I have just made the decision to be banded and would love to know if anyone has any regrets that they did it. What is the best thing about it and what it the worst?

Thanks,

Susan

Hi Susan-

I have no regrets about being banded at all. Let's see, the best thing about it, would have to be the feeling of control. I can control my eating, I no longer feel hungry, and I don't gorge myself, and binge...it allows me to feel less self concious eating in front of people in a restaurant. I can move so much easier now with over 80 pounds gone. I can buy clothes in the Misses section of any store---no more Plus sizes. I have gone from being Morbidly Obese, to Obese, and now to being Overweight---someday even the Dr. will say I am normal!!!

The worst part---other than waiting way too long to get it done, and get on with my life...would be.....hmmmm this is much harder!!! I would say the excess skin----and knowing a TT is gonna have to happen. I would have loved to have lost the weight and looked like a before and after you see in magazines.....but my after isn't so pretty!!!!

Kat

Hi: I second Katz. Although just starting out, I already have improved self esteem. I am in control and when I stray, the band gives me a pinch to remind me of my goals.

The worst - the recommend slow progress is not in my nature, and I am impatient to get to normal weight. Doddie

The Best thing - I can eat much less food without suffering that gnawing hunger all the time.

The worst thing - I can still eat anything and still do on occassion. I really wish I was one of those people who PB'd on bread or rice or Pasta.

(Dang Pizza! I can still eat it)

It's NOT a magic wand - but the band makes it SOOOOO much easier to exercise my fleeting self restraint.

Maybe you will get lucky and be one of those who can't eat the bad stuff.

:]

No regrets at all.

The best thing is that I have hope again that I can be a normal size. I can eat a small meal, and be totally satisfied. food no longer rules my life.

The worst is that at times I do miss the comfort of eating a huge meal, without having to think about if I eat this or that, will it get stuck.

Susan, I can relate to you. I recently have made the decision to be banded as well and even though I've been cruising around this forum for the last two months I am suddenly terrified. I question myself everyday... Am I doing the right thing? Is this too drastic? What the heck am I doing? OMG!!!

I love your question about the best and worse and look forward to reading everyone's replies.

I see Kat mentioned binge eating which I am also guilty of. I wonder how a binge eater makes it through this surgery. If a person can no longer use food as comfort what happens...???

:cry

Janice

Janice, I will be totally honest with you---sometimes not having the ability to truly binge---is frustrating as hell! But you do learn to "binge" differently, so to speak. Tonight I ate Girl Scout Cookies...where as before I could have eaten the entire box---tonight I had 3 small cookies, I nibbled at them as opposed to popping them in 2 bites...and I was full, I had actually taken 5 (these are small mint cookies), but after 3 I was done.

You do devleop a different mind set---at least I have, and that is all I can speak for. I was banded last April, and since it was Spring, I was able to be outside. During the healing phase, when I would get the "drive me out of my mind wanting to eat" stuff going on, I would leave the house and take a walk. Not long after me being banded, my DH had some serious health problems and required open heart surgery for a valve, and he had to walk---so we walked A LOT! It made for a good habit. Now in the evening when the urge to snack hits, is when I hop on the eliptical, or the treadmill. When the weather is better I will once again be outside. You do learn to turn the feeling into something else. I now actually enjoy making my heart pound, and my blood pump---which was never the case before!

There are times the "head hunger" takes over still---my pouch is full, but I want to EAT!!!! It is hard sometimes---but I can now look down,(sounds stupid but it's true!) at the zipper and button on my jeans, and remember not long ago, I only had elastic waist pants, and I can see how even though my stomach is still my biggest problem, it is going away. Where my size 24 belly used to be is a size 14 belly now...and I can usually get past the urge to eat. That works IF I am already full!!! If I haven't eaten, I have to make a concious effort to eat something filling and "safe" a handful of almonds or a piece of cheese---makes me full til the urge passes.

Believe me---if I can do this---so can you!!!

Kat

Thank you Kat. That makes sense. Really nice of you to share your experience of saying goodbye to an "old friend" - food.

Congrats on your success so far. It really does give me hope!

Janice

Yes Kat - great post and gives me hope because I too am a binge eater. But I hope to be a was a binge eater soon. Thanks to all of you for your replies - I hope more people reply to the best and worst because it keeps us honest.

Susan

No regrets!!!!

(same here... no regrets)

I regret that I only took a few days off of work to heal. I should have at least taken 10 days. There was a moment right when I got home from the hospital that I broke down crying because I felt like a moral failure....I thought why can't I just control myself, but I don't at all feel like that anymore. I feel empowered to make healthy choices. You know yourself best...you know what you need to do in order to be happy and healthy. Oh...another hard part is even though I've just begun my journey....learning how to really respect myself because you can still eat all the bad stuff if you'd like, and you can still over eat just nothing like before. Learning to listen to my body and stop eating when I'm full rather than having to lick my plate clean. It's still hard for me to toss food out, but it's something I have to learn. Best wishes.

No regrets.

Best Part: it's working and I see light at the end of the tunnel; more importantly: permanent light.

Worst Part: I still (even after almost a year) get really PISSED (& sometimes super sad) that I can't eat more than I can. But that feeling is less and less all the time; I don't think it will ever go away but will get to the point where it won't bug me as much. Still no regrets though.

No regrets... sometimes I miss being able ot chug a glass of beer in the summer or milk. But overall no regrets after five years.

I have to say, the band helps you lose weight but we can and have all lost weight before many times over and over. Where I think the band is amazing is for maintenance, it is very easy to maintain with relative ease over years. I have now maintained a stable weight for over three years with no issues for me.

I think the one issue I wish I learned to deal with an accept earlier in my journey was to work on head hunger and why I eat what I eat. I still work on my food issues... but looking at why you eat what you eat, when you eat, where you eat, and how you eat.... that is one of the hardest things to fess up to. Sometimes being honest is amazing but being honest with yourself is one of the hardest things I had to learn.

No regrets.

I think it's ironic that I learned of the lap band while watching a commercial during the Dr Phil show (yea, read his weight loss book 3 times. great book, too bad it didn't work for me). I am amazed every day how food has lost its grip on me. Maybe they did some brain-surgery when they had me under! It is a relief to go to the grocery store and not be tempted (really) by the candy display at the check-out.

Best of all, I've lost some weight and I feel like losing some more (not plotting on having a yummy "cheat".

I love my band.

Although I am pretty new, and have not had a fill yet, I can truly say that I have not regerets.

Like so many have said before, why did I not do it sooner. After all, I am where I was at a year ago after I just lost 40 pounds. That would be ground that I would not have made up again had I done it sooner.

Andrew