counting calories vs lap band????

I am somewhat discouraged.  I can't get over the "hump".  I'm stuck at 185bs and the scales aren't budging.   Then on top of that a group of my friends were hanging out and another friend showed up and looked amazing...(after  2 weeks of having the lap band surgery)..  I told her how great she looked and she did!!!  Jealous???..No that's not me.   Then one of our friends told me..."Hey girl you are doing it the right way, the healthy way"  But to me the friend that had lap band did what was best for her.   Her health was at stake!!!  I guess I'm just having one of those moments of discouragment. 

As you know, a lap band only enforces portion control through physical methods.  I have met people who lost weight using the lap band and I have met people who lost weight and have managed to work around the restriction enough to gain weight back.

I also know someone who died in during surgery of an (heretofore) unknown heart defect.  My point is that a lap band is a huge step.  Weight won't be lost overnight, but learning to eat differently will have better long term effects than a lap band.

At 185 pounds, I don't know your height, but you seem to be in no way to be a good candidate for a surgical solution to your weight problem.  It seems much much better to me to figure out a sustainable pattern of eating that will let you gradually drop the pounds you need to lose and then maintain the loss.

IMO, bariatric surgery is only warranted when the candidate is extremely obese and the risks of continuing to be obese outweigh the risks of surgery (and I am a little sceptical even then).  And, as tinabobeena says, you still have to do the hard work to figure out a healthy diet.  There is no magic, quick solution to obesity, but the good news is that with a little care in what you eat, a lot of care in portion control, and a little movement we all can get healthier and lose weight.  Good luck!

My friend had lap band over a year ago when it first hit NZ.  She lost 25 kilos (55 pounds) within the first 4 months.  She had another 30 kilos to go.  Now she is struggling.  She has put back on 15 of those kilos so 45 now to go.  She can't eat normal food, it gets stuck. She can eat chocolate and lollies because they 'slid down'.  I went to lunch with her, lunch got stuck it was only pasta.  She had to go throw up in the toilets.  Its not pleasant (for both of us).  She has basically fallen off the lap band wagon.

I was thinking of getting it done but it has totally put me off. No matter what you do you need willpower.   

Keep going with the healthy food and exercise, it will work.  It might take a while but the results are worth it.

I've lot 50 pounds exercising and watching (not overly strictly as I'm a chocolate addict) my food. Its not fallen off in a matter of months but it is slowly but surely coming off.