ElizabethAnne

You have done an awesome job, and your success definitely inspires me! Thank you for taking the time to post at LBT about your experiences. I am having surgery in April and appreciate your encouragement. Best wishes.

Yay for you!

Congratulations on your weight loss! You are doing well! When I first started in January, I journaled the old-fashioned way, writing down every single morsel I ate. However, I've become lax as time has progressed and now I simply keep a running total of my calories for the day. I have poor self-control with food so I don't allow myself much flexibility, which makes it very easy to track my daily calories. I plan to keep a detailed food diary once I have surgery. I want a record that I can refer back to.

I had planned to eat reasonable portions of pizza and french fries, and one Reese's peanut butter egg. However, my surgeon's NP told us at our small group meeting on Wednesday that we were supposed to start our pre-op diet that very day. She reminded us that she had that day's weight recorded. She warned us not to gain any weight by saying our surgeon had already postponed three surgeries this week due to weight gain. Now I am too afraid of losing control and getting off-track. It's happened to me before, and I don't want to take a chance.

Wow---that is a tremendous loss! Congratulations to you!

I'm sorry you are struggling, but you WILL be able to get through this. Most colleges offer free counseling services, so please call today to make an appointment. There are professionals who care about you and want to help you get through this tough time. What could you do right now to help yourself? Sometimes one of the following activities can help: journaling, listening to music you enjoy, watching a movie, going for a walk or engaging in some other form of physical activity, reading, chatting with friends/family, or volunteering. You may have some better ideas, so do whatever healthy activity you think you might enjoy most. If nothing sounds good, still try to make yourself do something that will distract you from the negative thoughts. Be confident that there will be better days ahead.

Amy, I understand how disappointed you must be. If I were you, I would talk to my primary care doctor who might have some suggestions; mine asked if I had considered going to a foreign country (and offered to help me find a good surgeon and lodging). You might want to check into about the various financing plans that are available. At one point, I considered additional emplyment. Others here at LBT will probably have some ideas.

My insurance required two years.

That's me and the Reese's Peanut Butter egg.

My surgery date is April 10, and I am on my pre-op diet, but I don't have to follow a liquid diet. I am counting calories and must limit my intake to no more than 1400 calories per day.

Yay for you!

LOL...what a good idea! Today has been more typical. Maybe it was hormonal.

Yay for you! I've been excited today, too. I agree with you about this being the hardest decision I've ever made. Never in my life have I experienced such mixed emotions.

That makes sense---thank you!

I don't know much about forums, but I am trying to learn and hope someone here can help me understand. I have two questions. 1) On my profile page, there is a green rectangular box which reads "13 Good." I don't understand where that number came from. 2) I have one "friend" listed. I noticed some people on LBT have several "friends." I don't understand the concept of "friends." Could someone please explain? Thank you!

Welcome to the group! I can identify with you concerning being both excited and scared, but soon our surgeries will be over and we'll hopefully then be able to leave the scared feelings behind and place our main focus on the positive aspects of our bands.

I asked about using a straw yesterday when I met with my surgeon's NP. She said straws work well for some people but for others, too much liquid is consumed at one time. This evening, when I was reading my Lap-Band System Surgical Information Kit, I noticed a photo of a pink shake with a straw in Book One, which is devoted to "Adjusting to the LAP-BAND System the first few weeks after surgery."

Congratulations!

Thanks for posting your thoughts on these, GLove. I looked at Muscle Milk Light, too, but decided not to buy any yet due to the lower protein content.

Congratulations on your success! Stories like yours are very encouraging for those of us who are not "banded" yet. Thanks for posting and best wishes for continued success!

What a great idea! Thanks for the suggestion!

I received my pre-op diet today and was completely shocked when the NP said we were to start it today. I had anticipated two weeks before surgery since that's what the handout said. She first provided us with a very detailed 7-day diet that told us exactly what we are to eat at each meal. However, she went on to say that they want us to limit our calorie intake to 1400 per day and that we could choose from a number of options such as meal substitution (Slim-Fast), established programs (Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, TOPS), diet books (Atkins, South Beach), or counting calories. I am to pick the option that is best for me. Easy decision for me---counting calories. The handout we received today states, "Two of the places excess fat can occur are in the liver and in the abdominal cavity. Having fat there makes surgery more difficult." I kept that in mind as I pushed my cart past the Reese's Peanut Butter eggs while shopping at Wal-mart this evening. (I had originally planned to buy one as a final treat before the two-week diet started.) Before dismissing our group, she warned us to not gain weight and to emphasize her point, she told us our surgeon had already postponed three surgeries this week due to weight gain. That fact will hopefully help me stay on the straight and narrow path for the next few weeks.

I find others' photos to be quite motivating, too. I love to see and read about their successes! I haven't decided yet if I am taking a photo. I'm leaning toward probably not. Regarding my profile, I haven't decided yet about that either but it's more of a "maybe."

I am sorry your surgery is delayed. But it's good the tests indicated there was a problem prior to surgery. It would be even more disappointing to have the surgeon discover during the procedure that he can't proceed due to a stomach issue. I hope the days pass quickly for you.

Welcome to the group, Cheryl! Thank you for sharing your story. I worry about the band working for me, too. However, I have decided that If something goes awry or if I am unable to do my part, it's technically just another failure in a long series of weight loss attempts. Nothing lost. Yet, research shows many individuals are successful with the band, and I am going to do everything humanly possible to try to be successful with it. I had my pre-op meeting this morning at the hospital where I am having surgery, followed by a small group meeting this afternoon with my surgeon's nurse practitioner to go over the pre-op and post-op details. It is about a two-hour drive to the location where I will be having surgery and on the drive home, I agonized over whether I should even proceed with WLS. I wasn't ambivalent on the drive to the facility this morning. My mood was great and I was excited about crossing off two more requirements from my WLS to-do list. After arriving home, I've concluded I am doubting whether I need WLS because I have been steadily losing weight since January. I have been working my hardest to lose so that I will be healthy for surgery. Therefore, I need to place my focus on why I am having this surgery: I hope to change my eating habits forever, and I believe the band will help me do that. I hope it turns out to be the tool you need, too!