GayleTX

Back to the spelling peeve......one word that is constantly spelled wrong on the wls board is "lose"....people type that they are 'loosing' weight, they want to 'loose' 10 pounds, Arrrrrgh!! The word is LOSE!!!!! Makes this old English teacher want to attack the computer screen with a red pencil!!!:angry

Yes, you'll have to drink the liquid...that's the purpose of the flouro so they can see where the liquid is going in your body. What I've been given has no taste at all...sure wouldn't call it nasty. I've never had to lie down...just pull my shirt up....takes about 1 minute, no pain, no sting. Guess I've been fortunate.

Arranging for fills is a priority...make sure you have someone lined up and understand their requirements before you ever have the surgery. I've read too many posts from people in a crisis situation because they didn't do that. And a band without a fill is like having no band at all!

you can order it from www.bariatriceating.com......great product.

Every doctor seems to have his/her own guidelines as to what you can eat during the first few weeks. You will progress gradually from Clear liquids to full liquids to mushies to soft foods to well-chewed foods. How long you stay at each stage is up to your doctor's advice. Don't rush it, whatever you do....let your pouch heal. No carbonated drinks again ever, no caffeine for several months. I am no longer diabetic or hypertensive....haven't been for a few months now. I save enough on my meds to pay for my Protein supplements and good Vitamins which I will take the rest of my life. I'm 10 mo.out and have average about 10 lbs a month.....fast at first, then gradually slower, with a plateau about once a month. Best wishes to you!!

Vitamins....quality stuff, not kid's vitamins. Water...at least 1/2 gal. Protein...about 100 gr/day. No reason not to do any of these things every day. Are you exercising any?....movement creates energy. After I lost a good bit of weight, my blood pressure fell rapidly and I have had to cut out all my bp meds.....I felt exhausted and finally figured out it was because my bp was running about 90/60! Hope you feel better soon!!

You don't need to starve yourself....just change the things you eat - that is the way it will be after wls. The tea was a good idea (you'll need to drink at least 64 oz of liquid/day afterward). However....the apple, orange and lunchable were all high carbs...and carbs satisfy you for a very short while then your blood level drops and you're cravings are back. You can detox and cut the cravings by eliminating the white carbs (starches like potatoes, corn, Pasta, crackers, white bread/flour, rice) and just eating Proteins and greensvegggies. Your cravings will diminish greatly after a couple of days. This is the diet that all the successful losers I know live on and they are healthy and getting thinner by the day...and not suffering from cravings. Good idea to start trying to get control before surgery...clean out the pantry, re-stock it for your new lifestyle, and just know that it can be done....thousands of others are doing it successfully every day. Best wishes!!

I would advise developing a virus or a migraine for Wednesday night. You don't even need to be driving a car by then much less exercising. By the next week, you should be ready to streeeetch!!.

Process.....I would start with my insurance carrier to see if they cover it. If so, you'll need to get their criteria for eligibility and work from there. If you are self-pay, your surgeon will probably have a much less stringent set of criteria before he accepts your for surgery. The standard recommended by Inamed (the manufactor of the Lapband) is I believe a BMI of 40 and/or 100 lbs overweight and co-morbidities (health issues) caused by being overweight. (you can google for a BMI calculator).

As for not being hungry....my guess is that you're getting 'de-toxed' - you're getting your body cleaned up from the carbs and sugars. When you take in sugars, your blood sugar bounces up and down and greatly and affects your appetite levels. When you get the carbs out, the cravings magically decrease - makes the LapBand lifestyle much easier to live with.

I'll bet 1958 was when he discovered what Jello is actually made of!!! LOL!!

You might talk to the social worker at the hospital and ask for ideas.....bet she can help you.

I pay a co-pay ($25) but I don't know what he charges the insurance company.

The advice from successful losers (and it's working for me) regarding carbs is this - eliminate all white carbs; they are the starchy ones (potatoes, rice, Pasta, white flour products -bread/crackers/crust/etc, corn). Carbs from veggies/fruits are acceptable but need to be limited to less than 50/day unless you are a very active athletic person. Besides helping with the weight loss, eliminating those 'evil' carbs will also curb your cravings for more carbs and make staying on the food plan much easier. You've got a good start on your weight loss....keep up the good work!!

Babs......did you use a PS in the Metroplex? I hope to need one in a year or so and am beginning to check them out. I definitely want one that has had experience with wls patients.

I am right now in the middle of reading a John Grisham book....the only non-fiction book he's written....based on small-town 'justice' in Ada, OK....and the young men who were convicted of two un-related murders , sentenced to death and were later proven to be not guilty. One was extremely mentally ill and should never have even stood trial. Title -INNOCENT MAN.

Do these rays of sunshine understand that you are having lapband, not a gastric bypass??? The pain level is minimal in most cases....I never even took a Tylenol, never needed a GasX , altho many people do.

Face first (my glasses began to fall off right away!!), then neck and bust.

Hey, Chub....you just had to throw that 'ice cold diet coke' line in there, didn't you!! Are you deliberately trying to torment those of us in recovery from our addiction??? LOL!~ (maybe you won't be so mean after you're banded and can't have any carbonation for the rest of your natural life~~)

I heard on the news just this morning that the Federales are going to take all the guns away from the policia in Tiajuana because they are so "in" with the common criminals. Now that's neither here nor there about surgery, I just thought it spoke volumes about the criminal element there.

I talked to my doctor about the same subject before surgery and he said that if I needed to or even if I just wanted to, he would have me spend the night (I live a couple of hours out of town, I have diabetes and heart problems). Or, he said if it would make me feel more secure , to just plan to stay in a hotel near his office that night or as long as I wanted to. As it was, I got in the car 4 hours after surgery and rode home and slept in my own bed with no problem at all. I can't imagine why you'd need to be off work for 6 weeks!! The biggest problem I had was gettting my food/water/supplements all scheduled during the day....that might be hard to get done during your work day, depends on what kind of work you do, but that should be worked out in a week or two at the most. (BTW....I, too had been diabetic for 20 years....after the surgery I never again had the bouncing sugar readings I'd had before and, now after 10 months, I am completely off meds for both diabetes and blood pressure).

You can order a set of samples from www.bariatriceating.com.... ..they carry high quality protein products made for bariatric patients rather than football players! And they are good-tasting....they have made such a difference n my wls journey.

How many fills have you had? Many people need 4-5 fills before they reach the one they can live with comfortably. I think most docs will give them as close together as 3-4 weeks apart. If you are eating white carbs, you are causing your blood sugar to bounce which in turn increases your cravings. It's important to eliminate them from your diet if you are going to lose weight and do it without suffering cravings even with a band. Successful losers usually limit their carbs to less than 40 grams/day and keep their Protein up around 100.

Most doctors do a fill 3-6 wks after surgery....some even do a slight fill at time of the surgery. Without a fill, you might as well not have a band at all....it's there but it hasn't been made operational. Call your doctor!!

Most successful and healthy 'losers' who've been wls patients for a while disagree with doctors who say 'no Protein supps'....with a small pouch it's simply impossible to eat right and get as much protein as your body needs to maintain healthy muscles and hair and energy. I've 10 mo. out and still couldn;t eat enough solid foods to get my 100 gr. of protein. I don't use them as meal subsitutes very often, but they certainly help with the cravings and satisy a need for a sweet now and then. For examples.........I use the nectar Cappacino or Matrix chocolate in my coffee in the mornings (I add a little creamer) , the IDS vanilla/cinnamon in my hot tea, Nectar Peach Navel in Chrystal Lite or Water or tea, OrangeCream Matrix with water and ice as a smoothie. (I order mine from www.bariatriceating.com - they will send you a packet of samples if you want to try a lot of flavors/brands. I usually order what I need when they are on sale). My very favorite protein supplement is Micellar Milk....you can get it at VitaminShoppe store or at BE.com. or www.netrition.com (their shipping is less). It is 17 oz, 40 gr protein and it tastes somewhat like rice pudding. Lots of people use it in their coffee - I drink it straight (the vanilla).