drew05

I personally typed out my own signature except for the ticker. I got that at tickerfactory.com. It works great for me and looks pretty spiffy too. They have lots of options for you to customize your own ticker. Enjoy!

Yes ma'am 80's in March. Normal down here. People freaked last summer because it didn't hit 100 at all! Believe it or not I've never seen snow ever in my life. Went to the pool today and I remembered why so many people are so eager to jump in. It's great exercise and almost impossible to sweat doing it!

As some of you know, I have been relatively secretive about getting this procedure. Not because I'm embarrassed about it, but because I just don't think that it's most people's business. Well this evening there were some family members over and we all met at my parents house. Everyone that was there knew about it. It was like immediate family. Brothers, parents, grandmother, a few cousins. You know, close. Well I was telling my brother about my first meeting with the surgeon and he made an offhand comment about me just being lazy. And it really hurt. He's about as big as me now, but when we were younger (he's actually my younger brother. I'm the oldest of 3) he was always the skinny one. He always had a girlfriend while I struggled there. I guess it was an even exchange as I was always the popular one (our personalities are polar opposites) and I always had more friends. He's married and has two kids now, so I guess him getting bigger is just fine because he doesn't have to worry about impressing anyone or anything of that sort. It was funny to hear him make this offhanded comment about me being lazy because the rest of my family (whom wholeheartedly approve of my decision) jumped down his throat and explained to him that the lap band is a tool, not a solution. It's going to help me loose weight, not loose it for me. His response was that he lost 5 pounds this week and he thought I could do it too. I tried to explain to him that him loosing 5 pounds this week doesn't mean he's going to keep that up and that I have a lot more than 5 pounds to loose. He said he works with someone who had GBP and they were lazy and lost all this weight without doing anything. I tried to explain to him about the differences between the Lap Band and GBP. He's very stubborn though, and still told me that he thought I didn't need it. It just really got under my skin that my own brother thought that my decision to better my life is just the result of me being lazy. I'm sorry for writing a book here, but I just had to get my feelings out there and I feel like everyone here is super nice and probably some of the most understanding people I've ever met, on the internet or in real life. Thanks for hearing me out :biggrin2:

Thanks to everyone for the support. It means so much to me.

More often than not a doctor will not do a surgery on someone your age. The reasons for this are many, ranging from personal objections to legitimate medical concerns. Although I have to say I wish I could have had this procedure done earlier in my life. From the sound of it you're a big guy. I assume guy (the name), but have you ever considered getting into football or anything like that in school? Even if you get the surgery done, getting into football or even into a weight training program at school is a great way to get yourself ready mentally and physically for the changes you'll have to make. And this is coming from a guy your same height and probably your same weight. My football training and muscles I built while in football and after football are going to come in handy (they already are) as the more muscle you have, the more fat you burn. Just an idea. But welcome to the board! Make yourself at home EDIT: Just read over my post and I didn't want to come across as saying it wasn't a good idea to get the surgery. It might just be perfect for you. Just look around and find a doctor you're comfortable with and take it from there. And there are not a lot of legitimate medical concerns for teenagers getting the Lap Band as it doesn't restrict your body's absorption of Vitamins and other nutrients like GBP does. If you have any questions, feel free to PM me. I know that it can be easier to talk to another guy. And once again, welcome!

HAHAHA! This made me laugh. Good job!! These are too funny. Keep 'em coming!

Haha Allison. High 80's eh? haven't seen those since late March. That's why I'm glad my surgery isn't going to be until the fall. I won't have the temptation to jump in the pool!

The big thing is the recognition that it is not a quick fix. Once you decide to do the banding, you have all the time to psych yourself up for the mental changes. It's extremely hard to change the habits I've had since I was born, but I know that with enough willpower and motivation it can be done. The important thing is that you realize it won't be easy and that there will be obstacles, but keep your goal in mind and it'll be fine. Remember that we're gonna have a new lease on life when this is done. For you you'll be able to run around with your daughter when she grows up, and for me I'll be able to keep up with all the other students at school and not look like the odd fat kid in medical school. We all have our reasons for doing this, and this place is a great tool to help you keep your eyes on the prize!

Good job! Yeah I still need to schedule with the nutritionalist. I have my psych evaluation and my lab work tomorrow. Good luck on your appointment!

Thanks for the responses everyone. Sorry I had some early morning classes and didn't get a chance to respond sooner. All of these ideas are great. And I kind of figured it might be a jealousy thing or an insecurity thing. I'm not letting it ruin my day but it just really got to me because we grew up together and he knew very well the struggles I went through. And I REALLY like the ideas everyone gave me. I'm going to try the biggest loser one and the exercise one with him and see what he says after a few months pre band and post band. Thank you again everyone for your support. You never let me down!

OMG I can't wait for that!! Congrats!

So glad it worked out for you!! Keep us up to date

Like everyone has said, this place is an amazing help. My mom is actually considering doing this surgery with me so luckily my entire family is extremely supportive. My friends are supportive as well (the ones I have told), and many of my close friends are skinny as well. As for them not being able to understand, it's true that if they haven't been there they can't understand fully. But to say they can't understand at all is not true. My friends understand the struggles I have been through and they know why I am doing this and the effects my weight has had on my life. You just have to take all the support they give you, even if they don't truly understand the feelings you are going through. Because no one, except yourself, knows exactly what you're going through. Like I said, just take all the support you can get because we wouldn't give support if we didn't really care! :biggrin2:

Apples, I just wanted to stop in ask you to thank your son for me. I have the deepest gratitude for all of our men and women in the service and retired from the service. And best of luck with his PTSD. I hope everything gets better for him.

I use this site on my iPhone and I love it!! Good job on the mobile interface. Susan, I used a Blackberry, and I really love the iPhone. The main thing the Blackberry has over the iPhone (Push Email) is coming to the iPhone next month. So I really recommend to go to the Apple Store or the AT&T store and just try an iPhone out. See how you like it. The keyboard takes some getting used to, but now I wouldn't trade it for the world! (Oh yeah I had a Blackberry Curve)

Well I chose lap band over GBP because I guess I'm a little too knowledgeable about the whole digestive tract. I also knew someone who passed away due to complications from GBP and that REALLY turned me off of it. Lap band is just so much better for your body and helps just as much. Of course it takes a little more effort to loose the weight, but this weight loss is just as much mental as it is physical so you gotta get fit mentally too!

Like everyone here has said, going under is probably the easiest part of any surgery. As for the jitters, I've had quite a few surgeries, and I still get the jitters before any procedure. Even something as simple as blood work. But you got us here to help you out with it!

Like everyone has said, ask him why he feels you are not a good candidate for the lap band. He might have personal reservations against it. A lot of doctors won't perform some surgeries based on that. My surgeons refuse to do GBP because they feel it is too dangerous.

I am. Just jumping through all of the insurance hoops right now. At your weight and height, I don't see why they wouldn't band you. By my calculations, your BMI is sitting at about 56. It's a perfectly logical BMI to get this procedure done. But then again, I'm not a bariatric surgeon. And I'm with you. I'm doing this because I don't want parts of my intestines bypassed. Being a med student, I know all too well how dangerous GBP is.

Well how tall are you? I dunno about a minimum weight, but I'm at 360 and 6'4. So I'm close to you in weight.