DonnaB

Yay for you schel! I'm so happy for you that you're going to pull yourself up by your bootstraps (bandstraps?) and give yourself the success you deserve! Good for you. Don't forget your water - seems like I do better when I get in the required amount of water. Good job!

Ding, ding, ding, ding! You win the prize! Percy was going to be Mrs. Miggins until I figured out she was a he! I had a beautiful, giant of a black cat who would have been a perfect Edmund if he wasn't already "Liccorice" when he came to me! Had I got another cat, it would have been a ginger colored tabby. Any guesses what her name would have been? lol

It's funny (peculiar funny, not ha ha funny!) but since I posted above - I've had gas like crazy! I'm on liquids because I had a fill - ya think those two things are related? After reading the above, I'm beginning to. Hmmmm.

That feeling is referred to here on LBT as the "golfball". I personally call it the 'burning golfball.' It happens, usually, when you've eaten too fast, too much, or didn't chew well enough before swallowing. Some people experience "first bite syndrome" where every time they eat, the first bite or two hurts. Try chewing more, waiting 30 - 60 seconds between bites, and be sure to stop eating before you get FULL. You should eat until you're no longer hungry, which isn't the same thing as eating till you're full. Good luck on your weight loss journey.

I don't have any problem with croutons. They're crunchy. Hmmmmmm.

It's been said many times here - what's once more: You need to go back to the beginning and follow the rules. Protein first, then veggies - not potato - then carbs if you're still not satisfied. Eat until you're satisfied NOT FULL. The whole meal should be no more than a cup to two cups MAX and should be consumed within 30 minutes. Don't drink for 15 minutes before eating and then not until an hour after you've eaten. Don't drink any calories. Drink at least 64 oz of water every day. Three meals per day with 2 - 3 snacks (SNACKS not additional meals). Make good choices with regard to what your meals consist of. Did I forget anything? Stop eating crap. Stop overeating. Get some exercize.

I would trade the 4 pounds I've lost to have not gone throught the PB and the resulting sternum pain. In a heartbeat.

How did you hear about Dr. Cardenas and where in Mexico is he located?

I HOPE that all future PB's (if I must have any) do happen in only a few minutes. I had my first PB on May 22nd. It lasted for 6 hours. Sliming and spitting the whole time, and heaving at least 10 times. I PB'd on scrambled egg, and a piece of it must have stuck right inside the stoma. I brought up bits of egg about 20 minutes into the party but it didn't clear the plug. Finally, 6 hours later, after having called my doctor's office to ask if I was going to survive this, I heaved up about a tablespoon of chewed egg and the pain stopped - but ever since the 22nd I've had pressure and mild pain, front and back, right at my sternum. So, in effect, I'm still suffering from my PB 15 days later. Before anyone gets worried and offers advise, I've been under my doctor's supervision and have seen that my band is in place on the flueroscope. My doc thinks I've either irritated my esophogus or have pulled a muscle in my back. Only thing to be done is stay on liquids and analgesics and give it time. Man I'm tired of Soup.

I have two wonderful, OLD cats: Baldrick, 15 1/2 yrs: Percy, 14 1/2 yrs: And my canine babies: Sydney, 6 1/2 yrs: Spencer 4 1/2: When he was a puppy my niece dressed him up in doll clothes:

Walk, walk, walk, walk, walk. A heating pad my give you some relief, and you can try Gas-X, but the best thing you can do is walk a lot. Another thing you can try is to stand next to your bed, bend from the waist, and put your forearms on the bed, resting your forehead between them. You can bend your knees a little if it's more comfortable but try to keep your fanny as high as possible. This position looks crazy but it helped me and a couple of other people I know of too. Good luck.

I can't imagine that having this in my body is any different than having an artificial joint or a pacemaker or somthing. It doesn't really bother me.

Hi riverratgranny1, I was banded by Dr. Rumbaut - he's awesome as are the facilties and his staff. My whole experience in Monterrey was positive - right down to the leather handbag I purchased while on a shopping trip 48 hours after surgery!!!!! lol I agree with DOC - make sure you have follow up care and don't just rely on a phone call. Make an appointment and see the doctor for a consultation BEFORE you go to Mexico. Good luck on your journey. Feel free to PM me anytime if you have any specific questions.

