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Okay, I have a question...when I went to the nutritionist a few years back, she said I was "pre-diabetic" (that my insulin gets out of whack from me being obese.) Basically what happens is if I don't eat every few hours, I start to get this queasy, dizzy, lightheaded yet SUPER hungry feeling where I feel as though I need to eat everything in the room in order to get my blood sugar back to normal. It's like a reactive hypoglycemia thing, I guess. My question is, after the VSG surgery where you can only drink liquid at first, wouldn't that reactive hypoglycemia reaction go nutso from not getting any food in? I know it would eventually go back to normal, but I just wonder if the first few weeks wouldn't be hellish. Just wondering if anyone else has/had this pre-diabetes thing and how the VSG effected it. Thanks!

Thanks. I'll look the hypo-allergenic tape. :tongue_smilie: My skin is just irritated all around from the tape I use now. Some of the areas are drying up as well and that causes itching. The redness is the painful part. Its tolerable but enough to notice. More like a sting.

I had a severe reaction to every type of tape/bandage I used. I had a dressing longer than some because I came home with a drain for 1 1/2 weeks, and inspite of my trying to move the dressing/tape each day, the skin was breaking down. By the time I was able to stop using dressings to cover the drain wound, I had raw spots all over my abdomen where the skin was just gone because of the tape. I used a lot of polysporin to prevent infections and tried to keep any old adhesive cleaned off my skin. I have heard that there is a hypo-allergenic paper surgical tape (Micropore) made by 3m. If I had know how much trouble I was going to have in the long-run, I would have tried it immediately.

Oh, don't misunderstand, Heidi--- I'm not regretting my decision at all. I wouldn't even consider the GB surgery and this was my ticket to finding a healthier me. I know others have had different experiences than that but the reality remains the same--if you don't decrease caloric intake, you won't lose weight. It's all in the Math that I refuse to do. :ohmy: I realize that it's simple for "normal" people, but not for us. We're not wired like them--none of us would have gone to this extent if it were that simple! It's about behaviors---nearly 38 years for me to change. It won't happen overnight, but if I can change some of the, even if only for a limited time, then I have a fighting chance. At 315 pounds, I didn't have that chance.... We all have bad days when we think we've made a mistake. We're on this journey for a reason. It's something we have to figure out on our own, for ourselves.... Hope you all enjoyed the long weekend. I had PIZZA for dinner last night with my family. Could only manage one piece and really ended up getting rid of most of that--no milk required! Regardless, I enjoyed it immensely. As a side note---I think we all need to find a way to accept responsibility WITHOUT using it as an excuse to beat ourselves up. Most of us are guilty of doing far too much of that. Truth be told, the way we talk to ourselves can strongly influence how we function. It's easier to put ourselves down for making bad choices than to force ourselves to make good choices. It makes me so sad when I think about all of the negative self talk we do---but it really keeps us in that horrible, non-reactive place and prevents us from progressing. Just for today, I'm going to be better to myself--treating myself the way I'd treat my friends.

