Was it worth it?

[dreamingofasleeve 89]

I am pre op and I feel like we often only see the good side of weight loss surgery.

I want to know... Was it worth it?

I want to be thin but I am scared if failure and side effects. Let me know! Whether your 6 months out or 5 years I want to hear!

Sent from my Pixel using BariatricPal mobile app

[Letsgetgoing2018 448]

I had my sleeve on July 10th. I am healing relatively easily and am losing. I was scared pre op after reading these boards because some people have a really rough time. I have accepted that this surgery is just a tool that I’ll use to hopefully get to my goal weight and I’ll have to change my life in many ways to get there but I would say “yes”, it’s been worth it for me.

[MiltonP 121]

Had my sleeve on March 5 I’ve lost 109 pounds so far I’m 6 pounds from my goal but as letsgetgoing2018 said this is just a tool you need to follow your Dr diet and work your ass off in the gym also you need to understand they operate on your stomach not you brain so at first you’ll still feel the hunger which is not really there just power through it and in no time you’ll be a whole new person

[Matt Z 4,139]

48 minutes ago, dreamingofasleeve said:

I am pre op and I feel like we often only see the good side of weight loss surgery.

I want to know... Was it worth it?

I want to be thin but I am scared if failure and side effects. Let me know! Whether your 6 months out or 5 years I want to hear!

Sent from my Pixel using BariatricPal mobile app

Overall, I'm happy. Was that always the case, nope.

I was banded back in 2011. I went with the band because I was afraid of the permanence of the bypass (the sleeve wasn't an option at this time for whatever reason, but I guess that's a good thing since it would have really sucked with the acid reflux) I lost 70 lbs or so, gained and lost floating around 300-310 for years. I got stuck on stuff often, and healthy stuff, hurt to eat. Leafy greens were physically painful.

I felt like a failure, I wasn't happy, I was quite depressed, no matter what I did, nothing worked. I stopped checking in with my surgeon, for years.

I finally dragged myself back to my surgeon to talk about my options... I confessed to being a failure and requested help. I was shocked to find out that, my situation was pretty common, that the band was over-hyped and under-performed on the whole. We discussed options and we decided to go with the bypass. 8 months or so later, after jumping through tons of insurance hoops I had my revision surgery on the 21st of March, 2018. The lapband was 100% encapsulated in scar tissue and took the team over 3 times longer to remove than it should have, very glad to have that thing out of me.

Today, I hit 239.9. I haven't been this low in well over a decade. I just wish I had done the bypass first, instead of letting fear sway me from the better choice.

[Orchids&Dragons 9,047]

We're all very different. For me, yes, it is absolutely worth it. I have been dieting since I was about 12. I'm 59 now. If I were ever going to be successful at maintaining weight loss, I would have known it by now. (I can lose weight fine, I just regain). It's already tough to get older, and hauling around 3 large sacks of dog food on my back was making everything worse. I was fortunate that I did not have co-morbidities, but it was just a matter of time, imho. I'm down 75 lbs. in 5 months. I've never lost more than 40 at any one attempt before. But, don't be fooled. It is hard. The surgery helps, but it takes real commitment from you to make it work.

[S@ssen@ch 745]

@dreamingofasleeve

From what I read, it is normal to have some reservations and fear pre-op. In the weeks leading up to my surgery, I know I was certainly questioning myself every step of the way, even up to the surgery itself. As they were strapping me to the operating table, I was crying. And, just like Matt, I can say that I'm glad I did it now. That was not always the case.

I went through a similar experience as Matt with Lap Band, but I had my band out long ago and lived without my tool for about 8 years before realizing that I needed help. Since I got sleeved, I've gone through what I call a food "mourning" period where I think about what I've done and what the ramifications are to my relationship with food. There was a certain pleasure in eating and for me, it was linked to socialization and love. I have had to come to grips with that and change. I think I will always struggle with it, a little bit.

Today, food is fuel. Yes, I still derive a certain amount of pleasure in it, but I don't eat for pleasure. Today, I eat to live. I don't live to eat.

My advice to you is to do a little bit of soul searching. Bariatric surgery of any kind is not the end all/be all. YOU need to examine how much you are willing to adapt and change in order to reach your goals. Any weight loss surgery is a tool, a powerful one, but a tool just the same. Good luck!

[jess9395 5,449]

10000000% worth it. Five years out from the sleeve. Maintaining well. I had a relatively easy recovery. There are some things I still can’t eat as they don’t sit well, but they are mostly things I don’t need to be eating anyway like rice, bread and carbonation.

