I need HELP before I make a BIG Mistake!

SO I am supposed to get the Lap Band early next year but I have been totally thrown for  a loop. I feel like I am getting the run around at my surgens office. All of this is putting doubt in my mind. I dont know if it is becuase it will be soon or if I really want it anymore. I have chnaged the way I eat for about 4 months and have lost 12lbs.  I eat whatever I want but only when I am hungry. Which is ACTUALLY working,, so I need some type of guidance or storys of people who have done the weight loss on thier own or decided against surgery last minute or who are like me in this situation and do go through it,,,,, I am just confused and am thinking if I leave it up to my higher power truely, then I can do it,, PLESE HELP! 

I have been losing weight on my own since April 12, 2009.  And so far I have managed to loose 85 pounds.  Like you I still eat what I want, but I eat it in smaller portions.  And I'm exercising pretty much daily and this has really helped me a lot. I log everything I eat into fitday.com and make sure I stay between 1200 - 1400 calories a day and it seems to work well for me. I'm about 9 pounds from my first goal but once I hit it I will likely try to drop another 10 pounds but once I do that I plan to just start maintaining. Hope this helps.



Johnita

Hi!
First congratulations on your weight loss!

I struggled for years...many many years...and then finally got serious and found a way to make it work for me.  I had started to look into surgery (Lap Band) and had a conversation with my PCP about it.  In the end I decided I needed to give it one more serious try....if I couldn't do it I would think about surgery.

I guess I was ready to be serious.  It was not easy by any means.  It took a whole lot of determination but slowly and steadily the weight started to come off and I was feeling better and better about myself and my chance of reaching my goal.

FYI - one of the big differences for me this last time is that I exercised.  I hate exercise but I realize I could not have been this successful without exercising.  I also realize as much as I hate to admit it that regular exercise must be part of my life always.  I don't do weight lifting as much as I did when losing weight but I make sure I get at least 60 mins of cardio in 6 days a week.  I do 60 mins when walking and 70-90 mins when riding the bike.

If I could do it at 50 you can do it too.
Take it one meal at a time and always remember SLOW AND STEADY WINS THE RACE!  Don't try to lose 5 lbs a week....1-3 lbs is fantastic!

Best wishes on your journey!!

Congrats on your weight loss so far and on the healthy changes you've made.

I looked into WLS, went to the seminar, did a lot of reading online, etc. but when I realized all that was involved with WLS and that I'd still have to make big changes in my eating, I decided against it. I was just too scared of the long-term effects and the unknown. I knew WW worked for me, it had in the past, I had just given up when it got hard.

When I decided  to re-join in 2006, I promised myself I would never quit, and I haven't. I've lost nearly 250 lbs. and the best part is- I get to eat! lol I eat a lot during the day, just really healthy food. I've learned how to fuel my body with the nutrtion it needs, rather than to succumb to every craving I have.

Good luck with whatever you decide. It's a very personal decision to make, but weight loss without surgery can be done, it just takes patience and perserverence.

~Wendy

Hi,

I feel your pain!  I'm in the same boat - and have postponed any decision about surgery for the time being.

I have already had a WLS procedure - back in 1993 - which apparently failed after many years and a weight loss of 170 pounds.  I regained up to 302 pounds and decided to have a revision done.  I went to a seminar and consulted with three very good surgeons.  The thing that made me pause was when the best (in my opinion) of the three said to me, "You shouldn't consider WLS unless you can look me in the eye and tell me you've done EVERYthing in your power to lose weight and you simply cannot."  I thought about that for a couple of weeks and realized that in the past, although I'd lost over 170 pounds, I had always done it by fad diets and one time by surgery.  I had never actually tried eating healthy and counting calories.  (I know that's hard to believe...)

I began just counting the calories I was taking in by keeping track in FitDay (online weightloss management software.)  Then, I began walking.  It was painful at tirst, but  I just kept doing it, slow and easy every day. (I walk with my 80 year old mother at a local shopping mall.)  I decided I couldn't eat healthy right away - I love my Whataburgers too much.  So, I just started ordering a Whataburger Jr., small fries and a large, unsweetened iced tea.  It was satisfying and twice a day it was only 1200 calories total.  I tend to be repetitive in my food choices so for a solid month, this became my regimen.

