60 Pounds Lost In 60 Days

[Justine13 264]

Nice job!

[Justine13 264]

Nice job!

[Webchickadee 716]

do I just continue to live life on the sidelines and play it safe? Sigh....decisions, decisions :-/

Hi Nicci,

You are still quite young (30) so compared to me, your "impending time" for health stressors may be less than mine (I'm 43).

And, of course, I don't know if your family has a history of serious health problems such as cardiac issues, hypertension, diabetes, cancer, etc.

Any one of those is life threatening and many of them seem to come as a "package" to those of us who are morbidly obese. Our weight really does "drag us down', if not sooner, than later.

My starting weight was nearly identical to your current weight, and I'm very close to your same height. I WISH I had had the option to have the VSG done at age 30! I could have had a much different last 13 years indeed!

We have a family history of cancer (breast, bladder and brain), hypertension, high cholesterol, diabetes, strokes, etc. I am healthy now, but if I don't get "hold" of things NOW, I am in for a world of hurt in the next decade. And it only gets worse from there....

So I had the VSG done in May, 2012. And I am now close to 80 lbs down (in less than 5 months) with another 100 or so to go! I feel great! I'm off my asthma meds (4 of them!) since surgery. I can exercise without shortness of breath. I'm down from a size 26/28 (or 4X/5X) to a 18/20 (or XL) now, and really looking forward to maybe being a size 10 or 8 (and maybe smaller!) when I hit goal.

Yes, there are risks. But the % of people who develop surgical complications or post-op complications with the VSG is VERY VERY small. The % of morbidly obese people who develop serious, significant and often life-threatening health complications is VERY HIGH.

So you're not "playing it safe". You're just putting off the time when the health problems will come. Now, you have a small risk. Later, you have a HUGE chance for life-long debilitating illness(es).

I made sure I was very well informed about the possible complications. I prepared my Will, put my affairs in order and made sure that things were going to be taken care of (as best as possible) should anything go wrong. Then I got on a plane (by myself), flew to Mexico and completed the best decision of my life.

Give yourself the chance to spend the next 50 years of your life having an active, full and healthy lifestyle with your children and future grandchildren. Don't let your body hold your spirit and your heart back.

And while you definitely need to be completely informed and knowledgeable before you make this decision......don't let a few bad outcomes scare you away from the opportunity to change you life for the better. You will see that the number of AMAZING outcomes far far outweighs the poor ones.

Do you research, get comfortable with your surgeon's experience, training, background and work environment. Get yourself tested "six ways to Sunday" to make sure you are a good healthy candidate for surgery and if there are any issues, starting working on the ones you have control over NOW, so you can come through the procedure as one of the success stories (like me!).

I know you can do this, and you will be so grateful the opportunity exists.

But above all, inform yourself and give everything you read a fair assessment. Then make your decision based on ALL the information. Not just the good and not just the bad.

Good luck!

[Nicci 28]

I have to admit I am quite emotional when it comes to the idea of ever being in the 100's again, needless to say what you just wrote to me brought tears to my eyes. My tiny (literally 90 lbs soaking wet) grandmother had her first heart attack when she was 42. My grandfather has high blood pressure, my mother has horrible Rheumatoid Arthritis, My father, although I believe his and everyone on his side of the family with health issues is related to drugs/alcohol, has diabetes (however his over weight brother who was never in to drugs also has type 2 diabetes from being so large). The only thing I have at this point is polycystic ovaries, minor asthma that only seems to act up when I am sick, and of course my ankle that I had 2 screws put in back in April of this year. I must also say thought that I was terrified when I awoke in the recovery room from my surgery in April because my heart took off racing, I believe it went up to 142, and as my nurse was rushing around in a panic I managed to get the heart rate under control on my own without any meds.....but the fact that it took off like that scares me a little. I have had 7 surgeries in my life (starting when I was 6, an appendectomy, T&A removal, leap procedure, closed ankle reduction, ankle fusion, gall bladder removal, then another ankle fusion when the first one didn't heal as planned.) and been put under two additional times when they were trying to find out what was wrong with me (they performed ERCP's and finally found the stupid gall stone stuck in my bile duct after I had my gall bladder out in 2005 and my condition still wasnt improving). I think I have always been scared before any surgery I have had and worried I would die...so this shouldn't be any different for me, right? I came out of all those just fine and should do the same here :-)

