2008 Junies and Friends

Absolutely Zip - all those things to look forward to. I think you have become very aware of foods and their effect, not that you probably weren't before, but since banding you have stuck with the protein first rule. I think that in itself will stand you in good stead, the difference now being that you will actually be able to enjoy a bigger variety of protein than you have been since banded. I am confident you can keep yourself in check because you have done so well with no fill.

I guess the weight gain thing looms over the heads of all of us, banded or not. As you know (and I certainly do!), even with a band it is a matter of making the right food choices and keeping an eye on the quantity.

Linda I doubt that he will keep the band... I think that 3 grand worth of silione gets binned rather than filed in the cupboard.

Congrats on your bandaversary but commiserations on the yearly gain....it sux and we all had such high hopes of this being the answer.

I am looking forward to steak and chops and chicken and salad and OMG an APPLE. When I look at that it looks weird such healthy foods and yet they are inedible at the moment. It will also be nice to have the knowledge that if I get a vomiting bug I can actually vomit, that I dont have to explain to every medical practitioner that I have a lap band then do the whole how much have you lost and why didnt you diet and exercise gamut.... also to take a trip with out the drama of insurance and the fear that I will eat something that will put me in a foreign hospital having fluid extracted with a rusty syphon.

There are many up sides to the removal...yet there is that small gnawing fear that I will not be able to trust myself and will resume the horrendous eating I had prior the band that near killeds me.

Such is life I guess.. It will also be nice to feel normal...not a minority bandit... I found that in my mind when I ate...went out for dinner or even simple things like shopping for food I was consiouce of being banded..it will be lovely not to think about the band all the time.

Congratulations (commiserations?) Linda! Aaaah - if only we'd known then what we know now.

I think the anniversary weight is going to be an issue for me too. I don't know what I weigh now, but I reckon I'm not too far from where I started out.

Ooh goody - I can look forward to tackling a 100kg loss again, though this time I'd just be happy to get into double digits. I started out with such optimism and hope. Oh well, it lasted for a while. As they say, 'all good things must come to an end'.

Wow that is big news. Imagine eating a steak! I am so envious. Will he keep the band in case you go back to a band. That all sounds like he has done a massive turn around with a bit more research into a sleeve. You have 6 months to make up your mind. I am sure with your protein diet you will maintain where you are. We could all maintain for awhile after losing weight. We are here to support you you know that.

It is my 5 year bandiversary today. The first 2 years I was really pleased with it all. Each anniversary since then I have been heavier.

Yes its the final word... out she comes. He said that he could disconnect the band and leave the whole thing in there in case I want to reconnect it later but if it gets damaged in the process of disconecting ( which he said was highly likely) then he would have to remove it.... I said haul it all out. I just dont feel right about it floating about in there only anchored by the port.

Zippy we would be lost without you, so please stay and keep us company.

Soooo - that's the final word then. Band out. I can imagine that it is somewhat bewildering at this point, but I'm sure you will take up the challenge of no band as well as you faced up to the new life you embraced 3 and a half years ago. I have every bit of faith in you that you will rise to the challenge.

As far as having to face some surgery later on, well you will think about those options if and when you need to. For now, it's enough that the band is coming out and you will be able to eat properly again. That in itself must be quite exciting.

I look forward to hearing how things progress.

Only another week of having to put up with the inconvenience you have had recently.

I add my vote for the lean dessert protein...the banana one tastes like banana paddle pops.



Well it seems that the band and I are getting divorce... I get the house it gets narda zip.

I am booked in for Tuesday for complete removal...*sigh* dont ask me how I feel cos I dont know. Doc said I will be fine if I stick to the protein first rule always... he added that now I can fill up on salads too and finds that most of his removal people do fine because they have missed crunchy veg and real grilled meat... so we shall see.

He was very posative and said for me to try fly solo for 6 months then if I cant cope I can come back and he has plenty of options. First is rebanding but he said he has been very impressed with the sleeve and the research he has been doing here, in America and Europe.

I am just going to not over think it. I will get it removed then tackle it one day at a time. If you dont mind I would still like to haunt this place. I love you girls and could use your support....band or no band

Ohhhh no you have to blitz them with lots of ice!

