Second Thoughts

KarenIn · 05-03-2008, 07:09 AM

I have been doing pretty good on the supervised diet for lap band approval, and think maybe should I just stick with the diet and not the band. I know that having to be accountable when the doc weighs me on the supervised diet is part of that success. Then, I think about another time when I lost a great deal of weight only to gain it back and lots more. That seems to be my biggest problem, I loss and then I gain back. Did anyone else have second thoughts? I only have three more weeks until the supervised diet ends, and then I am told I should have no problem being approved for lap band.

Doddie63 · 05-03-2008, 12:53 PM

You can bet your life that I did. Right up until I got on the operating table and even after for a short time. Then the realization of feeling full for the first time in my life, the ability to stop eating after one cup of food. The discipline of the band when I started to waiver in my desire to eat more. The thought of never eating my favorite foods scared the h... out of me. Now after a year, I realize I can eat anything I desire jut not a lot of it. If you keep a super tight fill, you will lose weight quickly but your options of what you eat is smaller, plus you stand the chance of eating high calorie food such as ice cream etc.
Stand fast and force your mind to be positive I can't think of very many of us that would get rid of the band. Good luck

skittles108 · 05-03-2008, 02:38 PM

I had lost weight often on my own on every diet imaginable to man and always, always gained it back and more. I knew for me the band would finally be the tool to not only losing but not regaining. I will be out 2 years very shortly and am at goal and maintaining. I wouldn't trade my band for anything, but if you weren't nervous I would be worried about you :)

KarenIn · 05-03-2008, 03:30 PM

Thanks for your support1 It's great having people you have been there help me though this process.

damienne · 05-03-2008, 04:22 PM

Hi Karenin,
I can relate to your dilemma.
Two years ago(I was almost 60) I came very close to having the lap band surgery....I am in Ireland and was planning to pay for the op myself so i didn't need any approval.(My B.M.I.was about 40, My bum was sore when I sat for a while,my knees were sore when I walked or stood for a while.I had apnoea and was my biggest EVER!)
Somehow I felt that I couldn't go ahead with the surgery and joined Overeaters Anonymous...probably the only thing I hadn't tried already to loose weight and get a handle on my eating problem.
Miraculously I did get a bit of a breakthrough by being able to remove bread(my downfall) from my diet and lost about 35 lbs in a few months.
Unfortunately, I lost nothing further...maybe I put back a bit(I can't be precise because I deliberately had no scales and weighed myself where and when I got the chance)
So Here I am two years older,(62) a bit lighter (B.M.I. about 37 I think.MY knees and bum don't hurt and I feel more normal than I did.) but not optimistic about my chances of loosing any more weight unless I go for the Lap Band.
My biggest motivation to go this route is my health.I don't know how I still manage to have good health considering how much excess weight my poor body has carried for so many years.I'm a bit lighter now but I weigh almost twice as much as I should.....that can't be good for me.
I have a consultation with the surgeon this week and I think I may go for the first available date for surgery(if he accepts me).
I am reading all I can on this forum and making contact with as many people as possible so I can be as well informed as possible.
I won't know really what my final decision will be until I have said 'YES' to the anaesthetic on the day of the op(if I do).
There is something about being (just)62 that focusses my mind.I have suffered from my weight/eating problem for most of my life.
I am tired of the struggle.
I want help.
Maybe I won't know if the Band will really suit me or help me unless I actually give it a try.
Yes it's money,and I'm not rich, but I can come up with it and hopefully the worst thing that will happen will be that I will have to have it removed for some reason.......Then at least I will know that I tried and it wasn't for me and I'd be back to where I am now !
Nothing ventured nothing gained???
Good luck with your decision (me too!)
Damienne

BobbieDoll · 05-03-2008, 04:47 PM

I was banded just a couple of weeks ago. My insurance denied the surgery the first time and to tell the truth, I was somewhat relieved because I wasn't sure if I wanted to do something so drastic. Then I was approved and had to make a decision. I decided to go through with it. The day of the surgery I felt kind of down because I still didn't know if I really wanted to live with a Lap Band. Now, I am so happy I did this. I feel totally normal. No pain. Just have less of an appetite.

Eventually I will be able to eat anything, just in smaller portions. Not only am I eating healthier, but my husband is too because he eats the same meals, just more of it. I am so much more into choosing healthy foods. I know I will feel a little hungry up until the first fill but that is ok. It is nothing like the hunger I use to have when on a diet.

