Come on people. Us newbies need your success stories. They are sooo encouraging, they help us see the finish line and what it's all worth.

You look great!!!

Wow you look awesome!!! How much weight have you lost now?

You look great!!!

Thanks!!

Wow you look awesome!!! How much weight have you lost now?

I lost 55 pounds so far I am 6 months post op.

@Yadiordz: WOWIE-ZOWIE! Fantastic!

For me this has been a journey…yes, I hope to get to the finish line one day but until I do this is my journey.

And not just a weight loss journey. This little trip of mine has helped me see so much more about myself and what I can accomplish. It's helped me look at my life and really figure out what is important and why I want what I want.

I was banded almost 8 months ago and feel very fortunate to have take 92 pounds off of my 5'4" frame. Never in my wildest dreams would i have thought it was possible. I look in the mirror some days and say "wow, look at you"….."look what you've accomplished". Other days, I see some saggy-ness and other days I say "you need to finish this time". Being a perpetual weight watchers member from the age of 16 (now Im 44), Im happy to no longer be a dieter. This is not a diet…I am not deprived of anything….I enjoy all foods and there is nothing I cannot eat. Some foods I choose not to eat because they make me feel uncomfortable but it is MY choice not to eat them.

I love being free of the food monster that has plagued me my entire life.

I am happy with what I've accomplished and I know what I must do to finish my journey and move into the next phase of keeping it off.

I will be a winner this time and I will reach that finish line one day…until that day comes I continue to move forward one day at a time making the best choices I can for myself…treating myself kindly and loving the new me.

For the last 20 years or so , ive been overweight. Difficult in so many ways because I was slim until early 30's and then started having weight problems. Tried weight watchers ( lost a whole 12 lbs in a year ! Oh boy !!) Gained it back and then some. Was banded Dec, 2011 and in 7 months lost 50 of the 85 lbs I needed to lose. Have lost another 15 , now im at a healthy happy 160. Would love to lose 20 more. Yes, thats part of my " success story " but the bigger story is " Immmmmmmmm baaaaaacccckkkkk!!!" IM ME AGAIN !!!!!!!!!!!!! No more sleep apnea, digestive probs, or size18 clothes. I like how I look and feel, and it just keeps getting better and better !! Good luck !

@Yadiordz: WOWIE-ZOWIE! Fantastic!

Thanks my friend , you are doing FANTASTIC also!!!!!!

Success can be gauged and measured in many different ways. I guess the real question is what would you personally call success?

For me it is finally being husband my wife deserves. It is about being able to take that long walk on the beach without having to sit down every 10 minutes because my legs were killing me. I put a lot on her over the years because of my poor physical health and I am doing my best to make up for lost time.

Being able to finally ditch a CPAP machine that I wore nightly for 4 years. Going from a size 62 to 34 waist. Being able to participate in 5K cancer walk and walk it effortlessly.

List could go on and on as to what success means to me but in the end it means...health and happiness!!

Im a newbie too, and I am in awe of the successful banders here. Just what I needed to see today!

You are all so inspirational. I hope to join you with a weight loss story sometime soon.

Success is what you make out of it! I love that I can run and run and run. I walked up 7 flights if stairs in heels last week. I wasn't out if breath and feeling like I wanted to die when I got to the top. I love that I can have an off day and eat what I want yet go back to eating heathly the next day! You will get there and see all the amazing things that you can do I went from 238 to 128 pounds pants from 24 to a 6. Im not embarrassed to go groceries anymore and think people are judging what's in my cart because I'm overweight.

I consider myself a successful work in progress

I am 8 months post-op and feeling AWESOME! Don't judge my success by the numbers in my ticker...I don't. Judge it by the improvement in my health (no more blood pressure meds), the improvements in my mobility (no more huffing and puffing walking from the car to the office), the increase in my exercise (boxing classes are the BEST) and the improvement of my overall life (I'm no longer hiding in corners or the back of the room wishing I was invisible).

food is no longer the focus of my daily life. I eat when I'm hungry. I don't when I'm not...simple. I move when I can, and I get out and enjoy my life. I ride rollercoasters, I take group exercise classes, I walk on the beach, I ride a bicycle on the trails near my house, I look people in the eye, I smile, I laugh...and I make mischief at every possible opportunity

Edited May 12, 201412 yr by SillyAuntDi

So inspiring

to me a success story is a person TRYING and then following what their dr advised them to do in whatever WLS one chose to receive and doing the best they can.....some want to lose weight to fit into a tiny polka dot bikni and some (like me) wanted/needed to have this surgery just to be able to walk better (and truth be told, to be able to wipe my butt)....

Oh Ehm Geeee.....I laughed so hard when I saw the wipe my butt comment...because, I feel like that is a NSV I strive for!! LOL....I didn't think anyone else understood this problem!!! LOL....I mean I can wipe my butt, but it is HARD because my back hurts so bad and my big belly gets in the way!!!! I looked at your stats...very inspirational...I'm adding you as a friend!