so i have my last group meeting two weeks from today. i was around 259 when i started and this morning i was 261. i need to be under my starting weight to get approved by my hospital. i'm really scared i won't be able to get rid of 3 pounds in time! i've been working on this lap band thing for about a year now and i hate that my weight might get in the way of my life once again. it's hard for me to stop eating when i'm "satisfied." actually i don't even know what that feels like. i know hungry and i know full. i've been trying, really trying for the past six months and it seems like my weight just yoyos no matter what i do. i feel like i've already failed. i'm trying not to feel discouraged but i'm just afraid i won't make it. i need this surgery. i've tried everything else. i just can't be fat any more, i really can't.

I was in the same boat for my PAT 05-07-08 I made it and now I have to loose about 3-4 pounds before my big day 05-28-08 that is my surgery day. I started full liquids and I lost 3lb in 2days I am now following my preopt diet and 3days before surgery I will be on Clear Liquids and I know I will be ok for surgery so just do full liquids and it will work if it worked for me I know it can work for you hang in there and remeber why you are doing this.

Good luck

i was in the same boat. not that i wouldn't get approved, but the doctor asked me about a week before the surgery to try to lose 5 lbs before the surgery. it really wasn't that difficult. losing 5 lbs is easy, it's the keeping it off part that's difficult. so the week before surgery, i watched my carbs, ate high protein, and stayed away from the sweets. you only have to lose 3 lbs, which, pardon my french, basically means you need to take a good crap. you'll probably lose 3 lbs from the saline laxative you have to take the day before. drink a whole lot of water from now til then, and this will help with water weight.

I also had that concern. My doctor told me to lose 10 lbs. in 7 days before surgery. I asked him if that was possible and he said "absolutely yes". He put me on a diet of 4 MediFast a day plus one meal not to exceed 450 calories -- a Lean Cuisine or equivalent was recommended. Well, I had already just lost 10 lbs. in the previous 3 weeks so that really fast weight that drops off fast in the first week or two had already dropped! I figured I couldn't really do the 10 lbs. in 7 days so I started a few days early. I lost several pounds in the first few days and then suddenly it was 3 days before surgery and I'd only lost 3/4 of a pound in the previous 3 days. I still had 2.2 lbs. to go by surgery day or he would cancel the surgery.

So I cut back pretty drastically. I had only two MediFast drinks a day, and instead of a Lean Cuisine or something like that, I went low carb. I had a chicken breast and green Beans for dinner two nights in a row. Well, thankfully, I woke up on surgery day and weighed myself at home and I was right on target. Yay!! Then, somehow five hours later when they weighed me for surgery, I was down another 1.5 lbs. so I ended up losing 11.5 lbs. in one week.

So yes it can be done, but you have to really want to do it!