I haven't had surgery yet, still have a way to go. I'm supposed to be on a 6 month pre op diet but I'm failing miserably. I've gained 9 pounds I'm not really trying but not because I don't want to try. I just feel depressed and unmotivated. I'm having a hard time snapping out of this. I am in therapy. Wondering if anyone else is or has gone through this? I'm weighing in at an all time high and I just feel so out of control. Everything just seems so out of reach, I feel this 6 month wait has really hurt my enthusiasm.

Maybe seek help from a counselor. Are you tracking your calories/exercising? What kind of "diet" are you on?

I may be the only person who feels this way, but I don't think success on the preop diet has anything to do with long term outcome.

One the preop diet, I started out great and lost 30 lbs. Then it became hard and I gained 35 lbs. I went into surgery at my all-time high weight. I've always been a good dieter, but then I lose motivation and control. The band provides that for me and I am successful. All the 6 month diet phase does is weed out those people who aren't willing to jump through the insurance company's hoops. In fact, I was told that the fact that I lost and then gained showed my need for surgery. As soon as I was banded, I began losing weight steadily.

I'm not telling you this so that you can keep eating and gain more weight prior to banding. Obviously, it's best to lose your excess weight and the sooner the better. Just know that this set back is not a failure. You still can get banded and a have a great success for this.

Cindy

If you were a success pre-band, you wouldn't need the band right?

With that said, you will still need to exercise some control WITH the band else you will sabotage your own success. But I have found that I've had more self-control the last 4 months than I ever had before getting the band.

Read the Post titled DEPRESSION on this same site. Pre banded. It has some info. in there that you will see is Posted, and you might be able to understand this.

Hope it helps.

Good Health to you, Shirley.

I gained weight in the 6 months prior to surgery. It scared because I thought "If I can't control this now, how will I be able to control myself after I'm banded?" I reached an all time high of 285 lbs before my surgery on 10/12/10 and now I'm down 65 lbs. So the pre surgery weight gain did not doom me to failure, but it did put me farther away from my ultimate goal.

Don't think of the 6 month wait as a bad thing. Think of it as time to get you mind together before you take the big plunge. It can also be a time to work on some things like slowing down your eating or taking smaller bites. The six months will pass before you know it and I'm actually glad I had that time to get some things in order.

Good luck to you!

Thanks everyone for your replies.

Reverie:

I am in therapy. My therapist is working on helping me to change the way I think. Some days it works, some days it doesn't. They put me on a very intense high Protein low carb diet. I did it for 1 week, lost 6 pounds and I was very excited then something happened that made me lose my motivation and I gained it back. I have a condition that is causing swallowing issues and I'm having a esophageal manometry tomorrow to see if I will even be able to get a lapband. I gues since it's so out of reach, it's just making me feel less enthusiastic about even trying. If I was counting calories and excercising, I probably wouldn't have posted.lol I could set here and make alot of excuses, I do have some valid reasons but I really just wanted to get support and possibly hear there was someone else out there that knew what I was going through and could shed some light. I know what I need to do, I think this is a mental issue but I'm not sure what it is but would like to figure it out. I'm waiting for the day I wake up and have gained control.

cwm812:

It sounds very familiar! I'm going through the exact same thing you did. It's good to know your doctor had faith in you and were able to get the surgery anyway. I hope my doctor feels that way about me, I have been very worried. He doesn't know about my weight gain yet, but will see me tomorrow for my procedure..makes me a little nervous.

mattie7632:

That's a good point you made. I hope I have the same successes you have if I get banded...maybe when I hear that I actually get to have it that will change the way I think? I don't know if it's a deeper issue or not.

54Shirley:

I've suffered from depression and anxiety for a long time. I do think that it has alot to do with the reason I lose motivation so quickly. I'm so scared I'll do the same thing if I get banded. In a way the 6 mth diet is a 2 edged sword. On one side it's the waiting game that makes me anxious and unmotivated, the other side is giving me time to get my mind in the right place which is apparently something I need. Thank you, I'll check out that post.

crecia1975:

I know you are so right. I'm going to have to just face my demons and get working. Maybe I need a life coach or someone to keep me focused. I'm sorry you gained and went through what you did but it's good to know I'm not alone.

PeaceQueen:

You are definitely NOT alone. I myself an going through the whole process and that definitely caused me to gain weight! went for my first appt with surgeon in jan, i was 319, I work nights and do a lot of eating at night right before bed. Get in at 2 or 3 am and eat dinner and I'd go right to bed. But I learned all of this was also my frustration at this whole process taking so long, I weighed my own pros and cons about this surgery and did plenty of research before i went to my first seminar. When I make up my mind about something then i'm gung ho and ready. So the fact that some dr's had month long waits?! Drove me to stress about the whole process. Also, my reasons for deciding for the surgery was because I hadn't been feeling well for about 3 months or so. Just always hurting, and sleeping. Get up after 9 hrs of sleep and still felt run down. Thought my weight had finally caught up with me. But during this whole process I learned the reason why, my Vit D and B12 count was severely low. Went to my doc and got some shots (hey that rhymes!) and some meds and just this month I began to feel myself again. look at the scale and it says 325. :-O and i'm finally done my hoops. time for a 2nd appt. with my surgeon on Thurs and I'm TERRIFIED! I don't know what she's going to say or do.

Pray for me y'all! lol

But again peacequeen, you're definitely not alone and my thoughts are with you. 1 step at a time.

Thanks everyone for your replies.

