penelope Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 Hello everyone, I have been wanting this surgery for 2 years now. Last fall I booked my surgery and then canceled because I was scared I would not make it through, some complication would happen and my family would never see me again. I am so torn I am now 260, 5'5 and I just find it physically uncomfortable to be at this weight. I also have high BP, cholesterol, and PCOS. I need help so badly but am so scared. Have you heard of anyone not making it through? What is the worst complication you have had? Also I love to drink water I drink about 2-4 liters a day, will I still be able to do this? Thank you so much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JaniceBlack Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 Hello everyone, I have been wanting this surgery for 2 years now. Last fall I booked my surgery and then canceled because I was scared I would not make it through, some complication would happen and my family would never see me again. I am so torn I am now 260, 5'5 and I just find it physically uncomfortable to be at this weight. I also have high BP, cholesterol, and PCOS. I need help so badly but am so scared. Have you heard of anyone not making it through? What is the worst complication you have had? Also I love to drink water I drink about 2-4 liters a day, will I still be able to do this? Thank you so much. Penelope, Everyone is different and if this is something you would love to have done ...please do it. I had the same feelings of being scared and not being able to follow through. But I have been doing great and go next week for my first fill. I first lost 13 lbs and gained 6 back once I started on solid food. Now that my body is use to eating solids (and Holidays are over) I have been doing great!!! You are able to drink your water! Everyone at OCC is wonderful and the really put your mind at peace from the time they pick you up at the air port. Keep coming on this site and you will feel the warmth from all others that have been banded. YOU WILL NOT BE ALONE !!! Once you set the date please post it and you will have others there for you!!! I hope and pray that you have your chance to experience freedom with being banded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RevyD Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 Don't be scared. I had my surgery at 269 after loosing 28 pounds on the preop diet and had no complications what so ever. Laprascopic surgery is alot easier than an open incision with less complications. You are only under aneasthetic for about 15 minutes max. The key is to start your new life pre-op. Follow the preop diet so you can lose 5-10% of your body weight which is a huge accomplishment and makes the surgery much easier for the doctor. Your organs don't have as much fat on them them. Also start walking now. 30 minutes a day. That will improve your lung capacity and cardio. You have to do this every day following surgery so you might as well start preop and reap the benefits early. Once you have the surgery walk, walk, walk. Get up right away and walk those halls . No laying around because you want to prevent blood clots and walking will do that. About the water you can still drink. You just sip all day not chug. Don't be afraid. Having this 15 minute surgery will bring down your blood pressure and get your blood work back to normal. It will also help with the polycystic ovaries as well because weight loss really helps that condition. Keep reading the forum and learning and it will help. I am a Registered Nurse and found everything about the OCC and Dr Ortiz very professional, clean, state of the art OR. There facility was better and cleaner than alot I have seen in the states and Canada. Good luck and keep us posted Debbie 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stormy Posted January 3, 2010 Report Share Posted January 3, 2010 I was on here freaking out before my surgery. I was scarred to death. I can totally understand what you are saying. What was really bad is one of my friends kept telling me that I would die in Mexico and no one would find my body. She was freaking me out. But it was because of the people on here that I trusted that I would be ok. The information that I received and the hope and success that I have seen on here, more than made up my mind. I started out my journey at over 265 pounds. I was not getting any smaller and my hopes of ever being healthy were fading away. Since my surgery I have lost 46 pounds. I am more flexable that I have ever been and I am still continuing on the road to success. Trust the people here, I did. You will never be alone. You dont have to face this journey without having someone by your side all the way. It is scarry, I wont lie to you, there are set backs, but with support and honesty within yourself you can do it. It is a daily struggle. There is a reason this happened. Part of the journey and learning why and working our way through it. I can't tell you enough how this has changed my life. I hope that you will give it a lot of thought and if you want to get more info, watch you tube videos, just type in lapband. There are people on there tracking their experience, it is good information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tootsie_lou Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 Hi Penelope! I love what RevYD (Debbie ) said. She said to "start your new life with the pre-op". That could not be more accurate and well said. This is the time you will prepare your mind and your body for this journey. If you have been on this forum much, you will notice that 99% of the people here would do it again, the surgery and the travel to MX, in a heartbeat. Many of us are in the "wish I'd have done it sooner" club. My teenage daughter and I both were banded in Feb '08. If I had concerns for myself, they were one thing. I prayed we were doing the right thing for our 13 year old daughter. We both had positive experiences and would not change anything. If you go to OCC for your lapband, you will not only leave with a fantastic, miraculous tool to help you with weightloss, but also a mild-to-moderate crush on your lapband surgeon . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregP Posted January 4, 2010 Report Share Posted January 4, 2010 I too was a little nervous about having a surgery that was not a have too. Then you throw in the X factor of going out of the Country to get it especially Mexico. I let my wife have it first In November 08. I came with her and if i was to be honest before i left home i really didn't think i would ever go throw with it. From the moment they picked us up at the airport to the moment we got back to the airport i couldn't have asked for a better experience. They told you correct by trying to loose all the weight you can preop. I started dieting when we got back home in November and made my reservation for surgery April 6, 2009. I changed my eating habbits and lost 45 pounds by the end of February. So the whole month of March i weighed everyday to make sure didn't gain back any weight before surgery. I went out to eat at all my favorite restaurants and had a last meal at each 1 of them. That was just something i decided to do for me mentally for a type of closure of eating out for a while. By loosing the 45 pounds preop, i think that was why i did so well with the surgery. I brought my laptop to the OCC and was up on the internet 1 hr after surgery. I had the choice of going back to the motel or staying at the OCC that night but i chose to stay at the clinic because i went with my mother-in-law and she snored too much and i wanted a good nite's sleep. The next day i went shopping and walked 2 miles in town. We flew strait home then me wife and daughter drove to Disney World. As they said it's not a bad surgery, and i believe i couldn't have had any better experience in the U.S. than what i did with Dr. Ortiz. You'll do great!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smiley Posted January 5, 2010 Report Share Posted January 5, 2010 Is your family seeing the real you right now anyway? My guess is they are not. The real you is not a big person, the real you is hiding within a big person and begging to come out. So, reschedule and let her out. We will all be here for you as you give yourself a lot more time to spend with your family in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
penelope Posted January 27, 2010 Author Report Share Posted January 27, 2010 Thank you everyone for your kind words. I want to do this and I feel I am getting closer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zoey2 Posted January 27, 2010 Report Share Posted January 27, 2010 Thank you everyone for your kind words. I want to do this and I feel I am getting closer. You know everyone handles things differently. I, on the other hand, was so excited about the surgery even though I didn't have a lot of weight to loose (about 50 lbs), and I had people begging me not to do it. They were afraid that something may happen. I had wanted to have the surgery for a couple of years prior as well. As others have posted, you are under for a short time and it is laproscopic which has less side affects. You have to listen to yourself, however, and do what is right for you. I feel quite confident that you will not regret your decision and once it is over you will wish you had done it sooner as well. Keep us posted and ask away with questions and maybe you feel more comfortable with your decision. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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