kiz

Congratulations and good luck!! How exciting for you to be our first to be banded!! :biggrin: bandSTAR

Thanks for the well wishes, Patti, I can't believe how fast time has flown.

I have the Virginian part of this forum group covered, however, with two kids, I might not be eligible to post here. But, it's nice to meet other Virginians. I'm from the Richmond area, and I'll be having my surgery done at St. Mary's Hospital next week. :biggrin:

My band date is next week, but I already got my vitamins. I got the Walgreen's brand (orange flavor) of Centrum chewables called High Potency A thru Z. They taste pretty good, but I'm also taking sugar free Tums for calcium, and I use them as a quick vitamin chaser, and they're very good.

WOW, BEC! CONGRATULATIONS! You have so many reasons to be proud. At least 100 by my calculations. :smile2:

I agree with Chick. It sure doesn't hurt to double check to see if you've missed anything. With all the paperwork I've been given, I'm paranoid about getting something mixed up. I finally started a notebook last week to get everything in order.

Hi Patti! I'm from VA too. Good luck with your appointment, and I hope everything works out for you.

My pre-op diet is two shakes (Breakfast, lunch) plus lunch: a piece of fruit snack: no-fat cottage cheese 1/2 cup, low-fat yogurt smoothy, OR a light yogurt dinner: 4 oz of lean turkey, chicken, roast beef or ham on 2 slices of low fat whole wheat bread, (mustard or no-fat salad dressing) OR a shake, and 1/2 cup V8 or tomato juice Non-starchy veggies unlimited: I've eaten spinach, peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, few baby carrots - usually in a salad w/ vinegar, lemon juice and splenda Water and/or no calorie/caffeine drinks

I was an August defector too..:cursing: I had hoped to be an August bander, but I couldn't make the August date they gave me. The good news is that I only have a week plus a couple of days until b-day! That's wonderful that your son is so happy for you. He must be a real sweetie.

Hi, Sherri. I'm a SAHM, but my babies are grown and able to drive, so I won't be having any childcare issues. I'm sure another mom would be more than happy to pick up your little one for his "school". It may turn out that you don't need the help, but better safe than sorry. If the mom you call is a good friend, one you feel comfortable confiding in, maybe she'll keep him for the day, and wear him out to boot.

Fanny Adams, great to hear from a veteran bander here. There's so many conflicting opinions, and I do believe from everything I've read, that you just know what you can eat until try. It's reassuring to know that you're able to eat so many diverse foods, and enjoy them, but just in smaller portions. My very last supper before pre-op diet was a nice juicy cheeseburger and onion rings from a great local restaurant. A week before, my official last supper, was a great great great steak from the best steak restaurant, hands down. (I know obsessing here, but I am on my pre-op diet, so please forgive me..lol) I also had a Big Mac a few weeks ago, and, oh yeah, pizza. I really upped my exercise, and watched my food intake otherwise, and I lost three pounds from first weigh-in at the doctor's office. I have to say, the pre-op diet is proving much easier than I had anticipated. I'm pretty sure my body has gone into ketosis, and after their first couple of days, I've not been hungry, and yesterday even skipped an allowed snack, because I just wasn't hungry. I looked up ketosis, and the web site I read said that one of the signs of it (besides the yucky metallic taste in my mouth), was reduced appetite.

GOOD LUCK LISA!!! Do you have any idea when you might be scheduled for surgery?

I know this must be hard to face at such a young age, but I did want to let you know I had a hysterectomy a few years ago (ovaries still intact), and it was by far the best thing I could have done. I've had no bad side affects. If you have any questions, please fill free to send me a pm.

No wonder you're ready to scream. I can't imagine that diet for two solid weeks. A few days maybe, but not that long. I also noticed that you are getting no dietary Fiber. I just don't understand how those shakes alone could be healthy over a two week period. I like what health4life said, "The key is to shrink your fatty liver not starve you to death." On top of that, you can't even stand the thought of drinking the shakes. My doctor said he and the office staff went on the prescribed pre-op diet for a two week period. If your doctor had done the same, I think he would have allowed for more nourishment. If you continue to feel sick today, I would call the doctor's office.

I'm so sorry to hear that you're feeling sick, Kristie. Are you allowed to try some different brands of shakes? I'll have to admit that my two week pre-op diet allows for some real food, but the shakes are very good too. I've had: Boost Diabetic (choc, straw, vanilla) Carnation Instant Breakfast Carb Conscious (choc) in the blue bottles unjury powder mixed with ice cold skim milk (chock, vanilla, strawberry) Good luck, and I hope you're feeling a lot better today.

I just bought a new scale at Target, and I got the Weight Watchers scale too. I hope I didn't get a lemon, but so far I love it. It gives you several different measurements (bone mass, water weight, bmi, etc). I think I paid around $50 for it, and considering all the features, I thought it was a pretty good price.

I've noticed several long-term banders at the support group meeting chewing gum. I'm not an habitual gum chewer, but do like it occasionally. I'm going to ask about this at our meeting.

Too funny!! I love the qualification question. Simple and to the point. :-D

Tammy, I'm sorry you had that awful experience with the tea. A doctor told me about it several years ago, and I've used it occasionally, when needed, with no ill effects. It's works very naturally, but the doctor did caution me to only drink the the recommended amount as given on the box. Possibly it affects some people more than others too.

Hi Jennifer. My band date is September 4 too. I'm also doing the pre-surgery diet, and right now, my stomach is complaining. :biggrin: The diet hasn't been as bad as I expected...yet. I just hope 9/4 comes fast!!

That is very high, compared to what I'm paying in Richmond, VA. My fee is $13,500 as an outpatient. It was more to stay overnight (I think around $18,000). The hospital is a Center of Excellence, and the price includes fills for one year.

I just got the scales yesterday, so I don't know all the ins and outs yet. I didn't even realize it has a memory function. Thanks for the heads up, Sherri!! I got my Magic Bullet on sale and with a coupon, or I probably would have opted for another brand too. I'm not so sure it's worth the full price. I just thought of a couple more things I stocked up on. One is sugar-free Tums for my calcium and the other is Dieter's Tea. It has a natural herb additive that helps with constipation, if that becomes an issue. You can over-do it, but if you only drink the recommended dosage, it's safe for most people and works wonders.

I went to Target yesterday, and bought their all natural water that just has a touch of fruit flavor without any added sweeteners. I like the flavored sugar free waters and other sugar free drinks (i.e. Crystal Lite), but these will be a nice change. They're made by Archer Farms. I bought a set of collapsible measuring cups that fold flat at Williams Sonoma. When I get to the point of measuring my meals when I'm eating out, it'll be easy to tuck away in my purse. I also splurged on a new set of scales at Target. The scales are made by Conair for Weight Watchers. I also bought my Magic Bullet blender a while ago on sale, but haven't gotten it out of the box yet. Today is my first day on my pre-surgery diet, and I haven't drank my morning shake yet. I'm holding off, because it's scary to think once that's gone, breakfast is over..lol I did try one of the Boost shakes yesterday, and I thought it was yummy, so I'm lucky that way. I know a lot of people have trouble getting them down.

I don't have any suggestions, jill, but I start my pre-surgery diet tomorrow, and I won't be complaining after reading about the schedule you're keeping. Maybe your incredibly busy day will keep you from thinking about food so much (I hope it does, at least).

I set my goal weight based on a healthy bmi, which is heavier than I was 20 years ago, but I don't expect to get down to my pre-mom weight.