Toby&theBanded

Today was my first weigh in at the doctor's office and I lost 10 lbs! Yay! Super stoked that the hard part of the past week has paid off. Everything else is looking great and should be progressing nicely.
 
As shy as I am to tell those not overweight that I have had the surgery, I have found comfort in meeting all the patients that had surgery in the past week at our nutrition meeting today and all the friendly, kind, motivational people I have met here online. I feel a sense of freedom I don't have around "normal" people. It's like you all get it. You know what it's like. And I'm not a failure or giving up by having the surgery. I'm making a commitment to changing my life for the better. Thanks everyone for being so awesome. It's amazing what support can do for us all! We're all in this together!
 
A

It's been a month today since my surgery, so I thought I'd add a quick update.
The first week was HARD, lots of pain and discomfort
Week two was a bit better, but still painful and had major gas pain on my shoulders
Third week, the gas pain started to taper off, had very little energy
Week four, less pain but have started having the "pulling" feeling around the band area, still tire easily and have little energy

Total Lbs. gone for ever=18
 
Would I do it again? yes!
What I would do differently? seriously do a pre-op diet. It wasn't required for me.
 
I'm looking forward to feeling more like myself in the next few weeks, I feel drained by mid-day, I also wish the swelling in my stomach would go down already...baby steps, I know...I know.

Today I had surgery. I have 6 small incisions with a on-q ball. I am taking loratab every 4 hours and still in a lot of pain. Im so excited to finally have the procedure done and ready to begin my new journey.

So today is officially 7 days since my surgery. One week. Every day seemed to pass by slowly, but I can't believe it's already a week. I thought I would never get here! The good part: yes I have already started loosing weight! yay! weigh in at the doc's office manana. Also, no pain when I am just relaxing. I have been off pain meds for several days The bad: I knew what the diet would be like before I went under the knife, but it is so much harder than I thought it would be. I never imagined wishing for crackers and cereal as much as I do now. As you all know, the first week is jello, popsicles, and broth. I cannot wait for the end of week 2! Also, sneezing sucks, lol!
 
As a promise to myself and who ever is reading, I will share all the good and bad about living with the band and how it has changed my life.
 
BTW, who am I? 25 yo 5'1" F med student (1 year left!!!) who weighed 227.5 (BMI 43) as of 6/21/12. I have fought with my weight for all of my life just like many here. I feel like I've tried it all. Fad diets. Weight Watchers (which did work while I was honestly doing it). Calorie Counting. It's just when I am not honestly putting all my energy into dieting, I gain it all back. I don't have any medical problems. I have seen what obesity can do to a person from the medical, familial, and personal stand point and I didn't want to find myself 15 years from now in a hole I can't get myself out of medically. I want to enjoy being young. Wear a swimsuit on the beach without being embarrassed. When I have kids, I want to be able to run around with them and not be worn out. When I see my patients and tell them about healthy eating and lifestyles, I don't want them to think, "yeah, like she knows!" I know I will always have a battle with my weight, but won't it be nice to fight while I'm a healthy weight because I took a leap of faith that this surgery would be the right choice for me? Yup, it will be nice.

So today is officially 7 days since my surgery. One week. Every day seemed to pass by slowly, but I can't believe it's already a week. I thought I would never get here! The good part: yes I have already started loosing weight! yay! weigh in at the doc's office manana. Also, no pain when I am just relaxing. I have been off pain meds for several days The bad: I knew what the diet would be like before I went under the knife, but it is so much harder than I thought it would be. I never imagined wishing for crackers and cereal as much as I do now. As you all know, the first week is jello, popsicles, and broth. I cannot wait for the end of week 2! Also, sneezing sucks, lol!
 
As a promise to myself and who ever is reading, I will share all the good and bad about living with the band and how it has changed my life.
 
BTW, who am I? 25 yo 5'1" F med student (1 year left!!!) who weighed 227.5 (BMI 43) as of 6/21/12. I have fought with my weight for all of my life just like many here. I feel like I've tried it all. Fad diets. Weight Watchers (which did work while I was honestly doing it). Calorie Counting. It's just when I am not honestly putting all my energy into dieting, I gain it all back. I don't have any medical problems. I have seen what obesity can do to a person from the medical, familial, and personal stand point and I didn't want to find myself 15 years from now in a hole I can't get myself out of medically. I want to enjoy being young. Wear a swimsuit on the beach without being embarrassed. When I have kids, I want to be able to run around with them and not be worn out. When I see my patients and tell them about healthy eating and lifestyles, I don't want them to think, "yeah, like she knows!" I know I will always have a battle with my weight, but won't it be nice to fight while I'm a healthy weight because I took a leap of faith that this surgery would be the right choice for me? Yup, it will be nice.