Good candidate for lap band surgery?

[canadiangirl]

I'm 30 years old and about to book a date for a lap band surgery but for an unknow reason I am still hesitating. I wanted to have some of your feedback and personal stories before taking my final decision.

I have depression and tend to eat alot of sweets when feeling down or sad. In general I don't eat that much of big quantities but eat often small snacks. I have lost alot of weight on my own with exercise and healthy eating habits but always end up putting some back on. I'm hoping that having the lap band with help me manage the types of food that go "in the band" and of course make me become more "aware" when I'm full and have eaten enough.

My question to you all is I'm looking for testimonials of members that have a similar background and can reassure me that I'm making the right decision about having this surgery done.

Thank you and good luck to all of you. You have AMAZING succes stories!

Marie

[BusMomma]

Marie,

My surgery was only one month ago, but I feel so much better already. For starters, I feel better about MYSELF...I am proud of myself for taking this huge step and deciding to take control of my body. Healthwise, I haven't noticed any wheezing, from my asthma. I used to wheeze after walking up the steps. I believe my blood sugars are down. I was forced to watch what I ate/drank ten days prior to my surgery. After my surgery, while still in the hospital, the nurses would check my blood sugar two times a day. They never once said that my levels were high. Everybody is telling me that I look different. When I tell them what I've done, they tell me that my face looks thinner. My girls just told me yesterday that they can notice that I've lost weight. They say my legs are smaller!! I've already ordered some new clothes...my size 20 jeans are big! I guess that losing 25 pounds will do that! If I can just make it to summer, I won't worry about clothes until the end of August (I drive a school bus). I can live in our pool over the summer and not worry about how big my clothes are!!! I hope this helps... Don't hesitate, girl...book your surgery date!!!

[canadiangirl]

Hey Busmomma,

Thanks for replying to my post. It's funny because I ended up reading afterward some of the postings on the forum and read about your "bathroom" issues prior to surgery. I'm really glad that in the end you didn't regret doing this surgery and that you aren't strugling too much with "emotional eating" or any eating issue that you might have had before.

I'm about to book the surgery date for the end of may but I'm simply afraid that I won't be able to control my cravings and pulsions even with the band and end up being frustrated because I won't be able to eat all type of foods. (I was told that some people can't eat bread, pasta, potatoes, ect. because it get caught in the band).

I'm sure it's all worth it in the end but with my depression and all I sometimes have a hard time being positive.

Thanks for sharing part of your experience with me and good luck to you for the rest of your journey!

Marie

[canuk98828]

Hey Busmomma,

Thanks for replying to my post. It's funny because I ended up reading afterward some of the postings on the forum and read about your "bathroom" issues prior to surgery. I'm really glad that in the end you didn't regret doing this surgery and that you aren't strugling too much with "emotional eating" or any eating issue that you might have had before.

I'm about to book the surgery date for the end of may but I'm simply afraid that I won't be able to control my cravings and pulsions even with the band and end up being frustrated because I won't be able to eat all type of foods. (I was told that some people can't eat bread, pasta, potatoes, ect. because it get caught in the band).

I'm sure it's all worth it in the end but with my depression and all I sometimes have a hard time being positive.

Thanks for sharing part of your experience with me and good luck to you for the rest of your journey!

Marie

I found that the cravings for food changed when I was banded. I do not crave any of the "white" foods for the majority of the time. I have not had any bread since August 2010 but will occasionally have a bit of rice or pasta and do not have any problems. I will ususally use brown rice. for pasta the primary thing is to stay away from the spaghetti type of noodle when you indulge. i will make a small bit of rotini or the like and it does not give me any problems. You will not regret this wonderful journey you are embarking on.

[EricaG]

When I was banded I wasn't sure if it would work for me, even though I did tend to over eat, my biggest fault was stuffing my face with chocolate and gummy bears... pretty much any sweets, you name it, I ate it...all day. But I came to a conclusion that I wanted to do this and was going to make it work. I don't depend on the band to melt the fat away. I know that even I'm full from having my regular meal, I can still sneak in some ice cream or a piece of chocolate, but seriously... after 5-6 months of seeing no results in weight loss, It's so not worth it. The band helped me learn a lot about picking your food wisely and taught me this little thing we all lacked in common DISCIPLINE. So don't discourage yourself, you can do it you just have to want it.

[canadiangirl]

Thanks again for sharing your stories and experiences with me. I know you can't rely completly on the band to stop you from eating unhealthy foods and sweets.

My hesitation on getting banded made me think alot about why I am so anxious and worried about getting the band (aside from the fack that you have a foreing object put into your body for alot of money and that you have to under go surgery..!!) and made me actually realised that I spend my days thinking about food, planing and looking foward to the next meal or trying to control my cravings for all sweets. Probably the best moments of my days are when I actually eat something. It is so pathetic and sad that I wonder if this band will change that relationship I have with food considering that I won't be able just to shove anything down ( I guess). Does anybody relate to my situation and if so how are you dealing with it now with the band?

