flrosie

Yes, I have a living will, health advocate, and DPA for health care. I think my husband was more freaked out by all that paperwork than me actually having surgery! LOL Thanks for the support from everyone.

Good to know. I didn't know about the breathing tube. Glad I'll be asleep for that!

“We become numb to how mean we’re being to ourselves.” Boy, did that hit home. A very insightful article and something to keep in the forefront of my mind as I go on this journey.

That's encouraging information - thanks for sharing. And welcome. I'm relatively new here, too, but find the support here incredible. Great group of people and lots of good information. I'm glad I wandered in here. . .

Maybe you could ask the band support group that is so far away if they will help you organize one closer to your location. I'd be willing to bet you're not the only one so far from a group and you may find a good group of people willing to help keep a small support group going. It's worth a try.

I LOVE THIS!!! A couple of years ago my husband and I decided to move to the west coast of Florida. We'd live on the east coast for 25 years and wanted a change. The last of 6 children was still in the house - he was 20 years old at the time. We thought he'd live with us forever. We tried making it less comfortable for him. He cooked for himself, did his own laundry, came and went as he wished. We just wished he would want to be in his own place with a friend or two. Not happening. So we decided to move. We left him there. With the utility bills to pay and the lawn to keep up. We have never regretted that decision. He moved within two months, we packed up the house and sold it a month later. We all are living happily ever after. Enjoy your new exercise room - you deserve it!

I have no fear, no anxiety, no undue emotion except for excitement. I have been fat my whole life. I have no thin times to look back upon. I started on a new health plan a couple of years ago and noticed bariatric surgery was not excluded (except the sleeve). It still took me more than a year before I started thinking about it as seriously within my ability to do. I cannot wait to see who my thin self looks like. I cannot wait to wear something smaller than a size 16 - the smallest size I've ever worn. I can't wait to ride in an airplane as thin person. I can't wait to see if losing the weight affects my blood pressure, my RLS, my sleep apena. It's trite to say but there is this whole other person inside of me waiting to burst on the scene. I know I will be the same person, really, but it has to be said that there will be differences because of the way other people will respond/react to me when I am of normal weight. There will be differences because of the extra level of confidence I will have entering a room as a person of normal weight. I'm no wallflower but I am probably typical of the fat-girl syndrome: I am more overt and extroverted than I probably would be if I weren't so heavy. I overcompensate for my size by being the life of the party, the fun/funny one, the happy fat girl. So, change is a-comin' and I'm happy to receive it! TWO MORE DAYS!!!

I can hardly wait until I can say "almost a year later and x pounds gone!" :wub:

Wow! That is the most interesting and most thorough information I've had to date. I took lots of notes that I will be taking to my pre-op appt Monday to discuss with my surgeon. The first time I met with him he asked me, "Do you have any questions?" Of course, so new in the process I didn't know what I didn't know. Now I do. With the help of this site and all its wonderful members, and sharing videos such as this, I feel I am so much more prepared. I understand now it's not about restriction,which I (and millions of others, I'm sure) thought that was the point. How interesting! Thanks for posting this. I may not have found it on my own. 3 days to bandyland

I wonder if this is the person also responsible for the strange emails that started coming from this site: I'm a boy looking for a girl, kind-of-thing. I just deleted it, Figured no site is pest-free.....

Great idea!!

Pre-op yesterday and all tests a-okay. All set for Tuesday!

I'm starting to think about life after surgery....6 days from now. How much protein am I supposed to try to get in every day? I know it will take different forms as I progress through the food chain again but where do I start?

I found a website that explains this. Weight x .37 = grams of protein to eat per day. I'll see how that compares with the info I get from the nutritionist.

I used the wrong word. Anxious, I am not. Excited as hell, would be a more apt description. I'm five days from bandyland, on the 9th day of pre-op Optifast. When I see the success of so many people here, it gives me such encouragement. I know this is the tool I need to help me maintain weight loss. I applaud you all and can't wait to join the ranks of the banded.

Good luck tomorrow! Will be thinking of you and hoping you have little pain and easy gas!

That's interesting that self-pay would be any different than insurance coverage with regard to smoking. My surgeon will not do the surgery if you're still smoking. (He does a nicotine test, too.) He says the healing is different, the risks are greater, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Okay, I get it. I should quit. We all should quit But, damn! I miss my little friends in the flip-top box that resided in a special pocket in my purse. I could count on them when I couldn't count on anyone else. Who else would be up with me in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep? With who else could I bare my soul, without fear that I would repulse them with my most intimate thoughts? And when everyone else had left the party, who was still there sharing the private moments of celebration? Or grief. Or fear. Or anger. I have some pretty awesome girlfriends but they usually go home at night to their own families. My little friends were with me always. But alas, this, too, is a change I must make. But let me tell you, if they come out and say they were wrong about smoking and it was all a hoax about the cancer and the illnesses and houses that would fall from the sky onto my body if I didn't quit smoking, a hoax to generate money for the lobbyists or whoever, then I'm gonna be the first one in line to buy a fresh pack!

Parisshel, you're getting banded the day after me. Love the blog. I'm a writer, too, but I just can't make myself blog about this. For me it is still too personal. I guess I'm still afraid of putting myself out there and then failing again. But I'll write vicariously through your blog, okay?

I'm glad to see everyone on here. Line-Dancer, I see current posts on other threads, just not this one. Draven, I like the 50's music, too, though I wasn't born when it was popular. My folks played so much of it that I came to love it, too. 60's as well, when I was a kid. 50for50, glad to hear you didn't experience bandster hell, which I'm still not sure I understand anyway. I'll be banded on March 19th - just 6 more days!! - and I still feel like there is so much I ►don't◄ know.

Thanks, Spaness - Tampa is close enough! 6 days to bandyland and I'm more anxious than ever!!!

Glad to hear it....but, what tube? 6 days to bandyland

Me, too! Is this only for the <40 gang?

I've been reading the posts on these forums for about a week, since I found this place. I am hopeful the veterans will be able to help us newbies figure out some things. What is bandster hell? What does NSV stand for? Where is the green zone and do I need to buy a membership to get in there? What do you mean my appetite/cravings will come back?! What's the truth about the first month? Two months? Do any of you attend local support group meetings? If so, has it helped? 9 days to bandyland, myself, and wondering about all this stuff.....

If we can't find humor in everyday life, we might as well hang it up. I have shared so much of what I've learned on this forum with my husband and supportive friends. My husband had only one comment so far: "You mean you're going to fart better than me?" Gotta love 'em!

I've added everyone so far. I'm flrosie40 on MFP. At first I couldn't imagine why I would use MFP once I had the lapband. Every day that I spend reading posts here I learn more and more. 8 days to bandyland