I'm going to weather the storm....

Deb....Don't say that you don't belong anywhere. You belong here with us on the Island. You're always going to be 'one of us'. You had some issues with your band but that doesn't make you any less of a friend. We're going to enjoy your success as well! I'm going to avoid the R&R board. While I thought it was funny the few times that I went there...I now see that it's just hurting people.

Right now I don't know how to respond to anyone since my situation is so up in the air. I want you all to stay, but branching out is not such a bad thing either. Personally I can take the heat, but I know it bothers others and my thoughts are with them. We all know that our hearts are in the right place and that our intentions are good. I think we can all hold our own and adversity makes us stronger in my mind.

I don't really want to dwell, but I do want to say that this is supposed to be our backyard.... and we should stick together. We made it through thick, and we're heading to thin.....and Phyllis, regardless of what was said, I'd like to think that we've got your back. I know I'm here to support you as you have for so many of us. One little blip is nothing....we're so much tougher than that! TGIF!!

I just want to say I think you are an amazing woman, and with the decisions you have to make in your near future, I am excited that you have options. I know you can take the heat, that doesn't mean you should, and I will support you all the way.

I hope that this can be taken in such a way as to not start a bunch of crap but maybe make us think a little before we say stuff. The DS'ers never posted on this forum until one post in one thread took a cheap shot at LeaAnn. You can't expect to throw a punch at somebody without considering the possibility that they will haul off and let you have it right back. They didn't come here to make fun of the band. They came here in response to that post. They did not post on Rose's thread at all. If they came here to band bash that's exactly what they would have done, and they didn't. They kept their posts focused on the thread that they were offended by. That has not always been the case and I'm not sticking up for their behavior in other instances but this time I don't think they attacked anyone without provocation. Heck, they have had a banded person (Dee) over on there board claiming to be DS pre op and rny with multiple ID's stirring up crap and they have not lumped all of us in with her so I'm not going to lump all of them in with Scotty either.

That is big of you Susan, and I personally have kept myself out of it because they are into slaughtering. I say they as pertaining to a "group" that sticks together.... I feel I am part of a "group" too, those that have my back when I need it. I wouldn't say that all of them are the same, but it is hard not to ignore the strong personalities, they take over and they are quite obnoxious. IMO. Yes, I agree, if you name names, they are going to come running, I would do it myself if caught in the right mood, and have. They have caused the hardship. It would be hard for me to accept any of that elite group because of the things that have happened, and quiet frankly, the way they talk is disgusting, not all of them, but they steal the show. I recognize my shortcomings, but some of the beliefs and ideas are unreasonable and intolerable. I think we will all get along as long as we are seperate as many of us have lost respect because of the things that have happened. Don't you think that the person named in your last sentence will come and flip you off now?

He actually blocked me right after he made an insulting reply to one of my posts so that I could not reply to it. I don't care if he does flip me off. His opinion has no value to me. That's one of the good things about getting old. The older you get the less you care about what random people think of you. I have stayed away from a lot of the posts that I thought would just aggravate me. Like all of the anti-religious/religious ones. My faith really isn't something that is up for debate on these boards so I don't participate in any of it. I think that's where a lot of the disgusting stuff comes from. I don't even open that stuff. I have learned a lot from the way Francis treats people on the DS board and the way that they treat her. She's been posting over there and gets total support. She did not change who she is either. She went over there being a person who brings out the best in people and that's what she got in return.

Susan, when daydreambeliever was posting on the ds board none of us even knew what was going on. She was not posting on the lap board and I had no idea she even existed until those obnoxious "my surgery is superior and yours sucks" started showing up on the lap board. And they were not nice in any way. I have never gone to the DS board to defend anything said over there about the lap band or lap banders. So where I am coming from, I was minding my own business until people from the DS board started making pests of themselves. If they had a problem with DDB., it was between them and her and the the whole lapband community. I poked a little fun a Leanne, she can take it and she can di**** too. In hind sight it wasn't the best thing to do. But damned if I am going to go chasing around from one board to another looking for every snide thing that is said about me. They can rip me to shreds on the DS board and I will laugh my ass off about it. I know you are coming from a position of being fair and I respect that, but people who live in glass houses, shouldn't throw stones.

She did more than that, she posted as babbler (pseudo DS-preop) and insulted a bunch of people on the LB forum trying to start a ******g contest between them and the DSer's. She is currently posting as Shannon_Elizabeth (pseudo rny) and stirring crap on the DS board. Who knows how many others there are. I guess my point was that if you do something to start stuff on a forum or thread then don't be surprised when people respond. I don't think they "attacked" so much as responded to provocation in this case. But from reading the responses by the regulars here about being "invaded" you would think that they all just marched over here and trashed everybody on every thread for no reason. That's not what happened. I think both sides just need to leave each other alone for a while and relax (but then again I've got a lot of percocet on board so relaxing sounds good to me).

I absolutely agree with you, I haven't participated on the DS board either, because my situation doesn't warrent a visit. I am happy for Francis as she is always respectful and always has been. She asked them sincere information from what I understand for her research regarding work she is doing. I am happy they are supportive, that's great. It did get out of hand at the hands of a couple people and that was brought to light, it just wont chill. Now I hope everyone had enough. The invasion of privacy is crazy, and from what I understand, the block feature does not function here on the island. The moderators of OH have been unfair by giving vets the least respect. If it wasn't for the girls/guys here cheering on the "newbies", then they wouldn't have had the success they have achieved through all of us that have been supportive and transparent. When someone is having a problem, yeah it's brought to a public forum, but the conversations are intimate, in the hopes that our friends that have been through it all with us are still there to give advice/support. When flaws in our journey are used against us, that is well below the belt, and what I have witnessed is like jackles waiting for a piece of meat. And that is all in the name of fun, suffering has been fun. It would be nice if people could/would respect some boundries. I won't come to such a ridiculous place and argue my faith, because it's like kicking a wall, either you get it or you don't. But I have lost respect for so many because of a few threads that were intended to belittle and degrade. I have applied my block feature because the insanity is so unbelievable. I come back to see how my friends are doing, with all the other garbage blocked, I don't have to see the way people think, because it is ugly. Stay cool