Reverie:

I am in therapy. My therapist is working on helping me to change the way I think. Some days it works, some days it doesn't. They put me on a very intense high Protein low carb diet. I did it for 1 week, lost 6 pounds and I was very excited then something happened that made me lose my motivation and I gained it back. I have a condition that is causing swallowing issues and I'm having a esophageal manometry tomorrow to see if I will even be able to get a lapband. I gues since it's so out of reach, it's just making me feel less enthusiastic about even trying. If I was counting calories and excercising, I probably wouldn't have posted.lol I could set here and make alot of excuses, I do have some valid reasons but I really just wanted to get support and possibly hear there was someone else out there that knew what I was going through and could shed some light. I know what I need to do, I think this is a mental issue but I'm not sure what it is but would like to figure it out. I'm waiting for the day I wake up and have gained control.

cwm812:

It sounds very familiar! I'm going through the exact same thing you did. It's good to know your doctor had faith in you and were able to get the surgery anyway. I hope my doctor feels that way about me, I have been very worried. He doesn't know about my weight gain yet, but will see me tomorrow for my procedure..makes me a little nervous.

mattie7632:

That's a good point you made. I hope I have the same successes you have if I get banded...maybe when I hear that I actually get to have it that will change the way I think? I don't know if it's a deeper issue or not.

54Shirley:

I've suffered from depression and anxiety for a long time. I do think that it has alot to do with the reason I lose motivation so quickly. I'm so scared I'll do the same thing if I get banded. In a way the 6 mth diet is a 2 edged sword. On one side it's the waiting game that makes me anxious and unmotivated, the other side is giving me time to get my mind in the right place which is apparently something I need. Thank you, I'll check out that post.

crecia1975:

I know you are so right. I'm going to have to just face my demons and get working. Maybe I need a life coach or someone to keep me focused. I'm sorry you gained and went through what you did but it's good to know I'm not alone.

Even though you called it a 2 sided sword. It does have exactly those 2 points to prove to the Surgeon, and yourself.

1. The Surgeon sees a lot of people, and a lot of people say I can't focus.

So he works with you, but has expectations too, and he will want to see if you can keep up to your end of the deal buy losing weight pre-op.

2. So now that you know what he expects ! It gives you a chance to get it together.

So when you have the surgery, you will know what to do, like Protein shakes.

If your hungry, but can't eat mushie stuff yet.

So it's a teaching class also.

I also had to do 6 months of pre-op diet and I yo-yo'd for the whole 6 months. One weight in I'd lose 5, next I'd have gained them back. To be completely honest, the only reason I ended my pre-op diet at 11 pounds down was that I'd gotten a horrible throat infection in the last month of it and I could only have liquids for a week. It was VERY hard for me to stay focused and positive when I felt like the surgery was sooooo far away.

Just letting you know you're not alone!

I haven't had surgery yet, still have a way to go. I'm supposed to be on a 6 month pre op diet but I'm failing miserably. I've gained 9 pounds I'm not really trying but not because I don't want to try. I just feel depressed and unmotivated. I'm having a hard time snapping out of this. I am in therapy. Wondering if anyone else is or has gone through this? I'm weighing in at an all time high and I just feel so out of control. Everything just seems so out of reach, I feel this 6 month wait has really hurt my enthusiasm.

I feel for you. While I do have a surgery date, I feel like I have completely lost all self-control and desire to help myself lose even a little weight before the procedure! I also feel depressed and unmotivated, I guess just knowing that I am biding time (???). This is so unlike me, too. Maybe we can help each other.

Thanks everyone, I'm crying as I'm reading all the replies of support. I am def going through something. I had a the esophageal precedure yesterday,,quite unpleasant, I might add. The tech said I definitely had dysphagia but the doctor has to read it and follow up with the results so I don't know what my doctor is going to suggest and what the complete outcome of the test will tell. I know that it's a choice between lapband and gastric sleeve. If I can't tolerate the band due to swallowing issues I'll have to have the sleeve and that is setting off a whole different set of emotions, concerns, worries, anxiety..etc. I know there are those of us who have very strong personalities..those are assertive and very controlled over everything they do and those who aren't,,which is what I am. So since I do have a difficult time staying in control, it really helps to have the support here at this site. I think another problem I'm having along with the fact it all seems so far out of reach,,is that I have yet to even meet my surgeon one on one. I met him at the seminar but every other part of the process has been alone (without the surgeon's involvement). I will be meeting up with him soon, I hope. I think to hear him tell me I have to make the changes might help?? Gosh, I sound pathetic.lol I feel like a child that needs their hand smacked for getting into the cookie jar.

hi every one !!! i had my lap band done sept 26th 2011.my weight before surgery was 287 during my 2week pre op i lost 10 pounds... after surgery i lost 10 more pounds which put me at 267. i was so happy because my goal is 160... untill yesterday when i weighed my self i have gained 5 pounds and i eat normal. to my understanding the lapband is to help me to stop eating so much... but i cant help it im really at a lost.. so my question is when can i get a restriction and is it to soon to have one ??

hi every one !!! i had my lap band done sept 26th 2011.my weight before surgery was 287 during my 2week pre op i lost 10 pounds... after surgery i lost 10 more pounds which put me at 267. i was so happy because my goal is 160... untill yesterday when i weighed my self i have gained 5 pounds and i eat normal. to my understanding the lapband is to help me to stop eating so much... but i cant help it im really at a lost.. so my question is when can i get a restriction and is it to soon to have one ??

It takes a few fills usually for that to happen... In the meantime its up to you, to count your calories, and stay on the diet that your Dr. gave you. If you don't have one,,, contact the Dietician for information.

It's up to you to take control of this for now, and for your life. The band will help stop you from eating to much, but if you eat the wrong things ! Well that's not good either.

Do you belong to myfitnesspal.com Its Free, and you can view what other people are eating, this helps ! Also record your calories, Protein, exercise, keep it in Memory etc... Its a good thing..

Hope this helps.

Shirley