Wa Going to Try for Lap-Band, But Decided Against It

2bthinsandy

Yesterday, I called to get pre-qualified with insurance for a lap-band. I'm desparate to lose weight and started convincing myself that I needed something besides counting calories/excericse. After I called I got ticked-off at myself. I have everything I need to succeed inside of me. Even with a lap-band it is all about calories/excericse. So I'm re-committing today to log my calories and excericse on MFP every day. When the lap-band place calls back, I'm going to tell them, thanks but no thanks......I'm going to give myself a mental lap-band and stick to MFP. LOL

Nina74

Awesome, Sandy! Exercise/calories and portion control- all you need to get it done. It might take longer, it might be harder, but you are worth it!

shawnjray

This is truely one of thee best post I've ever seen on the community board. Good for you and please keep posting so we can all join you in your quest too. We're pretty much all here for the same reason and you said it best; it's all mental!

Good luck.

Van3ssa_2468

My sister struggled with weight all her life. Two years ago she had GP surgery. She lost a lot of weight, but now she has to watch very carefully what she eats.
I thought all I have to do is put that same idea into my head without the surgery, so far it is working.
Personally I feel I should give it my all before I resort to anything like that.
You can do this!
Good Luck!

nisijam5

I'm going to give myself a mental lap-band and stick to MFP. LOL

Love it, mental lap band....that's exactly how it works...good for you to make a better decision than surgery

tgaspard

Awesome! And, what a brave choice!

Best of luck & God bless you!

smuehlbauer

I'm very happy about that decision!
If you're serious enough to have a surgery to lose weight, you're serious enough to do it with out the surgery!

You are a part of an awesome website with some very awesome people.
You need a kick in the butt, a sholder to cry on, a pat on the back, we're all here for that!

Just remember to be honest with your self, you exercising, your eating and you'll do great!
I wish you the best of luck on your journey!
YOU CAN DO IT - YOU'RE WORTH IT!!!
Steph

EileenB42

I was going to get the lap band then thought of gastric bypass. My husband and father was against it. Then I heard these horror stories then decided to do it on my own. I think I was just overwhelmed with how much I have to lose, but so far have lost 10 pounds. I am so glad I changed my mind also.

themommie

You can do it. I have know of a few people that have had the lap band surgery and lost the weight only to gain it all back and I know of others that lost the weight but arent healthy and dont look good. Do it the healthy way and keep it off,. we are behind you

2bthinsandy

Thanks everyone. I don't want to offend anyone that has had a lap-band. It is all hard work and the lap-band is a good tool. I just decided that for me, that wasn't a tool I wanted to use right now. A friend of mine just had a gastric bypass done and she lost 18 pounds the first week. I know that prompted me to think about surgery because I want my weight off now! I know I didn't gain these extra 50+ pounds overnight, but it is not unrealistic to think that I can lose them overnight....right?

RedneckWmn

I think that is so great! What an awesome decision to make and it sounds like you have the determination! :flowerforyou:

MacMadame

Love it, mental lap band....that's exactly how it works...

No that's not how it works at all. Weight loss surgery gives you physiological hunger control. Your hunger hormones (ghrelin, leptin, etc.) are actually changed and your body's set point is lowered as well.

That's why clinical data shows that 75-90% of people who get weight loss surgery end up losing and keeping off an average of 50% of their excess weight for at least 5 years while people with 50 pounds or more to lose who attempt to do so without weight loss surgery succeed in keeping off 40% of excess weight for only two years only 1-10% of the time. Those are not good odds.

For me, I could lose weight just fine. I've lost gobs and gobs of weight. I couldn't keep it off though because of my ravenous hunger. Now the part of my body that overproduced ghrelin is gone and I have normal hunger. My body's set point is no longer 225, but 115 as well. This makes a tremendous difference in my ability to maintain my weight.

I wish the OP well, but I also hope she doesn't end up yo-yo dieting for 30 years like I did when a tool exists now that can break that cycle. Society tells us that obesity is a behavior issue, one of willpower, and that failure to lose weight is due to character flaws. Science tells us that's a bunch of BS, that obesity a complex disease with many physiological causes. Society reminds me of a little kid with its fingers in its ears singing "la la la" I can't hear you" on this one.

