Life is a Highway and I'm riding it my way.: My daily life as a Bander

My daily life as a Bander

3:09 PM |

Posted by Dawn

    Well I hit that 71lbs. mark. I have never lost this much weight and kept it off in my life. I'm feeling awesome. The great part about all of this is when people come up to you and say, "I almost didn't recognize you." Plus you start getting compliments from everyone saying, "Wow you are really looking good." And my favorite, "You don't have much more to lose do you?". To their surprise I tell them 85lbs and they always say, "No way. You don't look that heavy."
     I really have to thank my family and friends for their support in my journey. Without them I don't think I would have come this far. Also attending my local Bariatric Support Group once a month has totally helped me, along with this great website called Lapband Talk.
    You know as my weight goes down I am finding alot more changes in my body and the way I feel. For instance I find myself getting cold alot. Whereas before I was always hot. But that's OK I don't want that padding back. I've also realized that when you lose the weight your taste buds change. At least for me my cravings aren't the same that they used to be. Occasionally I have that urge for a piece of chocolate. And I give into it with a tiny Hershey kiss and then I am fine. Having the band is a lifestyle change. There are no bad foods. Everything in moderation. This isn't a diet. Diets fail and I am not going to fail again because I do not deprive myself of the better things in life. I go out to eat, but bring most of it home with me and it lasts for 2 more meals, I have a piece of cake once and awhile, A small one, I have pizza, 1 piece sometimes 2 pieces. And the great thing is, I continue to lose weight.

People ask me everyday, "How do you do it?" And I tell them my determination to be healthy again keeps me going. The lapband is all a mind set tool. If you continue to let food control you, chance are the band won't work for you. I don't know how many times I have heard people say, "Oh you took the easy way out." There is NOTHING easy about this. I think the easier way out would be the fat way out. It was easy to get fat because all I had to do was turn to food. Take the weight off no matter how you choose to do it, is the HARDEST way out. So anyone that says that, I ask you to walk in my shoes for one day and see how easy this is. The band might make you eat less but it's not a miracle cure. You still have your old habits that you have to try and control. Mine being I have to learn to eat slower and with smaller bites. Each time I pay the price of getting "stuck" and I learn my lesson. It hasn't happened to me in a few weeks though so hopefully I have learned my lesson. I guess the advice that I would give to anyone considering lapband surgery is to do as much research as possible before you make your decision to do this procedure. If you think that the lapband is an easy solution for your obesity. THINK AGAIN. It's a total lifestyle change and if you aren't ready to make the commitment to change, then it's probably not the right avenue for you to pursue. For me this is probably the best thing that I have ever done for myself. If I had to do it all over again I would. And the only regret that I have is not getting it done sooner.

What I have learned since I was banded

I think the biggest thing that I have learned since I have been banned is that all of those people that told me this is a lifestyle change and that you will need to make adjustments as you go along, are CORRECT. This definitely is a lifestyle change. But it's a good lifestyle change. Here are few things that I have learned.

I have learned that if you don't cut your food small enough and if you don't chew well enough you will get 'stuck'

I have learned how to deal with the 'stuck' problem if it does happen by getting up and walking around a bit. Sometimes trying to burp lets out pressure also. Sometimes jumping up and down like a complete idiot in place helps the food go down.

I have learned that beef products other than hamburger do not agreewith me and also bread. So I mainly eat fish and chicken.

I have learned that if you don't drink your fluids and you don't exercise, you will not lose weight.

Sugar Free ice pops are my hero. I live on them.

I've learned to control food and not let food control me. I know the know the difference between head hunger and real hunger. And I know if I am having a difficult time and the head hunger is getting to me I find something to keep me occupied instead of food.

I have learned that it's ok to give into temptation once and awhile. You can not deprive yourself of the better things in life all of the time you will wind up failing. This is not a diet. It's a lifestyle change.

I've learned that you can not take this journey on your own. You need support whether it be family, friends, support group or whatever, you need that help from others.

I have learned that most of those people that were skeptical about my surgery thinking it was the 'easy way out' are now seeing how successful that I am and how much I have to go through on a daily basis and they are realizing that it's not an easy journey after all.

There is just so much I have learned about myself. I got on the scale this morning and I am down 71lbs. Honestly I haven't weighed this much since my 20's. It's so nice to have people backing you up and telling you that you are doing great. Just remember this is you and do not let any person or anything sabotage you. If you put your mind to it you will be successful. Food is not your friend and never will be your friend. And just like those people in your life that you can't stand to be around sometimes but you go on with your day and ignore, you can do that with food too. Take a stand and don't let food run your life. And don't forget to reward yourself once and awhile. You deserve it.

