Lisa G.

P.S. Thanks Teresa for moving the "box" rules. I guess I'm just brain dead lately. At least I got the link to it posted. lol ljg

That was me telling about the french fries. I had one of my son's and got stuck. I think I am tighter that I have ever been the last few days. I have an appointment Tuesday, I don't know if I will get a fill this time either. Didn't get one last time. I had trouble with a piece of fish last night. Even though some days I feel like I could eat the house down, when I get started, I can't eat much. lol lisa

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f64/east-texas-banders-43266/index2.html#post640049 There you go Julie. Follow the link. It should take you right to it. lisa

Julie, go to the East Texas Bandsters thread and on page two, I listed our box rules for another girl. Since I'm not very computer smart, I couldn't copy them and paste them to this thread. lisa

Hey Sharon..... Please keep in mind that these are from our doctor. Dr. B probably has rules of his own. 1. Eat only 3 small meals a day. (Breakfast within 1 hour of getting up and your last meal 3 hours before you go to bed) 2. Eat slow and chew thoroughly (15-20 times per bite) 3. Stop eating as soon as you feel full (do not challenge the band, see how little y ou can eat and be satisfied.) 4. Do NOT drink while eating. (30 minutes before and 1 hour after) No carbonated drinks. Avoid gulping, sip. 5. Do not eat between meals. 6. Make good choices. (eat only good quality food. solid food is more important than liquid food. The band will have no effect if you only consume liquids as it will pass right through.) 7. Drink at least 6 - 8 8 ounce glasses of Water per day. 8. Drink low calorie or zero calorie liquids. (crystal lite) in addition to the above. 9. Exercise daily. You eat daily so you need to exercise daily. 10. Avoid doughy or sticky foods like white bread, pop corn, coconut, dried fruits as they can obstruct the stoma. Please understand...... These are our doctors rules. Please follow YOUR doctor's rules above all else. These are really common sense rules for bandsters, but it helps newbies and those who have gotten off track. Hope this helps. lisa

Hang in there Julie. I went at a snail's pace too. Most people don't have much restriction after the first fill. Everyone is different. lo2us has had restriction from the start. Me..... I have had FIVE fills. Now, I have fairly good restriction. Be sure to drink your Water, exercise, and follow the "box" rules that Ms. Betty gives you and you will start losing before you know it. It's hard, but you can do this. Be determined, make better food choices and exercise more. PATIENCE! That is the key. We didn't get this way overnight and it will take more than a couple of weeks to get it off. You can do this.... we are here to support you and cheer you on every step (or pound) of the way. lisa

Hey Glo, I don't know if anyone other than the folks that see our doctors know what the "BOX" is. For all of yall that don't know..... our doctors have a list of 10 rules that we are to follow for sucess. If yall want them, I will be glad to share. lol They are not hard rules to follow, just sensible rules that if you follow them......work. lisa

Oh no, it doesn't work that way. You have to pay for his special talents. Just like if you hired an interior decorator to come in and decorate your tree. He just might "decorate" your whole house. His nickname around here is "Tornado Tanner". lol He goes way beyond what I can do to decorate. lol My treadmil is not doing what it's supposed to. I haven't lost a thing. boo-hiss! Yall have a good day and stay in the box!

Susan, I'll send T over to do the tree. He is really good at decorating, but you have to help with the top. You should have seen our tree last year. It was almost as good as Charlie Brown's tree. All the ornaments were from about my shoulder height down. You know how tall I am. NOT! And of course, I will have to charge you for contract work. lol later!

Sugarbear, I'm jealous...... I don't even have my tree out of storage yet, much less almost done with my shopping. lol Susan, how do you feel this morning? Yall have a good day.

That might work Glo. I might need to try that myself. lol Teresa, glad to hear the happy ending. That's cool. Now you can start that shopping frenzy that you were talking about. lol I am absolutly stuffed. I had one, yes ONE of those chicken select pcs that you get at Mickey D's. I couldn't eat another bite if someone forced me. I reckon that is restriction. lol later yall!

Mornin everyone! Just wanted to say hi! Starting today, I am going to start exercising more. I need to lose 6 pounds before Dec.4th. I know kinda late to start, but I'm gonna try anyway. Yall have a good day and stay in the box!

