Worried That I'll Fail

[supbanana 153]

Hi all, my VSG surgery is scheduled for August 9th and I'm really worried that it just won't work. I'm mostly basing this off of the fact that I've been dieting at a calorie deficit for the last three and a half years (low-fat diet for two years, then ketogenic diet for the last year and a half) and I've only lost 80 pounds 'on my own' (from 370lbs to 290lbs). I'm sorry if something like this has been posted before (I'm sure it's a very common concern), there's just so much info here to sort through and I'm a little overwhelmed.

Can anyone that was on a strict, long term diet with limited success prior to the VSG tell me about their experience with it?? If the VSG is restriction only, what is the difference between the sleeve restricting food intake and all of us restricting food without it? A friend just asked me this ("why don't you just starve yourself and get the same results?") and I had to admit that I wasn't sure, and that's probably a good thing to know prior to going through with this.

I'm just scared because diets didn't work for me, Phentermine didn't work for me, exercise didn't do the trick either... I'm pouring literally all of my money and hope into this surgery and I'm scared, albeit very committed and determined to doing this right.

Thank you for your time!

[mokee 588]

It appears that you are very young. You are doing very well with weight loss. Do you have any health problems? You have a lot of doubts. If I were you I would continue what you are doing and see if it works for you. VSG is not a magic bullet either. You must work very hard at it also. We that are overweight will have a lifelong struggle to stay thin. Make sure you are very sure before you have surgery. Read a lot. Best of luck.

[JerseyGirl68 1,172]

I think losing 80 pounds on your own is quite an accomplishment, and one you should be very proud of. The sleeve is just a tool, you still have to do the work. You very well could continue as you are, keep losing and be just as happy. It is a personal decision and what is best for one may not be best for all.

The major difference is after you are sleeved a few ounces fill you, phyiscally satisfies you in a way that just restricting your diet will never do. Also, the area of your stomach that is removed is a producer of the appetite/hunger hormone ghrelin. This is not to say you'll never feel hunger, many do feel traditional hunger again. I'm 7 months out and still do not feel hunger, thankfully. It makes for a much easier time while losing weight for me.

I tried every diet/pill/gimick known to man for 20 plus years, nothing stuck. I went to an endocronologist and was found to have a painfully slow metabolism. Dieting was always going to be in my life and it was always going to be a struggle.

The restriction from the sleeve is completely different than simply restricting your diet on your own. If you follow your nutritionists plan, get in your Protein & Water, you won't have the physical reprocussions of a calorie deficit diet.

There are "rules" to follow - and you can read a ton of information on that here. It is a great idea to scour the posts here, you will get a very wide view of people's experiences.

No two people are alike, and as I said what is right for one may not be right for all. You have to think about what is best for you. You have to give yourself some credit for all you have lost so far. It will not happen overnight, with or without the sleeve. You have folks here who know what you are going through.

Search the forum for topics you have questions on.

BEst of luck in whatever you decide!

[supbanana 153]

It appears that you are very young. You are doing very well with weight loss. Do you have any health problems? You have a lot of doubts. If I were you I would continue what you are doing and see if it works for you. VSG is not a magic bullet either. You must work very hard at it also. We that are overweight will have a lifelong struggle to stay thin. Make sure you are very sure before you have surgery. Read a lot. Best of luck.

Thank you for your answer! Unfortunately, what I'm doing isn't working for me anymore. Some more history: I was looking into WLS in 2009, but it scared me (and apparently still does, lol, though today I've decided the pros outweigh the cons), so I decided to try to seriously diet first. I started the low-fat diet in January 2010 and lost 30lbs in 3 months, and then completely stalled for the next two years. I looked into weight loss surgery then, discovering the VSG that I had never heard of before, but then found the ketogenic diet and decided to try that as my last attempt at doing this without surgery. I lost 50 pounds in five months and my health has been incredible since I started it, but have been stalled for the last year no matter what I do. I don't want to be struggling like this, trying so hard and seeing no results, for the rest of my life. I can't afford to stay fat due to the depression it's caused me. I'm pretty good about maintaining weight loss, it's just my body hits these walls and seemingly can't go any further and I'm sick of it. I just want to be an average person that blends into the crowd and doesn't get singled out based on my weight.

I do have a lot of doubts that I expressed here, but mostly it's just that I don't want to get my hopes up. I'm very excited about this surgery and have been reading as much info as I can take in, and the success I see here is just breathtaking. I'm going to throw everything I have into this and I'm very serious about it, but I don't want to get too excited because if this fails like everything else I've done eventually has, I'll be devastated. I'm glad I've lost as much weight as I have because every pound helps... I just want to be under 200lbs at some point in my adult life. I think the surgery is my best bet, truly.

[supbanana 153]

The major difference is after you are sleeved a few ounces fill you, phyiscally satisfies you in a way that just restricting your diet will never do. Also, the area of your stomach that is removed is a producer of the appetite/hunger hormone ghrelin. This is not to say you'll never feel hunger, many do feel traditional hunger again. I'm 7 months out and still do not feel hunger, thankfully. It makes for a much easier time while losing weight for me.

BEst of luck in whatever you decide!

Thank you so much! This is what I needed to hear. I feel a lot better now.