Barring any obstacles, I am going to have lap band surgery. I realize it is a somewhat drastic solution to losing weight, but it is one that I strongly feel will work for me. Since Alyssa was born I have been trying to lose weight, and honestly, not doing a very good job of it. Three years later, and all I’ve managed to do is stay within the same ten to fifteen pound range.
I’m sick and tired of being treated like my opinions and thoughts are not valid because of my weight. I am sick and tired of being treated like less of a woman because of my weight. I am sick and tired of being treated like less of a human being because of my weight. I’m tired of the embarrassment, the shame. My value, my WORTH, should not be determined by my weight. But it is. And I’m not tolerating it any longer. I worry about my health in the future. I worry about the example I am setting for my children. I worry about BEING ALIVE for my children, when they marry and have children. I want to be a healthy mother. I want to be a healthy grandmother, and maybe, just maybe, a healthy great-grandmother.
Offline, I know of one woman who had weight loss surgery three years ago. Online, I know of one woman who had weight loss surgery about two years ago, and another that just had weight loss surgery a few days ago. I am diving head first into many different websites about lap band surgery and message boards devoted to talk of lap band surgery, including personal stories and anecdotes.
I have already called my health insurance company to verify that they cover the surgery. They do, though I am responsible for a $1500 deductible and 10% of the surgery costs. I have an appointment with my primary care physician on December 12th. I can’t wait to see how things go from there. I am so ready for this.
Let us know how it goes.
I’ve been researching it for awhile and watching anything I can find on health channels on tv about it. It’s something I want to consider in the future if I’m unable to lose weight again after this pregnancy. I have yet to try nutrisystem, so I’ll be trying that when I can afford it before giving up, but I’ve tried just about everything in the 6 years since my son was born and have only lost about 20 pounds. So I have some understanding as to how you feel. It gets old very quick. 
I hope your appointment goes well and you get some positive news. 
Good Luck!
Good luck, but don’t be surprised if people give you an even harder time when they find out that you’re going to try out the surgery. They’ll tell you you’re taking the easy way out. You’re not. Any type of weight loss surgery is anything but easy, and you will probably always have a strong desire to eat.
ooh good luck.
i know three people that have had weight loss surgery. my ex-boss had lapband. & my ex’s bro & sister in law had gastrobypass. they all struggled to keep it off. but, they had issues changing their eating habits/lifestyle. i think thats the biggest thing.. it’s not a surgery that is just going to make you skinny, it’s a lifelong commitment to eating better & exercising. & i think they went in with the wrong mindset.
good luck!! keep us updated.
Good luck with the surgery.
If I can get to where I make enough money and have insurance… I’m going to look into it, but I don’t want to loose too much weight because it would take away who I really am. I’ve always been a big girl and I always will. If you take that step, just make sure you stay yourself along the way
I’m not sure what part you are wondering about.
When I woke up in the hospital I was in a lot of pain. Most of the pain was not related to the Lap-Band, though. I felt like I was going to throw up and faint. That was proably because of the anesthesia and meds. My lungs hurt, and I could barely breathe. That was because I smoke. My stomach barely hurt.
I stayed the night in the hospital, but I heard a lot of people don’t. My Surgeon’s office has a GREAT reputation, and they are VERY careful. That’s probably why they required me to stay the night.
My stomach was in pain the first and second day I was home. I refused to take the pain killer, because it tasted like crap. You probably won’t have a problem, because I know you take Nyquil. I cannot handle tastes like that. After those two days, I was absolutely fine. I had it 5 days ago. I feel fine not taking any pain killer. And the way your stomach feels… it just feels like you have done A LOT of sit-ups. It is not all that painful, even when it is painful.
Most doctors require you to go on a liquid diet before the surgery. Some don’t, though. That sucked, but it must not have sucked too bad, because I did it. I cheated twice. You will want to do the liquid diet if you have to. If you don’t, you could be cut wide open, or they could even cancel the surgery after they open you. They need to shrink your liver so they can get to your stomach.
You will be on a liquid diet for a little bit after the surgery, also. I was only until today, but I’ve heard of some people being on it for 2 weeks after. You will be hungry after the surgery for 6 weeks, until you get your band filled. I am eating, but for some reason I am not getting full. I never got an explanation of why. I know it was because my swelling went down why I am hungry so soon. I know my surgery went very well, so that’s probably why.
I’ve lost 7 pounds since the surgery 5 days ago. I have a feeling I am not going to lose any more until I get my band filled. I am still eating, but not as much. My stomach is still large, because I haven’t gotten the band filled yet.
