niche

thanks for the info!

jodie, i'm so glad to see that in the space of a few hours you were able to go from complete exasperation to doing some great things for yourself! i am inspired. i wish you all the best with making 2 really difficult transitions. going to college and learning to live with the band (especially with a family who can't support you) is a lot on your plate and it's wonderful to see you take control of your life! you go girl!

i smoked up to 2 months before surgery but didn't have any lung damage that i was made aware of. unless you're a veeeery heavy smoker since you were 10, you've probably dodged the bullet... as long as you do stop now. but please do stop smoking ASAP! because i remember how hard it was to breathe when i was coming out of anesthesia.

you guys know i had to jump in on this one. i am in the entertainment industry and drinking 5 days a week is not difficult! but i second what everyone else has been saying, the alcohol won't damage your band (unless you get trashed and start vomiting) but it will def slow down your weightloss. i'm currently doing a 3-week alcohol fast to try to drop some pounds. i have a work event on thursday, we'll see how that goes without alcohol!

yeah, they closed the low-bmi study enrollment as of 12/05 or 01/06 or so. i think they only did 50. but yes, let's talk soon!

i am pretty much able to eat anything, just in smaller amts. even though i am fairly tight. i can eat moist meat no problem, veggies and bread, rice, pasta etc. but honestly i do try to severely limit my empty simple carb consumption as much as possible bc it makes me crave like crazy!

i'm in new york and i would love to meet other bandsters in nyc! i actually went to dr. kurian first to try to get the band but because my bmi was 33 at the time, she sent me to her friend dr. ren at nyu who was doing a low-bmi study. that's my little lennox hill annecdote. but all you nycers come out of hiding! :bananapartyhat:

i know someone who had the fobi pouch. i think her results are very good. she lost 100% of her excess weight but has put on a few pounds 3 years out so now she's probably at 90% ewl. from what i understand, the fobi GB has the same intestinal routing but they band the opening of the pouch and put mesh around the pouch to keep it from enlarging over time. she has complete intolerance for meat though. i think the only meat she can eat is scallops or very light white fish. everything else comes back up. but i think she could probably eat meat if she were really willing to chew to goo. anyway, it is a good option for some people. good luck with your research!

i've never had a flouro fill but my doctor gave me a pretty large first fill of 1.5cc's. my bmi was 35 so it may have been that or that she saw my stomach. it still took me 3.4 to get to good restriction though.

this morning: - 30 mins treadmill 4pmh, 5% grade - 60 lunges - 50 squats - 300 ab exercises

the 40% statistic came from a New York Times article from monday. it counted everything from vomiting to death as a complication and it lumped all bariatric surgery into one study. so basically the today thing was shoddy and poorly understood by the presenter. what happened with the VBG is that she confused the band and VBG as two names for the same procedure. here's the NYT article if anyone's interested: July 24, 2006 Obesity Surgery Often Leads to Complications, Study Says By ROBERT PEAR WASHINGTON, July 23 — Four of every 10 patients who undergo weight-loss surgery develop complications within six months, the federal government said Sunday. The number of such surgical procedures has been rising rapidly, along with the incidence of obesity, which now afflicts 30 percent of adults in the United States, health officials said. Obesity surgery is helping thousands of Americans lose weight and reduce the risk of diabetes and other life-threatening diseases, said Dr. Carolyn M. Clancy, director of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, a unit of the Public Health Service. But she added, “This study shows how important it is for patients to consider the potential complications.” Many of the complications were so serious that patients were readmitted to hospitals or visited emergency rooms within six months. In the procedure, known as bariatric surgery, doctors reduce the number of calories that a person can consume and absorb. One of the more common techniques restricts the size of the stomach and the length of the intestine, where nutrients are absorbed. Federal researchers found that complications from obesity surgery significantly increased costs. Over all, said William E. Encinosa, an economist at the health research agency, medical spending averaged $29,921 for obesity surgery and six months of follow-up care. For patients who experienced complications, spending averaged $36,542. And for those with complications that required readmission to a hospital, the average was $65,031. Past studies found that 10 percent to 20 percent of patients had complications while they were in the hospital. In the new study, Mr. Encinosa said, federal researchers found that 39.6 percent of patients had complications within 180 days of surgery. The most common complications included vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal hernias, infections, pneumonia and respiratory failure, as well as the leaking of gastric juices caused by imperfect surgical connections between the stomach and the intestines. Joanne Kayser, a retired New Hampshire state employee, said she weighed 320 pounds when she had weight-loss surgery in 2003. “The operation went well,” she said in an interview. “It reduced my food intake. After the surgery, I lost 60 pounds.’’ But Ms. Kayser, now 64, said: “My incision did not heal for seven months. I could not exercise, and I stopped losing weight. The incision became infected, and I had to have surgery by a wound care specialist. In addition, after four months, I developed a hernia, a bulge in my tummy.’’ Bariatric surgery often alleviates conditions that occur with obesity, like diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol. That was the case with Ms. Kayser, who said she no longer needed to take diabetes medications because her blood sugar levels were under control. Dr. Philip R. Schauer, president of the American Society for Bariatric Surgery, estimates that 175,000 to 200,000 weight-loss procedures will be performed this year, up from 47,000 in 2001. The number of people receiving the operation “may be less than 1 percent of those who need it,’’ said Dr. Schauer, director of bariatric surgery at the Cleveland Clinic. The government study was based on insurance claims filed with health plans offered by 45 large employers in 49 states. The data included information on 2,522 weight-loss operations in 2001 and 2002. Dr. Schauer said surgical techniques and the quality of care had improved, so patients were less likely to suffer complications. In 2001 and 2002, he said, “there were not a lot of standards for doctors and hospitals getting into the field of bariatric surgery.” Since then, he said, the society has adopted standards, and some hospitals that specialize in the procedure have been designated “centers of excellence.” In addition, Dr. Schauer said, more than half of the operations are now done with a technique known as laparoscopic surgery, which requires only tiny incisions. This approach sharply reduces some types of complications, he said. In the cases reviewed by federal researchers, 85 percent of the patients were women. Dr. Schauer suggested several reasons: “Women have a somewhat higher incidence of obesity. Women seek medical care more than men. And obesity is more socially acceptable in men than in women.” But Dr. Schauer said, “Obesity is more deadly in men because they are more likely to have secondary effects of obesity like heart disease, high blood pressure and diabetes.” Arthur G. Richards, an insurance agent in Portland, Ore., said some insurers were refusing to pay for obesity surgery and its complications. Such complications can lead to lawsuits, even when doctors meet the prevailing standards of care. Mr. Richards said his company was developing special insurance policies that would pay doctors for treating foreseeable complications.

