gadgetlady

Birth control does not stop a beating heart. It is not a medical procedure that intervenes in a human life. HUGE difference. The argument that conservatives are just trying to stop people from having sex cracks me up. Sex is one of my all time favorite things in the whole world :rant: What we're trying to stop is people killing people.

Vines, I missed this thread until just now. You and your mother will be in my prayers.

Fetus is Latin. There are many translations, but the most common is "offspring" or "little one". It is common to try to re-name something when you want to de-humanize it. The term "fetus" is used to draw attention away, to try to convince people that the unborn child is something different from a child. There are many different names for children: baby, toddler, child, infant, offspring, etc. Calling an unborn baby a fetus does not change biology. Abortion is legal through nine months of pregnancy. Count backwards from birth for me and tell me when a baby ceases to be human?

Would you be happy if abortion were outlawed in all cases except for an underage girl who was impregnated by her legal guardian? I seriously doubt it. This is a red herring. The reality is that the average abortion is used as a form of retroactive birth-control. And the bottom line is we don't, or shouldn't, kill people to solve social ills and unfortunate or even criminal circumstances.

My surgeon recommended GB over LB as well, but I chose LB. My impression was that because GB has much faster and dramatic results than LB, his patients were more ecstatic about the GB successes. He said often LB patients get discouraged because the loss is slower and it takes longer for the loss to start (usually it starts kicking in after a few fills). That being said, I was THRILLED when I heard about LB because GB always freaked me out. And I am just 4 months out of my LB surgery and THRILLED with the results. It is such a pleasure to be physically limited to the point that you just cannot overeat. I couldn't be happier.

Actually, if you look at what the founding fathers SAID about it, you will find something entirely different. Look at the writings of James Madison and Thomas Jefferson. It is from them that I glean my understanding of the first amendment, not from my own reasonings. The first amendment expressly states that the government shouldn't impede in religion, not vice-versa. And sorry I missed the word prohibiting; you are correct.

I don't believe there should be a right to privacy. I believe there is/should be a right to personal autonomy, but not privacy. Subtle distinction, but important.

If I could make ONE law, it would be to make abortion illegal. I just abhor the killing of innocent children. As an aside, everyone is harping on separation of church and state. There is no separation of church and state in the constitution. Those three words appear no where in the constitution. The constitution says: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion or the free exercise thereof . . ."In other words, the government can't require people to join one religious sect over another, and it can't establish an official "state" religion. The purpose of the first amendment was not to disallow religion in the US, but rather to protect it. The whole thing was put into effect to protect the CHURCH from STATE interference, NOT the STATE from CHURCH interference!

I've always believed one should have to pass either an IQ test or a test demonstrating basic knowledge of civics to vote. Also, I don't know how this is in other states, but it California it is ILLEGAL for the polling place workers to ask for identification from the person trying to vote. So long as they know their name and address, they can sign in and vote. How difficult is it to get someone's name and address????????????????

</p>THAT is one marriage I'll never understand! Totally incomprehensible.

Wow -- lots of tall women! My goal is 5'6" Oh, I can't do that OK, I'm 5'2" on a good day and my goal is 140-150. I told a dr 130 once and she laughed. She said I won't ever see that weight again due to my age.

Don't stand for it next time with the nurse. Demand the doctor the FIRST time around. If your doctor is good, you don't even need the numbing agent.

Interesting -- I'm right in there with Margaret Thatcher and George Bush -- Economic Left/Right: 6.75 Social Libertarian/Authoritarian: 2.62

I've only PB'd once and I've been banded since February. I've felt restriction from day one (although in varying degrees). My PB was wholly due to overeating and fast eating (it happened on a cruise ship). I've come close a few other times. I had a fill today and am quite tight; I don't want to PB again, so I ate very, very slowly tonight and chewed very well. I guess that means I'm learning!

Thanks, nursekathy. I don't produce too much stuff (a few times a month at the MOST) but this sensation is too annoying. I'll be going in ASAP.