I love this Highway

I have finally hit 83lbs lost. I fit into a size 14 jeans. Oh MY GOD! I haven't been in size 14 since I was 19 years old. You have no idea how good it makes you feel. I have 38lbs more to go before my doctors goal weight. Which is to get out of the obese part of the BMI scale. He said I can keep going if I want after that. I'm not sure. I'll have to see how I look when I get to goal. More then likely I will keep going a bit. But since I have big frame I don't want to go to low because I will start looking sick.
So I have learned since my last fill that if you don't eat slow and you don't cut your food small enough, you experience the 'stuck' feeling and PBing. But honestly I have to say, it does get annoying at times but it's really not that bad. When I first heard about it, I was SO SCARED of it happening to me. But now that I have experienced it a few times, it's a learning experience for me. Everything I have gone through to get where I am now is worth it. I sure wish I had known about this surgery years ago. Well actually I did but I was one of those people who thought that getting weight loss surgery was a cop out. BOY WAS I WRONG!!
If you had asked me 6 months ago about losing weight and if I had any faith in myself that I would actually lose this weight, I would have laughed in your face. I had pretty much give up all hope of ever losing weight. I was so sick and tired of diet hoping and losing the weight but getting bored of the diet and putting the weight back on again and then some. My self-confidence was pretty much in the crapper. UNTIL...I finally started losing the weight. At first it came off pretty quickly and then around my first fill it slowed down to 1-2 pounds a week. Which is what it really should be anyway. Eventually I started really feeling better about myself and decided that if I didn't change the way I was thinking I would wind up back in the same boat I was before the surgery.
Here's my point. Everyone got this way some way or another. Whether it was because of depression, because you love food, because you were sick, comfort, etc. The only way that it will work for you after you have the LAP-BAND® surgery is to have faith in yourself. Faith that you CAN lose the weight, and FAITH that if you do make a mistake it's not the end of the world. Just pick yourself back up again and try. You also have to go into this with the mind set that this is a tool not a cure all. This is NOT a diet it's a lifestyle change. In order for the band to work for you, you have to work for the band. It's NOT going to change your old habits. It's NOT going to tell you to stop eating. It's NOT going to tell you what to eat and what not to eat. So then you ask, if it won't do that, then why did I have to get the band? Couldn't I have lost the weight by myself without having to go through all of this? Some people can, BUT most will gain the weight back again. The LAP-BAND® will help you keep that weight off. Providing you follow your doctors plan and you make your regularly scheduled check-ups for fills with your doctor. My doctor is my savior. He saved my life. And because of this I lean on him pretty hard. After all that is what he is there for. Don't feel embarrassed to call your doctor. And please if you are having alot of trouble and you have already called your doctor and you were told that you can't have a fill. CALL AGAIN! Be persistent and don't give up.
You also can't do this alone. Food is an addiction. As I said you can't just slap the band on and expect your addiction to suddenly go away. You need support. Please if you have a support group in your area and the ability to get there. PLEASE GO. Having support over the internet is wonderful however there is nothing better then having other people directly infront of you that are going through the same things that you are.
Please reach for your dreams. Anything is possible if you believe. Believe in yourself. Set small goals and reward yourself after you have reached that goal. Maybe instead of a food reward though you can reward yourself with something else.
And don't judge yourself around the weight-loss of others. Everyone loses at a different pace. I believe in you. Do you?

Important things to Remember

There are several times that I either read or hear a person say they can't understand why they aren't losing the weight like everyone else. First I have to say there could be many reasons why this might happen. However the most important thing about all of this is that I can not stress enough that EVERYONE LOSES AT A DIFFERENT PACE. DO NOT JUDGE YOUR WEIGHT LOSS BY ANYONE ELSE'S. If you do you are ultimately setting yourself up for disaster because you have a bigger chance of giving into your 'triggers' when you are feeling discouraged rather than looking at it in a different angle. There will be times that you don't lose weight, there will also be times that you will gain a few pounds. It's OK!! The lapband is a lifestyle change. It's not a cure all of your bad habits and get thin quick. Although the Lapband is not a diet and you pretty much can eat anything and everything in moderation, you can not expect to lose weight if you eat junk food everyday either. You should reward yourself for your hard work once and awhile though.

For those that are struggling here is a couple of suggestions that might help you.

1. Keep a Food log of everything that you eat and drink during the day.

By doing this you may find it surprising what you are consuming. If you are seeing a Nutritionist you can also share this log with he/she so they might give you a better idea of what you can change in order to continue in your weight loss. It's not necessarily how much you are consuming but what types of food you might be consuming. Unless you make your own food from scratch, alot of foods contain a high sodium count. Especially your TV dinner type foods like Lean Cuisine, Weight Watchers, Lean Pockets. Once and awhile these foods are ok, however if you consume them all of the time, you are taking in alot of sodium.
Be honest with yourself. Don't fudge the food log. Write down exactly what you had during the course of the day.

2. Be Honest to yourself.

As I have stated before be honest with yourself. Understand that the lapband is not a cure all for all of your bad habits. They will follow you. Try and stay clear of the food 'triggers' that you might have. If you LOVE potato chips and you used to be able to sit down and eat an entire bag. If you HAD to have those potato chips. Now your thought is 'Well I know I can't eat all of them so I will just have a couple." Guess what? Chances are you will come back for more. Maybe not right away but you will keep telling yourself, "I'm banded. I can't eat them all so a couple won't hurt me." By the time you know it, the entire bag is gone. STAY AWAY FROM TRIGGERS.

3. Find a local support group

Find a local support in your area. Ask your doctor if there is a support group. Face it. You are a food addict. You can't do this alone and expect to be successful. The help of family and friends is wonderful but if you can be around others that have been through the procedure already or are going through the procedure, it helps even more.

4. If you can't exercise, WALK.

Face it with our busy schedules these days and not having tons of money to toss into a gym on a monthly basis, it's sometimes hard to exercise. If all else fails, WALK. Walking burns calories just as much as aerobic exercises do. And if you can't walk, there are alot of chair exercises that can be done to raise your heart rate and burn calories.