So I have read enough posts of people who have second thoughts. Until now I thought they were crazy because I was so excited to get the lap band. I am not nervous about the surgery. Seems relatively easy procedure. I am self pay and having second thoughts I shelling out 10,000 for the surgery. God I hope this works.

The one thing that I am concerned about is that I tend to be a grazer. I am not a volume eater or a late night eater. I just eat through out the day without thinking about it. So I am wondering how this is going to help me. I am definately going to have to change the that aspect of my life and only eat every three hours and not graze.

God I hope this works. I have my pre-op appt tomorrow and have to give them the money.

You can do it Keep The Faith

I'm down 26lbs since being banded 3/4/11. I am a self pay. There are things I'm thinking about now that I didn't before I got the band like "there's nothing keeping me from sucking on chocolate or eating ice cream right now". The slider foods. I am a grazer and head hungry. I had a hiatal hernia repair at the time I was banded. I ate and ate and ate myself into that positition I believe. Since being banded I haven't really had a lot of moments where I've felt hungry. The band has helped with that so the diet is easier in that sense. But it's there in the back of my mind ... the chocolate, the candy I can suck on. I'm not sure if I'd thought of those things before surgery I would have changed my mind. I wanted to feel full. I got 5cc's in my band an hour after surgery and .5cc's since. I feel satisfied most of the time. The head hunger is the real battle and the lap band doesn't fix that. If you can handle all this and get past the head thing and seriously diet just with the help the band gives you of not feeling hungry then you are making the right decision. I wish you the best of luck in your journey!

Well, it's hard!! If you follow the rules, eat a 900-1200 calorie diet and exercise you WILL lose weight. (though that is easier said than done) It is a HUGE mental battle, and you have to force yourself to change your habits. I've been banded about 4 months, and I've had a good size fill and my hunger is gone. Do I still eat too much on occasion? YES. Even if I'm not hungry, it's a constant battle with my mind whether to eat or not.

I would say if you are a grazer.. make your meals small, and allow for Snacks, for me I like 3 good size meals I do about 300 for Breakfast, 350 for lunch, 350-400 for dinner and about a 150 calorie snack somewhere in there. The band controls my hunger so I don't really feel the need to snack that much. If you snack a lot make your meals smaller so you have the calories available to you

Connie,

I hope this makes sense...but I was banded 17 months ago. The band never did work for me and I finally had it out 2 weeks ago (mainly due to the phrenic nerve pain it was causing). It never consistently controlled my hunger and it certainly didn't control my quantities *BUT* I don't regret it at all because what it did do was make me work harder at trying to find out exactly why I eat and how to fix it...and I did. What I discovered is that I don't need the band...but that's not the point. I may not have worked quite so diligently and reached that point if it hadn't been for getting banded!

Ok, so the band will not stop you from grazing all day if you like *BUT* you might, because of going through the process, be more mindful of how you're eating and not thoughtlessly (as you put it) eat all day. It might be what you need to make your head finally commit to getting control of your eating and create new, better eating habits. That would be worth the money, and not half as expensive as hiring someone to act as food police for you (which would do the same thing) yes?

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I can tell you now it is NOT going to be easy but it's worth the battle. Keep your head high and follow your doctor's instructions and you'll do fine. Good luck with everything.

re: grazing......"I'm a grazer"....the difference is what I graze on and how much little it takes to control any of those promiscuous food thoughts....

re: "But it's there in the back of my mind ... the chocolate, the candy I can suck on."

In the same sense, you are setting up a red herring argument. Of course you can. If you want to continue 'sport eating' you don't need the band at all.

Re: "I wanted to feel full"

I wanted to feel "not hungry" all the time. The Band provided that for me....and even current grazing is sporadic and minimal compared to preOp.

Strangely, when I eat my hard Protein (usually steak) in 3-4 oz amounts at meals, I am not interested in grazing.

re: "The head hunger is the real battle and the lap band doesn't fix that."

For me the long 6 week liquids/mushies routine gave time to learn new triggering behaviors and understand my own delusions about fullness and overeating. I've come to enjoy the head-hunger dance, as it takes so little to turn it down these days. A big glass of Water will satisfy my own head hunger for an hour or more. And with the 3 meals-a-day-plus-2-authorized-snacks, there really isn't much time that head hunger and the Belly Beasts can gang up on me.

I think most Bandsters have found a hundred different reasons to NOT get the Band! I literally almost got up out of the preOp bed and walked out. It took all I had to not do such.

For me getting the Band has been a very good decision.

Cheers on your own journey.

I like to graze as well. My experience with the band is that it takes away the constant drive for food. I am no longer always hungry. That makes the battle with grazing easier. Without the physical hunger gnawing at me, the drive to graze is easier to defend against. The obsession with food is reduced. When I am satisfied physically I sometimes go a few hours without even thinking about food. That is something that NEVER would have happened prior to banding. It's no longer a two front war.

Your experience may vary. I don't believe that all grazers will fail at banding, but it is something to consider.

I am also a self-pay, and trust me, I've been mulling over the money issue in my head over and over again. I just bought a new car, I want to make all kinds of improvements to my house, and travel, etc etc and then there's bills, and oh no... I get myself into a big spiral. And then I realize that this is a conscious choice that I'm making for my health, and that if I can't be healthy, I won't be able to do all the things that I keep thinking about wanting to save the money for. I really think that paying for the surgery now will help save me money in the long run.

OK! I did it. I had my pre-op appt at the hospital yesterday and handed over a whole bunch of money. So there is no backing out now. One week from today I will be banded and starting my new journey. I really can't wait. I think I just got a little freaked out by actually handing over that much money at once. Kinda scary. But I know it will be worth it.

To Celebrate I bought a cute pair of capri's at walmart that were on sale a size smaller than I am now. Didnt want to go to overboard and go a couple of sizes. That way I will probably be able to wear them most of the summer (maybe not ). If not, then they were only $10.

Thanks for all the encouraging words, I needed them.

The good news is that I was down 6 pounds from my first weigh in there. So maybe I can drop some more before next week before they fill me up with all those lovely fluids.

Nice beginning!!! Now, tape measure and photograph yourself for your own personal journal to keep track of your metrics, which all change regardless of what the scale says. And.....start planning on what to do with all those clothing items that will no longer fit. cheers on your journey

Nice beginning!!! Now, tape measure and photograph yourself for your own personal journal to keep track of your metrics, which all change regardless of what the scale says. And.....start planning on what to do with all those clothing items that will no longer fit. cheers on your journey

Yeah! What he said!

Your surgeon's office might have a clothing exchange.

Congratulations on your journey!