mypov

Liberty- So sorry to hear you are going through this. This hasn't happened to me personally, but over the last 4 years my dad has gone from 375 pounds to 235 pounds and become an avid cyclist. Well, after a bad fall off the bike he began to have back problems and turned out he actually had 3 bulging discs. The doctor actually said it was probably only aggravated by the fall, not the main cause. The nerve damage got bad really quick after his the fall though, and he began to have pain constantly coursing down the nerves to his legs and started to lose the ability to move his feet. HE was terrified of course. Anyway 1 month ago he underwent back surgery to shave down the bulging discs so they wouldn't be pressing on his nerves anymore. Now he is one month out and uses a cane to steady himself a bit as the sutures are still healing but he feels 100% better and has more energy than I do! His doctor has given him the go ahead to get back on his bike in about a month. Needless to say, he is thrillled. So surgery CAN be successful (poor mysherrijo ). If you decide to go that route, I Hope your recovery is as successful as his was!!!! Good luck!! PS-While originally his PCP recommended a neurosurgeon, he ended up going to an orthopedic surgeon who was the one who shaved down those discs. don't know the whole procedure but let me know if you want more info!

Hi Kimmom! I want to say welcome and let you know that this is a VERY good place to get your questions answered. Your story sounds similar to mine though I have a very high BMI. Do you have PCOS? PCOS goes along with insulin resistance which can make you very addicted to carbs (if you don't know about pcos and want to there are much better explanations out there, and I too would also be happy to tell you more) but that's why things like Atkins work great for peoploe with pcos, though I second the opinion that its very hard to stick to! Anyway, if you DO have pcos there are a lot of things that go along with it that can/will count towards co-morbidities. Those should be mentioned in your recommendation letter. Anyway I'm sure someone out there will have more advice to you then I do, good luck!!!

Here's what I've been practicing even though its still a month till banding. Anytime I have a specific craving, I do something to take my mind off of it. Something that you CAN't Do while eating.....like- go for a long walk, take a soak in the tub, take a nap, do some scrapbooking- that way my mind is focused on something else and my hands are occupied. Its been working pretty well so far.

A few of my overweight friends I told that I was having surgery, and they told me things like how lucky i was to get a loan and how they'd tried everything to come up with the money but couldnt' get approved anywhere etc etc. I would have LOVED if I couldve turned around and been like, "You know what? You deserve this too- let me cover it." Unfortunately since I'm going to be paying $500 a month for over 2 years I don't have that ability to be so generous. But what I'm saying is that I'd give it to someone I knew already who had been struggling with their weight and was close to- so you didnt' have to worry about anyone trying to deceive you. Or I'd offer to cover a couple of people's surgeon cost so they just have to come up with hospital fees and what not. Then you could help more than one person.... Just a thought!

Thank you so much for everyones advice...its MUCH appreciated. I guess I will have a sit down talk with my girls and explain it to them more. I still worry about my daughter's little blabbering problem:paranoid but maybe I could TRY to explain that its something that is just for me to tell people about, not her???? Don't know if that will work....I also really worry because its so hard for girls to grow up with a healthy body image. My 6 year old is like a rail but my 4 year old, though on target according to the charts still has some baby chub. My 6 year old has already called her fat on occasion. :angry I try to tell them that they are both beautiful no matter WHAT!!! Its soooo hard to be a mother to girls in this society and raise them to have a healthy self-esteem... YA know???

Soooo.....Tonight I put my kids to bed and thought they were asleep but I was sitting with hubby on the couch and realizing today is six weeks until my surgery I proclaimed "Just six weeks until they cut my stomach open and life is forever changed!!" Just being silly and giddy ya know??? My husband said something to the effect of, "that's great sweetie," but his eyes never left the TV. WELL So about 20 minutes later I hear my 6-year-old crying in her room and so I go in and ask her what was wrong. "I don't want someone to cut my mommy open!" OH BOY did I feel GUILTY!!!! I did my best to comfort her and tell her I was just having a doctor check my tummy. I don't want to explain the whole weight loss thing to her cause A- she has a bad habit of going to school and telling EVERYTHING to EVERYONE and B- I've tried very hard not to talk about my weight struggles in front of my kids so HOPEFULLY they won't have the same hang ups about food and weight that I have. Anyway she went back to sleep but I feel like she wasn't satisfied with my answer....and really neither am I. So should I say something more? How do I explain it to her and my 4 year old daughter at the time of surgery/recovery etc What did you all tell your kids?

Hey Giggles, I just want to offer my support to ya. I am having my surgery on Dec 18th and I'm trying to push off any worries and just take it a day at a time. Daily life gives me plenty of other things to think about... I think if you find a good therapist it is a great idea. So far I've met with one but she was very thin herself and I just got the feeling she couldn't relate at ALL :rolleyes She was probably wondering why I was so "weak" I couldn't just do it "on my own" and she seemed very confused that I'd have ANY reservations about losing weight- but my weight is sort of a protection for me. If anyone doesn't like me- i blame it on my weight. If I fail at something, I blame it on my weight, on and on.....Its what I know. Anyway, just take it one day at a time and it sounds like your friends are already a great support system for you- no reason to think they won't continue to be. Good luck to you!!!

