jena

Awww hon. You are doing such a HUGE thing and you made the decision yourself without anyone's approval. Right now you are going through the "have to do" part. Think of your surgery like a big vacation to Paris and the testing and what not as going through what you have to do before going. None of it's fun. You've got to get passport pictures taken, you've got to fill out all the paperwork, you've got to find your birth certificate, you've got to stand in line at a post office that handles passports that may be all the way across town since they all don't do passports. You've got to send it all in and cross your fingers that you get the darn thing before your trip. All of it a pain in the you-know-where, but without it, you're not going to Paris. Or in your case, no tests, no band. As far as your mom goes, people treat you the way you let them treat you. She's no longer the boss of you. A friend of mine has a standard reply anytime someone says they want him to do something, "you can want in one hand and $h1t in the other." I don't know exactly what that means, LOL, but what he is saying is that you can go ahead and "want" all you "want" but he is doing what he wants to do and he doesn't need your approval. What I'm trying to say is let your mom make her plans for you. It's not your place to stop her. It IS your place to make your own plans, regardless of what she plans. No need to fight or argue. Just do your thing girl! Stay with your brother if thats what you really want! What you are doing is a big, life changing thing. This is your opportunity to show your 'grown up' self to your family. Once you tell your mother "no" and then go on about your business you cannot imagine what a liberating feeling it is. I've been there myself.:thumbup: Hugs! Jena

Actually, the original author asked if there is a low carb wine that we would recommend. I pointed out that all wines have roughly the same amount of carbs, but when it comes to wine (and beer) it's the calories that will get you, rather than the carbs. I suggested, to all, if they are interested in Resistant Starch, that they should google it. It's a very interesting subject. Although I'm sure the "your versed "[sic] people don't need to bother.

Yes, wine is a carbohydrate, however as I stated in my above post, there are different types of carbohydrates and your body handles each one differently. If you read labels closely, you will see that carbohydrates are broken down into sugar and fiber. In the last few years, a new type of carbohydrate has been studied. It's called "resistant starch" which is a type of starch that behaves in your body as a fiber. If your interested, give it a google! :biggrin2:

there are different types of carbohydrates. Fiber is a carb, but is not processed by your body the same a sucrose. Alcohol is a by-product, along with gas, from the fermentation of carbohydrates. Take sourdough bread for example. True sourdough does not require yeast to make it rise. It's the bacteria that consume the flour that makes it rise. The result is alcohol (what gives the bread a sour taste) and gas (which causes the bubbles and rising. The only digestible carbs are starch and sugar. As far as what order food is digested, alcohol goes first, carbohydrates are digested next, protein is digested next, and fat is the last to be digested. Digestion starts in your mouth. Your saliva starts breaking down food first. The food goes to your stomach where it is mixed with digestive juices and then the stomach proceedes to store the food and digestive juices begin to work. Alcohol is not digested, it passes through into your intestines. Carbohydrates (that are not alcohol or fiber) are processed faster than protein and fat. Protein takes longer to process than carbs, and fat takes the longest of all. :bolt: probably more than you wanted to know!

A 5 oz. glass of wine has about 5g of carbs. The fruit sugar is broken down as the wine ferments and the bi-product of the fermentation is alcohol (and gas) Since wine isn't distilled like hard liquor, there is some remaining carbs. Alcohol is not a carb, btw. Here's the thing, though. That 5 oz. glass of wine is going to have at a minimum 110 calories and 13 grams of alcohol! Your body processes alcohol before Protein, carbs and fat, which is not a good thing. Think "beer belly".

Why did you sit there and take your BF's boyfriend grilling you like that? The good thing after going through that nonsense with him is that next time you get a response like that you'll know how to respond if you practice. Here's some ideas: "Nun-ya" which means none of your business. Just refuse to discuss it with him and let him rant. He'll get tired after a while. While he's ranting, picture yourself in a hot string bikini on a beach with sparkling blue and green Water. "Spoken like a person who's never had a weight problem" then imagine yourself in that string bikini on a beach while he minds your business. "F#@k off, asshat" and think of yourself in that bikini. I'm more of an option #3 person. heh heh heh

It's from your skin sweating and the heat. Probably is yeast and it has nothing to do with how many baths or showers you take. A spray on antiperspirant works great. I see mmsmom recommended that as well and here I thought I was so smart for thinking it up myself! LOL! Just remember, as irritating as it is now (and in the future), it is one of those things that your doctor can use to recommend your insurance pay for a tummy tuck! Start keeping track of how often you have it to give the doctor when it is time for that tummy tuck!

Oh! One more thing...if your's is the type of job that you can do remotely, ask if you can "work from home" that second week. That's what I did when I had surgery and was out for 8 weeks. It wasn't the company's policy for people to work from home, but my boss liked me and it worked out great.

FMLA just insures you will have a job when you come back. You can have up to 12 weeks off without pay if the company is eligible and if the employee is eligible. I do know (from experience) that in order to start receiving short term disability you have to use all of your sick/vacation time before it kicks in. It sucks that you have to lose your vacation/sick time. Maybe you and your employer can let you take the time off during the holidays because of the time you accrue between now and then.

I've been fat all my life. Not pleasingly plump mind you, but FAT. I occasionally thought about bi-pass but just didn't want my insides to be rearranged. I've been reading about the band since it was first approved and thought it was exactly what I had been looking for but I just couldn't make the first step. I kept listening to people saying "You can do it yourself. Just don't eat so much" In April of last year, one of my knees was hurting so badly there were days I couldn't even walk. I suffered with this for months before I went to the doctor and found out I have osteoarthritis in my knees and one of my knee caps was inflamed. That was it. To have my mobility taken away from me because I am fat scared me enough that I had to do what I had to do. I first had to realize that I CAN'T do it myself and keep the weight off. I needed help. I also had to realize that that does not make me a failure. Once I got past that I started pursuing getting banded with a vengeance! I set my date today, May 8, and I couldn't be happier!

