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*perk....Grape crystal light??? share share share...we get lemonaid, tea and fruit punch here...I would love to try some grape. Green poop...yeah...suck side effect, but look at it this way, it's like a cheap colonic without the back pressure and embarassing position and process.

Drewslou, Stefunny, fireman20, foodstampchamp and I all seem to have similar tastes...throw their lists into a bowl, mix in a little Otis Redding, Barenaked Ladies, Zeppelin and the Beatles and I think that rounds out most of my 60g. Telly, it doesn't matter what music you are listening to, you look STUNNING! I was just reading the other thread in which you mention hair loss, clearly the GI Jane-do has not effected you in the least.

Tilapia fish with a basalmic reduction usually with asparagus or string Beans and mashed turnips. Recipe: Fresh Tilapia Fish Asparagus Turnips Basalmic Vinegar My Wife Take my wife and the rest of the ingredients, put them in the kitchen and promise to do the dishes after she's done cooking, including the hand washed pots and pans. On a bad night I will also throw in some vacuum promises, or even an offer for a movie on the weekend. This is a daily discussion in my house. Thankfully my beautiful wonderful wife loves to cook and doesn't want to see me beg too often...LOL.

I'm at 80% now, so....here's the list 1. The two hot PA's fought over who was the lucky one to see me shirtless, Melanie wound up getting to inject the saline. 2. The steady hand of Dr Dan. 3. The dart throwing practice of Dr Powers. 4. This thursday it looks like Melanie gets the honors of a half naked me for Breakfast.

Hi Elisa, So, who did the painless puncture...Dr Dan? Dr Geiss (the game show host) or Melanie to beautiful PA?

I think thats something to do with the first fill, my thought was that since the silicone portion of the port where they insert the needle has never been seperated from it's backing. I think the first time...they need to get a small pocket between the silicone and its backing, or at least be sure to get the needle between the two.

I'm in a 10cc band, 80% filled and can still eat chicken and anything else I want, and if I didn't restrict what I ate, I would be able to eat way more then I should. The problem is i'm starving hungry a lot of the time. I hope my next fill does it for me.

It might be just the hospital policy here, but I honestly didn't see the need for it. I didn't go until well after I was up and walking, and other then giving the nurse something to blush about everytime I see her it seemed to serve no purpose. Any embarassment, or uncomfortability you go through for this is worth it in my mind. I'm 40lbs lighter then when I started, and I am sure when I get this thing adjusted correctly I will lose more and easier then I am now.

I just joined an interesting group site similar to MySpace but more geared towards adults. I'm not positive it will take off, or that it's some great place, but it seems nice to me. I set up a lapband group on there and I'm trying it out. If anyone is interested, here's where to go to sign up. http://www.gather.com/register.jsp?ref=bza_73926

The catheter went in while I was asleep (I fell so dirty, my wife thinks it's hysterically funny that the thought of the nurses putting in the catheter embarasses me). Honestly when I woke up it was the first thing I noticed and commented on, it was fairly uncomfortable...but it wasn't painful at all. To be honest, it felt like a heavy sensation of having to urinate and pressure.

yes, I am losing some weight, but VERY slowly, and recently (had a massive gout attack and found out I also have Rhuematoid Arthritis) have been fairly immobile, so I lost nothing since my last fill. I was truly devastated, I'm not feeling full, i'm not feeling restricted, i'm in a lot of pain (from gout and RA) and i'm feeling deprived because i'm constantly hungry. Then when I do eat more then I should, I feel like i'm cheating and basically i'm screwing myself over. It's very frustrating. Is anyone else over 80% filled on a 10cc band?

The hardest part of this surgery was jumping through all of the insurance company hoops. Cardio tests, pulmonary tests, xrays, blood tests...They want to make sure you are perfectly healthy before the determine you are sick enough to need surgery. The surgery itself was a breeze, I sweated the thought of the horrible post surgical "gas pains", they were nothing...like having a sore shoulder from sleeping the wrong way. I got up and walked around within the first hour or so from being out of surgery, the more I walked, the quicker the shoulder pain cleared out. Now if they only had the same plan for the catheter....

As I mentioned in another thread here, I have not had restriction yet, or PBs and i'm at 80% of a 10cc band, it's really starting to make me wonder about if the band is on right etc etc. I can eat chicken, and anything else you can name, and other then one incident with a piece of pizza crust that I didn't chew, nothing has ever given me the "golf ball" sensation. I don't know what to do, because on top of all this, I'm basically an over thinker on most of these types of situations. I will analyze everyone elses restrictions and eating abilities and compare them to my own until I go insane.

