Hello All,

I was watching the View today and Rosie and Joy were doing a segment on women who had lost a lot of weight by diet & exercise. I thought "Good for them!" they did it; but I was offended when Rosie and Joy kept making comments about surgery being "the easy way out" (actual quote from Joy). I know that a lot of people think this but its just wrong. Those of us who had surgery go through so much! Not only do we endure the diet and exercise that they do, but we go through the pain and recovery of surgery. I thought "how dare they assume its easy!" I actually sent an email to the ladies explaining my thoughts, and I am eagerly awaiting their reply! How do the rest of you feel about this? :biggrin1:

I sent off my essay just a few minutes ago.

Has anyone received a response yet? I would like to know what they have to say. I really dont watch that show, but maybe they should do a segment on WLS and all the struggles we have.

Rosie has a lot of room to talk. What is she doing about her own weight?

At least I can say I accepted responsibility for my weakness/illness/disease or whatever you want to call it and did something about it. She has children. Has she ever considered how her obesity could affect her ability to care for those children in the long run?

I believe it is better to accept and recognize when you can no longer do it on your own and certainly a sign of strength when you seek out help from the medical profession. For me the debate is not how hard it must have been to have to have surgery but how hard it was to "fess up" to my own inability to do this on my own.

Yes, getting the surgery was a hard way to lose weight, we all know that. How about acknowledging that we all were able to accept that we had a problem and could no longer change it on our own but were able to do so with professional help?

It's sort of like saying the alcoholic that takes Antabuse (a pill that makes you deathly ill if you drink) is taking the easy way out. Frankly, I feel that the alcoholic has finally taken some personal responsibility and made a healthy choice to change their ways....even if they do need medical help to do it.

Yes, I do feel strongly about this

I have to say that I thought it was the easy way out until I watched my girlfriend go through it. There isn't anything easy about what she had gone through. You still have to make proper food choices, exercise and not eat around the band. It helped me make the decision to have it done. I thought I would be giving up all of the power. There is a misconception if you aren't educated on WLS. And as far as that goes, I could spend 5 more years fighting it, or do this and spend the next 5 years liking myself a whole lot more.

<< in <IN NO WAY defending what they said>> i didnt hear / see it, but do you think they were saying that as a 'dig' to Star Jones ?

That's possible. I truly think that people who don't struggle with their weight, don't get it. Rosie is a different story, obviously.

Very interesting indeed. Rosie should shut your fat mouth, literally. It just seems like she is out for people these days. WLS was one of the biggest decisions of my life. If I could have taken the 82 lbs off after losing 40 myself I would have. I tried for 2 years. That is why I chose WLS. Too bad they have to say stuff like that on TV.

I think the view needs to go away all together...Star was a diva with a real nasty side to herself, and Rosie shoots off from her mouth every day. People need to look at themselves and not to others because of how bad they feel inside. There is my two cents...LOL

I didn't watch it, but wow! What a thing to say! How on earth would they know?

I've only been banded for 5 days and am in the liquids phase. Not easy for me! At work today, my first day back, it was a special "to do" day and they started the day with donuts & big muffins, then my favorite pizza for lunch, and a big homemade cake! Everybody was going on about how good it all tasted. Oh man! I ate my sugar-free jell-o and Tomato Soup with fat free milk, and sent an email to my husband!

I got through it, but it was NOT easy! I really don't expect it to be. One reason I like the Lap Band, is that when I am at Goal, I will know that my success came from ME working hard and making the right choices. I need that. This is a TOOL, not an easy way to being "skinny".

Cricket

Lisa - I completely agree with your post.

We all know it isn't easy. With that said, so what if it is??? For me, it was very difficult to accept that I needed help with my battle. For a long time I too thought it was "the easy way out". I finally decided to get the help I needed. My life and the lives of my husband and children will be better for it.

So what if losing weight is easier with the band.

Aren't we lucky to be able to get the help we need?

When I saw the segment i got very upset. How dare they make comments like that. Overweight people are treated badly for being overweight and then when they do something and have WLS they are taunted for taking the "easy way" out. what's up with that? WLS is anyting but easy, i know for me it is the hardest thing i have ever done and I'm just two weeks post op, hopefully it will get easier. But the last thing i need is some tv show host telling america that WLS is the easy way out.

I congratulate these two ladies for losing the weight, but the sad reality is that it almost always will come back on down the track, plus change.

Rosie O'Donnell has no room to talk. She Really gets on my wick. Susannah

Is there an easy way out from a heart attack, stroke or diabetes? Hmmm? No, I think not. I think we are all people who want a better quality of life so comments like that don't ruffle my feathers one bit. Being proactive and educated in our decisions is what this is all about. It's only natural to feel sensitive or insulted but consider the source and don't justify it with a response. A big cheer for all people who do something good for themselves that dosen't hurt anyone else - no matter what it is.

Losing weight with the lap band is alot easier for me than trying to lose (and keep off weight) without it. No, it's not "easy", it's no walk in the park, but it is easiER.

I don't get why there is such a bad connotation to doing it the "easy" way... I agree with the above poster, that I fessed up that I had a problem, and that I knew I couldn't take care of it myself, so I am taking care of it one way or another, and I'm not sure how you do it matters as long as it's healthy. Why should we be berated for taking the "easy way out", even if it really WAS the "easy way out"? Why should we do it the "hard" way?? Why is that better??

I kind of laugh at people who think we took the easy way out. I told a friend about my surgery and she said "Isn't that kind of like cheating?" I said "So what if it is?" and laughed. It's just silly, really.

My thoughts, plain and simple - I would love for someone to go through the agony of a PB and then try to tell me that's the easy way out.

That's like saying natural childbirth is the easy way out, that tough guys get epiderals.