Hi, y'all! Whew! I have a lot of catching up to do. I've been reading when I can, but was so, so overwhelmed with work and life last week. I'm sorry! I think about you all all the time. Things are okay here--just busy. I just finished doctoring a manuscript, and now am back with just my usual workload....whee! I feel free! Weight-wise, I juggled the same 1.8 pounds from my last fill (3 weeks ago) until this past weekend, when it finally started going DOWN. I'm not at the sweet spot yet, but getting close enough that I have to listen to my band much more carefully. Talk about a learning curve! I have not yet fully mastered it! Now I'll go back, read, and re-read so I can properly post ETA: Okay, here goes: Amy--Congratulations on your excellent loss so far! You are doing so, so well! Regarding fills, every time I’ve had a fill, the doctor has used fluoroscopy to assess restriction. For safety purposes, he won’t go beyond a certain level---but that level does provide restriction. The caveat is that it provides restriction right then and there; that means that, two days hence, I may not have it. Chances are, even being taken to the brink of sweet spot at Filling #1 will be ephemeral---you may enjoy restriction for a while, though. Especially since you still have enough to slime (congratulations! LOL) I think it’s kind of a misconception, though, that we have a great deal of input for the first fill. Certainly, we give feedback to the doctor about what we are feeling. But we can’t specify, “I’d like you to fill ‘er up,” or “Take it easy today, doc.” I would wager you’ll go in, and see a line of 100 syringes, all filled with exactly the same amount of saline. For my doctor, that’s 4 ccs. For the first fill, all patients get around that much---or a little less, depending on what fluoro shows. Denise-- I’m so impressed that your diabetes is being nipped in the bud! In terms of future health predictors, this is the biggest big deal I can think of! Congratulations! Your most recent illness sounds horrendous. I’m glad you’re finally on the road to recovery. What a lousy way to lose weight! You mentioned a baby sweater. Are you a knitter? (ETA: Okay, I just saw the frog hat, so I have the answer to that question---TOO CUTE!) I am aching to learn how to knit; I can do the very basics (cast on, knit, purl, cast off), but have never acquired the skills to actually make something. Would you say that the best way to learn is to take classes at a knitting shop? I wonder if there are any in this area---my aunt had one with marvelous, gorgeous, sumptuous wools. Hm. Maybe that will be my career in my dotage. Re: potassium and blood pressure--there’s a complicated cell action-potential explanation I’ll skip (unless you want it!). But potassium is critical to maintaining heart function and blood pressure. Christie--congrats on your great loss! Under 250---awesome!! I’m so sorry you’re sad about your brother’s impending deployment. It must be so hard for you. What is your brother’s name---I’d like to keep him in my prayers. Also, I am an excellent care-package maker---if you ever get the sense he needs a boost, let me know and I will send him goodies. My daughter’s lobster is deploying to Afghanistan soon, too. Abby is crushed and so, so scared. When he enlisted, his mother was beside herself. She’s very, very proud of him, but there is such ambivalence. Those men and women sacrifice so, so much for us. Bob--Are you tired of Farmville yet? Leigha-- Yes, I do think so. I think that the real, hard, using-your-whole-body physical labor can be a better workout than many gym regimens. My body agrees with me, this morning, too! Take your vitamins! They are not like processed food (whatever that means lol)! If they are good-quality bariatric vitamins, they are made to be readily used by the body. Green smoothies are fine, but they address only a portion of the micronutrients we need. (Track on Fitday.com for a while---you’ll be surprised to see what you’re missing out on, even with a good multi! I take my bariatric multi, cal-mag, biotin, selenium, pantothenic acid, CoQ-10, and vitamin D. Why? Because over time, I noticed that even with my multi, and upping veggies, etc, I was missing out on those nutrients. When you reorder protein, consider Bariatric Eating’s PURE unflavored protein. IMO, it “disappears” better than Unjury, and it’s less expensive, too J It’s a bit of both, myth and fact. In most people, the body does an exquisite job of maintaining blood sugar within very tight parameters. If you eat sugar--or foods easily broken down into sugars---the pancreas responds by producing insulin. Insulin “ushers” sugar molecules from the bloodstream into cells, where it is used for energy. In most people this is seamless, and blood sugar is brought back to within normal limits very rapidly. Some people experience reactive hypoglycemia, though. Instead of going back to “normal,” they crash. And that does, indeed set up cravings. For MOST of us, the craving that follows sugar or simple carb consumption is NOT physical---it’s just in our minds. We like the stuff. We miss it when we’re not eating it. Simple as that. Re: your fill decision. I’d hold off, if you think it might make you too tight. It may be a “free” fill, but I bet the Unfill won’t be free! I just moved out of the free-fill zone, too--thank goodness I only have a $30 copay--my doctor charges $250 with fluoro. Bobbie--I’m so sorry you’re on the rollercoaster. Job loss is so stressful; we’ve been there more than once, and it can be so hard to keep putting one foot in front of the other. I hope you get GOOD news very soon! In the meantime, I am so glad you’re making use of resources available to you. Re: calories. I do think their source matters, particularly when stomach space is finite. Right now, I concentrate on protein--because I’m still figuring out how much real estate I have in there, and it’s the most important for cell maintenance and repair. But when I reach goal, I plan to eat a balance of lean protein, veggies, heart-healthy fat, legumes, whole grains, and fruits (the latter two in more moderation than many people, based on my own peculiarities of metabolism). While there are as many opinions about the proper mix of macronutrients as there are people with opinions, I do think the general consensus is that the foods going in should be nutrient-dense rather than junky. (At least most of the time.) Anne--I’ll trade you beautiful New England for Illinois pollen and farm dust. (I live in an area that was, until recently, exurban. Out my front window is a farm; behind me (though not visible) is the usual Generica: Home Depots, Applebees, WalMart, etc. No wonder I have an identity crisis. Congratulations on your losses! You are going to be in SUCH a good place when you have surgery! Hummingbird--I am laughing so hard at your NSV. Hammered shit! That’s the best expression I’ve heard in a long, long time. I totally understand getting the warm fuzzies from other people’s deterioration in appearance. Count me in with the mean-spirited bunch, but there have been times when about all I’ve had going for me is the good genetics that keep me looking younger than many of my peers. (Of course, there IS the fear that it’s just that the fat is plumping out the wrinkles, and I, too, will look like hammered shit when all is said and done LOL! This is why I am already researching plastic surgeons.) Dottie--I think we’re in much the same place, fill-wise. I have days when I think I’m (almost) there, and days when I’m sure I’m not! I hope your fill tomorrow gets you where you need to go. Stacie--I’m so sorry you’re experiencing so much stress. It’s good you’re seeing your doctor on Thursday. I bet you’ll find that as your anxiety diminishes, so does your need to scale-hop as much. Compulsive stuff like that tends to be tied to anxiety… It will get better (((Hugs)))) Karen--it definitely sounds like you need a fill! And TWENTY pounds from goal--you must be ecstatic. Or frustrated, depending on the day! I wonder: I see that you’re very focused on restriction (as we all are!), but also referring to foods you “can” eat. Is it possible that you could substitute others, and reach your goal in a less-frustrating (and maybe more comfortable) manner? I mean, just ‘cause you can eat bread and pizza doesn’t mean you should. Don’t get me wrong--I think all of our lives have room for those foods. But if you’re really pushing to reach goal, maybe they should be reserved for further down the road? Just a thought---worth the paper it (wasn’t) written on! Jacki! OMG--LOOK at you! Awesome. Congratulations on your running! You must be SO proud of yourself! I am in the market for a new bike, too. Lee Anne--welcome! I’m glad you’re joining us! Whew! We're a prolific bunch! Have a great Monday, everyone!

