MacMadame

I think I'm up to 7. For me, that's extravagant.

People are weird and they get weirder around weddings.

She sounds like she has issues. She dropped you from the wedding and didn't even invite you but she wasn't mad at you or anything. Yeah, right! She needs some therapy is my verdict. :ohmy:

I got here more from eating too much than from what I eat. I do eat junk but I love a lot of food that is considered healthy and don't like a lot of food that is considered junky. So my plan it substitute some of the junk for Protein -- because today's recommendations are IMO inadequate even for non-WLS people -- but otherwise eat what I eat now only less of it.

You need to make new friends, Brandy. I was thinking about this the other day. I don't have really good friends I see regularly. I have a TON of casual friends. People I work with, people in the skating world (until recently I skated and I still volunteer for my skating club), neighbors, people online, etc. I like people and get along with all types. But really close friends? Not so much. I was really tight with my next door neighbor for a while. We both skated (and even belong to the same club) so we'd car pool to skating sessions and club events. We are both parents (one of my kids is 3 months apart from his kid), we both are in the tech industry. We got along great and would talk about our careers and our kids and skating as we drove to all these events. But then his boyfriend moved in with him and started to come along to the sessions so the car talks went away. Then we moved about a mile away so we weren't next-door neighbors any more and the daily visiting back and forth stopped. Then he moved about 4 miles away and car pooling became inconvenient. Then I stopped skating so car pooling became moot. So I pretty much never see him any more though he is the only person outside my immediate family who knows I'm looking into surgery. We keep in touch by phone just as if he lived in another part of the country! I have a few other friends like that -- we used to be tight and see each other a lot but circumstances changed and now I rarely see them but we still keep in touch. They are scattered around the country too. All the rest of my friends are people that, when circumstances change (new job, new hobby, moving), I'll never see them again. I guess that good news is that when I get all thin and beautiful, I won't lose any friends. :thumbup:

I have a feeling that as soon as I get out of plus sizes, I'm going to go nuts shopping for cute clothes. And I *hate* to shop.

You should work for my company. My boss's boss is taking everyone who reports to her (directly or indirectly) out to see The Dark Knight this afternoon and then we're all going home.

Aw, chat is lame anyway. Just don't go there. (I don't mean LBT chat. I mean ALL chat rooms.)

You smear the jelly right on your hand and lick it off.

Dr. Huacruz. Which explains a lot, IMO.

You need to say it beforehand, not when you get to the restaurant.

Hmm. Do you think it might have been Poo-pouri?

:frown: me too!

Actually, that sounds like fun! :frown: There are some DSers on a WLS board I frequent that has all surgery types and I don't think it has anything to do with wanting to eat crap. A lot of them don't eat a lot of carbs just like with other WLS patients. I think it comes down to them feeling like somehow their surgery is *guaranteed* to work. That seems to be the attitude I get ... many have said to me: "I knew I couldn't do with without major malabsorption" or "My surgeon calls DS the bazooka of WLS and I *need* a bazooka." or "I have Type 2 Diabetes and the DS has the highest resolution rate". The problem is, as I said before, these stats are misleading because right now this is a niche surgery so it's mostly gotten by the truly dedicated. If it ever got as popular as RnY or Lap Band, I don't think the stats would be as impressive. Plus, I am firmly convinced that part of why the DS works so well is because of the partial gastrectomy -- i.e., the sleeve portion. Take away the fundus and you take away ghrelin which takes away the hunger. I think for all but a percentage of the extremely overweight (i.e., super morbidly obese), the sleeve is enough and malabsorption is overkill -- it increases the risk of complications without providing significant additional benefit.

