Hello all! As my surgery date looms closer, May 26th (YAAHOOO!!).... I've found myself wondering about bandsters who have always been big or obese... I weighed more than my older brothers at birth, and still weigh more than them now.... I remember being about 7-8 years old and hearing people tell my mom :"she'll slim down as she gets taller", and obviously that never happened. I'm wondering about the success of lifetime "fatties" pardon the term, with the band. I know a lot of you guys gained weight after having babies, developing sicknesses, emotional reasons, etc.... Are their any life-time fatties like me who are achieving your weight-loss goals? Thanks for your imput.. I love you guys! I guess I'm just feeling insecure about being one of those people who are unable to lose even with the help of the band... I have this nagging thought in the back of my mind that says "you were born big, grew up big, and will always be big".. Help!

I have been fat/obese/morbidly obese from childhood so i know where you're coming from. Currently, I am 5.5 weeks post-op, have not had a first fill and am down over 30 pounds. I have an official weigh-in on 5/25 when I get that first fill (8 weeks post-op). I absolutely believe I can achieve my goals with the band and also know that losing weight means having your head in the right place first. I'm prepared for the battle and plan to win it.

Hi ya,

I have been fat all my life - I weighed 30 lbs at 10 months old - huge baby! so I can definitely relate. While I have not yet reached my total weight loss goal, I have met my goal for my 1st year, 6 weeks early ! So I am very happy with my band.

One of the things I discovered while doing testing for the surgery, was that my stomach emptied extremely fast so I never really felt full. People would say eat until you are full, then stop, well I never felt full :phanvan ! Anyway, the band has really helped with that! Eating healthy portions has made a huge difference. Good luck on your journey!

I have always been big as well. At twelve years old I weighed 238 pounds. Without the band I was able to get down to 180 pounds at one point before I got mobility problems. With the help of the band I hope that I will will get to 150 pounds.

I think it's all a matter of perspective and expectation. I, too, was worried that I wouldn't ever lose weight- that I'd fail with the band like I did with everything else...well, that's just not the case if you follow the rules and do your research. Sure, it takes a while to lose with the band, but so what?

Because I have been overweight my whole life, I also tried to set some realistic expectations. I know I will never be a size 8 unless I get deathly ill or have the gastric bypass. Neither of those options sound like a good idea- so I decided that if I ever got to be a size 18/20 (from a 30/32) I'd concider myself a success. Well, here I am! Some people start their banding journey where I am now, but I have the rest of my life to chip away at the rest of my weight if I want.

I don't know if this helped or not...best of luck to you!

Megan

I'm with Megan, it's very important to have realistic goals. I've been fat all my life and the smallest size I ever wore as an adult was an 18, for about three minutes after losing 75 lbs on Optifast. Well, now I've been wearing 14/16 for almost a year, so I'd say YES!! I've met and exceeded my weight loss goals, and this time I have no worries that these results are going to be temporary.

But my weight loss goals may not be yours, so take this for what it's worth. Just having less than 50 lbs between me and my "ideal" weight has always been an impossible dream. Now it's a reality, and I often hear people say that I look "normal." HUH? That was never even one of my goals, because I couldn't imagine such a thing!!

Dear Kim,

GO FOR IT! I've been a "chubette" all my life... NEVER a normal size, not even as a child. I opted for the band and refused to consider the bypass and am SO GLAD! I struggled to lose just 9 pounds before surgery, but have lost 53 since Jan 12 when I had my band put in! That's 62 pounds gone for good! YAY! It IS working! I worried before surgery if this would work for me too, I was afraid, "What if I fail at this too?" Well, it hasn't, and I am thrilled! (So is my doctor, who admits he thought the bypass would be a better choice for me....)

I had made my mind up to follow the a healthy eating regime right from the beginning, keeping track of everything I eat, and exercise regularly.... and it's actually been VERY easy! (The first two weeks of liquid probably were the hardest although I really wasn't at all "hungry"....) After years of dieting, I always said I was an expert at what I should eat, I just always ate way TOO MUCH it, even healthy food! (Never felt "full", was a bottomless pit...) Well, now I can't overeat, I no longer want to, and I am not hungry either!YAHOO!! :clap2:

So, YES, it does work for those of us who have struggled all our lives!!!!

God bless you in your upcoming "New Beginning"!!!

Thanks so much everyone, you guys have made me feel so much better! I've been pursuing my band since the first of January, and now that I actually have a date, I have to admit that I'm a little "freaked out"... Might just be my good ole' lack of self-confidence popping up.. I will never be a size 4, I'm just not built that way, and I don't want to be that small.. I'm just afraid to fail...This is just such a huge life change, and plucking $18,000 out of my 401K this morning to pay for the surgery put me into a little tail-spin as well. Thanks so much for your re-assurances everyone! I know one thing, I'm going to follow all the rules, eat tons of protein,exercise, and drink my water! Thanks again everyone, keep um' coming!