new here...terrrified

[paul atreides 0]

hey everyone...my name is paul

im about 300 pounds...22 year old college student...i met someone a few months ago who had this surgery and she said it turned her lfie around

since then, ive been playing around with the idea, ive looked on a few forums and gotten so far as calling my insurance company, but then wind up chickening out...especially when i read about some of the risks

i have severe anxiety and depression issues, but im tired of being some fat pos that everyone makes fun of

i love eating, i dont exercise at all, im a computer person so my time is spent mostly sittin here

i want to change all that without losing who i am...but im just like terrified of the whole process

i have no idea if my insurance will cover this, every time i walk into the damn building (harvard vanguard medical center) i come out with a 250 dollar bill that im told is a deductible i really dont have the money to go and make all these appointments and talk to doctors

im sorta a wuss...i mean i guess everyone is to some degree, but after the surgery how much did everything hurt?

i uh...read somewhere some guy had to get a catheter like you know, shoved up his commander, so to speak, is that like...a common thing? as much as i hate being fat, thats something along the line of a deal breaker

how long after the surgery on average would a person be out of commission?

what are some of the changes you have to make post op - lifestyle and diet? i love sweets and soda and fried foods, do you have to give those up?

whats this liquid diet ive been hearing about?

are the risks really bad? im not talking about like death but like, ive read about the possibility of the band slipping, or crazy infections?

whats it like post op? do you not feel hungry anymore? can you like feel your insides as being different?

im sorry i know im asking a lot of questions all in one post and this might not even be the right section for it but uh if someone could help...it would be so appreciated...

[mjo3393 0]

Hi Paul, It is very common to have some fear and anxity, and you should be asking a lot of questions., it is a huge step to take. I first have to say you really need to be ready to change your lifestlye, so yes you are going to have to give up soda, fried foods, and start moving. That not to say you can't treat yourself once in awhile, but once you see the weight start coming off your not going to want to eat junk again. As for the liquid diet that all depends on your doctor, as for me I only had to do a liquid diet for 2weeks after surgery then I was on mussy food for 2week, no pre-op diet for me, but every doctor is different. For the surgery, it is magor surgery, no walk in the park, I have to say the first 3days were hell. I had really bad gas pain, and slept on the couch sitting up for about a week, but let me tell you it has all been worth it. I had my surgery done May 13th and I have lost 25pds so far, I love my band. I find I no longer want the big portion I was able to eat. I eat off a salad plate, no seconds and very satisfied. You have to be ready for a change. Your lap band is a tool, you still need to watch what you eat, portions, and get moving, the band helps me stay focused. Just yesterday someone at work told me wow you are going to need new scrubs soon, and a patient just today ask me if I had lost weight, and my husband keeps telling me I'm looking good, and that feels amazing. My best advice would be go talk to a doctor and you have to do this for you. Best of luck.

[Dave_NW 92]

hey everyone...my name is paul

im about 300 pounds...22 year old college student...i met someone a few months ago who had this surgery and she said it turned her lfie around

since then, ive been playing around with the idea, ive looked on a few forums and gotten so far as calling my insurance company, but then wind up chickening out...especially when i read about some of the risks

i have severe anxiety and depression issues, but im tired of being some fat pos that everyone makes fun of

i love eating, i dont exercise at all, im a computer person so my time is spent mostly sittin here

i want to change all that without losing who i am...but im just like terrified of the whole process

i have no idea if my insurance will cover this, every time i walk into the damn building (harvard vanguard medical center) i come out with a 250 dollar bill that im told is a deductible i really dont have the money to go and make all these appointments and talk to doctors

im sorta a wuss...i mean i guess everyone is to some degree, but after the surgery how much did everything hurt?

i uh...read somewhere some guy had to get a catheter like you know, shoved up his commander, so to speak, is that like...a common thing? as much as i hate being fat, thats something along the line of a deal breaker

how long after the surgery on average would a person be out of commission?

what are some of the changes you have to make post op - lifestyle and diet? i love sweets and soda and fried foods, do you have to give those up?

whats this liquid diet ive been hearing about?

are the risks really bad? im not talking about like death but like, ive read about the possibility of the band slipping, or crazy infections?

whats it like post op? do you not feel hungry anymore? can you like feel your insides as being different?

im sorry i know im asking a lot of questions all in one post and this might not even be the right section for it but uh if someone could help...it would be so appreciated...

Hi Paul. Welcome aboard. Your fears and questions are mostly normal for someone who is just starting to look into banding as a possible option. The very best thing you can do is read everything you can find about it, filter out the obvious things that don't apply to you, and then get down to the basics of what banding will and won't do for you. Then you can decide for yourself if this is something you want to do.

The band is not a magic bullet. If you're lazy, want to do nothing to assist in your weight loss, and expect it to carry you along, you WILL be disappointed. Like any good tool, you need to learn how to manage it. The more knowledge and experience you have, the better prepared you will be to get the most from it, and the best possible results. So expect to have to get out of your chair and exercise a bit, plan that you'll have to learn how to eat proper, nutritious food, and know that your weight loss is your responsibility. You'll get out of it what you put into it.

As for your other fears, consider that there are THOUSANDS of people who have band surgery every year. Of those, a relative handful have problems, and that group is the people who post on forums like this one. The vast majority of bandsters have no issues, and are out living their lives without complaint. Take the complaints you read of with a huge grain of salt, because some people just like to complain, or they freak out because they haven't done any research, and they think since they had surgery three days ago they should have lost fifty pounds by now. (I'm being facetious, but you get the point - keep it in perspective.)

The liquid Protein diet is no big deal. As part of my daily diet I drink Protein shakes that taste like chocolate milk. But I eat regular food in moderate amounts the rest of the time. Yes, during my surgery they inserted a catheter. They took it out within an hour or so after I was out of recovery. I was unconscious when they put it in, it didn't hurt being in, it stung when they pulled it out, but the pain immediately went away. After I could pee normally they let me go home from the hospital. Some guys have issues with that because of the anaesthetic used in surgery turns off the bladder muscles for awhile. But within a day or two I was back to normal. It was collectively no big deal.

There are adjustments required for every new bandster, as they get used to having the band placed, as they heal from surgery, and they learn how to live with the band. It takes work to stay focused on the steps required, but let me tell you - the results are SO completely worth it! If I ever have to give up my band it's going to have to be cut out of my cold, dead body. I'm never going back to what I used to be.

I started this journey at 320 pounds. Now, just under eight months later, I weigh 212. That's 108 pounds gone for good! I started this wearing size 3X and 4X shirts. Now, XL shirts are getting to be a bit big. I started this wearing 44-46 inch waist pants. I'm currently wearing 34 inch waist pants. When was the last time you wore an XL shirt or 34 waist pants? I'll bet it's been awhile, right?

So relax, stop worrying about things that are non-issues, and study up on whether banding is the right choice for you. If you decide to move forward, there are plenty of people here who have already walked down the road ahead of you, who are willing to lend you a helping hand.

Good luck!

Dave

[Allison0927 329]

i think you only do the cathetar if you stay overnight - and the majority of people are outpatient -no cathetar - i was only in the hospital about 5 hours - no prob. No real pain either - just gas pain - but tolerable. You can find out your coverage without having to go to a dr. - just call your insurer. Best of luck to you!

[Mason33 0]

It's better if you do this while you are young and able to heal quicker and before you gain more weight making it even more difficult to get the lap band. Most of the problems from the lap band come from people being non-compliant with the doctors orders. The doc will probably put you on a liquid diet 1-2 weeks before surgery to help shrink the liver so he can get to the stomach easier. Then you will be on another liquid diet 1-2 weeks after surgery to let the stomach heal. The 2nd & 3rd weeks you eat soft/mushy food and then introduce solids starting the 4th week. As far as what you can or cannot have anymore, pop/carbonation is definitely out, some people have problems with breads and pastas. And the whole point in getting the lap band is to lose weight but if you keep choosing the wrong foods you won't be successful. In my doctors office they say that you "Eat to Live" not "Live to Eat".

I am 3 days post op. The pain feels like it does after you do a 100 stomach crunches. You can also get gas pains and burp a lot due to the air that they put into your belly during surgery. But those will both subside eventually. The liquid diet pre op consisted of Protein Drinks, sugar free Jello, sugar free pudding, carnation instant breakfast, creamed/lowfat Soups and sugar free popsicles. The first day of surgery I was starving but I haven't had much of an appetite since then. You do have to learn to take small sips of Fluid and when you start eating again you have to take very small bites and chew and chew and chew. I hope that this can answer some of your questions. Just do a lot of reasearch because ultimately the decision to do or not to do this is yours only. Good luck:)

