Betsyjane

I'm headed for my6 second fill Jan 12th. Can't wait. The amt. of restriction that I have varied from moderate to none. I guess I'm supposed to learn patience. I keep eating old style without thinking. Lately, I've found that taking one huge deep breath before eating anything helps to re-set me to think about it, eat slowly, and chew alot. I finally chucked my Flintstone vitamins! Switched to GNC chewable Solotrons. I feel so adult :-)

I felt sick! I don't expect perfection. I do expect a president not to lie so easily under the circumstances. He's as bad about his sex addiction as I am about my food addiction, but my food addiction wont hurt others enough to get me impeached.

Yes. Still completely surprised. Is it OK with you if YOUR husband does it, just because he gets an offer????? It's not OK with me if my presidnet does it, and puts himself in a position to be blackmailed or to have his judgments clouded. I would frankly vot for him again, but I will always want to kick him in the shins for such a bonehead move.

I loved Clinton as president, but you reeeaaally have to wonder. If you were President of the United States, married and in the public eye, sitting in THE Oval Office.....Commander in Chief.....leader of the free world....would you EVER have sex with an intern in the Oval Office????????

Origins: No, this isn't a real news report, nor does it describe a real study. There isn't a "Lovenstein Institute" in Scranton, Pennsylvania (or anywhere else in the USA), nor do any of the people quoted in the story exist, because this is just another spoof that was taken too seriously. The article quoted above began circulating on the Internet during the summer of 2001. In furtherance of the hoax, later that year pranksters thought to register www.lovenstein.org and erect a web site around it in an attempt to fool people into thinking there really was such an institute. The piece is simply a political jibe, made obvious by its ranking all the Democratic presidents of the last several decades as having high (even exceptionally high) IQs (note that Bill Clinton's IQ is listed as being exactly twice George W. Bush's) while ranking all the Republican presidents from the same time frame as average to moderate in intelligence, with the current president and his father assigned below-average figures placing them at the very bottom of the list. (President Nixon is the sole exception, presumably because his reputation is still so tarnished that not even a high IQ measurement can yet redeem him in the court of public opinion.) [some noticeable errors: Although the study includes Franklin D. Roosevelt, who died in office in 1945, the report is described as covering presidents in office "over the past 50 years." Also not true is the claim that "all the Presidents prior to George W. Bush had a least one book under their belt" — some of them authored no books until after becoming president, and George W. Bush did have a book to his credit before being elected president, 1999's [ame=http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0688174418/qid=995667789/sr=2-1/ref=aps_sr_b_1_1/102-4392188-9248133]A Charge to Keep[/ame]. Plus, if there's a "Swanson/Crain" system for ranking intelligence, nobody else seems to have heard of it.] In any case, IQ is a dodgy enough concept even when measured by tests designed for the purpose — trying to guess not just relative rankings but specific IQ scores based solely on writings and speeches is bound to be error-prone. Based on President George H.W. Bush's extemporaneous speech-making, for example, he couldn't "speak with clarity" to save his life, but he was clearly far more intelligent than the insultingly low IQ assigned to him above. And a recent article reports President Kennedy's IQ as 119, far below the genius-level 174 ascribed to him here. Update: As obvious as this joke was, at least two publications were taken in by it: The [London] Guardian and the New Zealand Southland Times. Both ran the "Presidential I.Q." tale as a factual item (on 19 July and 7 August 2001 respectively). The Associated Press publicized The Guardian's error on 12 August, moving The Guardian to post a retraction on 14 August, and U.S. News & World Report clearly reported the I.Q. item as a hoax on 20 August, 2001. Gary Trudeau's 26 August 2001 Doonesbury comic strip features an invisible George W. Bush being told about his ranking on the presidential I.Q. ladder by an underling. (This strip appeared on the Doonesbury web site on 2 September 2001).

Aw, I think Bush is a disaster, but I think that's below the belt. An IQ can't be judged by a lack of works with which to judge him. And an IQ is not a measure of intelligence, it's a specific measure that includes space reasoning, math, and a host of other things that are theoretically predictors of the ability to do well in school and nothing else.

