harlito

You people are wound way too tight. It was a simple question but nobody wanted to answer with their opinion, right or wrong. It was on the 3rd page that someone actually answered the question - even though it was in a joking kind of way. Why can't everybody stop being so holier than thou? I think more white women are marrying black men because it is becoming more socially accepted. I don't think it is completely accepted but better than say 20 or so years ago. I am sick of race being a topic that is untouchable. Maybe some people believe that if we do not talk about race then racism will not exist? Well, that's just stupid.

No, please explain. I figure with more population there is always going to be more issues to deal with but not all will necessarily be problems for long. If you are afraid of having to deal with these issues and just want them to go away then keep pointing fingers at those who disagree with you. This may not be what you are doing or you may not even realize that it comes across this way... I don't know... I say lead by example and keep it up. You seem like a very caring and intelligent person and I do not wish to get into any kind of global warming debate with you. I will just say that I disagree with most of the findings that are being hyped in the media. My only wish in regards to the environment is that people would just show some concern in protecting it. If everybody showed just a little concern we'd be much better off. I can't do anything about China's pollution or even the smog in Los Angeles - I can do what I can within my own immediate environment. It seems that too many people are good at offering up problems without looking for logical solutions and then they blow their gaskets over things that they have no control over. People having children is one of these issues. We have no control over other people in this regards so why get too upset over it - we shouldn't. As time goes by the truth will be evident and people will make the most natural of choices for survival. Civilaizations have run themselves into the ground but the world has continued to grow. Man is a survivor and will continue to be. So have confidence in our ability to survive.

First question is how much fill are you getting each time? I think this makes a difference as to how much restriction you are going to feel. I feel the same way that you do about my band - I want to be able to eat very little... ever. The night time feeding frenzy is a killer. Even though we are probably not actually eating anything near what we would have otherwise it is this time of the day that is hindering the weight loss. When you go to your doctor do you let him/her know how you feel about your band and what you want it to do? Many surgeons are stressing watching the amounts that you eat. This can be very frustrating to a person who has had the surgery. Many had the surgery so they would never have to here the word "diet" again. This has nothing to do with eating the proper foods it has to do with limiting the intake of any food at all. It is the reason I decided on the surgery. I mean I can eat food that is good for me all day... no, I mean I can eat it all day long. I think my problem was always eating too much of all food - good or bad. So the band would be perfect if it was restricted all the time. I can tell you that you are not alone in your situation. So don't feel bad. I would keep getting your fills until you feel the restriction you desire and also talk to your doctor about your feelings on the band and what you are expecting. If you have disagreements with your doctor at least you will get them out in the open and resolved ASAP. I have had 6 fills so far and I am only restricted up until noon. After that it is very hard to not want to eat everything in site. I started going to the gym about a month ago to try and get some extra pounds off but found I was adding pounds every week. This is normal when you start working out but it can mess with an overweight person's head. So I decided not to weigh again for another month - the beginning of August. But if I weigh again and have not lost any weight or have gained then I will go for another fill. I have over 8cc in my band now and will need another fill? I guess so... almost a year to the day of surgery I will still be looking for that elusive "sweet spot". Keep going, we've gone through too much to stop now!

People should be able to have as many kids as they want as long as they can support them. As far as dwindling resources that is nothing but bunk. Even with the population on the globe as it stands we still have way more then enough food to feed everybody. It's not the problem withthe resources it is a problem with distribution and in many cases culture. Africans have many kids to help them take care of the village and the elders and if a drought occurs then they are in trouble. Americans have just as many reasons for having alot of kids as they do kids but if a drought occurs in America we just walk or drive to the nearest store to get food.

I kind of agree with you. I used to work in retail and that was basically the only way that you really kept your job was being extra good in your customer service but we never recieved a tip. So I guess either we start tipping our salespeople or we start paying the waitstaff a decent wage. What do you think is more likely to happen?

18cc?! OMG!!! I'll never see the light of day!

I just can't understand people who have "accidents" or make "mistakes" in their lives over and over again. How hard can it be to try and not get pregnant? I'm not saying that accidents do not happen but over and over again? I think not. I know a guy that has gotten several girls pregnant and the girls have either had abortions or used the morning after pill. It doesn't appear that this guy will learn about responsibility until one of these girls says that she is going to keep her baby. Welcome home daddy!

I remember seeing a tip jar at a Baskin & Robbins ice cream parlor about a year ago. I thought that was ridiculous. What am I tipping for? Is it for doing a good job scooping my ice cream? For making a good sundae? Do some of these places know what customer service mean? Is it wrong to think that we should at least get a minimum amount of customer service without paying anything extra? If I don't like the way the sundae is made or if it is not made how I ordered they'll make it again (although i haven't been to an ice cream parlour since being banded). Another place I don't go to anymore is buffets. I don't understand why the tables are set up buffet style for people to get their own food and then the drinks have to be ordered. Now am I suppose to be obligated to leave a good tip based on whether or not my drink is brought to the table? Now that's difficult.

People seem to forget this.

<p>Insurance is a business and we have left it up to them to determine what doctors do in regards to health care. A business is only as good as the profits and that is what motivates insurance companies - the money. So complaining about bad insurance is going to go nowhere. You need to complain about the healthcare professionals for allowing it to happen. </p> <p> </p> <p>Can you honestly say that every overnight hospital stay is worth $30K or more? Should drugs that people need to live cost hundreds of dollars? Why? Should drug companies be allowed to visit doctors like a vendor selling any other product? Don't doctors know what is best for their patients or do they only go by what a patients insurance is willing to pay them? </p> <p> </p> <p>All I am saying is that it is not all up to having insurance. We need to get the costs of healthcare down and then maybe that "not-so-good" insurance will look alot better. </p> <p> </p> <p>A doctor use to be in the profession because they wanted help people - they lived to do this. Now it appears that doctors are switiching their focus or practice to whatever makes the most money. it is no longer about treating the sick it is about making the most money. </p> <p> </p> <p>Making money is all good and well but I think we have put too much focus on the insurance companies and not enough on those administering the care.</p> I go to get a fill and get charged $150. but when I used my insurance when it was still covered they were charged $600 for the exact same procedure. Does this sound right? If they can do it for 150.00 then why charge the insurance $600? They told me they only charge a non-insured patient $150 because that is about all they would be able to get. Well... shouldn't that tell them something?

I don't know if I can get any sexier. :whoo:

Well... this past weekend was not as good as I should have been but I didn't eat that much. I might have made a couple few bad choices. :rolleyes Overall I have been eating much better. The trainer at the gym told me to stay off the scale and that a weight gain is very possible at first since I am doing weight training along with the cardio. But the scale is soooo addicting!

What about weight gain from working out? I have started to gain a little weight and I am wondering when the weight will start coming off.

Nitzer Ebb: Control I'm Here Joing In The Chant Murderous Let Your Body Learn Shame Heart And Minds Getting Closer Fun To Be Had Lightning Man Family Man I Give To You Get Clean Come Alive Warsaw Ghetto Godhead If you know Nitzer Ebb you know this will really get you ready to aggressively hit the workout. Also, an old mix of 80s dance: Buffalo Stance - Neneh Cherry Headhunter - Front 242 Take Me High - Colm III Just Can't Get Enough - Depeche Mode Russian Radio - Red Flag American Soviets - C.C.C.P. Rigor Mortis - A Split Second Gun - D.A.F. The Great Commandment - Camouflage The Different Story - Peter Schilling Blue Monday - New Order Halloween - Ministry I Sit On Acid - Lords Of Acid Push - The Invincible Limit Beg Your Pardon - Kon Kan Andy - Les Ritas Mitsouko Male Stripper - Man Parrish New York - Micro Chip League Warm Leatherette - The Normal Theme From S-Express - Sexpress CCCan't You See - Vicious Pink Houseman - Voyou Situation - Yazoo Kooler Than Jesus - Thrill Kill Kult Kiss Me - Stephen Duffy Bring back any memories???

Nitzer Ebb - very aggro workout! And on days when I feeling a bit out there? Disco Love the i-pod

stay sexy... and good luck

Isn't there dating services geared toward gay clients? I never thought about whether or not e-harmony was pro gay or not but I think if I was gay that I would go for the services that cater to that first. If there is going to be a class action lawsuit against e-harmony then all of these services had better watch it because it will not stop there. Stop the bitching and get on with your life! I am sorry that e-harmony does not want to help you out but just look at it as their loss. I just can't stand this "us and them" mentality. E-harmony chooses not to cater to gay clients so don't try it. I am sure there are plenty of gay services that would not help a heterosexual to get a mate... of the opposite sex. Again, their loss.

James, At the moment you only have the band in with no fill - there is no real restriction. This is why it is so important to get your fills ASAP. You will find that after the initial swellin and healing is over you will be able to pretty much eat what you did before. I don't think you would want this. So my advice is to get that initial fill right away and go from there.

I agree. I can't imagine anyone having the same thoughts about Billy Graham. Graham might have shared beliefs with Fallwell but he never said anything hateful about anybody. I think "hate" is such a strong word but Falwell is a part of a group of people that kept me from going to church. He did more harm than good... until the day he died.

I need to lose about 200 pounds. YIKES!!!

Losing 1 - 2 lbs a week is very normal. There is maybe 1 out of 20 that have the kind of success that makes your eyes pop out. The 1 to 2 pound weight loss is over a long period of time - an average. So if you lose alot of weight up front and then hit a plateau, do not get discouraged. You have to look at this thing "long term". Losing a pound a day is not normal and depending on the person it might not be that healthy. The more effort you put into it the more you are going to lose. Look at it like this... if you rely on the restriction alone then you had better get to that point as soon as possible or you will gain weight back. And even if you just rely on restriction and do not do anything extra the weight will come off much slower than someone who starts to eat healthier foods and goes to the gym. It is all up to you and what you are willing to do. Most people make small changes in their life when they get the band so the weight comes off slower. These smaller changes are also known to be the ones that stick. So get your fills and get to that level of restriction you feel comfortable with, take your time and do not rush yourself, and try to enjoy your new life. It can only get better from here on out.

It probably won't give you much restriction but you have to give your stomach a chance to heal with each fill. You never want to get overfilled.

I just had my 5th fill on Monday and I now have 8 cc in my band so do not get discouraged. It takes awhile. There was some restriction on the last fill for about 2 weeks and then nothing. I've been told that drinking while you eat will wash down the food faster. This might be true but have you ever taken a drink while you eat and have the food get clogged in the band? Now that's not good either. I try to avoid this from happening more than I try to avoid flushing the food through. THE PAIN!!!

I always see my weight as something negative so I can not help seeing other people in that way. So you could say I am not attracted to women who are overweight. As time goes by I am realizing that it is not so much that the women are overweight it is the fact that many women don't care that they are over weight. But in recent months in dealing with my band I have met many women who are over weight that have the same outlook about their health as I do - they want a change. So maybe it is the unhealthy outlook these women have that turns me off and not so much the weight. Unfortunately, the weight is the first thing I see. My outlook is changing about myself so who knows what will happen. I guess when you begin to like yourself you find it much easier to like others.

<p>I am type II diabetic and I have 3 tattoos. One thing I am going to do after I lose all this weight is get a tattoo. I used neo-sporin on all my tattoos for after care and they healed great - no chipping. </p> <p>Chrishell, go for it!</p>