gadgetlady

Thanks, guys. I've been feeling crampy all weekend and it's just not going away :-( I don't know if I should go see a dr tomorrow or not!

Do you mean the one in Summerlin?

OK, gadgetlady reporting in here. I asked my dh to create a username at LBT as "that's.mr.gadgetlady.to.you" but he declined, wanting to use my name instead. So I'm turning over my keyboard . . . ----------------------------- I'm sad to report that in the last 20 years I've gotten used to seeing bare-breasted women tattooed on the arms of men at 7-11, "skin industries" decals on the backs of vehicles driving down the road, and, worst of all, women in their 40's who have had breast implants, liposuction, lip enlargement, and who-knows-what-else done to their bodies, not because they think it makes them look more beautiful, but because they feel that is the only way to get noticed in this day and age. When I first discovered pornography, I knew it was bad. Instinctively, I knew it was something that I shouldn't be looking at. And I would be willing to bet that 95% of American men had the same reaction and they just "denied their way" into a belief system that it's OK. Tell yourself whatever you want to make yourself feel good about something, but that doesn't make it OK. If you're a single man and you don't ever plan on getting married, and you're absolutely certain that you can never become a rapist or a serial killer, then I say "knock yourself out". Get season tickets to the Playboy Mansion and write letters to Larry Flint telling him how wonderful his product is. But for every other man out there, if you think it's not affecting the way you look at women, you're living a lie. I want to address the "sex is just a physical release for men" issue. There's a big difference between a guy who lives alone, has no one to be intimate with, and feels the need to find "release", and the man who has a wife who sleeps right next to him every night. Unless for some strange reason she has actually encouraged him to go and "find release", then he's fooling himself if he thinks she doesn't crave his affection. And what may seem to him like a harmless "release" will actually have a great affect a couple of hours later or a few days later on the amount of desire he has for her. Unfortunately, most men were exposed to the idea (as young boys) that sex was this thing you try to get away with with someone cute when no one's looking. It's treated in the same manner as underaged drinking. It's this fun thing you get away with, you do it for selfish reasons, you do it because other people are doing it, you do it because you think it's cool. It all seems so harmless to approach things this way. But in the end, what you get in many men is a "wham-bam-thank-you-ma'am" mentality. And that's just not what it is, what it should be, or what it's intended for. So yes, some many may believe sex is just for physical release, but that's because that's what they've been conditioned to think. I hope that helps you ladies! I'm turning the computer back over to gadgetlady.

I've missed this thread until now. I'm a travel agent and would be happy to help if you still need any help. You might also consider Lake Las Vegas. It's about 20 minutes off the strip (depending on traffic) and a whole 'nother world. It's a pretty incredible, relaxing place, and you can get to the strip pretty easily for shows, etc. See The Official Home Page of Lake Las Vegas Resort for more info..

I'm so sorry :-( Please know that the OP's experience is not the norm (some may experience it for a LIMITED amount of time) and something is wrong with her band or the amount of fill. We happy bandsters do not our lives over the toilet! I certainly wouldn't be happy if I even had to spend 10 minutes a month over the toilet!

My 7yo just came up to the computer, looked at the photo, and said, "That's Rachel Ray!" LOL!

I just came back from a slight unfill today and was reminded of how much I LOVE my doctor! I also love that fills are free for life

Thank you (and others on this thread) for your support. The arrow missed its mark because I know the reason for my lack of speedy loss (could it be the pint of Rocky Road Haagen Dazs ice cream I had last night after dinner?) and it has nothing to do with not being tight enough. In fact, I just had a slight unfill today (.2 cc) because I was too tight. I'm happy losing 1 lb a month with no exercise and eating what I want. When my schedule eases up this November, I'm going to get more serious about exercise and watching what I eat. But again, I appreciate all of the words in my defense.

LOL! Tell us how you really feel, Deanna {bwg} I'll tell you how *I* really feel. For me, in my marriage, I consider porn to be adultery. If my husband were going elsewhere for sex, whether that be a photo, the internet, a hooker, or the next-door neighbor, I would consider it adultery. And my husband agrees.

I'm in a waiting room right now waiting for an unfill , but I'll see if I can get my husband to join LBT and chime in on this subject when I get home.

This really says it all. The pregnant woman is a mother. She has a child. When a pregnant woman cites as her reason for abortion that she's "not ready to be a mother", she's missed the boat. She ALREADY IS a mother. Her choice is whether she's the mother of a dead baby or a live baby.

I literally have tears in my eyes as I read what you ladies are going through. Do your husbands understand how this is destroying you? Have you told them that they are choosing fantasies over you, and that those photos aren't even REAL? They are retouched, airbrushed, and totally unnatural? Sex doesn't determine the course of a relationship, but it is a barometer to what's going on. If your husband doesn't concern himself with your physical pleasure, if it's not important to him, if the only thing he desires is physical release through porn/masturbation, if he doesn't respect your needs, if you cry out to him for companionship and he ignores you, then he needs a wake-up call big time. While I don't believe marriage is around just to make people happy, I also believe that it shouldn't be destructive of one's psyche.

