Jump to content
×
Are you looking for the BariatricPal Store? Go now!

How many people have you shared your lap-band experience with?  

3 members have voted

  1. 1. How many people have you shared your lap-band experience with?

    • No one or Only my significant other
      197
    • Limited number of people, closest friend/family members
      671
    • Most of my Family & Friends know
      173
    • Everyone & Their neighbor's Dog know
      165


Recommended Posts

so far, only told my spouse and sister, will tell our son & daughter, mainly b/c we need someone to watch the dog when I go to hospital. I may tell others as I go ( and success shows), but I don't want to tell people at work yet. I don't want the constant questions of how it's going, what am I eating, how much did I loose this week etc...I know there will be enough people with negative comments or people who expect I should immediately loose a lot of weight, it doesn't seem worth it to bother talking about yet.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I told whoever asked or whatever. I just didn't want it to be all taboo or feel like I was doing something wrong. I made sure everyone knew how hard I was working and how its not the "easy way".

Now I have a huge support base and everyone is helping me!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I tell everyone if it comes up for any reason. I see no reason not to and it does not come up frequently just because people know. The only people who ask how it's going are my immediate family members and my closest friends from time to time. I'm not ashamed of it and have no reason to keep it secret that I can think of. I have even told people who are practically strangers!!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I've only told my best friend at work, brothers, one of whom lives with me, my mom, who is coming from California to help me... and I think that is it. So the only people who know is anyone they told. And my medical providers. And I never go to California (due to my weight and planes. I mean I can go, I just do not want to be so uncomfortable in a tight seat) so I do not care what anyone says out there. my friend at work is tight with me so he won't say anything to anyone.

By the time I get to California again though, everyone will wonder where the weight went, but we will have so much fun no one will bother with it much!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I told my Sister too, OF COURSE! :thumbup:

The only person I told was my sister. She know exactly what procedure I had done. I was not planning to tell anyone, but the hospital insisted that I provide an emergency contact person, so that got me to thinking...what if something happens? What if I don't wake up from the surgery.

So I did the grown up thing and told my sister where to find my life insurance policies and how best to help my adult kids get through the worse should the worse happen.

My brother was the one who actually dropped me off at the hospital and picked me up from the hospital, but he does not know what type of procedure I had done. :confused:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I don't volunteer the information but if someone asks how I lost so much weight I tell them. Usually I get a "wow that's great" or "oh I know someone who is considering having the lapband, how was the recovery..."

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

So far two friends and hubby. I can't bring myself to tell anyone else. I'm just a really private person.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I told everyone. I think of this surgery as a blessing. When I was having surgery they found something else. This probably would not have been found if I was not being banded. I had another surgery and now I am on the mend and feeling great. I now have a friend that is thinking about getting banded.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Oh Boy do i regret telling people i got the band. Every friend and family member i have told has told EVERYONE they know. so now anytime i see anyone that knows me or of me give me a once over. I hate the pressure i feel to be losing large amounts of weight. people call me and the first thing they say is HOW MUCH HAVE U LOST; ARE YOU SKINNY YET....uggghhhh I am the posterchild for lapbanding now.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Now that it has been some time since my surgery... I told everyone and their brother what I did....I now just say, when asked if I have lost weight.... Yes I did and it is a daily struggle to continue...... that is all they need to know at this point. To some closer friends I say medical intervention is a great thing!!! and they just laugh as I do too.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Oh Boy do i regret telling people i got the band. Every friend and family member i have told has told EVERYONE they know. so now anytime i see anyone that knows me or of me give me a once over. I hate the pressure i feel to be losing large amounts of weight. people call me and the first thing they say is HOW MUCH HAVE U LOST; ARE YOU SKINNY YET....uggghhhh I am the posterchild for lapbanding now.

And so the name............"I walk the line"!! Very appropriate. I told lots of people too. I just say "Yes, I'm losing, slowly, but surely like I'm supposed to be doing. I still have to work at it. It doesn't just fall off." Best wishes!! Don't feel pressured. You will do great anyway and everyone will be saying "wow" in a short time!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I've only told my family and a few close friends. I've decided NOT to tell my colleagues at work..... I just feel that it's a personal decision and not really a "water cooler" topic - if you know what I mean.

Let them all notice in a few months that I'm losing weight and wonder..... ha ha

:thumbup:

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

i really regret telling all the people that i told.

if i could do it over the only person that would know is my husband and best friend of 30 years. that's it.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Those who aren't telling, what do you do after surgery when you go back to work? I eat lunch with my coworkers every day (one of the reasons I've gotten so much fatter in the last year, because it's hard to say no to them!). How do you cope when you're on liquids/mushy food etc if you're not telling people? Can't really say you're on a liquid diet...?

It is not so bad. Just tell them you are on a special diet to kickstart weight loss. Considering that I was obese at the time, no one thought it was unusual that I would be on a special diet.

I would also still go out with friends after but very occasionally and order Soup or something very light. Once I was on solids, a salad is good in that you can pick off the Protein and scoot it around your plate quite a bit.

All in all, there was only a single occasion in all that time where someone said something. A friend said, "Heather, you have been eating that salad for almost an hour and it doesn't look any smaller" . . . I just said I was feeling a little under the weather and that was sufficient.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now

  • Trending Products

  • Trending Topics

  • Recent Status Updates

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • KimBaxleyWilson

      Three months and four days ago... I was in Costa Rica having a life changing surgery! Yesterday we had a followup visit with Dr. Esmeral via video chat and this morning my middle number changed.  I'm down 47lbs and two pants sizes. I can wear a Large tshirt for the first time in like... 14 years! Woot!! Everything is going great. I have zero regrets. I went down to the riverwalk with a friend and walked 2 miles on Monday without even getting fatigued. And no more snoring or chugging pickle juice for crazy leg cramps! I need to go to the gym more... I'm making new shirts next week so that will motivate me. LOL But I'm also just not as TIRED all the time! I have a LONG way to go...but seeing the progress on the scales and in the mirror is a huge motivator!! Thank you all for cheering me on and supporting me!!
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • bellaamey

      https://alluniqueguide.com/java-burn-coffee-reviews/
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
  • Recent Topics

  • Hot Products

  • Sign Up For
    Our Newsletter

    Follow us for the latest news
    and special product offers!
  • Together, we have lost...
      lbs

    PatchAid Vitamin Patches

    ×