A place for bandsters in their 60's

claramae · 08-25-2007, 08:00 AM

Gayle---Yours is the most inspirational story I have ever read. You give me encouragement. I too am depressed. I too am diabetic and have arthirtis. I have had knee replacement and just recently hip replacement that is still giving me problems. I cannot shop for long periods of time and cannot do most of any housework because of the pain I have after being on my feet. I do not want to wear a cute pair of size 10 jeans either. I do not want to wear a skimpy top. I want to feel like a human again. Be able to walk without the use of a cane. I want to be able to walk into a restaurant with my head held high. You put the words down exactly like I feel.

I will get my band on Aug. 27th. That is day after tomorrow. Seems like I have been on this liquid forever!!! I have lost nearly 10 pounds however. I will be 59 years old in October. Thanks for your encouraging words. I just read them out loud to my husband. Gives him hope that soon he will not be doing nearly all the house chores!!!!

nicnaknut · 08-26-2007, 12:31 AM

Wowee Gayle and Claramae... Your stories sound awfully familiar... The only thing is that I am not a diabetic (YET).. My DH is so understanding when it comes to me walking and stopping to rest, helping with the housework, etc... I am soooo happy to hear that I can live a normal life again and not have as much pain.... I can hardly wait until I can participate in my grandchildren's activities instead of trying to find excuses of why I couldn't make it..

God Bless all of you and wishing great success on your weight loss journey..

FoxyGramma · 08-26-2007, 12:32 AM

I agree! This makes me very hopeful. There are a lot of us who don't want to lose the weight just to look better. Our health is at stake here!

aussieladie · 08-26-2007, 07:39 AM

Hi Gayle,
I was 62 in May this year and not having any luck finding a surgeon who does Lap Band ops near the country town where I live. I have private health care cover, but will need to get a loan to pay the out of pocket expenses.
Reading your entry has given me hope that I will be accepted age wise for a Lap Band op.
Your story is so inspiring, thank you and congratulations on your weight loss. I am 272.8lbs which is 124kilos in Australian measurements.
Hugs, Beth

aussieladie · 08-26-2007, 08:01 AM

Dear claramae,
I just want to wish you all the best for your surgery. I also do not want to be a size 10, but would love to fit into a size 14. My ankles and knees also give out on me, so shopping and housework, also walking any distance causes me pain. 24 to 26 is the size I need to fit me in Australia. You do not have long to wait now, and I bet you are so excited. All the best.
Hugs, Beth

claramae · 08-26-2007, 10:14 AM

Hey Aussladie,Nicnaknut and Gayle and everyone else reading this. I want to tell you guys I appreciate the words of encouragement and your stories. They are all so familiar. We are really in the same boat.

Nicnaknut, I agree with you about hubbie taking up so much of the responsibility. About 2 years ago I really started suffering from hip pain. The more time went by, the less I could do; cooking, cleaning, shopping was all a thing of the past. Then I had hip replacement, thinking that soon I would be back to my old self. Well, I developed an infection in that joint(MRSA) and I just thought I was disabled before. This knocked us both on our butts. After 6 months they had to replace the hip again. That hip dislocated twice!!!!! The doctor made some error in his calculations of the angle,or something like that. I went to another dr. and he did surgery yet again. This was in November of last year. I am still unable to unload the dishwasher, the dryer, pick up anything on the floor because of the hip. That will be the rest of my life.

But back to hubbie. He has been a life saver for me. He does everything!!! He cooks, cleans(he finally let me hire a cleaning lady). He helped me shower when I could hardly move(I have no pride left!!!). He would drive me 25 miles to meet my girlfriend for lunch. He would join us and then we would all go to the bookstore and sit in the coffee shop and talk. He is wonderful to me. Now, he is following me step by step on this liquid diet too. I don't know if I could do that for him.Oh, I did not mention that hubbie is 15 years older than me!!! He has emphysemia, COPD also.

nicnaknut · 08-26-2007, 11:38 PM

Wow Claramae..... You sure have had a bad go at it with your hips.. Hopefully the weight loss from the band will help relieve some of the pressure on your hips. God Bless your wonderful hubby, he sure has been a lot of help for you...

My hubby has been a sweetheart as well. He pretty much has done the same things yours has, so the thought of possibly going fishing instead of vacuuming has him pretty happy.. He is 100% behind me on this.

