Is it too early? Please help.

[holly369 0]

BTW, one other thing. I haven't had any problems to speak of but I was having some pain. I realized I wasn't taking enough of the pain medicine my doctor gave me. It was liquid loritab. I was taking a tablespoon of it but a tablespoon from the drawer is not the same as a real measured tablespoon. My tablespoon only added up to 1/2 tablespoon. So be sure and measure your liquid loritab. Once I fixed that problem, I was fine. Today is day 3 and I'm really feeling lots better, the soreness is wearing off and I haven't had much other problems. Tolerating what they want me to have and no hunger.

Good Luck, hope it all works out for you. Stay healthy as you are at 26.

h

[holly369 0]

I'm sorry, one other thing, my operating nurse told me even a newer procedure is coming out. Some kind of balloon they put into your stomach. Sounds like an even easier procedure to me but I don't know what exactly it is. It may require less surgery or no surgery. He said it lasts for six months and then I guess they take it out and put another one in? Not really sure. You might research that one too.

[holly369 0]

I found some information here.

StomaphyX , Bariatric Surgery, Safest Weight Loss Surgery, Dr. Bagnato, Albany Georgia

[Daisalana 33]

Holly, that's not new.. well maybe in US it is. I saw someone else post that they tried that before the band (in some other country).

[gkeyt 0]

I guess I'm asking, what people REALLY eat with the band? Everyone here seems to be behind some denail that they only eat what the doctor orders. I find it hard to believe that we all just "gave up" foods that we enjoyed one day. I love to go to lunch with my co-workers and socialize, but I feel that I will have to ditch that if I go thru with this.

Am I to believe with as little I will be eating after the band, that even if I get full on chinese food, I wont loose weight? Am I to believe that the band will still work in 10-20 years? I hear its "lifelong", but does anyone here truly believe that? You all truly believe that in 40 years, the band will still work and that its essential to your life?

I'm 26, I weight 280, and I'm 5'11". I'm happy now. Will this truly make me happier? I see people use this icon a lot :whoo:. That person looks really unhappy. Why would anyone do that?

I keep getting mixed information. Doctor says "only good foods", family says "as long as you're not drinking your cals, or eating pudding or anything easy to pass". Which is it? I'm going nuts.

Answer as truthful as possible because the replies in this post will determine if I go thru with it, or cancel on Monday.

Thank you.

Hi Justin,

Here's the truth as I see it: The band alone will not do it. Some people are able to just eat less and eat the same foods they were eating before and lose weight, but they seem to be the exception, and more importantly, since they are eating so much less, eating the same junk food as before will result in malnutrition. You are going to be eating a very small amount of food compared to pre-banded life, and that food needs to have enough nutrition to keep you going. It sounds like your current diet isn't that nutrient dense, so if you cut to about 25-50% of the amount you eat now, you'll get even less nutrition.

It seems the people who think the band alone will do everything, without making changes on their part as well, are the unhappy ones who frequently get stuck, PB, throw up a lot, or else they don't lose weight. Of course there are exceptions, but that's been my observation. If you aren't prepared to make changes to WHAT you eat as well as HOW MUCH you eat (and HOW you eat as well) then this isn't a good time for lap band surgery. It's not a magic bullet. It takes a lot of work to make it work. If you feel you can commit to learning how to feed your body so it gets what it needs, no more and no less, then the lap band is a great tool. If not, I don't think you are going to be happy.

To answer your other questions: Yes, you can get full on Chinese food (which is loaded with fat and sodium) and you may or may not lose weight, but a diet like that, long term, will result in malnutrition. If you don't exercise along with the weight loss, you will lose lean muscle mass instead of fat. And no, losing weight won't MAKE you happy. Only you can make you happy. Being thin is not a guarantee of happiness, and being banded is not a guarantee of being thin, either. You can be happy and obese, lots of people are. You can be miserable and thin, lots of people are that too. Your happiness depends on a lot more than your weight, and if you are counting on the band to make you happy, it will probably disappoint you. If, on the other hand, you are ready to start figuring out how be happy with yourself, and how to treat your body with respect by feeding it what it wants and needs to be nourished, and exercise to keep it healthy, you might find yourself very happy after the lap band. This can be the start of a very fulfilling journey, but only if you own your part of the work.

Good luck with your decision! I wish you the best.

[princesstracey 1]

Hi Justin-

Im 27, and probably one of the happiest people you will ever meet-I have wonderful friends, wonderful job that I love, a great family, a house, everything I would want! I didn't do the surgery just to loose weight-I did it to help me to learn how to eat properly and love my body and treat it better. I know that some of the weight will come off just by 'eating less' but some will have to be worked myself, and I am ready.