It IS just a tool, but based on MY experience you will lose some weight just because the quantity of food you can eat physically MUST be curtailed. I haven't exercised pretty much at all, and I eat a lot of sugar and soft foods, so I haven't lost what I should. I'm happy, though, losing about 1 lb/month right now with virtually no work. I don't have time to focus on this in my life right now. But knowing I won't GAIN because I just plain can't overeat makes me really happy!

I don't know if I have any ideas, but I can tell you that for a lot of people, porn destroys their sex lives. The problem with porn is not only that it sets up unrealistic images for men, but also that the longer porn is associated with sexual feelings, the more porn is REQUIRED to HAVE those feelings. Just like all of those things they told us in our early weight loss days, like don't go to the refrigerator when you're bored because then you'll associate boredom with eating, the same is true of sex. It IS good that he doesn't hide it from you because that means at least you have an honest relationship, but it isn't good of course for your psyche and feelings about yourself, and of course it isn't good for him either to have that addiction. The problem is that if he doesn't see anything wrong with it, it's unlikely to change. It appears you communicate well; have you explained to him that you feel he's substituting other women (albeit glossy magazine or internet ones) for you and that you feel like you're not good enough? Perhaps he doesn't understand that. I would suggest making sure he knows just how much he's hurting you with his actions, and his sneaky behavior of getting the porn for free is no big win for your marriage.

Good point, Chickie. Try also drinking some Aloe Vera juice. That tends to calm my insides down whenever I'm swollen.

I have lost about 40 lbs. in 1.5 years, yes, but not because I'm not tight enough. It's because I don't exercise at all and I eat too many sweets. I'm in a time in my life right now where that's just the way it is. I still love my band and I still have restriction (in fact, I'm going for a slight unfill tomorrow). I can eat steak but not if I don't chew it well, but there certainly are other things (bread, many vegetables, etc.) that I can't eat. Don't judge me or my experience based on weight loss alone.

Well, sure, at one time or another until you figure out what you can tolerate and you get the right restriction and you learn how to chew enough and take small enough bites. That's what it's all about. The implication from your post was that this is the way life is going to be for everyone, forever, and that it's awful and no one ever talks about it. If you do a search on this board, you will find lots of stuff about PB's and chewing and small bites and what kind of foods do and don't go down well. I'm sorry I misunderstood; your original post seemed to imply this was a permanent situation.

I'm sorry you are having problems, but please remember that this is YOUR experience. Not everyone has the same experience. For example, I do fine with steak and chicken. I don't really spend any time over the toilet at all. THE TRUTH is everyone experiences band life differently.

Sunta, when the title of your thread is "Stop having so many damn kids; population control anyone?", it doesn't convey sentiments of rationality and personal choice. It conveys a presumption about kids ("damn kids") and a political advocacy ("population control"). While you may have said after your original post that you don't advocate enforced population control, I'm sure you can see how the title of the thread can set people off.

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Thank you lepez; I am really just an incredibly blessed person who wants to share a little bit God gave me a heart for people so I do what He tells me to do. I have a little story for you. My uncle recently went for a massage, but he's not the type you would normally think would be the "spa" type. I asked my aunt how she got him in there for the massage. She said, "It was simple. I scheduled an appointment for him on the same day I was going in for one, and I told him he'd need to be available to drive me there and wait for me. Then on the morning of the appointment, I told him he had an appointment for a massage. He didn't want to do it, but when I told him the appointment was non-cancellable and he'd have to pay for the massage whether he got it or not, he decided to do it." Now I'm not suggesting you lie to your husband, but knowing that most people hate to waste money, what would happen if you surprised him with it? Presented it as a done deal -- "someone gave me this weekend getaway and I already made the reservations." Or perhaps you just tell him to save the weekend because you have something special planned? The other option is to explain to him that you're at your wit's end and if he doesn't do something, everything's going to hit the fan. I'm not saying the marriage weekend is the "something" that needs to be done, but whatever you need to do for your sanity may be it. Blessings to you. You and your husband are in my prayers.

Evolution is unproven. So is Creation Science. They are both theories. My kids learn about both theories, and the science, or lack thereof, behind both.

Uh, yeah, the facts it establishes are what elements of a human life are present at a particular time. This is the most ridiculous statement I have ever heard. Since when does one person's conscience determine whether another person is alive? If I truly, in my deepest moments of introspection, believe that a child under the age of 2 years is not alive because he cannot communicate properly with me, does that make him not alive? No, it makes me WRONG. That decision only applies when one life is not taking another. My very favorite bumper sticker says, quite simply: The baby is NOT your body

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