Hello all you lovely Aussies, Well our trip has come and gone. I am so sorry that we were unable to make any connections. I had so looked forward to meeting some of you Down Under OHers. I loved visiting Sydney and am looking forward to seeing the rest of your great country. We did so many things and had such a wonderful time. You should (and I know you are) very proud of your country. Yours truely, Nancy S. (from California)

Hi Rick, How are you going now? I am considering a sleeve in Perth and have my appointment with my doctor today. Thanks, Fe

Hi Everyone Princess Kath in particular. It IS April and I have arrived in Sydney. (Just as predicted and promised) We have been here since Wednesday evening. Slept like dead people the evening we arrived. Flight down here is brutal. Yesterday we did the ferry ride thing. It was a beautiful day and we really enjoyed ourselves looking at all the beautiful scenery and soaking up the rays. :-8 We will be going to see "Priscilla Queen of the Desert" tomorrow evening and today I bought some loose opals to have mounted when we get back to California. Sunday we are going on an excursion to the Blue Mountains. Monday is open and Tuesday is a half day city tour and then on the big boat at 1:00 PM. My,my,my how time flies when you are having fun. If I don't get to be hooked up with any of you , I would like you to know how much I have loved Sydney. OH BTW how do you stay away from all the pastries that are lurking in front of your faces everywhere. OMG it has been HARD!! Hope to hear from some of you before I leave. Take care all you Aussies, Nancy from California, USA

G'day Mates! Sorry that this is sort of a "Broadcast Message" For all of the Men out on the Obesity Help Boards But I just wanted to drop by an Invitation. It's great to see other men out here. We make up such a small percentage (12%) Of the people having Weight Loss Surgery, But tend to reach our goal weights quicker and with less Or at least Different hassles than the Gals Due to Male physiology. Drop by the Men's Message Board And check out what other men like you are going through. It's been there for just over a year, But every week we have another few men show up with the usual- "So This Is where the Guys are! I thought I was alone!" It's a diverse make up of Dads, Singles, Older, younger, etc... Many, Many Canadians, and international members, Pre-Ops, Post-Ops new and some Old (at Goal) Post-Ops. Lap-Banders, RNY'ers, DS, VSG's etc... Great bunch of guys with the mutual understanding That WLS - for Men - can be a totally Different Journey. Stop by to add your questions, advice, opinions, and info at- http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/men/ It's Great to know we're not so alone, And that there are others pulling for you. Hope to see you 'Round the Boards! Best Wishes- Dx

Hi Tara Interesting set of questions although quite a few of them overlap a bit. Here goes 1) In our program you cannot have surgery unless you have attended two classes. One is a nutrition class designed to help you lose the mandatory 10% weight loss before surgery. The other is class designed to help you eat correctly post operatively. AND there is a test. It had questions on it like. How big will your pouch be? 30 cc's How many grams of protien should you eat a day? At least 70 grams How much fluid should you drink a day? 64 fl oz What are the stages of eating and what kind of food is in each. I can't remember anymore, but it was pretty comprehensive. If we didn't pass the nutritionist would take us aside and go over the information again one on one. They just want to make sure the info is in the brain. Test to help assess strengths and weaknesses post op. Well, I would take it. I guess some of the questions should be like above. How much protien do you eat per day. How many protien supplement drinks do you consume as opposed to food? Do you exercise if so how much and what type? Are you bolemic?? Do you drink alcohol?? Are you a shopoholic?? What type of weight loss device would be the best fit?? Well we had no choice, only RNY was offered. But I understand in some programs the doctor has the ultimate decision and in some programs the patient and doc come to a consensus. But on the other hand what kind of an overeater makes a difference what type of surgery should be performed. Also what kind of health you are in on and on and on..... I would define WLS success as losing between 60 and 80 % of your excess weight with improved health issues. Being WLS challenged? Those *****fuse to follow the WLS rules as put forth by our surgeons. Things like refusing to exercise, drink our fluids, eat the wrong things consistantly without regard for the program(making the same mistakes all over again), not taking your vitamin supplements. Our docs made it very clear to all of us that this surgery was a one time deal. They would not repeat the surgery or revise it in any sort of way. They would give us the tool, but it was still up to us to use it properly. If we did that we would be a weight loss success. There you have it. Take care, Nancy S. PS Curious what response you have had and what was said generally speaking.