Sorry to hijack this thread, but . . . Nursekathy, I was just about to schedule an appointment with an ENT. I feel like something is stuck in my throat at the very top. No burning. Over the years I have often been able to work up or spit up a very small ball of, for want of a better term, hard mucus. I don't quite know what it is exactly. One doctor years ago told me it was mucus that had gathered in the folds of my throat and eventually popped out and came up. It's usually very small, like the size of a small drop of Water. I assumed my "stuck" sensation was one of these things not working it's way up. I was in for a fill today and my dr thought it was probably sensation from the band, but then when I told him what I was eating every day he said I'm swallowing stuff fine so that mustn't be it. Any thoughts? TIA!

Well, I went in for my third fill today, this time again with my surgeon who did my first fill. One stab, no numbing shot, no pain at all. What a HUGE difference between him and the doctor who did my second fill -- digging and stabbing and very painful. So it's all in your doctor. For those of you worried about fills, if you get someone who doesn't get the port on the first or second attempt, stop him and ask for someone new. Fills shouldn't hurt.

What a great comparison. You and me, girl -- we've both lost a bag of charcoal! Maybe we should have a bbq?

Sorry I wasn't clearer. I didn't mean for lapband surgery. I just meant for various surgeries and treatments in general. I believe it's particularly true with elective surgeries, but even with non-elective surgeries the waiting list is very long. And I was specifically referring to my bronchitis, not anything to do with lapband. I should have made it more clear. My apologies.

Amy, I couldn't agree with you more. Being in the US does not guarantee a good surgeon or a good result. I was amazed when my doctor was telling the story of his first laporoscopic surgery, about how this woman trusted him enough to be his first. I kept thinking, "I don't care how much I like you or I trust you, I would NEVER be your guinea pig!" If he hadn't had the experience I wouldn't have gone under his knife. GeezerSue, I'm glad you had the resources to check out the hospital. Unfortunately, many people don't have those resources and/or wouldn't know what to check on even if they did. Those are the people that run the highest risk -- in the US, Mexico, or anywhere else.

Yes, Hoag is my preferred hospital. I didn't have the surgery at Huntington Beach, but rather South Coast Medical in Laguna. My preference, again, is always Hoag. And yes, I would pick that over a major hospital in Monterrey any day.

Not if I could avoid it, and certainly not elective surgery. I'd be more comfortable in any of those locations than Mexico, though. I needed some attention once in Switzerland and was very comfortable. I was travelling with a friend who became sick in England and was very unimpressed with their facilities and their capabilities. I was in Canada recently suffering from bronchitis and lived in fear of ending up in a Canadian hospital. It just seems to me there are a whole lot of Canadians trying to cross the border and get into our hospitals. That being said, there are also some US hospitals that I would never go to!

I wouldn't go to a medical facility in Mexico for a sore throat. When I travel there I bring my own meds, my own antibiotics, and I self medicate.

Glad to hear back from you, Misfortune. So sorry for what you have been through. It is a solemn reminder that as much as we all want to be "skinny" at virtually any cost, sometimes we can't fathom the reality that that cost very well might be our lives. I'm glad you're here to tell your story; more importantly, I'm glad your boys still have their mother around. That is, after all, what we all value most -- our families and our loved ones. May God bless you richly, as he clearly has already (no, this is not a typo or an oxymoron; I believe Misfortune is truly blessed to have her life).

I've pretty much given up on eating Breakfast or anything other than Protein shakes until dinnertime -- which I'm fine with, BTW, as I use the time saved from eating for other things. But in the eves I can eat pretty well and I'm sure this is what's keeping me from losing like I'd like to. This morning I drank my shake a little too fast, had trouble getting it down, and started sliming. Sliming from a shake??? I'm scheduled for a fill next Tuesday, but now I'm wondering if I should get one. I'd really like to just be tighter in the evenings but I'm concerned that a fill will make me even tighter in the mornings, which is unimaginable. Any thoughts are appreciated.