What was the final thing that you encountered that made you say this is enough? I have had numerous.

1. Leaving a wife and 2 sons, Husbandless and fatherless.

2. Not being able to get on amusement park rides with my sons.

3. Not being able to take my wife to a concert, because i could not fit in a seat.

4. Avoiding restuarant,movie theaters and sports complexes with tiny seats.

For me, walking through a a department store and some little child looking at me like im a alien had to be one the hardest things.

Respectfully,

Joe

-The first time I struggled to buckle a seat belt in a car. I was avioding scales for months because I was in such denial.

-Buying clothes online only because nothing decent looking fits me from a store.

-Not being able to walk for more than a block without being out of breath.

-The biggest factor was very recently graduating with a Criminal Justice degree and realizing that I won't be able to pass the physical to work in Law Enforcemene unless I change my life completely and lose weight.

I was thinking about it as an option for a long time… but I guess since you are asking final straw…

It was when I realized that I could not clean myself.

Another big one for me was when someone asked - Do you want to see your son going to college?

No one event except perhaps the birth of my child. That's been a few years, though.

I'm all she has and I was old as it was when she was born. I don't want to leave her alone any sooner than I have to.

I don't want her to be embarrassed of me. Already, her kindergarten friends have teased her that her mother is fat. She hasn't complained, but I was there when it happened.

I want to have the energy to do things with her and to get down on the ground and play with her.

I want to be able to hold my head up when I see old friends from highschool, to be fine having my photo taken with my child, to not be embarrassed to meet new people.

I'm sure there are hundreds of experiences and thoughts that lead me to this decision (not to mention years of dieting yo-yoing, and feeling like a failure with every regain). But a few of the recent ones:

- Certifying, and LOVING, scuba diving -- and then within a year not wanting to dive because I feel to big and out of shape.

- Skipping the rides at the amusement park because I was worried that I might not fit.

- High blood pressure, first time ever, and so high I had to get on medication.

- Revolving way too much of my life around food.

- Craving the confidence and energy of moving freely and lightly.

Family history of high blood pressure, heart attack, and Type II diabetes;

Chronic major depression - which doubles heart disease;

Realization that I needed a physical tool to assist me with the emotional overeating issues.

I am a pretty stubborn person, tell me I HAVE to do something and I am pretty much guaranteed Not to do it. Since I was 10 years old and maybe 5lbs overweight my mother told me I needed to lose weight. As I got older it was, if you don't lose weight you will never get a boyfriend.. so who needed them then? I used to see myself when I was a teen and 160 lbs as I would be at 250 lbs. It took me getting that big to know that I had been pretty dang good looking!

All throughout my life the Drs. told me to lose weight -- lose weight and your finger won't hurt,,, lose weight and your back won't hurt... etc. etc. etc. I finally got up to 300+ lbs, to the point where I can't hardly walk, my knees hurt, my back hurts, my feet hurt -- I hurt all the time. I don't roll over in bed anymore - I have to push myself up and then turn over. I have been working at this for about a year. I tried many different diets, working out in the pool, etc. It is just to the point where nothing else has helped (it was much easier losing weight when I was in my teens and 20's!).

I first went to Dr. Snyders "intro" meeting -- ( I hear people on the forum saying that this surgery makes them lose their memory! If I lose any more of mine I won't know who I am!! ) -- whatever it is called. It was a scarey thought and I tried to do what I could before actually committing. But,

I am ready. I had my daughter take "before" pictures last night. I grinned in every one of them -- knowing that I would very soon be much smaller. To be real, I have to say that these last couple of weeks I have been eating everything that I know I will not be eating again and LOVE -- like steak,,, if I am willing to give up my steak you KNOW I am serious! But. come Monday -- I am all about making this work. I have been so nervous... and not really thrilled... now I am really thrilled and excited (yep, really am!) and only somewhat nervous.

Here's to a new me!!!

To be real, I have to say that these last couple of weeks I have been eating everything that I know I will not be eating again and LOVE -- like steak,,, if I am willing to give up my steak you KNOW I am serious! But. come Monday -- I am all about making this work. I have been so nervous... and not really thrilled... now I am really thrilled and excited (yep, really am!) and only somewhat nervous.

Here's to a new me!!!

Just want to reassure you, I am 3 months out, I have lost 44 lbs and I am able to eat almost anything, just not near as much as I used to. For example, yesterday I ate a piece of fried chicken. But I didn't eat 3 pieces of fried chicken. I can eat steak too, although I've never been a big steak fan. I even had one of those small size Mounds bars (the ones that are like half of a full size candy bar) at Halloween.