Along with the pain in my knees, hips and ankles my big belly gets in the way of everything. I can't even put my socks on.. I wear Crocs shoes for comfort and can slide them on.. I also have emphysema/COPD along with other health problems from being obese. I cannot walk very far before I'm out of breath and I'm hoping that the weight loss and getting rid of the big belly will help take the pressure off of my lungs so I can breath a little bit better... Plus, I want to go and do things with my grandchildren while they are young and growing up...

Gosh, I just realized that your surgery is tomorrow... Good Luck and GOD BLESS you... I will be thinking of you and keep you in my prayers...

Please lets us know as soon as you feel up to it how things went....

FoxyGramma · 08-27-2007, 01:58 AM

Sounds like you have wonderful husbands. I am a widow. I have to do things myself or hire someone to do the harder things. I can't wait to get this weight off so I feel better.

nicnaknut · 08-29-2007, 12:32 AM

Hi FoxyGramma, Sorry to hear that you are widowed and alone... I can't imagine what you have to go through being alone... I am so thankful I still have my husband.. God Bless and Good Luck to you on your banding journey....

FoxyGramma · 08-29-2007, 06:26 PM

Thank you. It's hard sometimes to find someone I trust to do the work that I can't do and have to pay someone to do. I can't do a lot of things, but I don't want weridos on my property. It's hard to find someone trustworthy. It seems if I find someone, then they move away or something. I like to find people through word of mouth then I know that someone I know says they are trustworthy.

FoxyGramma · 08-30-2007, 12:57 AM

Where is everybody today? I bet everyone is so happy with
their band, they are busy.

I hope all the new people in their 60's will see this thread.

I really like coming here to read how the band has improved
our health!

nicnaknut · 08-30-2007, 06:29 PM

Hi FoxyGramma.... I sure can see where that would be a problem trying to find someone that you can trust to help you with things.... I have thought on many occaisions that I would like to hire someone to come and help to take the pressure off of my DH, but I find myself in your situation trying to find someone I can trust.... So, I'll just wait until I lose some of this weight and tackle it myself.... :)

Hopefully you will be able to find someone you can trust.... keep up the faith.......

Have a great weekend.....

Ilene62 · 08-30-2007, 07:44 PM

We're all still here. Thanks for asking. Since I'm still getting adjustments and haven't achieved restriction yet, I'm not jumping for joy, but I'm feeling good and remain optimistic.

WalterBrian · 09-02-2007, 01:29 PM

Hi all,
It's nice being amongst all you "kids". I haven't yet found anyone more senior than I am on this site. I was banded on 8/8/07, just under a month ago. My next birthday( December) I'll be 73. I've thought about a surgical approach since 1991 when my oldest daughter had the stapling option( one way!). In recent years my health was rapidly degrading, all weight related ills. Since a July 26 visit, and was given the option of a surgery in 12 days (8/8) to today..I've lost nearly 30 pounds. Two things are true. I'm blessed with a good metabolism and I've been very careful with counting calories. I feel NO restriction as my AP band unfilled gives no sense of it's presence for me. This is distracting; and I'm looking forward to my first fill on Sept.6th. I don't want pain, but I'd like to sense that it is there.
I've got a hundred more pounds to lose to catch up with my younger sister( only 62) who was banded ~ 16 months ago.
We are very competitive you see.
My birth certificate says I'm pretty old, but I'm looking forward to going dancing after I get a bit lighter on my feet.
ttyl,
Walter

lonestar · 09-02-2007, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WalterBrian

Hi all,
It's nice being amongst all you "kids". I haven't yet found anyone more senior than I am on this site. I was banded on 8/8/07, just under a month ago. My next birthday( December) I'll be 73. I've thought about a surgical approach since 1991 when my oldest daughter had the stapling option( one way!). In recent years my health was rapidly degrading, all weight related ills. Since a July 26 visit, and was given the option of a surgery in 12 days (8/8) to today..I've lost nearly 30 pounds. Two things are true. I'm blessed with a good metabolism and I've been very careful with counting calories. I feel NO restriction as my AP band unfilled gives no sense of it's presence for me. This is distracting; and I'm looking forward to my first fill on Sept.6th. I don't want pain, but I'd like to sense that it is there.
I've got a hundred more pounds to lose to catch up with my younger sister( only 62) who was banded ~ 16 months ago.
We are very competitive you see.
My birth certificate says I'm pretty old, but I'm looking forward to going dancing after I get a bit lighter on my feet.
ttyl,
Walter

Wow Walter what a way to go. 72 years young. Welcome to our bandwagon. I do admire you. Let us know how yu are doing. I bet we can learn a lot from you. Keep on trucking. Yvette.