For all of my June 07 bandsters...

What was the final straw for you to finally decide to go for the lap band? Why did you choose it over gastric bypass?

I can't say that there was a "final straw" moment for me. I had been looking into for over a year when I finally went for a consultation. I am almost 39 and did not want to be Fat and Forty! I want to be FIT and FORTY! My triglycerides were through the roof...runs in the family...and my cholesterol was borderline high. My dad had a couple of heart attacks, angioplasi (sp?), and a quadrupal bypass all before the age of 60! I knew I was looking at worse because my dad was never obese! He did gain a little weight when I was young, but took it off when he started to feel big. I read of some people that died of heart attacks in their mid 30's and I just realized that I needed a drastic solution! I yo-yo dieted most of my life and needed something more permanent.

I chose lap-band over RNY because I didn't want my insides rearranged and cut apart. I wanted to stay in tact. I also didn't want the malnutrition issues that most RNY'rs face. I didn't want to lose my hair. It's already thin!

I was AT my last straw.

My size 4x dog grooming top was getting wore out. I could not find any more in size 4x. They had quit making my size. I looked at Beauty Supply sites and stores. I looked everywhere.

I was considering making some out of shower curtains. I was going to have to buy 2(!!) shower curtains to make one smock.

Then I heard about lap-band. I was saved.

I now wear a very very comfortable M dog grooming smock. Thank you very much.

edie

my last straw was getting on an airplane last summer for a business trip and having the seatbelt JUST barely go around and buckle. god i was UNCOMFORTABE going there and going home. i knew i HAD to do something.

NOW--6 mos after the surgery--i am about 30 lbs lighter and the seatbelts definitely go around me with room to spare---i'm still losing---slowly but surely---and things are definitely looking better (including me!)

my last straw was getting above 200lbs. It might not seem alot to other people but I am on 4 feet 11 inches. I floundered around 192 to 195 for about 3 years. That really didn't bother me, but when I stepped on the scale at my mother in laws house and I was over 200, I got scared. How much more can I gain. That was last Christmas. In January I went to my first meeting for Lap Band. I did not want to do RNY because I have a friend who did it about 10 years ago and she has now gained all her weight back plus some. I am also turning 40 in july and I want to do something to change myself and be healthy for the first time in about 30 years.

One of my last straws is people assuming my DH is my brother!!!! DH is a good looking guy (of course I think so), he is fit, muscular-in shape, and I was over 350 lbs. I had many people comment about my "brother"..........even the surgeon the day of the operation (he had never met DH) told my "brother" where he could wait for me.......people just assume he's my "brother" and not my DH. REally is a blow for my self-esteem!

I didnt want to be fat and forty either. Contemplating what middle and old age would be like if I just continued to get fatter were simply too awful, my body had started complaining about the weight it was carrying and I didnt feel happy or healthy.

Bypass wasnt an option for me. I never ever would have considered it at a BMI of 35 and its rarely done in Australia these days anyway.

In addition to my weight issues, I have other chronic health concerns. All of which are affected by the excess weight, high blood pressure, high triglycerides, etc. I also have hydrocephalus (Water on the brain), a condition that can require surgical procedures to treat. Luckily, my hydrocephalus has been mostly asymptomatic but last fall, I was having problems and had to have surgery on my brain. When I woke up, all hell broke loose. My blood pressure was through the roof and they couldn't get it down. They thought at one point I had a pulmonary embolism. They were giving me mega doses of bp medicine and ativan to calm me down but nothing was working. Long story short, I was all right (obviously) but it scared me to death. I knew that at least part of this problem was related to my weight and I knew I had to do something.

Lap band or bypass??? Well, I know all surgeries are a risk but one of my best friends had bypass and died three days later from complications. There are fewer complications with lap band and it is reversible. I really liked that it is reversible and with bypass, once it's done, it's done.

I hit over 200lbs too (210)....I'm 5'3. Just got tired of being the fat friend when guys would hit on another friend of mine. I'm also tired of not being able to feel comfortable hanging out by the pool or going shopping or just being uncomfortable in my own skin.

I agree with the previous post. I didn't want my insides rearranged.

I didn't have a final straw, really. I've always been overweight, never been able to lose more than 20 lbs. In the last year and a half I've had 2 surgeries on my ankle and gained even more weight. The ankle wasn't healing because I was too heavy. One day I saw a documentary on PBS about some guy getting the LapBand -- I had never heard of it! I went online, did a bunch of research, found my surgeon, took out a loan from the bank, and that was that.

Oh, and a week before surgery, some luntic full of road rage yelled at me out her window and called me a "fat f*ck". That pretty much solidified my decision.

15 months ago I had lost 110 lbs and thought I had my weight issues solved. I gained it all back in about a year and realized that I needed another tool to help me maintain a healthy weight when I get back down.

after going on vacation last october, i weighed in at 290. I could hardly walk and had no energy. my knees were killing me.

then one day during the noon news i saw an ad for the lapband. my journey started that day. it took 8 months but i finally got banded on june 13th and feel like i have a new lease on life.

most of my symptoms have dissapated already.