ElfiePoo

My surgeon said that in the few cases where people had their bands removed, they gained the weight back. If you keep in mind that the band works by suppressing our appetites by putting pressure on the vagus nerves...removal of the band means that hunger will most likely return. I'm planning on keeping mine. .

My surgeon did not require a preop diet. In spite of that I managed to lose weight between the seminar and surgery 6 weeks later. I didn't 'diet' but I was more conscious about what I was eating. I tried to make good choices rationalizing that I would 'feel' a lot better if I didn't go into surgery bloated. I see a lot of people posting about how they overdo it prior to surgery because they feel they'll never be able to eat like this again after surgery. The reality is that you most likely will...even when you're overfilled. The difference will be that when the band is doing its job in supressing your appetite, you won't be hungry and your obsession with food will most likely disappear. .

Sounds like all systems are go and they now have no reason to deny you. Good luck! .

My surgeon said that if someone dies within 12 months of WLS, their death is attributed to the WLS...even if they were run over by a car! The mortality rate for band surgery is something like 1 in 2000...for bypass 1 in 250. Most people don't understand the difference so when they say "I read about someone who died", most likely that person was a bypass patient. Since you're doing this for yourself and nobody else, I would just tell the naysayers, "Thanks but I've already done my research and this is what's best for me." .

I have BCBS of Michigan and it was a snap. I think a lot depends on how organized the doctor's office is in documentation. Barix clinic does only WLS so they no exactly how to deal with the insurance company as far as filling out forms, etc. You may have to delay your surgery but it sounds like you were denied due to incomplete paperwork. So I'd be patient and just keep pushing forward. .

It is my understanding that a passport is necessary as of 2007. We used to be able to cross in and out of Canada with only a birth certificate. We now need a passport. As for missing Americans...I would think you would be safe as long as you don't go driving off into out of the way places. I know people that visit there several times a year and they never have a problem. Have you made arrangements for a doctor here in the states to get your fills? Keep in mind that you might need to see your 'fill' doctor once a month. If you're lucky, you won't have problems requiring an unfill after a fill. If you're planning on making the trip to Mexico for your fills...are you prepared to make that trip once a month or so for 'possibly' the first year? According to my surgeon it's very normal for the first year. .

Good morning everyone! Hope you all had a wonderful time with family...and didn't manage to overdo it with the wrong foods. Since my refill I haven't felt much like eating but did have a small slice of turkey, and a small bit of squash and mashed potatoes. Finished it off with a very small piece of pecan pie and coffee. So nice not to walk away from the table groaning from an overfull tummy. Today is my traditional start of the Christmas season. Since I do not leave the house on Black Friday unless someone is bleeding...and then it has to be something a butterfly bandage won't fix...I spend the day just 'puttering'. Today I plan on doing my online Christmas shopping while getting myself into the 'mood' with National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and a few other oldies but goodies. The only difference between this year and past years is...no cookies and no eggnog (490 calories in a glass??!) while doing so. Normally I put up my Christmas tree, but haven't decided what to do about the demon kitty who would, without hesitation, take it down...and I think I'd cry if he destroyed any of the ornaments I've collected over the years. On with the holiday season! Melody .

I don't know what to tell you, but I do sympathize. My family puts the 'whack job' in 'dysfunctional'. .

If you're hungry, you don't have restriction. If you're taking small bites, chewing well (not to mush) and waiting between bites and getting stuck, you're most likely too full. Been there...done that...finally figured out where I went wrong after a year of playing with this band, trying to figure out how to make it work. The bands primary purpose is not to physically restrict how much you can eat. Its purpose is to put pressure on the vagus nerves which run into your stomach, causing them to suppress the production of ghrelin...the hormone that makes you want to eat...which in turn supresses your appetite. Some people get enough pressure just with the band and never need fills. Other people almost max out their bands before they reach that point....and yes, there are some people who max out their bands and still don't have enough pressure on the vagus nerves to stop the production of ghrelin. So where does that leave someone who's getting stuck (despite following the rules) but still hungry? Well, it may be that the band failed you because it is not putting enough pressure on the vagus nerves without also making it impossible for you to eat. The options at that point are to do a vertical sleeve revision...or gastric bypass. Both of which have their own issues but if the band really failed you, may be your only options for losing weight. Before you do that, I'd recommend taking a long hard look at your hungry. If you haven't been keeping a food journal, I highly recommend it. It is what helped me to zero in on my 'hunger' and realize it wasn't head hunger but rather hunger related to blood sugar spikes/crashes. Anyway...my .02 and just food for thought. .