I even still eat Mexican food. I just can't eat the Acapulco dinner anymore (cheese puff with queso, guacamole, taco, tamale, 2 enchiladas, rice and beans). Now I go and order fajitas and eat about 1/4 of the meal and take the rest home or I order one of the child's plates which is something like one enchilada, rice and Beans. and eat the whole dinner. I am probably not typical because I read a lot of people here who can't eat this and can't eat that, but I am sure there are other's here who will tell you that after a certain time, a few months or maybe 6 months, you will be able to eat most of the foods that you love but you won't be able to overeat - or at least not much.

My friend had the surgery. She was HOT and happy. I was fat and frumpy and sad. I looked into it.

Funny that you asked this because for the past 2-3 years I was waiting for "the moment" and it never came. I was content being depressed and depressed being content so i guess it worked at least for awhile. Then a friend of mine about a year ago suggested that if i was so unhappy why didn't I look into the lap band. I shunned the idea off because I felt like that was admitting i was a failure. Well in the last year I have prayed to God to make me more discipline and help me with my desire to be healthier and smaller. Once again there was no defining moment, and then all of a sudden I got hit with a plethera of moments that seem to last weeks.. just a few examples: um my grandson told me I wouldn't be able to fit in the back seat with him because I was too fat, (he's 6 mind you), my guy friend whom i had developed feeling for but wasn't sure if he felt the same told me indirectly that he could never be with someone of my weight because he wouldn't be able to stay faithful. (Couldn't be mad but I so want to get fine so i can show him what he'll be missing.) , never have energy to play with my grand babies and i used to be the life of the party!!!

Felt like if don't do something soon I will end up dying at an early age as my great grandmother who raised me died at age 74 at 400lbs.

Not going to be me, not if i can help it! I want to break the cycle and start the healthy trend in my family and perhaps serve a purpose bigger than me by helping others obtain knowledge to achieve their goals and become happier and healthier too!!

Thanks for letting me talk your ear off.. lol

Thanks, I hope that day comes soon. But until I am close to my goal I have had my binge and so plan to stay on it strictly... I want to lose as much as I can and as quickly as I can! But it feels better to know that I will, one day, be able to eat again -- just not as much!

well i guess it was 2 things 1 was that I was having back pain for a few months, and it was like a passive dull pain that always stayed there i just couldnt take being in pain anymore and I started crying and realized it was prolly because of my weight.That was kind of a wakeup call to how the rest of my life would be.The real thing that made me just say "i'm done" is when I joined the swim team, and thinking I was going to lose a whole bunch of weight or at least 20-30 pounds after my 4 month season, and 3 hour a day 6 days a week workouts, watching what I ate, I got on the scale and I had lost nothing... not a pound. Thats when I realized I had to do this because nothing else was going to REALLY work :/

Yeah I could deal with all the otherstuff as i have my whole life, but the fact that i tried to lose weight the blood sweat and tears honest to god way and still failed made me hopeless

-The first time I struggled to buckle a seat belt in a car. I was avioding scales for months because I was in such denial.

-Buying clothes online only because nothing decent looking fits me from a store.

-Not being able to walk for more than a block without being out of breath.

-The biggest factor was very recently graduating with a Criminal Justice degree and realizing that I won't be able to pass the physical to work in Law Enforcemene unless I change my life completely and lose weight.

I also have a degree in Criminal Justice. I work in law enforcement and my weight was definitely making my job tough on me. Much better now. You can do it!

I did not want be 400 at age 24 I was not happy with my self didn't really want go no were I just was feeling down all time I hate it looking at my self back then a lot but now you can't tell me nothing lol 70 pounds gone in love it...

For me the last straw was losing 80 pounds with phentermine and diet changes only to gain all of it and then some back as soon as I went off the pills. I think that switch that healthy people have that tells them when they are full and to stop eating is broken on me. I am hungry all the time and even though I monitor my intake and watch my calories, I still gain.

It doesn't help that my husband jokes about going to the fat doctor to lose weight. He thinks he is being funny, but he just isn't.

So, this is my last hope. I will lose the weight this time and keep it off forever.

I have been overweight my entire life, but I had accepted that I am a "big girl." I have lost and maintained for a while, then eventually gained over and over. Luckily every time I diet, I pick up a good habit. At this point, I don't drink any sugar and exercise 3-4 times per week. That has been enough to maintain but not really lose. Lately, my knee has been getting the best of me while I jog or do Zumba, to the point where I have to back down.

Then, at Christmas dinner, as my diabetic aunt and grandpa were checking their blood sugar, I took a good look at my aunt, who everyone has always compared me to physically. She is about a size 24/26, and has had numerous surgeries for her obesity related health problems. I asked here what size she was at my age (25)- turns out she was exactly my size (18/20). At that moment, I felt like I was looking into a mirror of my future. I had to decide if wanted to live like that or if I wanted to change my fate.

Scheduled surgery 2/7/2013.