I am committed to this new lifestyle and I love it! I have three things that I must do: follow the doctor's meal plan, drink water, and exercise. It is great to feel so excited! I really am looking forward to the future!

If you are doing well on the supervised diet, that just means you will do well after the surgery.

KarenIn · 05-03-2008, 06:21 PM

Thanks for your encouraging comments, and good luck with your weight loss journey. Keep in touch and let me know how you do in your journey.

l3dewitt · 05-04-2008, 06:16 PM

Hi, I had my band done 6 weeks ago!An am 63, don't let your age stop you...I was scared to death like everyone else. Just do it. i am so glad I did. There is no way I would have kept the weight off with out it.
Lou

Doddie63 · 05-11-2008, 01:18 PM

I think us youngsters fare better with the band because we are undergoing surgery more for health reasons than to look good in a bikini (although that would be nice too). We also have more life experiences to help us through. So go for the band and hang the age. I have been reading some bandsters are in their 70's. Wouldn't trade my band in that is for sure.

KarenIn · 05-11-2008, 03:26 PM

I think sometime soon after my last appointment for the six months supervised diet, I will be able to get a surgery date. It seems strange to go thought all of these steps, and not have a date for the surgery. Thanks for all your kind words.

Muledad · 05-11-2008, 11:43 PM

Hey Kanenin
I'm getting ready to go through the same 3 mo diet that you are going through. Can you tell me a little bit about it?
Thanks Muledad

KarenIn · 05-12-2008, 06:21 PM

I think every doctor does something different. My family doctor just said to "eat less and excerise more", than the dietican and surgeon both told me to do low carb. I have now lost almost 30 pounds cutting out sweets, white bread, white rice and potatoes. I wish you well on your journey. Keep in touch.

Stitchy · 05-26-2008, 05:11 PM

Like you and the others, I could lose weight. Quite successfully. That's why I tried all of the diets. Then some excuse would come up and it all came back with friends.

I was so worried about staying overweight and dying from some weight related problem, I just couldn't face another failure.

I had surgery two years ago this month and will be 62 this week and am at my goal weight. It is absolutely the best thing I ever did for myself. I was self pay also but you know it cost about as much as a car. I like myself better than any car I ever owned

So, don't worry so much. Give yourself your life.

PATCHELTON · 06-03-2008, 01:11 PM

I don't think I had second thoughts. Nervous, yes, second thoughts about whether I was doing the right thing, no. I am 63 and was banded 3/25/08. I had to do the six month diet (met with dietician to talk about food choices, then had to email her my weight every two weeks). I didn't work too hard at losing, but still managed to drop 10 pounds by January. Then I decided to bump up my exercise. I was doing Curves but I needed more. Started walking, found a lovely park with a 2 mile path, and lots of peanut loving squirrels. I began walking on weekends (even though the park wasn't "open" the gates were never locked and walkers, bikers and dog walkers come all year round) as weekdays it was dark when I finished work. I started noticing my pants getting loose. Then I was approved and began the liquid diet (it included a small amount of lean protein which I ate in the evening, like unbreaded chicken tenders and hard boiled eggs). It was supposed to be 2 weeks, ended up being 3 because I caught a cold and they postponed my surgery a week. By surgery I had lost 35 pounds. Two more weeks on liquids, 2 weeks mushies and now regular food. I have lost around 70 pounds altogether so far. Had 1 fill but 3ccs was too tight and had 1.5 removed the next day and two weeks later another .5 cc unfill. I am doing well, and trying to focus on when I feel full (satisfied) so I can stop eating. I am please with the results so far. I have dropped two sizes from 2x to lge. I have never done this well on any diet I have tried. I did a lot of research during the six month diet, went to support groups since last June, so when I decided, I knew it was right for me. Good luck on your journey.

damienne · 06-03-2008, 01:59 PM

I don't know what it is about me ,but I am due to have surgery in three days time and I honestly don't know if I will go through with it!!!
I'm not sure if this even qualifies as 'second thoughts'?
Right from the word go I have 'swung' like a pendulum from yes to no.
I feel like I have a total split personality about this decision.
Maybe I am not ready to say yes?
I wish I could do this for so many reasons but have just as many reasons stopping me.
Maybe it's fear.
I hate this indecision.
Help!!!???

Second Thoughts

Second Thoughts

For me the band was right

Thank you guys!

Last Supervised Diet Appointment is on the 21st

second thoughts

Go for it