Made the decision but now I am terrified.....

[Rach8610 60]

I decided I would do the sleeve. I have been losing and gaining the same 40-50 lbs since 2000 and I am tired of it. Now that I made my decision some of my friends and family have expressed to me that I should just continue to try it on my own because of the risks involved. Is anyone feeling like this????

[Catherine707 253]

Probably EVERYONE has those thoughts at some point! I wasn't willing to seriously consider WLS until I knew I had "really" tried to lose weight through more conventional means. In 2012 I was diagnosed with metabolic syndrome and tried the low carb diet. I lost 10 pounds but ended up with gall bladder surgery. After recovering from the surgery I tried Medifast Meal Replacements and ended up with a bad allergic reaction to all the soy in the products. I was honest with myself and realized that I couldn't lose the weight I needed to via diet and exercise alone. My weight continued to balloon and I needed surgical help.

I can honestly say that I tried everything.... after years and years of failures, the VGS was my ticket to success. I think that having bariatric surgery is a huge step, and not an "easy" path. If I only needed to lose 40 pounds I don't think I would make the permanent changes that come with this surgery and the risk of complications. My reality was I needed to lose 50% of my body weight and over 150 pounds. Those numbers meant that I needed surgical assistance.

Each person has to weigh the benefits and risks out for themselves. Only you can say if you have really tried EVERYTHING and have no other method to weight loss success. Good luck on your personal journey!

[blondiebabs 214]

I received the same kind of kick-back from one of the friends that I told, basically my opinion about it is its not their life so we shouldn't let their fears hold us back. Plus people who do not know the struggle really do not understand. This website and the people here who bravely post their stories have really helped me with a lot of my fears and anxieties about the process.

[McButterpants 2,846]

I think I probably changed my mind or waffled a hundred times...right up to the day of surgery (in admitting I had thoughts of walking out thinking, "I could walk out of here and only be out $500." I think it's totally normal...this is a big decision and a life changer.

My suggestion is to research, research and research some more. Come to this forum when you have questions - You'll get the perspective of people that are actually going thru or have gone thru the same thing. My parents, specifically my dad, was skeptical at first. He didn't try to talk me out of it, but he was concerned about the fact that the VSG is irreversible. He now calls it "a necessary surgical procedure". (That makes me laugh)

Only you will know if you're ready - only you have to live in your body day in and day out. It's easy for someone to say "do it on your own". My response: Uh, yeah, I've been trying that for years and it isn't working.

[mi75 1,239]

i agree with the above. i went through the initial appts about 15 months ago and then completely flaked. it took me until this last january to finally realize that i too, had really tried it all.

i felt like i had made an honest effort to do it on my own with no success at all- in fact in all my efforts i got more and more frustrated and GAINED 22 lbs.

keep coming here and search ALL SORTS of topics. read as much online research as you can. I went to all the major medical center websites that i could think of (johns hopkins,mayo, cleveland, ucla, etc) and read their bariatric center sites.i also spent hours upon hours on this site. i did also seek out youtube for personal testimonies from patients.

Lastly, i would recommend going to youtube and watching a reality series called Fat Doctor. it's from the UK and was extremely helpful for me. gave the real ins and outs of bariatric surgery, prep, post-op, etc.

i found ALL of these things helpful. many of us teter back and forth. that is normal. good luck!

[Bufflehead 6,358]

Ask your friends if they are aware of:

--the rate of complications and death from weight loss surgery (not sure if you are having bypass or sleeve - your profile says bypass but you are posting in the sleeve forums. Either way, the risk is very small).

vs.

--the rate of complications and death from remaining supermorbidly obese (hint - a lot higher than the risks of surgery)

vs.

--statistically, the number of super morbidly obese people who are able to lose a significant amount of weight "on their own" without surgery and maintain that weight loss (about 5% or less)

vs.

--statistically, the number of super morbidly obese people who are able to lose a significant amount and maintain that weight loss WITH surgery (depends on the surgery but it's more like 70%)

Unless they are coming at this problem from a thoroughly researched point of view they really shouldn't be trying to give you medical advice. Tell them you appreciate their concern but this is a decision you've made for your health in consultation with your doctors and you aren't discussing it with them further.

Weight loss surgery is an extremely effective tool - the best known for fighting a deadly disease. If you had been diagnosed with cancer, would you decline surgery to remove the tumor in favor of hoping it would go away, because surgery has risks?

[Fullofitx3 146]

I'm in the same boat as others has posted, several years ago I was gonna do the lap-band and backed out after losing some weight then I put the weight back on plus some extra, sept of '13 I went back and spoke to dr and he told me I would be an excellent canadate for the sleeve and I had the surgery in jan and my only regret is not doing it sooner, my whole life has changed, so much more energy.

Good luck with journey no matter what you choose.

[cejiogu 182]

I had my doubts up until they where putting the mask over my face in the OR. But 14 months later and 135 lbs off I am off all my type II meds and other support meds! Get healthy and live your life! I am and I am so happy I did.

[Rach8610 60]

Thanks everyone