2bthinsandy

I'm the original poster and unfortunately, I've yo-yo dieted for the last 15 years.......that being said, I think of weight loss surgery as a weight loss tool. I know my issues with food are mental not physical (I hardly ever eat just because I'm hungry) , so the root of my food issues is my mind.....hence a mental lap-band is my tool.

Jacole18

I have the lapband myself and it was great! i lost 100 lbs with it, but learning to "eat through it" and grieving during my divorce, i gained 80 lbs of it back. Not good! that's why I'm here....im eating better, smaller portions, exercising, and i am getting a fill in my band next week. i figured i have the tool in my body, i might as well use it, but live healthy too. congrats on your decision to get healthy and lose weight....no matter how you choose to do it. it's hard either way.....

HealthyChanges2010

I'm very happy about that decision!
If you're serious enough to have a surgery to lose weight, you're serious enough to do it with out the surgery!

You are a part of an awesome website with some very awesome people.
You need a kick in the butt, a sholder to cry on, a pat on the back, we're all here for that!

Just remember to be honest with your self, you exercising, your eating and you'll do great!
I wish you the best of luck on your journey!
YOU CAN DO IT - YOU'RE WORTH IT!!!
Steph

Wow! Very nicely put Steph

HealthyChanges2010

This is truely one of thee best post I've ever seen on the community board. Good for you and please keep posting so we can all join you in your quest too. We're pretty much all here for the same reason and you said it best; it's all mental!

Good luck.

:drinker:

cherylpoitevent

GOOD FOR YOU!!!

I am very proud of you.

I will give you the best piece of advice I have: Remember that weight loss takes time, dedication and determination. These qualities are among the top qualities that people are envious of. "I wish I had her dedication." or "He is so determined to succeed" -- These words are the best compliments a person can give you... (Not that jealousy is a good thing) But, once you get affirmation that others are focused on your success you will want to push yourself that much harder -- and keep those positive words coming your way!

I guarantee you are going to be so proud of yourself. Trust me, I've been there and done that before (It really feels amazing!).

Remember that sometimes it takes overcoming adversity and being the first to take the plunge to truly find out how much stamina we really have.

You are going to move mountains... and I guarantee after about a month of success, others are going to want to be moving those mountains with you.

CelticWarrior

Yesterday, I called to get pre-qualified with insurance for a lap-band. I'm desparate to lose weight and started convincing myself that I needed something besides counting calories/excericse. After I called I got ticked-off at myself. I have everything I need to succeed inside of me. Even with a lap-band it is all about calories/excericse. So I'm re-committing today to log my calories and excericse on MFP every day. When the lap-band place calls back, I'm going to tell them, thanks but no thanks......I'm going to give myself a mental lap-band and stick to MFP. LOL

there you go, give yourself more credit to be able to do it EL natural !

Casablanca911

I had a moment when I thought about surgery for weight loss, but it made me angry because as you said we have everything we need to do it without surgery. Sadly we know someone who got surgery but never learned about eating and exercising for health and he gained back all his weight. Good luck

nisijam5

Love it, mental lap band....that's exactly how it works...

No that's not how it works at all. Weight loss surgery gives you physiological hunger control. Your hunger hormones (ghrelin, leptin, etc.) are actually changed and your body's set point is lowered as well.

That's why clinical data shows that 75-90% of people who get weight loss surgery end up losing and keeping off an average of 50% of their excess weight for at least 5 years while people with 50 pounds or more to lose who attempt to do so without weight loss surgery succeed in keeping off 40% of excess weight for only two years only 1-10% of the time. Those are not good odds.

For me, I could lose weight just fine. I've lost gobs and gobs of weight. I couldn't keep it off though because of my ravenous hunger. Now the part of my body that overproduced ghrelin is gone and I have normal hunger. My body's set point is no longer 225, but 115 as well. This makes a tremendous difference in my ability to maintain my weight.

I wish the OP well, but I also hope she doesn't end up yo-yo dieting for 30 years like I did when a tool exists now that can break that cycle. Society tells us that obesity is a behavior issue, one of willpower, and that failure to lose weight is due to character flaws. Science tells us that's a bunch of BS, that obesity a complex disease with many physiological causes. Society reminds me of a little kid with its fingers in its ears singing "la la la" I can't hear you" on this one.

