning to disintigrate - what would 50 bring? Now, I feel like I have taken control. I get my first fill next week and I can't wait!!

Hey, After I got done smacking them around for FOUR months - they pulled their heads out for you!! I like to think that, anyway... Happy Days!! Congrats!

Hugs and Love, Crystal... I wish somebody could give you some kind of an answer. I wish there was some greater word of wisdom than "keep your chin up". It just sounds so lame. Hugs!!