i've been using the silicone scar strips for about a month and i notice the scars getting a bit flatter. i definitely have keloiding in my family. i also want a breast lift in the next 18 months, so i'm using my band scars as a test run.

i like it! i like it! lol

telly you are such a beast!

great dame, i hear you on the no scale thing. it ends up being a de-motivator for me when i lose cuz then i feel like i can eat and eat. but when i realize that i haven't lost, i feel super motivated (like right now). so i guess i just have to use the scale sparingly. i've been eating well for 2 weeks, but i don't want to get on a scale b/c i'm afraid i'll regress. so i'm staying off of the scale... for now.

i got in an hour's walk on the treadmill @ 4 mph, 5% grade. the machine says i burned 750 calories. i'd like to think it's true... :biggrin1:

There was a segment on the lap band on the Today show this morning. It was good in that they didn't confuse it with the gastric bypass but they did confuse it with VBG. oh well. and the segment wasn't terribly in depth. they profiled a family of five who had all had the surgery. apparently they are the subject of an article in People magazine this week. so maybe People is going to go a little further. did anyone else see it?

today i got back to my hardcore intervals, 30 mins of 2 mins @ 3.5 mph and 1 min @ 7mph. it kicked my butt! then i did 300 ab exercises and 180 arm and back exercises. i may try some yoga tomorrow.

well, if you're in jamaica (negril) over new years, PM me! i'll be there from 12/30-1/05. jamaica is my spot! my cousin/friend and i have been there on new years for 3 years straight. we keep saying, oh why don't we go somewhere else... but then we think of how much we love it and it never happens. oh well! or if you're ever in new york city. get at me dawg! i hear you on the ipod loveliness. it lets you be as schizophrenic as you want. it's great! :biggrin1:

beachee big ((((hugs))). you can feel the love you have for your family through the computer screen! i just hope you find some answers about yourself and a church home where you can feel like yourself and get the support you need. we all have crosses to bear and i am so proud of you that you spoke up for yourself and are getting help and getting free. i love seeing your posts because of your crazy sense of humor and of course, love of hip hop :confused: and i just want to see that beautiful person happy and healthy. xo

unfortunately mac n cheese goes down like manna from heaven for me. i have to watch out for the stuff. it's almost too easy...

i slept on my side in the hospital! i woke up long enough to ask the doctor if it was ok to keep sleeping on my side. she said, as long as it doesn't hurt you. so i guess as long as it doesn't hurt you you're cool.

sounds strange but sour is the opposite of bitter. so when i had to crush the vicoden and take them, i did it like a tequila shooter! it worked for me.

i did a leisurely walk on the treadmill. got in 5 miles over 90 mins. though no resistance exercises. tomorrow, tomorrow, i'll work out, tomorrow. it's only a night away...

as a black girl, i say, 'get in where you fit in'... in the immortal words of too short. i know the black community can be a comforting place to be in a lot of ways. we have open arms for people who have had a rough time of it because we have had a rough time of it. but most of the people i know who *only* date outside of their race are running from something in themselves and it is not just a preference. i mean, we do live in america and your racial identity is very much a part of all of us, whether we admit it/accept it/like it or not. so i wonder what part of yourself you're running away from. i doubt that it is a coincidence that you came across this counselor or spoke about it on the forum. but if the black community is where you feel at home, then that is your home.