StrawartS

I take a Senna every other day. I just don't eat enough now to get comfortable BMs on my own.

I've had several PBs where the irritation just caused me to swell shut. I ended up spitting into a cup for several hours because the pain was so bad. If you can still get down Water, you sound manageable to me. I would sip on hot hot hot liquids all day to loosen up. Maybe stick to Soups. I'm going to get myself in trouble again if I tell you to take advil. The rules police are sure to show up soon and tell you why you shouldn't be taking it. For me, taking advil for a headache is fine, but if I'm swollen that tight, a pill isn't going to go down unless it's liquid, so it might just be impractical for you to try to take any kind of pill. So, to sum up, drink hot liquids, and be ready to have someone scare the pants off of you about taking advil. Hope you feel better soon.

I wish I could make it to this one! Don't forget a camera!

Dr. Spivak has, in my opinion, the best and most realistic post-op diet. I've posted it below for everyone. David, somebody should have told you before, but it will probably take you several fills (took me 4) until you start losing ANY weight. Don't get me started on the scam that is the LapBand. I feel your frustration, but give it a chance, and you'll see results after you start getting fills. POST-OP DIET INSTRUCTIONS The post-op diet is divided into 3 stages to allow a gradual adjustment. STAGE 1: liquid diet for 24-48 hours STAGE 2: Soft diet for 4 weeks STAGE 3: Regular diet of 3 meals per day STAGE 1 (FIRST FEW DAYS POST-OP) Liquids from the list below. Remember small amounts (4-6 ounces) at a time. GO SLOW WHEN YOU FEEL FULL STOP NO CARBONATED drinks LIQUID DIET coffee, tea, diluted fruit juice broth Blenderized Soup Skim milk or Lactaid milk Jell-O, Popsicle’s Yogurt Sugar Fee pudding Cottage cheese Applesauce, oatmeal, grits, cream of wheat V-8 low sodium Protein drinks, carnation instant Breakfast, pure pro powder (no slim fast) STAGE 2 (SOFT DIET FOR 4 WEEKS) Soft foods from the list below can now be added. You may drink Fluid anytime before you eat. However, no liquids with or after meals (wait 30 mins for the pouch to empty before drinking). CHEW WELL! The food must be almost liquified before swallowing. SOFT DIET Soft fruit (banana, melon) Cooked vegetables and fish eggs Anything with the consistency of baby food STAGE 3 (after the 4 weeks, REGULAR DIET OF 3 MEALS PER DAY) Gradually add regular foods and remember: Eat only at set meal times NO LIQUIDS with meals or for 30 mins afterwards Avoid cheap caloriesFats High caloric liquid Sweets, ice cream, junk food, Cookies, chips. Liquids, junk food and sweets do not relieve hunger. Only solid food, which fills the pouch and empties slowly will relieve hunger. SUMMARY: Follow three stages of diet plan to allow gradual adjustment. Eat only at set meal times Go slow Chew well

No problem, Sandy. I actually really enjoyed the video! I love funny animal stuff, especially those Animal Planet shows with dog tricks and such. Thanks for finding this!

http://gprime.net/video.php/patchesthehorse

I have one. It's approved. No need to worry. It's smaller in diameter and good for people who don't have a lot to lose. Many patients who had the larger port and lost a lot of weight are having their ports replaced. It's part of the inamed LapBand, not some knock-off, and definitely FDA approved for use in the US. I had my surgery in Houston. If you were here, I'd make you feel it. So far no one wants to.

Hey, Mary. I just talked to my mom about the procedure to get some more dirt for you. Like I said, she had it done 2 years ago, and she had the procedure where they stick a balloon up there, inflate it with hot Water, and leave it for about 8 minutes. She bled immediately after surgery, but was finished bleeding when she got home. She said it was the best thing she's ever done. She has ZERO periods now, just a drop every once in a while, but not enough to warrant even a panty liner. Will you be going all the way under, or just twilight? I am so jealous! You'll have to come back to this thread and tell us all about it. I'll be thinking of you on Friday. Oh, and how long until you can resume hanky panky?

