Dobbie C.
04/19/2011 - 3 1/2 years who'd a thunk it!
Apr 19, 2011
Just a quick check-in. I'm still maintaining my weight-loss. I thank God everyday for my band and the ability to do all the things I can do now that I am no longer morbidly obese. My band was the best decision I've made excluding marrying my wonderful husband. I feel free!
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2.75 years and counting
Jul 19, 2010
07/19/2010 - I was asked by my surgery center to write about my experience with the lap-band. I just wanted to post it here for the record:
My decision to have Lap-band surgery was strictly made from a health point of view. I had always been a very healthy fat person and since my being overweight never seemed to bother my husband, I was relatively resigned to being morbidly obese. It wasn't until I started noticing a significant decline in my health that I became frantic to find a long-term solution to the weight issues that had plagued me for my entire life. I was desperate to find an answer before I literally broke something health-wise (by being so overweight) that I would not be able to fix. My prayers were answered when I decided to have Lap-Band surgery. I could not face doing just another diet again. I've dieted on and off for over 25 years. I've lost 100+ pounds several times only to regain that weight and more. I had to do something to break that cycle, not just because it took a toll on my body to keep loosing and gaining but because emotionally it would break me to have to go down that road of deprivation and self-flagellation only to regain the weight again. The emotional cost of dieting can be even more devastating than the cost to my health. My surgery truly saved me emotionally and physically. I feel healthier now than I did in my thirties and at 45 that is quite an accomplishment. My energy level is off the charts and I have now taken up playing tennis......something that I clearly could not have done at 298 pounds. Lately, I've been following the US soccer team while they have been playing for the World Cup and a realization came over me as I was looking at the players stats. Landon Donovan, who just scored an important goal for the US team (not that you need to know that) weighs 158 pounds. I've lost 163....I carried the equivalent weight of a profession athlete around on my body for many years....and my children wondered why I was so very tired. Heavens, I'd like to see Jillian Michaels (the trainer) from the biggest looser pick up Landon Donovan and run 5 miles.....
This has truly been an exception experience for me and I cannot thank the surgeons (all of them) but more specifically Dr Schwab and the support team @ Surgical Weight Management, Liz and Carla in particular, for the wonderful dedication that they show to all of their patients! They made this journey of mine a success due to their professional abilities and their unwavering support. You could not ask for a better team of people to help you when you undertake a challenge like Lap-Band surgery. A lot of people think Lap-Band surgery is taking the easy way out....but those of us that go down this road know that the band is just that...a band and a tool.....it won't do the work for you. Lap-Band surgery requires that you be participatory in your success by the daily choices you make. You either have to step up to the plate by following the program and band rules or you have to acknowledge that, even with a band in place, it will be just another failed diet attempt. I wasn't willing to go down that road...so I literally worked my butt off to make this a success!
0 comments
My decision to have Lap-band surgery was strictly made from a health point of view. I had always been a very healthy fat person and since my being overweight never seemed to bother my husband, I was relatively resigned to being morbidly obese. It wasn't until I started noticing a significant decline in my health that I became frantic to find a long-term solution to the weight issues that had plagued me for my entire life. I was desperate to find an answer before I literally broke something health-wise (by being so overweight) that I would not be able to fix. My prayers were answered when I decided to have Lap-Band surgery. I could not face doing just another diet again. I've dieted on and off for over 25 years. I've lost 100+ pounds several times only to regain that weight and more. I had to do something to break that cycle, not just because it took a toll on my body to keep loosing and gaining but because emotionally it would break me to have to go down that road of deprivation and self-flagellation only to regain the weight again. The emotional cost of dieting can be even more devastating than the cost to my health. My surgery truly saved me emotionally and physically. I feel healthier now than I did in my thirties and at 45 that is quite an accomplishment. My energy level is off the charts and I have now taken up playing tennis......something that I clearly could not have done at 298 pounds. Lately, I've been following the US soccer team while they have been playing for the World Cup and a realization came over me as I was looking at the players stats. Landon Donovan, who just scored an important goal for the US team (not that you need to know that) weighs 158 pounds. I've lost 163....I carried the equivalent weight of a profession athlete around on my body for many years....and my children wondered why I was so very tired. Heavens, I'd like to see Jillian Michaels (the trainer) from the biggest looser pick up Landon Donovan and run 5 miles.....
This has truly been an exception experience for me and I cannot thank the surgeons (all of them) but more specifically Dr Schwab and the support team @ Surgical Weight Management, Liz and Carla in particular, for the wonderful dedication that they show to all of their patients! They made this journey of mine a success due to their professional abilities and their unwavering support. You could not ask for a better team of people to help you when you undertake a challenge like Lap-Band surgery. A lot of people think Lap-Band surgery is taking the easy way out....but those of us that go down this road know that the band is just that...a band and a tool.....it won't do the work for you. Lap-Band surgery requires that you be participatory in your success by the daily choices you make. You either have to step up to the plate by following the program and band rules or you have to acknowledge that, even with a band in place, it will be just another failed diet attempt. I wasn't willing to go down that road...so I literally worked my butt off to make this a success!
