Been away from my computer for few days. Opened my e-mail and down came a long list of new posts from this website, and ALL were NEGATIVE!
WHAT A DRAG!
Then I find a post from a person who is considering the surgery but having 2nd thoughts because of all the info he/she is reading here. THAT got to me!
So I need to vent.
First, I have to give disclosure that what I say is only from my own personal experiences, and of course, everyone should follow what their Dr. says, not a stranger.
I LOVE my band. It is the best thing I have ever done, and without a doubt has changed my life and probably saved it too.
It is doing everything that I had hoped and imagined it would do! And I can honestly say I do not have one single complaint or problem!
People say it is a "Tool" that you use and with a little hard work and determination you can make it work. Well, sorry, I have been on more diets that I can remember and this is the EASIEST weight loss
experience I have ever imagined. I have undergone major bariatric surgery and had a foreign object put inside me to change my eating habits...and that is exactly what it is doing. The main discipline for
me is making wise food choices. And for that there is a learning curve!
First, it has controlled and curbed my hunger. There are times when I know it's time to eat and I just don't feel like it.
Second, when I do eat, the amount of food I can eat is very, very small! I could not overeat if I wanted to!
Recently people here have stated they dread the thought of Thanksgiving and not overeating and ruining their progress. My only anxiety is that I WON"T be able to eat my favorite foods! I've thought this through and think I am going to at least have a "Taste" of everything on the table. But I will have to save the stuffing for last because that's not going to work at all.
I still go out to my favorite restaurants. I drink coffee all hours of the day. I enjoy an alcohol drink now and then. I don't measure/weigh my food. There is just so much that will fit in my pouch. If I did weigh/measure what I ate I am sure I would find it to be proportional to what I should be allowed. In other words I can't overeat no matter how much I may want to!
My Diabetes is completely reversed! At one point I was taking 60 units of Lantus at bedtime, plus oral meds during the day with meals. NO MORE! GONE!
I now go to the gym and workout like a madman. Not because I have to, but because the things I can now do are amazing (to me) and I can't wait to get back and do it again!
I wear clothes that are "Normal" sized. Bought 2 winter coats that are MEDIUMS!
I have not had a fill since May. I tell my Dr. everything I am doing. He says I am in a good place, exactly where I should be, in the Green Zone. Go and enjoy your life and I will see you in 3 months.
I have to say it continues to get better every week as more old habits die away and new habits are learned and become second nature.
I get up and go to work and come home everyday. There are days I do not even think about being banded. (like having bridgework)
I need to say it took me 4 months from surgery to get to this place, where things started to fall in place. THAT was when my weight loss journey began. NOT when I had the surgery.
And like I said, it keeps on getting better.
I to have not posted fow awhile now. Totally agree with the negative posts. LOVE my band. Maybe its upto us band lovers to start posting more positive stuff more often. I know for me, it gets a little old reading the same things all the time about how everyone is cheating after two days or the get frustrated about not losing after two weeks.
I have to remind myself that I was in those shoes once and had all the questions they have now. I hope new posters will forgive some of the old posters for not always being there as they should be to help be positive amoung the negative.
November is the month of my birthday. I have been banded for over 2 years down 84 lbs. I love my LapBand and will always be happy I to decided to do this. I thought I might give you all some advice even though you did not ask for it and I am not a November Bandster but its something I wish I had known when when I got banded.
The surgery is not bad, and the recovery time for most is very short. I think you need to go into this already knowing you will be hungry for about a month afterwards. You will not die if you feel some hunger pains. But if you go into it with the mindset that it is only one month out of your life. You can spend this time getting ready to really lose weight.
The first 6 months to a year is when most people lose the most weight. You are getting banded right before the holidays it is a hard time since people make everything about food during the holidays. I tell you it is a must that you do not give in to temptation, be strong and see food as what it is just food. It does not mean you can not enjoy the holidays just because you can not have "All you can Eat" on all the food. I do not know about all of you but I can not just have a little of a food that I should not be eating so stay away from it one bite and it can start you on a roll.
Be as strict as you can during that first year eat only what your are suppose to and work your butt off once you get an okay, but remember you do not need an okay to walk. You will see the weight drops pretty steady the first year and then it slows and for some people it really stops. I wish I would have worked out more during that time period. I did workout but and extra 30 minutes could have pushed me along faster. But if you are not careful the holidays can really hamper your losing from Thanksgiving to New Years Eve. that is 2½ months of peak losing you time could miss out. There will be plenty of years of holidays to come, by next year you will be ready to face the holidays and know how the whole band thing works.
Also something seemed to happen to me and a couple of my banded friends about the 6 month post op, we had drop a lot of weight and we kinda dropped the ball on our diet. It was like we rewarded ourselves with food for being so good the first 6 months (What were we thinking.) Some of us gained some weight and that really upset the ones who gained. Also it is not always easy to get back on track when you give in to the bad eating habits. I need to lose another 15 lbs and I have been playing with that for a good six months. I know that if I would just step up my exercise it would take just a couple of months. I have made a promise to myself that this holiday season is not gonna be about food. Yeah, we have to eat, but not pie, cake, rolls, Cookies, etc. figure out another way to not make food be the center of the Holidays you will be so happy when it is New Years Day and everyone is wanting to lose you will be so far ahead. Since most who post here will be getting banded in November (unless some other crazy like me invades your thread) you should make at least one contact and exchange e-mails or phone numbers and get that add touch of support. I met a lady on these boards and she was banded 2 days after me and we met for coffee alot and we talked on the phone everyday or text each other. Then you are with someone in the same stage you are. Do not compare yourself with each other on pounds lost or fill amount as everyone is different, just support each other because nobody will understand you like someone who is going through the same thing.
Also stay on these boards for support too and find a support group you can attend in person. I always hated when the support group meeting is over. Also I would find you a couple of books that deal with the LapBand as when you really need some support or understanding you can read them. (amazon has some great ones I have about 5 )One last point always listen to your surgeon over what you read or someone says on these boards. Sometime you have to decide what is best for you, but always follow your Doctors rules. You trusted he/her to cut you open and mess with your inside listen to them. If you think at some point you surgeon is wacko find a new one. We all have to remember food is food it is NOT our friend, or a shoulder to cry on and getting something you know you should not when you are sad, upset. That is when you should workout. Oh and how can I not tell you all what you have heard or been told "The band is just a tool" it does not control what you stick in your mouth, drink all your Water and just my opinion never touch Ice cream in your peak losing time as it takes only one bite to get you hooked as it goes down smooth and taste so good and will become a habit just because of those reasons Also chew, chew and chew some more.
This time next year you will be wearing your pretty, smaller clothes looking good and feeling great. I believe in prayer and before I sign my name to this I am going to pray for all of the Novermber Bandsters to have and great surgery, short recovery time, courage during the holdays and a great band experience. YOU CAN DO IT. starting picking your buddy now, buy your books and go for it!
HELLO!!! I saw October and even December Bansters but no November...so I thought I would start the November Bansters! I called the Insurance company and I got a verbal approval. If all goes well I will be banded on November 14, 2011. Woo-hoo!! 11/11 will be the beginning of a WONDERFUL NEW LIFE!! I can't wait to do this for ME!!