[paul atreides 0]

thanks a lot everyone for all the comments, i really really appreciate it

i called my insurance provider in a heap of bravery lol...i got told what i needed to know, no coverage unless youre considered "morbidly obese" so i guess my next step is to wander down to the hospital and get a primary care physician who can make that determination

ive dieted and exercised for a while, i didnt find eating mostly healthy to be too awful (although im kind of addicted to pepsi, thats going to be rough)

honestly the whole catheter thing is right up there among greatest fears, along with insects and a day with justin beiber if id have to crawl home in a thunderstorm to avoid that and pee myself the whole way ill do that :/

for the liquid diet thing, did you find yourself to be like hungry during that time?

except for coffee ive never really found any liquid to be a replacement for food

do they give you painkillers after the surgery for the pain?

thats so good that all you lost so much weight, i definitely need to read more about the good stuff build up the ole confidence reserves

[sweetpea61956 6]

ok Paul, here is the deal, I wish I had done this YEARS ago. I am 55 years old and 5'2", I started at 304 lbs when I started seeing my nutritionist in February. I had surgery on 5-26-11. I had to stay overnight because of an insurance requirement. I didn't have a catheter. I was up and walking the halls within 30 minutes of being in my room. I am now at about 253.

I had some gas pains but nothing really bad or at least not to me. You move a little slower the first week or so but still it wasn't any worse for me than trying to walk around the grocery store 50 lbs ago. I stopped all sugar in February. I cut back on my diet sodas and now have 1 or 2 a day, but I drink LOTS of Water..today alone, I have already had 88 ounces. I eat anything I want, just less of them. I haven't had Pasta yet, but only because I haven't wanted it.

As Dave said, this is not a magic bullet, you have to work on it and really want to lose the weight and keep it off. I had high blood pressure, sleep apnea, reflux, and was pre-diabetic. The only medication I take now are my Vitamins and Calcium.

I go to Water aerobics twice a week, other than that...I pretty much sit at a desk all day...now, I know I will have to up my exercise soon, but the more weight I lose the more I FEEL like doing.

My suggestion to you is..go to a seminar, and if they have support groups, go to meetings.. meet people that have had it done. Like many have said, each doctor is different so the pre-op diet is different. After surgery for probably the first week, you may not even feel hungry.

Keep us posted and good luck!

[Snoopyloverny 3]

Ha, I knew two things that would sparks someones Interest to post back to you! Your catheter fear and ur love of crappy foods!

Look man, u have to b ready for this , 110%, if not don't do it but let me tell u it won't get any easier the longer you wait because when u hit 30 your body goes to the dump ! Meaning everything slows down! U r young, do it now while u can bc you willfeel so much better. It's not as bad as getting a vasectomy( that's a 3 day pain from what I know), a catheter is no big deal. They have to monitor your urine output.

Junkfood, I love it that the band has a mindof it's own! You will find out what u can and can not tolerate, most likely I hate to tell ya- your sugar foods are going to be history! Just as intense as your craving for that stuff is- your intensity has to be to eat healthy. If u don't think u can do it then don't waste a surgeons time bc u have to be willing to follow the Dr rules for it to work. U have to be willing to get up and move, fall in love with exercising not the candy or fried foods!!!!! We are here to help you, we want the best for you and your health. You mighthear some hard facts but it's all for your best I interest. U gotta get REAL

w/ this! Only u can make the ultimate decision! Stoplilling yourself with those fried foods, soda, and candy! MAKE THE CHOICE TO LIVE !!!!!!

[Snoopyloverny 3]

That last sentence was Spose to be stop killing yourself ...

[aroundthetown 8]

Hi Paul,

1) I stayed overnight at Beth Israel and I DID NOT have to get a cath.

(which is where I went BTW, and maybe you're from Boston or New England, cuz your post SCREAMS Beantown to me)

2) I walked out of the hospital the next day on my own, with my very own bottle of morphine. (I'm allergic to percs, dilauted, and vicodin.)

3) The surgery was more painful than I imagined, but less painful than getting hit by a mac truck!

4) If you have the surgery, you can have carbonated anything ever again. At least not with the doctor that I have. So no beer or soda for me. BUT I can still have a capecodder when I want to drink so that's not so bad.

5) If your a lazy POS before the surgery you *might* change when you start to loose weight. Like, if you feel like crap at 300 lbs, of course your not going to enjoy taking the stairs instead of the elevator. However you might not feel like that when you are 250. You *might* feel good enough to try to start to incorporate more activity. Try standing while you are working on the computer. Then try moving in place while on the computer. Just some things that have worked for me.

