Tuesday, January 20, 2009

WLS versus no WLS is it really worth it?

So, is it worth it? It seems that everyone is still suffering with food addiction even while banded so what does the band bring to the table? Will it actually help me and how? Sent out a post on a forum today and I'm ready to be burned at the stake by the die hards but I really need to know what is different after the band. It is my last concern but a really big one. I find out my surgery date on Thursday so I would really like to sort this one out - its my last residue of doubt. I guess this is so important because it is not necessarily just the weight that is my issue but the obsession with food. The constant concern with food! and I can't see that actually being dealt with by the surgery. It seems I'm just adding a new obsession ie; fills, unfills, restriction, good foods etc as well as even more problems ie; scarring (got horrendous internal scarring from c sections already), infections, financial costs, reflux etc etc. And I know exactly how to bypass the band already and it hasn't even been done yet! Is it that you start losing really quickly and that gives you the taste for more loss and propels you into the next "control yourself" zone?

I just want my brain back. What if I took it back? If I kept it busy I'm pretty sure it wouldn't get the chance to eat.

Blogging and journalling is a great distraction and I have been keeping track of foods now for a week or so and writing in a journal and I was doing really well until the weekend. I still didnt have a bender but we've been away and without a kitchen and while I have been trying to choose the healthy options its not alway possible. So anyway, I lost 1.6kgs without killing myself and no exercise although not sitting completely on my ass either. I've also cut alot of the alcohol and now I'm going to cut back on the diet coke thing too (thats another blog). I definitely noticed in my journal that I am a boredom eater. I want to eat everytime I am bored which, since I'm at home with kids alot, is quite often. I'm also a revenge/reflex eater. If my husband or anyone for that matter upsets me I get the strong and sudden urge to lash out on alcohol and food. And I'm also a comfort eater when my hard day is done I just want to zone out and soothe myself with a lil somethin'. So basically I'll eat for any old reason. Now I'm going to be a control eater, using food as the only mechanism by which i can gain a sense of control. I have been up for 2 hours now and still not had breakfast because half of me wants to take the healthy option and go cereal while the other half wants toast. So we're at a stalemate. So I'm blogging and posting instead stomach a growlin and getting weaker by the minute, cant type anymore, losing the will to live.....

5 comments:

  1. IS the band worth it ? For me yes.
    I think it might help if you knew a little more about how the band works. And I do not mean that in a "your uneducated way " I mean that in a "I didnt get it until I had it either " way . Does that make senses ?
    First off one of the ways the band works is it curbs your hunger. How does it do that ?
    There is a nerve that runs down your esphogus, when the band is placed its placed around that nerve. the band puts pressure on that nerve, when you get fills it puts even more pressure on it. Therefore the pressure comes from when you eat it keeps you fill . There is additional pressure from the band itself that controls your hunger through out the day .
    Which is why for instance myself right now .. i need a fill, there is no pressure on the nerve so im hungry all the time. Does that make sense ?
    NOW does that mean the urge to eat , use food as a comfort ect goes a way ? A little it does.
    However , when you have restriction its nearly IMPOSSIBLE to over eat ( you will get sick )
    Sure you can eat around the band . But honestly if your going to do that , and if your already PLANNING On doing that , why waste your time and money ? And in all honesty your not ready for the band if your going to figure out ahead of time how to eat around the band.
    Can you lose weight with out the band YES . can you keep it off ? Well personally i could not .
    I got the band to keep weight off.
    What it boils down to is you have to know a few things before you get the band .
    1. that your ready
    2. that you CAN Do what the band requires of you
    3. your ready to make the changes needed to be successful
    4. that your READY ! yes i said that twice. But you HAVE TO KNOW YOU CAN DO THIS ! If you know that and you know you can succeed , you will do it.

    NOW I will say this ... I feel the one thing this whole process falls short on is the head process. Meaning I dont think its a bad idea for any of us to see a shrink before and after being banded. Lets face it MOST Of us got fat for emotional reasons . The band wont change those emtions . So a head check up does not help .

    Would i change one thing about my band journey ? NO NOT ONE !
    Is the band worth it for ME ? YES 150% !
    Is it worth it for you ? That's a question YOU have to answer for yourself ~~~~

    Love
    Mindy

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  2. Also this is one of the best descriptions I have seen http://blog.noscales.com/2007/10/what-is-the-lap-band-sweet-spot.html

    HTH
    mindy

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  3. Thank you so much Mindy, great responses, will get back to you via email in case you dont check this out.

    shaggs

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  4. Sooooo definitely not "planning" on cheating the band just surprises me that there is ways of doing this and people still do it. Cant say that I wont ever do it but I sit here now in horror at the thought. What you have written explains soooooo much thank you so much, going to a seminar tonight to find out more. Will get back to you via email

    Shaggs

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  5. how was the seminar ?
    Im glad I could help . I can tell you I did not eat around the band until now. These last few months I do it every now and then .
    Its ok . No one is perfect.
    Let me know how the seminar went , email me coltonwade@gmail.com
    mindy

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Weight Loss From 27th January 2009