Ok, I'm fairly new to all of this. I love this place. I've learned more on this web site than anywhere. I began this journey in Dec. of 07. I've done my pulmonary. check, my heart check and my psyc. check and have approval from Ins. I'm waiting for the Dr office to get the pulm. ok which is just a fax away. Then I will get my surgery date.

I've been researching lapband A LOT! What I don't understand is after people have the surgery there talking about keeping track of calories and eating healthy (I get the health part), but don't you think if I could count calories and stuff I wouldn't need the surgery. I mean I still hear people saying how hungry they are. THATS HOW I GOT OVER WEIGHT! :lovechoc: How does it change after having the lapband, if your still hungry and half to count calories and stuff?

Does having the surgery give you the will power that you don't have befor it?

My biggest reason for doing this is to get weight off so my knees and back stops hurtting enough for me to exercise more. But if I still have to do the whole calorie counting, food jurnals and hunger pains,what am I having this surgery for?

Please someone HELP?

cyndy i hear alot about people being hungry and they are counting calories alot too but i have been banded since july 3rd and i dont see it that way i dont count calories i get hungry sometimes but if i eat something fairly healthy i pretty much full for a good while. the whole purpose for the band is instead of getting full off one 12oz steak and all the good things that go with it you will get full off about 3 oz steak and maybe just alittle more like some veggies. pretty much to sum it up you eat more like a 3 or 4 year old and your satisfied. i read in another post about how people feel bad about eating some chips but you will find yourself not eating that full bag of chips but maybe a quarter or less. i think that excerise will be a big key in losing weight i dont hear alot about people excerising as much as i would have thought but i think that will be the key. right now i eat what i want to eat i dont over do it before i could eat 10 chicken wings and some rice and now im eating like 4 chicken wings and im good. and as time goes by you will be able to eat more and more and that is where the fills come in. i have had one fill and prob another and the end of the month and getting a fill you even eat less then that for about two weeks. one thing you have to becareful with is staying about from the wasted calories like starbucks or shakes and things that go down easily. some people tend to do that sometimes cuz they feel like its ok to drink that cuz of the band and they will still lose weight you might but wont me as much as with excerise and getting good foods. well i hope that helps you alittle. me personally i was regretting what i did the first two weeks but i think that was cuz of the diet they put you on the first two weeks and going through surgery and all the pain but now im happy with it and i know i wont touch the wasted calories as much (yes i still have a starbucks maybe once every 3 weeks but hey who can resist lol) and i see that i dont eat as much as i use too and i am satisfied with what i ate. your still going to have to work at losing but it will be alittle easier then the average person without the band since you know you will not be able to over eat.

I record my food on thedailyplate.com to keep track, but I use that info to choose what I'm going to eat (for instance if I'm short on protein for the day or high on sodium), not so much to tell me when I have to stop because even though I don't have a fill yet, I do have some restriction that stops me before I eat too much. I'm hoping that with a little more practice and with a fill it will become second nature and I won't have to monitor my food so closely.

Once you reach the restriction "sweet spot", your Lap-Band will cause you to feel full on a much smaller amount of food than normal, and that food will keep you feeling satisfied longer because of the time it takes to pass through the band and into your stomach. It will not, however, take away the desire to eat. Some people can't seem to overcome that desire and find ways to "eat around the band" - eating things that go through it easily, like ice cream, milkshakes, high-fat Soups, mashed potatoes. That defeats the helpful properties of the band. There is also the issue of "head hunger" to face, and that is probably the hardest to get past.

I resisted any kind of WLS for a long time for the same reason you mentioned: If I'm going to have to change my eating habits even after surgery, I should be able to do it on my own. And yes, I have lost weight on my own before, but I always end up putting it back on, and more. After the last cycle of doing that, I decided I needed a tool to help keep the weight off, and Lap-Band is the tool for me.

There was a wonderful post last week by "super moderator" Jack that you should read: The Art, Science and Philosophy of Livinging with the Band. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f15/art-science-philosophy-living-band-74427/ Perhaps it will shed some light. Best of luck in your choices!:lovechoc:

Why get a Lapband?

I asked myself the same question prior to getting it myself and that is the questions you should be asking yourself before you go into this. I mean this is something you are going to have inside of you for the rest of your life. I was just banded September 2 '08 and for me getting the band was a way for me to have a tool and little reminder that I didn't need that second helping of pasta(which lord knows I love my pasta) It is nice to know that once I get this weight off I will have it off forever. Now I am not saying that I won't bounce up 10lbs here or there but it won't be 80lbs! It is nice to know that I won't have the problems I do now with BP and knee/back pain to feel comfortable having my picture taken instead of croping myself out of them. I love the fact with the lap band it keeps you honest instead of saying"I'll start again next week" then if your like me two weeks have gone by and your 10lbs heavier. I love the support you have with the lapband from on this website to the support I am getting from Northwest weightloss center. I am going to my first support group meeting on Monday and I can't wait. I must agree with Karen Karen the first week really sucks. I am on liquids right now but I just keep telling myself "This too shall pass" and then I look online at the new jeans I will be wearing! Just remember the lapband is a tool how you use it is up to you and I got a feeling your going to have great success at it and I am looking forward to hearing in the future about you reaching your goals. Theresa WA

I was so happy to read your post here. When you mentioned you regretted being banded during the first 2 weeks because I'm just 4 days being banded and that's exactly how I've been feeling. That internal discomfort you have that makes it difficult to sneeze, cough, burp, shoulder pain, the incision discomfort and I could go on and on. I'm sure this all passes, but I am where you once were. It sounds like your experience got better after the 2nd week, is that correct? I have found the protein I really like and that's Wendy's chili pureed. It's filling and full of protein with the meat and beans. I am looking forward to being able to sit down to a piece of fish and some vegis. I was wondering if I was the only one regretting what I did. It's good to know it gets better. Thanks.

cyndy i hear alot about people being hungry and they are counting calories alot too but i have been banded since july 3rd and i dont see it that way i dont count calories i get hungry sometimes but if i eat something fairly healthy i pretty much full for a good while. the whole purpose for the band is instead of getting full off one 12oz steak and all the good things that go with it you will get full off about 3 oz steak and maybe just alittle more like some veggies. pretty much to sum it up you eat more like a 3 or 4 year old and your satisfied. i read in another post about how people feel bad about eating some chips but you will find yourself not eating that full bag of chips but maybe a quarter or less. i think that excerise will be a big key in losing weight i dont hear alot about people excerising as much as i would have thought but i think that will be the key. right now i eat what i want to eat i dont over do it before i could eat 10 chicken wings and some rice and now im eating like 4 chicken wings and im good. and as time goes by you will be able to eat more and more and that is where the fills come in. i have had one fill and prob another and the end of the month and getting a fill you even eat less then that for about two weeks. one thing you have to becareful with is staying about from the wasted calories like starbucks or shakes and things that go down easily. some people tend to do that sometimes cuz they feel like its ok to drink that cuz of the band and they will still lose weight you might but wont me as much as with excerise and getting good foods. well i hope that helps you alittle. me personally i was regretting what i did the first two weeks but i think that was cuz of the diet they put you on the first two weeks and going through surgery and all the pain but now im happy with it and i know i wont touch the wasted calories as much (yes i still have a starbucks maybe once every 3 weeks but hey who can resist lol) and i see that i dont eat as much as i use too and i am satisfied with what i ate. your still going to have to work at losing but it will be alittle easier then the average person without the band since you know you will not be able to over eat.

Like many others, I expect my band (my new love) to be a tooll not a solution. I will use it to help me achieve my goal, but I'm still going to have to work it. I'll probably count and so on at first to get a baseline, then will stop and see how I do. There ARE many bandsters who 1 year or more postop who can just rely on the band and their experience to keep the weight off. They eat what their family does, but less. Those successful ones, though, don't eat like they used to.

So you are going to have to change...the band will help you do that, if you want to.

im so going to try that every time i feel down im just going to go online and look at them jeans i will be able to fit in!!!!!

Why get a Lapband?

I asked myself the same question prior to getting it myself and that is the questions you should be asking yourself before you go into this. I mean this is something you are going to have inside of you for the rest of your life. I was just banded September 2 '08 and for me getting the band was a way for me to have a tool and little reminder that I didn't need that second helping of pasta(which lord knows I love my pasta) It is nice to know that once I get this weight off I will have it off forever. Now I am not saying that I won't bounce up 10lbs here or there but it won't be 80lbs! It is nice to know that I won't have the problems I do now with BP and knee/back pain to feel comfortable having my picture taken instead of croping myself out of them. I love the fact with the lap band it keeps you honest instead of saying"I'll start again next week" then if your like me two weeks have gone by and your 10lbs heavier. I love the support you have with the lapband from on this website to the support I am getting from Northwest weightloss center. I am going to my first support group meeting on Monday and I can't wait. I must agree with Karen Karen the first week really sucks. I am on liquids right now but I just keep telling myself "This too shall pass" and then I look online at the new jeans I will be wearing! Just remember the lapband is a tool how you use it is up to you and I got a feeling your going to have great success at it and I am looking forward to hearing in the future about you reaching your goals. Theresa WA