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Just starting this jouney

Ready2Change

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Ready2Change    0

Ready2Change
Posted

Hi, I'm Cathi from MD. I am just starting my research and journey towards LAP-Band surgery. I am an advanced stage ovarian cancer survivor (6 years clean this June) and I am ready to lose all this weight and start a new way of life. But , I am also scared.

I know this will be more then just a simple surgery for losing weight. I know this will be a life style change. I question myself as to whether I am ready for such a change, but I know if I can survive 5 days a week of chemo, I can do this. I want to live without the fear that I am too big for . . .

I would love to hear from anyone who has started this journey in regards to how they are dealing with the daily routine of living without the comfort of food. I would also love to hear from others who are just starting.

Thanks for the support!:clap2:

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edieparks    2

edieparks
Posted

Hi Cathi,

I am proud for you. You have fought a big battle. You won.

Now you are starting the next battle.

I did have some depression. When the lbs starting dropping off , my weight became my comfort. It really did. I felt better about how I looked. How the world perceived me. I knew my food addiction was right out in the open . My tight size 26 jeans told the truth.

Now I have been at goal for 3 months and I am still amazed at how I have changed. I am very busy and don't tire like I used to. Being busy with life not my next fix (food) .

The excitement, thrill , and the future makes me smile. I can't find the words.

I know one worry I had was what if I put it back on? Now 3 months I feel 99% confident that will not happen. I get full. I have to stop and eat.

So to sum it up, the high I get from feeling and looking better took the place of my high from food.< /p>

best wishes,

edie

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AnotherMe    0

AnotherMe
Posted

Cathi, welcome to LBT :) Early congratulations on your upcoming anniversary! It's really great to hear a success story like yours.

I was banded in Oct 2005, am approx 25-30 lbs from goal. I have to tell you, I still find it hard. I am not perfect, I don't always make proper food choices. But, with the band I definitely can't eat large quantities. I find holidays (Thanksgiving/Christmas) especially tough, it's really hard for me to see others eating such large portions. I want to have a small taste of everything, but that's not always possible. Last Nov I think I had 3 bites of turkey and a bit of veggies and I was done. Those holidays are so focused on food/preparation, and for us it's over in such a short minute.

Good news is I'm in a much healthier place and size than I was 18 mo ago. I've lost at a steady rate, and have been fortunate to have few complications which have enabled me to maintain where I'm at.

I've made a commitment to be at goal by my 2 year anniversary in October, in a couple of weeks I'm starting a program at a new fitness center opening in my neighborhood. I've signed up for a few personal training sessions, and am excited to begin targeting some of my problem areas.

I hope others are not too shy to chime in, it really helps to have many different perspectives.

All the best,

Karla

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Big As Life    0

Big As Life
Posted

Cathi,

Congrats on your up-coming anniversary of being cancer free....I pray that you will continue to do well....

The band is a wonderful tool....It keeps me from eating to much...that has always been my problem...I can eat nearly anything I want, just not a lot of it...I eat a half a cup per meal...three meals a day...no in between snacking....I love the band...it is the best thing I have ever done...

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cyndilou29    0

cyndilou29
Posted

welcome! I just got banded yesterday. You have gone through so much, this is a piece of cake! Ooh, maybe not cake!

Justt do your research and you'll know if it is rght for you.

God bless...

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jsrico    1

jsrico
Posted

You are already a strong women....so this will be a piece of cake!! LOL!! You have gone through a lot and you will be just fine. I had did my research on the surgery for about a year before I stepped in. Just had my surgery on May 22, 2007. I am 4 days post op...and I feel ok. A little aches and pains....but I just had surgery. I thought I would be starving since I havent had food since Monday...but I am not. I have this sense of fullness inside. Hard to explain. I have a hard time making myself have broth or even a popscyle. Weird huh. I am down 7 pounds...but I also know I am full of gas from the surgery. Good luck to you and hope to hear from you again.

Surgery 242

Now 235

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Go To Topic Listing Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story

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    • Aunty Mamo

      Aunty Mamo

      Iʻm roughly 6 weeks post-op this morning and have begun to feel like a normal human, with a normal human body again. I started introducing solid foods and pill forms of medications/supplements a couple of weeks ago and it's really amazing to eat meals with my family again, despite the fact that my portions are so much smaller than theirs. 
      I live on the island of Oʻahu and spend a lot of time in the water- for exercise, for play,  and for spiritual & mental health. The day I had my month out appointment with my surgeon, I packed all my gear in my truck, anticipating his permission to get back in the ocean. The minute I walked out of that hospital I drove straight to the shore and got in that water. Hallelujah! My appointment was at 10 am. I didn't get home until after 5 pm. 
      I'm down 31 pounds since the day of surgery and 47 since my pre-op diet began, with that typical week long stall occurring at three weeks. I'm really starting to see some changes lately- some of my clothing is too big, some fits again. The most drastic changes I notice however are in my face. I've also noticed my endurance and flexibility increasing. I was really starting to be held up physically, and I'm so grateful that I'm seeing that turn around in such short order. 
      My general disposition lately is hopeful and motivated. The only thing that bugs me on a daily basis still is the way those supplements make my house smell. So stink! But I just bought a smell proof bag online that other people use to put their pot in. My house doesn't stink anymore. 
       
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Oh yeah, something I wanted to rant about, a billing dispute that cropped up 3 months ago.
      Surgery was in August of 2023. A bill shows up for over $7,000 in January. WTF? I asks myself. I know that I jumped through all of the insurance hoops and verified this and triple checked that, as did the surgeon's office. All was set, and I paid all of the known costs before surgery.
      A looong story short, is that an assistant surgeon that was in the process of accepting money from my insurance company touched me while I was under anesthesia. That is what the bill was for. But hey, guess what? Some federal legislation was enacted last year to help patients out when they cannot consent to being touched by someone out of their insurance network. These types of bills fall under something called, "surprise billing," and you don't have to put up with it.
      https://www.cms.gov/nosurprises
      I had to make a lot of phone calls to both the surgeon's office and the insurance company and explain my rights and what the maximum out of pocket costs were that I could be liable for. Also had to remind them that it isn't my place to be taking care of all of this and that I was going to escalate things if they could not play nice with one another.
      Quick ending is that I don't have to pay that $7,000+. Advocate, advocate, advocate for yourself no matter how long it takes and learn more about this law if you are ever hit with a surprise bill.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Some days I feel like an infiltrator... I'm participating in society as a "thin" person. They have no idea that I haven't always been one of them! 🤣
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • ChunkCat

      ChunkCat

      Thank you everyone for your well wishes! I totally forgot I wrote an update here... I'm one week post op today. I gained 15 lbs in water weight overnight because they had to give me tons of fluids to bring my BP up after surgery! I stayed one night in the hospital. Everything has been fine except I seem to have picked up a bug while I was there and I've been running a low grade fever, coughing, and a sore throat. So I've been hydrating well and sleeping a ton. So far the Covid tests are negative.
      I haven't been able to advance my diet past purees. Everything I eat other than tofu makes me choke and feels like trying to swallow rocks. They warned me it would get worse before it gets better, so lets hope this is all normal. I have my follow up on Monday so we'll see. Living on shakes and soup again is not fun. I had enough of them the first time!! LOL 
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • BeanitoDiego

      BeanitoDiego

      Still purging all of the larger clothing. This morning, a shirt that I ADORED wearing ended up on top. Hard to let it go, but it was also hard to let go of those habits that also no longer serve my highest good. Onward and upward!
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.

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