New to this and feeling stressed

Hi everyone -

   I have been seriously thinking about lap band surgery for several months now and have been researching (what feels like) never endingly!  I went to a conference in my city and went ahead a got the ball rolling.  Shockingly, I also went ahead to start the insurance process and got an email today saying that I was approved, and should schedule with my surgeon to start pre-op process!!!  There are still so many things to think about!!!  I guess, my real questions are how happy you are with the band, if you would change anything? I'm nervous about the drastic lifestyle change afterwards.... I'm really just feeling overwhelmed!    Thank you for any help and encouragement you can supply!!  Thanks!!
 
Renee

Renee-

I am not banded (yet!!) but I will tell you that the LapBand board is much more active than this one, so I think you should post your questions over there also.

There are alot of Realize members on that board, also.

Good luck in making your decision.

Thanks for the advice!!  :) 

- Renee

Hi there,

I was banded on 12/1/08. I'm extremely happy with my band. I have lost 65 lbs to date and quite a few inches but I wasn't really paying attention to them. By doing any WLS it will be a lifestyle change when it comes to eating mostly. It is very overwhelming at first. I found the first few months to be very easy because I didn't really have the greatest restricition so I was still able to eat a large amount of food, now that I have great restriction I'm finding it harder and more work but its teaching me to follow the band rules. I would also suggest posting this on LapBand if you haven't already done so. I go there more but try to bounce back and forth to stay updated on both boards. Good Luck!

the only regret i have is not doing it years ago!

It was overwhelming, but it gets easier everyday especially when the scale goes down and people comment on how much weight you have lost,,,

Trust me it's worth it!

Wow!  Honestly, all I can say is Wow!!!   Thank you guys all so much for your encouragement!  I also went to a support group here in Nashville and they were so encouraging.  It helps to take the fear and stress away and change it to excitment about a future you never believed you would have!!!  so...I guess the next step is choosing a surgeon!!!   Thank you so much!!!

Renee

 Hey Renee,

I live in Nashville and was just wondering where the support group was that you went to? I'm having surgery in about a week and that might be something I should check into for after surgery! It's always nice to have people in the same boat! I went to one in Alabama, but it would be nice to have one here to attend.

My doctor is in Birmingham, mainly because that's where my family lives and they wanted me to do it close to home. Plus, he was the first doctor in Alabama to put in a lap-band and comes highly recommended to me. It may suck to have to go back and forth for fills and what not, but it's an excuse to see my family... so it works out! :) It's only 3 hours and he said that fills are usually about every 6 weeks, so it's not like I'll have to be going that much more than I already do!

Best of luck to you!

Missy B