PR: I think it would be 52 pounds. Losing weight and keeping it off is good. But better is losing ALL the weight and keeping it off. I decided to believe he was throwing down the gauntlet and challenging me to do better than the average. Some days I do... er, some hours I do.

Hey Jodi. Nice apology! I don't believe I've ever seen that before. You got class, girl.

Emerging superpowers of China, India, Russia and possibly Brazil. Declining superpowers...USA. What I'd like to see happen is that we acknowledge the amazing natural resources Canada has, the super power status we have, and the labor force Mexico has. Get that interconnecting super highway built, and have factories to compete with China to the south, dependence on North America for oil (er, and diamonds), and collaborative effort toward growth projects and security projects. We'd be a heck of a trading partner with the world. We could also due with importing some Canadian manners. By the way, I am more than tickled that Congress is now supposed to work a 5 day week rather than a 3 day, and that some are whining that that interferes with family time, a core Republican value. Tell it to the guys fighting in Iraq away from their families. I think a structured 5 day week may keep "Coingress" out of some of the clutches of lobbyists.

My doctor said that the national average is losing 60% of your excess weight, and keeping it off. with gastric bypass, the average is 80% coming off and then regaining 20% of it. Then he asked me if I'd be happy with losing 60% of my excess weight and I said yes. (But I'm shooting for more!)

Medical tourism certainly is growing. I was in Thailand in March and people from all over the world were coming there for procedures that, 5 star hotel included for recovery, were cheaper than here, with well trained physicians. I was at the Oriental Hotel, and as plush as it is, therre were Medical Tourists there. I thought about going back for my lap band, but decided I wanted follow up and fills to be by the guy who did this to me! I want our country to embrace stem cell research and not lose it, and so many other things, to the rest of the world. We are being Medieval!

Er, bombed Hanoi? WHY is it we needed to be over there?

