I am going for a learning seminar this morning and have been doing a ton of reading on LB surgery. I have several questions I hope everyone here wouldn't mind answering. I've learned all about the mechanics and basics of the surgery but I am curious about the effect and impact it has had on you emotionally and physically.

So here are a few of the questions I have.

Are you happy with your decision to be banded?

Do you have any regrets and if so what are they?

Would you do it again if you had the choice to make over?

What are some of the physical difficulties you've faced post op..such as diet, health?

Did you have any complications and what was the outcome?

Do you feel better or worse now compared to pre banding?

Did you tell people you were having or had the surgery?

How did your friends and acquaintances react?

How hard was it for you to stay on the pre and post op liquid diets?

How hard has it been for you to learn new eating habits?

How do you overcome eating temptations or do you even have them anymore?

Why do you think this surgery was successful when so many other dieting attempts failed (assuming you are like me :crying: in this regard)

Thanks

Jina

Are you happy with your decision to be banded? I am only 2 1/2 months post-op but so far yes I am very happy.

Do you have any regrets and if so what are they? No, none at all

Would you do it again if you had the choice to make over? In a hearbeat!

What are some of the physical difficulties you've faced post op..such as diet, health? My health has already improved...I am already off one of my two prescriptions. Other than recovery which wasn't too bad there have been no physical difficulties. There still is head hunger but it has been easier to combat.

Did you have any complications and what was the outcome? No complications from Lap Band, I also had Hiatal Hernia repair and had a few minor complications from that (breathing problems and pain) but I am fine now.

Do you feel better or worse now compared to pre banding? I already feel sooo much better. Once the weight is all gone I imagine I will feel like a new person.

Did you tell people you were having or had the surgery? I hadn't planned to but I ended up telling family and co-workers. I do not have any regrets in doing so.

How did your friends and acquaintances react? Mostly with curiosity, lots of questions. My mom had some concerns but she is OK with it now. Hubby has been very supportive.

How hard was it for you to stay on the pre and post op liquid diets? Very hard. Pre-op was harder than post-op when I had less of an appetite but it was hard. But it was only a short time and worth it.

How hard has it been for you to learn new eating habits? Very easy. I am not hungry like I was pre-band and the band keeps me from eating too much and that makes all the difference.

How do you overcome eating temptations or do you even have them anymore? I think most of my head hunger comes from my addiction to Carbs. I also have PCOS so carbs are truly the enemy. Pre-op diet was low carb high protein so I was able to get the carbs out of my system and have stuck with the low carb not allowing myself any sugar or white flour (I do eat whole wheat wraps sometimes, oatmeal, fresh fruit but no pasta, starches, sugars and I can't tolerate soft breads). I really think that avoiding bad carbs is helping a lot.

Why do you think this surgery was successful when so many other dieting attempts failed (assuming you are like me :crying: in this regard) I have dieted my whole life. I have lost up to 50 pounds on my own more than once then lost my willpower and gained it back and then some. In order to lose weight I had to deprive myself of food and endure constant hunger. The key now is that I am not hungry and I can't cheat without feeling discomfort. I really don't feel the deprivation I have always felt on other diets.

Are you happy with your decision to be banded? I am 9 months out and couldnt be happier

Do you have any regrets and if so what are they? the only thing I regret is dont doing this sooner

Would you do it again if you had the choice to make over? I would do it again in a heartbeat

What are some of the physical difficulties you've faced post op..such as diet, health? the most difficult thing was the recovery period and that wasnt even that bad. I dont feel like I am on a diet - I can still eat most foods and I just dont crave the junk food like I used to

Did you have any complications and what was the outcome? no complications

Do you feel better or worse now compared to pre banding? I fell 100% better. my scale is going down instead of up for the first time in years. I have more energy and I actually ENJOY working out!

Did you tell people you were having or had the surgery? I only told a few close friends and family but my mom seems to be telling everyone she comes in contact with!! I think she is happy at how good im doing but im gonna kick her butt! :-)

How did your friends and acquaintances react? my friends that knew/know about the band are very supportive. those who dont know just ask how im losing and I just tell them I am eating better and exercising which is true

How hard was it for you to stay on the pre and post op liquid diets? I didnt have to follow a pre-op diet - just liquids the day before surgery and the post-op was not as bad as I thought it would be. for the first few days I didnt even wont to think about eating or drinking anything but you have to make sure you get your liquids in

How hard has it been for you to learn new eating habits? I was petrified of harming my band in the beginning so I kept my portions small and chewed and chewed my food. I have pretty much stuck with that and all has gone well. My eating habits are not perfect - I still enjoy ice cream and chocolate but not in the quanities that I ate before band

How do you overcome eating temptations or do you even have them anymore? I have not had fast food or potato chips in 10 months and I am completely fine with it. I will sometimes get a craving for it but its last about 5 mintues and then im over it. my biggest weakness is chocolate and I do have some a few times a week but instead of having a huge candy bar I stick with the 100 calorie versions which are the perfect size for getting rid of that craving.

Why do you think this surgery was successful when so many other dieting attempts failed (assuming you are like me :biggrin: in this regard) I am just like you in this regard. I have dieted for most of my life without success and I have finally found the tool that will help me succeed in losing weight. For me the band changed my mental state more then anything. For me when I was dieting there were no consequences to me not sticking to it - except for gaining weight and clearly that was not a big enough deal for me!! but now with the band I know that if I eat too much or all the wrong things I can possibly damage my band. For me when dieting I never noticed a change I would get discouraged but because I saw results right away with the band - as the result of the post-op diet - I knew that I needed/wanted to keep that weight off. alot of people feel that they are on a diet with the band but I dont feel that is the case. Yeah I am not eating as much food but that is because I cant.

I hope I have answered your questions...if you have anymore feel free to ask. im not an expert but I can offer you my opinion

good luck

Are you happy with your decision to be banded?

I'm over 3 years out and the answer is still YES!!!!!

Do you have any regrets and if so what are they?

Not doing it sooner is my only regret.

Would you do it again if you had the choice to make over?

Yes, yes and yes

What are some of the physical difficulties you've faced post op..such as diet, health?

The fist 6 weeks or so post op were really hard, it was like losing my best friend. Learning how to say good by to old eating habits was very tough. I felt like I was going to be a "freak" and never eat "normal" again. Once I could eat solid food, that went away.

Did you have any complications and what was the outcome?

I dehydrated and had to stay 2 nights post op. No lasting problems

Do you feel better or worse now compared to pre banding?

100% better! I no longer have high blood pressure, my asthma is almost gone, my knees don't hurt, I don't have sleep apnea anymore and I can do way more.

Did you tell people you were having or had the surgery?

This is a very personal choice, but I have no trouble telling people I had it done.

How did your friends and acquaintances react?

My family were shocked, but most supported me, even if they didn't agree with it. One person did say they though it was "the easy way". I just laughed, trust me surgery and life long changes are NOT easy

How hard was it for you to stay on the pre and post op liquid diets?

My Dr. doesn't do pre op liquid diet, so that was easy. Post op it was six weeks. The first four were easier for me, because for the first time in my life, I wasn't hungry. But the psychological adjustment was harder.

How hard has it been for you to learn new eating habits?

That was one of the easier parts for me. I love to cook and thought it was kind of fun to try to make my favorite dishes into high Protein, low cal, yummy foods.

How do you overcome eating temptations or do you even have them anymore?

Ahh, here is the tricky part. The temptation is always there, but how I handle is is very different, and if I give in once in a while it is much easier now to forgive myself and move on. The band helps, but it is not a magic fix.

Why do you think this surgery was successful when so many other dieting attempts failed (assuming you are like me :tongue_smilie: in this regard)

This was my last chance, end of the line kind of thing. I knew if I didn't do something food was going to kill me, worse yet, I was killing myself.

My youngest was very ill when he was born and during many hours of sitting helpless in the NICU, I did a lot of soul searching. I made a deal with God (I swear its not as crazy as it sounds;-). I promised that I would not take another day for granted, that I would never sit passively on the side lines again. I promised not to let my fear of failure keep me from going after what I wanted, and Ipromised I would do what ever it took to be the best Mom possable for my children. For me that ment learning how to value myself and once I started to really believe in I was worth loving and started to feel good about myself, I wanted the outside to reflect how good I felt inside.

I hope this helps!

-Nora

Are you happy with your decision to be banded? YES

Do you have any regrets and if so what are they? NONE, EXCEPT FOR MAYBE GETTING IT DONE SOONER

Would you do it again if you had the choice to make over? HELL YES!!!

What are some of the physical difficulties you've faced post op..such as diet, health? I HAD TO DO A 2 WK ALL LIQUID DIET PRIOR, HARDER THAN THE SURGERY

Did you have any complications and what was the outcome? NONE

Do you feel better or worse now compared to pre banding? BETTER, I'M 3 WEEKS OUT FROM SURGERY AND I FEEL LIKE I NEVER HAD IT DONE(NO FILL YET)

Did you tell people you were having or had the surgery?

How did your friends and acquaintances react? MY FRIENDS, FAMILY AND CO-WORKERS ALL KNEW. EVERYBODY WAS VERY SUPPORTIVE

How hard was it for you to stay on the pre and post op liquid diets? ALITTLE BIT HARD, BUT I FELT THAT THIS IS WHAT I HAD BEEN IN TRAINING FOR MY WHOLE LIFE AND THAT I COULD DO IT BECAUSE THE RESULTS WERE GOING TO BE SO GREAT

How hard has it been for you to learn new eating habits? NOT REAL HARD. THE BIGGEST PROBLEM I HAVE IS TELLING MYSELF TO SLOW DOWN WHEN I EAT. SMALL BITES AND CHEW MORE

How do you overcome eating temptations or do you even have them anymore? FEAR OF BEING SICK REALLY KEEPS ME GROUNDED. EXCEPT FOR WHITE BREAD THERE'S REALLY NOTHING THAT I CAN'T HAVE. I STILL HAVEN'T HAD ICE CREAM OR CANDY BAR, COOKIES ETC. BUT THE DESIRE IS NOT THERE AS MUCH, MAYBE BECAUSE I'M ACTUALLY ABLE TO SEE THE WEIGHT COME OFF

Why do you think this surgery was successful when so many other dieting attempts failed (assuming you are like me :tongue_smilie: in this regard)IT FORCES YOU TO EAT LESS. MOST DIETS YOU ALWAYS HAD TO DEPRIVE YOURSELF OF SOMETHING, NO FAT, LOW FAT, NO CARBS, SUGAR-FREE, ALL PROTEIN, IT WAS ALWAYS SOMETHING. FOR THE FIRST TIME I WOULD EAT AND FEEL COMFORTABLE ENOUGH THAT I WAS DONE AND DIDN'T WANT ANYTHING ELSE. I WAS LITERALLY FULL!:biggrin: