Kellster

Hi Dionna, yes I sure am a Texans fan woohoo! I'm born n raised in Cali but am NOT a fan of the Raiders or the Rams (I'm from LA area) and didn't want to jump on the Charger bandwagon. I can't wait until post-band when I can buy a women's-size jersey for the first time ever!

In all of the discussions and conversations and recommendations I have seen, they all point to one simple key to success - following the rules your doctor gives you. There are so many questions I have now, and I'm sure I will have more and more the closer I get to getting banded, and especially afterward. I'm glad we have this support forum to bounce things off of one another and see what's out there. Thank you, Love, for sharing your experience. I think there are some unfortunate individual situations where there are complications or little weight-loss, but those seem to be the exception, not the rule. All I know is, I want this as a tool to help me actually get the weight off - for GOOD! And during my weight loss I want to address how I got to be overweight, the mental/emotional reasons, and how I can learn and grow in order to keep it off forever. And you can bet that I'm gonna be following whatever rules my doc gives me... going through surgery is not easy, and I don't want to take any chances!

You know, I think for some of our friends that may not be as supportive, they may feel as though they are losing their security blanket. I have been lucky so far because I have shared with my immediate family and close friends and 98% of them have been overjoyed for me. One friend hasn't known me very long so doesn't quite understand my frustration and struggle with weight, so I forgive her hesitation there. But there is one of my friends who is severly overweight, more so than me, and she is very resistant to it right now. I talked about this with our mutual friends and they mentioned that it was likely because she was afraid that I would get to a healthy weight and she would be left as the only fat friend, without her "security blanket" of me as the other fat friend. With you heading toward your healthy weight, she might be left out there being overweight without any friend to cushion the judgement and frustration she has with her own weight. In any case - it is your own personal choice, and you may have to have that conversation with her (and others) to say thank you for your concern, but I have decided to move forward with this and would appreciate your support. Sometimes just calling them out and laying it on the table makes it all better. Good luck!