MorganCath

This morning my health care professional suggested I research VSG. I currently weigh 260. She also recommended I take a look at this site. I'm VERY glad I did! I'm obviously just starting this journey from a VSG perspective. Do you have any suggestions to where I should start? What questions should I be asking? Is there anything you wish you had done differently along your VSG journey? I have the "advantage" (in quotes because sometimes I think it is more of a curse than a blessing!) of a Masters in Counseling (never got licensed), as well as several friends who happen to be dietitians. I've been active in OA for 4 years, although not very active lately. (Telling you all this so you can see I've done the mental work forwards, backwards, and sideways, and in between, but am still gaining weight. I feel hungry almost ALL the time.) Suggestions appreciated!

Thanks Tiffykins and Myrori! I feel better about this already! I have a very high pain threshold, and I can deal with anything for a few weeks, no worries! I have super-thick hair which I would miss, but if it grows back, you're right -- it's worth the fat loss! (Is that caused by the high Protein? I didn't have any hair or skin problems with a year of Adkins and 20 carbs/day.) Thanks for helping me navigate my self-imposed roadblocks! I don't want to get too far ahead of myself here, but I'm trying to think of ALL the pros and cons. I have plenty of time to make up my mind, but can have most of this paid for when they remove my research device since they can do the VSG at the same time. Here's where I am tonight: one of the big reasons I gained back all the weight I lost on Adkins was all the flabby skin that was left after. I looked great with clothes on, and my husband tried to lie and say it didn't bother him, but I know he was just as grossed-out by all the flab as I was. He really tried, but he's not a very good liar, bless his heart! He is so supportive of me -- I'm blessed to have him on my side! I had a false alarm with skin cancer on my nose a few years ago (totally not cancer), and in the process met an excellent plastic surgeon who I would trust to take care of the skin flab, the problem would be paying for all I would need (and the multiple surgeries and pain). I carry my fat all over -- huge arms are what I'm most self-conscious about, but without the fat to fill me up, my poor, little boobs look like deflated balloons, so I would need a lift there, too. The plastic surgeon talked about a "body lift" way back when. A friend, who has since died about 5 years post-op Roux en-Y, was starting to help me research donating my skin to a tissue bank to get it paid for. She was my age and was denied because her skin wasn't "good" enough. I guess I should look into this again, although at age 50 next month, mine might not be good enough, either. She missed quite a bit of work, and all she had done was a tummy tuck about a year before she died. I am getting ahead of myself, aren't I? I'm thinking I should go ahead and take this one step at a time, and remember that my #1 reason for doing this would be for my health, not to look like a Barbie doll! I haven't been diagnosed with diabetes yet, but my a1c is right on the edge. My cholesterol keeps creeping up, too. I've had 2 cousins die from heart attacks and just learned that my brother has recently had a mild one. When I look at the posts of those who have had their VSG surgery done for a while, it looks like almost everyone is 100% glad they did it. Thoughts and comments about plastic surgery welcome! Happy New Year!

Good luck to you! I'm a newbie to this site and have only been considering VSG for about 24 hours now. I think I would just about kill <kidding?> to not "volume eat" any more. I really just want to not feel hungry all the time. It is sounding like that won't be an issue with VSG. I hope I can eventually eat an inch of that 12" sub or a bite or two of that cheeseburger. (Yes, I'm the type of person who CAN eat just one potato chip if I set my mind to it and am not trying to get rid of the constant hunger!) I'm good at eating healthy most of the time now (healthy foods; not healthy quantities), but I don't do well long term (e.g. more than 6 months or so) with "you can never eat XXX again" -- that just makes me crazy! I haven't gotten far enough into the posts to see if there will be things I'll NEVER be able to eat again....

Great advice! Thanks a million! I started systematically reading all the posts tonight, but haven't made a dent in them yet. I started a list of pros and cons, too, plus things I need more information on (big chicken that I am!) The only surgery I've ever had was basically a laparoscopy (done as part of a research study I participated in). That surgery wasn't bad at all -- only the bladder pain since they had me taped to the bed and the pulse oximeter so I couldn't get up to pee on my own after surgery, and no one would bring me the bed pan! (Lesson learned: even though all is well, my husband has to stay with me 24/7 until discharged next time!) Here's the things that have me shaking in my shoes so far (in the order I found them): 1) Hair loss at 3 months? 2) Lots of liquid dieting (yuk!) 3) Drinking dye for x-rays to check for leakage (I have severe allergies to Red #40 & Blue #1 -- I hope they have an alternative!) 4) Sounds like a few have "dumping syndrome" 5) Catheter? (Maybe that wouldn't be so bad considering my bad experiences with bed pans!) 6) Drains? I was hoping I could go back to work quickly enough that no one would notice I had this done. Most of my co-workers were absolutely horrible to another co-worker who had Rou-N-Y (sure I'm messing up the spelling, sorry!) (I successfully hid the laparoscopy from them.) All this said, the pros are still outweighing the cons -- it looks like the death rate is low, and I'm great at following instructions (especially if I think I'll die if I don't follow them!) I haven't fully checked it out, but it looks like I meet all the criteria for Aetna (thanks to the research study I've been in and all the documentation from that, plus my regular doctor recommended gastric bypass a few years ago, so he started documenting for me back then, including documentation I'll eventually need for a tummy tuck). I also have well-documented failure with the Atkins diet (lost 80; gained 90). I might opt for the 6 month route even though I might not have to -- we'll see! I'm going to turn 50 next month -- I've spent my first half century as a fat person -- it would be great to spend the rest as a normal weight person! Thanks again for all the advice. I'm definitely going to get WLS for Dummies, check out You Tube, and look at obesity help.com. I've already requested to be Tiffykin's friend on Facebook -- is this what you meant by looking at your blog? Or is there another one? Any way, my head is swimming, but it still feels right so far. Thanks!