Trying to decide if Lap Band is for me....

[kh99900 0]

My endocrinologist is after me to do lap band surgery. He won't put me on metformin for insulin resistance but surgery with general anesthesia is okay??? This confuses me a bit, but I am looking into it.

So I've been reading up on it and I am signed up for a seminar on October 7. I have some questions that I hope you folks can answer. Because as I am reading all about Lap Band, the surgery, the dieting, all these things...it seems way way harder than even the hardest diet I've ever been on. Granted, I never seem to be able to stay on a diet that actually helps me lose weight (they are always so severe and hard to maintain) so this is why I am now asking this question.

I am 46, done having children, and have 130 lbs to lose. I currently weigh 285 and am 5'10. This puts me at a BMI of almost 41. I see that a 40 BMI seems to be the lower industry standard cutoff for surgery. although certain doctors/clinics take it lower. I saw a clinic's website in Dallas that takes people as low as 27, which seemed very low to me.

So I started thinking. Obviously I know I can lose 20 lbs. So that would lower my BMI and then I wouldn't qualify for the surgery any more. So then what?

Another question: how long does this process take? It seems there is a lot involved and I seem to be getting the impression that it takes months from starting this process until you actually get the surgery?? And then you still actually have to lose the weight. Wouldn't it be faster just to buckle down and lose the weight without the surgery (if you can). But obviously I haven't done that yet and that's why I'm looking into this.

So my third question: it seems like the way you have to eat post-op is extremely restrictive. Not only do you have to eat diet food, but you also have to avoid all KINDS of foods that you would normally be able to eat on a diet. So why is this better than just dieting?

As you can tell, I am very conflicted about this idea. I am reading that it helps people, but why? If you have the resolve to actually go through surgery to lose weight, wouldn't that same resolve be exactly what you need to be on a diet for months and months?

Question #4: I read on a site that if you are a sweets person, Lap Band probably will not help you. I love sweets. Will I fail at this if I do the surgery because of my love of sweets?

Question #5: I am reading that people are on some kind of a liquid diet pre-op....what is that about? How long does that go on?

Sorry I have so many questions...I have read a lot and have not seen any answers to these questions.

Also: I am asking all these questions sincerely and really want to know the answers. I am not being at all critical of lap band surgery...I just want to figure out WHY people get it, what makes it helpful, and if I myself should really have it as well.

Thanks so much for your help.

[RestlessMonkey 7]

Wow. How different. My PCM told me if I didn't so something PRONTO he was putting me on diabetic meds. I'd rather almost anything than be diabetic. You may find this book helpful "Weight Loss Surgery with the Adjustable Gastric Band" by Dr Robert Sewell.

The more "austere" diet-type eating is during weight loss. Once you've hit your "goal" weight you'll eat mostly what you used to; just way way less. You will have to chew things well. You will have to avoid carbonated beverages of any type. (although some drink them and just deal with the gas it causes...but it can be dangerous to your band) You can "eat around the band" by eating things like milkshakes Cookies and candy because they "go down" easily and don't make you feel full.

If you are happy at your weight and don't want to lose and don't mind being prediabetic (because that's what "insulin resistance" is) then don't bother....it's a tool for weight loss and maintenance...if you don't want to do that, then there's no need to research....just find a new doc who will prescribe the meds for you!

(Don't EVER do an elective surgery unless YOU want it!)

[Jodi_620 37]

LOL, I agree RestlessMonkey: how different. I was on Metformin for Insulin Resistance (PCOS) and that is just one of the reasons for getting the surgery to to get off the meds which were not working so well after six years...it has only been a little over three months and I am already off the Metformin!

1.) My BMI was 41. Losing enough weight to not qualify still would mean that you were overweight. And keeping it off with IR will be very hard, it was for me.

2.) From the time I made my decision to have the surgery to the time I was on the operating table was around one month. I had surgery just over 3 months ago and have lost almost 45 pounds. There is no way that I could be at this point on my own in such a short time.

3.)There is nothing I can not eat with the band. I choose to watch carbs but we are allowed to eat anything we want, just a lot less. And with the band you feel full on a lot less. Of course since you are eating a lot less you need to make sure you eat your healthy foods first to avoid malnutrition. And by the time you eat your Protein and your veggies you will probably find that there is no room for the not-so-healthy foods.

