Poodles

I have lost right at 10 lbs. Seems to be working for us! Hey All: I read that we should only be eating/drinking 2 oz at a time, but today I was able to get more than that in in one sitting. I have had 2-20 oz bottles of water, 1 shake, 3/4 cup Mock Tortilla Soup, 1 cup cucumber soup, a low fat yogurt, and 1 thing of Jello pudding today. Seems like way too much compared to what I was doing last week. No pain, but geez.

Guys/Gals: If you search "tickercentral" in the search section it will bring up about 10 threads on the ticker thing. I went to tickercentral.com copied and pasted the bbcode into my sig... and it worked just fine. Now for my update.... I am sooooo hungry!!!! I am worried, cause my whole shake went down with no restriction this morning... no pain... Oh goodness... I am going to attack some mashed potatoes or something!!! ***deep breath*** Goodness... I never thought that mashed potatoes would sound so good!!!!

rebndave: There is a "sticky" on the food thread with some liquid ideas. The best thing I have found is Gatorade, Shaved Ice, Mock Tortilla Soup, Cucumber Soup (you can search that and find the receipe), and Isopure shakes. I have tried baby food, broth, jello, pudding, but nothing beats that shaved ice... even with nothing on it, it is so easy on the tummy!

"PLEASE BEGIN AS SOON AS POSSIBLE TO PREPARE YOU FOR LAP BAND SURGERY Begin the Myocel Protein supplement two-three weeks before your surgery. Take two scoops 2-3 times each day. This will prevent your liver from tearing during surgery. If Dr. Benavides feels there is a chance your liver might tear, we will reschedule your surgery. DECREASE THESE IN YOUR DIET: Ø All fats including butter, fatty meats, fried foods, whole milk products Ø High sugar foods Ø Carbonated drinks Ø High carbohydrate foods such as breads, starches" So this basically means go on Atkins Induction + Myocel Drinks AT LEAST two weeks before surgery... I have read that others are put on a liquid only diet... that is not what I read here... am I right?

Being sick of work or school should count as a sick day. I get sick and tired of work all the time... unfortunately, Substitute Poodles are hard to find. And I have found if I am out one day the teenagers make me pay for it for three... so it is easier to wait for a holiday to do fun things.

Vicodin dust in chocolate pudding... Quick and painless! I crush mine, put in a little pudding, and swollow quickly with a little liquid chaser. As for the pill that is stuck? Maybe something hot will help? But I have read that most often they do an unfill for this issue.

Ordered one too! Thanks for sharing! :love:

I whipped up a Mock Tortilla Soup. One can of diced tomatoes with onions, chicken broth, and some cilantro. Put it in the blender, simmered it for a bit, put in some Protein powder (unflavored) and YUM! Oh... and I figured out that shaved ice goes down REALLY WELL. Feels so good... and does not taste half bad either!

Would like to know the following things from TX teachers stuck with the TRS Activecare from BC/BS: 1. How long did it take to get approval? If not approved how long have you been working to get approved? 2. Did they require a psyche eval? Nutritionist consult? sleep Study? 3. How many months supervised weight loss did you have before approval? 4. Did you have to call them constantly? 5. Were you denied the first time? Did you have to appeal? 6. Any recommendations for people trying to get approved? 7. What plan are you on (1, 2, or 3) and what was your total out of pocket? Thank you for your input! This will help greatly! Know there are a lot of teachers out there trying to get approved and a little hope will help! Here are my answers: 1. How long did it take to get approval? If not approved how long have you been working to get approved? Not approved. Working on it since Oct '05 2. Did they require a psyche eval? Yes Nutritionist consult? Yes Sleep Study? Yes 3. How many months supervised weight loss did you have before approval? They want 12, submitted with 6 but not approved yet. 4. Did you have to call them constantly? 5. Were you denied the first time? Did you have to appeal? 6. Any recommendations for people trying to get approved? 7. What plan are you on (1, 2, or 3) and what was your total out of pocket? Activecare 2, about $910.00 out of pocket so far.

I wonder why he says that? I know with some bowel issues the LB is not recommended, but don't think the other options would help either. Have you been to obesityhelp.com? They have clear descriptions of all the options. Be careful... and I wish you luck!

cutiern- Guess I have been really lucky... have had no gas pains since my surgery. On the other threads it says to take gas-x. Do those help you? Reeneea- I took off my steri-strips because I wanted to see what could be causing the pain in my port site. Was really worried it was infected, but it looks ok. I just put some antibiotic on it and covered it back up with a band-aid. Mine had blood on them and were making me itch. I have red whelps where they were... think they might have latex in them too. My latex-free band-aids are doing a wonderful job! Barbara- I have not been dizzy, but sounds like you may need some sugar. A regular popscicle may help when you feel like this. Great "cheat for all"- I made mock tortilla soup for lunch. One can of diced tomatoes (with onions), chicken broth, and cilantro. Popped it in the blender and then simmered it for a bit. It was WONDERFUL. I even had a sample of the unflavored protein powder that I stirred in. Oh, shaved ice and mock soup... I am in heaven now!!! ***Decided we all needed our own colors for our names. Hope you like the ones I chose for you!

Wow. I was trying to avoid the emblem... but guess it is there for a reason. Maybe I will get "Lapband Lady" tatooed on my chest. But they probably wouldn't figure that one out either, hugh?? ***deep sigh*** I just don't want to look 80 when I am only 33...