If you have a medical problem and endocrine has picked up on it...I say that's what you should do

However, so many people eat for emotional reasons and are basically sedentary....you have to understand why you eat, when you eat and how you move your body to compensate...once that is established, you can make the proper decisions based on what you and your doctor have determined what is the most appropriate course of action.

HealthyChanges2010

Yesterday, I called to get pre-qualified with insurance for a lap-band. I'm desparate to lose weight and started convincing myself that I needed something besides counting calories/excericse. After I called I got ticked-off at myself. I have everything I need to succeed inside of me. Even with a lap-band it is all about calories/excericse. So I'm re-committing today to log my calories and excericse on MFP every day. When the lap-band place calls back, I'm going to tell them, thanks but no thanks......I'm going to give myself a mental lap-band and stick to MFP. LOL

there you go, give yourself more credit to be able to do it EL natural !

You guys ROCK giving support like this to her for her decision!! I totally agree, I think docs allow far too many to do the surgeries nowadays before really really giving it a successful shot at what truly works in the end. Watching what we eat and getting our workouts in!

If I can lose 200 on my own the old fashioned way, truly ppl!! ANYONE can!! I wanted permanent changes mentally, physically and emotionally, not simply quick drastic physical, our minds can't keep up with that (it's hard enough when we lose it over time to really keep up and see the changes in ourselves). Seen far too many ppl drop the weight quickly with surgery only to not know what to do afterwards, not know how to eat properly, not realize it's not magic and not have a workout plan only to gain it back plus 100 lbs. more.

If I want something for myself I want to be able to say I worked hard to get it MYSELF and know I gave it my best shot! I want to be able to continue on with the patterns I began in the begining.

Merely my thoughts on the topic

nisijam5

Becca, your right about docs promoting quick fixes...congrats on your weight loss and willpower to get it done

I work in a small hospital...we recently had 2 women in their 40s and 50s admitted to our hospital because of plastic surgery gone bad, mainly tummy tucks....1 died and I don't know what happened to the other....I have seen nicked bowels, bladders and people go septic...you think it won't happen to you; but, it can.

jha1223

Kudos to you! It takes an awful lot of heart to decide to take the road less traveled. My sister in law had gastric bypass. It's a nightmare to be around. She can't eat everything that looks good to her. Even what she can eat, she has to be very very careful with portions. Take one spoonful too much and your off to the bathroom to get sick.

And with a surgery, you will have to change the amount you eat overnight. Go the diet route and at least you can eat some quality wholesome foods. I know there may be some situations where it is necessary, but I think you made the right decision.

Behavior_Modification

I APPLAUD YOU!!!

Good decision. The lab band will not change bad habits and it doesn't seem like it would be medically urgent for you to get it.

I was pondering WLS myself last winter because I knew I was at the point of needing to seek professional help. However for me, WLS would have done no good because I would have never learned how to eat properly and take care of my body, i would have just been restricting my calorie intake. Granted I know it is much more involved, but the main reason I think people get it is to restrict calorie consumption. However even with calorie restriction, if you eat the wrong food, which I would have continued to do, it would be no help. And think of all the complications you could inevitably end up with. I'm really glad I chose to lose the weight without surgery and I've invested my time, efforts and money into getting healthy the natural way. WLS is a tool that will work for many, and has, but it would not help me overcome my bad relationship with food.

This topic has been near and dear to my heart recently because one of my good friends who is only 30 yrs old has chosen to get WLS and is going under the knife Sept 8. She told me about it last week. She is the same height as me, but weighs less than I do NOW (after 6 months of losing). I just wish she would change her mind too because she is young, healthy otherwise, strong and I know she is capable. Her reasoning is that she doesn't want her life to revolve around food and if she can't eat she won't think about it. It is such a sad situation because I don't want her to get it but I have to be supportive of her decision as a good friend. No matter how anyone decides to lose weight it is good that they are doing it, but I fear she may be causing herself more health problems down the road when she is perfectly capable of re-learning how to eat properly and she has no restrictions that would prevent her from exercising. Sorry, I know I'm venting a little here.

Nevertheless, I'm glad you have given the surgery more thought and have really thought about what's best for YOU! :flowerforyou:

2bthinsandy

Thanks for all of the wonderful posts and encouragement. My husband is supportive of me and I think he would like me to get the surgery, but I really want to lose weight and get healthy in part so I can avoid seeing doctors so much and to get off of high blood pressure medicine and cholesterol medicine. I have to put more faith and belief in my abilities to control what I eat.

SassyMissDasha

I have the lapband myself and it was great! i lost 100 lbs with it, but learning to "eat through it" and grieving during my divorce, i gained 80 lbs of it back. Not good! that's why I'm here....im eating better, smaller portions, exercising, and i am getting a fill in my band next week. i figured i have the tool in my body, i might as well use it, but live healthy too. congrats on your decision to get healthy and lose weight....no matter how you choose to do it. it's hard either way.....

This exactly, except I didn't get a divorce ..but my father passed away. I had the lapband also! Since I decided it was time to make it work for me again, I've lost 76 lbs in 3 months. It's your choice! But I agree ..it is hard either way.

Tamishumate

Good for you!! You will be so happy whe you are successful using MFP! It works!! Best choice you can make for yourself!

StacySkinny

Lap Band and Gastric Bypass are band-aids that don't fix the underlying problem. Nearly 100% of those who get weight loss surgery gain it all back. Why? Because they haven't identified the root of why they got to where they are in the first place. Most people who are morbidly obese got that way because they eat their emotions. Not everyone, but the vast majority. Relearning how to eat proper portions, learning your triggers (what makes you want to run to the kitchen when you're not physically hungry) and learning how to really focus on what you're eating and being in the moment so you are satisfied with your meal. These are keys that weight loss surgery doesn't teach.

It makes me crazy how many people resort to weight loss surgery, particularly those with less than 150 lbs to lose. And really if you're not close to 1 foot in the grave you shouldn't even consider an expensive and potentially life threatening surgery. Risking your life with a major surgery like WLS when you aren't even fixing the real problem is insanity. That's just my opinion though, take it or leave it.

But one last word of advice - Look up weight loss success stories. People like David Smith who weighed 650 lbs (yes SIX HUNDRED AND FIFTY!), with diet and exercise alone he lost over 400 lbs. He's now a personal trainer. http://www.hemmy.net/2007/07/02/david-smith-amazing-weight-lost-story/

And there are other people out there who have lost massive amounts of weight through changing their lifestyles by eating right and adding physical activity to their daily lives. If David can lose over 400 lbs through diet and exercise YOU can lose the weight you want the same way!

MacMadame

Lap Band and Gastric Bypass are band-aids that don't fix the underlying problem. Nearly 100% of those who get weight loss surgery gain it all back.

That is not true. That's true of people who DIET & EXERCISE. In clinical studies

It makes me crazy how many people resort to weight loss surgery, particularly those with less than 150 lbs to lose. And really if you're not close to 1 foot in the grave you shouldn't even consider an expensive and potentially life threatening surgery. Risking your life with a major surgery like WLS when you aren't even fixing the real problem is insanity. That's just my opinion though, take it or leave it.

Bariatric surgery today is as safe as any routine laproscopic surgery such as having your gallbladder out. It's the only effective and durable treatment for morbid obesity.

As for 100% gaining their weight back, that's actually what happens with diet and exercise. With bariatric surgery 75-90% keep their weight off. That's been documented over and over in clinical studies. Look them up sometimes instead of pulling stats out of your butt.

Btw, the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting a different result. For me, that means dieting over and over, gaining the weight back each time and then doing it again as I got worse and worse results and my weight went higher and higher. I got off that merry-go-round and now I'm sane, healthy and an endurance athlete with 18% body fat.

So, I find your opinion based on ignorance and misinformation and I think I'll leave it

katya143

Stacyskinny...please get your facts straight! I have the lapband and it is the best (underlined) thing I have ever done for myself! It's hard, because it's only a tool! You have to still excersize, fight emotional eating and count calories! It's not a quick fix! So all the negativity about lapband surgery... God bless you!!!

edorice

So glad you made that decision. Portion control isn't just lip service. If you don't force yourself now to learn portion control the lap-band will only fail you eventually.