So, like, that means your Thanksgiving dinner today can only be better? <g> Unfortunately, as people get older, they tend to get a little harder to deal with. My mother-in-law turned 81 this year and she is the nicest, sweetest woman...but I've seen little changes in her and know that over the next decade or so she'll probably become more cantankerous and stubborn as time goes on. We just need to keep reminding ourselves that their time is growing short and just enjoy them the best we can. Just FYI...I do an olive oil and herb paste and rub it under the breast skin and over the skin. Put it on a rack in a shallow pan (about 1" deep), pour 3/4 cup white wine into the pan and bake at 500 for 30 minutes. Then I cover the breast with foil and bake it at 350 deg for about 9 minutes per pound (roughly). When the thermometer in the deepest part of the meat registers 161 deg. F, I take it out of the oven and move the rack to another cookie sheet and then cover the turkey with a big bowl. It stays there while I make the gravy and do the last minute stuff. It was cooked perfectly! .

Since the fill, the pain is worse. We went to see 'Tangled' at the movies yesterday and I ended up going to the back of the theatre and standing since the seats put me at the wrong angle (couldn't sit up straight). Cross your fingers because if they can't easily see the problem, it means I'm stuck with the pain if I want to keep the band, and after this last week, OMG I just can't go back to that kind of hunger again! It's how I got to 330 lb! Melody

Happy Thanksgiving bandsters! And it is definitely *happy* for me. As you know I had been tossing over the idea of doing a sleeve revision because I didn't feel my band was working. I was still always hungry. Well, a week without a band taught me differently. I had forgotten that prior to the band I was dealing with this constant ravenous hunger that even, minutes after eating and with a stuffed belly, was not assuaged. The week without a fill was a very nasty reminder...but one I needed and thank God I found this out before getting the VS done! What I 'thought' was hunger was most likely blood sugar swings, so now that I know the difference, I will know how to proceed. Despite the pain I'm back in, I do not regret going in to get my fill back this past Tuesday. Almost immediately that intense hunger abated even though I'm only at 6cc...where I was in July when I had that unfill. Oh, I still had a bit of hunger, but normal since I had eaten almost 5 hours before and it was coming up on lunch time. Since my fill I have not only been blessedly free of hunger but without even the desire to eat! This has been a long year and a hard lesson, but one I needed. I always did have to learn the hard way...through experience. Anyway, I am thankful for all of you and thankful for my band! Despite the pain until they can fix it (hopefully the first or second week of December), it is going to make the difference between maintain/losing and gaining 20 lbs! Have a great Thanksgiving! Melody .

Nope. Ads came back when I switched back to talk. I had ads prior to the facelift but to be honest I just didn't see them after awhile. Now though, there appears to be ads inside our text boxes (to the right), with no visual separation. So, when reading, I hit this block of ad and go 'huh'...then realize it's an ad. Whoever thought that little gem up is an idiot. Have to admit that this whole 'new' format is much clunkier than the previous one and it's become so inconvenient that I'll come in, read a couple posts, get frustrated with the clunkiness and leave. If the powers that be wanted to break our addition to this forum, they certainly went about it the right way. .

Going to the in-laws but the day before Thanksgiving I cook our own turkey for leftovers. I did the stuffing (son loves it) but no potatoes. I usually bring the Desserts so yesterday was pie baking as well. I'm not a sweet eater as a general rule so no temptation there. This morning I'm making my mock mashed potatoes (cauliflower mashed with cream cheese and butter) and my sugar free cranberry sauce. Oh...and I still have to make the rolls, which I also bring. *Then* I can relax. .