Here's that great article that was posted elsewhere... How to Tell When You Are Perfectly Adjusted: You are losing 1-2 pounds per week. If you are not losing 1-2 pounds per week: A. You may need an eating adjustment 1. Are you eating 60 grams of Protein a day? 2. Are you eating 25 grams of Fiber? 3. Are you avoiding all liquid calories? a. Soup can be sign of soft calorie syndrome b. Alcohol contains a lot of calories 7 calories per gram.(It's also a stomach irritant). c. fruit juice is just sugar Water 4. Are you making healthy food choices from a wide variety of foods? a. Are you avoiding soft foods b. You can't just eat what's easy c. cheese is glorified fat 5. Are you drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day between meals? 6. Are you eating too much junk? a. chips, chocolate, nuts, ice cream, Cookies and other highly processed junk foods are too calorically dense to be regular parts of a healthy diet. But don't avoid them completely to the point where you feel deprived. b. Stay out of fast food places 7. Are you getting in two servings of Calcium daily? 8. Do you always eat the protein first? 9. Then the vegetables or fruits a. Five servings a day b. Potatoes are NOT a vegetable 10. Is your portion size appropriate? a. meat or fish (3 ounces the size of a deck of cards) b. Vegetables (½ cup the size of your fist) c. Starch (If you eat the protein and the vegetables first you don't need much - Avoid: rice, potatoes, pasta) 11. You might try avoiding artificial sweeteners a. Some people think that artificial sweeteners stimulate the appetite b. They are HUNDREDS of times sweeter than sugar c. They teach you to like things too sweet d. There is no evidence that people who use them are any thinner than people who don’t 12. Avoid most diet foods a. Real food usually tastes better b. Real food is more satisfying than low calorie substitutes c. When you are only eating a tiny bit the caloric savings is not that great (Use a teaspoon of real butter instead of a tablespoon of diet margarine. d. The body has no way to break down artificial fats). a. They may go into permanent storage b. Some people think liposuction is the only way to remove hydrolyzed fats from the body B. You may need a behavior adjustment 1. Are you eating only when you are hungry? a. If you're not sure drink 8 ounces of water and wait 2. Are you eating three meals a day? a. With maybe 1 or 2 small Snacks 3. Are you sitting down to eat? 4. Are you eating consciously? a. No distractions, turn off the TV, put the book or newspaper away, pay attention to your food and your companions 5. Are you eating slowly? a. Put the fork down between bites b. Take 20 to 30 minutes to finish a meal c. Taking longer might cause the pouch to begin emptying 6. Are you taking small bites? a. Tiny spoon, chopsticks, cocktail fork 7. Are you chewing well? 8. Are you drinking with your meals or too soon after your meals? a. Practice water loading between meals b. You won't be thirsty if you are well hydrated before the meal 9. Are you stopping at the first sign of fullness? a. Sometimes it's a whisper: not hungry, had enough b. Hard stop versus soft stop 10. Do not eat between meals. Stop grazing. 11. Do not eat when you are not hungry C. You may need an activity adjustment 1. Are you getting in 30 minutes of physical activity at least 3 times a week? a. Over and above what you would do in the usual course of your day b. Could you make it 4 or 5 times a week? c. Could you make it 45 or 60 minutes? 2. Are you taking advantage of opportunities to increase your physical activity? a. Taking the stairs instead of the elevators or escalators b. Walking on the escalators instead of riding c. Parking your car further away from the entrance d. Getting out of the car instead of using the drive through e. Getting off the bus one stop before your destination f. Washing you car by hand instead of the car wash g. Playing with your kids D. You may need an attitude adjustment 1. Are you committed to your weight loss journey? 2. Are you totally honest with yourself about how much you are eating and exercising? a. Log your food and activity on ww.fitday.com for 3 days 3. Are you using food inappropriately to deal with emotional issues? a. Have you identified what the emotions are that drive your eating? b. Can you think of more appropriate ways to deal with those emotions? c. Are you willing to seek help from a qualified counselor? 4. Are you attending and participating in support group meetings? 5. Have you drummed up some support from your family and friends? 6. Have you dealt with saboteurs realistically? 7. Do you have realistic expectations about the weight loss journey? 8. Are you still obsessing about food, weight, dieting, eating? a. Obsessive compulsive thoughts (Obsess about something else) b. Perfectionism (All or none, black and white thinking) c. Patience with the pace of healthy weight loss 9. Are you acknowledging your successes with non-food rewards? 10. Have you learned how to take a compliment? 11. Are you giving up diet mentality? a. Stop weighing yourself several times a day or every day b. Stop dieting c. Stop depriving yourself d. Stop defining food as good and bad e. Stop rewarding and punishing yourself with food 12. How do you feel about all the changes taking place? E. You may need a band adjustment 1. You feel like you are making healthy food choices in appropriate portion sizes but getting hungry between meals? 2. You can still eat white bread, fibrous vegetables and large portions. 3. You are having to struggle to lose 4. You are gaining weight in spite of eating right, exercising and having a good mind set. F. You may need your band loosened 1. There are times when you can’t get fluids down 2. You are vomiting too much a. How much is too much? 3. Do you have frequent reflux or heartburn at night? a. Do not lie flat or bend over soon after eating b. Do not eat late at night or just before bedtime c. Rinse your pouch with a glass or water an hour before bedtime d. Certain foods or drinks are more likely to cause reflux: (1) Rich, spicy, fatty and fried foods (2) Chocolate (3) Caffeine (4) Alcohol (5) Some fruits and vegetables (6) Oranges, lemons, tomatoes, peppers (7) Peppermint (8) Baking soda toothpaste (9) Carbonated drinks e. Eat slowly and do not eat big meals f. If you smoke, quit smoking g. Reduce stress h. Exercise promotes digestion i. Raise the head of your bed j. Wear loose fitting clothing around your waist k. Stress increases reflux l. Take estrogen containing medications in the morning m. Avoid aspirin, Aleve and ibuprofen at bedtime (Tylenol is OK) n. Take an antacid (Pepcid complete) before retiring o. Try other over-the-counter heartburn medications p. See your health care provider

Critical thinking takes time. Probably why it appears to be less valued these days. Would have been nice to see some in the White House.

If you haven't had a fill yet, you may mostly be maintaining by sheer will power! Congratualtions.

