jenajjthr

I am considering being banded. How do I go about finding the reputations of the local surgeons here in the KC area? I have read most of the posts and it seems that a lot of you have choosed Dr. Malley. Why him over everyone else? How are his rates compared to other Dr.'s? Are there any Dr's to avoid like the plague?

I don't have any bad things to say about my surgery. I did have a lot of gas pain in my left shoulder, but that was about it. There was the person who had surgery after me. He or she was rolled back moaning very loud. I felt for the person.

I know you weren't talking about me. The man wasn't prevented from going to church, he was prevented from being alone in the church. If he truly realized the errors and wanted to make a change he would have accepted the limitations put on him as his pennance until he earned the trust of the congregation. Put yourself in a parent's shoes for one moment. How comfortable would you be having a pedophile in your congregation? Wouldn't you want to know his whereabouts at all times? Wouldn't you want to know that he was being watched? Just because I may be christian and so are those church members doesn't mean we check our intelligence at the door. He doesn't get to be trusted automatically because he starts to go to church, he earns it back. And the statement by Patty that he ended up leaving the church to go to another just goes to show that he probably wasn't on the "up and up."

There is a difference between forgiving and ignoring. I was abused as a child and HATED the person who did it to me. I couldn't forgive him for what he had done to me. Guess who I was hurting through all that......me and only me. He didn't care if I hated him, didn't forgive him, and so on. On the other hand though, I was angry, bitter, felt worthless, etc. It wasn't until that I couldn forgive him that I could let go of all that and move on with my life. I was finally able to stop being the victim. But that doesn't mean I will ever forget what he did to me. And therefore I would also need to protect other children if I could. I no longer live in the same city as him and have no way of keeping up with his doings. If I did and I knew he was purposefully putting himself in places where young children are going to be, I would want to protect them. It has nothing to do whether or not I forgave him, but more of protecting innocent children. I could never live with myself if I could have done something and choose not to do it. Remember pedophiles rarely stop what they do, no matter what they say. Just because you forgive someone doesn't mean you now have the right to overlook their actions and ignore them.

I don't think that anybody on here thinks MJ's death is good, just that we don't get the idolization of him now that he is gone. He left behind parents, siblings, and children who did love him and who miss him terribly. I do feel for them on their loss. What I don't get is how people can defend what he did because a. he was an entertainer b. we don't know what he thought. c. because his childhood was stolen and he hadn't grown up yet. etc, etc. I had my childhood stolen too (abuse) and you don't see me sleeping with other people's children, naked, in a private room, and telling the world how "innocent" it was. I would get my butt locked up in jail for the rest of my life. MJ got a televised interview and people had sympathy for him because of what he went through growing up. Puh-leeze. If that was the case, every person who abused children could get away with it because "it happened to me and therefore I couldn't control my actions." Everybody is responsible for their actions, no matter what. We all make choices in life, some good, some bad. What we can't do is put the responsibilty for our choices on someone or something else.

There is video of him dangling his child over the balcony and it was played over and over again. MJ's own statements in interviews is where a lot of our opinions come from. No sane/normal person sleeps in bed with children that are not theirs and those same children can describe their genitalia in accurate detail. It is not "innocent." It is perverted and wrong. He may have been a great artist (personal opinions), he may have been a great philanthropist (fact), but it doesn't take away from the perception/fact (who knows) that he hurt children. I liked his music 20 years ago, but once he became "Whacko Jacko" I couldn't in good conscience like his music, let alone buy it. To do so would be to support what he was doing and condone it.

I was an IDIOT! I had my surgery on a Tuesday, went back to work on Thursday. I teach and only had a few days left at that point. I also had a class that night and needed to go to it. Needless to say that Friday I had to call in sick because there was no way I could get out of bed. I had so many people tell me on Thursday how horrible I looked and that I needed to go home. Sitting in a desk chair was extremely painful, I couldn't ever get comfortable. By Monday though I felt 1000 times better and could function at work quite well. If you take those 4 days and do nothing but rest, and you are a fast healer, then you should be fine by Monday for office work.

