I've really been watching what I eat and have been pretty active and the weight is starting to SLOWLY come off, but it is coming off. My surgery date is in a month, and I just wonder, do I really have to do this? I've done this in the past, but it seemed like everytime I started to lose weight that I got pregnant again during the process and gained it all back and then some. I have 7 kids, so I think that has been the biggest toll on my body. Well I am going through a divorce now and have also had a tubal, so there are no more pregnancies in my future, so I am debating, should I go through with this?

Do you know what the hardest part is for me? Giving up diet cokes and also not being able to drink fluids when I eat. That's it. That is what is scaring me. Does that seem silly? Looking back and reading that seems silly to me. Did anyone get rolled into the surgery room wondering if they were making the right decision?

I am also a gulper. I usually have so much going on, that I inhale food, because that is just one more thing I have to do. Run-run-run is my life, so when I am out, I grab fast food, because I can grab it, inhale it, and keep going. *BIG SIGH* Darnit! I know I have to lose this weight, and if I can just get this done, and be able to eat and not feel hungry, I can succeed. :wink2:

hi

i was in the same boat as you lost weight on my own up un til surgery i wasnt having it done. but i have 1 week to the hour lol

about a month b4 due to go in i started drinking and eating at seperate times as i always had to have a drink with food. from being a child was always told to wash it down with drink soz for waffling lol

i weighed my self 5 days after op and have lost 6lbs and i was wearing jeans and shoes.:thumbup:

so i think its been worth it!

just keep saying to myself by xmas i might be 4 or 5 stone lighter now that would be a great feeling.:biggrin2:

all the best in what you decide to do

love Ann:tt1:

I think having second thoughts about any surgery is common. Hell I even debated if I really really needed my wisdom teeth out! If your unsure perhaps you might want to consider pushing your surgery back to a later date give yourself some time to think about it. Ultimately

you have do do whats right for you, trust your gut feeling errrr so to speak! I hope everything works out for you XX

I am a mother of 6, so I know what you mean. I didnt get fat until my 5.th child 7 years ago, my oldest is 21. what I love about the lapband is that yes you may be able to lose the weight. But I dont put it back on. In the past I did lose easily, but after a binge or a bad weekend the 5 pounds were back on. We all have second thoughts, but as heart disease runs in my family, I didnt want my youngest children not to have a mom.

Thank you, because this is the kind of reassurance I need right now. I forgot to mention, my surgery date is 2 days before my 38th birthday! :thumbup: I am also thankful that I have health insurance right now that covers this 100%. I will be so glad when I can go off blood pressure meds!

Yes, I had second thoughts too. I was like Jack, sitting in the pre-op room I suddenly truly wanted to jump up and run out of that hospital...hospital gown and all.

And I am not sure if we are silly but in the beginning my biggest worry about the whole process was giving up the Diet Pepsi too I just didn't think I could possibly do it. I gave it up on the first day of my pre-op diet and the first 2-3 days were the hardest only because I had caffeine headaches, I just kept popping Advil until I got through it. I replaced the Diet Pepsi can with Crystal Light and it wasn't nearly as hard as I had imagined. Eating without drink has been a little more of a challange but it is not like I feel I NEED a drink but I am having trouble shaking the HABIT of reaching for a drink. When I remind myself that I can't have it I do just fine.

I think we felt that way to some degree.

I can relate and remember it well how I felt. I started to wonder if I really needed to do this. Well, I'm glad I did.

This is a very personal experience, but it's also nice to have a place to visit to see if there are others who felt the same way. I'm sure there are more than not who felt this way.

Maybe you might want to take this time pre-surgery to try to slowly cut out some of your addictions so your post-surgery is that much less stressful. I won't lie, it's not easy - but it is imperative to stick to your doctor's post op diet.

I wish you all the best!

zeama, I'm new to the idea of all of this too. The two biggest shocks to the new eating regimen is giving up carbonated drinks and not being able to drink with meals. I've already decided to stop buying diet coke and limit my intake to sodas/beer when eating out to wean off the stuff. (I haven't even had my medical evaluation, but I figure the fewer things that I have to change post op, the better). I drink decaffeinated beverages, so it's only the flavor I'll miss. The no Water with meals, though, is going to be a *huge* hurdle for me. I can't imagine eating without even a glass of water to drink. I can eat healthy, I can cut out the carbs, but giving up any all beverages with meals is hard for me to contemplate.