Sorry, I can't help you out. Try one of the moderators - Alexandra, KellyMoos, Penni60, I'm sure there are others but I can't think of them. Half-heimers. Good luck.

Hi Cloe, I drank Body Fortress Whey protein mixed in ff milk, with 2 or 3 tablespoons of sf ff chocolate pudding and a tablespoon of peanut butter - every other day. It tastes like drinking a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup! Mmmmmm. I would have had it every day but it's a little too high in calories so I traded off between that and IsoPure. Blech.

I told my mother, one of my sisters, and my husband. That's it. I decided that having surgery and losing weight are hard enough by themselves and I didn't want to add to my stress level by having everyone watching me constantly. The last thing I want is to be the spokesperson for the lapband and/or explaining why I'm not losing weight as quickly as people expect when they hear "weight loss surgery." Good luck.

Well, how big is your band going to be? If you're going to have a 4cc band I'd think it would be way to tight. If you're going to have one of the big bands, 3cc's might be more in line. My doctor did not put any saline in my band at the time of my surgery. I had a lot of restriction from the start so I'm glad he didn't. There are a few people on LBT who had saline in the beginning so, hopefully, one of them will give you a shout here.

What is it about those tacos? They're so disgusting but, at 2:00 a.m., on the way home from a party, they're delicious! Absolutely gross! LOL

I think most bandsters are aware of IsoPure. If you decide to try it, be sure to get the carb free version. There are several flavors and a few of them are not carb free to be sure to check the labels. Isopure gets to be pretty gross tasting, but the best of the lot, in my opinion is the blue one - don't remember what flavor they're calling it.

They're all high in calories - very high fat content. If you do eat nuts, try to only eat raw nuts. Raw nuts are high in good cholesterol - when they're roasted, the good cholesterol turns to the BAD cholesterol. I eat 1/4 of a cup of raw almonds on days when I don't eat shredded wheat - these are my 'all natural' method of keeping my digestion moving. (And wasn't THAT a PC way of saying they keep me regular? lol)

I think that's just a little too much information Linda! Oh wait, you mean you bawled, right? LOL - sorry, just being an ass! *hee hee hee*

Does anyone remember the Sex and The City episode where the hostess of a party asked all of her guests to remove their shoes - and Carrie's shoes got stolen? LOL This thread just made me remember that episode. For what it's worth, I think it's kind of tacky to ask people to remove their shoes when coming into my home. I have a doormat for them to wipe their feet on. If I didn't want people walking on my carpet, I would have had it installed on the ceiling.

What people say vs. what people hear: So, what you're telling me is that I need to occasionally indulge in a high fat food like, say, ice cream, so that my gallbladder will release it's bile? All right! Waiter? Reality Check Please! (LOL, of course I'm kidding! It's a nice dream though.) Glad to hear you're on the mend, HamuChan!

Ha! I knew it! OK, everyone, pay up! Glad to hear it HunnyBun! Ringworm, while unpleasant, if FAR superior to skin cancer, huh? Hope everything is OK with your puppy too!

I'm glad you're going to see your surgeon - make sure he explains his post fill and post PB instructions thoroughly. Any time you make an adjustment to your fill level, you irritate your stomach which can cause swelling. The same is true of a PB - it will irritate and possibly cause swelling. Most band doctors tell their patients if something sticks and they vomit or even heave, they should go on Clear Liquids for the rest of that day and then stay on full liquids for three days. If you do that, unless it was a really bad or prolonged PB, you give your stomach a chance to unswell and then you'll be able to have, first, mushies and then solid food again without further irritation to your stomach. You won't be on mushies 98% of the time because you won't PB again due to a swollen or irritated stomach. That's the whole reason you go on liquids so you won't get into that cycle. I'm not a doctor so the information above is specific only to me, but you should definitely talk to your doctor about it. The more you PB, the greater the chance for slippage and errosion. The doctor that I'm using for fills recommends going to clear liquids for 24 - 48 hours following the fill and staying on full liquids for the rest of the week - 7 days total. I'm sure there are lots of people who think this is too long - I'm one of them lol - but I'd rather err on the side of caution than risk my health or my band. Good luck Sylvia, let us know what your doctor says, OK?