Greetings from Buffalo, NY. My name is Barbara and I am scared.

I want the surgery... I'm almost to a surgery date... but I'm getting cold feet. Decided I should come here and get some input.

I enjoy eating and am afraid I'll never get to enjoy it again after the surgery. When you are my age there are few pleasurable things left in life.

Will I ever be able to eat pizza, a hamburger, hot dog or ice cream again? Will I always have to eat just 1 cup of food?

I've done all the paperwork have all the tests done and just have my doctor appt scheduled for May 25th. I can still back out...

Current weight 236 5ft 2

Barbara, I just wanted to write you a word of encouragement. I have the jitters too, but for completely different reasons....I am ready to eat only 1 cup of food a day. I am soooo tired of food. I am tired of eating but I am hungry like all the time. I have the jitters because I am afraid it will not work. What if I go through all of this and I can still eat what I was. I do not want that. I want to eat to live...not live to eat. I a tired of my focus being food. I am not saying this is you... this is just me.

However, i will say this...Over the past three months I find myself saying "wow in a few months I will no longer be able to eat this."

The great find about LapBand is that it is reversible. It can completely be undone. That is one of the reasons I am picking it. I wish you the best of luck. I will probably be getting the band around the same time as you....so maybe we can be suport buddies. I am in your cheering section.

I haven't had the surgery done but it probably depends on how you react to those things. You will probably be able to eat them just not near as much as you used to. Ask your doctor. He will have the answer. Just remember, you CAN have the band removed but more than likely you will gain back what you lost and maybe then some. This is a life-changing event. Do you want to be healthy? Do you want to look and feel great? The band can only do so much. You have to want to make the change to healthier foods (you may not even want to eat those after the band!) You want stop eating, you'll just be eating healthier.

Thank you both.

I'm 66 and not sick of food yet. LOL. I am sick of dieting that's for sure. I'm sick of all the diet foods. I've been dieting for over 20 years and sick of it. I'd love to be able to have a slice of pizza now and then and maybe a hoagie or hot dog. We travel a lot and eat out a lot so is this surgery going to hamper my lifestyle?

I've been on Atkins on and off for years because it's the easiest to stay on while traveling and eating out... I just tell them hold the Pasta or potatoes and I eat the meat and veggies. I don't think I can force down another plate of scrambled eggs or eat another steak.... ugh!

I envy my friends who can eat these things and not gain weight...

So I want the surgery, but I want to end dieting. Will this surgery end dieting or will I still be force to follow a diet?

If you mean by "diet", watching what and how much you eat then yes. You won't be able to gorge on a banana split or a load of wings. You will have to eat small meals. I've started weighing my food so I get 2 oz. of meat, 1/2 cup of starch (rice or potatoes) and 1 cup of vegetable (assuming I can find one I actually like). My snacks consist of fresh fruit or sugar free pudding and I try to keep it to two a day. Not easy right now since I'm not banded and I keep getting hungry. I hope it will be easier afterward. Don't think of it as a diet, think of it as a healthy lifestyle because it IS a lifestyle change.

I think your fear and second thoughts are very understandable, and I know I share them, having gone through all the hoops like you, and now waiting for a date. I guess what is important is our third thoughts, of- okay, now what do I do? It's OK to back out, it can be reversed down the road, can I do the weight loss on my own, what if I fail, etc., etc. What do I do?

I know for me it's full steam ahead; I'm tired of struggling without the support the lap-band will give me. I'm tired of fighting hunger.

But that's my answer for me. Only you can decide what's right for you, whether it's worth the risk or not.

Edited April 20, 201016 yr by AnneGG

hello Barbee, the jitters huh, well i had the jitters all the way up to the happy drug. I had my surgery on 04-15-10, last week. The pre op diet was fun, but i started it a month before i should have so that i would again prove to myself how important this was going to be for me, my wife , my family and my friends. food has been a past time of mine, cooking, love to cook, love to eat, with that being said, it didn't love me back. I found myself at 46 weighing 323, and going crazy trying to loose weight just so i could walk with my wife, fly without being so uncomfortable that you almost didn't want to. I Began my process over 2 years ago and yes 2 years ago got cold feet. Found myself looking for every excuse to delay, cancel or just flat not deal with it. During those 2 years, I gained 25 lbs. A bit over 2 years ago, it was recommended that I have knee replacement surgery, but the doctor would not perform it until I lost 100 lbs. Hmmm, I thought then how am i going to do that without hardly being able to walk, then the lap band came to mind and i thought OK, ill look into it. I was approved right off the bat, had a BMI of 41% border line high blood pressure and hating every step i took. I Began the group classes and found myself to be the smallest person to attend, enter excuse #1 , there are many more deserving then me, and i drug my heels. Several months later, and 25 lbs more I stated again. This time with a renewed desire to actually live my life and enjoy it. Nobody tried to talk me out of it that knew me and seen the pain I had been in over the years. Enter opt out excuse #2 , just a few weeks ago. "wait" , does this mean no more 4" high cheeseburgers?, no more pizza and beer? no more all you can eat?, yes no more all you can eat , but the rest was going to be a choice to me , having a lap band doesn't mean you cant have all of the above , it just means you wont be able to finish it. Now the decision time comes in, will you want to go through all this and then go back to eating the same way all the time?, or is the lap band going to be a tool to start a new chapter in your life. The night before my surgery i watched the food network, big mistake, and found myself crying and saying OMG I wont be able to eat all this stuff. Crazy and not true. I then realized that food was holding me down, and controlling me. In the procedure prep-room just hours before my surgery, thoughts of pizza where there , but now with the thought that maybe 1 or 2 times a month a piece of pizza will be nice. That is all you will need and that is all you want. Oh by the way, the energy you will have from eating better after the surgery will outweigh the thoughts you have now of eating all you want. I encourage you not to look at it as what are you going to have to give up, just think what you are about to gain, the new you!!:thumbup:

Edited April 20, 201016 yr by pault
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Wow what fantastic responses to you Barbee. I am not yet banded 4/30 and I have similar feelings. I understand. Life or lifestyle is the question I ask myself. I want life. I am 50, a breast cancer survivor and obesity is a pre curser to a return. I want to do all I can. I will pray you do the right thing. I think we will be okay, more than okay....fabulous!

Pault-Thanks for the response to Barbee :thumbup:. It really helped me-and I'm sure many others! Thanks!

Thank you, Pault. That was great advice. I wish I could say that your reply has given me a definite answer to my dilemma but it hasn't... but it has put more weight on the "yes" side of the scale.

My husband doesn't want me to have it, but he is leaving it up to me. He knows he'll be the "support" should something go wrong or if I'm later sorry...

Others keep saying it is reversible... it is, but only if you pay for the reversal surgery yourself. The only way insurance will foot the bill is if you are seriously ill and it must go.

My family tells me I'm going too drastic... they remind me that I'm 66 and should just accept my weight and be happy. But I'm not happy.

Here is what I've decided to do: I am not cancelling but I am putting it on hold. I'm going to try one more time to lose this weight. I'll give myself until September. This might be the best incentive to lose weight yet. I'll keep in touch. :thumbup:

Thank you, ALL.

no problem , glad i had a chance to let you know.. 1 thing you may want to investigate , because i asked the same exact question , is it reversible and would the insurance company pay for the reversal?, i learned a bit about fills , there Will come a time that you may find yourself eating more then you could after the procedure and when that happens you will need a fill, or the band will need to be tightened through the fill port. This happens when the band has slipped down and your pouch has become larger. that being said this may also be at a time that you are happy with your weight loss and can control what you are eating, by that time you would have lost enough weight to inspire the push away procedure, the thing i suffer from the most. My thoughts on a fill somewhere down the line is i will also use that as a tool and with that i made my final decision and went forward , knowing that i wouldn't have to have the band removed if i was back in control of my life and body at that time. God Bless Barbee, you need to be sure of what you choose, but i will say this , i am 6 days after my surgery , i just finished my fist complete shake showered and put on a t-shirt that i haven't been able to wear in 6 years, and my energy is great , and look forward to real food soon, something you may also want to try is cooking a few regular food but bariatric friendly meals to see that they are great and better or just as good as anything you have ever had, i did this for a month prior. See you i love to eat and cook and all my family and friends look forward to the meals i would cook over the years. now i can go forward and not feel cheated, the food is just as good, and learning to eat better is a great way to spend your free time. BariatricEating.com Health & Nutrition - Holiday Recipes check out this website and try a few let me know what you think.. best of luck and God Bless. :ohmy:

Edited April 20, 201016 yr by pault
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I think the difference is our ages... I'm wondering... do I want to go through all this at my age?

I looked at the recipes and they all look very good, but I noticed the absence of tomatoes or tomato sauce. I thought tomatoes were a healthy choice?:ohmy:

Barbee, I too am 66. I have done a lot of research, and I believe this is the only way for me. I am so looking forward to having something else to focus on except what I'm going to eat next. My health has deteriorated because of my weight, and i want it off so I can enjoy what's left of my life. I am sitting here on pins and needles, hoping the call comes this week that I am approved for surgery. I can't wait to start my new life.

Barbee... I believe what you are going through is normal "cold feet" stuff that everyone experiences before a major life changing event. I am due to be banded in TWO DAYS and also have the jitters. I started the 'program' in November and have already lost 46 lbs... sounds great, but now it's got me wondering "can I do it without the band?" I haven't been able to for 40 years, so what makes me think I can now. I know that this tool (the band) will be life-changing and will help me from slipping back into old, bad habits.

Know that you are normal for feeling this way, but remember what made you consider the band in the first place... you know you need help and the band WILL HELP!

Thank you all for you encourage ment... that and my doctor have talked me into continuing with the surgery. She said at 66 that surgery is the ONLY way I'll lose any weight at all... the older you get the harder it is to lose.

I can't jog, play tennis etc., I can walk but only about 1/2 a mile and then my back hurts so bad. I can swim and bike but only so much.

Thanks you all again.

Right on, im glad for you, stay focused and feel free to ask anyone here for suport, . Paul

Edited April 23, 201016 yr by pault
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