Leila

Way to go Teresita!

I made a Junebie blue prize ribbon for anyone that wants to use it on their signature. If you want to use it and have a place you can host the graphic, please save it and use it from your pic hosting place. If you don't have a place online to host it from, go ahead and hotlink it from my url (be aware it's hosted from my online journal which has a lot of adult and controversial subject matter). For peeps who want to use it and have no idea how to or what I'm talking about - when you edit your signature, hit the little yellow box that has a mountain on it and when it asks for the url to enter there put in http://www.thepillowbook.com/gfx/junbie.jpg I'm proud to be a Junbie!

Welcome to Lap Band Talk! There is a lot of great support and info to be found here on the board. I would check out the different FAQ sections first if you haven't allready - bottom item on the list of General Lap Band Discussion Forums. Also if there is something specific you are interested in, make use of the search feature to find threads about that topic in the past. A lot of people get very nervous pre-band, it's only natural. Congratulations on working towards getting banded! You're going to do great!!! :welcomeB:

PinkyLee - I think you're right, things have settled down a lot with other forums, in fact, in some ways with many of the people gone, it feels more... accessable. That new peoples voices have a little more equality. I like posting in those too - I find the weigh in helpful and motivating. I do find the three days before my weigh day I'm extra good as I know weigh day is coming! LOL. For anyone not losing, I would -strongly- recommend using a program like fitday.com at least for a week or two so you can diagnose where you are going wrong. I believe, and have found for me, that optimum weight loss happens when I eat between 1000-1400 calories a day, when I get over 90 grams of Protein a day, when I drink at least 100 oz of Water a day (no joke) and I am getting all my Vitamins and minerals, Fiber, and -good- nutrition all around. If I don't track what I'm eating now and then, I lose track. I've stopped tracking now for the last couple of weeks because I've pretty much learned what and how I need to eat to make those goals. So I don't think it's something you need to do forever, but it really helps you analyze your own balance and figure out your own needs. Here's my weight loss so far in pics! It's not the best thing to be wearing for before and afters, but the pics I took for myself are naked ones, The ones in the snake dress were the only ones I could find of my clothed at my highest weight, so I put the same dress on the other night for my progress pics.

way to go!!!! :Banane27:

- 3.5 this week Leila - H 295/ S 280 / G 160/ C 246.5 (-48.5 lbs total)

Dr. Cobourn in Canada did my VG band, he gave me my first fill 5 weeks post surgery at 4cc's, nada, one week later since I was still wide open he gave me another cc, still no restriction, so one week later I came back for .5 of a cc. Now I have some restriction at 5.5cc's - though I'm still pretty open in the evening. It's restriction enough though that I am satisfied for now, and losing. Good luck, and let us know how it turns out for you.

Poodles - for a low fat high protein replacement for ice cream, mix equal amounts of low fat sugar free yogurt and light cottage cheese and blend smooth with some splenda and a little vanilla extract to taste and freeze.

Congratulations Cyndy on your daughter and on working towards your goals, life is full of trials, but when the blessings come, it all seems worth it doesn't it. Here's to health! :eek:

I've been eating loads of berries of all kinds, and cherry tomatoes, and lots of things with little seeds, figs, etc, absolutely no problems here.

I'll third that, stick to updating on Thursdays. We're just all grateful that you've stepped in and taken it up for the month, thank you!

Welcome Cyndy! Good luck on your lap band journey - and as an aside, some people have a positive change in fertility with weight loss from banding. :eek: So who knows, it could end up doing double duty for you!

Oh! I used to make breaded tofu cutlets in the past, totally forgot about them till now. Slice extra firm into slices about 1/4 of an inch thick, marinate in a thin meat marinade of your choice. Take a bowl of mixed raw egg and a bowl of bread crumbs, or crushed cracker crumbs (I take my favorite crackers stick them in a freezer bag and run a rolling pin over them). Dip the slices in egg, then in crumbs, and lay on non-stick or sprayed/oiled baking sheet. Bake in the oven around 350 until golden brown. Really good with a low fat veggie gravy or with plum sauce or sweet and sour too if you need more moisture.