15 mins of fame
May 25, 2010
www.houmatoday.com/article/20100525/ARTICLES/100529601/1008
I love my support group @ Surgical Weight Management. They are the best!
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I love my support group @ Surgical Weight Management. They are the best!
1 Year of Maintenance
Apr 13, 2010
04/14/2010 - I've been in maintenance mode for a year now. It's gone pretty smoothly. I still thank God everyday for the gift of my band and for the ability to use it so effectively. I've had various levels of fills and unfills in this past year due to being ill, allergies on the rapage and I broke my tooth around Christmas which lead to soft food eating and gaining (fixed the tooth, got a fill, then back on track) But even through a gaining cycle I never once went thru the self battery that I used to put myself through. I have confidence in myself and my tool.....that is truly a blessing!
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2 Years!!!!
Sep 22, 2009
09/22/2009 - OMG 2 years have past since I began my journey. I have learned loads about myself.....enought to know that I'm still a work in progress.
One of the things I've learned......It's almost always about how I feel. Hunger, cravings, body image, weight fluctuations, etc are (for me) a direct result of what and how I am feeling at a certain time. When I am happy, feeling fulfilled, and content, I don't even think about food; I don't think about my weight or even my loose skin. When I am dissatisfied, upset etc. I am more aware of my imperfections, I think about what I want to eat that day, I get on the scales and wonder about the pound that I didn't have the day before (which usually goes away the next day). It's all about control or lack of. For some reason when I feel out of sorts, I react by trying to control my weight (unfortunately my success rate with that has been dismal). I think that if I can just control this one thing everything else will fall in line. It might be a product of my mom always telling me "If you'd just loose some weight you'd be perfect". This is a such a screwed up way to live my life. Wrestling control of things out of my control thru pounds gained and lost. Thankfully the band and band rules, along with the rules that I set for myself have help me gain the distance to sort thru alot of my emotions before I start the cycle of self destruction that has plagued me in the past. I feel so grateful that I have been given this opportunity to learn to love myself and accept and embrace my many faults instead of continuing with my pattern of self-loathing. I'm not perfect / my life is not perfect....was never meant to be. Food was not meant to be the filling for the many holes in my heart.....love and acceptence was/is. I could always see the beauty in the people and things that surrounded me but never within myself. I would never treat a friend the way I sometimes treat myself. I would never expect family to live and grow within the rigid, unforgiving structure that I set for myself. Whether I knew/know it or not, I am one of God's children.....how did I treat her today?
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One of the things I've learned......It's almost always about how I feel. Hunger, cravings, body image, weight fluctuations, etc are (for me) a direct result of what and how I am feeling at a certain time. When I am happy, feeling fulfilled, and content, I don't even think about food; I don't think about my weight or even my loose skin. When I am dissatisfied, upset etc. I am more aware of my imperfections, I think about what I want to eat that day, I get on the scales and wonder about the pound that I didn't have the day before (which usually goes away the next day). It's all about control or lack of. For some reason when I feel out of sorts, I react by trying to control my weight (unfortunately my success rate with that has been dismal). I think that if I can just control this one thing everything else will fall in line. It might be a product of my mom always telling me "If you'd just loose some weight you'd be perfect". This is a such a screwed up way to live my life. Wrestling control of things out of my control thru pounds gained and lost. Thankfully the band and band rules, along with the rules that I set for myself have help me gain the distance to sort thru alot of my emotions before I start the cycle of self destruction that has plagued me in the past. I feel so grateful that I have been given this opportunity to learn to love myself and accept and embrace my many faults instead of continuing with my pattern of self-loathing. I'm not perfect / my life is not perfect....was never meant to be. Food was not meant to be the filling for the many holes in my heart.....love and acceptence was/is. I could always see the beauty in the people and things that surrounded me but never within myself. I would never treat a friend the way I sometimes treat myself. I would never expect family to live and grow within the rigid, unforgiving structure that I set for myself. Whether I knew/know it or not, I am one of God's children.....how did I treat her today?
23 months
Aug 17, 2009
08/17/2009 - I started exercising again today. 3 miles walk/run. It's been almost a year since I have done any exercise but my Monday tennis. I feel pretty good....of course on day 3 is when I'm usually bent over and in pain so the jury is still out on how successful I will be. Last year at this time I was about 60 pounds heavier.....man could I feel a difference on my walk this morning. Since I'm in the maintenance phase of my journey I will have to see if I will have to increase my calorie intake (which of course now I can do because my band is so much looser). I will definitely have to step up my fluid intake especially since my UTI experience. One more month to my 2 yr anniversary. What a fantastic voyage this has been!