According to Mythbusters sugary kids' Cereal does have more nutrition than the box it comes in. Contrary to popular legend. I'm going to guess that's just as true for the Big Mac. :frown:

There are SO MANY choices now. I can get the Crystal Light or the Capri Sun or the Kool-aid or the South Beach plus every store seems to have their generic versions. I keep some in my drawers at work and the pantry at home. Sometimes I really want Water but sometimes the idea of water makes me gag or I'm really craving sweet. In those cases, I wipe out a packet. I also keep a few spares in my purse. I used one last night when Mini-Mac was whining about having to drink water at a restaurant (she had already drank her ordered drink). I poured some in and she sucked it down.

Carbs are quick energy. Protein is a more steady fuel. You definitely need a lot of protein when you are recovering if you don't want to feel draggy and tired.

So everyone's poop stinks, huh? To me this is like a guy with really bad BO saying "but everyone stinks". Yes, we all stink if we don't wash ourselves, and some people stink if they don't use deodorant, but that doesn't mean the guy hasn't got really bad BO. All stinks aren't equal. What really gets me are the "our surgery is the best" and "our surgery has the best weight loss" and "our surgery has the best resolution of diabetes". First of all, statistics are not predicative for the individual. So even if a WLS has an average EWL of 90% at two years, that won't stop you from being one of the ones who never meets goal or, alternatively, getting to 100%. Secondly, these are of necessity very small studies (since the surgery isn't as popular as RnY). When you have small groups, it's very possible that some other factor is skewing the results. The more studies that are done and the more people that are in them, the more likely that you'll not get those kinds of results. For example, there are studies showing lap band patients having 70% EWL at 2 years. This is the same as the DS stats I've seen. But there are also stats that show only 42% EWL. If enough people get the DS, they'll have studies like that too. It's bound to happen that one group that gets studied doesn't have the greatest results. From what I can tell, not only is one surgery not right for everyone, but all surgeries in the really long term (at least a decade) trend towards 50% EWL. That, combined with what I see on the boards, says to me that some people are very successful, get to goal and stay there, some are not very successful and don't lose much or lose but then gain it back, and a lot are in between. Over time it tends to even out. Statisticians even have a name for this phenomena. It's called regression towards the mean. But when someone tries to convince me that I should get a DS, if they quote stats at me to say the DS is the "the best", I send them a link to a study I've found that shows that the sleeve is the best surgery for women over 50 (a group to which I belong). :tongue_smilie:

I don't try either.

This is another thing that tends to vary. Plus it really depends on how the office codes the fill. One surgeon I looked at codes fills as a simple office visit so it's pretty much always covered.

Your husband's explanations make no sense. He was on drugs and that effected his decision-making abilities? Well what about now? He claims not to be on them now, but he was kissing this woman in front of your son. So either he's still on drugs or his decision-making abilities have always been poor. If it was really a long-time over thing, maybe I could see it, but he's trying to have his cake and eat it too. He wants you to forgive him but he's not willing to take responsibility for what he did (it was the drugs, not me!) and yet is still doing. Anyway, if you are getting divorce, you know this.... For things to do to fill in your time, you could try researching all about divorce and also you need to start moving some money into accounts in your name only and a few things like that. Divorce can actually keep you quite busy. As for men wanting you, even if you never lose another pound, there are men who will love you for you. My dh proposed when I was over 200 lb. and didn't bat an eye when I lost 70 for the wedding, then gained it all back and then some. He loves me no matter what weight I am and there are plenty more out there like him.

Wow, that's impressive!

I posted this thread in Doctors and Hospitals, but wanted to make sure the CA folks see it. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/doctors-hospitals/69292-good-samaritan-vs-california-pacific-mc-norcal.html I hate it when I can't make up my mind!

The surgeon I'm looking at works out of both Good Samaritan in San Jose and California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. Good Samaritan is *slightly* more convenient for me but not neither are particularly convenient. Both seem to have good credentials. I've been to neither nor do I know anyone in real life who has been to either. So... anyone have experience with one or both, not limited to WLS, and want to comment? If you were me, which would you choose?

I'm not at work. But I have to work this weekend.