What was your "That's it" Moment?

[TracyNYC 4]

I had been toying with getting the band for about a year and was doing half-hearted research and such for a while. Last June I had a BBQ for my friends from school and of course we took pics. I put them on my snap-fish account. I was scrolling through the thumb-nail sized pics and came across a picture of a very round person and said to myself "Who is that round roly-poly?". Imagine my horror when I enlarged the pic and saw it was me! Now, I knew I was faaaat, but had never seen the way my body had become round all the way around.. and that folks was my "THAT"S IT" moment!

Consult in July, Surgery in October and down about 35 lbs. today!

[Cingulus 0]

I went to Rochesters Big and Tall and I barley fit in their largest suit, size 60 coat. When you out grow the fattest clothes at the fat store...it is time.

Shaun

[LapNYC 3]

When I was talking about my athletic career (way back when) and I could see that people couldn't even conceive of me in that way. I was a fabulous athlete. I swear! Although that was a lifetime ago. That was one. The other was when I was on a bus (NYC public bus) with my three kids and a woman told me to get up because I was taking up more than one seat. She was an idiot and there were plenty of seats on the bus, but I didn't want me girls to hear that sort of thing, right or wrong.

[jre1974 0]

I had a similar "That's it" moment, when I took my kids to the amusement park and was not able to ride any of the rides because i didn't fit in the seats with all the safety belts and bars they've got on those things now....That and when we got home I was already a bit upset with myself and then I looked at some of the pics my wife took and had the same reaction to my pictures...That was it for me, I knew I had to do something...

[OnTheWay to Thin 0]

Mine was due to my knees. I had been having shots under the knee caps every 6 mos for a couple years, all due to arthritis which was ugly due to my weight. The shots were a series of 3 shots each 1 week apart. The last series I had caused my leg to swell up so bad I could not walk for 2 days, that scared the pants off of me. About the same time a friend mentioned that she just found our our insurance covered obesity surgery.. The wheels started turning and I made my decision pretty quickly. I am down 60 lbs and have not had a shot in my knee in over a year. I am taking 1/2 my arthritis medicine and think with another 20 lbs I can do down to occasional aleve as needed.

[JJLaw08 4]

I have only been overweight for 5 years, but I knew I had a problem with food ever since I graduated high school and quit playing sports. I also have to be a bridesmaid in my cousin's October wedding :frown:. I want to look better than I did at my brother's wedding a couple years back.

[TracyNYC 4]

Thanks for sharing. I know there is never '1' thing that prompts such a step, but was curious as to how people arrived at their decision.

[btrieger 21]

I had been researching WLS for a few years but it was a midlife crisis with my 45th birthday approaching that prompted me to get the process started.

Exactly a week after my first consult, I had a couple of "minor" heart attacks and that point I knew it was the right decision at the right time.

[Divamom1970 0]

I've had quite of few of the looking at pics and thinking omg who is that whale....oh wait that's me!!! I have often said I have reverse anorexia.....I look in the mirror and think I look great!!!! I didn't have a lot of motivation, I have a man who adores me at any size, awesome kids, great friends, and a lifestyle that wouldn't need me to thin and my Dr once said I was the healthiest fat person he cared for. And then I was able to check off two things off my "bucket list" go to New Orleans and go to Vegas.......both were fantastic trips that I know would have been mindblowing if I were in better shape physically to keep up........that was my ok That's it.....I'm doing it!!!!

And I can't wait to go back

[AnneGG 0]

Mine has been gradual rather than a single "Aha!" moment; at this point it is mainly health, though vanity plays some part. I'm just sick of being fat and all that comes with it- self-esteem issues, embarrassment, being so out of shape, etc., etc., etc....Ugh!!!!

[Bree99 1]

A cousin of mine came to visit. I hadn't seen her in a year and instead of her usual fat self, she looked fantastic. She was at a perfect, healthy weight. She'd been banded. I had always said WLS was not for me. But now I began to seriously consider the possibility. My cousin is 8 years younger than me and I thought of what it would have been like to lived the last eight years looking and feeling my best. My husband and I soon left on a long vacation and I spent all of that time deciding if I should have the surgery. In the end I had to honestly say that I could lose the weight on my own, but I had no confidence I would ever keep it off. When I got home I began my 6 month insurance required supervised diet. I am 2 months post-op and thrilled with my decision.

[sil 0]

ditto jre1974.years ago when my family went to the amusement park.it was a long line.we got in the seat an the latch,or buckle would not snap close.talking about embrassement,i had to get out of the ride an ocourse i played it off.(someone else can take my ride)the line was long everyone was looking.so if the ground could have open up that moment,that was before i knew about weight loss surgery.what a life saver for me.i had highblood pressure,high cholesteral,an diabetes.

[adagray 1]

I had just regained all the weight it took me 2.5 years on Weight Watchers to lose. For all the effort and time it took me to lose that weight, the most I ever lost was 50 pounds. And, I gained it all back in about 10 months. My scale hit my WW starting weight the same month (December '08) that was my mom's bandiversary and I found out she had lost 100 pounds.

I immediately started researching my medical coverage, surgeons, went to a seminar, requesting all my old medical records for insurance. During '09, I did the 6 month diet required by my insurance and was denied twice.

By the second denial, I had pretty much decided to wait until January '10 because the only thing holding me back from meeting their criteria is because I fell below the needed BMI when I had been on WW.

Then, in October of '09 my doctor put me on meds for high cholesterol and I was told I was prediabetic. This is all on top of having chronic high bp and sleep apnea. I felt like my body was falling apart and I couldn't wait it out until January. So, I wrote a second appeal and this one was approved. Woohoo!!!

I called my surgeon's office to get scheduled and when they called me back, they gave me my surgery date which would be December 17, 2009 (my mom had her surgery on December 17, 2007 so exactly two years after my mom). I'm following in good footsteps.

BTW, my surgeon stopped taking Aetna as of this January. I am so so glad I pushed through and got the surgery last year!!!

Edited March 13, 2010 by adagray

[bandaide 1]

My ah ha that's it moment: I was leaning against the wall at work waiting on the restroom when an individual who worked in a similar area came up and said "being pregnant sucks, you have to go alllllll the time" I looked at her to see how far along she was and to my suprise.....she was talking about me!!!! I politely replied 'I wouldn't know'. She tried to apologize but I was so offended that I just went into the restroom an cried! I was hurt, embarassed and pissed all at the same time!! =[ that was it for me!!!!!

[Bull Moose 0]

Mine was after I trained 12 weeks and ran a half marathon and weighed more than I did when I started training - for the third time in a year.

I finally got the picture that intake was the problem rather than the output.