I had the same thing and at my first fill the PA said I could clip them with fingernail clippers. I would still call your Dr. though to see what they would like to do.

I had my first fill on June 8th. I went out to dinner last night and had my first experience of being stuck. I thought I was going to die. It passed w/in 5 minutes, I was lucky, but I never want to feel like that again. This just goes to reinforce what every person here and every Dr. has said....small bites and chew, chew, chew. I thought I did that, but obviously not enough. Lesson learned!

I live close to World's of Fun and was banded on 4/28. Which dr. did you use? My dr. is Dr. Malley.

New Hope Bariatrics also has a monthly support group and nutritional group. They are located in Overland Park, KS. Depending on where you live in the Northland, in can be a bit of a drive. I know bc I live in the northland too, but it is so worth it. The meetings are free to anyone, not just their patients. The support group meets the 2nd saturday of every month. I don't know if I can post the website, but you can google it. I will be at June's meeting, I hope to see you there. Feel free to pm me if you want another KC northlander to talk to.

Thanks to everyone for the replies. Everything mentioned is what I've heard, but I didn't know if I was missing something. The biggest rule for me to follow right now is the excersize. I have started excersizing 30 minutes a day right now, and my legs are screaming at me. I know that in a week or two, the pain won't be as bad, but I so want to stop. To keep me motivated I made a poster out of a cartoon that says "What fits into your busy schedule better? Excersizing 1 hour a day or being dead 24 hours a day." To everyone good luck!

Okay, so I'm an idiot, not really but it makes me smile to say it. I keep seeing people say we have to follow "The Rules" after being banded. What exactly are the "rules." My Dr. did warn me about certain foods not to eat, that I will be eating less once I get filled, and so on, but I don't remember getting a list of rules to follow. I'm a little "crazy" that way, if people say there are rules I want to know exactly what they are. So please everyone, fill this person in.

Prebanded: I could eat so much more and still not feel "full." I could snack/graze all day long and still not feel "full." Postbanded: I can only eat small amounts and I feel "full" a lot sooner and for a longer period of time. I think about snacks, but since most of the time I'm still full from a meal I don't want them. In fact there are times when the mere thought of eating something else is somewhat repulsive. I've never felt like that before. The band is a tool to help reduce the amount of calories you take in. It is still our choice on what we do eat. As much as I want to eat unhealthy food, I'm trying to make the right decisions. Before the band when I tried to do this, I always felt like I was starving or depriving myself. Now, postbanded, I don't feel like it. I still eat some "junk" food, but not anywhere near the amount I used to. I'm about 5 weeks out from the start of my post op diet, 3 weeks from my surgery and I've lost almost 30 pounds and 4 inches from my waist. I never could have done this w/out the band.

I could eat ice cream all day long with the sleeve too. In any surgery, gastric bypass, lap band, or sleeve, it all comes down to the choices we make as individuals, not the surgery we have. One is not any better than the other in terms of the overall population, each has their pros and cons. Which by the way you don't seem to mention the cons of the sleeve or its statistics. Yes one of the cons of lap band is intolerance of certain foods. I was told I shouldn't have white doughy bread anymore, a travesty in my eyes. jk. What I had to do, and any person for that matter, is decide which is more important to me, white doughy bread or a healthier lifestyle. I'm ok with having to give up certain foods, eating only small quantities, eating healthier. I'm sure the sleeve is great, but for me it still meant cutting up part of my stomach, not something I wanted done. That "con" was too big for me to overcome.

My surgeon, Dr. Malley in Kansas City, gave statistics during the seminar. You do lose more weight in a shorter amount of time with gastric bypass, but by the 3 year mark weight loss is about even with the lap band and gastric bypass. He also said that with the new types of bands out that eventually the lap band might exceed what gastric bypass can do in the long run. I choose the lap band because I wanted the procedure to be as least invasive as possible. I didn't want to reroute anything in my body. I wanted a tool to help me learn to control how much I eat at one sitting. I like the idea that I can still eat whatever I want, even if I choose not too. To me this means when I really really want some ice cream, I can have some. I just can't have the 4 huge scoops I used to. Each person has to make the right decision for themselves. The most we can do is tell them why we made the decision we did, and go from there. Everybody is different, so I don't expect any two stories to be identical.

I was banded yesterday, 4/28, and the pain I was in was horrendous. My shoulder hurt from the gas and I would have flares of pain in my stomach area as well. According to the nurses that's not where my port is so it was probably gas pain. I had morphine and phentenol to help, but they didn't do anything. The pain isn't as bad today, but it's still there. Unfortunately I have to go back to work tomorrow, but as a teacher I can take it real easy. I haven't eaten much, but did have my first bowl of chicken broth. I don't think I've tasted anything better before in my life! I'll have some more for dinner. Saturday is when I can start the mushy food phase. Mashed potatoes....mmmmm. Thanks for all the advice, help, and encouragement. I can't wait to start losing weight.

Although I agree with you in point, I have to disagree that everyone in this country can do what you say to go on and earn 100k or more a year. Not everybody can have the jobs that pay big bucks, there just isn't enough of them. Yeah I can go to school and become, say a lawyer, but have you looked at what it takes to be a high paying lawyer? It's not a job everybody can do, along with being a Dr., CEO, and so on. The majority of jobs are middle to lower income jobs. It's easy to say "Go back to school, sell on Ebay, etc." Reality just doesn't work that way. There is a reason there are more workers than bosses in any job. I do like the suggestion of a federal state tax and no income tax. Taxed on what you spend sounds perfect. I can then choose not to spend as much, or make better spending judgements.

My husband and I pay taxes every paycheck. We have even upped our dependant number to have less money taken out. But at tax time, once we deduct all of our allowances, we itemize, we still end up "owing" no taxes and get a refund for what we did pay in. Now my sister who makes very little money, pays little taxes during the year, and gets more money back than what she paid in due to the earned income credit. I hate this loophole that she can use, but she's not cheating to get it...it's legal! Why in the world should someone get more than what they paid in? But until that loophole is closed, she and millions like her will continue to get more than they paid. And although it might not be "fair" for some people to pay more than others....it's already happening. Why not a flat tax based on income levels? 0% for the people who make less than a certain amount and then graduated up to a max level. Like I said it's already happening now, it's just a lot more complicated to do so. 43% may pay no taxes, but the top 5% pay over half the taxes and the top 50% pay over 96% taxes. The top wage earners pay most of the taxes now, so it would hardly be any different going to a flat tax system.

Another example: You are in a room with 20 people and you are the only one who knows CPR. One person has a heart attack and needs CPR. If you give him CPR you are not being "fair" to the other 19 people because they might need it too, but you can't give it to them if you are giving CPR to someone else. Equal doesn't mean "fair" and "even" it means giving or getting what each individual person NEEDS at that moment. As for taxes, see the above post. Hypothetically Person A make 30,000 a year, 10% flat tax would be 3,000 leaving 27,000. That is a lot to take away when one makes so little a year and it is hard to make ends meet. Person B makes 300,000 a year, 10% flat tax would be 30,000 leaving 270,000. Same percentage, but there is a lot more money to go around to make ends meet. 10% may not sound like much, but the less you make the more each dollar, dime, and nickel count. As for the statement 43% pay no taxes, how much do those people make? We are not talking loads of money. What that means is after you take in all your income, deduct all your allowances, you have earned so little money that you don't owe the government any money. The 43% number does not include taxpayers who actually earned a high salary. Hmmm, which would I rather have? A low income so I don't owe any taxes or a higher income and actually do owe taxes. Let me think....I'd rather have the higher income, then maybe I wouldn't be living paycheck to paycheck.