4.)If you are a sweets person you can still succeed but that is up to you to work on that addiction. But even with dieting on your own, not having your goodies would still be a struggle. With IR we crave those sweets but it is not in your head it is a physical "need" for sweets due to the IR. We can fight this though, I am proof of that. During the pre-op diet you may be put on a high Protein low to no carb diet. With IR, that diet is HELL! (It's not so easy without IR either :-) But by the end of that time you will have gotten the carb cravings out of your system. Stick with it and the sweet cravings will be kept at bay, understand that if you eat bread, Pasta, sugar etc. you will bring the cravings right back. It sucks that we can't have the stuff but it is a fact of life and we need to accept it first and foremost. I do eat low carb wrap bread or a very small portion of potato every once in a while but I do not have this stuff in my diet on a daily basis. There are plenty of sugar free options out there to replace the sugar too.

5.) The liquid pre-op diet is different for everyone it will depend on your doctor. Mine was two weeks prior to surgery. I could only have Liquid Protein like broth, Protein shakes etc. The purpose is not for weight loss but to prepare your liver for surgery. The liver is in front of the stomach and must be moved in order to place the band. If it is surrounded in fat the surgery may become risky or impossible, RestlessMonkey can attest to that. Any time you diet, the first place you lose fat is around the liver. A Liquid Protein diet helps to get the fat off the liver the fastest. Post op you would probably also be on liquids then proceed slowly to puree then to solids. The purpose of the post-op diet is to allow healing.

Please feel free to ask all the questions you want. I like to see someone who wants to reasearch this before making their decision. Too many people jump into this thinking the band is some kind of magic wand that takes no effort on their part.

Edited September 11, 2008 by Jodi_620

[terilynn112 1]

I never even had to do a special diet. I just had to loose 5% of my weight... which for me was 13 pounds. I lost 27. I too have PCOS, endometriosis, diabetes, fibromyalgia. ETC! I'll be banded tuesday. It's funny, having been practicing the serving sizes we're allowed post op, I've actually gotten to where that's what I am satisfied at. But am hungry an hour later. The band helps with that. I gave up sweets. That was hard, and soda too! But I did it. And trust me if I can anyone can.

Teri

[neverB4 2]

I won't go into this very specifically but I'll share my own battles with you. I have been overweight through all my important yrs...grade school up thru high school, marraige, up to age 40. I did Adipex, lost 60lbs only to gain it back...Weight Watchers, lost 75lbs five yrs ago, only to slowly gain it back. I decided the lap band because even though I knew i could lose when I wanted to, I still needed to retrain my mind and stomach on proper portion controls. WW did workt he best, was very easy to do...but only the 1st time. For these past 5yrs, I kept "trying" to get back on track. I kept rejoining WW with friends...but when it came to writing down how many pts, etc, I would fail. There was nothing there but a piece of paper to do this retraining. For me, that wasn't enough. My whole life was devoted to the taste of food. I needed something more drastic, more physically there to help me. So far, so good. I was self-pay so the process went real quick. No regrets at present.

[Tess415 1]

I hope you find some answers helpful.

How long does this process take? It seems there is a lot involved and I seem to be getting the impression that it takes months from starting this process until you actually get the surgery?? And then you still actually have to lose the weight. Wouldn't it be faster just to buckle down and lose the weight without the surgery (if you can). But obviously I haven't done that yet and that's why I'm looking into this. For me, I have lost several hundreds of pounds over and over and over again. I just couldn't keep it off and make that life style change. I wasn't going to try one more diet without another tool to keep me from ballooning back up when I got off track. From start to finish it was 7 months form seminar to surgery. I used this time to practice lapband eating, and deal with my unhealthy stress/emotional eating issues, and develop healthier coping skills. I even hired a life coach to help me with these issues. I started an exercise program and stuck with it.

