What FINALLY made you decide to get banded??

[Mrs_Mauricio 1]

I was wondering what finally made you all decide to get the lap-band or any other type of WLS? For me it was a few different factors that just accumulated into "I need to do this N-O-W" type of thing. I don't want to spend one day, week, month, year being this heavy or getting heavier. I was never a "skinny" girl. At my best, I maintained 150-160lbs but on me being 5'7" it looked good. But even at that weight, I never thought I looked good. But fast forward to now, I am 255lbs. and I have the opposite of what some of you all call the "fat mind." Even though you are losing weight, you still consider yourself heavier than you are. I, on the other hand, have "skinny mind, fat body" complex lol. My mind does not want to look at that image in the mirror and really take me for as big as I am. And my reality checks are getting worse...that is why I KNEW I had to do SOMETHING!!!!

1. Photos: omg, biggest reality check ever. I hate seing full bodied pictures of me, even now starting to hate just pictures because my face is getting really chunky.

2. Comments: for example this past xmas, I was at my husband's grandparents house and one of their relatives I never met before started talking about how he was diagnosed with diabetes and he is skinny and then there was a "big, fat lady" (at which point in time he said to me, no offense) that didn't have it and how could that be??? I was appalled, I didn't even know what to say!!! I was so angry, I just sat there pissed off and didn't talk to anyone the rest of the night.

3. I'm a nurse and deal with a growing population of morbidly obese or obese in general people. I see what the co-morbidities of these people do to them on an every day basis and I do NOT want to get there!!!! I am 27 and have hypertension and high cholesterol. Diabetes runs in my family, I don't want it!!! Also, I see younger and younger people having heart attacks and strokes and it scares the **** outta me! I do not want to head down this road and keep getting bigger and bigger and having more health problems at an early age.

So those are my reasons. What are yours?

[Renee74 0]

What put me over the edge was when we had taken the kids to an amusement park! I went with the older boys on a ride and the ride worker had to come put all of his body weight on a bar to get the bar latched! How frickin' embarrassing! After that happened, it took me a year of trying to lose weight with my doctor and still not seeing any results. I did not want to be in my 50's and have a bunch of health problems! I want to live my life to the fullest--healthy! This was the best thing I have ever done for myself!!

[rcruz 0]

Mine were I am not able to enjoy amusement parks, going places and being looked at, sitting at tables not booths like my hubby would like. And most of all I am a YOUNG Grandma and I want to enjoy all those missed activities that i missed with my ONLY daughter that haunts me to this day and she is 19, with one child and one on the way. I don't don't want them to be embarrassed of their grandma. There are more but those are what come to mind right now.

[JuicyGirl 0]

The final straw was when I decided to go to law school. Firms are so conscious about the people they hire and they definitely discriminate based on weight. I didn't want to spend all that money on school and come out of it without a good job because I was too overweight to find a nice, proper fitting suit or because the firms simply didn't like the look of me.

I've been overweight my entire life and in reality it's not me. I needed a change.

[SuzanneG 1]

Mine was simple. After years of dieting and failing I knew I needed to do something soon, but when I could no longer reach to wipe my rear end the conventional way, well, that was a deal breaker for me. I called my doctor.

Speaking of your mind keeping up with your body. I was a skinny kid and a very slim teenager, I gained weight with my first pregnancy and went up and down from then on. All these years, in every single dream I've ever had, I've never been fat in my dreams. I'm not talking about dreams about weight either, I mean when I'm being chased by a monster or lost on the street, or running from a tornado (I know I have bad dreams) or even kissed by prince charming, I'm always thin.

I'm finally starting to feel more like myself these days.

[health4life 0]

Mine was when I decided to travel with my husband on a business trip and for the very first time ever, I had to get a seatbelt extension. At that point, I said "this will NEVER happen again"!!! I tried to lose it on my own for over a year to only lose 36 lbs and new I needed another weight loss tool, thus the wonderful lapband. I wish I had made the decision way before I did. I am very happy with my decision.