Morning everyone! We made it back yesterday afternoon. I won't bore everyone with all the details, but let's just say Christmas is not looking very Merry this year. Teresa, at least the ball is rolling to get your money back. Look on the bright side.... you have restriction! lol Glad you feel better anyway. Shannon, told ya that upper GI wasn't that bad. Glad to hear that everything is ok. Sugarbear, I'm glad you are doing ok too. Hang in there. My restriction usually doesn't hit me for at least two weeks after a fill. So, I guess yours is doing about the same, huh? You go, Glo! 35 pounds! that's great! Don't worry too much about over eating at Thanksgiving. It's one day. Start over the next and stay with it. I didn't stay in the box either. I had some lemon pie AND some Cherry delight! Not a lot, but I did treat myself. I shalt not feel guilty! We are not on a diet, we are learning to eat properly!!! lol Susan, did you have a good Thanksgiving? How's the grand dogs? lol Yall take care. Talk to yall later!

Teresa, call them and talk to them bout it. It could just be swelling from the fill, but better safe than sorry. Long weekend coming up and you don't want to visit the ER. BUT on the other hand.... way to go on having restriction on the second fill. I think it took 3 for me to fill some restriction. Yall have a great Thanksgiving! Remember what Ms. Betty said. PORTION CONTROL!!! lol Talk to yall later!

Shannon, upper GI's are not as bad as you might think. I'm talking about the procedure itself. The junk you have to drink is another story. lol it's worse than slim fast. lol I hope everything turns out ok. Be sure to keep us posted.

Mornin everyone. Sugarbear, I don't know what that is. I can click on it and it takes me to tickerfactory. I noticed that block right after they did something to the band site. Maybe, go into your edit signature and cut that little block out. Try that and see if you can do it that way. Or send Alex an e-mail. (the lapband site guru) That stuff you can just lean over and get rid of is SLIME! Did you feel like you were drowning? Slime is gross and I hate to tell you this, but when you get stuck, the docs suggest the next meal or two be liquid. (like slim fast) The stoma swells from food getting stuck and it makes it hard to eat the next meal. Well, we had a great meeting last night. Lots of new people there. Susan???? Glo????? I'm not saying a word. lol I got to meet Teresa last nite. Speaking of which..... Teresa, how did the Wal-Mart trip go? lo2us, how did the fill go yesterday? Everything ok? And I got my 50 pound pin last night. Yeah! I think I need to start my food diary again. Since I'm not losing, I am wondering if I'm getting enough calories again. Do yall do that? I'm not hungry and I'm not eating much, so I wonder if that's the problem. I do know I'm not starting my diary until AFTER Thanksgiving. lol I'm rambling, yall have a good day. Susan, what are you fixing for Thanksgiving? lol

Good for you. If possible, get a copy of everything you submit. Sometimes the insurance companies "mis-place" reports and things that are critical for approval. If you have a copy and when it was faxed or sent in, then you have proof that it was sent. Send it again and document it on the copy. Keep a copy of everything that is done. Even the reciepts from doctor visits. I had trouble getting approved the first time and all that stuff helped when it came time for appeal. I hope you won't need it, but it's some thing that will help you be "in charge". lol Good luck and keep us posted, k?

Hey yall! How's everyone this morning? My band gave me a spanking yesterday. I reckon I needed it. Went out to eat after church and of course I was starving. I thought that is how things were after church. lol I ate too fast and payed for it. Shame, shame. I promise to do better. The last few days have been hard, I seem to be in that phase where I'm hungry for something and can't find out what it is. I hate it when that happens. lol I sure hope I find whatever it is before Thursday!!!!!!! Shannon, I don't plan on reining in my Gobblers. I'm gonna run those little boogers off! Far, far away! And send all the other stuff with them. lol Yall know this is gonna be hard. Most of us haven't been banded for a major holiday like Thanksgiving or Christmas. We can do this....it's just one day. Send all the left overs home with family members! Get it out of the house!! If we goof up (and I probably will, cause I don't have much will power) we will just have to get back on the "band" wagon the next day. Look what I did! "Band" wagon. lol I think I'm psyching my self up for this. (was that spelled right?) Yall have a good day and if I don't get to post again before Thursday, Happy Thanksgiving!!! Susan, behave this week. lol

Hey Just A Girl. Hang in there. I hope your approval comes through soon. But don't get discouraged in the meantime. Sometimes the insurance companies require several things to get approval. Have you talked to your PCP? Call your insurance company and have them fax you the requirements for approval. (or e-mail them to you) That way you will know what you need to do to be assured of approval. I don't have BCBS, but my insurance company required me to have several things to prove that my surgery was "medically necessary". Do your research and get informed about co-morbidities and have them documented by your PCP in a letter of medical necessity to send in to your insurance. But the first thing you really need to do is get that list from BCBS. If you are not approved the first time, most insurance companies give you a limited number of times you can resubmit or have the claim reviewed. You have be careful when submitting for approval. I'm sorry if I got you down, but some insurance companies are real sticklers and make you jump through hoops to get approval. But, I promise it's worth it in the end. You will be healthier and more able to take care of those little ones. I use Dr. Heiker in Texarkana , so I can't help you with the choice of doctors you have picked, but if you need any help with other things, ask.... if I can help you, I will do my best. I mostly post on the Texarkana Bansters thread and there is a LOT of information in the first pages of that thread, and you will be able to get an idea of how things work. Again, I'm sorry if I discouraged you, I just wanted to help.