Question: it seems like the way you have to eat post-op is extremely restrictive. Not only do you have to eat diet food, but you also have to avoid all KINDS of foods that you would normally be able to eat on a diet. So why is this better than just dieting? Don't you have to give up certain foods on any diet? Isn't that a part of the lifestyle change? As far as carbonation and pop goes...don't miss it!! Have done fine giving it up, and have saved a lot of money seeing how expensive it has gotten!!! Otherwise, I haven't seemed to be craving anything I haven't been able to eat, of course the tighter you want your band, then there is the more the chance there will be certain foods that are no longer able to pass comfortably.

As you can tell, I am very conflicted about this idea. I am reading that it helps people, but why? If you have the resolve to actually go through surgery to lose weight, wouldn't that same resolve be exactly what you need to be on a diet for months and months?I T IS A LIFESTYLE CHANGE!!! NO MATTER WHAT YOU CHOOSE, IF YOU DO NOT MAKE IT YOUR LIFE STYLE, YOU WILL FAIL!!! Sure, some people have been successful in loosing weight without surgery and keep it off, not me!!!! But, now I have made it a life style, not a diet!!!!

Question #4: I read on a site that if you are a sweets person, Lap Band probably will not help you. I love sweets. Will I fail at this if I do the surgery because of my love of sweets? You will fail at any diet unless you figure out how to deal with sweets!!! I still enjoy a treat... but it's a treat and its not every day, and I plan for it!!!

Question #5: I am reading that people are on some kind of a liquid diet pre-op....what is that about? How long does that go on? Each surgeon is different... for me it was liquids 5 days pre-op, then 2 weeks after the band, then 2 weeks pureed, 2 weeks soft. Then new foods as tolerated!!! Each adjustment is 2 days of liquids, 2 days pureed 2 days soft.

Honestly, I looked into this briefly a few years ago, and thought no way!!! Too restrictive, too many rules. I am to much of a control person to give my power and control away to a weightloss surgery. Then, facing my health concerns of borderline diabetic, family heart disease and my own high blood pressure... I felt hopeless and helpless. I didn't want to die at a young age, but that is certainly was where I was heading!!! I went through some personal emotional tragedies, and realized food is my drug!!! I am a food addict!!! It was my friend, comfort and always made me feel good when I was eating!!!! Then, feel like crap after I ate and ate and ate. My point is... if you do not address and fix the dynamic of why you are obese, you will not be successful long term with any diet plan. I have worked very hard on this aspect which has nothing to do with the band itself. I don't think I can stress that enough!!!

After coming to that realization, I was ready to figure out how I was going to accomplish my goal of being healthy and loosing weight. I seen an interview with Mohammed Ali's daughter that had lap band done and she stirred something inside to take another look into lapband with a more open mind. I read her book "Fighting Weight" which I highly recommend for you to read. Then, something clicked, and I got it... surgical weightloss intervention can be a very empowering thing, not something that takes my control away!!!!! I always thought it was an easy way out, cheating!! Not so!!! I am doing all of the work!!! The band is just a tool!!! A safety stop so to speak. It's an auto off button for eating too large of a portion. It takes time to get to the proper adjustment, but once there it is a very useful tool.

I wish you health and good luck in whatever you decide, it is not something to be taken lightly. ( Which is one of the good reasons for the wait time to get it done) It is not for everyone, and you must be able to embrace it and want to use it properly or it will fail.

[Shinyhappymommy 2]

I don't have a lot of time this morning, but I started a thread about my feelings about my band a while back. You can read it here. I need to update it because I'm still doing great!

[kh99900 0]

Thanks everyone for giving their opinions. Reading your answers really helped.

I guess what I am planning to do is to make one more attempt to lose this weight by myself, at the same time as going through the process for the lap band. that way, if I feel like I am just not going to be able to do it with diet alone, I will already be headed down that road. If I feel like I can do it alone, then I can always say that I have changed my mind and not continue.

I guess what this means is that I just cannot continue to be overweight any more. I'm completely sick of it. I've been overweight now for 17 years. That's just way too long. I was never overweight until I went on birth control pills at age 29...by the time I was 30 I had gained 70 lbs and it just kept inching up after that. I'm done with living like this. Now I just have to learn to live without the foods that I love. That's the hard part.

Thank you again everyone! I may continue to post here as I go down this path...since it will be both paths at once, for at least a while!

Kathleen