Hi Everyone,

I could really use some input, if you'd be willing to share your thoughts.

On Friday (6/24), I had my first appointment with Dr. Hoehn (in the Kansas City area). Was really looking forward to getting a surgery date maybe as early as August, when he told me he had a cancellation for (gulp) this Wednesday (6/29)!

I was instantly thrown into a half ecstatic state/half panic, thinking maybe this all had gone too quickly, especially since insurance won't cover and we're self paying ($16K).

My questions:

--I never seem to hear anyone regret the surgery--why not?

--If I'm 5'3" and 210 lbs, I obviously love to eat. Will I ever get to eat yummy food again? Maybe after the weight is off?

--My weight gain hasn't been due to extreme overeating/bingeing... more of a sedentary life style. Does this mean I might not lose weight with the band? Maybe I should just hit the gym HARD (for once) instead of going through with the surgery?

--Since this has gone so quickly, I haven't made it to a group support meeting. Bad decision to go through with the procedure without talking to a support group first?

Panic... panic.... thanks, everyone!

Lisa

O.K., wow, that's fast....so I would suggest you ask yourself the following questions:

1. Did I do enough research on the lap band to really understand how it works?

2. Am I ready for a "lifestyle change"?

3. Have I tried food plans and execise to try and lose weight?

4. Do I have any co-morbidities which absolutely have to be addressed with weight loss?

5. What is my reason for getting the lap band?

Good luck.....remember there is no rush....research, understand, be ready for and want a change in your life.

Margo

Hmmm, tuff one for you..

My friend is 5'3" and 229. She is getting the lap band done also, provided all goes well with her 2nd mortgage. But since her surgery date got moved to a later date, now she is starting to rationalize why not to get teh surgery done.

Asking if she can do it on her own w/out the lap band-even though she has tried and tried again.

Also she says that 17K is a lot to spend on herself and it could be used for the family instead.

And maybe she can get it done at some other time in her life.. So I asked her if she means when she is 50 and not 36 and 450 lbs rather than 230.

She is at a healthier point to get it done now rather than later and miss out on even more of her life and her kids life by sitting on the couch...

Did your Dr have you go to a Psychiatrist or Psychologist that has experience in Weight loss surgery? If not, then I would Cx this appnt and wait to get more research and other things done.

As it was put to me, we have to give up our best freind--- food.........

Jenn

Hi, I had Lapband surgery on December7th 2004 by Dr. Hoehn. I too was self pay. I have lost over 75 pounds, and feel great. The Lapband is right for me because I wanted a tool to help me control the amount of food I eat. I can eat almost anything , just smaller amounts. Please email me if you have any questions. Good Luck

Dr. Hoehn hHas a wonderful support group that meets the 4th Thursday of each month at Shawnee Mission Hospital At 6PM. Hope to see you there.

Lisa,

I asked myself very similar questions to the ones you are asking yourself right now. Here's how I finally made my decision after I had done my research: I am 5'4 1/2" and weighted 219.5 day before surgery. Definitely an emotional eater. I have lost significant amounts of weight 3 times in my life but have gained it all back and then some. I'm the type of person who has to exercise and diet to lose any weight. The last time I was fast walking 4 miles a day just so I could continue to lose, and then I STILL gained it back. I chose the lapband because I'm willing to do the work (just not 4-5 miles a day) by eating right and exercising BUT with the lapband, I shouldn't ever gain it back unless I do something stupid. Do on my own and probably gain back? Do lapband, work at it and not gain back? I had surgery 5/26, lost 14.5lbs right away, gained 1 back when I went to solids. I haven't eaten the best but have not gained anything back. Monday I start the rest of my life. Good luck to you.

Chris

These are all good questions.

I was self-pay, too and when I found out about lap-band, I couldn't get it done soon enough.

I'm 5'4" and weighed 225 the day of surgery. I was a total gym fanatic before the lapband. I was at the gym 4-5 days a week, doing cardio and weights. I had a personal trainer. I kept gaining weight (hey, after all that work at the gym, I was HUNGRY).

Since the lap band, I've had to go back to work full time (to pay for the band) and that has cut in to my gym time drastically.

I am probably the world's slowest loser with the lap band. It's been over 9 months, and I've only lost 30 pounds.

Do I regret getting the lap band? It's not really a feeling of regret so much as it is a feeling of frustration that I'm not losing as fast as everyone else, or even keeping up with the slow end of the lap band weigth loss curve. I have these REALLY long plateaus of weeks which turn into months when I'm not losing anything at all. That's when I question all the money I spent, and is thing doing me any good or not?

Now - all that said: I've lost 30 pounds. I don't feel like I have to worry about gaining it back - ever. The lap band with be with me forever, and if it means I lose a 1/2 lb a week, or even less, at least I'm losing and not going the other way.

To answer some of your other questions -

Yes - you will get to yummy food again. Maybe not as much of it as you would like, or feel you deserve sometimes.

Neither the gym nor the band has a guaranteed weight loss to go along with it. I think I'm a prime example of both ways NOT to lose weight. However, my money is on the lap band (literally) to help produce life long results.

I think this board is far better than a support group. You have the opinions of people from all over the country, who are all at different stages of their journey, who all had different surgeons. I can't think of any support group which could offer this type of experience and variety and over all expertise.

I hope my ramblings help inform your decision - at least a little bit.

Personally....I'm a thinker...I need to think things like this through. I took a surgery date over a month and a half out from my first consultation.

This provided me time to think about things...and if needed, cancel the date.

I say if you are having questions, don't do the super soon date. Give yourself some breathing room! Allow yourself to think more about this and come to grips with whether or not this is really what you want to do.

I spent a month thinking I wasn't going to do this and then over time I was like "yeah...I'm ready"....by the time my date rolled around I was raring to go.

You need to take it easy on yourself and get used to the idea of what's about to happen. It is a MAJOR change in your life.

I'm healing now...so far still VERY happy I had the procedure done....but this is not something to be taken lightly!!

Everyone,

I can't tell you how much I appreciate all of the replies so quickly. What a genuinely nice group of people you are. Thank you very much!

I'll probably e-mail a few of you directly to follow up - until then, many thanks. I hope I can return the favor sometime!

Lisa

Lisa, please post and let us know what you end up deciding! Good luck!