OregonHolly

Woo hoo - lets get this party started! I'm scheduled for surgery Oct 8th! I'm in the middle of all the testing now, and don't expect any problems, plus I'm self pay. My fee includes 16 weeks membership at our local gym, which I thought was cool. The AP band as well, thank goodness. Where are you located? Holly

Hi Elena, and congratulations! I was in Athens last October, on holiday. What a beautiful part of the world to live in, I envy you! There was so much wonderful food there in Greece, I think if I lived there I'd have a hard time being banded! Ah the bread! Hey at least you have really good yogurt there (how I miss it!) as compared to the crap we have in the States - thin runny stuff. Hopefully you can still eat your yogurt and honey! You know when I was planning my trip to Greece I thought "only in America do all the men expect women to be rail-thin; in Greece they will all love my round curves!" but I was disappointed to find that wasn't true. The worship of "thin" is all over the world now. There were so many slender GORGEOUS women in Greece, all wearing such beautiful jewelry, looking so glamorous and sophisticated........ I felt like a fat lady there too. It's sad isn't it? Well I 'm so glad you posted, and hope you'll post often! Holly in Oregon, USA

Thank you girls for inspiring the rest of us! And congratulations on your courage and determination. Strong, strong women - pat yourselves on the back.

Hi MissyKatz, and welcome! You'll love this board, so check it often. You took the first step, and it gets pretty intense in terms of "appointments" before the actual surgery. I am still pre-band myself and have all those appts scheduled: surgeon, psychiatrist, nutritionist, exercise physiologist, education day, and just went to support group. My head is spinning a little, but I'm determined to go forward! Glad to have you sharing the journey! Holly in Oregon

Hi Vicki, how are you feeling today? Looks like it's been a few days now. How is it going? Remember to take it easy and heal right now. It's not about weight loss yet :-) Let us know how you are feeling, ok? Holly

What baffles me about the "starvation mode" debate is this: if starvation mode were a "reality" then why are there skinny anorexics? Lets face it, their bodies aren't holding on to ANY fat.

TIM!!!! You're really doing it! God Bless You, and your surgeon's hands, and we're all cheering for you. Thank you for documenting your journey and taking your laptop to Mexico, you're the man! So proud of you, and really up here rooting for you so much. Talk to you soon! Holly

Hi Sherry, I think it's fun to sit in front of the TV and lick the cheesy powder off the Doritos, but really now......ewwww. I was on a weight loss program "back in the day" where they made you eat in front of a mirror at every session you came to. They made you eat big old gobs of food and watch your fat self in a MIRROR! Yeah, it was not pretty trust me. I'm a girl, but I'm gonna tell myself "MAN up!" and quit being a wimp! Ice cream is for sissies! I admire your 40 lb weight loss and looking forward to watching your weight plummet now. Get a ticker on your signature line! Ok mine hasn't moved because I'm pre-band still and in the "last supper" phase. Ewwwww. I want to be like you and make a conscious decision to turn it around and go in the right direction. Rock on sister!

I heard the new AP band wasn't FDA approved in the USA. Is that right, anyone know? Anyway, good luck and keep us posted!

Hi Pirick, that's an interesting name! We all share you struggle. What a drag it is to be burdened with extra weight that slows you down and makes your body hurt. Dieting just makes us fatter, because it's not something we can do for life. Sure the band requires some lifestyle changes too (and we all weren't too successful at making those in the past, right?) but many people have "success" stories here after getting banded, even if they'd failed on every diet known to man. We just have to make the decision to be in the "winner" corner. Welcome and glad to meet you! Look forward to your posts :-) Oh and as you noticed, using the "edit" feature just makes your posts come out in greek, but we could still read yours!

Hi Mike and welcome aboard! In the States we have the same ignorant insurance companies. I'll be paying the whole amount too. I figure I'll earn it back by living longer and having more time to work. Although if I look awesome and feel awesome, I'd rather play than work! Oh well, keep us posted on your journey and again: welcome!

OMG this topic is serious, but lighthearted at the same time. "Moobs" I hadn't heard that label before, that made me crack up, OK sorry I know it's a serious issue. Anyway, I think there may be some hormonal component or it may be all weight, but ask your doc. I don't think I notice a guy with man boobs that much, but I'm a girl so I don't focus on boobs frankly. It think it's a guy-to-guy thing. Like us girls, we notice when a girl has nasty toenails, but do guys notice really? I doubt it. Don't head trip over it. Oh and since you brought it up Tim, I think weed just leads to the munchies, probably should be one of the post-band "rules", like no carbonated drinks. Disclaimer: weed at your own risk! Ask your doc about weight and man boobs, versus getting your hormone levels checked. Did your dad have them? May be a genetic fat storage issue.