Hang in there ParisAngel. We were all in your situation before we got banded. Your time will come. Glo, I pay a co-pay when I see Dr. H. But that's all. I think I had three fills before I started paying my co pay. I don't really remember, so don't quote me on that one. Are you coming to the meeting Monday night? I'm gonna try. RenewedHope, congratulations on the little one. I hope you adjust soon. Every mom has the problem of adjusting to night stuff. It's gets better. Congrats on the weight loss also. You are doing great. Keep up the good work! Yall have a good weekend and a Happy Thanksgiving. Be good to your band and it will be good to you.

Hey everyone. How is everyone doing? Sounds like yall are doing great. Way to go Mizboo! Hope you are feeling great before long. Send us pics, it won't gross me out. Susan, I've just been busy. Seems like I don't have time for anything anymore. I haven't lost anymore weight and I haven't met my second goal, but I'm almost there. I just can't seem to lose those few pesky pounds to get to that second goal. After that goal is met, there is only one more goal to meet and it will be the hard one. The last 30 pounds. I have been sneaking in as much exercise at work as I can. Instead of taking the carts like everyone else, I walk. I'm just waiting for someone to tell me I can't walk anymore. Aint that strange? If someone is trying to get a little exercise, just leave them alone. I can get my job done a lot faster when I walk instead of driving a golf cart starting and stopping all day. I've already figured that one out. I might just buck the system on this one. lol You know me, Rebel at heart! lol Sugarbear, glad to hear you finally have some restriction. Maybe it will help. Just take care of it and don't force down things after you get full. The hardest thing I had to learn was to slow down when I eat. Take small bites, and chew very well. Now that you have restriction, it will come back to bite you if you don't follow the rules. Just be careful. Hopefully, you will be on the road to losing soon. Just don't fall down any more steps, ok? lol We are off to Branson for Thanksgiving. Things aren't looking very well up there. I don't expect it will be a very cheery holiday. I will be off all week next week. T is out of school, so I will be able to post a time or two maybe. Yall take care. Talk to ya later!

Hi yall. I'm sneaking in at lunch again. SugarB, I'm glad you have some restriction finally. That's cool. And I see you are almost back to a normal routine at work too. That will help with the hunger. And..... I don't know what to tell you bout Susan. I figgered out early on that I could pick on her and get away with it. lol She likes to cut up as much as I do. So, I guess we're even. I'm thinking I might need a tweak again. I haven't lost much in this six weeks. My next appt is Dec 4th. I'm ready. Yall have a good day!

Good morning everyone..... Arkie, how are you feeling this morning? Hope you are feeling ok. Did you have things checked out? Did everyone have a good weekend? It sure was quiet on here. Yall have a good day!

Hey everyone. Hope everyone is doing ok this morning. I'm feeling better after a trip to the dentist Thursday. Believe me, before I got there, it was a nightmare. I sure was glad I had some left over pain meds from my band surgery. I won't tell the gorrrrrrrry details. I just feel better. lol Arkie, how are you this mornin? Feeling better I hope. Listen to lo2us. She has been in the "too tight" category before and she knows what she is talking about. If you have any doubt, call the Docs. I think that has been standard advice on this thread. Better safe than sorry. Sugarbear....... how are you? Are you home yet? Susan.....I went to Wal-Mart this mornin, where were you? I went early. (before 7am) I guess you weren't out galavanting around yet. lol How are you? Glo? Are you still hanging in there? Genia....... what's up? I'm thru asking questions now. Yall take care. Talk to ya later

arkie, I would have it checked out just to be on the safe side. I have heard that the so-called yp-yo dieting (gaining and losing) has contributed to gall bladder problems. Mine has been gone a very long time, but I still remember the feeling and it's not very fun. By the way 27 pounds is great for a month!!!! Keep it up and it won't be long before you see the "new" you! You need to fix a ticker to keep up with your progress. I think most of us use tickerfactory.com. Fix one so we can cheer you on. lol Hey everyone else. Hope yall are doing fine. Have a good day and blah, blah, blah. You know what I mean! lol