Marie....the desperate girl

[EricaG]

Thanks again for sharing your stories and experiences with me. I know you can't rely completly on the band to stop you from eating unhealthy foods and sweets.

My hesitation on getting banded made me think alot about why I am so anxious and worried about getting the band (aside from the fack that you have a foreing object put into your body for alot of money and that you have to under go surgery..!!) and made me actually realised that I spend my days thinking about food, planing and looking foward to the next meal or trying to control my cravings for all sweets. Probably the best moments of my days are when I actually eat something. It is so pathetic and sad that I wonder if this band will change that relationship I have with food considering that I won't be able just to shove anything down ( I guess). Does anybody relate to my situation and if so how are you dealing with it now with the band?

Marie....the desperate girl

YUUP I RELATE 100%... I don't have that emotional attachment anymore but I do have a friend who would cry herself to sleep because she couldnt eat the things she used to... that's a terrible mentality, as for me, i learned to let it go and am really happy my life has changed

[canadiangirl]

Thanks for sharing Erica. So you tell me that you used to have such an intense relationship with food yourself but after the surgery it just went away like that? Is it because you just couldn't tolerate physicaly the same food or amount of food? How about your friend? What happened to her if she was so discouraged about not being able to eat anymore? Did it get better after a while or not? ( Thanks again for sharing and helping me make the right choice)

Marie

[EricaG]

Thanks for sharing Erica. So you tell me that you used to have such an intense relationship with food yourself but after the surgery it just went away like that? Is it because you just couldn't tolerate physicaly the same food or amount of food? How about your friend? What happened to her if she was so discouraged about not being able to eat anymore? Did it get better after a while or not? ( Thanks again for sharing and helping me make the right choice)

Marie

Well no, of course it did not go away just like THAT! (snap)

It took some time to adjust. My friend was way bigger than me over 100lbs bigger and she made mistakes like going out to big parties while she was still in her liquid phase or post op. She tortured herself by watching others eat the things she loved. I would spend time with my family and when time to eat came around I'd grab my things, spray air freshener in my room (i think that was to rid of the food smell) grab some pudding or soup and sit in my room and do some scrap booking. After my liquid phase was over I started to eat with them, just like them...but smaller of course and didn't exercise. And of course... no weight loss for the first few months. My friends weight just melted off even though we ate the same and she did not exercise either, she got to my weight and I believe it has stopped. She still does not exercise.

Now I decided to take over my weight loss and make it happen. I was eating lots of chocolate and ice cream and forcing bread and things that get stuck and are terrible for me into my body knowingly that it wasn't going to help. I quit the sweets and started exercising and saw some results only because I came to the conclusion that I had to look at the things I was going to put in my mouth and think twice, "are these empty calories" and "do I really need it" that helped a lot with my food choices.

Now for lent I gave up the things that I knew I loved and craved so badly. I gave up white bread, pasta, soda, and chocolate. Those are the things I love to eat more than anything in the world. Now Easter is coming up and I don't feel like I need those things anymore.

[Lindsay]

Thanks for sharing Erica. So you tell me that you used to have such an intense relationship with food yourself but after the surgery it just went away like that? Is it because you just couldn't tolerate physicaly the same food or amount of food? How about your friend? What happened to her if she was so discouraged about not being able to eat anymore? Did it get better after a while or not? ( Thanks again for sharing and helping me make the right choice)

Marie

I'm a HUGE emotional eater.

I ended up investing in good ol' talk therapy .. while the band will physically make it difficult to eat 'more', it's definitely easy to cheat.

The band is only a tool. Take care of your psychological issues before and/or during, as they won't go away for the most of us.

While they can be muted, these learned habits we have will always be will us.

[canadiangirl]

That's what is making me hesitate so much about going through with this operation because I'm not convince it will make such a big difference in my case since I don't eat that much in general but just can t seem to control my cravings for sweets. I know it s only a tool but I wonder if it will end up really making such a big difference. I know a therapy is needed, especially since I have chronic depression but I m wondering if I should just continue without the band, exercising as much as possible and hoping to get better mentally , have less cravings with time and loose weight like I did before and hope not to gain it back one day. I'm confused about what is the right choice....

[trcousins]

Canadian girl, I know what you mean about a craving for sweets. I have a huge affinity for chocolate myself, but solved the over indulgence part by buying dark chocolate in small drops. Although dark it healthier, it's not as tasty. So, instead of chomping a mouthful I have one drop at a time, allowing it to melt before the next one. I find that I'm not eating nearly as much chocolate this way. It might work across the board, don't know. I wish you well with whatever option you choose.

[Lindsay]

Canadian girl, I know what you mean about a craving for sweets. I have a huge affinity for chocolate myself, but solved the over indulgence part by buying dark chocolate in small drops. Although dark it healthier, it's not as tasty. So, instead of chomping a mouthful I have one drop at a time, allowing it to melt before the next one. I find that I'm not eating nearly as much chocolate this way. It might work across the board, don't know. I wish you well with whatever option you choose.

I just don't buy, what I know I shouldn't have.

For me, 1 leads to 100. I can't just have 'one' chocolate