Hmmm I thought she was my imagination - my fantasy of how easygoing life will be when I'm done revolving my life around my weight. If there were a thought bubble over her head, what do you see it saying? To me it says "I used to be fat, yup, but now I'm so hot the men are lined up taking a number just to call me. Thank God for the band." What do you think she's saying?

I say AMEN to that Jack. Lets leave the DISORDER behind. Great idea. Jadrad7, at first I thought "but there's so many people on the board who have the band and are struggling - what's the difference between that and just dieting? Why band at all?" but you know, I have to realize that EVERYONE on the board has failed at dieting, and yet MANY on the board are doing FANTASTIC, with changed lives. That makes it a statistical probability that we can succeed, that most will. Dieting without a tool, was just dieting. Apparently those who dieted during their "pre band insurance diet" didn't lose enough weight to say "woo hoo, I don't need the band, I'm cured!" We need the band. Period. Then we move forward and don't look back. We keep taking the next step in the right direction and keep doing the next right thing. That's all we need to do, just make our very next decision (like "hmmm, what's for dinner?" or "twinkies or half an egg?") the right decision. One decision at a time. Just one. I'm giving you the high five and glad to be sharing the journey with you, and will all the fine folks on the board.

I just ordered a book from Amazon called The Food and Feelings Workbook: A Full Course Meal on Emotional Health by Karen R. Koenig. It was published in Jan 2007, so it's pretty current. After I read it I will post on it's usefullness. I wondered if anyone else had tried any books or workbooks to help deal with "head hunger" and emotional eating triggers? Being "full" physically won't stop me from wanting food to feel better (better=comfort) but if I don't get that monkey off my back, I may as well not even get a lap band. :frusty: (Yup, I'm pre-band stage.) Any words of wisdom or suggestions for further reading? Thanks Holly:ranger:

Hi Tim, I'm waiting until I can get a week off work in October. Meanwhile I'm reading and learning here! I'm in the pre-op testing phase, you know, psychologist, etc. It kind of feels like jumping off a cliff. "Here we gooooooooooooo!" and hoping you don't splat at the bottom. I know the band won't turn me into some exercise-diva who loves organic food but I think it will help me tame my appetite, while I work my @$$ off doing the rest of the work. Gotta stay positive! I'll be looking for your postop posts! Holly

Yup Tim, your metabolism is faster. It slows down as you age. Of course you have to help - you have to get up and move (exercise) and get away from the TV/XBox etc. I think you will do great, we'll all be cheering for you! I wish I was 19 doing this.

Jadrad, I feel for you. I am in the "pre-band" stage, and of course your experience is what I fear most. Remember your energy and enthusiasm when you were pre-band? You have to recapture some of that. Are you attending any support groups? Keep on this board daily. Climb back into the saddle! By reading this message board I found out that the band will not solve all my problems. (A bit of a letdown, gosh that magic bullet thing is so desirable.) I already know that I suck at self-discipline; if I were self disciplined I'd be thin already. So I have to think of the band as my partner in this, but we both have to participate to make it work. The band helps curb my ravenous appetite and I do the rest. Yikes! If it were second-nature to exercise with enthusiasm, pass up ice cream and candy, etc., we'd have never needed the band in the first place -- we'd have been "skinny" gals, no band required. It is a little of a disappointment that the band won't solve this difficult problem and life challenge, it won't change our true natures. One would think that having such a low caloric intake after getting the band would certainly result in lasting weight loss. It seems our bodies adjust to it though, perhaps slowing the metabolism to prevent starvation. It's a powerful tool though - and worth your effort to do your part....... make wiser choices in the kitchen, and get your body moving again. From reading the boards, I have learned that our relationship with the band is like a partnership. It is a relationship that requires work and recommittment all the time. Have you made those partnerships with other people - your husband or kids or dear friends? I know you have. So make one with your band too. Renew your committment. Prepare yourself for the journey. Everyone has great ideas here for you! We all want to see you succeed. Try each suggestion and then hold yourself accountable to those who posted for you; write back and let them know if it helped. Shame and self-pity are your worst enemies. You must banish them! Psalm 30:5 says "Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning." Don't give up. Holly