I went today anbd bought an XL shirt at Walmart. A cheap tarty thing that really doesn't fit yet, but I'm going to keep trying it on as a way to see the change in fit. Today it looked horrible, but at least I got it on. Another way to track my progress. It's bubble gum pink, with Robin Hood laces in the front and pinking shear non-hems on the sleeves. On clearance for good reason. It makes me laugh.

I've had a Lupus flareup, now over, I think. I'm looking forward (!) to getting back to the treadmill. Ain't THAT odd! It helps that I got an ipod shuffle for Christmas. What an amazing little gadget, and so much cheaper than the big guys. I'm still filling it with any songs I can think of that will be good for my workouts. Anybody have any favorite exercise or dance songs?

I'd rather see a warning on food ads on TV, fast food restaurants, food with corn syrup or transfats..... It is terribly frustrating to continue to be blamed for not just eating right and exercising. It's cruel.

Hi Kickie girl. I had my first fill, and it mostly absorbed into the dry band. I feel restriction most morning and a hint of restriction the rest of the day, but I can cheat like crazy if I don't slow way down and get mindful about my eating. So I checked the checklist of when you need a fill. (Go to search and put these words in...HOW TO TELL WHEN YOU ARE PERFECTLY ADJUSTED.) Then I called my Dr's office, and they just said if I can eat more than a half a chicken breast at a meal, come get a fill! So I'm scheduling.

I really believe getting sufficient fill is going to be amazing. Mornings are amazing for me. I'm ready now. I want that feeling all the time. I really didn't think anything could help me, but that morning fill feeling is special. I'm seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. What used to be impossible is now just really hard work. I'm as bad an eater as anyone, but this partial fill thin is giving me a hint..... I was told NOT to drink juices...not because of acids, but because they are liquid sugar and likely to raise my blood sugar sky high and then plummet me into an eating binge. I get my juices by throwing a dash of jiuce into my water jug.

Tom: I had my first fill 4 weeks after surgery, and they said I should come for a fill whenever I can eat more than a chicken breast. I haven't, and I'm learning so much. Like you, I'm eating less than before... But with the holidays behind me, I'm going for a fill.

I've been reading about their ice cream, and wondered how it tastes.

Tom, it sounds like it's time for a fill for you. I read that wonderful thread on how to know if you need a fill, went through the check list as was still unsure so I called my Dr's office. All they asked was if I could eat more than a chiken breast at a meal. i said yes and they said I needed a fill!

Makemelean: What I found is that the first fill didn't feel like much restriction, and they said I could come back for a next fill right away...That the first one sometimes gets absorbed into the dry band. I decided to wait a few weeks, and oddly, I'm learning alot. Before my first fill, I could eat any and everything....and often did. After my first fill, I felt the same way, except at breakfast, when there has been restriction. Breakfast has gone so smoothly, and it's been interesting to learn what it's going to be like. I really like being able to eat slowly, push away and say I'm full. So lately, I started being able to experience that at other times. They say sometimes it takes up to 10 days for a fill to kick in. I think it took me awhile to be able to pay attention to it. When I'm quiet, eating slowly, chewchewchewing, sometimes I can feel that little hint of fullness and stop, at any time of the day. I definitely need another fill, but I'm glad I've had this experience to kind of ease into it. I'm now looking forward to being restricted. Before, I was kind of worried about what that would be like. I'm slowly sliding into a new life I never thought was possible for me. I'm still a mess, eating poorly when I'm less restricted, but I can tell there's an amazing change, and I'm losing a little weight again, finally. It's been an introspective journey for me. And I had all the worries you have, about the band not working for me.

I'm also finding that on occasion I'm grazing between meals, on higher calorie, easier to slide through foods, and I figure no amount of restriction will help that, so I'm working on that. I guess I'm finding that it's hard work, but it used to be impossible work. So if hard and imperfect work leads to success, then I could end up with some confidence! One of the women who's had the band for awhile told me that most chain restaurants will honor the band and serve half or third portions. I need to try that. My hope is to be able to do full portions and take the rest home for 2 more meals at times too...... Anyway, it's a very introspective process for me now. I'd love to see the weight just melt off, but I also feel like I'm easing into a new life.