March Bandsters: MASTER THREAD

[SpecialK 22]

I get a second fill this coming Tuesday and have been at the 33 lb loss marker for about 2 weeks, gently bobbing up and then down this number in tiny increments but not making it down to the next lowest whole number on the scale. I had a good loss period right after my first fill but now I'm not feeling restriction and I get hungry so its a battle to maintain these last 2 weeks while waiting out the 6 weeks our docs require between the first and second fill. A couple folks got theirs at 5 weeks but not me.

So here is an idea I have that I'm sharing with my Central Ohio lapband friends that get together. We are each going to buy the equivalent in how many pounds we have lost in food staples (for me its 35 lbs of sugar) and we are donating it to a local food bank drive that my church is hosting as one drop off point. So by June 28th I am hoping to donate 40 lbs of sugar. I already bought 4 of the 10 lb. bags of sugar at a grocery today and the girl checking me out says, sweetly, Do you do a lot of baking?"...Ha Ha.. No, I'm donating it to a food pantry. Oh, I wondered what all this sugar was for! Now here is the real kicker that perked up my spirits, I couldn't imagine lifting 4 of those sugars all at once! We plan to take pictures of us holding the amount we have lost and see how long we can hold it before we give up and set it down. And to think we were carrying it around 24 hours a day for years... One of our girls OHJuli is trying to figure out how to buy over 100 lbs of some food for this donation fun day that won't break her food budget $$$. Just thought I'd pass this along as an idea that maybe others could try.

P.S. No Wii for me either...no Xbox 360, no Nintendo,...very deprived. Love to read, quilt, and watch TV instead of play video games.

Edited June 7, 2008 by SpecialK

[sharona 2]

Well after my 4th fill on Thursday (.5cc) I finally feel restricted!!! Thank goodness. Eating a salad and a slice of watermelon kept me full for hours. So I'm hoping to go 4 weeks this time without needing a fill.

Struggling with allergies in wonderful New England....and the 90 degree heat doesn't help. I'm trying to think how miserable it was during the winter months when it was 20 degrees out but cant quite get there.

I am working part time and still deciding if I want to work for someone else....there is something to be said to have vacation time and leaving the office behind you.

We are all getting excited about our new grandson coming in September (Jacob) and I'm looking forward to the holidays this year to think that just maybe I can buy clothes in a "regular" size.

I did have to "throw" away pants the other day becuase I was swimming in them. Nice feeling. Trying not to spend too much on new things knowing that size will be gone soon also. Went from a size 20 pants to 16...happy about that. I am starting to like exercise (no I don't have WII FIT either) and feel much better when I do the treadmill.

Have a good weekend everyone. Spent the day teaching new nurses today and I must say "be afraid, be very afraid"!!!!

[anniedub 0]

Oh, great! Now I'm the last person in Christendom to NOT own a Wii and Wii Fit!

Well, the number of Non-Wii-Fitters is about to go down, I'm just heading out to buy one right now! They've been sold out EVERYWHERE here, and i've finaly got one with my name on it! Woohoo!

Sorry to rub it in, folks.

[Fenton 3]

SpecialK! Get a Playstation 3 and you'll never be forced to quilt again! And if you like quilting, you'll *love* GRAND THEFT AUTO!

A-Dub! That's just about enough out of you and your Land Down Under, where you can just go out and find a Wii Fit at the drop of a hat!

I'm kind of dreading tomorrow - NYC weather is going to be rainy with a high of 97... I'm going to try to get up and do some walking early in the morning, then try doing some yoga in the afternoon...

Edited June 8, 2008 by Fenton

[lynnt1215 1]

Hot, high 98, humid, unbearable. out this morning to enjoy some pool time, then hitthe "Y" this afternoon for some exercise.

I played lazy yesterday and did not exercising at all and feel guilty!!

So I have to go today..

Hope this unbearble heat is no indication of what the Summer will be like. If so we are in for a real treat... yuck :incazzato:

Have a great day everyone, keep cool. and remember drink your water.....

Still no Wii and not one in sight for me.

[jencys 2]

Went in on Thursday and doctor added 2cc's so I'm up to 5cc's and I think I've found my spot. I'm eating the right amount, and feeling full all day while I feel my stomach churning. Weirdest feeling ever! LOL Of course the scale is starting to budge as well. I think everyone is doing great so far! Lets keep it going!!

[Fenton 3]

Gosh, I hope the summer doesn't continue like this, too!

I'm going to putter around the house today; I think I'm going to make some basil oil. Maybe do yoga this afternoon, maybe just take it easy.

[shoop3010 0]

SpecialK, what a great idea of taking the food bank food in the amount of weight you have lost. I love the idea. I could see how it would get expensive though.