Penni, I love it! I just forwarded it to my mom, who is also an RN. Happy Nurses' Week! The world just wouldn't run without nurses - you are so appreciated.

Ooohhh...I had chili last week, too, and I just finished eating it. I put onions in it to cook, and then I put chopped raw onions on top for the crunch. Whenever a recipe calls for onions, I double or triple it. I mean, who's going to use half an onion and put the rest away? How silly. I do the same with garlic. If there's garlic in the recipe, I use the whole head. None of this nonsense about 2 cloves. Oh, and I dip onions, too. When I make sandwiches, I have veggies on the side to dip in ranch or blue cheese, and it's always cucumbers, bell peppers, and onions! When I used to eat bagels, I would do cream cheese, salmon, and lots of onions. Actually, I could still eat that if the bagel was toasted or if I used bagel chips instead. I've been known to eat cream cheese and onions on a cinnamon-raisin bagel, too.

Oh, I really like that. Another one I used to do was chopped roma tomatoes, feta cheese, olive oil, and....you guessed it. I have no issues with ice cream, it's the onions that I crave!

Oh, you just reminded me of one of my favorite salads. It's just olive oil, a cucumber, chopped onions, and goat cheese. I've been getting some really beautiful vidalias at the store lately. So delicious.

Oh, it's so nice to meet another onion freak. Everyone else thinks we're so weird. I would never give up my onions either, and I have no trouble with them. They break down pretty easily when you chew since they're full of Water, so I don't think they should be a problem. What's the weirdest thing you've ever put an onion on?

Have a fantastic day, Kathy! And put some vodka in your aloe vera juice tonight to celebrate!

Oh my gosh, I love the drive-through. Hey, you should get frequent patient miles for all these conveyor belt surgeries...first Spiegel, now this one! Who's doing your procedure? My mom had it done at Memorial on Gessner, and I'm trying to remember her doctor's name...Robert something. I didn't like him - very factory, just like Spiegel.

Hey Mary! I had to google Novasure, but I know what it is now. For others - Novasure is a new-fangled endometrial ablasion technique that uses a wand of energy instead of the balloon and hot Water they used to use. http://www.novasure.com/irregular-period/novasure-endometrial-ablation/index.html My mom had it done about 2 years ago the old way, and she loves it. She rarely has periods now. I would love to have it, but I don't think I could convince anyone to do it on a 24-year old. Nobody believes me that I don't want kids. Anyway, it was out-patient when she did it, and she was in and out before I even had a chance to get a sweater from the car. My mom doesn't do anesthesia really well, so she slept the whole rest of the day and bled for a few days, but she didn't have any pain. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out for you!

If you're using Windows, Microsoft offers several "power toys," or downloadable tools that make life easier. http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/downloads/powertoys/xppowertoys.mspx Download the Image Resizer power toy from the link above. Once installed, all you do to resize a picture is right click. Resize Pictures is now the 5th option on the menu. You can then resize the picture to several different sizes. The newly resized picture is created with a different file name, and your original is preserved. The link to download the Image Resizer is on the right-hand toolbar that goes down the side of the page. It's near the bottom. You can also resize pictures in any photo-editing program, but I really like power toys.

Hello Houstonians! Check out this link for our Houston potluck on May 27. Everyone is welcome. Several of us are Spiegel patients, so please feel free to ask any questions, too. http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=17135&highlight=houston+potluck

Morsaille - this article says that you can safely use power toys with Windows Me. http://www.smartcomputing.com/editorial/article.asp?article=articles/archive/l0905/23l05/23l05.asp&guid= Edit - oops...that article is referring to power toys that were made for Windows 95. You can find those here, but I don't think the resize function is there: http://www.microsoft.com/windows95/downloads/contents/wutoys/w95pwrtoysset/default.asp

My pleasure, DrewsLou. If anyone is interested in how to resize pictures using a very cool Microsoft trick, see this thread: http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?p=216425#post216425

See if this is better...if so, you can edit your post and delete the big one.