Do realize that most people don’t get “thin.” Most people lose about 60-75% of their excess weight. So if your ideal weight is 135-165 and you weigh 265 you have 100lbs of excess weight. If you lose 60% of that that’s 60lbs so the odds are you would end up weighing 205.

You can definitely work and lose more, but statistically that’s what happens.

[BarrySue 602]

Got my sleeve three years ago. Still carrying extra weight, but its in very flattering places, and I feel sexy in clothes.

Out of clothes, my body is a damn mess. I have to wear a body shaper to contain the sagging skin, and no amount of toning/compression garments/non-surgical intervention can fix the amount of skin hanging from my arms, stomach, thighs, and I'm even getting a turkey neck. My facial skin is a little loose. It's rough.

That being said, it was still the best decision I ever made. It's gonna suck saving up for plastics while I shed these last 30 lbs. Post-weight loss skin/body issues are the luxury tax we paid for treating our bodies like trash for so many years. I have collarbones. I can ride rollercoasters. I no longer look at tiny cafe chairs, bathroom stalls and airlines seats going OH GOD WILL I FIT. Like suddenly, you *fit* into the world.

[GreenTealael 25,339]

2 hours ago, dreamingofasleeve said:

I am pre op and I feel like we often only see the good side of weight loss surgery.

I want to know... Was it worth it?

I want to be thin but I am scared if failure and side effects. Let me know! Whether your 6 months out or 5 years I want to hear!

Sent from my Pixel using BariatricPal mobile app

I'm 9 months post op, immaculate recovery, for me it was worth it but I had no complications. My motivation also was not looks. So every additional benefit was like icing in the cake. Health once lost or gained (regained) can change your life like you've never imagined.

[Krista27 341]

I am very happy that I had surgery! My recovery was easy compared to other surgeries I have had! I am losing weight and feel better than I have in years!

[BostonWLKC 807]

Completely thrilled with mine. Easy recovery (thankfully) and no food issues . I love the confidence and general feeling of NOT worrying about what I look like, how I sit, what others see or how I feel (tired and sore).
It’s definitely hard work to rethink food relationship and emotions but for me, 1,000% worth it!

Good luck.

[sillykitty 10,774]

My only regret is I didn't do this years ago!

I'm 5 1/2 months post op and down 75 lbs. Although this journey may not be easy. For me this has been the easiest and fastest weight I have ever lost.

I still have 30 lbs to lose, but I already feel and look fantastic (in clothes at least). I knew before I had WLS I would want plastics. So I'm ok with the saggy skin for now, because as soon as I get to goal, I'll get it taken care of.

[t1018ross 116]

I totally understand your reservations. And I agree, there isn't enough discussion on the negative side of WLS. I had the sleeve surgery May 7, 2018 and for the first 6 weeks or so I regretted it. I didn't have any complications. My problem was it hurt so bad to eat anything or drink fluids for much longer than I anticipated. I got depressed and felt like I had made a horrible mistake. I couldn't tolerate the Protein Shakes or anything with artificial sweeteners. I wasn't able to get enough fluids in and the chewable vitamins made me nauseous. It was rough for a while. Plus, I also had this totally unreasonable anger that I couldn't eat what I wanted to anymore. I was grieving my "breakup" with food and it was hard. At 8 weeks post-op, I finally turned a corner. I could finally eat solid food and my stomach didn't cramp at every bite. I was able to swallow whole Vitamins instead of having to use chewables. And I finally got some energy back and felt like exercising. All of this made a HUGE difference. I'm so happy I chose to have the surgery. I've lost almost 50 pounds and feel so much better. My advice is to understand that the healing process is hard even if you don't have any complications but to remember that it won't feel like that forever. This site helped me tremendously. Good luck to you and I hope you realize all your goals!

[Orchids&Dragons 9,047]

Honestly, even those of us with unforseen complications would still do it again in a heartbeat.

[t1018ross 116]

2 minutes ago, Orchids&Dragons said:

Honestly, even those of us with unforseen complications would still do it again in a heartbeat.

Yes!

And remember, this is just as much of a mental effort as a physical one. In fact, I would say the mental part affects your success more than the physical part. I used food as a reward system, a coping mechanism, and it was a huge part of my social and family life. I didn't realize just how much I depended on food for various things until I no longer was able to do it. It's HARD but so worth it.