Banders- The slow and scenic route to goal!

[Neen]

Well I am still plodding along...In the past I have been very discouraged and constantly compared myself to people with a totally different plumbing set up internally and beat myself up over not being able to lose weight at the same rate.

This new area has really ended that feeling of isolation, seeing more fellow banders post every day and knowing we are all helping each other has made the road ahead a lot less daunting.

It probably will be another couple of years for me personally to get to my desired weight range...a lot of you have less to lose at the start and I hope to watch you reach your goals too!

If we can help each other continue through those early weeks and months of little or no restriction...then we definately can make our choice of surgery a brilliant success xxxxx

Keep plodding!!!

 

[POPPET]

Hi Neen
From one plodder to another-Good Luck
-I know you won't mind me popping by-
you have always been great support & inspiration

 

[Neen]

You're totally welcome Poppet xxxx You always give awesome support ...Anything I can do to help you as well, let me know.
Plodders unite!!!

 

[tranquil_butterfly]

I am with you Neen on the long and scenic route. We can take our time and get there slowly. I personally am finding it quite an adventure. I feel very liberated and regenerated at the moment and part of me keeps waiting for the bubble to burst. The other part is saying why the hell should it - you have been through so much - if you do not learn from this you never will.

Enjoy the journey.

tranquil x

 

[Neen]

In hindsight , there's so much I would have done differently.
I had no clue I would feel hungry and be able to eat quite a lot after the initial swelling went down...I had no-one to ask about it.
I had no-one to warn me that it might take a few fills to get restriction and no-one to swap notes with on what foods to aim for.

Yes you usually get a diet sheet from the nutritionist, but it's not the same as someone with similar circumstances...trying and testing things out and passing on what REALLy works in every day life.

I assumed that because a lady at the surgeons office lost 14 stone with her band..losing my excess would be easy.

Totally green I was!

A lot of my journey so far has been delayed by my own naivety about what was actually going to happen, and what I could actually handle doing.

Sharing the realities of the band (personally) will hopefully shorten the long road a little for others as I hope new banders can learn from my errors.

For anyone with WLS there is that expectation it will all drop off ...til you actually get into it and start trying to live with it... then the next challenge is not to compare... That is almost impossible sometimes.

Each surgery type has people within that group who struggle and stall even though they are following guidelines to the letter.
Nothing we can do about it really other than stick to the rules and keep going.

 

[tranquil_butterfly]

In hindsight , there's so much I would have done differently.
I had no clue I would feel hungry and be able to eat quite a lot after the initial swelling went down...I had no-one to ask about it.
I had no-one to warn me that it might take a few fills to get restriction and no-one to swap notes with on what foods to aim for.

Yes you usually get a diet sheet from the nutritionist, but it's not the same as someone with similar circumstances...trying and testing things out and passing on what REALLy works in every day life.

I assumed that because a lady at the surgeons office lost 14 stone with her band..losing my excess would be easy.

Totally green I was!

A lot of my journey so far has been delayed by my own naivety about what was actually going to happen, and what I could actually handle doing.

Sharing the realities of the band (personally) will hopefully shorten the long road a little for others as I hope new banders can learn from my errors.

For anyone with WLS there is that expectation it will all drop off ...til you actually get into it and start trying to live with it... then the next challenge is not to compare... That is almost impossible sometimes.

Each surgery type has people within that group who struggle and stall even though they are following guidelines to the letter.
Nothing we can do about it really other than stick to the rules and keep going.

I am so grateful for this site. I was referred for surgery by my GP and had no idea what it was about. If it had not been for people like you Neen I would not have known what to expect having come out of surgery with my band. At least I had some idea of what I was facing and the support here has really helped me to focus. I keep learning new things every day.

As for the comparing - that is human nature. Everyone is going to have different results. For me I am totally focussed on the health benefits rather than the numbers. It is going to take me years to get to a healthy BMI so what is the point of torturing myself? I think I would have been a slow loser with the bypass so I had already mentally prepared myself for the long haul.

Neen, you have achieved a fantastic amount of weight loss and given everything you have to cope with you need to keep celebrating that every day and try not to dwell on what has already gone. The important thing now is that you are focussed and determined to get where you want to be. We are all going to have the odd little blip along the way. Again that is human nature - I don't think we need to indulge in self flagellation :whoopass: - lots of other people out there are ready to do that for us.

tranquil x

 

[wildthing]

Here here to all of above

 

[Sarah Metcalf]

I know that if I didn't have this site for support info I would be floundering, however I now understand that everything I feel/experience regarding the band is completely normal. And I thank you all for that. xx

 

[Miss hungry]

I totally agree, I thought that the weight would just drop off...problem solved. I now have a clear understanding of what to expect, because of this site.
Yesterday I ate a piece of cake with custard that my son had made, Cue HUGE guilt and an evening of beating myself up mentally, but today i think oh well never mind, I haven't had a fill yet, so Iam working on pure willpower and it's been over a month since I had cake. Cake is my thing, forget chocolate!

 

[Neen]

I think if we can be relaxed around food , it makes it much easier.
I am all for treats! but the difference is, treats in moderation.
It's a really new concept for most of us, but having surgery has helped me learn what that means.

Enjoying a little bit of cake and really taking time to taste and savour it without guilt is a wonderful gift!
Before I used to cram treats down so fast I barely tasted them at all...I was desparately eating them "for the last time evar!!!!" because yet again, I was about to go on an all or nothing diet where I would NEVER eat them again and of course I would deprive myself and crack after a while then go on a stormin cookie monster rampage!!!

I know my cookie monster will always be a part of me but we now have an understanding!
Once a week after weigh in , enjoy and feel entitled to do so...then back to sensible! No regrets , no guilt , no obsession xxxxx

 

[JoxJo]

I love the fact that your all here, ready to support and discuss all avenues that my band will take me down! I definitely need you all to be dragged down my bandy journey with me! Thanks xxx

 

[Neen]

Don't you worry Jo xxx We're going to work through whatever the journey throws at us x

 

[buglady]

yep im a plodder too as i tell everyone its took me 37 years to put it on so what if it takes me 3 or 4 or 5 years to get it off, im happy if i loose 1lb a week some weeks not a lb, but im hoping not to gain this is the rest of my life if i can loose the best part of 10 stone then i feel because i was private ive paied £6500 for an extra 10 years of my life !! just dont ask me that when i loose my marbles and dont realise ive paied for this extra life lol!! we just have to keep at it! x

 

[Neen]

That's a really excellent way to look at it xx We have won years back for ourselves and that is priceless xx

 

[Tamgredan]

Great Thread Neen,

I want to be a plodder too and really learn this time about making good choices.

Tam
xx

 

[Neen]

Hopefully the slower rate will give us that real opportunity to learn as we go what the good food and health habits are. That way we'll be preparing for maintenance as we get slimmer and have much better chance of keeping it off x