Struggling With Vsg Choice

[piper 13]

June, I really appreciate your thoughtful response. I will certainly consider your points regarding my ability to lose the weight without intervention. Thus far I have only managed to gain with each failed attempt over the last 6+ years.

My weight lingers btwn 230-235 so I have about 80-85 lbs to lose if I were to shoot for 150-155. My "healthy' range is 128-168 however, I don't mind being 160, it is a whole lot better than 230....

Anyhow, based on your post I feel that you believe my BMI of 34+ is just too low for VSG and will potentially put me at risk of "losing too much". I wonder, has this been something that folks with "lower" BMIs have experienced? This concern is not one that my surgeon had expressed. In fact, he seemed to feel that it made a great deal of sense to intervene now rather than later as increased weight can increase potential for post surgical complications. I gathered that he had performed this surgery on folks with lower (than 40) bmi's and felt that the insurance companies were shortsided in their high bmi requirements. Do you know if folks have indeed experienced too much weight loss when starting with lower bmi's? It seems to me that one's body would begin to level off in terms of weight loss once they reached ahealthy weight that was supported by their caloric intake (equilibrium) rather than a specific time frame, like the six month time frame you suggested.

Thanks again for clarifying.

[piper 13]

I am also wondering in what way it is relevant if one has not been obese their entire life? I concede that becoming obese was of my own making. However, I wonder if one patient has been obese since 2006 while another patient has been obese since childhood in what way does this impact their eligibility for vsg? Is it not true that both are in the same boat? Is the assertion that one should have the obesity gene in order to truly qualify for surgery? In which case, when the technology is available the medical community would screen candidates and only approve those with the gene? I am curious as to whether the assumption is that in the absence of lifelong obesity one is just more capable of dropping a massive amount of weight. I feel that my metabolism is just not functioning correctly and that this is impeding my ability to sustain weight loss. If I do not somehow lose the weight my future is negatively impacted and lifespan shortened, same as a person who has been obese their entire life. I am not trying to

be a contrarian just wanted clarification. Thanks.