6) Fried foods have a ton of calories, and no, we "shouldn't" eat them. BUT, that being said, the lap band allows you to have a little of the food you like and not overeat. Honestly, when was the last time you ordered a pizza and didn't eat the whole thing by the next day at lunch time? I had ONE slice last night and felt like I had thanksgiving dinner!!! AND I lost a pound!

7) I have a deductible. 2K. Awful, right? and I'm an asshat. I went to the dr for the first time in NOVEMBER. I ended up paying hundreds of dollars last year towards my deductible, and because I needed to wait 6 months to have my surgery, I ended up paying AGAIN this year. Don't do what I did. Start now with the doctors and have your surgery before dec. 31! Save some cash!

Good luck!!!

[paul atreides 0]

haha yes, i am in boston...right down the street from all beth isreal, and all of them...

i dont drink alcohol at all so that wont be an issue for me, but if giving up soda is what it takes then so be it

that sucks, completely sucks about the deductible...mine is a whole lot less then that, but being a college student im not very wealthy, its definitely something im gonna have to be careful with

and i dont care what their excuse is catheters make it deal breaker

[aroundthetown 8]

Nailed it!!! The soda reference sold me. Everyone else seems to call it "pop". I go to school on the fenway. F'n hate the traffic on longwood. Especially since I live in the burbs and have to commute in for the dr and school. you're luck to be so close!

If you do go to BI, they probably won't cath you, they didn't for me. Though, I am a lady. I have no idea if that makes any difference. I went pee IMMEDIATELY before the surgery. They liked that. You should do that too. And not to be a downer, but if you stay 300 lbs, you'll more likely than not be hospitalized for something pretty serious in the near future. At that point they'll probably invade your commander and you won't have any say over it at all. If you have the surgery, you might prevent a lifetime of bad health and hospitalizations, and insulin injections etc. Also, you'll have better and or probably more sex. so, IMHO, being cathed should be less of a deal breaker, and more of g*Dmnit that sucks bump in the road.

Oh yeah and I hear you about the broke college student thing. I can honestly tell you though, that you will re-coup all expenses from this surgery when you stop doing take out and cook for yourself. Even on the liquid diet you will be spending soooo much less on food. And when I say cook for yourself, I don't mean you'll have to turn into Julia Childs, I just mean a lean cuisine is 2 bucks, and Anna's Taqueria is $7. And a lean cuisine will fill you up, so you won't be starving after it.

MMMMM Anna's. WANNNNNNT.

Anyways, now that I'm drooling, I'm going to bed. Wish me sweet burrito dreams!

Good luck on your journey, and hopefully I'll be hearing from you soon

[paul atreides 0]

hahah you know, i cant say that being a female you couldnt appreciate the stark existential horror of a catheter, given the fact that females can give birth (or so ive heard) but like without getting into too much detail wow it just literally sounds like the most horrifying thing that can happen. guys back me up?

pop...yes, thats so freakin weird >< ive always identified soda by what it is like coke...pepsi...sprite, maybe im just weird xD

i go to school right on the e line, and live near brigham circle, constantly hear ambulances going by to those hospitals, its not as nice as you might think

i could care less about the sex, i could care less about the health, ive just reached a point where i would rather not be disgusting to my allegedly fellow human beings. as for the julia childs thing, well, i went to cooking school for 2 years in high school >< im better then her i made these wonderful pork chops tonight... one of my specialties is chicken cutlets, or as an extension of that, chicken parm, be sad giving that up but if thats what it takes....

night, thanks for the kind words, and all the advice from everyone

[Cindy C 150]

There should be absolutely no reason to have to catheterize for a lapband surgery. If it makes you feel better, though, there are more than one kind of catheter. The one that you are talking about is a Foley. There are also condom catheters. Its just a condom with a hole in the end that a tube fits into. It's no different that slipping on a Trojan!

Call your lapband center and ask for the person that handles insurance. They should be able to let you know what's covered. Just understand this journey requires complete commitment in order to succeed. You are going to have to change your habits.

Don't worry about the pain. It's really minimal. In fact its far less than the pain of being ostracized because of your weight.

One more thing and this is very important for you to understand....YOU ARE NOT A POS!!!!!

[minniekitty 44]

I heard that catheters cause the worst pain a man can have. When my dad was in the hospital, he called them "spears".

I'm probably not really adding to the thread, though...

You shouldn't let the fear of catheters get in the way of considering Lap-Band surgery- a small price to pay for a happier life. You'll probably be drugged up in happy land if they put one in you.

I'm getting the band on August 12, and all sorts of fears are running through my mind. I just have to focus on the bigger picture, and so do you! It'll be all worth it