I don't have a WII fit either. Hot down here in Texas.

Everyone keep up the good work.

[SpecialK 22]

Hi Shamrocks! Believe it or not I'm "happy" :incazzato: to report that I only have paid $2000 total out of pocket for everything related to my March lapband surgery and that covers the hospital, surgeon, pre-op testing and physical, and my first fill post op. Now why would I be happy at $2000, because its my Out of Pocket Maximum for the whole year for 2008 so every bill that comes in now that has an amount over what the insurance covers, and above my basic co-pay, is written off and I pay $0. Hallelujah!!

Now why am I really, really happy? :huggie: Because I had knee surgery April 17 just one month after my Lapband surgery March 17 and all of the excess cost on the knee surgery got written off...$0 for me to pay. What a blessing.

So, besides the out of pocket costs I had to get through the hoops to get approved, including some expensive cardiology clearance things, I am thankful that insurance covered most of what others have taken a loan out for $12,000+ if they are self pay. So, I guess, my word to the others who are still hoping to go through this is, yes, it is worth jumping through the hoops the insurance companies make you do in order to use your insurance to cover WLS. :driving:

Ohio is at 90+ today too! :sad:

[ajoneen 0]

SpecialK;"We are each going to buy the equivalent in how many pounds we have lost in food staples and we are donating it to a local food bank drive"

What a great idea!!

Also I am Wii-less here too.

[Busy 0]

Harley, congrats on being in onederland, that is a great accomplishment!!!

Teri, I know the weather in Nashville is sweltering, it is too hot here. This is so not normal!! They are saying we will get a break sometime this week but by then you will be heading home.

Special K, I think that donating your weight loss is an awsome idea and one that will help others. Might suggest it to a couple of friends who are co-dieting with me.

No Wii either but K-Mart had them for 250.00 last week....K-mart.com??

I had my 1st fill on Friday, I now have 3 cc's in my 10 cc band. They told me my next fill would be in 3 months. Is that normal??

[anniedub 0]

SpecialK! Get a Playstation 3 and you'll never be forced to quilt again! And if you like quilting, you'll *love* GRAND THEFT AUTO!

A-Dub! That's just about enough out of you and your Land Down Under, where you can just go out and find a Wii Fit at the drop of a hat!

Ha ha fenton I love that quilting/GTA comparison. A Likely story! I'm a big fan of quilting, and also a big fan of videogames, so I suppose there could be some truth to it. Yes, yes, i'm quite the paradox.

No no, it did take me a few days to track down a Wii Fit. And considering that the city I live in has more than 50 videogame retailers, that's saying something!

Are they in ridiculously short supply over there or something? I think Nintendo do that sort of thing on purpose -- even one year after the Wii came out, last Christmas, the consoles themselves were sold out in Brisbane by october and weren't available again until february. I mean, come on! I think they're just trying to foster exclusivity, and now they're doing the same with the Wii Fit.

Ah well, i've got one now, who cares!!

And Fenton, I currently have your book on hold at one of the small, fancy-schmancy bookstores in town. There's a copy there with my name on it, and i'll probably head in tomorrow to pick it up - I'm excited!

[anniedub 0]

Special K, I think that donating your weight loss is an awsome idea and one that will help others. Might suggest it to a couple of friends who are co-dieting with me.

I love that idea as well. I think that i'm going to save up some cash, so that when I hit goal I can donate my weight loss in one fell swoop! The homeless shelter won't know what hit them -- 38 kg (85lbs) of food, all in one hit!

[Fenton 3]

Hmmm. I like the donation idea, too.

But I think what I'll do is donate my weight loss in dollars to Heifer.org (a really great charity where the money you give goes to buying livestock for people in developing nations - you can donate a hive of bees, or a flock of chicks, or a heifer, so that people can raise them for, for example, milk, and ultimately to eat (sorry, animals!) (vegetarians can also give trees!).

Here's their catalogue:

Meaningful Gifts | Heifer International Online Gift Catalog

OK, that's what I'll do: every fifty pounds I lose, I'll give my current weight loss total in dollars to Heifer, starting at 100 lbs in a month or two. For $100, I can give a flock of chicks, a flock of geese AND a trio of rabbits (which breed v. quickly).

And when I hit 150 pounds lost, I can give a llama or maybe a goat and a hive of bees.

I like this idea!

[Fenton 3]

Busy, I tired K-Mart.com, but, alas, no stock. I could probably get one if I dragged my carcass up to the Nintendo store in Rockefeller Plaza, but I'm not desperate. It'll be a few months before I'm under the Wii Fit's weight limit, so there's no huge rush.