Just an FYI: I have been researching mineral makeup, and it seems that the name brand Bare Minerals/Escentuals contains Bismoth that can cause skin to itch, and can irritate some skin. Ebay has some sellers of mineral makeup that does not contain Bismoth or Talc. I just bought a sample to try. Will let you know how it goes!!

Cloe: Big hugs. I started a thread a little while back about some guy that mooed at me. You should look it up. Everyone has these things happen, too many pigs in the world I guess.

Head hunger is the worst demon of all. But trust me the band puts that to rest quickly. It hurts if you overeat... even one bite. The two things of Myocel equal 80 bucks, but that is ok. It will serve you well. Post op it helps keep you full too. Most places will work out a payment plan for your out of pocket. Just think of it as a car payment. My out of pocket listed above is from October of 2005 until now. Doctors office copays, RX's, deductibles and the Myocel. It is well worth it, for my healths sake. I figure in around 50 pounds I will be able to dump my BP meds and Diabetic drugs too. You just need to ask yourself if you are willing to work for it? Are you willing to invest the time and money it takes to improve you? The stress tests, sleep studies, etc are work. You must work for this. You will have to fight BC/BS if you get denied. You will need to get your paperwork together to document your weight loss attempts. (As teachers we know documentation is everything.) We all work hard for our kids at school. Giving up our time, money, etc. But how often do we just say, "I am doing this for me." To be honest, I am doing this for me, my hubby, and my son. We spend way too much money on medical bills for me. I have a horrible family history, and I want to be alive to see my next child (if that happens) and to see my grandchildren. So I have a lot of factors that played into my decision. You must make up your own mind. But if you choose to be banded, you have a great support system here. LBT is great.

Reeneea -"I feel a sharp pain and like my insides are falling to the side." Yes Yes, that is it exactly! It is kind of nice to know that we are all in the same boat so to speak. Misery loves company and all... Guess I will have to give it time. I went out for the first time today to Garden Ridge and then I cheated on my diet... but it was so so so good. I got a shaved ice snow cone. Oh my gosh! It went down so easy and felt so good! I need to buy a machine now I guess. SunnyDee: You must be strong. You are doing this for yourself. So be good to yourself and don't sabatoge your chance to get the band. Popsicles would be great if you must eat something. Did your doc put you on low carb? If so, get a big fat steak!

Hello all! I am 33, married 12 years, mom to a son (7). I am a High School teacher. Like to read, play scrabble, and do teenager stuff with my students (field trips, football games, etc). Banded this past Monday! Glad to meet everyone here!

I am a high school teacher. I NEED things for my classes next year. I teach technology on PII, Windows 98, 128mb, old Dell computers. I have one video camera and one scanner. Also teach ART I, II, and III with a $400.00 budget. YIKES!!! I am considering running an ad in the local newspaper asking for donations in exchange for tax receipts from the school. Don't think my district would approve (because they would be put on the spot), but they won't fund my classes either. I have applied for all of the grants I know about, and have not heard back from them. What would you do?

Oh thank goodness! My hubby was ready to take me to the ER. My port incision is really red and bruised and it hurt so bad I could not sleep with out meds last night (kept rolling over on it). So I slept on the couch where I could not roll over, with a full dose of codeine. I'm such a druggie. :love: Some of the pics on the scar stages thread, make my port site look like a scratch and now finding out that I am not the only one with port pain really helps!!! Thank you, Thank you, Thank you! I love LBT...

Hey guys/gals: I have a question. I am 6 days post op, and my port incision is still killing me. I visited the scar stages thread and see that I am not as bad as others at my stage, but was wondering if any of you have a pulling/stabbing pain if you roll over onto your left side... or when you cough?? That is the only incision that really hurts... and boy does it hurt... am I normal???

Jack: I see your hinney all bright and shiney, you better hide it...before I bite it. ****(Its a song I sing to my kid when he gets out of the bathtub.)

Julie: I have not forced anything. If I get that feeling I stop. Then wait. Seems that I am less restricted in the morning, so I try to get in a lot of liquid in the morning, and take it easy when that feeling hits. Be careful not to do something that will hurt you. Don't force it. Just go with the flow...

Cindy: Be careful. I was hungry too, so I ate a 4oz jar of Turkey Rice Dinner (baby food). Then I felt like trash. waited a few hours before I attempted a shake and finally got that all down, but now I feel like I have been stuffed with needles. It really hurts. Be sure to take it slow. I should have only had 2 oz of that dinner, I guess. I will know better tomorrow. No more for me tonight. Damn, it is a horrible full feeling. I must keep in my head: "Keep it small, sip it slow."

Do you hear voices?? Do you see dead people??.... no not really... My psych eval was more like a test. Had 500 questions like: I like poetry y/n, I like to fish y/n, I want to dance y/n. Silly things like that. My doctor called me back after my test and said that I was not crazy, but that I think everyone else in the world is. I think that is funny. Don't worry. It will be easy. :love:

Well I hope it is normal, cause I feel it too. And regarding restriction, I have it. I know it is probably from swelling, but it is there. Just take it really slow. I have to sip things really slowly all day long, and have only managed to get in 2 shakes a day with a little water in between. I can manage a few bites of pudding or baby food, but that gives me the "ball" feeling. I was banded on Monday, and it is still the same today. If it is not normal, then I guess we are two abnormal people on the same road....