Kathy, I'm an RN and I can tell you that you will NEVER change a surgeon! You can speak up, but I doubt you'll even get a sincere apology. You're right, it's arrogant, rude, and even bad business practice. But if he's "good" at his craft, patients will wait and wait to see him, and he knows it. If he wasn't a busy surgeon you'd get right in on time. What you could tell the LapBand coordinator (did you have one?) is that it would have been nice had they warned you in advance that you'll be cooling your jets for hours in the hospital before the surgery is actually performed. You'll never change the doctor, but maybe you can change the pre-op teaching the surgery center does. Good luck!

Hey Tim, welcome aboard! I live in the Pacific Northwest too :-) I'll be thinking of you this Sunday and saying a little prayer for ya. I can't wait to watch you track your progress, you'll do great! I'm a newbie too, and glad to meet you. Some challenging days are ahead but there is definitely LIGHT at the end of the tunnel this time! Seems that there is some diet modifications that bandsters have to make, but more tolerable after the band, and the weight will stay off, and not sneak back like usual. So the effort will be worth it! Congratulations on your courage and your decision!

For the anesthesia they knock you completely "out". Not like twilight sleep, or spinal/epidural. They can't do a spinal/epidural type because they're working so high up in your abdomen, around your diaphragm which you need for breathing after you wake up, they don't want it to go "numb" and not work like your legs were after a spinal. The carpal tunnel surgery was quick, so the twilight sleep was OK. This surgery takes longer, so you need to be "out" all the way. I know, it's scary. You're putting your life in the hands of the anestesiologist, but hey - it's what they do every day, no biggie to them.

Hi Darragha, and congratulations on your decision! I wouldn't start a diet before the consultation, just go as you are. Think how awesome you feel in March 2008, wearing clothes you actually like and look hot in, confident and energized! Rock on girl!

Cherrybomb: (fabulous name by the way)..... Jack's advice is great. Did you see the Movie "9 1/2 weeks" with Mickey Rourke and Kim Basinger? It's this sexy film where this couple (who barely know each other) play sex games with food. At least that's all I remember about it, although I'm sure there's a bigger plot line, haha! I think he blindfolded her and fed her all these different textures and flavors until she was moaning with pleasure and begging for it (the food, not the other "it"). All this sensual pleasure over these little tastes of food! You get the idea. But sometimes, as they say in AA "one is never enough, and a thousand is too many"........ so that might hold true for tastes of your favorite ice cream. You have to see which works better for you. I think I would watch the "live surgery" of the banding procedure you can find on this website. I did and I was thinking "OH, that's why we're supposed to shrink our liver first, and THAT's why we don't want to barf and slip our band, etc." All the real footage in living color really made it sink in. Next time you're hungry, try watching that! Also get out of the house! Get angry at those urges! Just get out the front door and walk away from the house, big angry stomps around the yard even. Damn that food, it will NOT cause you to fail! You are WOMAN- now ROAR! You're soooooooooo close to a fill. Don't cause a band slip now! Your surgical site is still healing, don't screw it up!

Hip, I think a huge amount of inner turmoil is to be expected when you make a decision to change your way of eating forever. All big life-changing decisions make our heads spin for awhile -- as they should. It shows that we still love ourselves enough to protect ourselves from harm (and failure). What is your gut,,,,,er, sorry haha........Instincts saying? If you're like me you have the "angel" on one shoulder saying "yes yes, you'll succeed, you'll get the help you need, you deserve this, you're not alone, you're strong!" and then there's the DEVIL on the other shoulder snickering "yah right loser! Another diet scheme huh? That's right, throw some more money down the drain! I love to see your hopes get smashed!" So the real question is: who will you listen to? Which voice is your fear talking? Which one is your higher self that loves and nurtures you? Which voice will you allow to have control over your life? Will you keep posting and seeking out the support you need, and offering support to others in need? Or will you go back to your pizza and Burger King and super sized Coke and isolate yourself? You need us Hip, and we need you. Don't let fear keep you from living the life God intended for you. ((hugs)) Holly PS what is your surgery date?

Well said Jack, eloquently said. I'm cutting and pasting your entry into my personal "help and encouragement" file to read during those difficult days; I've saved lots of excellent posts to read over and over. Yours was empowering.