How Lap Band Surgery Changed My Life
Okay, it's not really true…I haven't had lap band surgery, but I've definitely considered it!! I have recently started talking about my weight loss journey here and I've talked about my struggles and successes. What I haven't talked about yet is how I'm losing the weight and how my husband and I decided to go this route.
As the weeks go by, I will introduce some of the tips I have from what we have learned during the past year and half, but I want to start with why we are using an eating plan first.
Hubby and I are/were extremely overweight and very unhealthy in terms of obesity. We were both large people when we met, but once we found out that we liked to eat together, we just got larger and larger together. Hubby had dieted in the past using liquid only diets and drastic diet/exercise routines and had lost weight several times in his life. I had only tried one diet program once and lost about 60 pounds, but I hadn't really considered my size to be a problem after I met my husband and then when I was pregnant. I was comfortable with myself and though I knew I was large, I felt okay (or so I thought) so I didn't try to make changes.
After our boy was born, and then started to move around a lot, we wanted to do so many things with him and we were so uncomfortable most of the time. We talked about ways to lose weight and thought about our options.
We considered lap band surgery and other surgical options. My older sister's sister-in-law had lap band surgery many years ago and lost a ton of weight. I have a friend who had the surgery about 4 years ago and she looks and feels great. My sister recently had the surgery and she is having a mostly positive experience. We looked into it, but couldn't really go that route because our health insurance did not cover it. Of course, now that we are losing weight with an eating plan, our health insurance is covering the surgery.
We both still could be eligible for the surgery because our BMI is in the Morbidly Obese category, but I think for now we are still in the research phase. As long as we are successful with our eating plan, we will likely stick with it. If we were to consider surgical options, Hubby would probably be the first to have the surgery.
Something that I do worry about with a surgical (or drastic dieting) is that it does not teach me how to eat right and create a positive relationship with food and I am concerned that I would regain the weight – or more.
*Disclaimer: I am participating in a blogger campaign by Bucks2Blog for a lap band company and was compensated. However, the views and opinions are my own.
What an interesting piece you’ve written. I can fully understand what you mean though when you say surgery will not teach you how to manage food properly. One of my friends from slimming group was losing weight before she would be allowed surgery, but she has done so well on the diet she has decided to carry on with it rather than have surgery, which obviously carries it’s risks.
I’ve had friends who’ve done those liquid diets. One of my friends lost a lot of weight then over Christmas she has put 14lbs on. It’s not a healthy way to lose weight. I go to a club in the UK called “slimming world” which is a healthy eating plan. I went off it for a while and ended up over the space of a year putting 14lb back on, but I am back to it now. I need to lose about another 56lbs to be at a healthy weight.
I’m sure with you and hubbie doing it together you’ll be able to do it easier as you have each other for support. Just look at little B for your motivation. He needs his Mom and Dad around for a long long time.
I will follow your weight loss with interest and fully support you all the way! xx
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