This is the start of day 3 for me. I gotta say liquid diets are horrible. I've been really good, I didn't even cheat yesterday when I went out with coworkers after work. I could have totally made excuses but I know how important making the right decisions are at this point. I bought some Slimfast "Low Carb" because it has 20g of protein. Not bad, but not good either. I also bought some protein powder from a local grocery store. I have had chocolate w/ banana...yummy and vanilla with pineapple, strawberry, and oj....very yummy. I guess this liquid diet wouldn't be so bad if I could have those all day, but as a teacher I don't have the time or the equipment during the day. Oh well. The hardest part is the no chewing. I really miss that right now. And my caffiene headaches...ouch. I actually went to bed around 8 pm last night. I had a migraine and the chills. Again I knew that I was in misery for a reason, all the bad decisions I have made over my life. Now I was paying the price. But the good news is this hell will only last a few days. If I had kept making bad decisions that hell would have lasted much, much longer. For the person who asked if I had insurance already approved....sadly my insurance doesn't cover this at all. I am doing self-pay, which means a lot of pre-work is cut out. I only have to do pre-op blood work, etc. That day is on the 22nd. Then surgery on the 28th. The funny thing is the 28th seemed so close, but now on liquids only that date is sooooo far away.

Can you get the magic bullet at any stores or do you need to order it from the infomercial? Thanks!

This is the start of day 3 for me. I gotta say liquid diets are horrible. I've been really good, I didn't even cheat yesterday when I went out with coworkers after work. I could have totally made excuses but I know how important making the right decisions are at this point. I bought some Slimfast "Low Carb" because it has 20g of protein. Not bad, but not good either. I also bought some protein powder from a local grocery store. I have had chocolate w/ banana...yummy and vanilla with pineapple, strawberry, and oj....very yummy. I guess this liquid diet wouldn't be so bad if I could have those all day, but as a teacher I don't have the time or the equipment during the day. Oh well. The hardest part is the no chewing. I really miss that right now. And my caffiene headaches...ouch. I actually went to bed around 8 pm last night. I had a migraine and the chills. Again I knew that I was in misery for a reason, all the bad decisions I have made over my life. Now I was paying the price. But the good news is this hell will only last a few days. If I had kept making bad decisions that hell would have lasted much, much longer. For the person who asked if I had insurance already approved....sadly my insurance doesn't cover this at all. I am doing self-pay, which means a lot of pre-work is cut out. I only have to do pre-op blood work, etc. That day is on the 22nd. Then surgery on the 28th. The funny thing is the 28th seemed so close, but now on liquids only that date is sooooo far away.

I went to my consultation today. I stood at the door for about a minute knowing that once I walked through them there would be no turning back. I took a deep breath and then walked through the doors to my new life. I met with Dr. Malley, he explained the risks, how the surgery would go, etc. He asked if I had any questions. I only had a few. His last question was how soon did I want to do this. Since I don't like putting off the inevitable, nor did I want to put off the date just to have more time to eat the food that got me into this position I said the sooner the better. He said "Okay, let's do it." He sent a nurse in to look at dates with me. She said the had a cancellation for the 28th and did I want that date. Are you kidding me? Surgery, 13 days from now? I knew I wanted surgery sooner rather than later, but that soon? I thought about it for like a millisecond and said YES!! I could have said no. I could have given myself more time to have more freedom to do that final junk food "binge," for lack of a better word. I knew that I had to take charge of my life and start saying no to bad choices and yes to good choices. So I said yes. So here's to the next month of a new kind of eating (if it can be called that...lol) and to a new kind of thinking. Here's to a new me!

I went to my consultation today. I stood at the door for about a minute knowing that once I walked through them there would be no turning back. I took a deep breath and then walked through the doors to my new life. I met with Dr. Malley, he explained the risks, how the surgery would go, etc. He asked if I had any questions. I only had a few. His last question was how soon did I want to do this. Since I don't like putting off the inevitable, nor did I want to put off the date just to have more time to eat the food that got me into this position I said the sooner the better. He said "Okay, let's do it." He sent a nurse in to look at dates with me. She said the had a cancellation for the 28th and did I want that date. Are you kidding me? Surgery, 13 days from now? I knew I wanted surgery sooner rather than later, but that soon? I thought about it for like a millisecond and said YES!! I could have said no. I could have given myself more time to have more freedom to do that final junk food "binge," for lack of a better word. I knew that I had to take charge of my life and start saying no to bad choices and yes to good choices. So I said yes. So here's to the next month of a new kind of eating (if it can be called that...lol) and to a new kind of thinking. Here's to a new me!