Hi!

I'm Julie and looking to change my life on April 2nd. Yep, that would be my surgery date.

I'm a single mother of sometimes adult children. Own a very small salon in central Phoenix and have never worked so hard to make so little Just kidding, life is what I make it and it's awesome! This growing up has been a process and I feel like I have control over everything in my life but my weight. I've struggled my whole life with eating and bouncing up and down on the scale. More often it's UP! I feel like I've done it all... weight watchers, HCG, calorie counting, Atkins, and even the cabbage diet. Ya I lose, but when I get back to normal eating (No, one cannot live on Cabbage Soup), the weight slowly comes back on and adds a few extra pounds for good measure.

So here I am! This is me, getting real with myself and sharing my journey.

Hope to connect with you soon,

j~

Welcome to our little group Casscade. I think you will find alot of support here. i will write more when i am not at work... !! Yay our little group is growing.

Deb

Welcome Cass!

I hope you find all the support you need on this site and in our little group. Right now we're small but mighty!

Keep posting!

j~

Hi Everyone,

I've never joined a group before, so this part is going to be a new experience for me just like WLS is going to be.

My story is similar to others. Looking back at old photos, I wonder how it escaped me, but I truly didn't know I was fat until I was in the first grade. This realization came about when my pediatrician told my mom that she needed to put me on a diet. I remember that day like it was yesterday. My life was never the same.

As an adult, my weight has ranged from a low of 118 (during the short time period in my life when I had absolutely no hunger because my doctor prescribed Phen-Fen) to a high of 219. Like most obese adults, I have tried many weight loss programs over the years and have had brief periods of success when I have lost 20-70+ pounds. I am good at following weight loss programs, particularly the rigid medically-supervised fasts. However, though I have been committed to walking 5 miles almost every day for 20+ years, I always gain back the pounds I have lost. I make healthy food choices, for the most part, but I am always hungry. Consequently, I eat way too much.

In July of 2009, I reached the point of desperation, realizing that with the excess weight I possessed, I would unlikely be able to be as physically active as I age. This realization led to a plan to seek lap band surgery. Unfortunately, my insurance company required that my medical record show failure to sustain weight loss within the two years preceding surgery and documentation of my progress toward a goal of weight loss. My request for surgery was denied because insurance determined I didn't possess the “needed” medical documentation. My medical records were thorough, so I almost gave up.

However, in February 2010, I started regular visits at my doctor's office. During each visit, we specifically discussed in detail my weight loss efforts. The two year time period actually passed by more quickly than I thought it would. My final visit was on February 13, 2012. The insurance company received my paperwork on February 15; I was approved on February 17 and received my approval letter on February 21.

My surgery is scheduled for April 10. It still doesn’t seem real yet. I’ve had the opportunity to do a lot of research since 2009 and have concluded there are no clear-cut answers that lap band surgery will be the solution I need. My surgeon believes it will work for me, and although I trust him, I am still afraid of yet another failure in a series of lifelong attempts to maintain a healthy weight.

I would probably be shocked if I knew how many hours I have spent reading and posting on LBT, but I am thankful for the information posted here and am inspired by others' stories of success. I appreciate everyone who generously shares their knowledge and experiences, and I am looking forward to being a contributing member of this group.

Elizabeth! Welcome to the group. I'm impressed with your writing skills and thank you so much for sharing your story with us. Sounds like we all have a lot in common. I remember being the only girl over 100's in 3rd grade. Of course back then, they read your weight out loud and announced it to everyone standing there. I swear it felt like the entire school knew I was the fattest girl in school by the end of the day.

Can't wait to get to know you better. Keep posting and please feel free to share anything you wish here. We're all fairly new and I'm looking forward to the support.

julie~

Elizabeth! Welcome to the group. I'm impressed with your writing skills and thank you so much for sharing your story with us. Sounds like we all have a lot in common. I remember being the only girl over 100's in 3rd grade. Of course back then, they read your weight out loud and announced it to everyone standing there. I swear it felt like the entire school knew I was the fattest girl in school by the end of the day.

Can't wait to get to know you better. Keep posting and please feel free to share anything you wish here. We're all fairly new and I'm looking forward to the support.

julie~

Thanks, Julie. Oh my gosh, I know exactly how you felt! Although I loved school, I remember well those dreadful weigh-in days. My class had to endure them each quarter from kindergarten through 8th grade, and each time, I was so humiliated. Years later, I'm still not sure what the point was, but thank goodness that educational practice has ended!

Hi All,

My name is Anissa and I have been on this journey for the past year or so. I have finally set a date of April 16th for my surgery and now am starting to get cold feet. I live in the DFW area of Texas and have really started my weight struggle in my mid twenties, I'm 41 now. I have a super supportive husband which has helped alot!

I'm a newbie to the site and this is my first group so I have alot to learn from all of you- so glad to be with others who are at the same stage of their journey

Welcome aboard anissa. Its easy to get cold feet. This is a great big move. But I thinits the right one. Like me you been battling 20 years and not won so time to get a new weapon. That's what the lap is.

Welcome aboard anissa. Its easy to get cold feet. This is a great big move. But I thinits the right one. Like me you been battling 20 years and not won so time to get a new weapon. That's what the lap is.

Anissa! All my ex's live in Texas! Literally My ex-ex husband is from the Sherman Dension area and returned to Texas after our divorce and an ex boyfriend. Works for me. I do miss making trips to Texas. Welcome to the group. I'm pretty excited about my surgery date (4/2) but ask myself about every other day if I really know what I'm doing. I think the nervousness is normal.

I'm starting to get excited now for everyone else on here!

Welcome to our group.

j~

Hi everyone thsat joined after me! It's very nice to go through this with others around the same stage. where is everyone located? I'm in Syracuse

Hi, I'm in Riverside, California and it's a gorgeous day here today!!!

Just picked up my Biotin. I got 1000 mcgs. Buy one, get one free at Rite Aid.

Riverside? I'm in Menifee. Do you ever go to the support group in Corona? I've been a couple of times and have been the only lap band person there.

Thanks for the tip on Rite-Aid. I'm going to stop by there later.

Summer, we are practically neighbors! yes, I went to one of the support group meetings and noticed the same thing. Everyone was gastric bypass patients. I was the only lapband patient. To be very honest, I felt out of place. This group has a whole different set of issues than lapband. The brand of Biotin I got that is 2 for 1 is Nature's Bounty.

Phoenix