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Leener.. I've been thinking about you all day. Can't wait to hear from you! MiniMe and Kat1215 were being banded today as well. Three newbie bandsters! Yay!

Diane - call them up and ask them if they'd be willing to go see Dr Phil with you. Tell them you'll pay the way if they'll accept whatever advice he has to give. *chuckles* Or, better yet, just ignore them and leave them with their own struggles while you and your hubby move forward and enjoy the upcoming summer with your kids. Just smile and tell the kids that gradma and grandpa are welcome to be with the family when they learn how to behave. *grins* Don't let them rob you of your joy!

You're very welcome. I'm glad it helped. *big smile*

You know, it just pisses me off when a guy has a nicer ass and legs than me! LOL Leave it big Kimmy.. it adds to the affect. *grins*

Hi Shelby! Welcome to LBT! Goodness, I remember those days on liquids. I would have given my right arm to have some red meat! LOL The day I had that first bite of cottage cheese was momentus. You hang in there, the time will pass quickly and you'll be glad you took good care of yourself. Try pureed bean with bacon Soup... mmm very filling! Grats on your weightloss so far. I look forward to hearing more about your journey as you progress.

Wow, Diane. *hugs* You and your husband decided together to keep that part of your life private, and that was your RIGHT do to so. It's time to tell the in-laws to get over it and get on with life. You and your husband made the decisions based on what was best for you and your family. How rude and mean they are! I'm sure you explained your reasoning for deciding to tell them later, and I'm sure you've told them you're sorry that decision has upset them. Now what you need to tell them is that they are tearing the family apart with this attack on you and it's time they kept their opinions to themselves. And, tell them that if they can't manage to do that then they aren't welcome to be around you. Do not let this make you second guess yourself. You had no obligation to tell them anything at all. What you did was try to protect them and their reaction to that is 100% their problem, my friend. I'm proud of your hubby for standing up for you. It is hard to have a riff in the family like this, but if you remain friendly and welcoming to them while making it clear that you won't be treated like this, then it remains to be their problem not yours. Do not blame yourself for their behavior. *hugs*

Stacey, what size band do you have? And how much do you have in it?

Paula - this is a good example of how knowledge gives us power. Cashews - oiled, salted, roasted 1 cup 749 calories, 30 grams carbs, 62 grams fat Hershey's with Almond Bites - 17 pieces 215 calories, 20 grams carbs, 14 grams fat

Remember this picture, and the discussion of whether or not it was a man's butt? Well, I saw this pic online yesterday and about died laughing. I thought I should share for those of you who can't tell the difference. *laughs*

Heya Kimmers and Meme.. I was banded in Jan too and I've only had one fill, about three weeks ago. I didn't think I was going to need a fill but after asking me the following questions, the doc decided I did and gave me 1cc: 1. What are you eating? (most any healthy food - no breads) 2. How much can you eat at one time? (3/4 to 1C) 3. How often do you get hungry? (Every 3 hours on the dot!) He said the goal was for me to only be hungry every 4 hours. I've only had one semi-problem while eating chicken. And that was before the fill. I was just eating too fast and the meat was a bit dry. I felt the golfball and stopped eating it. I've read about a lot of folks just staying away from certain meats and almost all breads. Seems to me this is typical and not a true indicator of restriction. I can certainly understand your hesitation about being filled when you don't need it. I don't want to have to deal with that either. I am still getting hungry every 3 hours, on most days, and I think I can eat too much still (but to be honest, thats when I'm drinking with the meal - shame on me), so I'll probably ask for a very small increase. Perhaps .5cc. PS - after thinking about this more, I've come back to add... I think I should really evaluate my eating habits before I make the decision about more fills. I don't always eat my protein first. I haven't broken my habit of drinking with meals yet. I rarely eat more than 800 calories a day, yesterday was under 700. I'm losing an average of 2 pounds per week. Why would I think I need a fill? LOL I think I'm going to sit where I am for a while.

Are you on a restricted calorie amount? I believe I was on 600 calories for the first couple of weeks. I also was allowed to drink Water with meals during that time. It was hard to feel full for very long, so I just ate about every 2 hours. Bean with bacon Soup was a lifesaver for me. It was thick and high in Protein. If you need to, blend it a bit before heating it. I also ate a lot of Swanson's vegetable broth. The warm food seemed to satisfy me longer. As for 64oz of water, I buy the 16.9oz bottles of water and have one in my hand or sitting by me all the time. We tend to ignore feelings of thirst, and often confuse them for hunger. So I'm trying to train my brain to reach for the water at the first sign of thirst or hunger. I can often go another hour after thinking I was hungry, just by drinking water.

Wheetsin - that was funny!

Yesterday: I could have sworn I did this. Oh dear, I'm getting old! LOL I will walk a minimum of 1/2 mile every day. (None for two days. That stops now!) I will drink 64 oz. of Water every day. (I've been slacking on water. Too much tea. I think its the splenda that Im liking. Water first then tea from now on.) I will write down every bite I put in my mouth - quantity, calories, Protein. (Done) I will take on one achievable project in my house per day. (Did kitchen and laundry.) I will NOT sit on my arse all day doing nothing but fighting head hunger out of pure boredom! (Ate less than I have in a long time, but was bored, bored, bored!) Today: I will walk a minimum of 1/2 mile every day. (I will, I will, I will! - I didn't, I didn't.) I will drink 64 oz. of water every day. (So far so good.) I will write down every bite I put in my mouth - quantity, calories, protein. (Yup, keeping up on this.) I will take on one achievable project in my house per day. (I think my project today will be going shopping for gym clothes. - Er, didn't move all day. I've been in a funk.) I will NOT sit on my arse all day doing nothing but fighting head hunger out of pure boredom! (It's after 11am and I'm bored stiff. Hopefully, I'll get up the energy to go shopping. - *sighs* Bored. Didn't go.) Penni - I'd love to see the pics you painted! Keeping busy is a definite help in this battle, isn't it? Woke up to snow this morning - blue skies over a white world, beautiful! 6:30pm - The snow is mostly gone.

If your doctor has checked you, then you're probably just fine. The swelling will go down over time. It is great to be able to eat a small amount and be satisfied, isn't it? Oh the joy!

No soy Protein is good for you. Stick with whey Proteins. If you can't handle the powders, then go for the prebottled whey isolate drinks. They come in fruit flavors. I'll see if I can find the thread that talks about these. Here it is: http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=15716&highlight=whey+protein Also, on the main page, if you enter whey protein in the search, you'll find a whole slew of threads on this topic.

Tricia - I got it! LOL

Abnormal swelling, um.. very red, puffy, irritated looking around the incision. When I got home from surgery, I looked pregnant for about three weeks. The gas used to inflate your abdominal area for surgery, coupled with the cuts through your skin and muscle tissue along with the instruments used during surgery... its normal to be all swollen up. Conehead eh? *laughs* I'm guessing that's where your port is. Mine is just to the right of the large incision. Do you know where yours is?

The quantity of the foods I ate astounds me! I won't go into the types of food, but you are all familiar with the styrofoam containers that are about five inches square, divided sections, closeable lid? Well, stuff two of those full of food and I could eat it, in one sitting! I swear, it just about makes me gag to think of stuffing all of that down into my body. I was never empty! Gross. *laughs* Now? I eat 3/4 to 1 Cup of food and I'm done. I used to crave anything made with flour. Now it occassionally crosses my mind but I just shrug it off because I am too afraid of a PB to try it! Yay! I never had a sweet tooth, so that's not been a problem.