I hate to beat a dead horse, but are sips allowed? Is the ban of beverages with meals a hard and fast rule or does it ease up once you're losing steadily? Honestly, I'd do an extra 15 minutes daily on my strider to have water with my meals. I do fear this will be my Achilles heel.

Hi

I saw your post but didn`t read any other replies so maybe someone else has already said this...

I have had my band for less than 1 month (May 22,08) and when I was doing the pre-op diet, I felt the VERY same way: I thought hey, I can do this, why can`t I just work hard and lose the weight? I even worried that I would lose so much I would no longer qualify for the surgery! Ha.

What you have to remember is that , like me, you are probably an expert at LOSING weight...the pre-op diet proves that you can stick to seomthing for a short time. What the bad does it HELP YOU KEEP IT OFF for life. Of course, you have to change you eating habits for it to wrk and you have to exercise and be committed to teh band. But it is a TOOL that helps where diets have failed.

So, yes you can lose weight without the band but tell yourself that this is the tool that will help you keep it off. Think how powerful that is! I used to join/quit/re-join WW sort of half-heartedly because I just knew the weight would come back. If you stick with it, I am pretty sure the band will be what you need to do it once and for all. That`s what I am telling myself anyway. As I read here before: failure is not an option.

Good luck

Christine

I am starting my 4th week post surgery. I have lost 20 lbs. 284 to 264. My highest weight was 330 which I weighed this time last year partly because of a medication I was on. When my doctor changed meds I dropped 54 lbs. to 284. My wife did not want me to have the surgery because she said I was already losing but I know me and I know I needed the band. I too love to drink with meals and would drink two or three diet cokes a day. I haven't missed either. I drink Crystal Light and it satisfies me. I am down to one cup of coffee a day. My caffine intake has drastically dropped and I sleep better. I am no longer taking diabetes meds or acid reflux meds. My suggestion is to go ahead with the surgery and you will find your concerns will be minor compared to the results you will have because of the band and following the program your doctor gives you. The biggest battle any of us have is in our hearts and mind. :thumbup:

I got cold feet so bad the antheseologist had to give me something to calm down. I was bawling like a baby and had so many doubts - as they rolled me into the OR.

Looking back, I feel silly for having such a drastic reaction. This is the best decision I have ever made for myself. I always could lose weight on my own (years of WW on and off), but then would just gain it back and then some.

As for the diet coke addiction - I am a recovering diet dr. pepper addict. I would literally go thru a case every two to three days and drank I can't even count the number during the day at work. If is any consolation, I don't miss them that much. Yes, every now and then I get a craving. I'll be honest, I've had maybe 1 since surgery (and that is in sips of my kids drinks, never even finished 1/4 of one on my own).

I'm still a fairly new bandster (banded April 10th) and the not drinking while eating was and still is my biggest obstacle. I've learned just not to have a drink in front of me while I'm eating. I make sure I throw away my cup or empty it 30 minutes before I eat and make sure I don't get another until 30 minutes afterward. It has really helped me overcome the drinking issue.

Good luck to you. This is a major change and not to be taken lightly. Make sure you are ready and do your research. These boards are wonderful. You'll find people on here that love their band and those that are struggling. All in all everyone is so helpful and nice. I have no regrets and would do it 100 times over.

I hate to beat a dead horse, but are sips allowed? Is the ban of beverages with meals a hard and fast rule or does it ease up once you're losing steadily? Honestly, I'd do an extra 15 minutes daily on my strider to have Water with my meals. I do fear this will be my Achilles heel.

The idea is to keep the food in your pouch so you feel full and stay full longer. Drinking during the meal can wash the food into your lower stomach defeating the purpose of the band.

I hate to beat a dead horse, but are sips allowed? Is the ban of beverages with meals a hard and fast rule or does it ease up once you're losing steadily? Honestly, I'd do an extra 15 minutes daily on my strider to have Water with my meals. I do fear this will be my Achilles heel.

The reason bandsters are told not to drink with your meals is because when you do, it washes all that solid food right down the pouch. This defeats the entire purpose of having the band.

Good luck in your decision...followi your heart!!