My name is crystal and i am 22 years old. im excited to start this journey at such a young age because i feel it will prevent me from may illnesses that i can get if i continue gaining wait. at first i was very hesitant about getting the surgery i thought that i could just do it on my own and was ashamed that if i got the surgery i was "taking the easy way out" but at 254lbs i am pre dietetic and have high blood pressure and i know i need this surgery in order to live a healthy life. im so young and still feel ashamed of letting people know about my surgery cuz im scared they will ridicule me. the only person that really knows is my sister and although she has informed my parents and they are all for it their direct support is minimal because we are not that close. i am really excited i have found lapbandtalk.com because i can really use your support and motivation. i am very excited to start this journey. hopefully i will get the courage to tell my friends about my surgery.

anyone else have trouble telling people about their surgery ? is it important i tell people ? or anyone start this journey at a young age? or any thoughts ?

Hi, you should not feel ashamed of saving your own life. I know that it's really hard to lose weight on your own. Just appreciate this tool and never feel bad about your choice. Your doing a beautiful thing for you health. Best of luck:)

Tracey Sher

Hi Crystal, I am in the same boat as you! I'm also 22 years old with high blood pressure and am a pre-diabetic..

I've decided to definitely get banded and have struggled with who to tell/who not to tell. I'm not ashamed with my decision at all but I do feel like it's not everyone's business. I chose to tell my closest friends and family, and although most are supportive I have had some pretty negative feed back from a friend and a family member. I'm past it now and know I'm making the right decision for me and my health but it did set me back for a little while. In the end you have to do what is right for you and the people who judge you for that shame on them! Tell whoever you feel comfortable with, but keep in mind you will find out who your true friends are! Good luck!

Hello crystal I'm Jessica, I'm 16 years old lol! Ibe had alot of trouble with my weight my whole life, was always a chubby bubby. And a head and shoulders taller then everyone lol! I was something like 374 pounds? I don't know lol i was 170kg. I started my lap band journey in July this year and in the three month diet they gave me I lost 20 kg, I had my band done on the 17th September and since then lost another 10 kg. So that's 30 kg I think that's over 50 pounds? To be honest I think it's the best choice I have made, when people ask what I have done I simply tell them that I had a lap band, chances are some people already have friends who have ha it done or are bandits themselves it's not the easy way out at all! If some people are not supportive of your choice, then that's there problem! Your doing this for you, not to please them it's truly none of there business! your doing this to get your life back and to live longer. That's what I tell friends who didn't approve, now they see how happy and bouncy I am!!

Hi crystal,

I am also young(19years old) and have always been heavy and struggled with my weight my WHOLE life. I also was ashamed and thought it was the easy way out but its really not. Because you still have to excercise and choice healthy meals this is just a tool to help get and keep the weight off. My friend put it perfectly...people get surgery all the time(for ex. heart surgery) to save their lives and we're just doing the same. Just because its an "optional" surgery doesnt mean its not saving our lives... I felt akward telling people at first about the surgery but now i dont feel akward not at all....i told almost everyone whos in my life because the lapband is now part of MY LIFE. I wish you the best of luck in the future!

Kerin

Hey everyone! My name is Tabitha... But u can call me Tabz... I'm also 22 and I am currently at 264 lbs. I am getting banded tomorrow (woot woot) and I CANNOT wait. I am so ready to walk into any store and fit into ANYTHING. I'm young and I really wanna feel young and not have anything hold me back. Don't get me wrong, my weight has always been there and I have always lived my life & was happy, but i crave that new feeling where I can not have people notice me as the fat girl or describe me as such. I'm so much more. Needless to say I did it mostly because of health reasons. Diabetes runs in my fam and although I'm not pre-diabetic, I don't want that issue later on in live. But what also drives me is that I wanna be an example to my 2 young cousins that live with me (2 girls 10&11) who look up to me. I wanna change my lifestyle for them & show them the right way to live and to eat. That is my responsibility as a role model and I take it very seriously. I don't want them to struggle like I did. I don't want them to have body issues or to feel bad about who they are.

Tomorrow at 10:15 is my surgery and I couldn't be more happier. I'm so ready . I have such great support from my family & frm my ex-boyfriend and that's all I need. All of us are young here and I want us to be successful & look the part. We can do it!!!

I really wanna keep in touch with you guys especially cuz your young like me. I am apart of a secret Facebook group for lap bandsters. If you guys wanna b apart of it, just let me kno

Good luck to everyone

thanks everyone im so glad to see that there are other people out there so we can go through it all together. im still not sure who im going to tell but for now i know this is the right thing for me i get banded jan 4th and i cant wait. YES i would also like to keep in touch with you all how do we join the facebook group ??

Hi guys! I would totally love to keep in touch with you guys! its great to have support especially from people close in age...I totally had a lapse of time and said i was 19 lol I'm actually 20 turning 21 in 6 months! How do you do the facebook thing? My surgery is in 3 days well 2.5 days lol coming up fast but I am so excited to start a new beginning! good luck to everyone!

My surgery is on the 22nd and I haven't told anyone besides my parents and by two best friends. I personally don't feel like sharing the fact that I'm going through this surgery because, as you mentioned, I'm very self-conscious about being thought of "taking the easy way out," also because I like to keep things to myself. I am 20 and my parents took me to a dietitian the first time when I was 10, so you can imagine how long I have struggled. I wish you success and keep us posted!

Hey everyone, I'm a little older then all of you at 28, but I can completely relate to what you've all said. I live with my parents and they've always been very vocal about how any weight loss surgery was "too extreme" and how I could just "do it on my own." I've watched season after season of biggest loser and wished that I could be like those people and just work my ass of to lose it. But the fact is that I can't do it on my own. I see the Lap band as a tool that will help me. I have just started this journey. I haven't even met with a surgeon yet, but I'm really excited. I spoke with my parents this week about my desire to research Lap band and find out information about it and they were shockingly supportive. I think they finally listened to what I was saying and hearing my feelings on my struggle with my weight. They had no idea that I never really feel full until I'm over stuffed. It was something that I've known for years but never really thought to share with them. I would say to you that while it is hard to talk to family and friends about your decision, just remember that you are doing it for yourself and your health. Good Luck!!!