The weight started to come off!  After two and a half months, I've lost almost 30 pounds and to be honest, it wasn't difficult at all.  I just don't keep any junk foods at home because snacking is a big problem for me.  (I realized that when I logged my eating habits.)

After a month, I felt "safe" enough to begin adding other meals - all of which I had determined to be between 500-700 calories by reading nutrition info online.  I never go into a restaurant without knowing ahead of time what I will order and exactly how many calories it will have.  I just shop for the "best bang for my 500 calories."  Two to three times a day, every day, I enjoy regular food - my favorites - and can eat with friends and family with no special dietary issues.  I just always eat from 1200 to 1600 calories and keep walking.  For me, it has been a pleasant journey so far and I plan to eat this way all my life.

That's the big deal.  Dieting is not something you can do temporarily.  I always lost weight (sometimes lots of it) and couldn't wait to get to goal so I could "eat again."  It isn't like that.  With surgery or without, the bottom line is you must change your lifestyle and eating habits - forever.  Otherwise, the weight loss will not be permanent and who wants to go through the expense and misery of major abdominal surgery for "nothing?"

I still have a long way to go, but I'm happy I postponed my WLS.  It is always an option later if I'm not able to achieve a healthy weight the "old fashioned way," so there is no reason to rush a decision.  My doctor is very supportive and actually congratulated me on my weight loss and said he would always rather a patient succed at healthy eating without surgical intervention (even though it's about $20,000 out of his pocket.)  You might be surprised at the support available for your weight loss here and in your own town.

It is your decision and one of the toughest ones you'll ever make.  You must be happy with what you decide.  I'm only offering my story as I am in the middle of it and don't know the outcome.  Right now, it feels fantastic.

Best to you, whatever you decide.
Mary

Hey there,

I am a lap band surgery patient. I had the surgery Dec of 2007. At the time of surgery I weighed 300 lbs, I dropped to about 278 the lowest and have picked up every bit of those few pounds I lost. As of today I weighed 300lbs again. And although I still have my band in I have not seen a doctor for a fill or an unfill since April 2008. I lost my insurance which I don't know if that was a good of a bad thing at this moment.

The one thing I found about having the band is that If you are NOT a big eater then the band is probably not a good choice. I believe that the bad is good for those who just can not stop themselves from eating. For me I am heavy not from eating too much but from usually eating too little. I am a person that eats all the wrong things but usually only once per day maybe twice on a good day.

I have chosen to restart trying to get healthy and lose this weight, but I am going to do it the old fashioned way. I am going to work out, and find out by reading and researching online how to eat healthy. I know that I can do it, and I will lose this weight by my 40th birthday December 2010. Having the surgery and not losing any real weight just showed me that you really can't look for a quick fix. Even with having the band you still have to eat healthier, and exercise, so if I still have to do that then why get all chopped up and scarred up when you can do the same thing to begin getting the weight off. I know that it will or can be difficult to adopt a differnent mindset to eating healthier, but I would have to do that even if I was actually utilizing my band also.

Good luck to you with whatever decision you choose to make. I am not one to say that having the surgery is a bad idea, because for some it has absolutley been what saved their lives. I however have not had any success with having this surgery and for me. It was the worst decision that I think I have ever made. My daughter also had the surgery done and had it removed within 4 months due to having many complications with not being able to eat any solid foods after having the surgery.

I wish you luck on your weight loss journey.

Nycky

First off, if you are overweight because of emotional distresses, no surgery will help you and you will most likely fail.

Losing and maintaining weight through surgery takes just about as much work, dedication and maintenence as losing it through diet and exercise alone.
In fact, I think it requires MORE since if you slip up, you can get very sick.
Thats what  made me cancel my surgery date and go natural.
Its working so far...you just have to be mentally ready for it.