Journey/tool

I am still PRE OP, so all you vets take this with a grain of salt and by all means if I am out of line just let me know.

I was thinking this morning while feeding one of my baby girls. Probably because this has consumed my every thought for the last 6 months. There are a lot of discussions on here about our journey. I disagree with that term, when referring to the whole process. .

Journey: an act of traveling from one place to another. coining what we are doing as a journey gives the impression to anyone who has no idea of what we are going through, that there is a END. here is my breakdown of what we do and what we are going through.

WE, have two "journeys" and something else that I cant quite put into words just yet. We are born, we are or get fat and deal with life for the time being and when we have tried everything and failed, we decide that WLS is our only option. END OF JOURNEY 1/START OF JOURNEY 2. doctors, appointments, psychologists, coming to terms with YOU and finally when all of the cards fall, you have surgery. END OF JOURNEY 2. On to step 3. step 3 is not a journey, there is a DEFINITE beginning, but there is no end to what we do. we get on the post op train and away we go. we are Charlie on the MTA (Kingston trio reference there grimm you may know what I'm talking about. ) we are on this ride that never stops, we never get off the train, and if the train derails, we have to get on the next one coming by. on and on and on, never stop riding. BUT BOY WHAT SCENERY ALONG THE WAY!

I don't like the phrase "WLS is a tool". anyone can grab a hammer and pound in a nail. grab a wrench and turn a nut. pick up scissors and cut a piece of paper....

WLS is an art..... everyone has their blank canvas, down on the bottom, we will put some exercise, over here we will put some good eating habits, over there some family support, oh and don't forget the happy little trees over there!!!LOL and no artist is ever happy with their painting, constantly changing, erasing, rearranging, and when they are finally content someone comes up and says, you forgot this or that LOL...

that is all for my rambling this morning, thank you all for your continued support. and forgive the grammatical errors.

Although I appreciate your view, I respectfully disagree on both points.

My life before WLS was not a journey, but a long, painful endurance test that I failed. My life after WLS is a journey from bad health and morbid obesity, to the end result of good health, happiness, and a longer life. My journey will end when my life ends, not before.

WLS is not the tool, it was merely a means to an end. My new stomach is the tool. It is the tool I had been missing, that now enables me to finally accomplish the work I failed at countless times before. It is made of titanium and will never fail me, as long as I continue to use it properly.

I relish both my new tool and my journey, and I can't wait to make the right choices at each fork in the road, and experience the joy and happiness I find along the way.

Cathy--truly excellent response!

Thank you, Gina!!

I am still PRE OP, so all you vets take this with a grain of salt and by all means if I am out of line just let me know.

I was thinking this morning while feeding one of my baby girls. Probably because this has consumed my every thought for the last 6 months. There are a lot of discussions on here about our journey. I disagree with that term, when referring to the whole process. .

Journey: an act of traveling from one place to another. coining what we are doing as a journey gives the impression to anyone who has no idea of what we are going through, that there is a END. here is my breakdown of what we do and what we are going through.

WE, have two "journeys" and something else that I cant quite put into words just yet. We are born, we are or get fat and deal with life for the time being and when we have tried everything and failed, we decide that WLS is our only option. END OF JOURNEY 1/START OF JOURNEY 2. doctors, appointments, psychologists, coming to terms with YOU and finally when all of the cards fall, you have surgery. END OF JOURNEY 2. On to step 3. step 3 is not a journey, there is a DEFINITE beginning, but there is no end to what we do. we get on the post op train and away we go. we are Charlie on the MTA (Kingston trio reference there grimm you may know what I'm talking about. ) we are on this ride that never stops, we never get off the train, and if the train derails, we have to get on the next one coming by. on and on and on, never stop riding. BUT BOY WHAT SCENERY ALONG THE WAY!

I don't like the phrase "WLS is a tool". anyone can grab a hammer and pound in a nail. grab a wrench and turn a nut. pick up scissors and cut a piece of paper....

WLS is an art..... everyone has their blank canvas, down on the bottom, we will put some exercise, over here we will put some good eating habits, over there some family support, oh and don't forget the happy little trees over there!!!LOL and no artist is ever happy with their painting, constantly changing, erasing, rearranging, and when they are finally content someone comes up and says, you forgot this or that LOL...

that is all for my rambling this morning, thank you all for your continued support. and forgive the grammatical errors.

I agree with Cathy. Some journeys don't end till death. Journeys don't have to have a definite stopping point. DH and I plan to travel when he retires in 18 months,and there will be no "finite" end to that journey. Not till one or both of us die.

Wls certainly has been a tool for me. I couldn't pound that nail into the wood with my bare hand before I picked up the hammer" tool". After I "got" the hammer ("got" WLS)

, I was able to pound away at that wood, ( weight****il I conquered the job. When I see that nail slipping back out of the wood,( regain), I am quickly able to use that hammer tool,(my sleeve) to pound it back in(away).

Tell us more about you pounding away at the wood . . .

Dondomit--My 1st, 2nd and 3rd inclination was to ignore this post, because I couldn't come up with anything, less than snarky to say....but let me try...

WLS is much like MARRIAGE...It takes a true commitment, if you want it to be successful, for the long haul. As a pre op, you are at the "engagement" stage. From reading your posting history, I gather you have jumped the "courtship" hoops, and have been approved for surgery. Everything is still moonlight and roses, and you can't think about anything except your WLS, and how perfect your post op life will be...How YOU are going to be the PERFECT WLSer, while others have not been...How YOU will never be tempted to eat a Frito...etc..etc...I dare say most of us have been there...I know I SURE HAVE...

WLS...any type...can be damn hard work...the weight loss can stall...then you reach goal...time goes by ...then nobody claps, when you enter the room anymore...the ONE food you LOVE is the ONE food your body just will NOT tolerate...And this JOURNEY is for the rest of your life...and if you leave your TOOLS, in the garage, and don't USE them, guess what happens???? REGAIN...It CAN be lost...way harder than during the "honeymoon"...been there, done that, too...

So...still don't like JOURNEY and TOOLS? Your choice, of course!!! But..I caution you, to watch your mindset...and open yourself to new ideas....

I am almost 15 years in this, my final journey, and was 15 lbs under my goal, for a loss of 185, this morning. That couldn't happen without my tool, and the things I have learned, from other people, along the way

thank you for the response!

I'm not saying that I disapprove of the terminology, I was merely coming up with a different way to think about it. I understand it will be hard work, I understand it is for the rest of my life. it was a compilation of thoughts put together after an evening of 2.5 hours of sleep.