[*slim* 2]

There were several things that added up to me going to the seminar. I had noticed I was starting to have trouble reaching my own rear for cleaning and wiping (eww), but my real "aha" moment came at a children's activity museum. I was following my 11 year old son while sweating really badly. He took one look at me and said that it was ok, we could go home. I realized that I was limiting him so often because I was too tired to do the things with him that he came to expect it. What kind of childhood is that? I called to check on insurance requirements that day.

[TQUAD64 9]

Self-isolation was primary to my decision as well as health issues.

[grannytwinkie 0]

Two reasons: 1) My type II diabetes was way out of control, I was taking oral meds twice daily and injections twice daily and my blood sugar was still around 300. Which of course caused yeast infections which were quite frequent, twice a month to be exact. My sleep apnea was getting worse, sleeping only a couple hours at a time.

2) when I started to notice that I could feel my belly in my lap and had to re-position it to be comfortable - OH HELL NO I thought. So I called and booked a seminar. I had to wait 4 months cause we were changing insurace companies and didn't want to start and then have insurance problems. It took me a year to finally get the surgery done after I made the decision.

Best thing I have ever done for myself. No more diabetes medicines and tummy has shrunk a litte, not enough yet!

[Babe 0]

Great thread!

For me it was a combo of different things. Firstly, all the health challenges i've got: hypertension, hi cholesterol, PCOS, thyroid, and depression. I could only see my health deteriorating with each passing year. Next, I was fed up of all the limitations around being fat: discrimination, self-isolation, near impossibility meeting men, wanting to have children, and not participating in activities as much as i would like. I turned 30 this past summer and all of these factors just seemed to converge into one big boiling pot of "I need to do something NOW or i'll regret it". I was ready. Ready for a change, ready to commit to overhauling my lifestyle. Ready to be the person I always wanted to be.

I am so glad I'm doing this!

[Albacheeser 0]

We were watching old home videos and I realized how far I had let myself go. Now I have sleep apnea, high blood pressure, GERD, sore knees, and am desperate not to get diabetes.

[Mrs_Mauricio 1]

Thank you all for sharing! Your comments were really heartbreaking and courageous.I look forward to making this journey with you all and looking better and feeling healthier!

[sue in ne 1]

MRS Mauricio, It was a # of factors for me. I'd yo-yo'd all my life, but relatively healthy.My knees hurt and but not too bad, until 2007 ended up on a bunch of pills, developed asthma, which i couldn't shake. They started talking about using Oxygen at home :w00t:and I'd had enough of being sick. Am much better now but have a ways to go.

[swrktp 1]

For me it was being 37 but feeling like 70+. It was also the isolation out of being to heavy but also too big to enjoy things even whe I did get out. I think the finaly straw was when I was babysitting my nephews and had to push them up a hill in the stoller ...............and I had to stop every couple of minutes to breathe. My 2 year old nephew was scared and kept asking if I was ok. I realized I REALLY, REALLY had to do something different. I also have a 14 year old daughter that needs me to be around and active so I can one of the "cool moms" who gets out and does things with their kid.

I am sure this is the right choice. I hope I still feelt his way after I have surgery a month from now.

[Jachut 487]

It was mainly a chronic heel injury I developed in one of my typical I'm goign to power walk 400 miles a day projects, where I hurt my achilles tendon (or so I thought) and it hung around for 2 years. I saw so many specialists, I had cortisone injections, I had orthotics and had to wear ugly shoes, it just wouldnt get better. Everyone I saw told me to lose weight.

I'd had e-bloody-nough. I was feeling crap, I'd reached a BMI of 35 which made me well and truly obese and I was depressed as hell about getting older. I still *felt* attractive, but seeing myself was a reality check and I knew I'd become my worst fear in a few short years, a frumpy, unfit, badly dressed and invisible, sexless middle aged woman. That wasnt in my plan, I was going to be 40 and HOT.

Other comorbidities hadnt hit yet, just the ankle problem. But I knew it wasnt far away, I was treating my body really badly. And I hadnt grown up that way, I'd been fit and athletic before, I wasnt settign a good example for my kids, I was behaving like a fat, lazy pig and not like the person I wanted to be. So I did somethign about it.