My personal belief given the timing of hair loss post surgery for most people being between 3-5 months, and the growth cycle of hair, is that most post banding hair loss is from the anesthesia - and will normalize again afterwards. Here are some sites that reference anesthesia as a cause of hair loss. Of course nutrition is always a factor, and having a good balanced diet is always the best way to go. Diagnose Me Hair Loss In Women Bernstien Medical

It's going to be the Y for me! That free trial idea to test run your short list sounds like a great one to me. Good luck and congrats on starting a gym program!

Sharyn - Welcome to the Junebies!!! Barbara - YAY! I'm so happy to hear you are feeling better - phew! That must be such a relief for you, not just physical, but emotional stress wise too. Regina - WOW! Good for you on deciding to quit smoking - one of the hardest things to do. Are you going it alone, or using products or dr.'s program of some kind to help the process? I was getting bad constipation for a while and found out it was from my calcium supplemement, calcium carbonate can be wickedly constipating, I switched to a calcium supplement that was calcium citrate based and mixed with magnesium - having a good cal-mag blend that doesn't use calcium in the form of carbonate can make a big difference. Don't know if it is a factor in your situation, but thought I would put it out there just in case.

I asked my own surgeon in Canada about the surgeons in Mexico, he basically said that there are a couple there who are amoung the best in the world, and a couple there who are amoung the worst in the world. It's not where your surgeon is, it's who your surgeon is that makes a difference. When I was choosing a surgeon I looked at experience, and at success, and at complications. I went with a surgeon I felt had adequate experience and zero history of patient complications and whose approach was one I was comfortable with.

For my personal experience I'm with Julie and Jacqui - I had my first fill 5 weeks post surgery, and my second one week later, and my third a week after that, have good restriction now. My Dr. takes his cues from his patients, I was wide open up till the third fill, and I'm not a sweller, I don't swell from injuries usually. First fill was 4 cc's, second was 1cc, 3rd was .5cc's for a total 5.5cc's in a VG band. If I tended to swelling, or felt any restriction, I wouldn't have gone for a fill so soon and close together. I was losing weight consistently throughout, but at the beginning it was because I was dieting, not because I had restriction. I think it's something you have to sort out between you and the person doing your fills. We're all different.

Nothing in life has a 100% security, this is true.

okay... here goes my first comparison pic...

I think Dr.'s that advise against alcohol do so primarily because it's just a source of totally empty calories. I choose not to drink primarily because of that, I find it a challenge to eat 1200-1400 calories a day and get really good nutrition in, so I try to make all my calories count health wise. You can't really replace nutritious food choices with supplements. That said, I think enjoying empty calorie treats, alcoholic or otherwise on occassion and in moderation is no big dealie. For me I did the lap-band primarily to improve health and quality of life, so I'm anal about what I put in my body most of the time. I usually avoid drinking calories unless it's v-8 or low fat dairy, for me it's just too easy to take in too many calories in liquid form.

If there is no evidence of seroma, or hematoma, or abcess/infection. Don't bother with heat. There is some belief/evidence by some health care professionals that compression bandaging and minimizing movement of healing areas will decrease risk of seroma. If you do form seroma, hematoma, or abcess - any fluid buildup - warm/hot moist compress will help disperse it and/or move it to the surface. At the very least it won't hurt. Some Dr.'s say it does nothing, and others advise to do it. Often they will resolve on their own, if not, they need to be drained by a Dr.

barbara - keep us posted, I hope you get some relief soon.

A quick search reveals the life expectancy for dobbies is 13 years. :welldoneclap: Congratulations on your new dog! I think dobbies are beautiful, but I have two pugXbostons myself... bugs!

YAYYYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Relief is such an amazing feeling - LOL :welldoneclap: