How Do you feel about your choice to get banded ??? Please Vote !

Sorry i posted this by mistake in Intro section as well.

My Story

Hi, I'm new to the community and am scheduled to get banded on May the 13th !!! Soooo nervous and excited at the same time. Would really like to hear from some of you about your experiences. Does anyone here regret going through with the surgery ?

My biggest worries is that I may regret the surgery for the following reasons:

1) I may feel frustrated with having a foreign object telling me what I can and cannot eat (unable to eat foods like red meat, past and rice the rest of my life).

2) Feeling like an impostor in front of other people because I have something inside myself that I am hiding from other people. Like I will always be carrying around this embarrassing secret with me...

What do you think about my thoughts ?

BTW I am 23 years old and in college :biggrin2:

Wow, I feel like you are writing what i am thinking. I feel better knowing that i am not the only one who wonders if this is the best decission. ANd your poll was great. I love to hear the inspirational stories. My first appointment is May 2nd. I am anxious and nervious, I have actually gained 6 lbs since making the appointment 2 weeks ago. I have been eating everything in sight because i am so affraid i will never be able to have some of the stuff again. From what i have read, it seems as though i will be able to but i will have this control switch inside of me that will not let me go overboard. I love this forum i feel better with each success story that i read.

Interesting question.

Unfortunately, I'm one of the few that have had problems with my band. I've had to have several surgeries, I've had infections, and in the end I lost my band due to erosion. I was also a cash pay patient and have since accumulated thousands in additional medical bills.

I'm angry at the way things turned out and I wished they would have turned out differently. However, I still do not regret making the decision to get a lap-band. Regret? Nope. Not at all. In the short time I had it, it helped me change my life and I am happy with my progress.

Good luck to you.

I eat anything and don't have too much trouble with any kind of food as long as I chew and slow down. I haven't told anyone accept my mom, dad, and a couple of really close friends/neighbors. The rest of my family and friends don't know at all and they never even question it. I have completely changed my life from what I eat to how I eat to the exercise I do daily, so it is not surprising that I am losing the weight and my friends and family don't question me about whether I had surgery or not, because they see how hard I am working.

Definitely do it now, I am 24 and I wish I had done it years ago, but it has truly been a blessing. Best of luck to you!

The band is the best thing I have ever done for myself. I have no shame in having it. Why should I be ashamed that I am doing what I have to do to improve my health, be happier, more self-confident and increase my lifespan so I will be hear to see my kids kids, etc.?

got done bout a month ago n already im seeing changes and i coudlnt of done it with out it or id of never got it done in the 1st place its hard work but wat isnt these days..

ilove my band!!!!

Excuse my french, but HELL NO! I don't regret my decision one bit. I'm down over 100 lbs in 7 mos. I can eat any foods I want, only smaller portions. I watch what I eat more than ever before and it's working. I exercise more than ever before. I used to just lift and maybe about 20 minutes of cardio. Now, I do cardio EVERY morning and lift 4 nights a week. Only, I do circuit training now with lifting.

As for the impostor part, I see it as someone who is still pre op. I told very few people until right before the surgery. As it got closer and after surgery, I've told anyone who will listen. I don't care if they think I "took the easy way out". I have not had anyone tell me that to my face, but I would just invite them to the gym with me for one week and to try out my workouts. Most "fit" people couldn't hang with me for one full week.

Absolutely no regrets. The band has given me back my health and love for life already and I still have 50 pounds to lose before i reach my goal.

I'm seriously only ten days out, so may be premature......but I am so happy. I have a sense of control and empowerment that I've never had before. I know this is going to work for me and it's just such a great feeling.

I have a wonderful medical team to rely on, a great support system at home, and most importantly, such a feeling of CONFIDENCE.

No regrets....none.

No regrets except I wish I would have done it sooner. I was also mistaken that I thought it would be so easy. It is really something that I have to work on.

I don't know if I regret getting the band but I'm disapointed. Had my first fill 3/26/08. Dr. was not happy when I told him I can eat anything. I still lost 5 lbs. Dr. said I need to diet. I thought I got the band so I didn't have to diet. If it took diet then why get the band. I know I need to eat healthy but diet!

WasaBubbleButt, as someone who has not yet 'come to terms' with the band I am interested to know why you would have gotten a sleeve instead. - please could you say why?

I got my band on March 3rd and will get my first fill on 4/2. I feel a bit restricted now however.

I would recommend that you and anyone considering it to choose a surgeon with lots of experience, like 1000 bands. It takes a very precise placement on your stomach (over the area that secrets appetite hormones) and a knowledgable staff to be effective for you.

I am surprised at how my tastes in foods have changed just in the last 3 weeks. I no longer have cravings and am in control of my food choices. Feels great and hopefully my band will continue to supress those appetite hormones.

I feel normal with food for the first time in my life. What a blessing!

I expect to be totally successful with my weight loss and more importantly, to be able to keep it off forever.

It is hard however and not a walk in the park. The journey is worth it and remember you only have one life and a limited time on this earth.

Make sure you spend your time on earth as your best self, healthy and active. Do whatever it takes to achieve that. For me, I needed the band to do it.

Love to all;

Sadie

Best decision I ever made. I just wish it was available earlier in the US so I could have done it sooner.

Did you have counseling before this? Seems like your issues should have been addressed before surgery so that you could feel good about yourself. If you needed it, wanted it, who cares, I bet there are more breast implants out there than lap bands!

My biggest worries is that I may regret the surgery for the following reasons:

1) I may feel frustrated with having a foreign object telling me what I can and cannot eat (unable to eat foods like red meat, past and rice the rest of my life).

2) Feeling like an impostor in front of other people because I have something inside myself that I am hiding from other people. Like I will always be carrying around this embarrassing secret with me...

1) I can eat anything I want, if I space out my really small bites and chew them well. A lot of things I THOUGHT I loved, I found were really only 'tasty' when I could slam them down quickly!! But upon actually chewing and savoring them -- they've lost a lot of their appeal! But either way, the band doesn't dictate my choices, I have to do that. Just like I chose to eat a lot of things that were really bad for me, now I choose to only eat things that are good for me.

And if I have a moment of weakness and go way off normal...well, I can't fall TOO FAR off the wagon, and the band has me sort of tethered TO the wagon, so it can't go off and leave me behind as it used to.

2) I would go on Jay Leno, Larry King, Oprah -- anyone who would let me tell them about my band and how it has changed (and quite possibly SAVED) my life! I can't imagine keeping that to myself. I thank God that at least a few people were comfortable telling me, when I commented on their weight loss.

If they had brushed me off with "Oh, I just dieted and exercised." I should have skulked away feeling crappy all over again because I've been such a failure at that over and over again. And for that reason, I could never risk making someone else feel that way by denying the band or avoiding the truth.