Thank you for ALL the advice!!! Today was a MUCH better - I have been on soft food since Sunday as per my meal plan from my doc. Foods on my acceptable list are : eggs, chicken, baked fish, crab, melon, pear, banana, yogurt, steamed veggies. (I had to be on pureed foods for 3 days before that and "full" liquid for 3 before that - and clear liquid for three before that. I have been VERY blessed to have very few complications and only felt that I have had "too much" restriction once when I didnt chew well enough before I swollowed. I was feeling hungry because I have reactive hypoglicemia because of my p.c.o.s. -but today I took Betsy's advice - and toughened up!!! I moved my meal times back later in the day and stuck with a skim milk with sugar free carnation this afternoon and NO cheating!!! Yeah!!! One good day down and many more to come. (My morning weigh in was a huge wake up call - only lost 3 ounces since Sunday!!) THANK YOU SOOO much to my new lap band friends - this has been a HUGE help and encouragement and look forwaed to many more pounds lost together!!!:thumbup:

yorkshire;1447595]Has anyone been denied by UHC and did you appeal? My claim has been submitted but I'm afraid it will be denied because my BMI has not been over 35 for 5 yrs. - only 3 yrs. I do have several comorbidities (sleep apnea, arthritis, fibroids, back & knee pain, high blood pressure, high cholestral, hypo-thyroid, etc) Does anyone have any suggestions to help with an appeal?:thumbup:

Has anyone been denied by UHC and did you appeal? My claim has been submitted but I'm afraid it will be denied because my BMI has not been over 35 for 5 yrs. - only 3 yrs. I do have several comorbidities (sleep apnea, arthritis, fibroids, back & knee pain, high blood pressure, high cholestral, hypo-thyroid, etc) Does anyone have any suggestions to help with an appeal?:thumbup:

Dumping actually can cause a whole-body response that includes dizziness. It can be dreadful. That said, while some bandsters do experience diarrhea in response to sugar, they don't experience the same kind of dumping that people who've had gastric bypass do. If you're experiencing dizziness/lightheadedness in response to sugar, I'd ask the doctor to check for reactive hypoglycemia. It's a more likely culprit.

Boy am I glad that this thread was started, and I am thankful that I am not alone...I got into the dr tomorrow for my 3rd fill...I was banded 10/29 and have only lost 20 pounds...lately I feel hungry all of the time...did have my thyroid checked and found that I am hypo and started meds...hopefully with a new fill and thryoid meds, I will feel like exercising more...I am so tired some days that I could sleep from 4:00 in the afternoon until morning....I thought losing weight was to help with energy and instead I feel more emotionally tired and physically exhausted. Thanks everyone for posting, it gives me hope that I can start each day new.:thumbdown:

Hi There again. I'll let Betsy speak to the malabsorption amount in RNY. All I really know is, it is a fact that there is more in RNY than there is for LAP-BAND as we absorb everything we eat :smile2: You ask what I would do? I would keep pursuing a diagnosis, that is for certain. I'd also pursue the band. This is my opinion only, of course--I have no medical training. The reason I'd choose the band over the other WLS procedures is that you are unsure of your thyroid condition. I would not want to permanently disable parts of my digestive tract. RNY -is- reversible, just not as easily as is a band. Also, RNY affects some other hormones, not sure if I'd really want that if I were already having endocrine problems. My thinking is that if you do get a band, whey you are hypo, you'll not really lose weight, you might even gain. When hyper, the band will help you with portion control and you'll lose, probably pretty quickly. Especially if you work the band properly. This is based on my hyper phase experience. I was HUNGRY. So I ate. Question for you, are the surgeons willing to do the band with the thyroid issues going on? Have you tried Armour thyroid? I've read that some people do much better converting it than the synthetic variety. Best wishes in your decision!

Betsy its really interesting that you pointed that out I actually copied and pasted that from the hospital web site, lahey clinic but I am sure it was just mis-wording on the part of whoever typed it, I know lahey is very well respected world-wide and they were willing to do brain surgery on me that had never been done before and they have given be a second chance at living a normal life, so I would put my life, stomach, or whatever it may be in their hands any day. You are correct about that statement though, I do beleive it is worded wrong, but I also don't beleive the surgeon himself is sitting at the computer typing that lol. Cocoabean, ditto on that, same goes with rare side effects. But my pounding headaches/migranes have been almost absent after 2 weeks on it. Good to hear about the diabetes thing, since I am not diabetic either. I think I might be in that small population too, although I dont know what the heck is going on with my thryoid, my TSH and T4 levels have been wacko all over the place the past 2 years even though I am on synthroid. I seem to have hyper-hypo phases......I swear to god I have hashimotos but I have had my antibodies tested twice and they were neg....I also likely have a pituitary tumor that is causing some hormone dysfunction....but I just cant wait for them to come up with a diagnosis and just watch myself BLOW up to over 400lbs....that is why I really want the band....b/c I do believe they will eventually find something....and if they do...all of us will be happy that I chose the band....its a really tough descision...and I guess I hadnt mentioned it on here before b/c you guys might think it is a weird reason for seeking a band....but if they are willing to band me (which costs a lot more than running tests to dx me) I have to go along with it...... I dont know, what would you do...just sit and wait for an abnormal test while you battle with hungry every day and watch the scale continue to go up....or do something if you were offered it...???

