atgoalgal

wishing all of you success on your journey. I'm here to help!

Hi Samantha. Welcome to banded living. I'm 4 years out and maintaining. I spend a lot of time paying it forward. I'm here to help. Your doctor probably already told you that the shoulder pain is common, and as someone already said on this thread the best thing to do is walk. There is a lot to learn, but my best advice is to take your time, work with your doctors office and learn from other patients like you are doing here! I also have a blog (see my signature below) where I share my experiences and tips. Several surgical practices have begun recommending it as a support resource. I hope you find some useful ideas there. Congrats on takinging charge of your health!

I think we are all different but I definitely fell into this camp. I needed to read everything I could get my hands on, including technical papers because that's who I am and I need data. There's a lot more available now than when I was banded 4 years ago. Books, blogs and web sites are now great sources of information. I also have a blog that many people are finding is a useful source of inspiration and information (just took a peek at Catherines - great job!) I'm sure I still bore my husband and kids when I talk about my band and banded living, but I have to say chosing to have my band and learning how to work this tool is one of the best decisions I ever made. It's great that we have communities where can get support from each other.

Welcome, we are here to help and support you on your journey. Many of us pondered WLS for years before making a decision. I'm in my 4th year, and maintainining a normal, healthy weight for over 2 years. Ask away. Also you may want to check out my blog (in my signature); it has lots of information and ral life experience that you may find helpful.

Many of you have seen my success story or follow my blog. I'm in my 4th year of banded living and have been maintaining a normal, healthy weight for about 2 1/2 years now - that is something I had almost given up on. I spend a lot of time paying it forward now. When I meet someone who is either exploring surgery, preparing for surgery or newly banded, I usually ask what are your goals in terms of health, weight loss and quality of life? I recently blogged about my own goals and thought it was worth starting a thread here. Back in 2006, if you’d ask my husband, the decision to have LAP-BAND® surgery was all about my health. If you asked me, and IF I was really honest, my health was at the top of my list, but how I felt about myself, my quality of life was a close second. So, what were my goals in terms of health, weight and quality of life? In terms of health: I was experiencing fatigue. Walking up a single flight of stairs left me short of breath; I’d recently had a stress fracture on my foot, I had back, hip and knee pain, so severe that at times I missed work, and regularly took pain relievers and muscle relaxers. My goal was to improve my cardiovascular health, minimize the damage to my muscular-skeletal system, and avoid diabetes and heart disease. My father died at 65 of heart disease. I wanted to live a long, healthy life. In terms of weight: I could be happy if I got to 173, and maintained that. I wanted to go lower, but I knew I felt good and good about myself at 173. I had a vivid image of myself in a blue pencil skirt and red angora sweater, yes I felt good about myself at 173, if only I could stay there… (I made it to 145, and am maintaining!!) In terms of quality of life: I had a great life but obesity was “my cross to bear.” I wanted to gain confidence; I wanted to be comfortable living in my body. I wanted to know what it felt like to have a normal body. I wanted to hike and bike with my kids. I wanted my kids to be proud of me – I didn’t want them to be embarrassed by their fat mother. I wanted to feel strong and sexy. I wanted to have energy at the end of the day. So, at the beginning of my journey I set my goals, and hoped and prayed that this time it would be different. And it was different (to learn more about my journey, please visit my blog at http://www.gloriasbandedliving.com ) So for those of you on this pre-op forum, what are your goals in terms of: 1) Health 2) Weight 3) Quality of Life

Dear TKmdhi, Who to tell and who not to tell is a VERY personal decision. There is no right or wrong here. I was very in the closet about my surgery; only my husband and a few close friends knew for years. My children were young when I was banded so I didn't explain it to them,although they knew I had an operation on "my tummy". My advice is to think hard about this, stare at the pros and cons. If there is anyone who knows you and your girls well who you can talk to about this, talk it through. If I had teenage girls, I'm pretty sure I would have told them, but that's me, and I need to be very open at home. If you do choose to tell them, you may want to help them get educated and become part of the process. It can help alleviate some of their fears. Deciding who to tell, who not to tell, and the impact of YOUR surgery on loved ones are areas I also cover pretty extensively on my blog - check out the video interviews for those topics. Let me know what you decide. I'm happy to help.

My mentor who is in her 6th year and maintaining a 250 lb weigth loss was a high BMI patient. There are pros and cons, and it;s important to be well educated. She's active here on LBT. You can learn a lot by checking our her blog atSandi's Banded Living — My Lapband Weight Loss Success Story.

I am in my 4th year and maintaining a normal healthy weight for over 2 years. Chosing a lap band was one of the best decisions I ever made. I struggled with my decision band vs. bypass. There is a lot of information about this on my blog (see the link in my signature at the bottom of this post) The results for band vs. bypass at 3 years and beyond are on the lap-band manufacturers site as part of a welll controlled study. I also reference this study on my blog site. As band patients, we have to work harder early on, and we lose slower. It is really worth understanding what you need to do to work this tool, and honestly assessing what you will need to do to be successful. For me, most of the diets I ever tried worked, I just wasn't able to stay with them. For me, my lap band made all the difference. Good luck with your decision!

Different practices have different pre-op requirements and different insurance plans have different requirements for who they will cover. What I am wondering is what were you approved for? Did your insurance company say they would pay for the surgery? Did your doctor say you are medically cleared? Those can be different things. You may want to check with your surgeon's office and ask them to walk you through all the steps that you need to go through before actually having surgery, including insurance approval (assuming you are NOT cash pay), medical clearance including all pre-op testing they require, psych clearance, nutrtional counseling, any pre-op classes required. As an additional resource, my mentor and I are successful long-term lap band patients with 10 years of combined experience working this amazing. We have blog sites that have a lot of useful information (see the link in my signature below). Let me know what you find out.

Hi, Glad you found us. It sounds like you are doing great. I was banded in 2006, and have been maintaining for over 2 years. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you on your journey.

I'm 4 years out and mainitaining my normal, healthy weight for over 2 years. I love banded living; it helped me find this normal, strong healthy body to live the rest of my life in. For that, I'm very grateful and so I spend a lot of time paying it forward. It is really common for those closest to us to be really nervous. Are you planing on bringing your husband to your appointment? I did an interview with my long-term mentor about the 7 Things We Wish Someone Told Us Before Lap Band surgery. One of those things was don't underestimate the impact of your surgery on those closest to you. To get the interview, you can follow this link. Banded Living Audios & Videos Currently Available Please let me know if it helps, or if you have any other questions. Good luck!

Let us know how the appointment went today. I'm in my 4th year and maintaining a normal healthy weight for over years now, loving banded living, and have worked really hard to learn to work this tool. I blogged a lot about my early journey - you may find it helpful. You can get to my blog site from my signature below. No here is an important question: what are you goals in terms of health, weight and quality of life. Do youfeel you have a good understanding of what it is going to take to achieve those goals?

Hi Trinity, welcome. Your story sounds like the story of so many of us. If it helps, I'm here to tell you that I'm on my 4th year, I've been maintaining a normal healthy weight for more than 2 years, it's hard work and I love banded living!!! Now to your questions: who to tell and not to tell. This is a really personal decision, one that only you can make. The only thing Iknow for sure is that once you tell, you can't take it back. Your husband may have a point of view on this also. I chose to stay "in the closet" for years - if you're interested you can read all about that on my blog, and watch my video (address is in my signature), and only told my husband and a few close friends. In retrospect I just wasn't ready to be watch, and judged, and I'm sure there was a part of me that was afraid of publicly failing at long-term weight loss one more time. I'm NOT a private person, so it was hard for me to keep it a secret, but it was the right thing for me at the time. I am nw very public about my journey. when should you tell your employer . You do not have an obligation to tell you employer. For example you can say you are taking time off to deal with a medical issue. You can tell them you are having surgery if you choose. You do not have to say what kind. That is up to you. Pre-op Diet. My doctor did not require me to go on the 2 week preop diet; I know it can be difficult, but people do it. Spicy Foods. spicy foods are NOT a problem for me, but we are all different. Most people I know tolerate spicy foods just fine. PBing, stuck etc. consider this a form of behavior modification, and you don't want it to happen too often. PBing is a "prodcutive burp" - it means you've eaten too much and as you burp, some food comes up. You get stuck by eating too much too quickly and not chewing thoroughly enough or by eating foods that don't work well for you. By learning to use your tool by eating small portions, chewing really well, eating the right (tasty) foods, you should be able to learn the signals to avoid this from happeinging too frequently. When it happens, it is your band's way of telling you, that you are doing somethig wron. Let me know if this helps. I love paying it forward.

Please help me understand what exactly you are feeling, and when? Have you discussed what you are feeling with your doctor?

Hi to all you newly banded folks on this board and welcome to banded living! Just wanted to congratulate you all for making this decision to take charge of your health, I made that decision 4 years ago and it was one of the best decisions I ever made in my life. I've now been mainitaining a normal weight for over 2 years. Many of my goals were quality of life goals, like sjacen who started this thread. I'm living proof that if you work this tool, I've even set and reached new goals that I never thought could be possible. I'm here to provide support and answer any questions you have. I also have a blog documenting my journey including tips that I've learned along the way. The link is in my signature. Would love to have you guys on this thread as followers. I hope you find it useful. It's my way of paying it forward.

I'm sure you know that if there is something unusual that you are concerned about, you should never be afraid to call your doctor, so please call your doctor. Eating while laying down can cause problems, which it sounds like you already know. Also you may be irritated and may need to try liquids or soft foods for a day or 2, or the meds could be causing a problem. Still, I would call your doctor. Let us know how you're doing.

Hi Pam, Thanks so much. You made my day. Did you sign up for regular emails (kind of like inspiration and information sent to your inbox, to cheer you on your own journey. I really appreciate the kind words. How was the seminar. What did you learn? Any surprises?

HI Michelle, I suspected you had done your homework over the years. Good for you. BTW, I'm still hoping for that magic wand someday, but for now I LOVE my band! Lots of people here to help and cheer you along!:frown:

wow, this is fast. Given how quickly this is happening, I have to ask: do you understand that this is a tool, and you have to work it. You probably heard that it'ss not a magic wand, that being said, getting my band was one of the best decisons I've ever made in my life. I'm 4 years out, maintaining my goal weight for over 21 years, and have a blog with lots of information that might be useful in helping you prepare for surgery and get the most from your tool. You can find the link in my signature below. I hae info there including tips on how to prepare for surgery. Please let me know if helps.

If you don't get any recommendations here, I would consider going on the ASMBS www.asmbs.org and looking for doctors there as a starting point. You may also want to talk with your primary care doctor, and or cardiologist and ask around for a lap band only support group in your area. They can be great resources who are familiar with your medical history. As a long-term patient I'd be happy to answer any questions about how the tool works and what you need to do to work the tool. Good luck

welcome back to banded living. We're all here to help and cheer you on! I was banded in 2006, and it's clear that there is just so much more we now know about how to work the tool. You were a real pioneer in 2003. I'm here to help!

Just wanted to thank you for taking the high road. I also think it's important that we deal with facts. Will start a thread with the data later today. I wish everyone the best on your own journeys.

Hi everyone. It's offical, I can't keep up with everyone. Last night before bed I read through the last few days of posts. It's great to see what everyone is up to, what you are trying and dealing with and all those new milestones - woohoo! More rain in New England today. It's time for the ark! Anyway I've decided it's time to work a little harder to get into the lower end of my weight range for the spring/summer, so I could use you guys to help cheer me on. I'm journaling and using my "don't eat with your hands challenge" (I put it up on my blog as a challenge). So yesterday, what I noticed, is that despite being tired, and fighting off a bug, I bought the kids popcorn at the movies and I did not eat one kernel of movie popcorn; one kernel is never the problem; it's how one leads to half the bag... Instead I planned and brought a protein drink, which seemed to help with my enrgery and resilience. I hope everyone has a great day.

Thought I stop by and share my perspective as someone in my 4th year who is loving banded living, and grateful that I have this tool that I've learned to use to achieve and maintain something that always eluded me, a normal healthy weight. I think most of us shared similar fears pre-op. What I can say is that my only regret about being banded is that I wasn't banded earlier. This is a journey. It may help to focus on your goals, very specifically. Why are you doing this? Have your writtten down your goals in terms of health, weight loss and quality of life. Also if you haven't done this already, try to find the courage to take a head on full length before picture. You'll really treasure that picture a year from now, especially when people start telling you that never looked like the person in that picture. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help. Good luck on your journey.