More than this

Sorry...didn't make it past the 1st few pages, lol....I like this site for what it stands for, what people can add to it, not some fool talking nonsense. Will have to check out the recipes though....good save, thanks

I'll say it...what a waste of everyone's time & cyberspace. Why don't u go away unless you have something worthwhile to say. Over & out rubber duck

Way to go!!! Just wondering about what you said they found...is this why you weren't losing weight...the pleori thing....where you were stuck? What is it?

No wonder you are so tired! Your body is working overtime to burn your weight off! You are my hero!!! How the heck did you do it???? Amazing!!!

Hmmmmm...sounds like this could mean something a little more perhaps...ya never know till you try....Daveo.....this may just be an opening for you...if not, & I am totally wrong, could be an awesome friendship in the works.....are u 2 blushing yet? If I have overstepped, please forgive me....I just want everyone to be happy!

You're a goof!! Who wouldn't fall in love with you & want to marry u after the 1st date, lol? That's another thing girls love...a sense of humour! Keep going baaaaaaaby!!

Sorry to hear about your illness & the meds making you gain weight. Glad u r better now. I went thru the same thing. In 1 year I gained 60 pounds. Craved sugar & would get up at nite & eat anything sweet & not be aware or remember. Since then they have banned that particular sleeping pill (halcyon) & changed my antidepressants. Good luck!! I wish u the best.

And don't come on too strong when you meet someone. A friend of mine went online, found a guy & a few dates later he said he wanted to marry her...that he loved her. He's been married 2x before....they married him coz he wore them down the same way. So make sure you work on your self esteem 1st so that you don't come off as needy. Makes a woman feel icky....yes we want someone to love us but not too quickly & not too strongly so quickly. Have fun & take your time but ALWAYS treat her well. Take care of you 1st. There is nothing that is more of a turn on than a man with confidence!!!

I love love love being alone!! Got out of a really bad marriage 20 years ago & thank God ever day! I go where I want, do what I want, buy what I want. I have good friends with whom I vacation yearly. This year we are doing a Mediterranean cruise. You don't need a relationship to make you stop feeling alone. You need you. Everything else is, as they say gravy....the kind that doesn't make you fat. In this technological age we can order a book, play games, go into chat rooms, find out where things are happening around our city or town...hobbies, Daveo....love yourself & find interests & if a woman in your life is meant to be, you will find each other...just enjoy your life now, in the waiting...& happy birthday!!

My 1st reaction was WHAT???!!!! But then I had a laugh...it does give the wrong message...not everyone realizes you are funning with them, ends up taking you literally & ruins their weight loss...so if you are going to joke, maybe put it in brackets that you are joking...not everyone is made the same & that includes how we think. Some take things way to seriously & it can coz a lot of problems...I think you put a smile on a lot of faces once you confessed...just next time I would do it way sooner than later or not post something like this at all as it can be damaging for someone looking to get more info in order to make a decision for wls, or someone struggling with wls & trying to lose weight...we don't want to derail anyone

Thanks Jane for the info. Torero, that's why I want the sleeve but different things work for diff people. Pink is it making you sick? If it's working for you then great. If not then consider the sleeve

Pink, sorry, I didn't mean to upset anyone. Everybody is different. What works for one doesn't for others. Hey I haven't even been sleeved yet & I am going thru all kinds of fears. I have lost faith in myself as I have failed so many diets in the past....so how am I going to be able to do this? But if we don't try, then we fail anyway....so all we can do is take our chances & try the best we can. Be it another diet, another exercise, the band, the sleeve, or wiring our mouths shut (just kidding)....but we have to try & we have to believe that we can do it, coz that's the hardest battle of all. Believing it will turn out good, no matter what we try. And if that way doesn't work, we try another. If people were scared to try things or believe what they were doing wasn't going to work, it won't work....self defeatist attitude means we are dead in the water before we even start swimming...if we were all like that we wouldn't be able to fly across continents or to the moon..we wouldn't be able to talk to someone far away without leaving our home...we wouldn't be able to cure diseases that killed people in their prime, in the past...so many things as simple even as a toaster....I could go on & on, but you get my drift..things we take for granted now would not exist if people stopped trying. In the end, that's what we have to do, no matter what we try...as long as we keep trying & do our best...& if we fail? Get back up & try something else! The only true failure is when we fear, which is what causes us to not take that step forward...so don't be afraid! Keep walking & IF the band works for you, then you are another notch on the lap band success stories. If not, then try the sleeve, or something else....just keep trying....that's why we are all here! We aren't perfect. We are doing the best we can & we are our own worst critics. Love yourself & try to believe that you are worth it & whatever you do will be ok....and this is never the end as long as you keep trying!

I thought the lap band was temporary in that they had to remove it after a certain time....

If you graze all day or eat past the calories you are allowed....or eat nothing but empty calories, of course you will gain weight. You are being given a gift of a new start. Use it wisely. I am waiting for mine & I know I gave to follow the docs orders but the sleeve will help me by making it easier for me not to overeat. It's up to me though, to monitor myself & follow what the nutritionist or surgeon tell me to do. How did you gain back the 60 pounds? The trouble with the lap band is that you can only have it on for so long. The sleeve is permanent & you should take advantage of the restrictions & learn to eat correctly. Good luck! You'll do great if you follow directions!

After reading the articles in the link, I am confused. It seems everyone is blaming the weight loss agents & very little on the surgeon. The surgeon did the actual operations. Should it not also be up to him to say STOP? The almighty dollar is what's at stake here & nothing else. I blame the surgeon more than the agents, although there is a nice hot place waiting for them when they leave this earth. I think the surgeon, who is doing the actual cutting, should be the one to stand up & say slow down....but he keeps on accepting the patients so the agents just send more. Look at it this way, you work & are doing a great job. Your supervisor sees you are doing great so she keeps loading you up to the point where you start cutting corners. This way the number of jobs you do increases...would she be responsible in saying hey, you are overloaded & can't do a good job OR shouldn't you speak up & say that you can't handle all the extra work? It's been my experience that it would be up to me to speak up. If it didn't let up, I would go somewhere else or in this case either practice somewhere else or get myself different agents. In the end it would be me getting fired because it was me making the mistakes & me not speaking up.. Make sense? So, I don't know why so much onus is being put on the agents, although I do blame them also, but it's Almanza who should shoulder the blame for the mistakes & deaths.

Thanks everyone. I really really appreciate all of your comments. Leanne, I can't go to Mexico because I am severely allergic to certain drugs such as morphine, codeine etc.. According to what I have read about Mexico, many of the nurses don't speak much English & many have complained that they have asked about what is in their intravenous & all they can tell them is medicine. I have already flatlined at the foothills as they used the synthetic morphine to operate but decided they would try to use regular morphine in the recovery room. Although I had a NDE, which I will actually be forever grateful for, I did die because they decided to try it. I also am sure I have sleep apnea, for which I am waiting for testing & then the oxygen as I will need it during the surgery, or is it the recovery room? I don't remember but I was told to bring it with me, once I get it. I did speak to a lady here in January who had gone to Mexico with great results. Her doctor was Almanza, of which just a few minutes ago I read about on this very same site. He has people who have died on his table due to things that he does or doesn't do. I have to link into the link given, to find out what exactly happened. according to what I began to read on the site, this isn't the 1st time for this doc, as well as the weight loss people representing him. So, no, don't trust them, even though I could still die in Montreal, I trust this doctor more....at least I can ask what's in my intravenous & get a precise answer. Yes I have been on so many diets in the past. I lose but then I never get to maintain for various reasons, like the rest of people on this site. I fought weight problems all my life, being Italian....great cook & it's a social event for us. I only weighed 1 pound more than before getting pregnant, which was 117.....but a year after the birth of my child I went into a very bad depression due to an awful marriage & having to move to where there was no support of any kind. The doctors (psychiatrist included) started me on halcyon & an antidepressant of which I don't remember the name. I craved sweets & even though I tried to control it during the day...remember I said tried to control, I would wake up at night & do the damage then. I wouldn't even remember except for wrappers or empty sugar bowl that told me the tale. They have banned the halcyon for quite some time, thank God! During that year I gained 60 pounds! After that it was all downhill due to depression & my other circumstances. Anyway, that's why I feel like such a failure, due to the many diets I have been on & not being able to grab control of my life, in terms of this weight. Oh yes, someone asked how old I was. I am 54. I am terrified of the drastic measures but it seems like it is my only hope right now, since it seems to be the best tool out there to help me. I have another appointment with my family doc in a couple of weeks & am going to bring her the information I found on the effects of this drug she has asked me to try, when it comes to Canada & info on the sleeve, which I believe she has looked into, as per my request. I am hoping she can get me in for the other tests, colonoscopy & gastrectomy, do that I don't have to wait that long (everywhere I call sys up to a year). They can do the tests the day before in Montreal & it will cost me approx another 1,500, but I would like them done here in case something is found which would exclude me from being able to get the surgery, plus I don't know the wait times. I would hate to get that news that I couldn't have the surgery after going all the way to Montreal. Thank you all again for helping me out. I hope that I can have this surgery even though I am afraid it may fail on me because my metabolism must be horrible now, after all those failed diets I went on, or if I can trust myself to do it right...awful thing when you don't even have faith in yourself anymore... Lots of luv & hugs & best wishes to all of you!!