If you want to know ANYTHING, don’t hesitate to ask me. I don’t mind at all. I hope this helps. Good luck! It will be worth it.
my mom had that surgury maybe almost a year ago and she’s lost alot of weight and said the surgury wasn’t that bad at all.
the only down side was she could only eat liquids and couldn’t really move too well afterwards for about two or three weeks.
and theres alot of side effects as well, like she has trouble eating bready things and if she eats to fast she gets backed up and sometimes vomits because of it…sorry if that was too much info. haha.
but all in all it’s a very effective surgury. good luck lovie! :biggrin:
I wish you the best of luck Jenn – it’s good to see you doing something for yourself to better your life/health
I have an aunt who had this surgery done over the summer who will be here for Thanksgiving, she lives out of state so we don’t get to her often so it’ll be interesting to see how she looks now, as far as I know she did really well the surgery. My grand mother who had the gastric bypass surgery has done well with her’s also, one of the pluses though with the lap band is that is reverisble 
GOOD LUCK!
I lurk here occasionally and I just had to tell you that my Mom was considering this surgery for a long time before we both decided to try that six week body makeover (https://www.mybodymakeover.com) and it has worked for everyone I’ve talked to. It might be a little hard getting used to it, but no harder than going through surgery and struggling through liquid diets and all that. It basically just revs up your metabolism for your body type.
I’ve personally been on it since late September and have lost 40lbs by only eating and the occasional toning exercise. And although it’s not “recommended”, you can cheat here and there so it’s not complete deprivation. I don’t mean for this to sound like an infomercial (LOL) but I really think it’s worth a try for people at the end of their rope like I was.
Good luck! :blush: :biggrin:
I dunno, I think you look great already–funny how I never picked up on any hint of body insecurities you have in your blog. But if it makes you or is going to make you happy, then do it. Be overly cautions, seriously, make sure you don’t have any thing(genes) that would cause some kind of bad reaction with the medication or anesthesia. However, I think you look great, but if you feel that you want to loose weight. Try the natural way one more time. Because not only are you risking a lot of stuff (healthwise), you’re going to be left with extra skin, which is NOT pretty, then you’ll have to get another surgery to remove that skin. Thoroughly talk to the doctor about any and everything. Also, make sure that doc is board certified.
^ Agreeing with Dee, I think you’re very beautiful. But if the surgery is what you want and makes me you feel more secure, then I say go for it. I would never dare to do something like that myself, even though I’ve been commented (and I’m aware myself too) of my weight. But I’m definitely keeping my thumbs up for you!
Hasn’t exercise worked for you? I mean, there are plenty of options before doing something as drastic as this.
if I were you I’d consider to set an appointment with a personal trainer first, and see how a routine could work out for you.
PS: if time is a matter when working out, there are fitness studios that offer several 30 min classes a day… Thirty minutes a day 5 days a week will make a difference I am sure.
Jenn, I support you if this is the road you choose to take. I think I know where you’re at – so sick of being fat that you’re willing to do anything. Surgery (to me) was way too drastic. I wanted to learn to eat proper portions and amounts and nourish my body on my own. Also, I haven’t had any kids, and I didn’t want to risk the ability to adequately nourish a pregnant body later in life.
It’s slow-going, but I’ve been pretty successful, I think. Since August, I’ve lost almost 40 lbs, and I continue to lose as time goes on. You know where to find me if you wanna talk more.
I hope you find success in this decision and everything turns out the way you want it to be.
You can change your appearance, but you’ll still be the same old Jenn you always have been. Your mannerisms and personality will not change and people will still say the same things about you that they do now. The only thing lacking from the insults will be comments about your weight.
Weight loss is entirely possible for most people, yourself included (unless you have a condition or are on medication that causes you to gain weight and slows your metabolism down). You have to burn as many calories as you put into your body which means you need to hop on a treadmill or go for a thirty minute walk every day (hey! That’s something to do with the kids).
Speaking of which: There are so many ways you can incorporate your children into your exercise regime and since you don’t work… well I’d think it’d be easier for you to just put together family activities. Swimming, family walks, bike rides, playing outside. The list goes on, you just have to want to do it to begin with. Because that’s what it comes down to, doesn’t it. You have to want to do it badly enough to give up your current life style (no more hamburger helper when you blow money on your gadgets, no more subway at 10pm and you’d have to start spending money on healthy food LIKE BROCCOLI) and you have to want to exercise and get off your butt to do things.
I wish you all the luck with your surgery and I sincerely do hope that it works out for you in all aspects. I hope you lose the weight, but I also hope you know that it’s not going to change your personality or even your outlook on life. It’s a temporary fix for a problem that needs a more permanent solution, no surgery will ever fix it.
^ I have to disagree that it’s temporary. This is major surgery and pretty permanent. It may not address the underlying reasons behind excess weight, but it sure isn’t temporary.
I’ve read on your q/a that you’ve made minimum lifestyle changes to help lose weight. How’s that going for you? Even though the surgery is advertised as something that’s less risky than the gastric bypass procedure, I hope you put a lot of thought into it. I think the best thing for you is wait it out a few months, then make a final decision. Have you tried a hobby that demands more activity? Something like baseball, dancing, or something like that. Maybe your brothers can enjoy it too. There is no true, quick, and easy way to lose weight. I used to be 200 pounds which was heavy for my height, and now I’m down to less than 150. Trust me Jenn, it’s understandable that you are preoccupied by beautiful children so you are a busy mama, but continuing to push your lifestyle to a more active one will being maximum benefit in the long run!