It's funny reading these stories, my whole life I have had two clear reactions to this type of rudeness, one (mostly when I was younger) was to become enraged and violent. That never seemed to solve the problem, I was simply the big fat kid who bullied some skinny kid who now has free reign to call me fat whenever he wants. Now, I just confront the people with their comments and make them answer for them. No anger, no violence, just simple questions or comments and then wait for a reaction. For example, if someone comments on how fat I am, or the size of my clothing, I would simply ask them, and that assinine comment you just made, does it make you feel better about yourself in some way, fill a void that you find in your own life, fix something about yourself that you don't like, or is it that you are just a insensitive jackass? Recently while standing in line at the grocery store, the woman behind me tapped me on the shoulder and pointed out that the soda I was carrying was loaded with sugar, and someone "your size" shouldn't have sugar. I don't even drink soda, my brother in law does, but she didn't care. This was her moment to be superior. So I turned around and in her cart is beer, and drink mixers. So I said, you know you are absolutely correct, how about you and I leave all these addictions behind, I will go to OA and you go to AA and we will both save our own lives. She was stunned and stammered out something about not being an alcoholic and how dare I make judgements. She was so offended she walked away from her cart and left the store, some people are so sensitive. The second way is sort of weird in my mind since it conflicts so drastically with the first. My whole life I have been fat, and have been cast out, pushed aside and insulted because of it. I developed what I consider to be some mild OCD type behaviors because of it. I can't wear a shirt if I lift my arms and it comes above my waist. I can't wear anything tight or clingy in any way. I am constantly washing my hands and face and I often shower twice a day to avoid being "the fat smelly guy". I am very aware of my breath, burping and passing gas, as these are the traits of the "disgusting fat guy". Basically if you think of any movie or TV image of a fat person they are always in mismatched ill fitting clothing and jamming food in their face while emitting noxious odors. My OCD is simple, I do everything I can think of to not be that person, to not fit the stereotypical movie fat guy. This has extended into other parts of my life as well, I am very careful of any physical contact with anyone. For some unknown reason, a tall fat guy is automatically assumed to be some kind of touchy feely perv. My wife is amazed to this day at how uncomfortable I am hugging or kissing anyone but her based on this.

I guess a rite of passage, or at least a confirmation that I am well restricted. I haven't had any real restriction. I feel full, but when I eat enough to feel full I feel like I am eating WAY too much. For a perfect example, I am easily able to finish two slices of pizza. I think that is way outside of what one of the well restricted banders would tell you is possible. So I don't eat two slices, and ever since the crust incident I mentioned earlier, I don't eat the crust.

I keep cherries on our grocery list as well as a nice bottle of black cherry extract in the fridge, I also stick to strawberries as well as those have been mentioned in the gout cure world. I had just mentioned to someone else that I am looking at one of the mini portable exercise bike and upper body pedal devices. I am also going to start going to the local pool soon, so that she help as well.

This is another one of those great "bandster" moments. I have been banded for 8 months and I have never ever PB'd, nor have I ever felt restriction. My only only PB like moment came from eating a piece of pizza crust, I didn't chew it well enough and it was clearly not a good thing. I felt the famed "Golf Ball" sensation and wrongly went to the internet for answers. I was told to drink Water. Don't ever drink water to clear clogged bread, it inflates. I finally felt better about 26 hrs later. The weird thing is, no slime, no foam, no PB effect, no regurg effect, just pain. I just had a fill on monday and I am currently at 80% of a 10cc band, so occassionally I get the idea in my head that the band is not on correctly, or I am doing something wrong. I look forward to PBs and restriction in a weird demented moving forward kind of way.

I'm planning on using a tattoo as a goal weight reward, so when I hit 400 I will be getting a heart, x and o tattooed in that order top to bottom directly over my spine between my shoulders, I don't think I will be getting any plastic surgery there, but it was a thought when I considered it.

My wife and I avoid red meat, so it's mostly pork and chicken for us. Turkey is too high in purines and really triggers the gout attacks. The other proteins I seem to be having issues with are the soy based proteins used in the shakes from the pre-op liquid phase, and most weight loss/diet shakes.

The fill needle is like a harpoon, thank god for the novacaine. I was terrified the first time I saw that thing coming at me, I got up pulled my shirt back on and started to leave. Thankfully the MP's in my doc's office are super sensitive to these things and assured me it wouldn't hurt. My only complaint now after 3 fills is the weird sensation of them actually getting the needle into the port, the sensation is just...odd.

Thanks NJChick, It just really sucks. The more protein I eat the more my joints scream. I just had a massive attack and was unable to walk or use my hands without excrutiating pain. I'm no sissy, i've been walking around with gout for years and I have learned to tolerate a HIGH level of pain, but this is ridiculous.