Cate18

I had this problem a few years back. I started keeping a box of baby wipes under my sink and just have a pee and then give a little wipe and then I'm good.

I'm so sorry to hear that you had to be subjected to that. Granted I don't know her or her family. But what a sad thing that this woman can only measure happiness and worthiness in the fact that someone is married. As though she/you/any other woman can't be happy/successful unless she's married. Congratulations to you that you realize your happiness is so much more than being a part of a relationship. Keep your head up high. I know I'm behind you !

I'm a graduate research assistant. I'm kind of wondering about the timing as well. I'm sure I will need to have plenty of time to recuperate, etc. On top of needing to plan around classes I'll have to plan my research around this too. So what are anyone's thoughts on Thanksgiving break if it's approximately a week long ? I just want to get the ball rolling before I have to even start thinking about defending my thesis. Is a week around Thanksgiving good for someone that is young/resilient/in as good health as could be expected ? I know there are a million threads of "how long until I can go back to work" but from a student perspective would a week long Thanksgiving break be good ?

I always like analogies. When I was bigger, I was like a mack truck (pick a different analogy if this one offends you). A mack truck takes way more gas to run than a golf cart. Now I'm a golf cart. I take less gas to run. When I got the band, I went from filling up (aka eating calories) for a mack truck to filling up for a golf cart. Since I didn't have near enough calories to run my mack truck, I burned pounds. Now that I have almost enough gas, I don't lose as fast because I don't have to burn my reserves. Like I said, I like analogies and I think people respond to those better. If all else fails and they're being impossible, tell them it's magic and it disappears like those new fangled disappearing stitches ! LOL. Good luck and hang in there. I've seen your pictures/blog and you've had amazing results !

Mine is 2 weeks of clear liquids (broths, sugar free drinks like crystal light, etc). I was told that my doctor used to allow other types of liquids, but that he was tired of people "expelling" on his surgical table. Queue the eye roll here. But I guess it's a good test of character and determination. So I'll do what it takes !

I think maybe you're referring to Byetta (made by Lilly company). It's an injectable medication, and it's supposed to really help in controlling blood sugar, which alleviates PCOS symptoms. I'm taking Glumetza (same as metformin, but easier on the stomach) and Byetta for PCOS. My results have been mixed, but it's more because if I forget to take it for a few days I have to start taking it slowly again or else I feel sick like when I first took it. Though when I'm consistent it's been really helpful. Hope this information is helpful !

After a lot of consideration I decided to post in the general forum. If this isn't the right place for this thread, please feel free to move it, mods ! I'm in the insurance phase of the process right now, but I was curious if there were any people out there that were very sweaty types of people before their surgery that have had the problem clear up post surgery ? I'm 5'7" around 260 lbs and have always been a very sweaty person all over--underarms, legs, back, backs of knees. I've also been a very oily type of complexion, and have gotten a lot of treatments for both of those conditions. And when I say oily I mean VERY oily (face and hair). Also (so many alsos!) I've had a problem with a lot of skin cysts, typically where my skin rubs (legs, underarms, pubic area). Is there anyone out there that has had any of these problems just simply go away or get much better after surgery ? I'd love to hear your experiences. Thanks !

Well then this is good news ! Having always been somewhat of a sweater, even prior to gaining more weight (I have always been overweight to a lesser extent), this gives me some hope that potentially it will go away ! Thanks so much to all who commented. If anyone has had any experience with any of the other things, I would also like to hear about that. Thanks so much !

Not to sound sappy, but your post really made me smile Frangipani. It was nice to see someone with a good perspective only 10 months after the fact. I like that you just don't care enough about those trying to get you down to even bother with flipping the bird :tongue2: I think that's great ! I thought I was the only one that was sad about the bathtub not being relaxing anymore. It's not so much that I can't fit into it, just that the Water doesn't completely cover me so sometimes my belly's all cold while my tush is warm. I'd like to be 100% relaxed. Here's the rest of my list: 1) Fit comfortably in an airline seat (not just my butt, but also my shoulders not hanging into the aisle to get clipped by the sometimes nasty flight attendants with the stupid beverage cart) 2) Not stress out about hurrying into a theme park attraction seat to make sure I can get my seat belt clipped so people aren't watching me fumble with it 3) Only take up more than half the bed because I feel like it, not because I have to 4) Feel confident enough to go on PhD interviews without wondering if my interviewers are judging me as a lazy person who won't succeed 5) Wear shorts 6) Wear a sundress on a hot day (which I don't do now because of all the sweaty chaffing nastiness) 7) Learn how to buy clothes that make a wardrobe of my style, not buy a closet full of the best clothes I can find that fit me 8) Reclaim my sexuality. 8 is the one I'm looking forward to most. I know I could do that now. I know I don't have to be thin to be sexual, but heaven help me I'm just too tired right now. I'm looking forward to the energy, confidence, and, quite frankly, the PHYSICAL ability to be sexual.

Maybe I'm weird...but... I haven't met with my surgeon yet (I will on Monday 4/12), but I decided to start having a shake for Breakfast and one for lunch. I used Lise's recipe from her blog (which is awesome !) and I use the Dutch Royale chocolate mix. Fancy name, I know ! I found that the mix makes a better shake than the canned ones, and it makes more for the same price. Good luck !

I haven't been banded, so I definitely can't speak from that experience. I DO , however, have very sensitive and often itchy skin. As soon as I scratch I get welts and red marks, so I was forced by my mother to not itch as a child. Instead I learned how to tap. I know tapping hard on the port might be a bad (or painful) idea, but if you firmly tap repeatedly you can confuse some of those nerves around the port and they won't itch anymore. Hope this helps for you. After about 15 years of practice I'm finally starting to NOT scratch !! -Cate

I don't even need that sugar alternative to give me symptoms like mrsgriffin2u. Splenda alone is enough to make me sick, and it usually doesn't happen until a few hours after I eat/drink something with splenda. A few more thoughts are: If you've switched to liquids your stomach could be making more acid than it needs upsetting it, or if you had solids mixed in with your liquids occasionally your body could be complaining. For me, going mostly to liquids meant that I started drinking more dairy based products, which are hard for my digestive system to handle. I definitely suggest a food diary to keep an eye on it. Good luck ! Hope you're feeling better soon !

In the experience of most people, have complications been covered by your insurance ? For example, I'm curious if I ever have a band slip or erosion, would surgeries and procedures to fix things like that be covered by insurance ? Or if I have some emergency that I have to go to the ER for directly related to my band, is that covered ? I'm trying not to fall into the trap of only worrying about what I have to do to GET the band. I want to make sure I can afford to live with it !! I'd love to hear about any experiences you all have had in that regard. Thanks in advance ! -Cate

I have been poking around on these message boards for a few weeks trying to get information and find out how this whole process worked for everyone else. So I thought maybe it was time to join the boards and become official ! I'm living in Iowa, a student in my 20's. I was moderately overweight my entire life, always miserable about it, but a mostly active kid/teen without a lot of health problems. As I've gotten older I've become pre-diabetic and gotten PCOS in addition to becoming much more obese. I'm not sure if I want to have children, but there's just something about being told I can't. So that's a little bit about me, and I'm hoping to meet some other people in a similar situation. I'm only in the early stages now. I've been to a seminar, and have my consultation on April 18th. I look forward to meeting lots of you and hearing about your experiences ! --Cate