Yes the Lean Dessert are good too. I don't know if it's just me, maybe I didn't mix it well enough, but the Sculpt seemed to me to always have a sandy texture. Given that you add a banana, Westy, I'm assuming you use a blitzer, which would no doubt make it smoother. I only ever mixed mine in the shaker.

I like the lean dessert protein shakes. It has lecithin (soy) as the last ingredient so I don't think it would have much soy in it. Chocolate fudge is nice as is banana bread.

Losingit

Thanks for that will try something different.

Westy

Where are you Zippy? We want information, and we want it now.

Hope you got some satisfaction.

I used Sculpt for a while. While it does have a range of flavours, I found (as I have with some other protein shakes) that the soy protein was overbearing. If I choose a protein shake now, I make sure it is mainly WHEY protein, and has limited soy. I know Sculpt has whey as well as soy, but the soy for me is far too much.

I found a pretty good one is Body Science for Women. I see it is now available in the supermarket (Woolies). Low in carbs too, does still have soy protein isolate, but it is nowhere near as overbearing as some others.

Just had to put my 2 cents in here. I use a Protein Drink for Breaky.

It is called Sculpt a Horleys Product (3 flavours) $27.95, chocolate is yum bo, normally heaps of ice, and a smashed up banana.

Westy

shaaaaaaarnap!!!! you got me...although depraved is a wonderful place to be... its wicked good

No, Linda - she said 'at the moment' . . . . . . . . .

Which just means she's not talking about regularly!

(Am I going to get away with this?)

Ohhh I thought I read depraved

I did the shake and it was quite nice... but then I am deprived at the moment. I used a really low carb shake so it negated the addition of the peanut butter.

The actual shake they talk about is called whey gourmet peanut butter and chocolate



http://www.wheygourmet.com/products/wheygourmet.php

I'm not sure about adding your stuff to a premixed shake. Why don't you add cocoa and peanut butter to milk and make it yourself. Then you can tweak it by adding a bit more of the ingredients you like.

Haven't made an appointment with the doc. Will tough it out for now. Have enough going on with the rocking. I am seriously contemplating having 5mg of valium seeing as 2.5 doesn't work any more. It was nice the 3 weeks it worked though.

Um - no haven't told the doc about upping the meds. To be honest, I think I will know if I have taken it too far. I am reasonably cautious, not overtly stupid (though I'm sure there are a few who would dispute that) and so I will continue till at least the end of this week.

I did have a blood test last week, ordered by the second GP. I had taken him results of my thyroid test, but not the results of kidney/liver function as I didn't have them. Sooooo - he ordered another blood test to see the results for himself. I haven't been back yet for the results. Just on that, they had the usual 'throne' to sit on at pathology, hate those things, they have very wide arms and very narrow seats! Needless to say, I did manage to squeeze onto it, which I suppose is still better than the days when I just had to ask for another chair. Usual problem finding a vein, and they don't seem to jump at the opportunity when I say I have heaps in my legs!

Maybe you can let me know about the shake you were looking at, I'm happy to have a search around here and see if anyone stocks them. Sounds yummo to me. Chocolate and peanut butter - a combination dear to my heart.

*sigh* That is a fact Loosinit... I cant do a flaming thing till Friday... my main effort today ( I am sulking because I am tired and burnt out so have spent the day planted on the lounge surfing the net) has been to look up various bariatric liquid meals....now dont beat me up all at once but one in particular has taken me by the nostrils....peanut butter chocolate shake.

I love love love reeces peanut butter cups oooooooor in a pinch a flat teaspoon of half nuttella and half peanut butter licked over a long period....yeah I know this is a weightloss forum but I could be doing worse trust me.

Anywho this concoction has got me intriged and I cant get the stuff here but someone mentioned adding a half a teaspoon of coco and a teaspoon of peanut butter into a blender with a diet choc protein shake and giving it a buzz...then adding a good handful of ice wizzing it again then drink

I am gonna take one for the team and give it a go for tea...failing that it will be the peanut butter on a spoon with some nuttella, so if Im squealing like a pig in the morning cos its jammed the hole....ignore me cos the shake didnt work.

I just cant bare the thought of soup its too hot and I refuse to do ice cream or ice blocks cos there is too much sugar in them ( the coke yesterday all but curled my teeth). I have done with out sugary foods for so long now they taste like rat poison to me now.

