ShineOn

It is 16 days until my surgery date and I am failing miserably with the pre-op diet. :think I am ashamed to admit I have actually gained 4 pounds since my consultation. :help: Did anyone else gain a few pounds before surgery? Did it cause any issues?

Hey everybody! I talked to the DR. today and my surgery has been moved to 4/4 - two days earlier! I don't know why but I am getting soooo anxious. I can't believe my ticker says 16 days until surgery. Two weeks and two days until the big day....gulp. I wish I could say I was doing well on my pre-op diet but I am an emotional eater so things have gotten worse not better. I have actually gained 4 pounds. :cry Any advice for calming the nerves? Maybe I'll start with a bubble bath and try again tomorrow. Wish me luck.

You should be proud of all you have done. How may people really see you getting out of the shower anyway? If you have considered plastic surgery you should check out the pics on the lower body lift threads. Some of them are amazing! Puddin's are especially unbelievable! Very encouraging. Good luck to you!

Love your post. Like you I have been big the majority of my life; over 200 lbs in the 6th grade, then over 250 in my mid 20s. I had a short period (2 years) that I worked my way down to a 12/14 by spending 3 hours a day at the gym, and starving on carrots. But now with the band I am looking forward to taking a balanced approach to weight loss. It will be so exciting to drop sizes and buy new clothes. Just think in 12 short months from now we will be new women!! How exciting.

Well as the surgery approaches I have moments of being scared, insecure, and I still wonder if I am doing the right thing. On the other side I feel as though I have to do this & it is my last hope. I barely fit in my work clothes I feel like a slob at work and I feel generally unhealthy. On the weekends I am in hiding. I stay at home all the time & just hang out in my sweatpants, and my favorite pastime is napping. My life has become so sad. I feel withdrawn from the world. Those are all the reasons I am moving forward with the band. It makes me feel that there is hope again. I have always enjoyed excercizing and I am anxious to get that old life back. I feel like the band will prevent me from sabotoging myself and that is the help I need to truly be successful. Well, thankfully I have guests in town the next two weeks so I will not have much time to think about the surgery. It will be here before I know it. I will just be so relieved after the surgery part is over so I can start getting my life back. I am not afraid to do the work that will be required, in fact I am excited. I am really motivated to get to 167, which is 6 lbs less than I have ever been as an adult. The first milestone will be fitting into my size 18 suits, than my size 16 suits, then the real fun will begin! That is the part that gets me motivated. :biggrin1: Plus, most of all, I want to be the active young mother that my baby girl deserves. That will be the best reward.

Well as the surgery approaches I have moments of being scared, insecure, and I still wonder if I am doing the right thing. On the other side I feel as though I have to do this & it is my last hope. I barely fit in my work clothes I feel like a slob at work and I feel generally unhealthy. On the weekends I am in hiding. I stay at home all the time & just hang out in my sweatpants, and my favorite pastime is napping. My life has become so sad. I feel withdrawn from the world. Those are all the reasons I am moving forward with the band. It makes me feel that there is hope again. I have always enjoyed excercizing and I am anxious to get that old life back. I feel like the band will prevent me from sabotoging myself and that is the help I need to truly be successful. Well, thankfully I have guests in town the next two weeks so I will not have much time to think about the surgery. It will be here before I know it. I will just be so relieved after the surgery part is over so I can start getting my life back. I am not afraid to do the work that will be required, in fact I am excited. I am really motivated to get to 167, which is 6 lbs less than I have ever been as an adult. The first milestone will be fitting into my size 18 suits, than my size 16 suits, then the real fun will begin! That is the part that gets me motivated. :biggrin1: Plus, most of all, I want to be the active young mother that my baby girl deserves. That will be the best reward.

It sounds like a lot of us are in the same boat; adding weight while we were bringing our little angels into the world. Just 2 years ago I was a very happy size 12/14. During my pregnancy I managed to get back up to a size 24. I too have been in a state of devistation over my body because I just haven't been able to move the scale. It's so depressing. Like lots of you ladies sleeping or napping has become a favorite pastime :notagree not to mention I live in sweatpants, avoid cameras, and even cancelled trips home so I don't have to see old friends. I just feel I've slowly become removed from the world. However, since I have made the decision to get the band my spirit has really lifted. I think we are all taking a positive first step and we should all be proud that our lives are about to move in a new direction. Cheers to all you beautiful ladies. We can watch eachother blossom over the next year!! We will be fitting into those old clothes (you know the ones in the back of the closet labled "skinny") before we know it!!:clap2:

Brenda told me to do any diet I wanted until surgery. Then she went on to say "like South Beach or low carb, or weight watchers." So, I got the impression it was pretty open. At the seminar someone said a pre-op diet makes the surgery easier for the Doctor because drpping a few pounds can reduce the size of your liver.

April is right around the corner I can't believe we are almost there! Is anyone else doing some shopping for post-surgery? I got some great ideas from threads on what to have. It's at least helping me feel more prepared!

Welcome Lucy! Good luck to you. You are in the right place to get all of your questions answered. Take care!

Ok, since I have scheduled my surgery date my eating has been insane. I am so freaked out about losing my security blanket (food) that it's making me eat everything in site. I am talking ice cream, cup cakes, brownies, etc. etc. It's nuts. I have gained 6 pounds since my consultation. Husband even said that me bringing home all the bad food is having a negative impact on him. So, I am making the decision right now to eat healthy between now and surgery. I am going to allow myself some freebee meals when we have friends and family here at the end of the month. But besides that I am commited to turning this around!!

Ok, since I have scheduled my surgery date my eating has been insane. I am so freaked out about losing my security blanket (food) that it's making me eat everything in site. I am talking ice cream, cup cakes, brownies, etc. etc. It's nuts. I have gained 6 pounds since my consultation. Husband even said that me bringing home all the bad food is having a negative impact on him. So, I am making the decision right now to eat healthy between now and surgery. I am going to allow myself some freebee meals when we have friends and family here at the end of the month. But besides that I am commited to turning this around!!

In response to the earlier posts eating has been a nightmare for me. I am an emotional eater; that is my biggest issue. I use food as therapy & I can binge eat with the best of them. The funny thing is I actually like to excercize but my diets always fail because I slip up on the eating side of things. Anyway, the thought of not having eating as a security blanket anymore is causing me to eat terribly pre-surgery. I am making a commitment to get back on track the next few weeks. I feel awful and I know imroving my diet will get me in the right mind set for the big day. So anyway - I feel your pain!! :faint:

I am going through the exact same thing at home. My husband's biggest fear is me having to have surgery, despite the low risk, its still hard for him. I also lost 120 pounds on my own in the past and so he doesn't understand why I can't just do it on my own again. However, he is coming around slowly. I am hoping post surgery will be easier because we will be past the scarry part. Take care!

Puddin, You are such an inspiration. Congratulations on your transformation. You look fantastic. You should be the LapBand poster girl! :-)

This is an interesting topic. Gyms are funny aren't they? They are supposed to help people get fit, but everyone there looks like they are ready to run a marathon already. So ironic! I know how you feel. Three years ago I started excercizing for the first time in my life. I was 285 pounds and lost 120 by changing my eating habits and going to the gym 6 days a week. Then I had a difficult pregnancy, ate way too much and gained most of that weight back which is why I am getting ready to get the band. But anyway, I can share some support on getting past those gym-jitters. What helped me a lot at the beginning was dedicating a couple of weeks to excercising at home every day (walking and yoga) to help get my spirits and confidence up. Once I felt more in "the zone" it was a lot easier to make my way to the gym. I was 285 pounds the first time I walked into a gym and the 2 flights of stairs to the workout floor had me gasping for air my first week. I stuck to the same machines at first and gradually started trying different things. Getting a trainer is what really got me to the next level. Plus they show you around all the equipment so you are comfortable. Before you know it people will be coming out of the woodwork to ask you what you are doing. I was always amazed at the "skinny" people that would chase me down to ask what I was doing because they noticed I was losing. That was so funny to me since they were still smaller than me but I guess when they watch 100+ pounds fading away they all want to know your program. Now I am starting the process all over again and I am going through the same insecurities. At the beginning we do have to carry a little bit of a defense with up to get through it but I just put my ipod on and remember that I have just as much right as "the skinny people" to be in the gym, and I am going to take care of myself regardless of what anyone thinks. Once you are in a routine at your gym things get much better and you start to build confidence and believe it or not some of us get to a point where we like going to the gym! Wow, imagine that. Good luck to you!

I am having surgery in April & I have a 1 year old. Did anyone have issues lifting or caring for their babies after surgey? How long was it before you could be supermom again?

Hi Tracey, I will be an April 07 banster with you. I am scheduled for surgery April 6th. :clap2:

Jack had some great ideas I am taking note! My surgery is in a few weeks. I plan to do a little scrapbooking myself. I also bought some fashion magazines to plan the outfits I will be able to wear again soon! Best of luck to you!

Thanks to everyone for the great advice. My husband has agreed to be on infant lifting duty for me which will help a lot. Plus, I will keep her at daycare the week I am home so we will just have to cover the evenings. By the way in reference to the other topic I wouldn't feel bad about keeping the surgery to yourself its a very personal decision! I am also not telling anyone but my husband but all my family is out of state so it makes it much easier to keep a secret. Good luck to you!

I asked about air travel during my consultation b/c I travel a lot with my job. My doc said that the band can sometimes get tighter if b/c if there are any air bubbles in the solution they expand during flight and the band can feel a little tighter. He recommended taking some soft food just incase. Maybe you could pack some gogurt or baby food just incase? Gerber makes some of their selections in a rectangle plastic case that look like little containers rather than whipping out a glass jar of obvious baby food. :-) Best of luck to you!

I saw a reference in this thread somewhere that alluded to Dr. Spivak doing free fills for year 2 if we meet our goals. Is that true? Does anyone have the details. If it is true is the goal to hit losing 50% of excess body weight? I am determined to beat that number but this would be another great incentive.

Thanks to everyone for your feedback. I think I will budget for a week off to be on the safe side! Thanks all!

I am a self pay & my surgery is $12,500 and includes fills & Dr. visits for a year after surgery. Good luck to you!

What a great thread! I am scheduled for surgery on April 4th and I am nervous but excited. I am doing surgery on a Wednesday and hoping to return to work (office job) on Monday. Does anyone think that is too ambitious of a plan?