298/308/286/136/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
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298/308/286/136/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
Update
Aug 14, 2009
08/14/2009 - Learning to live with less restriction - not a bad thing after all! Yes I can still eat bread.....the key is I choose not too after the first bite. I had my first piece of pizza (thin crust) 2 weeks ago......it wasn't the end of the world! Not that I would eat it everyday and I stopped after one slice but it wasn't the end of everything good in my life either....I needed to learn to put things in perspective. I have learned to have a little more confidence in the things I have learned throughout this almost 2 yr journey. I think last month (when I had an unfill and felt that I could eat anything) I think I panicked. Just because I can eat more doesn't mean that I should. I have spent the month really listening to my body and I feel way more confident about my fill level and about my decision making. I want to be in control of my eating with the help of the band..... not for the band to do it all. However, I regret that I made the decision for the unfill due to pressure put on me from the people in my life. My body, my health should always be about how I feel....not about what other people think or say. I still have a lot to learn about myself but just knowing that I'm actively listening and aware of my body is such a great comfort. Learning to trust myself is a long process but I've begun the journey and that's enough for right now!
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22 mos
Jul 23, 2009
07/23/2009 - I'm late posting this month. This past month has been a doozy. I had a UTI infection from hell, gave into the pressure of my family and friends and had some of my fill taken out, was increasingly hungry and had to have more put back in, etc. UTI infection was pretty bad. I ended up having to have IV fluids because I was so dehydrated. The whole thing was a nightmare for about a week. I hate being sick and have no patience for myself when I am. The unfill was a huge mistake I think. I was feeling okay but my mom calling me and telling me I was going to end up like Karen Carpenter or collapsing like Courtney Love was becoming irritating. Not to mention all the other comments from friends/family about how I don't eat enough to maintain my weight and that if I lost anymore I was going to start looking bad. It's been a pretty consistant theme for the last couple of months so I gave into the pressure and asked my dr to take some out. That was a mistake! I've woken up hungry for the past week, was able to eat bread.....bread for goodness sake! All my dr took out was 1.cc and it made all the difference in the world. I was dieting once again. Luckily I did not gain but I wasn't exactly comfortable either. Went back to the dr and he put .5cc back in. So know I have a bit more restriction. I'm going to see where this leads me. I don't really want to loose anymore but I don't want to gain either. Gaining terrifies me.....I'm not talking about 2-3 fluctuating pounds but the steady increase of poundage. I'll have to wait to see what this restriction level brings.
298/308/286/137/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
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298/308/286/137/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
21 months - 1 3/4 yrs out
Jun 16, 2009
06/16/2009 - I'm a little early this month but since it is summer and my schedule is crazy I might as well update since I have a few minutes to myself. I had my bit of a rant last month but now I'm sitting here wondering if the reason I was so upset is the fact that maybe I am loosing too much weight. At what point to I....not others.....decide that i've lost too much. I never thought I would ever be faced with this dilema. I reached goal and now I'm 11 pounds under. I'm considering have more taken out of my band because even though I'm not too tight and eat what I want I just can't seem to get the volume in needed to sustain my current weight. I could start with protien shakes but I'm worried about my dr's no liquid calories rule. It has worked so well for me. I hate to do anything contrary to it. I guess I'll decide in a couple more weeks. I figure I have about 5-7 pounds of loose skin hanging around. At 139 factoring in the loose skin, I would be about 133 pounds. I'm 44....i think I should stop now!
298/308/286/139/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
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298/308/286/139/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
20 mos
May 20, 2009
05/19/2009 - Okay not feeling so positive this month. In fact I would go with kinda peeved! Not about my weighloss but about other peoples reactions to it. I went into the office the other day and not 1 but 3 people came up to me at different times and said that I really should stop loosing weight now because I'm going to start looking bad and that I no longer had any boobs left......yes, that's right....they really said I had no boobs! I actually started defending my bust size by telling people that I was wearing a minimizer bra....how ridiculous is that! What makes people think it's okay (and 2 out of the 3 people are my friends and wouldn't really hurt my feelings on purpose) to just start telling me things about my weight now that I'm at goal. I mean when I was gaining weight, no one came up to me and said "You'd better start loosing weight because pretty soon you're going to start looking bad....oh and by the way, those are some grand tetons you have" They wouldn't have said that to me because that would have been perceived as rude. Why is it not rude on the flip side of the scale??????? Arghhhhhhh! It doesn't help that I went to my support group meeting last month and I was approached by 2 ladies after the meeting who asked me if I'd actually lost #155 pounds because I didn't look like someone who used to weigh that much.....Nice....Not. I mean it's supposed to be a support group meeting. Are you only supposed to go to an AA meeting if you look like an alcoholic.......what does that even mean! Anyway rant over. Hopefully next month I'll have something positive to say....if I'm not having breast implants put in that is!
298/308/286/143/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
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298/308/286/143/150 Start(Consult)/Highest (1 month before surgery)/Op(Day of)/Current/Goal
About Me
Houma, LA
Location
23.1
BMI
Surgery
09/17/2007
Surgery Date
Feb 15, 2007
Member Since