[Nicci 28]

BTW the last time I was in the 190's I was 11y/o and in the 6th grade :-(

[Webchickadee 716]

I have to admit I am quite emotional when it comes to the idea of ever being in the 100's again, needless to say what you just wrote to me brought tears to my eyes. My tiny (literally 90 lbs soaking wet) grandmother had her first heart attack when she was 42. My grandfather has high blood pressure, my mother has horrible Rheumatoid Arthritis, My father, although I believe his and everyone on his side of the family with health issues is related to drugs/alcohol, has diabetes (however his over weight brother who was never in to drugs also has type 2 diabetes from being so large). The only thing I have at this point is polycystic ovaries, minor asthma that only seems to act up when I am sick, and of course my ankle that I had 2 screws put in back in April of this year. I must also say thought that I was terrified when I awoke in the recovery room from my surgery in April because my heart took off racing, I believe it went up to 142, and as my nurse was rushing around in a panic I managed to get the heart rate under control on my own without any meds.....but the fact that it took off like that scares me a little. I have had 7 surgeries in my life (starting when I was 6, an appendectomy, T&A removal, leap procedure, closed ankle reduction, ankle fusion, gall bladder removal, then another ankle fusion when the first one didn't heal as planned.) and been put under two additional times when they were trying to find out what was wrong with me (they performed ERCP's and finally found the stupid gall stone stuck in my bile duct after I had my gall bladder out in 2005 and my condition still wasnt improving). I think I have always been scared before any surgery I have had and worried I would die...so this shouldn't be any different for me, right? I came out of all those just fine and should do the same here :-)

Well, you certainly have been through the wringer, haven't you? And you have plenty of reason for anxiety regarding surgery (but you're right........you've always come through, so the odds are looking in your favour for sure!).

Weight reduction certainly helps asthma, and it's been show to be very beneficial with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) as well. So the VSG could help resolve or at least improve your current health issues on those fronts.

I don't know if your joint problems (ankle) were related to trauma, injury or the excess weight. But it is certain that reducing your weight will help keep the join in better shape going forward!

I've got my gall bladder out too (from a motorcycle accident complication 13 years ago!). That saves us both a further surgery, as many VSG patients end up with gall bladder problems following their VSG and end up having their gall bladder removed later on. Some even get it removed at the same time (if they've already been having gall bladder symptoms!).

My dear, it really sounds like you have a host of family health traits that will likely impact your life negatively in the next few decades.

Just think how wonderful it would be if you could do EVERYTHING POSSIBLE to minimize those impacts now. How much happier your spouse and your children will be to have you with them, healthy (or at least healthier....) for childhood, teenage years, college years, young adulthood and beyond?

You do have the chance to make that happier future happen. And even if the VSG is not the right answer for you, I am confident that you will find a way to get to a healthy weight.

The challenge of course, is to stay there! I've lost 100 lbs before, but when life went "off-track" (I lost my mother and my brother within 5 months of each other), I "coped" by eating and gained it almost all back. That was 5 years ago and this year, I decided I needed a more permanent solution. The yo-yo dieting was not working......the weight roller-coaster was not healthy.........and I was blessed to find the VSG and a surgeon who I could trust.

I'm happy to help you at any point in your journey. Feel free to "friend" me if you're so inclined. There is a great community of people here on VST. They answer questions, give support and a pat on the back when you need it.

[ChinaWood 30]

Great Job, that's inspiring....

Order My Steps Dear Lord...