Finally had my initial consult yesterday with my surgeon. I have a very high BMI of 74 and he wants 100lbs lost before surgery. Was kinda down till he told me how he was going to help me with the task. I think of it as a mock-up banding. He has given me a prescription strength appetite suppresant and told me to use Atkins Diet. I went after the meeting and joined my local gym and walked half a mile! I will go daily and work my way up to more strenuous walks and workouts. I want this surgery and am ready to do what it takes... it is better than the alternative!!! Gonna do weekly weigh-ins at the surgeons office and monthly visitis with him personally to check progress. I am excited to start seeing results!

Jason

Oh I agree, I must have made jello every day that I was on the pre-op diet. But no worries guys, you won't even feel hungry for quite a while after surgery. So the end is near!

SF Jello has been a friend of mine during the liquid diet as has Slim Fast. I tried Profect Protein and thought it was absolutely nasty, but I understand it is best mixed with something. I tried it straight and it was all I could do to get it down. Yuck!

Jason

Edited August 16, 200917 yr by viprvenm

I am going to be very straightforward here. I have decided not to follow through with the LapBand surgery. Along my weight loss journey thus far many very important people in my life have been encouraging me with the fact that I have done so well without the surgery. This has not been an overnight decision by any means. Each time someone would confront me about this I would automatically give them reasons or "fears" may be a better term why my continued success may not be as good as what I have accomplished so far. Well last night a very good friend of mine (pastor) asked me some very personal questions and made me evaluate my life as a whole. He explained things in a way that opened my mind to yet another new way of life... one without weight loss surgery. I am going to move forward with exactly what I have been doing with every ounce of determination. I am going to go to Dr. Fox's office Monday and ask him and his son (physical fitness expert that works in the office) if they will continue to help me along my weight loss journey simply without the Band. I know in my heart I can do this. I commited myself to a lifestyle change for all of the right reasons in my life. I am very serious about changing my life, not only for myself, but for my family. My wife, Dana, and my two beautiful children, Lauren and Tyler, mean more to me than anything else... especially foods that will shorten my time here on Earth with them. With that said I will keep the Band as an option should anything in my life change or should I reach a point where I and/or my doctor think that I will not continue to do well. I am going to give this weight loss everything I have. I promised God and myself this last night. I have not been more serious about anything in my past other than marrying my wife. My life is just as important to me as spending the rest of Dana's life with her.

I am extremely excited and motivated about my decision. This is a position I could not have reached just a few short weeks ago. So many events/conversations in my recent past suddenly made so much sense to me after my talk with my friend. Please continue to keep me in your prayers. I will take every ounce of help I can get. Thank you!

Jason

Jason: I support you 100% in your decision. You were able to lose almost 100 pounds without the Lapband, that is no small feat. It is more than possible that you will be able to reach your goal and of course losing weight naturally is always a safer and healthier option. I really hope you do well and please keep us updated with your progress. Maybe you could start a blog about your weight loss so we can watch you shrink! God Bless!

abbypoo - Let me sincerely say thank you. I was concerned what kind of reaction I would get on this site from making this decision. At this time I have the committent and motivation. Am I concerned that I will be able to sustain this mindset... certainly, but that is why I am asking Dr. Fox and his son for their continued help along my journey. I went to request the refund today and talked a bit with Cameron about the fitness aspect. He was supportive, but gave me his opinion on both sides of the spectrum. I told him I would keep the Band in my options.

On another note today was my 16th week weigh-in and I am down another 6lbs for a total of 88lbs!!! It feels great and I am still doing the liquid diet until Thursday just as if I was going to have surgery... figured it cannot hurt for one week ya know?

Jason

Congrats Jason! Wow, you are only two pounds away from the 300's! I am SO excited for you. Oh I can't wait until you get to the 300's, I think that alone will be enough motivation for you to keep on losing! Good job.

Congrats on your decision and motivation Jason. I pray that all goes well for you and you are able to lose as much as you want!! We will all still support you!! We are all in this weight loss journey together and there are many different ways to get there. Good Luck!!!

Hey Jason,

Congratulations on your decision. You have been motivated, determined, and successful all along. You've been willing to ask the hard questions, make the hard choices, and all with a sense of humor your fan club here loves. You've undoubtedly made the right choice for you and your family.

Of course, you will continue to hear opinions on both sides of the fence. Everyone means well, but only you can know what you want and need to do.

I wish you the very best--I don't know how your choice will affect your posting here, but I know I personally would like to continue to follow your journey. I suggested in one of my earliest posts on this thread that you start a blog, and many others have the same opinion. I hope you will consider that, as we all continue to support each other. With or without the band-- we're just taking different routes up the same mountain.

Best of luck to you! :sad:

Jason,

We are all on this journey together no matter what type of WLS or diet method we use. The goal and anticipated result are still the same. I admire you commitment and sincerely hope you succeed on your own. Please keep posting.

Donna

Thank you for the continued support everyone!!! It means the world to me. About the blog thing... for some reason every since I heard about blogs the term has annoyed me... HaHa!! I know that sounds silly, but I have never looked into how to use one and have only read one person's blog in the past. I enjoy using this thread because it starts at the beginning of my journey. Is there anything wrong with keeping this thread going as opposed to having to use a blog thing? I would much rather keep updating this thread for a while. Thanks!

Jason

Thank you for the continued support everyone!!! It means the world to me. About the blog thing... for some reason every since I heard about blogs the term has annoyed me... HaHa!! I know that sounds silly, but I have never looked into how to use one and have only read one person's blog in the past. I enjoy using this thread because it starts at the beginning of my journey. Is there anything wrong with keeping this thread going as opposed to having to use a blog thing? I would much rather keep updating this thread for a while. Thanks!

Jason

No Jason there are now rules - I don't know why pple apoligize for long post - there's no rule about that and some time it takes alot of words to express yourself - so don't worry about that - hell I will post books sometimes if I am on a roll...

Congrats on your weight loss - and I see you have decided against being banded..

For most of us here we have all lost the weight before - the problem is that we all end up going back to eating normal as we have been on diets... Well diets don't work and eating normal for us is what got us fat in the first place...

The band is only a tool - it in itself doesn't make you lose weight - it just gives your restriction to control your portion sizes - but you are the one who makes the food choices..

I always say that I have done 75% of the work by changing my eating habits - I eat healthy I am not dieting - I would say I eat a modified atkins - I have carbs/starches - but in limited quantities and I eat basically sf - and hit the gym 4 days a week and the band did the other 25%..

The band is in place so that hopefully you will have it forever and won't have to worry so much about gaining the weight back - Would I be able to keep my weight off if I lost my band - I think so - cuz I think I have had my ah ha moment - but who knows - restriction is a good thing sometimes - but I could eat around it 24/7 if I wanted by eating sweets and ice cream..

Good Luck on your journey !!!

Thank you for the continued support everyone!!! It means the world to me. About the blog thing... for some reason every since I heard about blogs the term has annoyed me... HaHa!! I know that sounds silly, but I have never looked into how to use one and have only read one person's blog in the past. I enjoy using this thread because it starts at the beginning of my journey. Is there anything wrong with keeping this thread going as opposed to having to use a blog thing? I would much rather keep updating this thread for a while. Thanks!

Jason

Jason, of course you can continue posting your journey here. The only reason I suggested a blog was because it would be a more personal way to document your weight loss, I also thought it might reach more people looking to lose weight, not just those pursuing lap band. You sir, are truly an inspiration for everyone. I know you are proud of yourself and I am so proud of you too. Keep up the good work, I know your lovely family and community are backing you 100%. Keep us updated and make sure you reward yourself with something nice when you get below 400!

We support your decision, no matter which way you decide. Keeping on the diet plan is a step in the right direction. It is positive no matter how you view it.

Getting banded will always be an option, not one you need to decide on now.

Keep up the good work and let us know how it goes. We all are here to support you.

Listen, thank you all for your continued support. It means something different to me now... in a great way! It has been awesome getting to know all of you and even though I am not doing the Band at this time I am still just as excited about changing my lifestyle! This week I gained 5lbs and I am not quite sure why. The only thing I can figure is that going from liquid to solids again perhaps threw my body for a loop??? Who knows. I am still doing my same diet as I have been since April. I have not changed anything. This is only the 2nd week that I have had a gain in 17 weeks so I should not be upset, but none of us like going backwards. I am soooooo ready to break the 400 barrier!!! I am shooting for that next week! Wish me luck! I hope all of you are doing well with your weight loss! Talk to you soon.

Jason

Don't worry about the gain! It's very possible that it's just a funky body thing. When I was on my liquid diet I lost about ten pounds but then gained a few back towards the last few days for some inexplicable reason!? Maybe your body went into starvation mode and decided it was going to conserve energy? Anyway, keep up the good work Jason! I'm rootin' for you.