Hi welcome.........Don't pass on this weigh in. this is just my view i did not have to loose preop but this sounds like what you want the best way is keep going if your not there yet you just keep going and check in each time.......they will see you are motivated you will see you are motivated.................not to be personal but do you get any type of counseling? I could not imagine getting through any of this without my therapists. See I like you can talk myself into about anything. Oh just a bite oh just a day oh lets not do yoga today or this week or its to cold to walk ..........My therapist actually holds me accountable with this as well as the other issues i have....you could get a surgabuddy too...... Don't be your worse enemy though.

Here is the big thing........You need to make this decision. Why are you doing this? Are you ready for this? If what is holding you back is fear you need to address it .......its really normal ... if it stops you chances are you will regret it. It is by no means easy and it is completely personal. You can do it though. You got to this part and that is very difficult in itself. I hope you stay around and let us help or know how you are. good luck to you no matter what you do or when you do were here for all stages for you .

Welcome to the group. You've come to a good place for support at all stages of weight loss surgery.
It's not an easy journey, but it's definitely worth it when you're ready. I agree with KatLin: keep on going to your program appointments, and keep on working at it until you get to where you need to be.
I was 50 before I was ready to start this, it wouldn't have been right for me before I tried everything else (and didn't succeed!), but once I was ready, I did it right! I got into it for me and my health, committed to the work, lost 125 lbs. and have kept it off for 3 years. It's changed my life, and probably given me a longer one!
Take care and keep in touch.

Welcome and "hi!" There are reasons all of us either had or are about to have surgery to lose weight. Our bodies fought hard to keep those energy reserves!

For me, reading Geneen Roth's book Breaking Free from Emotional Eating was a life-changer. Following her principles, I lost 30 lbs from Thanksgiving until my surgery in early February. The main things I learned were to eat mindfully... when I ate, I didn't do anything else (no TV, reading, computer, etc). I just focused on the taste of the food and the experience of eating. I paid attention to how my body felt and stopped when I was "satisfied." When I didn't eat mindfully, I could easily eat over half a deep-dish, Chicago style pizza...and only stop because I knew I should. When I ate mindfully, it took me 3 meals to finish one slice. Seriously. It was crazy.

The bottom line is that most of us have to be pretty desperate to make the permanent changes to get healthy (hence, the surgery, right?). I got to the point that I was willing to do ANYTHING to escape living in the physical and emotional pain of living life as a super-morbidly obese person. I knew I had 2 choices... either give up and get a scooter and a handicapped sticker, or fight for my life by having GBS. I made the decision to have GBS. The surgery helped me understand that nothing I can chew and swallow is worth going through life lugging an extra 175 lbs.

How sick of being obese are you? How badly do you want to change your life? Although part of me wishes I'd had GBS sooner, I'm thankful I hit bottom - I was willing to do ANYTHING to change my life. Have you hit that point?

Real talk...going through GBS and life after GBS is the hardest thing you will ever do in your life. I spent a lot of hours watching youtube video diaries of people going through the process. They gave me hope - helped me believe it was possible to change my life.

Sure, you can wait for the next weigh in...or the next...or next year's weigh in, even. What do you want more, to be healthy or to chew and swallow _______ (insert favorite food here)?

Hope you find your answers!

JJ

Thanks for all the input, I am going to the weigh in tomorrow. I agree that this is probably one of the toughest decisions I have to make. I have been talking a lot with the people around me that I use for support and it has been helpful. I really think it is going to be important for me to continue to use this as a means of support as it sounds like all of you have had similar experiences. I will let you know how it goes. Thanks again for your words.

Good luck Mark :) remember the group is with you tomorrow

It's our emotions that screw us up most of the time. So I suggest that you make notes every time you eat for a few days. Don't judge yourself, just be honest about what you are feeling before, during and after eating. That self-awareness is really, really helpful.

Once you understand what is happening, you can change it by choosing other ways to handle your emotions. You know, that automatic, nasty voice in your head that trash talks you. You can deny them, discard them, replace them with empowering thoughts and affirming beliefs.

You'll get there. What you are going through is very common, but you can beat it.

Hey Mark,
Hope it went well today. Look forward to hearing about it.