honk

To Chobani fat free yogurt with fruit I add a couple tablespoons vanilla whey protein powder and splendra. I mix it together and have it either for breakfast or an afternoon snack (before swimming). Also as a snack mixing it with a stick blender is great. Gives it a different texture becuase of the air that gets blended in.

Cobra is your existing insurance. If you are lucky your employer will pay for the insurance for several months. You should have this information in your seperation documents (hopefully you recieved one). You should also recieved in the mail a document on Cobra that tells you the cost of your Cobra program. Expect that it will be expensive. For example my premium was close to $500 dollars (single no dependents). At the time I was laid off the Fed was paying 60% of Cobra. Depending on your state there may be a program that will help you pay for Cobra. Also some states have heath insurance programs that you can buy into when you are unemployeed. Those programs may not however cover your surgery. Call the HR department and ask who is the expert on your lay off/seperation from your employer. That may be an HR Generalist/Manager or it could be a Benefits specialist.

I ran a google search and found the following: Anesthesia drug drought hits prisons, people, pets - FiercePharma Manufacturing

If you are unhappy with your care you should check out the bariactric program at the larger hospital. I will tell you that my surgeon does not do fills. The practice has two nurse practioners who handle fills. FYI a nurse can not remove the band that would be surgery which has to be done by a surgeon.

While my insurance did not have a 6 month diet requirement my surgeon had a lot of test/classes that I had to attend. It would have been 2.5 months from the time of consult to surgery. One week prior to the surgery my neurologist told me that he could not support doing the surgery because the bloodclot I had suffered five months earlier had not been sufficiently resolved. I was heartbroken. I had lost my required weight (30 pounds) and just wanted to have the surgery. From that point it was another 4 months. I would agree with a previous poster that this is a good time for you to start living a new life style. Determine what causes you to make the wrong food decision. What foods trigger you to eat more. Some research says that when you eat with a crowd you eat more. My experience is that my friends and family who are thin helped me eat less when we were together. I could see when they stopped eating. Waaaayyy before I would have stopped. I really like the 90/10 philosophy. If you eat correctly 90% of the time; you can allow yourself to have fun 10% of the time. One of my issues with dieting is that for months I could eat boring low fat food; but eventually I needed a break. One thing led to another and stopped eating correctly and eventually exercising. I gave myself permission to have treats on occation; but you know what thin people do that all the time.

Sorry but something does'nt smell right to me. I think you got bumped for a reason they don't want to tell/explain. You might want to look into another doctor if already have to wait.

Speak with benefits and find out how long your health insurance is valid. It may be the end of the month. Or your employer may continue your insurance for a set period of time. Also you are eligable for Cobra. At one point the federal government was covering 2/3 of an unemployeed person's Cobra. This is currently saving me $375 a month. If you can afford it I would recommend paying Cobra and gettting the surgery done. Personally I don't feel I can live without health insurance after having a stroke last year. There is probably a company that was hired by your employer to handle the Cobra payments. You send a check to them and in turn they send the money to your insurnace company. For which they get paid like 1-2% of your premium.

I got a bad rash from the tape that I think they used to keep my breasts out of the way. About a week out from surgery I got another rash that was not near the incisions in the lower abdomen area. The fact that they are near your incisions would worry me. If the surgeon does not call you back asap go see your GP.

Some of the video game stores (Game Stop) sell used ones at a discount. People use them as trade ins when they want to buy a new gaming system.

Did your doctor approve crackers? I was told I could have scrambled eggs (egg beaters are better no cholesterol), tofu, cottage cheese (I don't even like cottage cheese but I found non fat with chives and it's really good when added to the hot pan of eggs.), and ricotta cheese. BTW presurgery I really liked Peanut Butter. I would eat about a teaspoon a day for a treat. Post surgery (a month now) I am not really liking it. I even bought a jar of Jiff ( I normally buy store brand) and still nothing. Kind of crazy not sure what that's all about.

My doctor does not normally remove the gallbladder at the same time. One of the nurses said that they have ever only removed one during the banding surgery. In this case the gall bladder was gangrenous and she was astonished that the patient had not been in horrific pain. In that case leaving it in would have been malpratice.

If you know anyone who has a costco membership; they have a ready to drink chocolate Protein shake/drink by Premier. It has 30 grams protein for 140 calories. I think it tastes pretty good. When looking at Protein shakes you want higher grams of protein for the calories. In regards to yogurt look for Greek style as it has more protein than the regular stuff. I buy fat free with fruit and add several tablespoons of vanilla whey Isolate Protein powder plus some Splendra (greek style is more sour). In regards to "healthfood stores" I find that Vitamin Shoppe has much better prices than GNC (even with their buy one get one half price).

The day of my surgery the only thing that was a hassle (esp for my family waiting at the hospital) was that my doctor called to move up my surgery by an hour. Something must have happened in an earlier surgery because my surgery was about 4 hour late. I was told I would be given a relaxation shot prior to surgery. Only problem was they would not give me the shot until I met with the surgeon. So I lay in the preop area for 4 hours stressing out with my mother sitting there. By that point I was now pretty hungry since I had'nt eaten since the day before. Post surgery I did really well. My doctor does not do catheters so I was up every 30 minutes going to the bathroom. If at all possible I would try to exit the hospital bed from the side opposite of where your port is located. I was on pain meds only overnight and the next morning it was hurting to get up to use the bathroom. But I would say even on no med/tylenol it was about a 3 on a scale of 1-10. I had no pain sitting or once laying down; and no pain after standing. I also had no gas pain. My first couple nights after the surgery I was up several times in the night to use the bathroom. I was after all on a liquid diet. Friday - First day home took naps on the couch. Saturday- Rested in morning, afternoon went to several stores short walks (my mother drove) Sunday Drove with my mother to her house for the day (1.5 hours each way) Rested Went outside visited with family Mon.- Back to the gym! Treadmill about 40 minutes no incline. There are a lot of stories of people who had pain so that was stressing me out. I am allergic to morphine, codein, etc so I am unable to take commonly used perscription pain killers. I don't know if I was just lucky or have a high pain tolerance but the surgery pain was really not bad. I have a back problem that when it goes out is 100 times more painful than my incisions were.

They did invite me to cocktail party, I just thought it was VERY strange to do this right after I get banded, when they NEVER do stuff like that. Was there a reason for the timing of the party? My sister's "boyfriend' had a benchmark birthday 2 weeks after my surgery. I brought my own food no one noticed but I probably would'nt have gone if it had'nt been a special party. I could'nt ask them to chang the date to when I could eat solid food. Maybe the timing was just bad. I try NOT to talk the band to death, but so much social stuff centers around food, so either I bring my own (which is attention getting) or have to ask what/where we are doing dinner. They will sometimes bring it up with the ever famous "You can eat THAT?" and then a discussion follows. Since you are about a year out from surgery could you find one or two things you could eat at the party even if they aren't diet foods? I was on a very strick diet for 7 months prior to surgery and when I went to a party I would make the best choices I could and just shrug it off. I might have Protein shakes for Breakfast and lunch and then feel like I could eat higher calorie foods at dinner. Hummus and carrots are great for a party; high protein and good fat with veggie.

The way I look at it is some people can't stand to be wrong. They also refuse to accept that their decision might not be the right one for everyone. Kind of the opposite of buyers remorse. Do you even know you are a candidate for bypass? Last year I had a mild stroke at 39 no warning. I was not a candidate for bypass because it is so intrusive and the chance of having a bloodcot was so much higher. I also see this when a fat person starts exercising or dieting. People always want to tell you what you're doing wrong. It's not "Great your going to the gym!" Instead people want to tell you you're doing the wrong exercise or should follow their diet plan.

Good luck on your classes. My mother started swimming every day 25 years ago and I used to HATE going with her. Two years ago I started swimming to loose weight; because of a knee problem I could'nt do regular cardio. I discovered that you can buy waterproof MP3 players (go to amazon) which make swimming so much more fun. If I get to the pool and my player shuts off because it needs to be charged I am miserable.

I think the biggest issue is you don't know why they were unsuccessful. Since many people lie to there doctors esp. about eating habits they may not be getting the whole picture if any info. My mother had a friend who was put on a diet and his daily treat was a "glass" of chocolate milk. When he went back for a check up he had gained weight. The doctor asked him if the 8 oz of chocolate milk was the only snack. To which he replied oh no it's about a quart. No wonder he was gaining. Also, are they dedicated to an exercise routine? 2-3 days a week is fine; but if you do 6-7 you will have more effect.

If you are not using cow's milk or water what will you be making them with? Soy/almond milk, yogurt?

I am only a month out of surgery so you can take my thoughts with a grain of salt. Almost 2 years ago I started slightly modifying my diet and began swimming every day; because of a knee problem. A year later I had lost 30 pounds; but out of nowhere I had a mild stroke, I was 39. I recovered (knock on wood) with no side affects. As part of treatment and searching for a cause one of the doctors asked if I had ever considered weight loss surgery. Had I ever thought of it seriously? No. While attending the presurgery classes and nutritional appointments I realized that I was eating a less of the unhealthy foods but they were still unhealthy. Changing my diet presurgery I lost 52 pounds. Do I occationally have cracker or a small piece of cake at a party? Sure. But I don't keep them in my house. I think of my "thin" friends and most of them eat healthy choices most of the time with the occational treat. Kind of the 90/10 rule (healthy 90% of the time).

Depends on your doctor. Some feel that the caffene can cause ulcers in your new small stomach. Since I am on perscriptions that make me groggy I asked if I could have regular coffee (two week post op visit) and he said yes. I don't drink hot tea at all (even though I lived in England for a year) so I would be in a world of hurt if I had to drink tea all day.

I was not on perscription pain killers so I took liquid Tylenol. Had to stop on the way home and buy some. Buy two bottles because you run through it pretty quickly. Keep in mind I was not in as much pain as some. But it can be hard to sit up from laying down the first couple days.

"When we finally get to restriction, our appetite is controlled and making good choices, portions, etc., is easier". I have to disagree with this statement. I don't think food choices have anything to do with having restriction. I lost 82 pounds pre band on diet and exercise. Having the band does'nt magically make me not want to eat Cookies.

I think the key here is damage mitigation. What could you have done to reduce the calories you ate? My issue when on a diet is getting hungry between meals; so what would be some good snacks? A cup of premade chicken stock is only about 25 calories; suger free popsicles (I prefer crystal light brand) 15 cal; salsa like 15 cal for 2 tablespoons. Since I usually have a long time between lunch and dinner (and work out in between); I've found single serving fat free fruited greek yogurt to be a great snack (140 cal, and hight in protein. I do add splendra to combat the sourness).

You might want to check out the calories and fat on the RTD Muscle Milk. I saw them this week when I was looking for something at the conveneince store and they had like 250 calories. Muscle Milk makes a lower calorie version which I though tasted fine.

Bandster Hell is when someone hits 4 weeks after surgery and is allowed to move to solid foods. So they resume eating like they did presurgery and since they have no restriction can eat large quantities. Some people have this problem even before they start solids. Personally, knock on wood, I have not had this problem. I feel that I still have some restriction currently in my forth week out and now on solids. My band is empty. One thing to keep in mind is that the better your eating habits are presurgery the easier time you'll have after (just my opinion.). I was on a pretty strick diet presurgery so my portion and food choices were already under control. If I go a long time without eating like 5+ hours I do get hungry. If I am out I buy a zero calorie vitamin water to hold me over until I get home. If you work outside the home I think that would help the situation. I am a consultant so I work from home. Sooo when work is slow I get bored and think of food.