Banded Jen

Here is it Thursday - the 4th of July! I was so excited about my visit to see my surgeon on Tuesday but it was really no big deal. There were seven other people in the room who are getting their surgery the same day. Hello assembly line...
Here are the highlights:

They went over the "Eight Golden Rules" of lap band success
Eat three or less small meals a day
Do not eat anything between meals (this will be difficult)
Eat slowly and stop when no longer hungry
Focus on nutritional foods
Avoid calorie containing liquids
Exercise for at least 30 minutes a day
Be active throughout each day
Always be in contact with support staff (go in for monthly adjustments)
[*]We got our prescriptions for pain relief and an anti-nausea suppository (good times)
[*]My surgery time is 9:15 - and I need to be there two hours early and it's an hour+ drive.
[*]We got a video to watch at home. Jason watched with me so that he can see what I need to do and how he can support me.

 
Once our patient advocate left the room everyone talked about how they cheated on the pre-op diet! I have been so good and hadn't cheated at all (notice how I used past tense). So when I left there I came home and made my lunch. I nibbled on little naughty things here and there like it was no big deal. I was sabotaged by the strangers in the room and the conversation with our surgeon. He told us that a lot of doctors around the world don't put their patients on a pre-op diet to shrink their livers. He said he does it with all of his patients because one time he had a patient that had binged before surgery eating all of his "one last time" foods. His liver was so big and fat that the doctor couldn't put the band on. So the guy went through surgery and recovery, but didn't get a band. That is sad. So I really left feeling like the diet wasn't as big of a deal as I thought it was. I wish I'd never gone to that stupid meeting - pre-op is now harder than ever.
 
 
My surgeon is cute - something about doctors is handsome in general. So I had a private meeting with my handsome doctor to ask him if my ginormous boobs would be a problem during the operation or during recovery. That was fun. : / He smiled and said it wouldn't be a problem. I feel a little uncomfortable with a handsome doctor opening me up. Not sure I want an unattractive doctor doing it either.
 
 
Happy Fourth of July to everybody!.
 

I started my pre-op diet (Atkins - no more than 20 grams of carbs a day) last Tuesday. It's been relatively easy. I've only had a few times that it was truly difficult. The first time was the s'mores on vacation, the other was cutting the Bluebonnet Cafe pancakes for my son, and the third was the banana bread from yesterday. I overcame all of these events because I didn't want to jeopardize my surgery.
 
Today I weighed myself on my fancy new Weight Watchers scale and I have lost 8 pounds since starting the pre-op diet! While this is good news...it's made me question whether I should go through with surgery. Maybe I should just stick it out and keep working on it...But I know myself. Honestly and thoroughly...I know myself. I can sustain a program for a while, but as soon as I get off of it...I GO WAY OFF. The band will help me monitor myself.
 
I go in to meet my surgeon tomorrow. I really hope they weigh me and are excited about my loss so far. If this loss continues, at the end of next week I should be back to where I was before I jumped off of Weight Watchers in May.
 
I am looking at everyone's before and after surgery pictures. It is very inspiring, but I have a hard time imagining myself under 200 lbs again. A REALLY hard time. It's seemed so out of reach for so long, it feels like a fantasy to let myself think about it. Like I should be laughing at myself for thinking that far ahead.
 
In OTHER good news, a friend of mine that blogs a lot is going to work with me to fancy up my page and help me make it look more appealing. I had blog envy yesterday when I looked around at a lot of other blogs. I thought this blog was going to be helping me so that I didn't talk about weight loss, weight loss surgery, or the things I'm going to do after surgery during every waking hour. To the unspoken dismay of my friends and family...it has started working yet. I'm still blabbing away!
 
I can't wait to post about tomorrow!

I started my pre-op diet (Atkins - no more than 20 grams of carbs a day) last Tuesday. It's been relatively easy. I've only had a few times that it was truly difficult. The first time was the s'mores on vacation, the other was cutting the Bluebonnet Cafe pancakes for my son, and the third was the banana bread from yesterday. I overcame all of these events because I didn't want to jeopardize my surgery.
 