I will pray for your family. My daughter and I have Hashimoto's. My daughter's goiter was very larger a few months ago and the endocrinologist increased her medicine. That disorder comes and goes.....hyper and hypo....so many doctors don't treat it. We take medication. I hope she gets the treatment she needs. Hypo or Hyper can really make you feel bad. Cheri, the info about muscle helping you burn calories came from DietandNutrition@EverydayHealth.com I thought you could just go there and get the information. I hope everyone has a great weekend! Lori, I wish I could go to Las Vegas with you! Have fun!

In recent weeks, we have witnessed liberals in the highest level of government sanctimoniously defend terrorists who kill us while persecuting those who defend us from murderous attacks. In an effort to understand this reversal of good and evil, it has become a cliché to call liberals crazy. But while supremely hypocritical, liberalism is not insane. It is a highly adaptive ego device that enables people to violate commitments, vilify those who are true to their faith, and avoid personal sacrifice while feeling great about themselves. The only defense against hypocrisy is self-knowledge, but the politics, spirituality, and morality of liberalism are well-constructed firmaments of self-delusion. The United States was founded in a Judeo-Christian theocentrism that is informed by scripture and assumes a personal God who hears prayers and grants forgiveness for sin. Theocentrism provides stable laws and settled moral codes. In the mid-twentieth century, an unorganized, reactive spiritual orientation arose -- egocentrism -- which has become the dominant moral framework in our nation. This orientation says there may or may not be a God, so each individual must follow his or her own conscience and ethical values. Theocentrism has been promulgated by traditional religion. Egocentrism has mainly been introduced through mass media, educational power structures, and more recently by reoriented religions. A theocentrist lives out the question, What does God say is best to do? An egocentrist lives out the question, What do I think is best to do? Here is the central difference between theocentrism and egocentrism: Living for God is largely a conscious, intentional process, informed by a written scripture that presupposes the need for repentance. Egocentrism, on the other hand. largely proceeds below the level of conscious awareness through a series of experiments in self-directed living. It presupposes constant change -- and who is there to repent to? The consciousness-unconsciousness dichotomy may be shown by a behavioral exemplar. Theocentrists are always praising and blessing God, saying things like, "Praise the Lord," "so help me, God," and "Insh Allah." But for egocentrists, it's not so clear whom to thank. They don't proclaim "Praise Me!" "Me have Mercy!" or "May it please Myself!" This difference explains the gratitude gap between liberals and conservatives. Thanking God is central to theocentrism. Thanking oneself is more complicated, and that is why self-esteem is all important in egocentrist spirituality. The individual ego is a PR shill. Its job is not to find the truth but to organize life and win every game from the viewpoint of the all-important I. And just as the eye cannot see itself, the ego cannot be honest with itself. It always buys its own pitch. The individual ego is the strongest force in the phenomenal world because of its capacity for self-delusion. Toward that end, there is no form of self-service that the ego cannot transform into a sense of moral superiority. This is why we see a case like Representative Patrick Kennedy, who claims to be Catholic, yet facilitates mortal sin by endorsing "the right to choose." His ego, not Christ or scripture, is in the driver's seat. But the ego is so enthralling that Mr. Kennedy may not even know it. Though hypocritical, his public position is not crazy. In fact, it is functional and advantageous in a world dominated by egocentrism. The spiritual orientation of theocentrism generally provides the moral framework for conservatism, and the spiritual orientation of egocentrism generally provides the moral framework for liberalism. When a theocentrist is hypocritical, it is because he has knowingly violated the tenets of his faith, and this transgressor tends to be secretive because he knows he has broken his own laws. That is the purpose of scriptural codification: it lets you know when you are wrong. And that is why there is no equivalent written code of behavior in egocentrist spirituality. Egocentrism has no written moral law because a written code would in itself violate the process of self-directed experimentation. Because of the way the ego works, the politics of liberalism are bulwarks of hypocrisy and self-deception. But liberals are often not secretive, but just clueless. They tend to be "in-your-face" hypocrites because they are obeying the ego, which tells them that ultimately, they cannot be wrong. This is why liberals speak of tolerance when they really mean approval. Tolerance is based on disapproval. It is a conscious, meditative process of non-interference with something disapproved of. Tolerance is a compromise that the ego cannot make, because the ego is an on-off switch of self-interest. The anti-American statements and policies of the Obama administration are the sacraments of two generations of ascendant egocentrism in our country. The ego is loath to admit, "I don't want to get my behind shot off in some war." No problem. Liberal academia has given us fifty years of indoctrination in the many reasons America is not worth it. And here's some good ego-logic: The reality that "it takes courage to knowingly bring a Down Syndrome child into the world" becomes "Sarah Palin is confused and slutty." Eric Holder calls the American people cowards and then casts self-confessed terrorist murderers as civil rights victims. Khalid Sheik Mohammed becomes the new Rosa Parks. But none of this is crazy. It is adaptive. For example, in the case of Mr. Holder, his deference to admitted terrorists is an ingenious, though probably mostly unconscious, ego-projection of himself as a civil rights hero while he breaks his oath to defend the Constitution from foreign enemies. Liberal hypocrisy is not insanity, it is pretersanity, a powerful tactic of self-absolution and a way to become rich, admired, and powerful while supposedly "fighting for the little guy," or to exhort others to self-sacrifice while doing none of that yourself. The notion, now commonly posited in liberal media, that the Fort Hood terrorist Major Hassan is mentally ill is another unconscious capitulation to egocentrism. It is the worst form of hypocrisy to make excuses for somebody who takes all of the benefits of military service and then murders his defenseless fellow soldiers. Theocentrism and egocentrism are opposite and irreconcilable. One revels in the new moral entitlements, the other sees a mad world portending the end of days. A theocentrist will not give up God, and an egocentrist cannot give up himself. American society is being split in two. It is also a testament to our rule of law and compassionate character that we still hold onto our pluribus unum. How will it all end? Let's use a psychological assessment technique. Complete the following sentence:

I had an unfill last Friday... I went in on Thursday for a checkup/fill. I got .5 cc's put in (previously 5.6cc's, thought I could use a little more). It made me swollen so that I couldn't even swallow my spit!! I woke up choking on my saliva in the middle of the night, couldn't even keep down Water. When I went in on Friday they took out 1.6cc's, and even as of today, Wednesday, I still feel restricted. I think stress or something is making me more reactive to my band. I feel ok.. just must have been something going on. I am so happy someone was there to take out some!! I think it is normal though.. up and down depending on what is going on inside... I'm sure i'll get a fill again next month. Rather be safe than sorry!!

If you exercise to improve your metabolism and prevent diabetes, you may want to avoid antioxidants like Vitamins C and E. That is the message of a surprising new look at the body’s reaction to exercise, reported on Monday by researchers in Germany and Boston. Exercise is known to have many beneficial effects on health, including on the body’s sensitivity to insulin. “Get more exercise” is often among the first recommendations given by doctors to people at risk of diabetes. But exercise makes the muscle cells metabolize glucose, by combining its carbon atoms with oxygen and extracting the energy that is released. In the process, some highly reactive oxygen molecules escape and make chemical attacks on anything in sight. These reactive oxygen compounds are known to damage the body’s tissues. The amount of oxidative damage increases with age, and according to one theory of aging it is a major cause of the body’s decline. The body has its own defense system for combating oxidative damage, but it does not always do enough. So antioxidants, which mop up the reactive oxygen compounds, may seem like a logical solution. The researchers, led by Dr. Michael Ristow, a nutritionist at the University of Jena in Germany, tested this proposition by having young men exercise, giving half of them moderate doses of vitamins C and E and measuring sensitivity to insulin as well as indicators of the body’s natural defenses to oxidative damage. The Jena team found that in the group taking the vitamins there was no improvement in insulin sensitivity and almost no activation of the body’s natural defense mechanism against oxidative damage. The reason, they suggest, is that the reactive oxygen compounds, inevitable byproducts of exercise, are a natural trigger for both of these responses. The vitamins, by efficiently destroying the reactive oxygen, short-circuit the body’s natural response to exercise. “If you exercise to promote health, you shouldn’t take large amounts of antioxidants,” Dr. Ristow said. A second message of the study, he said, “is that antioxidants in general cause certain effects that inhibit otherwise positive effects of exercise, dieting and other interventions.” The findings appear in this week’s issue of The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The effect of vitamins on exercise and glucose metabolism “is really quite significant,” said Dr. C. Ronald Kahn of the Joslin Diabetes Center in Boston, a co-author of the report. “If people are trying to exercise, this is blocking the effects of insulin on the metabolic response.”

