I looked, and didn't find this anywhere else, so I started a new thread. Does anyone have an "aha!" moment, when you knew you had to do something drastic about your weight? More than just diet and exercise? I was talking with someone, and she asked me, and I got curious if most of us had one.

Mine was the day I realized if I lost half my body weight, I would still be "obese." I've been overweight for years... Ok, to be frank, I've been obese for decades! But that was the moment I knew, "this fat has got to go!"

I'd love to hear other people's turning point.

I have to say that day came when I saw a picture of me with my newborn niece, and she look so small.

My day was when I had to start wearing a CPAP machine at night for sleep apnea. I hated the way it made me feel and I hate for my husband and children to see me like that. I knew that the only reason I was having this problem was because I couldn't get control of my weight on my own. I honestly had NEVER even considered the surgery before then.

Mine was the day that I took my one year old daughter to an indoor playground. She was considerably younger than the other kids there so I had to stay close because they were ready to knock her over.

Well I had to be on the ground with her to play with her and keep her safe. Everytime I got up I had to do a mad-dash to pull my shirt down, or my pants up, and make sure that no one saw a 'roll', besides the fact that it wasn't so easy to keep getting up and down with her. Doing that had me out of breath.

I was so uncomfortable and miserable, and I should have been happy and joyed to play with my daughter.

That night I started researching and found this forum. Next day I made my appointment for the seminar.

Good Luck to you.

Mine was when I found out I had some major back problems and the extra hundred pounds was not helping. So one day soon after that in the shower I was washing my fat body and I burst into tears feeling very lost because I have tried every diet out there for the last 10 years with no luck. So that day in the shower was a turning point in my life. That afternoon I started the million of hours of research on weight loss surgery. I had my lap band put in on Jan 10th, and have lost 55lbs. Thanks to the Good Lord Above!!!! Amen

I knew about 3 years ago when I announced to my husband that I was gaving myself one more to lose weight and then I was going to have gastric bypass which I was petrafied of. A year went by and I still struggled only losing 30 pounds. I then researched Lap Band surgery but my insurance didn't cover it and knew I couldn't allow myself to go into debt to have it done, though my insurance would cover gastric bypass. I cried the whole week before I was supposed to go to a seminar for GBS and never went. Then in February of this year I saw that my insurance started covering Lap Band and I've never looked back especially since I was diagnosed with several more health problems within the past year.

well for me it was after I lost all of my weight and then slowly gained it back then I spent a whole year loosing and gaining..I said I should not be dealing with this at 24 yrs old so I decided to have the surgery and save myself years of problems :thumbup:

My 87 year old Father is fitter than me and I am 45 :thumbup:

I have thought about it for some years, but November 2007 i quit smoking cigarettes after that i gained even more weight, thats when i decided to make 2008 and every year after my year! i figured if i could quit smoking after 20 years of smoking then i could def. have weight loss surgery! i was banded June26th of this year! Amen!! although i am loosing slowly (9 lbs only) its the best thing i ever decided to do.

I've kept myself home-bound for several years.

I don't even look in the mirror or care about my appearance.

I have 3 beautiful grown children - slim, healthy, vibrant, intelligent and everything a parent can hope for.:w00t:

I DO go out with them occasionally but rush home if I catch my reflection in a mirror or door.

This is NO way to live.

The self-imposed isolation and bad health just increases by the week.

I saw a commercial where a grandparent was running in a field with his grandchild. Both were smiling and the sun was shining and the flowers were blooming - I really forget what product

was being hawked.

But that scene of a healthy grandparent RUNNING and playing with the little child hit me like a ton of bricks

I realized that I was incapable of RUNNING and would likely NEVER RUN again!

I remembered what an active childhood I had - tree climbing, bikes, skates, ballet, gymnastics, swimming, diving - all the good things!

I got sad

Then I got MAD!

I have no idea why Lap Banding got into my mind -

but it was THERE

and I KNEW it was worth pursuing. :w00t:

I immediately hit the Internet and read and read and read

and landed here on this forum.

and I started to get determined, hopeful and quite frankly - obsessed.

I made a call the next morning to my HMO and then to a surgeon that was highly recommended

and I'll be sitting at the seminar Monday afternoon.

AND -

I won't take no for an answer :thumbup:

I can't remember when I felt so strongly and so sure about anything in a very very long time.

For me... it was 2 summers ago, when I took my, then 4 year old daughter, to the amusement park, well, she could not get on a ride alone, needed an adult-- my husband doesn't do spinning rides too well, so I had to get on with her. When they tried to put the bar down, I was TOO BIG--- I was Horrified, always knew I was overweight, but never to the point of being asked to leave a ride, my daughter was devestated, to the point where a stranger offered for her to to ride with him and his daughter.

Then I went to a seminar, after hearing about the post op diet, I said, well, if this is what I have to do after surgery, I can do that now and lose weight--- HOW WRONG I WAS... I gained even more, until April of this year, we decided to take the my 2 daughter (6 and 3) to Disney, I begged and pleaded to my husband to wait until next year... and then DECIDED-- Lap Band is the way to go. I need to be able to get on the rides with my girls.

Today, I got my insurance approval and surgery date of Sept 17. Yahooooo!