Thanks Hope. Yes she does respect me. She is awesome, honestly. If she is guilty of anything, it would be of caring about her patients too much, & maybe that's the real problem...that makes me feel a bit better, thanks. How have you, & Glitter, both been doing on your wls? Any regrets?

Glitterpockets, thanks so much for answering so quickly. I am from Calgary Alberta & I am finding how behind we are in everything. The closest we have is Red Deer, even though we are a much larger city. Red Deer does only through referrals & is a year wait for surgery (once you are able to get your 1st appt with the nurse), never mind the wait in getting into the programs they tell you that you have to sign up for. That & the monthly drive north 1.5 hours each way...I don't even want to think what that would be like in winter. Oh & my favourite is that once that year wait is over, your bmi still needs to be high, so don't bother dieting...but you still need to lose 10% of your weight, but again not so you fall under the required Bmi. My best alternative is Montreal which means self pay, 12,750 + plane fare for myself & a caregiver, + hotel for a week. Expensive but then won't have to wait a year. Just getting those darn tests without having to pay a lot more, & having to wait a long time in getting them done.

Hi Jen. Yes thanks. I have been in contact with them & had my consult with Dr Gagner on Friday. I will have to have the tests including a sleep apnea. I am large breasted & cannot lay on my stomach. Breasts are in my throat & I can't breathe, which will make it impossible to operate. Unless they can do a greys anatomy thing & operate with me standing up, lol. I hope that I can get into the sleep clinic here, quickly. I also have to travel to Banff to get the gastrointestinal (?) & colonoscopy, although they said I can get it in Montreal. I am going in to see my doc this Wed, but she is against any kind of wls. But I have decided I am going to do it. Dr Gagner & his staff have been terrific so far. Hopefully everything will fall into place & I can be out there mid October. Thanks so much for letting me know about this doc! Just 1 question...he had said he would be cutting off 75% of my stomach but everything I read say they cut off 85%. Would anyone know why that is & if it will make a difference. According to the lap band sites, it seems that if they don't make it snug, they don't have the results they should be getting. Will it matter for a sleeve being 10% larger? Thanks again everyone!!!

Hello John T. From my research, which is very extensive, your calorie count may be too low, so your body is already starving itself. You should increase your Protein. Your surgeon or nutritionist should be able to tell you how much. Your overall calorie count is way too low. 400 is low for a woman never mind for a man. No wonder you have stalled so early. Eating too little is as detrimental as eating too much. Good luck John!

Chop you up...funny but I know you are serious. My mum is 85 & is a worrier. I think it's catching coz now I worry about worrying her & her getting sick. But we have to live our lives. Good luck on your surgery!

Ouch....so maybe give Dr Gagner a call. Flights are finally cheaper now than they used to be. http://cliniquemichelgagner.com/en/ Let me know what you decide. I have been conversing with Xavier there. Very kind & patient with all my questions. This is so ridiculous. I always thought Alberta was an "advanced" province but I am learning we are so very behind everything & everybody.

Hello everyone. Thanks for all your help! I decided to look at Montreal, Dr Gagner for 12,750 + 250 for 1st consult. I am going to go with him, unless something out of the ordinary happens. Thanks Jenn_mtl!! jennamacd, why do you have a 5 year wait? Perhaps if you don't want to go self pay (or can't afford) why don't you try Red Deer? It's a shorter wait. You are as far away as I am, 1.5 hours, are you not? I am so looking forward to this!! I hope I don't have any problems with this happening!!

Gotta wonder why they don't have one in Calgary...a self pay so we can save on airfare & hotel

I had a hysterectomy & can tell you I felt the same way. I was glad though, after about a week or 2, once the pain & everything with it let up. I don't have to worry about bleeding every day, just like you will find it a much easier to lose weight with the sleeve. Surgery is surgery. They cut out your stomach after all. Hang in there. According to all the research I did, it will work wonderfully in the end. Just like have labour with your baby, you will forget how much pain it entails, as you will have a marvellous result. I know it's tough, but you can do it. I haven't had my sleeve yet & keep thinking it will be like my hysterectomy all over again...but like that, I survived & did much much better in the end. Just check with your doc, to make sure nothing else is making you ill. The throwing up is the worst. Take care of yourself & be good to yourself. We are here for you to vent, though....so vent. It's gonna be okay.