When in doubt there are signs to let you know

[loserbob 11]

Im Bob, Im 38 years old. Im having my surgery on March 3rd. I doubt this decision every minute of every day. I wonder why my life has come to such a drastic crossroad! My life revolves around food.(Im fairly healthy,high blood pressure/treated with medication, sleep apnea/treated with c-pap). When Im eating Breakfast Im thinking about lunch and so on. Im a self-employed plumber, I schedule my jobs(locations/times) around resuraunts in certain areas. I feel like this is my last resort, basically ive given up on the usual "diet". Im so nervous about the whole procedure because I have no idea what to expect. Every day I think of reasons not to go through with it. But I see what I believe are "signs" telling me I should do this. The first sign should have been when my mother had a heart attack in 1998. The second should have been when my mother died in 2004 (At a young age). In 2007 my dad had open heart surgery. I have a bad family history, as you can see. and I feel like Im finally catching onto signs(not saying god had my mother die to give me a sign). When I turned my EKG over to bariatric surgeon, her office called to inform me they required me to see cardiologist. What a scare, Im sitting in cardiologist waiting room with people in wheelchairs in their 70s-80s thinking how Im to young to be worrying about this. I scheduled a customer for yesterday(Feb 16), he told me on the phone that he cant do plumbing or anything physical because he had heart problems. I pictured in my head that he was probably in his 70s. When i got to his house he started talking about his heart problems. He is 52, had 6 heart surgeries and he said he was near the end!!! I told him of my plans to do surgery to prevent problems. He agreed it might be good idea. He started telling me how he probably wont live to see his grandkids let alone get to know them(Im tearing up reading this because I frequently think how this could be me, I feel like im looking at myself in a few years if I dont do this now). Possibly not being here for my wife and kids. It was like a clear message to me that I need to do this. Sorry for the long cheesy post. It wasnt meant to be this long. Im sure alot of people have similar thoughts. this just shows what overweight people go through, drastic measures(surgery), and where happy for the most part to have these procedures so we dont have feelings like this. Only an overweight person would understand. Thanks, and good luck.

[LeighaMason 19]

Bob, I think you are 100% right. That is why I did it. I was low BMI but still in my mind, if I continue to gain 10 lbs a year I will be sorry when I am older. I hope you are as happy with your decision as I am with mine.

[btrieger 21]

Bob, here's a wake up call. If you are morbidly obese, have hypertension, sleep apnea and a family history of heart disease; you are not fairly healthy.

I thought the same way up until I had a heart attack 3 days before my 45th birthday. Yep, mom and dad dieing weren't enough of a kick in the ass for me.

You may be in denial but you are moving in the right direction. Knowing and admitting the problem is a huge step to resolving it.

You don't need to conquer everything all at once. I started by eating all of the same things but cutting my portions by 25%. Then I started replacing certain foods with healthier ones a couple at a time.

March 3rd is 2 weeks away and surgery will change your life. Hopefully for the better.

I'm getting banded the day before you and we can whine to each other about how painful it is or laugh about how good the painkillers are.

[Humming Bird 275]

It is taking drastic measures, but sometimes drastic measures need to be taken.

I for one am happy I took the leap.

[makailu72 0]

Hi Bob - get on the blogs some more between now and surgery date. there are some really awesome posts on here about what people have experienced and went through after surgery to lose weight. I start the process of getting approved Monday and I am praying that everything goes through. Coming from someone who has been on almost every diet known to man since 1989...I'm where you are, tired of dieting - tired of constantly losing then gaining it all back...tired of not being the best, healthiest I can be. Be excited that you are taking control of your life and doing something that will not only benefit your activities of daily living, but your family's as well. I will say a prayer for you. God Bless you and good luck - PS...keep us posted! :confused:

[darkangel 0]

All the same signs are flashing in front of my eyes ...everyday....

my surgery is march 24th...and Im thinking all the same things you are....Im scared ...nurvous.... but greatful to be getting this gift soon.... Its nice to hear that Im not the only one having doubts........ good luck on march 3rd... :confused:

[LarraineM 6]

You are getting ready to do the best thing in the world for both yourself and your family. That is my mantra too

[tiane2317 0]

I think you are doing the right thing! I am 27 years old, and morbidly obese. I was banded on December 23, and have nothing but great things to say about it. It does take a few months to get used to it, and you still have to be conscious of what you eat and when, but it is a piece of the puzzle. I was fortunate enough to have a healthy pregnancy despite being 350 pounds, and having a family history of every weight related problem you can think of. I am so glad I did the surgery, I've lost almost 30 pounds since the surgery, and i've only had 1 adjustment. I look at my son, and everyday I know I made the right decision. I hope your surgery goes well & know that you are making an investment in the future for you and your family.

[Startingoverat50 3]

I know this seems like such a drastic step now, but once you have been banded it just becomes a way of life. I was banded last May and have lost almost 70 pounds. I am just one pound away from being under 200 pounds for the first time in twenty years. My health problems haven't disappeared totally but they are greatly improved. I am so much more active, exercise regularly and just plain feel so much healthier. My family is constantly telling me how strong I am, how they couldn't do what I have done. I just don't get it. The lapband has made this journey so much easier. I could never do this on my own. All I can think when they say that to me is I am so lucky to have had this surgery. It is saving my life so that I can get to know my grandchildren. I am not any stronger than anybody else. I just have a wonderful tool that is helping me along every day. I am going to get to my goal weight and continue to use this tool to help me maintain that weight.

[lacarolina 0]

Just to let you know that I understand. I wish you all the best with all of the things you need to do to make your life better/healthier. I'll be thinking of you.

[theknewme 0]

:redface:I'm new to and am being banded May 25th! This is a good thing & I can't wait to have it done and I'm not scared....it's my 2nd chance at life! Focus on what your new life will bring not what you'll be missing out on! Good luck my friend

[loserbob 11]

I keep trying to think about my "new life", thats really what keeps me from backing out. Its just so hard to imagine my new life actually happening because nothing else has. All the ups and downs of dieting over the years kind of leave you with no hope. And the main issue here is, right now the lifestyle that got me here is the only one I know. In my head I keep thinking to myself,"I know the Lapband is forever but I cant believe its going to last inside me forever. I see, probably at least 1-2 more surgeries in my future for band replacements. Or maybe something better comes along in the near future. In Pittsburgh, actually my hospital is doing an experimental outpatient procedure where they put a deflated "balloon" into your stomach and inflate it to take up "space" so you dont eat as much. They interviewed 1 patient who said he lost (i believe) 35# in 2-3 months. I believe they said it will be temporary(6-months), basically to teach proper portion size. And how to eat. My bariatric dr. also said the reason most "obese" people cant diet successfully is because when your obese for a long period thats what the chemical makeup of your body is used too. Your body will lose for a couple weeks but the chemical makeup of your body from being obese fights weightloss because its not used to the change. Therefore we have the unsuccessful yo-yo dieting which is bad for your health. Believe it or not I am upbeat and excited, I do believe Ill be successfull. Success to me is 1-becoming healthy. 2- losingapproximately 80-100#. 3-wearing any clothes I want to and gaining back some of the confidence Ive lost. Thanks again and sorry for rambling on.

[loserbob 11]

Btrieger, my surgery date was moved to March 10th. That really bites. As nervous as I am, I was geared up for it,to get it over with but now I have to start again. The Bodybug sounds interesting, I might look into it when I can scrape together $250.00.

[pickles123 0]

Bob: Good luck!! I hope you have great success.

Just wondering if you checked out all the different WLS.

I have the band and it is harder than I thought. I wish I had gotten the sleeve; but, I don't think I would have had the nerve to do it.

There is a lot of information out there. Just make sure you know all your options.

You will do great no matter what surgery you select. You sound like you have the motivation.

Keep us posted!!

[loserbob 11]

Ya, I definitely would not do bypass. Nothing against it, just not for me. way too extreme!