Think hard about it-you are the only one who can make the decision for you-Tracey

[steph_co 9]

I wanted to chip in about the question about eating "normal" food. Yes - I eat normal food. I eat a lot less and generally make healthier choices. But to give you a "for instance," my DH's kids are staying with us and we had cinnamon rolls the other morning. I ate half of a cinnamon roll. "Bad" food? Yes, in my mind. But if I don't allow myself to indulge occasionally, I'll go crazy and eat more of something I shouldn't. We plan to make better food choices for the kids when they come back this next summer - we're making a house cleaning now and not buying that stuff again.

But I will say, if I go to an event or a party or something, I most likely won't abstain from EVERYTHING. I'll just do my best to make better choices and eat LESS. Normal people eat like that. They don't obsess and fill their diet with the bad stuff, and they don't eat tons of it. It's an occasional taste now and again. Even with the "bad" stuff, I still keep under 900 calories per day and actually, closer to less than 700. I just plan ahead and choose wisely. The band makes it a lot easier.

[Kat817 19]

Justin, I think at this point, you know the decision is ultimately yours. The question I have is concerning your health.

Do you have a family history of weight related health issues? If so, the earlier you deal with it, the better off you will be. It is good that you are mentally ok with yourself at the weight you are---I was the same weight basically (289) and an inch shorter---I was not ok with it, either physically nor emotionally. But the point is, whether you accept yourself or not at this weight, the additional weight is not good for your health. It leads to many things----high blood pressure, diabetes, sleep apnea-------many many health issues.

I know you enjoy the foods you listed, most of us did, many of us still do, in moderation. If given a choice of changing things up concerning my diet, or shooting myself full of insulin every day, I would prefer the dietary changes! And if that is something in your family, the time to deal with it is now, whether that be through banding or through a serious diet attempt.

Gwen (gkeyt) mentioned that to be banded and eat only the foods you listed would result in malnourishment--which is true, but it will now as well. When you are banded it is more important to eat a healthy balance, simply because you eat so much less.

I did not change my diet, I eat what I did before. I have changed small things, in an effort to be more healthy, not simply for the weight loss.

Are your Aunt & Uncle sugar coating it? Who knows, every single persons experience is different! My sister in law and I were banded the same day by the same Dr. For the first 9 months, I lost steadily, on 2 fills, she had numerous fills and unfills, and lost only about 25 pounds. Then about the time I slowed down to a steady, slow loss, hers kicked in, and she dropped 60 pounds in a hurry, but she also began having complications----she is now at goal, and I am slowly trudging along behind her making it to mine as well. At any point through my journey with the band, if someone were to have ask me, I would have been a band cheerleader, I love it!! It has given me a new lease on life! But there were days, weeks, my SIL said she was having hers removed, she was miserable--but now she too has hit a happy point.....it all depends on the person, and sometimes even the time of day you ask that person!

The band is something that often times will work, even if you don't, especially if your weight problem centers around portion sizes. If your problem is sweets, and eating inappropriate foods--then it is going to take you working with it usually for it to maximize the possibilities.

Did your pre op require a psych evaluation? Not saying you are mental--I swear!!! Just wondering if any of these feelings of not especially wanting to change at all come out in it, and what the Dr, thought.

Good Luck in making the right decision for you!

Just don't forget to take the overall health aspect into thought. It is not all about how we look, and even how we feel right now today---but the weight is horrible on our health, and you have a long life ahead of you--------one I personally would bet you could enjoy much more with 80 pounds gone. Just my opinion!!! I know I do...

Kat

[Longhorn 1]

Speaking strictly about weight loss (and not other health issues, fear of surgery, etc.), I don't think the only consideration is whether Justin can lose the weight another way. We've all done that! How many times do we have to prove it? How many people do we know who have lost weight and kept it off?

I didn't choose the band just to lose weight but to keep it off. I lost 70 pounds four years ago and fought like hell to keep it off to no avail. If the band was just another way to lose weight without the capability of helping me avoid the regain, I wouldn't have chosen it.

I think they should allow people to get the band the first time they're overweight (certainly if they're in the obese or morbidly obese category) and they should allow people to get the band who are have lost weight another way, just to keep from gaining it back. Why waste all those years when we have something like a 5 percent chance of keeping it off?

I envy the young people who have been banded and will not have to go through what most of we older folks have endured! :clap2:

[Anyalee 0]

Longhorn- where did you get that graph? I want to use that too! I love it...

[luluc 6]

Hey Justin - Did you go through w/the surgery? Love to hear back what you decided.