Just wanted to let you all know that Oprah is doing a show on teenage WLS. Hopefully she will be positive about lapband surgery. She interviewed my surgeon, and one of his patients and her mother.

My understanding is that a gastric bypass patient who is young lady will also be on it. She posted on ObesityHelp that she taped the show last week. The producers contacted her as she has a blog or something and has been on other shows. Most of the others think it will be a negative show though as she has been dealing with eating disorders she mentions, so we shall see.

If you go to Oprah's website it tells you that it's all about teens that have lost weight and they mention a boy that had gastric banding and a young girl that had gastric bypass. It looks like from the website that they are going to discuss WLS in teens. Whether it's right or wrong to do them as teens. That's my take on what the show will be about from her website.

Hi

I just watched the show.Thought it was very good. You wait........ Oprah is going to be banded.

I'm watching it right now! I don't know, Oprah thinks she's got something to prove, I think.. I wish she would though!

Did you notice that the audience didn't applaud the WLS teenagers, but applauded the young lady who lost weight natually?

I think a lot of people think WLS is like cheating....and they resent our success. My feeling is that if it makes it easier so what! It is my choice. (So do dishwashers and microwaves). I think it is hard for the 'general public' to understand the desperation we have all felt.

As most of use here can attest to, diets dont work. I dont think that weight loss surgery is a cop-out, but rather a more effective means to solve the problem of excess weight.

I could walk to work every day, but it is more efficient to drive. Same idea to me.

Lets face it, the stats about diets are not in favour of people succeeding. Why is it that there are more diets out there than ever, yet the rates of obesity are growing at an alarming rate, especially among teens.

I watched that show with great interest. I think that all in all it will be a positive thing for banding. Any exposure is good.

Andrew

I watched it too. Oprah tried to be neutral, Dr Oz has a chapter on WLS in his book, You On A Diet.

I was proud of those 'kids' for trying to explain themselves. They did a great job in my eyes. I sure wish I had this opportunity at a younger age. I'd have saved myself 30 years of pain and self-torture.

I do believe we have a duty to try to get people to help themselves, but when all else fails, there IS an option.

I am not dumb, I am not without discipline, I am a successful person in every other aspect of my life, except with my weight. I think there are factors in our brain chemistry that no one yet understands that make some of us fat.

I am not dumb, I am not without discipline, I am a successful person in every other aspect of my life, except with my weight. /quote]

You summed up one of the primary reasons why I chose to get the band. I had success in every aspect of my life, yet all of it was eclipsed by the fact that I could never succedd when it came to my weight. It was quite depressing.

Regarding Oprah, I was suprised that she was as unbiased as she was about it. I was ready for it to be more anti WLS, but I think that was presented fairly well. I do have to go back and watch it again. We are potty training at my house, so I missed some of it while reading Brown Bear Brown bear to my son in the bathroom.

Andrew

I am not dumb, I am not without discipline, I am a successful person in every other aspect of my life, except with my weight. /quote]

You summed up one of the primary reasons why I chose to get the band. I had success in every aspect of my life, yet all of it was eclipsed by the fact that I could never succedd when it came to my weight. It was quite depressing. YES! DEPRESSING!!!!! and FINALLY at age 43, I just decided that I'd had enough. This has been such a blessing for me, I can't even explain, but I guess you know too.

and I don't know if you ever tried Phen Fen, but I did for 3 months, in 1994 or whenever. THAT was when I realized that the key to my problem was in my brain chemicals. THAT was when I then knew what it was to have 'normal' brain messages.

Whatever Phen Fen did in my brain, I stopped obsessing on food, I stopped eating when I was full. I wasn't tortured with constant thoughts of food.

The lap band is forced behaviour modification and it has worked a miracle for me. But I hope and pray one day that we will better understand brain chemicals and how to control them for people with addictions.

There was also an article written by a gastric surgeon. He says that our intestinal system sends many messages to our brain and that when some of those pathways are cut, during gastric bypass, those patients lost their obssession or overinterest in food.

Regarding Oprah, I was suprised that she was as unbiased as she was about it. I was ready for it to be more anti WLS, but I think that was presented fairly well. I do have to go back and watch it again. We are potty training at my house, so I missed some of it while reading Brown Bear Brown bear to my son in the bathroom. HAAAAAAAAAAA, you sound like a great Daddy Gaffer. Cherish every moment.

Andrew

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I would like to see her do a show with the same people in 5 years - see who kept the weight off and who did not. I have lost many many pounds only to gain it back. We all know we can lose, it is the keeping it off that is an issue.

I watched it too. Oprah tried to be neutral, Dr Oz has a chapter on WLS in his book, You On A Diet.

I was proud of those 'kids' for trying to explain themselves. They did a great job in my eyes. I sure wish I had this opportunity at a younger age. I'd have saved myself 30 years of pain and self-torture.

I do believe we have a duty to try to get people to help themselves, but when all else fails, there IS an option.

I am not dumb, I am not without discipline, I am a successful person in every other aspect of my life, except with my weight. I think there are factors in our brain chemistry that no one yet understands that make some of us fat.

You said it just like I did to my DH when I was contemplating surgery.

I am a very successful person in all other areas of my life. I

I think a lot of people think WLS is like cheating....and they resent our success. My feeling is that if it makes it easier so what! It is my choice. (So do dishwashers and microwaves). I think it is hard for the 'general public' to understand the desperation we have all felt.

I completely agree! I am formally one of those people who were "jealous" of those who have had WLS, and accused them of taking the easy way out. Looking back - it was jealousy (although, I never would have admitted it at the time!). Now that I'm on the other side, I'd like to kick my own butt! This is hardly the easy way out. I dont think people will ever understand until they've walked in our shoes. Talk about "eating my words!"

As for myself, I still cannot wrap my head around this concept of "taking the easy way/cheating" or whatever. Weight issues are medical issues, not moral issues. This technology now exists and I see no reason why we should not take advantage of it in dealing with what is, afterall, a medical problem.

This same attitude, by the way, used to exist until very, very recently when it came to dealing with the problem of depression. Until the last few years depression was viewed as being a moral problem, as a sign of emotional weakness, and we were told to "change our attitudes, look on the bright side, take our vitamins," yadda, yadda, yadda. This attitude existed even within the medical community. Now depression is recognised as a neurological disease, one associated with a malfunction of the brain chemistry, and it is considered good medicine to opt to "take the easy way out," and by this I mean to take those medications, antidepressants, which will work to fix bad brain chemistry. A diabetic is not taking the easy way out by taking insulin.

Obesity is just another one of an array of medical issues, in my opinion. The notion that we should knock ourselves out with diet and exercise in order to attempt to achieve what the normos have handed to themselves on a silver plate is just dumb. The band exists. Hurray for the band!!!!

Wow...lots of great points. Green, you nailed it on the head, and I am going to quote you next time someone tries to make me feel like s**t for my decision.