Hey, I just saw DeLarla in here! Southwest, baby! $5 one-way or something, right? Aren't they supposed to be cheap? Ok, I just checked, it's $265 roundtrip from LAS to HOU. Come on, sell a few more vibrators and you've got it! Hi Xelapaul - we are meeting at Mary's house in Spring, and I will PM you directions right now. If you'd like to bring something for the potluck, just post it here, and I'll add it to the list. We'd love to have you!

BigPaul always makes me feel really good about myself. He's funny and silly but really smart right when you need him to be. DeLarla TellyMelly keeps me motivated on days I think I want to slack and theres always a smile on my face when I'm talking to her, she just keeps me laughing. She brightens my day! Cutiern reminds me of my daughter. I love how she is young, independent, and willing to make financial sacrifices to change her life. Dawg is a great husband. Selfless and supportive. He lives a banded lifestyle, without the band, so that he may succeed along side his wife. Pennie always seems so level-headed and diplomatic. I really admire that. Jack cracks me up with the use of his warped sense of humour in the manner in which he offers practical advice. Humour and practicalilty...great match and I always appreciate his input. (I also like his avatar!!) The best me (Kathy) has one of the most loving and tender hearts I've ever seen. She is always caring and giving to others even when she's needing support for herself. Her love of God and her desire to be a better servant shows in every post. Paula is my sweet Band-daughter and I'm so proud of how genuinely sweet she is and how her caring heart and love of God shows by her actions towards all others Iluvharleys has a good heart and is always so thoughtful, kind and caring always thinking of others in their time of need. NJChick (Eileen) Cracks me up!!!! She brings a smile to my face no matter what the topic. Bandland would be a boring place without her : - ) VinesQueen reminds me never to give up no matter how bad things seem at the time and encourages me that I should dance my heart out no matter whos watching~and I wish she would hurry up and get back on LBT!!! Michelle, without a doubt the most inspirational person to me. Even while having her own family problems, she finds time to come here and offer her help. She's a great person! Susan (PhotoNut) is one of the most supportive and knowledgeable people I've ever known. EmileeKaye is the sweetest, most genuinely nice and wholehearted bandster and online personality I have ever met.. and I have met quite a few. The sun shines on her goodness and it feels really nice to surround myself with people like this. K@t has been my friend and support since the moment I joined this group. She listens and gives without asking in return and makes me feel anything is possible. DeLarla is my vision of independence, strength, wisdom and trust and has always been a person that speaks her mind and has gained a tremendous amount of respect from me as an intelligent and witty person. StrawartS is smart and funny, and she has the strong personality I admire, yet she's kind. Plus, her screen name is a Palindrome. It's spelled the same backward and forward. Very Cool. Kathy (best me) Jenna (princess n thep) is always honest and straight foward. And she is a great booty dancer. Kathy was kind and gentle with me when I was cursing over my first PB. I was shocked by her generous spirit at first, but now I see that that's how she treats everyone. And her baby is pretty cute. And I don't even like babies.

Kathy, I love your business idea! I think with a dietician, a few LMSWs, some radiology techs (to run the fluoroscope), and a medical director, you have a really lucrative idea. What state are you in? Have you checked out www.fillcenterusa.com? They provide fills at astronomical costs. I think there's a lot of money where you're going. I get my fills by my doctor at his office. I'm private pay, and it's $100 a fill. But if I go to the surgery center and use the fluoroscope, it's $200. You could probably do very well offering packages, like life-time fills and the other services you provide. My doctor does mass fill appointments - he schedules 50 people for one time and takes about 30 seconds with each patient. Easy money! My mom is an RN, too, and I helped her start 2 hospices and a home health agency. If you want to ask me anything specific, feel free to PM me.

Ok, this is how I take my pills every night. It's tedious, but you won't taste a thing: 1. Crush pill with either a pill crusher or a mortar and pestle. 2. Place crushed pill in spoon, fill spoon with some sort of yogurt smoothie drink (on yogurt aisle, the ones in the bottle - I use the peach passion fruit flavor). 3. Have an open bottle of gatorade or some other strong, sweet juice ready. 4. When swallowing yogurt/pill concoction, get the spoon as far back in your mouth as possible. The back of your tongue is not as sensitive to bitter. 5. Immediately chase with a swig of gatorade. Good luck, I promise it works!