Caribear

You are so correct, you son is worth all of it. I am happy to hear that you are working on changing your habits and not forcing that you learned on your son. I, too, grew up in a family where I had to clean my plate, and unfortunately my husband and I passed that onto our kids. Today I have a 250+ daughter and another that has struggled with her weight all her life...all because we made them "clean their plate". Today I am happy to say that I allow my grandchildren to choose what they want to eat (of course, we only offer healthy choices) and allow them to be full before all is gone. We also limit high calorie snacks, sweets and the such.
CARI, you are going to do great. Keep up the positive attitude. I am rooting for you.
Zil

if you had a broken leg and not a weight prob would you refuse surgery or medical help because you were hoping God would heal your leg ? i think not. read through your story again and substitute "broken leg" for "weight problem" and see what you get. best of luck to you.

I truly believe God has blessed you by giving you the power to seek out someone to help you. Remember, God will not give us any more than we can handle. He is giving you strength and he has given you the freedom of choice. Rest assured, your decision to have the lapband is not the work of the devil, but that of Jesus and his everlasting love.

I just want to say that I know exactly where you are coming from! I have prayed for a long time for God to show me what i need to do to lose weight and keep it off. And i went to my dr and asked her what kind of diet i needed to be on to lose weight, and she then point blank said....“have you ever considered lapband?” And at first i was kinda stunned and didn't know what to think. But then I started to feel like I had failed bc I haven't been successful on my own. But I realized this surgery is a tool...not a overnight fix....and God knows it's a process, lol...but I need something that will change my life...and I truely feel like God said “this is it, this is your answer”. And of course as soon as I accepted this new chapter the devil has battled me. Making me feel like I will fail if I try this bc I have failed at losing weight my whole life. And then I felt doubt and confusion creep in...BUT then I remembered my Bible says that God does not create confusion....that satan does...so I knew I chose the right path. I am (almost) 27, I have a 6 year old daughter and a great life with my husband. But I feel like I have let them down bc of my weight gain....my weight has held me back for far too long. And i not only want to do this to make them proud of me...but I want to be proud of me. I am still going through my processing stages, and my insurance co. Has an awesome team of supporters that helped me get started. I still have a ways to go....but its exciting, sometimes scary and overwhelming....but I am confident in God that He will give me the strength to accomplish my goals. The devil has told me all my life that im a failure, I am unworthy and I should give up bc I will mess up and fail. BUT I CAN DO ALL* THINGS THROUGH CHRIST WHICH STRENGTHENS ME....and so can u! Hold your head up! Rebuke the devil and the lies he is trying to feed u....and put him under your feet! You are a child of the ALMIGHTY and he has set you free! We don't earn forgiveness....he just shows us his love and mercy if we ask! (sorry so long)

Thanks Bandit. You put that so perfectly. God bless you as well!

My faith teaches me that nothing happens without the will of God. And if it brings about good then you can rest assured that it is a blessing from God. It also reminds me that Satan is very aware of human consciousness and our fears. he (Satan) has been around a long time and knows what to whisper to a person to make them doubt a decision that might lead them to glorify God in a way they've never been capable of doing.
Just imagine how wonderful it would be for you to not carry around a ton of weight, how much easier it would be for you to praise and worship God, how grateful of a servant you would become and how high your confidence would soar. Satan knows that if he can keep you in this state of mind in body (spirit) he can keep you away from God.
God creates, man manipulates. If there is a tool out there that can help you reach your weight loss goals you should thank God for His mercy on those of us who thought we were doomed to this unhealthy state of physical self, that He has given us the knowledge to create the tools to cure ourselves.
God bless you and keep you in a positive state of mind! :-D

How about this....God gave us skilled people who can help the flawed. I am totally ok in my faith where I am!

sorry you had such an icky day, sending hugs down your way, promise your mom you'll listen to her concerns if she'll listen to the dr at the info seminar. seems like if she was so taken with dr oz's opinion, then she should be just as interested in the drs opinion at the seminar and the monthly support groups. its your body and you have to do whats best for your body., but i think you'd both be happier with her support. Go for it ! Best of luck to you !

I think that your Mum should just turn off Dr Oz. I beleieve he is a complete and utter quack and most of the stuff on his show is rubbish. I did watch about 5 minutes of the show that showed these supposed lapband patients and the couple of teaspoons of food that they eat daily. That is so false, that is not what a band is about and that is not how we eat.

I just read an article in a recent Prevention magazine by Dr Oz and he said that weight loss surgery is not recommended often enough by doctors as a long term solution to obesity. I'm sure I still have that issue at home so I'm going look for it tonight and I'll repost.

Oh my gosh, I am so sorry for all the pain you feel.
I applaud you for doing so much research, it helps a lot to know as much as possible.
I didn't like the idea of surgery either, I had heard some of the horror stories but, I had also heard some miracle stories where a person has been given another chance at a "normal" life at a "normal" weight.
I want to ride a bike, I want to swim. I have not done either of these things in many, many years.
we can have life and health again. this is a safe procedure! If you follow the recommendations from the surgeon and his staff,you will succeed.
this forum has sooooo many stories, stories of success. don't get me wrong, it only works if we work. I think that is the biggest surprise to me. this is not the big surgery where they reroute everything from our stomach to colon. we get help with the band, we get health because we decide to change the way we look at food and ourselves. we can do anything, we can be healthy!!!
thank you for sharing so much info with us. God bless you as you go through this unbelievable journey!

Hello my friend you do have many reasons to live! First for yourself and second for your beautiful son! Really the list could go on and on. You will take the time and research we all do. It can be a long process. I commend you.
I can tell you that your life and health will improve. I was banded way back in June 2009 and have never regretted it. I have kept off a one hundred pound loss. Just remember it is not about the number of pounds ( it's not a diet) it becomes a way of life, but about how you feel on your journey. Follow the rules and you will be successful.
Welcome and Best wishes on your journey. imaluckydog