Its_Me

I have not told many people about my band to this day and its been over 2 yrs for me so keeping the band a bit of a secret isn't so hard. I explained my 3 days of sick leave (combined with my normal 2 off days) as having hiatal hernia repair-- which my doc did do at the time of banding, so I consider it not a lie but an ommitance . At 6 weeks out you will not be in any acute pain from the surgery itself that would be noticable to anyone but you. Some sensitivity at the port site is a possibility but as long as no one plans to hit ya in the abdomen you should be fine there. However with the idea of having a week to recover, everyone is different. IMO you should be fine as I was back to work after a week- on my feet but avoiding heavy lifting again, understood by my boss as the s/e of hernia repair. But your ability to do this depends on your pain tolerance how fast you heal. The wonderful gas pains you may have read about diminished completely by about 2 weeks out. I believe at 6 weeks I was already eating pretty normal food, but in smaller portions, not because I had ANY restriction but because I was trying to stick to my doc's diet plan but I could eat ALOT more if I tried. Also I celebrated my bday 3 weeks after banding and was able to eat in a restaurant with ppl without incident and no one questioned my diminished appetite. Smaller portions is something that will be typical for the entire time you're banded, getting progressively stricter as you gain restriction so if you're afraid to eat small portions in front of people in 6 weeks you're going to have a rough next few years anyways-- so might as well get them use to the idea of seeing you refuse those big stadium size portions!! In the begining I just told people who questioned my eating habit changes that "I am on a diet". Seeing my progressive weight loss people just equated it to my previously mentioned "diet". I think saying nothing at all and having massive weight loss suddenly is what would lead to suspicion and questions. The main drag you will deal with early on at the superbowl will probably be the inability to drink beer, if thats at all an issue, but again its something you would be giving up anyways no matter when you're banded so doing it earlier or later won't change a thing. Something I have learned is putting off the band, fills or other associated weight loss interventions is a sign that I am not fully committed and need to regain my focus on my ultimate goal. I have in the past purposely rescheduled fills when I knew I planned to go out with friends and eat or celebrate and knew if I got a fill I would be tight and unable to eat or drink "normal" and in doing so I was usually disappointed after the event when my weight loss hadn't progressed or worse yet I had gained. So if you find yourself doing things like this try to evaluate your reasons and decide if they are beneficial to your goal or if they are one of the habits that have helped cause your need for the lapband in the first place? Also, before starting this journey, as for some it is not as easy and straight forward as it is for others, be ready to put YOURSELF first and do what's best for you and let everyone else and other events in life take the backseat for a while, at least until you've adjusted to your new lifestyle being banded. Change your perspective on how food impacts you daily life and social situations. Don't stress over the band and the changes you will be making in terms of life or other people, this is a time that should be about you-- sometimes its OK to be self absorbed. I would say go ahead with the band whenever YOU are READY. But 1 week back to work should be fine if you dont have to do much bending or lifting-- for me being busy was a curb to my appetite returning in full force a week post op. And 6 weeks out for superbowl, you are perfectly healed enough to watch a football game amoungst friends. Just keep in mind if you have to fly to the superbowl many people report tightness in the band after flying or even just walking to higher altitudes. So be mindful when you eat and drink no matter if its 6 weeks out or 12 weeks out from surgery. The band is temperamental and not always predictable. If you're worried about PBing in front of people avoid eating at the game, do NOT use a straw, no carbonated drinks and sip slowly, chew long. Talk more at the dinner table, move your food around and people usually don't notice that you're not eating much. Best of luck!!

That must be an amazing feeling! The last time I flew I was VERY close to needing one but managed after a few tries and lost of huffing and puffing to get the think buckled. I prayed the lady next to me wouldn't have to get up during our flight because I didn't want to go thru that again. (she didn't). But I was miserable the whole time with the seatbelt and squeezing myself into the seat. I look forward when I can fit into an airplane seat and be (somewhat) comfortable.
Same thing for attending ball games and such.

That must be an amazing feeling! The last time I flew I was VERY close to needing one but managed after a few tries and lost of huffing and puffing to get the think buckled. I prayed the lady next to me wouldn't have to get up during our flight because I didn't want to go thru that again. (she didn't). But I was miserable the whole time with the seatbelt and squeezing myself into the seat. I look forward when I can fit into an airplane seat and be (somewhat) comfortable.
Same thing for attending ball games and such.

For me, I'm a very private person, so I don't think I'd tell. I know in the past when I've done Weight Watchers, I'd get comments like "are you supposed to be eating THAT?" I am considering the surgery and at this point I don't think anyone needs to know.
I'd probably tell my cat, but I'm pretty sure she'd keep it to herself.