Today I weighed myself on my fancy new Weight Watchers scale and I have lost 8 pounds since starting the pre-op diet! While this is good news...it's made me question whether I should go through with surgery. Maybe I should just stick it out and keep working on it...But I know myself. Honestly and thoroughly...I know myself. I can sustain a program for a while, but as soon as I get off of it...I GO WAY OFF. The band will help me monitor myself.
 
I go in to meet my surgeon tomorrow. I really hope they weigh me and are excited about my loss so far. If this loss continues, at the end of next week I should be back to where I was before I jumped off of Weight Watchers in May.
 
I am looking at everyone's before and after surgery pictures. It is very inspiring, but I have a hard time imagining myself under 200 lbs again. A REALLY hard time. It's seemed so out of reach for so long, it feels like a fantasy to let myself think about it. Like I should be laughing at myself for thinking that far ahead.
 
In OTHER good news, a friend of mine that blogs a lot is going to work with me to fancy up my page and help me make it look more appealing. I had blog envy yesterday when I looked around at a lot of other blogs. I thought this blog was going to be helping me so that I didn't talk about weight loss, weight loss surgery, or the things I'm going to do after surgery during every waking hour. To the unspoken dismay of my friends and family...it has started working yet. I'm still blabbing away!
 
I can't wait to post about tomorrow!

I started my pre-op diet (Atkins - no more than 20 grams of carbs a day) last Tuesday. It's been relatively easy. I've only had a few times that it was truly difficult. The first time was the s'mores on vacation, the other was cutting the Bluebonnet Cafe pancakes for my son, and the third was the banana bread from yesterday. I overcame all of these events because I didn't want to jeopardize my surgery.
 
Today I weighed myself on my fancy new Weight Watchers scale and I have lost 8 pounds since starting the pre-op diet! While this is good news...it's made me question whether I should go through with surgery. Maybe I should just stick it out and keep working on it...But I know myself. Honestly and thoroughly...I know myself. I can sustain a program for a while, but as soon as I get off of it...I GO WAY OFF. The band will help me monitor myself.
 
I go in to meet my surgeon tomorrow. I really hope they weigh me and are excited about my loss so far. If this loss continues, at the end of next week I should be back to where I was before I jumped off of Weight Watchers in May.
 
I am looking at everyone's before and after surgery pictures. It is very inspiring, but I have a hard time imagining myself under 200 lbs again. A REALLY hard time. It's seemed so out of reach for so long, it feels like a fantasy to let myself think about it. Like I should be laughing at myself for thinking that far ahead.
 
In OTHER good news, a friend of mine that blogs a lot is going to work with me to fancy up my page and help me make it look more appealing. I had blog envy yesterday when I looked around at a lot of other blogs. I thought this blog was going to be helping me so that I didn't talk about weight loss, weight loss surgery, or the things I'm going to do after surgery during every waking hour. To the unspoken dismay of my friends and family...it has started working yet. I'm still blabbing away!
 
I can't wait to post about tomorrow!

I started my pre-op diet (Atkins - no more than 20 grams of carbs a day) last Tuesday. It's been relatively easy. I've only had a few times that it was truly difficult. The first time was the s'mores on vacation, the other was cutting the Bluebonnet Cafe pancakes for my son, and the third was the banana bread from yesterday. I overcame all of these events because I didn't want to jeopardize my surgery.
 
Today I weighed myself on my fancy new Weight Watchers scale and I have lost 8 pounds since starting the pre-op diet! While this is good news...it's made me question whether I should go through with surgery. Maybe I should just stick it out and keep working on it...But I know myself. Honestly and thoroughly...I know myself. I can sustain a program for a while, but as soon as I get off of it...I GO WAY OFF. The band will help me monitor myself.
 
I go in to meet my surgeon tomorrow. I really hope they weigh me and are excited about my loss so far. If this loss continues, at the end of next week I should be back to where I was before I jumped off of Weight Watchers in May.
 
I am looking at everyone's before and after surgery pictures. It is very inspiring, but I have a hard time imagining myself under 200 lbs again. A REALLY hard time. It's seemed so out of reach for so long, it feels like a fantasy to let myself think about it. Like I should be laughing at myself for thinking that far ahead.
 