Yeppers, the big one takes the longest to heal. Makes sense though, as there was more "damage" done to the muscles there. I'm at 9wks now and my largest incision still gets tender. Now if you start seeing redness, abnormal swelling, or dripping from the incision, get to your doctor right away. You don't want to let an infection set in. Otherwise, it's quite normal to be sensative in this area. Be sure to get your 60 grams of Protein (or more). This will promote healing of the muscles and help prevent infection. Sunta - it's so good to see you feeling more comfortable with things and giving comforting advice to others! Sorry to interrupt the thread, but I just had to say that. *hugs*

(The following is MY opinion. It is not presented in the form of an argument, nor is it meant to contradict or challenge anyone else's opinion.) It would be nice if we, as a nation, were able to resist advertising and make good choices on our own. Sadly, the statistics show we don't seem to be doing a good job of it. This topic isn't about banning advertising in general. It is about banning the promotion of products that are killing our nation. We banned smoking commercials long ago and that didn't start a chain reaction of losing our freedoms. Smoking kills people and costs our country millions of dollars each year to take care of cancer patients. I didn't start smoking because of ads on TV either, but during the time that I did start smoking, it seemed to me and my parents that smoking was a widely accepted and even GOOD thing to do. Once the awareness of the hazaards started, and the companies pushing the deadly product were made to stop presenting it to the public as a GOOD and enjoyable thing, the public opinion changed. It is no longer socially acceptable to smoke. I do not believe in discrimination of anyone for any reason. On the other hand, I think it is detrimental to our country's health to start embracing obesity. It is not just a matter of how you look when you're obese; it is a matter of health. Sure, we would all feel better if everyone was fat and noone looked at us like we weren't normal. But we would then be a nation of sick, out of shape, miserable people. Why on earth would we defend the promotion of such attitudes? Some say that the government has better things to think about. I ask, would the same people be passionately vocal about discrimination againts fat people? It is the government who protects our rights, abroad AND at home. We all have the right to be treated equally, and we also have the right to stand up and tell companies who are promoting poor health to stop.

It is jealousy. Her husband just complimented you and she felt the need to counteract his compliment by pointing out something negative about you. I have a friend whom I used to count as my best friend, but after years of these kind of remarks I now consider her an occassional friend. We get along on special occassions and thats about it. When I tried to tell her that her remarks hurt me, she denied that she meant anything negative and was just kidding around. I learned something a long time ago, and its so true - More truth is told in half jest. It's possible that you've been allowing this from her for a long time, excusing her remarks in order to maintain the friendship. Perhaps it's time you told her that it does hurt you and ask her to stop. If she won't, then she's not the kind of friend you can really count on. I miss my friend and the fun times we used to have with her and her husband. But I don't miss the sick feeling in my stomach from her remarks.

Hi Patty and welcome to the GFG Club! I've added you to the members list on page one of this thread. Have a look at the other members' information listed there, and lte me know if you want more added to yours. Heather - I track my calories and protein for my own peace of mind. Sometimes I think I'm eating way too much, but when I add it up I've actually not eaten enough. Counting calories used to be like putting up a barrier for me. When I reached the max allowed, I had to stop. Now it's more like keeping my finger on the pulse to be sure I'm doing ok. Skbishop - After I had my first fill, and completed my two days of liquids, I was suddenly very hungry and was eating a lot more than normal. It really confused me! How can I eat more AFTER a fill?? Thats been three weeks ago now and things have settled in nicely. I still can't explain the increase in hunger or the ability to eat more at a time, but I can definitely say that my restriction is very nice right now. There's no way I could eat that much anymore, and it only lasted for a couple of days. RHONDA - how are you feeling today?

Sweet dreams Leener. See ya soon! *big hugs*

Just out of curiosity, would those of you who oppose banning fast food commercials, vote to unban cigarette commercials?

Aw Margo, your NSV brought tears to my eyes girl! How wonderful to experience the freedom again, to dress up, to attend nice social functions, to dance! I'm so happy for you.. I know how much this would mean to me!