Thanks Denise, As a pre-bandster I love to hear first hand accounts of how things went-- and it sounds like you had a very routine experience (a very good thing when talking surgeries :thankyou: Good luck to you on your journey!

I am not banded, but what you are describing sounds exactly what I grow through being on my insulin-resistance medication, Glucophage (Metformin). For me it happens anytime I eat a meal with lots of sugars or simple carbs. It almost sounds like you have now developed a sensitivity to those things after having been off them for awhile. Just a thought. Good luck on your continued success, it looks like you're doing great!

Strangercat- By the time you read this you will probably be out of surgery! I hope all went well, and now you can update US on how you got through the jitters!!! I KNOW I will probably be freaking out the day before surgery--- getting last minutes things done and just taking one step at a time rather than thinking about the actual BIG event usually helps me stay calm, as well as helps me make sure I keep a level head and not forgetting important things. Also, to anyone else feeling like this- I'm planning on making a list of all the reasons that I am doing this and keeping it nearby for after surgery when I have pain or struggling with head hunger etc. Maybe that would help you too... LEt us know how it went!!!

Good Question. For me, number one is health issues- as you can see in my tag line I have lots of them. However, it was after the realization that my husband's own health issues were going to keep him from being the primary breadwinner of the family when I realized I could no longer live in my homemaking cocoon of fatness and contentment. I started college and now I huff and puff around campus all day and in each class step in front of 200+ fellow students as I pull a portable mini-table over to those way-to-small-for me student desks, their stares on me with every step. EMBARRASSING. I found something out though- I'm a good student. I've been ranked number ONE in every class I've taken so far and have a 4.0 grade average....BUT sitting in one class the teacher's lecturing about how overweight people are less likely to be hired, more likely to be passed over for promotions and raises, earn less on the dollar than other workers, and are assumed to be lazy, weak, and incompetent that I realized it didn't matter how hard I worked- because those skinny girls texting messages/ sleeping in the back row would beat me out for a job every time- thats when I realized enough was enough. If I ever wanted the world to give me the credit I deserved, I had to play their game. So in answer to your question, I don't care about being "hot", I just want my abilities and intellect to be recognized before my big gut. I'm more than some fat lady- and I want people to finally realize it. LOL wow, sorry for the total vent- guess if anyone understands you awesome people! Thanks for "listening"!!

Oooh the straw thing is a great visual! Thank you! And thanks for all the replies. My doctor didn't prescribe any preop diet or tell me to try it out, I just didn't want to start "cold turkey" like someone else mentioned ya know? I just really want to be successful at this....anyway I will keep "practicing" but not worry about it so much. I think even trying ANYthing is getting me in the habit of at eating a lil slower- which is definetly a good thing for me!!

So...knowing I'm going to have the surgery, when I've been eating I will sometimes "practice" eating the lap band way- very small bites, and chewing alot, no drinks.....I fail EVERY TIME. I think sometimes I just get bored, or feel like I can't really taste the food without a bigger bite. And the not drinking thing, well this is totally weird cause somewhere along the lines I was told that if you drink a lot of water with your meal you will eat less so I've been kind "conditioned" to do that. So my question is- how do you lapbanders DO it??? Is the threat of a PB enough to follow the rules? Should I keep trying it out or just give up and wait until I really have the band?

I'm wondering what if any affect weight loss has had on your personal relationships? Not just with significant others, but with family and close friends. Did anyone have improved relationships or negative consequences that you think came as a result of you changing your lifestyle and/or image?

So when you have a PB, is it immediately after or during eating? Or could you be out and about minding your own business and OOPS!! Also, is it really obvious to everyone around you when it happens? If you had a napkin with you could you just kinda spit it into your napkin???? Just curious! Thanks!

Interesting discussion....I watched the Oprah show too. I guess what I got out of it was that most (not all) people who are extremely overweight are that way because they are addicted to food, and the reason being that they are using food as a coping mechanism for whatever the real issues are that they are trying to aviod the pain of dealing with. I felt oprah and the shrink lady (can't remember her name) were saying that if some point along the way you don't get to the bottom of those issues and overcome the hurt/pain/abusive relationships/rejections etc etc etc then you MAY seek out something else to avoid it- ie, avoiding feelings by drinking, finding acceptance and "love" by sleeping around and all those other things. MB I'm just stating the obvious but I guess thats what i got out of it all. What do you all think?

Thank you that is very encouraging! I take metformin but yeah, obviously I am not eating the way a person with pcos should:embarassed: It does seem like the only times I really lost weight was when I ate hardly anything and followed a low carb diet. I just get sooo hungry at night that I eat way too much fatty and carb-full foods. Did your doc give you any idea of how much weight pcos'ers can expect to lose in a week or month?

