banded_princess

my surgery is tomorrow and i have lost a total of 7.1 kilos i think that is around 15.6 pounds? was hoping to lose 10 kilos->22 pounds by then because that is what my doctor was expecting but i got a severe bout of gastroenteritis before and that ended up stopping the weight loss for a few days because i had to go back to eating normal foods, dont worry! any loss is good loss!!

Hi!! I know this is probably answered somewhere else on the website, but I am still doubtful so I hope someone could answer my question! I have my lap band surgery scheduled for the 28th of November and that is exactly one week after my final exams finish so i would have to start my pre-op diet straight after my exams, however, I needed to know how much time I need to take off from work after my surgery because I work in retail at a department store, at a jewellery kiosk. Generally my shifts are anywhere between 8-10 hours a day with about a half hour break... there are no seats so I would essentially have to stand for the entire duration of my shift... any advice on how long to stay off work safely would be much appreciated! Thanks!!!

deb, that sounds pretty good actually! ive been battling weight problems since i can remember so i will certainly not have an issue talking to prof obrien about it! my consultation is next friday and boy am i impatient! surgery date is a tentative 28th november so 7 days after yours!!! i will be keeping a close eye on u so i know what to expect!

Hi fellow bandees, I am only new to this and have my surgery scheduled for the 28th of November, i have done all my blood tests, urine tests, organised things with the insurance company now the last thing i need to do before i go in for the official consultation with my surgeon is to get a referral from my general practitioner for the LapBand. The doctor i currently visit is off on maternity leave... and i have never really spoken to any of the other doctors at my medical centre but I have booked an appointment with one of them for tomorrow, just wondering how i would bring it up to him.. because a lot of the doctors i have seen before have been very condescending when it comes to WLS, i am 20 years of age and have very high cholesterol level, have over 155lbs to lose, so i am in desperate need of the surgery... just nervous about how to bring it up to the doc so i get a referral easily... any suggestions would be much appreciated! Thanks in advance!!

These are all great suggestions! I think i am going to try and get a minimum of 10 days off and just tell her I had a hernia surgery, should be fine! Also since i will be out of the house and about for pretty much the whole day, i wont be thinking as much about food/wont have the opportunity to even think about cheating especially since its christmas time then!!! and i will HAVE to prepare in advance for my food which will be good practise:)

I am considering taking about 7-10 days off and then tell my manager that i had some other surgery because she is a real gossip munger and everyone in the dept store will find out if I told her that I had lap band surgery! now im trying to come up with another "fake" surgery i could tell her I had so i could get away with not carrying things/do less strenuous work once i get back.. i would love it if there were some boys working with us to help when it comes to the lifting/etc... but its a jewellery store so all our employees are girsl >21 years of age... so not much help with them!

Same case Stacey! I have to stand all day but i will be working during the christmas period and they will have many consignments of new stock coming in with each box weighing 20+ Kilos! and i certainly did not want to inform the people at my work about my surgery! so i dont know whether to wait it out until i am ok to do everything or to go and try and avoid heavy lifting.. :/ ive already had to take time off work because of uni, and now i have to take more time off because of surgery which is why i want to be clear just so i know what to tell me manager who is not a very understanding woman by the way!

Hi all! I am new to this website, i have managed to finally book my lap band surgery for november 2011 after fighting with myself for so many years! I am 176 cms tall and weigh almost 139kgs.. sigh... i never thought it would be that hard letting that out..... i have a high high cholesterol of almost 9.0, and although i am getting this done because i want a healthier and longer life in the future, i am looking forward to being able to feel like a normal "young" person like i should be feeling at my age! i turn 21 in a couple of weeks and do wish all my weight loss methods would have worked till now, because i have literally tried everything under the face of the sun, terry white, weight watchers, jenny craig, personal trainers, xenical, naturopathy... this was my last and final option! im so scared of the operation because i have been researching all the bad things that could come out of it but i am concentrating on the positive for now and cannot wait to have it done! the one thing i am scared of is failure.. so far all the weight loss methods i have tried have failed and ended up with me gaining triple of what i lost... i started dieting at 12 and have not been able to buy normal clothes for many years now.... i just hope it all works out well! anyone else getting it done anytime soon?

Hi Deb! I am so excited and impatient about my first consultation.. october 14th seems so far away! could you tell me more about what actually happens at the first consultation?? also, do you know how many consults/ visits there are before the actual surgery??? i havent been to my consultation yet, but theyve already pencilled me into the surgery list just incase for the 28th of november! so i just wanted to know what all we would need to do before the surgery day!

Hi Deb! I am scheduled for the lap band late November and my surgeon if going to be Prof Paul O'Brien too! Do you live in melbourne?? my first consultation is on the 14th of October! I feel so relaxed knowing I have him as a surgeon since he helped actually create the band in the beginning!! Lets be banded buddies! When is your surgery?? how did your first consultation go??

Hi stacey! I am not sure what the weight requirement for you is, but here in australia, the place where i am scheduled to get my banding done says anything above 35 is a definite qualifier but because of the high risk of diseases linked to obesity, they have approved lap band surgery for patients with a BMI of above 30, check and ensure that this is the case for you too. Also, when is your surgery booked for/ estimated time that you may have it? you have to keep that in mind as well when considering these factors... if you have any concerns just contact the surgeons office and express your concern to them, im sure they will understand and explain what needs to be done! However, i think the weight that is submitted to your insurance company would be the initial weight you were at when you applied for the surgery... so if you lose any weight after that, i dont think that would be an issue...! xx

NurseShay, thank you so much for taking the time to motivate me! Things like these are what is helping me through these tough times where im fighting with myself in my head!! I feel so much better after reading your post that I read it three times already As far as my surgeon goes i trust him with my life so that puts me at ease! if you have researched lap bands you must have heard of dr paul obrien, he was in the team that initially designed the lap band 20 something years ago and he is the one that will be doing my surgery so i have no doubts about him! I have weighed up the options by risk of surgery/stay overweight and keep increasing in kilos... and the risk of surgery seems to be small compared to the latter option! I am excited about the new life i will hopefully be able to enjoy as soon as possible! I have been spending hours and days just researching this even moreso recently and have gone through so so many videos on youtube and think to myself, all these people were in the same position as me 1-2 years ago and if they managed to change their life around... then why cant i?! the only thing that is stopping me is me! i just wish i could wake up every single day with this in my head and manage to follow all the rules and turn my life around for my benefit! Congratulations on your -100LBS!! it must feel great to be on the losers bench, and i hope to join you there soon!! add me as a friend and hopefully we both can watch each other shrink through the months!!! Best of luck to you too!!! xx

I DID IT! i walked into that doctors office with all my information and knowledge and determination to get that refferal and i got it! I told him all my reasons for wanting the surgery and didnt give him the chance to think twice after which he didnt even hesitate and me the paperwork! next step is consultation with the surgeon!! success feels so close i can smell it!!! thanks for all the ideas!!!!

Thats a good idea! i am lucky my holidays from uni start one week exactly before, hopefully my pre op diet will only last one week because the week before that i have final exams!! arghhhhhhhh! I am also not telling anyone but mum dad and the boyfriend about my surgery! hopefully will be having a day procedure so i wont even have to stay the night at the hospital! just a matter of managing the pain and getting back to normal so you feel better! Best of luck!!

My date is 11/28 !! so i will be looking at all you october banders for support! i am really nervous but excited mostly! just think of how you will be this time next year! or even a few months from now, concentrate on that bit rather than the surgery! This is just the beginning of a new life for you! one small little hurdle, you will be put to sleep, then 1...2...3... and its all done.. well as far as it concerns us anyway!! so best of luck, try to calm your nerves and imagine all the good things coming out of this amazing once in a lifetime experience! better health, longer life, better looks! more confidence, and the ability to lead a normal happy life looking and feeling AMAZING!! and keep in contact with all us fellow bandees if it helps! GOOD LUCK!!!! IT WILL ALL BE FINE!! xx

Thats awesome!! im adding u right away!!

Hii everyone and thanks so so much for all your wonderful suggestions! I actually wrote a few pointers down so i can remember them before going in! im the type of person that can be easily convinced with nice words, hence last year when i went to the doctor to discuss WLS they managed to talk me out of it, but this time around i have made up my mind and have done all the other work there is to do including getting blood tests and insurance approval, just need a sign from my gp which i WILL get tonight and do this for myself!! I am usually a lot more comfortable talking to my own gp who supports me a lot but she is out on maternity leave and the doctor i am visiting today is known to be not very nice! There is no point of them telling me to get onto weight watchers or jenny craig or even Optifast, because I have done it all! I started dieting at the age of 12... and honestly dont want to continue on my life being unhealthy... i have a family history of cholesterol and mines is even higher(9.0 HDL) than my dad who has had it his whole life!! Just today i ran up a flight of ten stairs to catch a train and was trying to regain breath ten minutes later... My previous GP did say that i should first try dieting, eating healthy, then if that didnt work try slim shakes, if that didnt work cholesterol meds, the final option would be WLS... i skipped the cholesterol meds bit because that would only suppress the condition.. I WANT IT GONE!! ALL OF IT!! GOOD LUCK TO YOU ALL IN YOUR JOURNEY AND THANKS FOR THE SUPPORT! be ensured that you will be seeing me in many of these posts since I am only starting off and have a very very long way to go and will be looking up to you all for inspiration! Thanks!!

Hi stacey!! thanks so much for making the facebook group, i cannot wait to join! but just before i do, is there anyway to make it sort of private? because if i join up, wont it show on my page that I am a part of the "November 2011 lap banders" group?? like as in with the home status and stuff?? i just want to take as many precautions as possible because i DO NOT want anyone finding out about my banding since i wasnt planning on telling anyone other than mum, dad and my boyfriend.. well for now atleast!

i spoke with the doctors office on thursday too! and have my first consult on the 14th of oct! They managed to already pencil me in for the 28th of november, so if u have no issues with financing + insurance, etc.. u shud be able to get it done by then too!! it will all be fine!! so just enjoy the process:D good luck to you too!!

I have read in many places that we have to sleep on our backs till it heals, as in for a week or so, but i havent had mine yet so i cant say from experience! I am a strictly stomach sleeper! no matter what position i fall asleep in, i wake up almost everyday on my tummy! is this going to be an issue?! i almost can NEVER fall asleep lying on my back! it feels so WEIRD!