Once I get the offending food 'unstuck', the sliming quits. Perhaps something was still 'stuck' a bit? .

I don't like the new look. I think it's 'clunkier'. Then again, I hate change. .

Indeed...props to the doc! I'd write that man a thank you! .

Everyone handles pain differently. When they asked if I need a pain killer in recovery, I said 'no'. I didn't need any pain medicines over the next 5 hours before they discharged me but they sent me home with a scrip for painkiller anyway. I never filled it. I have a pretty throw pain threshhold so was very surprised. Now, a paper cut on the other hand and I need anesthetic. I was back on regular foods in 2 weeks. All depends on the surgeon.

B: 2 eggs, 2 sl bacon L: 3 oz of leftover baked atlantic cod, 1/2 cup mashed cauliflower D: Spaghetti squash with homemade meat sauce .

Denise: My son and I went to see Harry Potter this afternoon. It actually wasn't bad at all because we went to the first showing and I know (from experience) that the popcorn was last night's and has just been warmed up under the lights so wasn't tempted with the popcorn. It probably helped that I ate lunch right before we walked out the door. The movie was pretty good but I don't think it was the best one. Besides, when Harry took off his shirt, he's kind of ripped...and, of course, since I noticed that I suddenly felt like a pervert. :thumbup: Liz: Hey there, Liz. I was wondering if you were still around. That sounds like PBing. When I'm doing that, I know my pouch is still moving food through the band but slowly and I notice it happens most often if I take that one bite too many or I eat something that's maybe a bit more 'dense' (like pizza). The little 'burps' are just air coming up through to displace what's covering the opening. I wouldn't say you're too tight...maybe just need to stop a bite or two sooner. Shads: $100 for a pair of tennies? I guess that's cheaper than going to the plastic surgeon and getting a butt tuck. Personally, I don't think anything short of a butt tuck is going to help my droopy backside...which seems to be sliding to the top of my thighs. HB: Sounds like you have a secret kitty admirer and he/she is leaving you little prezzies. How thoughtful to display them in your planter. .

If you're not hungry, then you *do* have restriction. My surgeon explained that they used to think the band worked by restricting how much you could eat. Now they understand that it is because it puts pressure on the vagus (?) nerves. When pressure is put on the nerves, it keeps your stomach from producing a hormone called ghelin which basically makes you want to eat. Your band is apparently working if you aren't hungry.

I never thought about warming up the almond milk! Duh! That would be a wonderful evening drink when I'm craving a hot chocolate. Unlike the sugarless (low carb) hot chocolate, I'd actually get some benefit from it. .

You guys are killing me with the 'saggy booty'. I had to read that several times because I thought I was reading saggy 'boots' and was wondering why everyone was buying 'Christie' boots if they were saggy. Ok...so I've been awake since 4 a.m. (damn pain in the arm again). I have saggy 'everything'. I wish they could just do a body lift by grabbing the top of your head and pulling up, tying it off like a ponytail and then 'snip'. Of course that would probably mean we'd all be wearing goatees. .

Good grief...so you have a double blessing from the band! .

Good morning bandsters! Anyone else think we should start a new thread on January 1st? This one is sooooo long and I have a feeling that most of the early participants are no longer here. :thumbup: So, we're not going to talk about my weight this morning which is still bobbing around like a drowning man. It will be enough to say that I feel good, albeit so hungry I'm ready to join our demon kitty and sit around the ferret cage waiting for Gracie to kick some food out through the bars. On the food front, despite the hunger, I've managed to stick to 1100 calories and less than 20gm of carbs so I'm pretty pleased with myself. So pleased that I'm going to hold off going to see the new Harry Potter movie because I know that there is *no way* I can sit in a theater with the smell of popcorn while being this hungry. I know me and I will, despite the best of intentions, get a big bucket and down the whole thing. Elcee, I ordered a bollywood exercise dvd. Unlike Zumba, this looks like something I can keep up with. I went back to the front of this thread, just curious about the MIA's. Does anyone know what happened to J'smom or IlluminationLady? Bob...Betsy...how are you two doing? Ok...time to fix breakfast... .