You actually don't need your insurance card to get started! What you need is the group number and the policy number and the 800 phone number to get in touch with them. You should be able to get this info easily from the HR department. The dr.'s office will call and verify that you are covered! Ask your PCP to refer you to a lap band surgeon. If your PCP won't do it, change doctors!

I told the Psyc doc. I was bulimic for 16 years and beat it on my own 20 years ago. I can see being turned down if you were currently binging and purging, or still recovering from beating the habit. Tell the Psyc doc. Your doctor makes you go through the screening process to insure the band will work for you. They don't do it in hopes of turning people down. It's in your best interest to tell all. Good luck! Jena

I agree with Long2BFree. Why pay the therapist and Psyc. doc and not tell them something is going on? I don't think having a PA would cause him to pull his approval. He will probably start you on some meds to make the PA's stop to ensure you do well before, during and after the surgery! The thing about PA's is that you can never tell when they are going to hit you. Talk to the doc. Better safe than sorry. Good luck with everything!!

That's right kirajh! I love when I have it on and I take deep, peaceful breaths. The "white noise" that the machine makes is also very relaxing. Isn't it great to not wake up with a sore throat and that dry yucky mouth?

Irish76, I love mine too. I've had it for about 13 years and there is a huge difference between sleeping with it and sleeping without it. It's not the most "romantic" thing you can wear to bed, but you can whip it off quite easily if you need to. Heh! Jena

You ate something that wasn't on your diet. That was then, this is now. Forget about it and move on! You've done amazingly well! I don't know how you managed to stay on the liquids this long. Jena

I would recommend any of the early books by Geneen Roth. "Feeding The Hungry Heart", "Why Weight?", "Breaking Free From Emotional Eating", "When food is Love." All of her books are directed towards compulsive overeating, much of the books cite her own experiences. The books are not diets or diet plans, they force you to look inside yourself for the answers to why you are a compulsive eater. Hope this helps!

Oh, that is soooooo wrong!! All of the studies that have come out have showed that at the 2 year point the weight loss is the same for the two different procedures! That is also the point that many bi-pass patients begin to regain their weight! Look at how many are having banding over bi-pass! The one big thing that sold it for me is that bi-pass gives you malabsorption problems. You have to take supplements for the rest of your life. With banding, there is no such problem since your digestive system functions normally.

Don't be nervous! It's done for the same reason the other tests are done - to see if you are a good candidate who will succeed. Be glad your surgeon is requiring this, it shows that they don't do banding willy-nilly to whoever wants one and can pay for it. Basically, they ask you why you want this done, then go down a list of questions that you answer yes or no to. Answer them truthfully, too, don't try and give the answer you think they want to hear. You'll do fine!:wink2:

Do you have a 401k? If you do, and there is enough money in it, take out a loan from your 401k. The interest rate is pretty low, and the interest you pay is actually going back into your account, so essentially you are paying yourself the interest. As for the medical loan companies, unless you have a really, really fantastic credit score they rip you off on the finance charges. Some as high as 29%!

Jachut, love your tag line! I never realized how I wolfed things down in order to eat more before I started. I could eat two full helpings in less than 10 minutes!

AZnikki, if you were asking me, I'm not banded yet - setting the date next week. I'm just trying to be as prepared as I can be. :thumbup:

With your mouth, mouth, mouth. Heh! Sorry, I couldn't stop myself. I've been "training" myself the past 10 days. You have to pay very close attention to what you are doing, so you can't be in a rush. Here are some things working for me. I cut whatever I'm eating into very small pieces before I begin to eat. Using a small plastic fork or spoon helps! Can't get a lot of food on them. I set a minimum time of 30 minutes to be eating. This makes me pace myself, which makes me chew, chew, chew. This may sound gross, but here goes; I chew my little bites and if I find myself starting to swallow, I force it to the front of my mouth and chew until it's mush - about half spit and half food. Then and only then do I swallow. Really taste and savor the food you are eating. Concentrate on it. I'm having 2 Lean Cuisine meals a day (lunch and dinner) and those things are tiny! I had the Salisbury Steak / mac & cheese one for lunch and it took me 40 minutes to eat it. Last night I had the BBQ chicken pizza and it took over an hour to eat that. Hope this helps, Jena

I'm one of the ones who recommended The Beck Diet Solution. It's an awesome book. Not a diet book at all, but it's written for overweight people to help them re-train their thinking about themselves and food. It sounds like this is what you need, I'm so glad you're ordering it!

I try to remember that the people who do say things to convince me not to do this are doing it out of love. Having surgery is a big deal. Going under anesthesia is a big deal. I was just talking to a co-worker about her mother. Her mom had surgery (not WLS) and while under she started moving around. They had not given her enough anesthesia. Then they gave her more and it was too much. She was in a coma for 3 months. She's fine now, but it just shows me anything can happen. So, I've changed my thinking about people trying to talk me out of it because I've made up my mind. My best friend is totally against it. He's of the mindset that if I really wanted to lose weight I would do it myself. However, he is one of my biggest supporters and is going to TJ with me when I have it done. On the other hand, I was talking to two co-workers about it the other day and they were saying that all I had to do was change my eating habits and exercise more. I was smiling the whole time and when they finished I said, "Spoken like two people who have never had a weight problem in their whole life." They stopped, looked at each other, looked at me and said "You're right. Do what you've got to do!" Jena