Hello all!

I am a nervous mess. I'm happy don't get me wrong but all the same nervous. I went to my consultation appointment on June 19. I decided then that this was what I really wanted. I have dieted most of my adult life. My highest weight was 194 lbs. I lost weight that same year down to the 160s. That wasn't the healthiest loss I will admit. I was really stressed out. Over the next 4 years my weight hung around 150-160. Life really changed for me about 2 years ago. I began gaining weight and tried everything to ward it off. I went back to Level 1 Adkins, tried personal training (way to expensive for me though), even tried phentermine but it made me way too moody to work in a call center and have to talk to people. I currently weigh 185 lbs. I know that isn't a lot to some but for me, it means walking up stairs is daunting. I find myself checking that I have everything so I don't have to go back up again. That's sad right? There are times when the way I sit or the type of chair I sit in make it feel like the fat in my abdomen is making it hard to breath. I have worked hard my entire life to keep from being diabetic like my mom. She is a type 1 diabetic. Obviously I won't be a type 1 but type 2 isn't far behind if I don't do something. I've notice my circulation has changed too. My limbs go numb pretty easily. I've seen my primary care physician and he's found nothing. He's a great Dr. He spends a good deal of time with me discussing whatever we need to so I trust him completely. I know that loosing this weight will help with some of this. (I might also get to wear clothes that actually fit right)

It would be great if any of you would like to keep in touch or even have advise to offer from your own experience. I look forward to working on getting back in the gym, slimming down, and enjoying life. I want to do everything where I can to avoid complications. I strongly believe if I create a plan for myself that is reasonable I can stick to it. I don't want to over commit myself. Lets face it when we make things too crazy for ourselves we eventually stop working on it. I have read a lot of materials that indicate compliance with the principles of the band decrease incidence rates but of course those pieces of literature lack the emotional effects. Well I have probably made you all extremely tired reading this so I am coming to an end. Thanks in advance for anything you have to say. I'll keep you updated!

Hi there and congratulations on your upcoming surgery. I was banded last November and I was very excited but of course also those undertones of nervousness. I had never been an overnight patient in a hospital before. It all went so much better than I thought. Every one was very professional and I felt well taken care of throughout. I have a good sense of humor and I think that helped -- it's all so bizarre, the gown and slippers, being wheeled on a gurney, signing those papers, etc. In getting the band I was really choosing myself and putting my health first -- finally! -- and it was a very empowering experience. It wasn't like being in the hospital for an injury or illness -- I was getting something I really wanted.

Like you I spent years struggling with my weight and trying so many different things -- I worked so hard but always eventually could not keep on and then the inevitable regain plus some. With the band, I am not on a diet. I make good choices and have a healthy lifestyle but my years of restrictive eating are over. That did not work for me. Now I follow basic band protocol but my brain doesn't have any messages of being deprived. I never had junk food before and I don't do artificial sweeteners, etc., so I didn't have to address that as some do. I was just eating too much, way too much.

Good luck to you as you get ready. The first couple of months can be a little baffling as you navigate everything. It can feel like it's not working and that you're still hungry, etc., but that's because the band needs to be adjusted properly for you and that can take some time. So be patient, employ that sense of humor and be gentle with yourself. It will all happen. And so glad you're here on the forum. I got so much out if reading people's posts and understanding how it all works.

With 2 weeks to go, I am starting my pre-op diet tommorrow (Tuesday). This will be interesting....

I'm also on the 29th starting preop tomorrow too!

I attended my last pre-op appointment today. It was actually like a refresher course. The P.A and Dr. Esquivel talked about reasons for doing the pre-op diet. Our session was actually really comical. One of the things I loved most about it, our P.A's have all undergone the lapband surgery and had great results. They are truly inspiration. I feel really confident at the moment especially having done so much research and reading the book they provide by Dr. Paul O'Brien, the creator of the band and another by Victoria Ashton a patient who tells about her experience with the band, forwarded by her surgeon. I am very anxious because it's surgery but excited at the same time. Wish me luck!

I am as closed to prepared as I can get. I have stuck closely to my pre-op diet, filled my post-op prescriptions, got my heating pad, liquids, chapstick, sf popsicles, Soup (I plan to drink the stock from it as I have during my pre-op diet), sf Jello, and I even purchased a few loose fitting summer dresses and a couple sets of loose fitting capris. Does anyone have any other suggestions? A little over on week to go! #whew