weigh down workshop

Hi there, I am so glad that there is a forum here for Christians. I have been researching the Lap Band Surgery and have an appointment on the 25th with the surgeon. Here is the biggest thing I have struggled with. A few years ago, I lost over 60 pounds by joining Weigh Down Workshop and having Church studies. Is anyone familiar with this program? After the first workshop and all the weight was gone, I decided to buy into the deeper study "weigh down advanced" where things got really weird, and I started to feel desperate. The theory in the advanced lessons where to only eat when hungry and stop when comfortable. Any bite past comfortable would be sinful gluttony and soon I would lose my salvation, because I couldn't keep repenting over and over. Eventually God would turn me over to my sin and leave me. This was a horrible time in my life. Not only did I gain all the weight back but the despair I felt as a person believing that I was hellbound forever because of eating. I have been through a few recovery groups and thank God, I don't feel that way anymore. But there is still a part of me that feels like I am not trusting God to lose weight "naturally" Does anybody else feel this way or have they felt this way? How do feel now? Has anyone been through the weigh down workshop? Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. I am really feeling the Grace of God just for finding this website. YSIC, Debby

Hi Debby!! I too struggled with God's plan for me, especially after reading "Purpose Driven Life". In that book, it talks about how God created each of us just the way He intended. I began questioning altering my guts (I'm scheduled for the RNY). However, I spent many hours in prayer and have found a peace only He can give. I know that God did not intend for me to live with this weight - those were decisions I made. I believe that this process has gone too smoothly for God to not have been involved. I am at peace with my decision. I don't feel that I am 'not trusting God' that I will lose the weight 'naturally' because I still have to re-learn eating behaviors once the surgery is complete. WLS surgery is not a 'cure-all'. Hope this helps & good luck!! Brandi RNY 08/13/04

I led the weigh down workshop in my church for two years. I totally understand how you felt! Things did start to get really weird from that Gwen Shamblin lady and her belief system and we decided it was not a good thing. So I moved on to other things like a 12 step program for compulsive eating and that was too legalistic. So now I'm 4 1/2 mos. post op and so grateful! Good luck to you! ~Stacie S. 318/228/150

Debby, At first I struggled with the same feelings about not trusting God to help me lose the weight naturally. Fortunatley the church I had gone to for many years had many people having the surgery. In fact the pastor was one of them. They helped me to realize that the Lord had provided a way for me to lose the weight. And for that I will always be thankful. It was the best decision of my life. I tryed the weigh down and I think I lasted a half of day. I heard her doctrine was starting to be questioned. May the Lord bless you on this exciting journey. In his name Geri

Hi, I posted a message much like this one before I had my surgery. I know it concerned me much, much more than possible side effects, including death after surgery. I was in the Weighdown Workshop for about 3 years, and when I was obedient, prayed, read my bible, meditated, and trusted the Lord to feed be what I needed , when I needed it, I lost about 60 lbs. It was so amazing to me that just following the concept of eat only when hungry and stop when satisfied, and holding onto to Jesus and making Him the Lord of of my entire life , instead of just the parts that were convienent, could make such a big difference. I was much happier and healthier and the key to the whole thing was strengthening my relationship with my savior, and not paying a surgeon to rearrange the body God gave me, because I couldn't be obedient. That being said, I fell ...hard. As soon as I took my eyes of Jesus , I sank just like Peter did when Jesus beckoned him to walk on the water with Him. I felt so guilty and I couldn't seem to get it back together again. I don't see it as a Weighdown Workshop failure, but as a Maureen failure. I don't think that her doctrines are so odd. I never felt that my salvation was in jepardy because I was disobedient. In my heart I know that aligning myself with Jesus and loving Him more than food is the answer. I still don't think of obesity for most people anyway as a disease, but the result of bowing down to food, and craveings, as an idol, instead becomeing its slave, instead of bowing down to Jesus and choosing the yoke He gives us , which is much lighter than the yoke of a slave.. Finally I started working hours that weren't allow me to go to class, and after another couple of years, I gained all of the weight back and more. Still no excuse, but its the ugly truth. Weighdown Workshop had convinced me that all diets were hopeless, and just increased becoming more obsessed with food. I sure didn't need to feed that obsession! I had given up. I knew a few people at work who had this surgery and my two sisters had it, but , still, I felt like somehow it was wrong, to turn to a surgeons scalpel and stapler, instead of to the Great Physican. I had picked up a locl health paper and I saw an advertisement for the Laproscopic Weightloss Center and I read it. I thought about it for a couple of weeks and then called them just to check it out, but still very unsure. They had an appointment open for the next day, and I was off, so I went to see them. They were very nice and it sounded good, but still, not sure. They said while I was thinking about it , did I want them to submit it to my insurance, and attend a orientaition. I told them Ok. Part of me hoped that there would be an insurance snag, and then I would just let it go. After I went to the Orientation, I was more sure, that I would like to try this, but only if it was God's will, and I wasn't going to do any appeals or anything like that, if I got a no. My insurance came back within 2 weeks without asking for anything else, and I started my pre op testing. There were some snags there, but I kept praying and asking God to keep my on the path that He wanted, not the path that I wanted. Finally within 6 weeks after I had that inital appointment , I was sheduled for surgery. What the Father showed me, was that it was his perfect will that I wouldn't have to go through this difficult thing, but He knew my frame and that even though Ilove Him as much as I can, I hadn't grown enough to do this the easy way. As a loving Father , he didn't want me to go through that pain and lifetime of changes , but he wouldn't stop me from doing it either, if that is what I chose. He sees me like a willful child and he loves me anyway. I had absoulute peace about the surgery. No stress, or fears. Just a peace beyond understanding. Yes , I had the surgery, but I still am following the things that I learned in WDW and listen to the audio tapes and video tapes that I bought. I truly beleive the only way to lose all the weight that I want to and to keep it off, is to go back to the concepts that WDW taught me. Whatever decision you make, remember you are a beloved child of God and nothing that you do or don't do is going to change that. Blessings, Maureen