Thanks for the congrats guys. I'll probably be going up and down for the next week before the new weight settles in. Thats what usually happens. Jessica, as a Christian who went to Christian schools and sent my kids there and as one who teaches in a Christian school, I gotta say your SIL is nuts. She'd rather do the most unChristian thing I've heard of than get the child the help he needs from a public school? He's probably ADHD with a learning disability and now the hormones are kicking in. And she's too busy and tired trying to raise and homeschool the rest of them to give him the extra help and attention he needs. So she'd rather get rid of him than send him where he can get the help he needs and admit that she's failing him. What misplaced pride. The most generous interpretation I have is that she's having pregnancy psychosis. What a message she's sending to the other children. Screw up, don't measure up to our "Christian" standards and we will get rid of you. Where is her DH in all this? Why isn't he getting her the help she needs? Including psychiatric. I would have the boy thoroughly evaluated before fostering or adopting him. He may be very damaged already from his first home life as well as the second. He may need special placement in a therapeutic setting, particularly if he has bonding issues and PTSD as well as academic and behavioral issues. Reactive Attachment Disorder can make adopting an absolute nightmare. Some of these children are too damaged to be placed in a regular family. If that is the case with your nephew, then we may be judging your sister too harshly. Sometimes these children are actually a danger to their parents and siblings. But like most sociopaths they can present really well to outsiders who don't see them on a daily basis. They can be very charming but never actually bond and feel no remorse over doing wrong or hurting others, only over getting caught. They can be highly manipulative and you end up feeling crazy and not knowing why. I think what you are offering is tremendous and I truly hope it works out. Make sure you have state funding and medical care for this child and payment for any therapy and extra tutoring he might need. I would initially go foster care with him because once adopted you might not have access to funding to provide for his needs. My brother and his wife had to give a young child back to the province because the local social services refused to diagnose the child as having rad and provide them with the support services they needed. They had the child privately evaluated and found out she not only had RAD and PTSD, she was ADHD and had Fetal Alcohol Sysndrome. It killed them to do it but they did not have the training or the access to funds to provide the child with the care she needed and this was the only way they could force the province and social services to provide for her. The two or three years they went through all that were some of the worst times of their life and they felt like total failures. Cheri

Good morning! I am a happy girl that it is Saturday...no particular reason other than i only have 2 kids here instead of 4, lol....but that is reason enough, right? Yesterday our neighbor across the street got robbed. SO...that answered the question we had burning in our heads...should we reactivate the alarm system that was installed here. Now we know the answer is yes, we should. I called them last night and they are going to reconnect/test it with us over the phone today or Monday. I hope I can get them to do it today because Frank is on nights and it would make me feel more secure. I will only turn on the motion detector when we are gone because i dont want to have it set while we are sleeping then have one us get up when nature calls and set off the alarm, lol. I am chatty this morning...if you are bored by now just skip the rest...lol. I just had a full size bed given to me and I am giving it to Macy....well another friend just gave me a queen size memory foam mattress that is only a year old :glare: I will put that in dss/guest room. How cool is that?! Gotta love free stuff. Now if I can find a free couch, I will be in business :wub: If felt so good going to pay some bills off yesterday. I didn't get to pay off all that I wanted, but it sure is a step in the right direction! Jenn I haven't gotten as good as you. An eliptical would KILL me but I wish I had a treadmill. I think I will start looking on craigslist for one. Suzanne I hope you have a great time at the ranch! Bundle up! Kat-after all this time you old office manager is still a thorn in your side...ugh! Well, this is the last poke she could get in on you, so that is good, right?! I know you are glad Rick is home and his boss saying he is not paying him for down time is BS. What do you have planned this weekend? So much more I could write about but I need to do some other things on the computer and I know macy is wanting my attention so I better bolt Have a great weekend everyone! :biggrin:

I've been hypo for a long time, and my TSH level NEVER reflected how I felt. Mine is very very low, and I still have many hypo symptoms. Depression and lethargy are at their worst right now. My PCP finally upped mine a bit just this week, even though I had to beg her...so I hope it helps. When she checked my reflexes I had NONE, so that convinced her. Sometimes you have to shop around for a doctor who will treat you instead of the numbers.

Well I am hypothyroid. But I've been on meds for about 2 years now. However I had been at 88 mcg's for a long time. But during that time I lost about 30lbs. So when they did a recheck I was in the HYPERthyroid range...however I felt amazing for once, hypo symptoms were gone and I had no racing heartbeats or other hyper symptoms (in fact I was actually losing weight-instead of only maintaining on 1000 calories a day). However due to the TSH number she lowered my levothyroxine dose to 75 mcg's. I believe I was at .19 for TSH. and .3-3.0 is the range...I'm just wondering how much my levels have risen again because I'm struggling to maintain weight right now. It's irritating.

If your TSH was low, then your thyroid levels were too high. Hyperthyroid can be dangerous. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Rapid heartbeat (resting pulse was 120), twitching muscles, shaking limbs, foggy brain, racing thoughts, can't sleep.... But being hypothyroid is no fun either. I think that is where I am at right now. I don't have a thyroid any longer as mine was overproducing hormones and would not shut off, so I had to have it radiated. Now I have to take meds daily, and I think I need to have it upped. My PCP tends to just treat the numbers on the tests. I was a little low, so he adjusted me up to barely get into the normal range, but I still have hypo symptoms. So I have an appointment with my Endo in March. I am hoping to convince him to treat ME and not my test results and bump my dosage up. Test results have a normal RANGE! But it seems so many docs don't want to invest the time in tweaking the dosage to get us to where we feel well and are happy. OK, my rant is over. But I am right there with you!

I'm hypo too, but I haven't had a problem so far losing. As a matter of fact, I even had to change thyroid meds right after my surgery, because they are no longer making Armour thryoid. It did cause a change in my energy level and caused me to be slightly depressed., but did not seem to affect my weight loss.

Reactivate, do you go to Kaiser? There are groups in Sacramento I think. Send me a PM if you'd like more info.

"There comes a time when all that sh-- will hit the fan. You can't keep on spending and believe that it won't affect America. (Just what someone should have said in Bush's term but didn't. )Imagine you owe $200,000. in personal debt. You keep charging because you understand that your never going to be able to pay that off, so what's another $50.00 added to it. Then one day, they come and take the only place you have to live. Your house. That will be America." You still don't get it. The shit already hit the fan when Bush was in office. Not saying Bush did anything, but we started to see the effects under him. With your way of thinking, all this started when the more spending started under Obama. This spending is productive, reactive spending. Not the spending to get more and to be better. This is called recovery spending and I am all for a recovery. We can't keep spending but we can't not spend and let it all go to hell. Let all the banks fail, let all the auto industries fail, let all the people go under in their houses. We can't let it happen and thank God we can't. We would be in more trouble.

Hey everyone, I was diagnosed with Hypo at the age of 9. My blood sugar stays around 60 and can spike to about 90 if I drink alot of soda. It is always on the low side. I am just curious how well I am going to do on an all liquid diet. If I don't get enough to eat I will crash. I am always exhausted as it is and my endo recommended the lap band. He said I wouldn't be so tired if I lost the weight. I am not sure if he realized the liquid diet that came with it. I am just wondering if I am gonna get in over my head. I am doing carb free diet right now and feel light headed and can't concentrate. My Dad has done low carb for years and says it is sorta like going through withdrawls. After a few days the aching will pass. Any input?