Loosinit I am sorry to hear about your work mate, but glad you could make it to the funeral. Have you told your quack you have upped your meds... I am just worried you will burn your thyroid out by upping them ...nasty business that

My immediate reaction is f&$# f&$# and f&$# again! Zippy - I envy you not one bit. What a bugger. Out of all of us you have probably done the best, losing so much and keeping it off. Now to have this happen is just the last straw. I know you've had various issues along the way, but I don't think this ominous event was part of the deal.

I don't know what to say to you. I truly hope there is some respite soon, no matter how it comes. I'm sure you will deal with whatever you have to later on, but right now is the thing that matters. You need to be able to get some proper sustenance and feel like you can live again. It is so debilitating to have this sort of thing happen, it ruins your life completely (for the moment anyway).

I can only relate in a very different matter, in that the damn swelling in my feet, ankles and legs continues, albeit just a little less severe than it has been. Today is warm and so it goes without saying that the swelling is worse. I had a funeral to go to today (a colleague) and when I was asked the other day by another colleague if I was going, I said 'yes, if I can get shoes on. I'm not wearing moccasins to a funeral'. Fortunately it was this morning, so I kept my feet elevated as long as I could, only getting up to have a shower just before I left. I barely managed to get shoes on, but at least I did.

I have noticed that my joint pain is not as severe as it was, so screw you, doctor, for telling me that low thryoid would not be the reason for my crippling joint pain. I can't put the improvement down to anything else.

I am upping my meds every day now, just to try to move things along a bit. I will stop that in a fortnight as I don't want to take it to the extreme, but I have been undermedicated for so long that I figure it's going to take a while to catch up.

Funny how the simple things can/could give us so much joy - in your case, Zippy, a piece of toast with vegemite.

S'pose you can't do anything until Friday when the master investigates.

yes its all a bit sucky duck but what can you do huh.... I got the basket now I gotta deal with it.

I decided on a berry shake...it was berry 'orible' but I drank it and its filtering through as we speak. Gawd I sooooo want a peice of toast with vegemite. The weird thing is I havent had a vegemite toasty in years but today I would crawl up the crack of the devil himself for just a bite of a peice of hot buttered white bread toast smeared with black yeasty spread....mmmmmmmmmmmm yum!

Anywho enough of the mental torcher, how is every blardy else today.... how is your band Linda, did you decide to syphon some off.

And Missy May Loosinit....where the hell are you Lung Lady! How is those puffy feet have you commit physician-o-cide yet.

Crap it all sounds disgusting. Get the little B out! Sorry you are going through all of this.

Well the coke hasnt worked so I am back to square one. Pretty sure the fecker has slipped ...niiiiiiiiiiiiice!

I just want it sorted, the whole thing is starting to wear me down...Im cranky and teary and generally not nice to be around.... think of a rabid bear with a bad case of heartburn and pms and youve got me at the moment in a good mood.



I am not exactly Miss sally sunshine, which my poor husband has found out, hence why he has taken to hiding in his man cave on the computer all day working... poor bastard doesnt even come out for lunch... he kinda slinks out round 5.30, checks if one of the kids are home then walks real fast to them and engages their company ....he on no account makes eye contact with the nasty bitch seething like a frothing mound of crazy in the kitchen.

Of course cooking meals at the moment is my absolute favourite thing....ha ha NOT! They got bloody snags on the bbq last night...which the husband gratefully cooked and then I slammed a loaf of bread on the table with butter and sauce and said "enjoy".... there were mumbled expletives as I left the table but no one commented....or should I say dared to comment.

This morning I ponder my breakfast....shall it be banana...strawberry or vomit flavoured chocolate shake for my pleasure. I have decided against optispew...for obviouse reasons and instead purchased a range of branded shakes in single serve packets of various flavours that took my fancy....which reminds me I think I have a latte one... which no doubt will taste like budgy arse.

I have given up on soup...even the smoothest of them seems to stick. I had a nasty episode the other day with the tiniest bit of mushroom in one of the soups .... bastard clogged the last remaining hole in the seive I call a gut and gave me hell to pay.

So shake and later if I dare to be so decadant a cup of tea....mmmmmm mighty jelouse arent ya's