Hi Debby! I had a little bit of experience with the Weighdown Workshop several years ago and my experience was the same as with any other program I had tried....I just wasn't disciplined enough to follow the program. I am not familiar with the "advanced" workshop....that is unbelievable...many of us would be in big trouble if we stood the chance of losing our salvation by overeating! I totally know where you are coming from, I have asked myself the same questions, would God really want me to "redesign" my body...the body He made and designed this way? I had heard a little bit about WLS, mainly from the coverage that Carnie Wilson got when she had it...but I aways thought it was something that was out of my reach, I had always heard the insurance didn't cover it. Last year, our church nurse held a WLS seminar. She used John 10:10 in her presentation and it brought me to tears, for the first time in my life I thought "could this really be possible for me"? Since I have been researching WLS on my own in the past year, I came across another scripture where God has really spoken to me and I have claimed it's promise and shared it with everyone I come across that is having WLS or looking into it. It's Jeremiah 29:11. I have prayed and asked the Lord that if this is what He wants for my life, then He will have the process work in my favor and if not, then the doors will close. The doors keep opening, and when a door closes He has opened the windows. I truly believe that WLS is God's plan for my life. He has made a way through this procedure to give so many of us another chance at a healthier more fulfilling lifestyle. God Bless you on your journey. Sara

Thank you all for your words of encouragement. I keep praying that God will show me His will in all of this. I am afraid at times that the surgery will not be His will for me and I will be left right where I started from and other times, I just want to trust Him completely that if it isn't His will He will make it so clear to me. I always feel so convicted after over eating, I pray Psalm 51 and pray that tomorrow will be different. But I always end up back to the same thing. Thanks again for your insight, scripture and prayers. YSIC, Debby

Boy, do I understand!! It's taken me a few years (and about 60lbs, haha) to get over WD. I don't regret it - well I try not to. I led a group too. I was so disturbed to discover Gwen's crazy doctrines. I felt deceived and shaken. I felt guilt for spreading it. On this side of the healing... I told my surgeon that my experience with two diet programs will be instrumental in my success after surgery: Weigh****chers for the education about food and portions and WeighDown because it taught me about fullness and hunger. Think about it - won't we be using these very principles post-op?! God is gracious to us all to take the remnants of truths from WD and turn them into tools for our new journey. Before WD I had not given as much thought to hunger and fullness. While I still over-indulge, I'm more aware of the crossing point. I know how *little* food I need for fullness and nourishment. I know how satisfying it can be to run to God instead of food in crisis. There's stuff there that we can take and use. His mercies are NEW every morning! There's a reason that they are fresh every day - it's because we need mercy each and every day! We mess up and need HIM! A doctrine that relies too heavily on the righteousness of man takes away from our need for Him. I have often thought that the journey to WLS is a lot like the journey through the wilderness! I feel as if I have crawled on the hot sands, waiting and hoping that God would hear me on this. And on the other end of the desert (after surgery), the promise land is there but there will still battles to fight when we get there! The power to win promise land is still not found in ourselves - but in our reliance on Him! There's no fear in Perfect Love. There's no condemnation for those in HIM. It's often in our weaknesses that He meets us, carries us, and shows His immeasurable strength! I pray continued healing for each of us! I pray that He takes all the failures of the past and turns them into something remarkable as a blessing to us, a witness to others, and to His Glory! Blessings, everyone! Nan

Amen to that! My insurance won't cover this surgery. But I already knew that before going to the seminar. I prayed about it, and asked God to show me a way. Then at the seminar the doctor said he takes cash patients. A few years ago this was unheard of so I didn't even think it would be an option. He said that he had a package for the Lap-band, that would include all fills or un-fills, reversal if needed, any care for 2 years and a support group. The cost is affordable too. I prayed again about a loan I wanted to get. I asked for a little more than I needed for home improvement and asked God that if this was not His will, that I would be turned for the loan. I wasn't turned down. It really seems like all my prayers are being answered with a yes but I still question it, feeling I'm forcing the issue. I pray so hard for peace in my decision. Thanks again for your GREAT advice and sharing your own testimonies. Has anyone here had the lap-band surgery? Your sister in Christ, Debby

Yes, we also did the weigh down workshop through our church a few years ago. It was successful to a point, but none of us (as far as I know) reached goal. Diet's Don't Work also has the tenet of eating "like a thin person" -- only when hungry, and only until full. Some of the other spiritual-based programs that I've done include Free to Be Thin, Thin Within, Weigh-to-Win, 12-step based Love Hunger Food Addiction Recovery, and most recently First Place. For me, any "program" which encourages me and holds me accountable to place Christ at the head of my life, and let Him govern my daily decisions (over food, and everything else) is tremendous. I need those reminders more than I would like to admit. I so truly appreciate His awesome grace and unconditional love for me. Even when I let Him down, He's still always there for me. At this stage, I'm not sure whether or not I'll be approved by my insurance for the surgery -- in some ways it seems to me that I'll be taking "an easier, softer way" -- which we all know there is none. I've also wondered about the drastic surgery change to this wondrously created body plumbing that God gave me. Then I read posts about it only being a tool, and I keep praying that if God doesn't want me to have surgery, then it won't be approved for me. But in my own will, I want it to be approved, and if it isn't, I intend to fight for it. What a quandry! Please -- we'll all keep praying for each other -- that through our "journeys" we foremost keep ourselves centered on Him. Thanks for being there, Susan