In OTHER good news, a friend of mine that blogs a lot is going to work with me to fancy up my page and help me make it look more appealing. I had blog envy yesterday when I looked around at a lot of other blogs. I thought this blog was going to be helping me so that I didn't talk about weight loss, weight loss surgery, or the things I'm going to do after surgery during every waking hour. To the unspoken dismay of my friends and family...it has started working yet. I'm still blabbing away!
 
I can't wait to post about tomorrow!

It's been 6 weeks since the insertion of the miracle flab fighter in my mid-section. My loyal readers know that the procedure and recuperation were a piece of cake ... oops, make that a sugar free pudding. The journey so far has been eventful and very successful. But it hasn't been easy.
 
 
I find myself a bit taken aback when I hear some high metabolism individual comment on how people that elect do to the Lap-Band are taking the "easy way out". I really started noticing it when the news of the rotund Governor Christie hit the media. Several TV talking heads decided he had the "easy way out" procedure to prepare a run for the White House. I have no idea whether Christie is running or not. Since he is a public figure, the media certainly has a right to comment on his political future. But I draw the line when they call this surgery the "easy way out." I've actually heard others make similar comments as well and it irks the H-E double hockey sticks out of me. A major weight loss undertaking is anything BUT easy, regardless of which path you choose to achieve your goal. So phooey on anyone who doesn't grasp the commitment of the motivated chubster looking to change his or her life.
 
 
I had my first monthly check up with the venerable Dr. X this past Monday. He gave me a routine vitals check and then proceeded to give me my first "fill". I laid down and he expertly poked a syringe of 1.5cc's of saline through my skin and directly into the Lap Band port. It took about 2 seconds and the pain was minimal. No biggie. Before he left the room he told me that after the fill, some patients can't eat in the morning or can't get certain foods through the band. I had no issues at all. Fact is, he put 1.5cc's in my 10cc band. I have noticed no additional restriction at all. As you all know, I pretty much haven't felt any restriction since the surgery. I got this far on my own. And no, it wasn't easy.
 
 
 
The Lap Band is just a tool to help you lose weight. Like using a crutch for a broken leg. You don't always need the crutch, but your leg won't heal properly if you don't use it correctly. I just read a story of a Bandster that found a way to cheat his band and gained a large amount of weight. I heard of a lady that had the more invasive stomach surgery, lost a ton of weight, then had the painful skin tightening surgery and then gained almost all her weight back. There are numerous stories like these. Ya can't just get weight loss surgery and sit there and wait for something to happen. If you do, you will fail.
 
 
 
It took me years to get my head in the right place to attempt this. That meant first getting it out of my over loaded backside long enough to see the light. I have to change the basic way I live my life. After 50+ years of self imposed bodily harm, that ain't easy. There are challenges and decisions to make almost every waking hour. Could I still start the day with a three egg ham 'n cheese omelet, hash browns well down, and a double order of bacon? Yup. Then go to lunch for a Portillo's chopped salad? No problem. Have a half bag of popcorn when I get home? Easy. Then have a full dinner and a touch of Ben & Jerry's? Yes and Yes! Could I still shove down most of a full size Tombstone pizza at the drop of hat? Probably. The Lap Band isn't stopping me. I'm stopping me.
 
 
 
I have made good progress since my adventure began. I will admit that just knowing the band is in me makes me think twice about anything that goes in the oral orifice located just beneath my nose. That's huge for me. The old me could eat or drink just about anything. I was the billy goat of fat asses. I made a decision to try and lose the weight of a small child. I knew it would be difficult. I knew it would be a challenge. I knew it it would take time. I also knew it wouldn't be easy.
 
 
 
More to come
 
jt
 
 
 
P.S. I got a cool new Fitbit scale that syncs with my Fitbit wristlet which syncs with the Fitbit app on my phone. Every time I step on that scale my weight is recorded on my app. It also tracks every step I take. It also has options for exercise and a food diary. I'll get to those ... eventually.
 
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TheDeconstructionOfJohnny.blogspot.com