Ok I've got a question. I'm not yet banded and I'll admit have pretty bad eating habits right now. Right now I'm on an extended release medication that makes me not very hungry during the day. I usually have a cup of Cereal or cereal bar and glass of milk for Breakfast, Drink mostly Water during the day though have a small snack like some pretzels or chips from a vending machine at school just so I don't have a hypoglycemic attack. food simply holds no appeal while this med is going strong in my system-- however, when the medication wears off in the evening I will have like a couple of fast food burgers and a shake or a large serving of whatever I made for the family for dinner and something sweet like ice cream or Cookies. Even though I obvioulsy eat unhealthily, it seems like I don't eat enough calories to sustain my almost 300 pound weight. I have always attributed this to my insulin resitance and pcos. Now I'm wondering, what if I still don't lose much weight after being banded??? I really think that this will give me a huge boost of motivation to improve my eating habits, but I'm just worried that my body will fight losing weight like it seems to now. I don't know if I'm making sense- but I'm very concerned. Any thoughts?

Thank you all. I will be very clear and make absolutely sure that EVERYone knows of my concern. I will also make sure my husband and mother (who will be there by my side in recovery) know of the issues and make sure they are making sure people are attending to me while in recovery. I know it would be best if I was tested, but I honestly have no way to pay for it right now- and I would think they should still take those precautions either way. As far as the narcotics, what kind is generally used and for how long? I wonder if anyone gets by post-op on tylenol alone or something?

Thanks for the info maudeispam, I will tell my surgeon thats what I want. I definitely want to play it safe!

Hello Again! I am so glad I have somewhere to go with my many many curiousities and questions about this surgery! Okay so when I filled out the health information required by my surgeon's office, it came to the question about sleep apnea. Well, I have never been diagnosed but I marked off on the list of symptoms they provided that I had EVERY symptom of sleep apnea and then I wrote "STRONGLY BELIEVE I HAVE SLEEP APNEA, THOUGH NEVER DIAGNOSED." Anyway so the surgery is going ahead and no one has told me anything more about it. I really can't afford a sleep study right now as I have no insurance right now (hubby jsut started new job) and all my money is going for the lap band- however, I do want them to take every possible precaution as IF I had sleep apnea, ya know? So what would that include? What would I make sure they knew of or did so that I would be safer? Thanks!!!

AngelaT, I am getting it done about an 1 1/2 hr drive from home. I considered Mexico but the travel expenses, child care while gone and/or time off work for hubby to help out everytime I went for a fill would be too much. There is only one dr. locally who would do a fill for people banded out of state and his prices are ridiculous. So financially this is the best deal for me...especially given all that's included the first year. Thanks for the thought though! I appreciate it!

Thanks so much for all the replies! I guess I didn't factor in the ways we'd be saving money.....I also realized that after I lose weight I will be able to buy individual insurance which will also save us money. I guess I was just worried about going into this knowing I don't have many "just in case" money reserves....least since I'm a student we're not losing any pay during this whole thing since we live off hubby's job alone right now. Thanks everyone for the encouragement!

Hi all, I have a few days off from college and its giving me time to think. Thinking for me=worrying.:paranoid Here's the deal- I am doing self pay for surgery. I am financing the exact amount and paying it back at $500/month for 2 years. I hope to pay it off a little sooner with our tax returns. $500/month is a lot for our family, basically everything we have above our monthly needs. The amount I pay covers everything, including fills and any complications for the first year. Right now my husband and I have no health insurance as its simply too costly through his work and of course, due to my health problems I can't get approved through individual means. I need to lose weight as my health is declining fast- but basically I need everything to go as planned as I can't afford anything extra, especially after this first year. I know there is a risk of problems but with the health problems I'm already having, I am guaranteed to have problems if I remain at this weight......I guess I'm just looking for a little reassurance that I'm doing the right thing.....Any thoughts?

I too have had success with weight watchers in the past, but of course, if you quit using the program, you quit losing the weight- I always tapered off and found more than I lost eventually. I would like to have a structured plan like weight watchers after being banded- but the local chapter here is EXTREMELY anti-WLS. They've done "lessons" on it and everything, tell you all about how unhealthy it is blah blah blah. Not to mention the two elderly ladies who run it have been there for like 15 years and ALWAYS remember you so anonymity is impossible in my town So I have some concerns. First- If i'm extremely successful with weight loss because of the band and they don't know about my band, I will feel a little ....hmm...sneaky? I guess you could say. The other thing I wonder about is that you start with higher points and move to lesser as you lost weight so you in theory don't slow your metabolism and have gradual but steady weight loss. But even at the lower point levels there MAY be times when I couldn't get UP to the amount of points they want you to have in a day unless I ate really unhealthy foods. So i don't know that I'd really be following it at all.... Anyway just MY concerns :grouphug: