Banned member

And I must say that we are on a forum for obese people not "bodybuilders" so we must take into consideration that bmi applies to fat not muscle..

I KNOW!!! And you are wrong...
I'm sorry, but by definition at a 30 bmi you are considered obese.
Underweight = <18.5;
Normal weight = 18.5–24.9;
Overweight = 25–29.9;
Obesity = BMI of 30 or greater ...

*puts English teacher hat on*
Calibri is a font.
Caliber is the American English spelling.
Calibre is the British English spelling (and since they invented the language, I let them spell it as they wish, even with the "u" in "colour" and "favourite", and spelling "theatre" intead of "theater").
AussieLady meant exactly what she typed, since her screen name shows she's from Oz (-stralia, not where Dorothy went with her ruby slippers).
We now return to our regularly-scheduled program of wackdoodlery, shenanigans and hooliganism.

Totally disagree with this. At a 38 BMI, she was 8 BMI points above the Obesity range of 30. Plenty of people start there and end up morbidly obese within a matter of months or years. If it were so easy to take the weight off and keep it off without surgery, everyone would do that. Also, new medical tools are looking at things such as how much abdominal obesity someone has rather than just the BMI. Comorbidities matter too--Cleveland Clinic is now covering bariatric surgery for people who have lower than a 35 BMI but have diabetes that isn't responding well to surgery. The first patient had a BMI of 33, was on insulin several times a day, and was OFF his insulin before he even left the hospital.
I agree that everyone needs to go into the surgery eyes wide open about possible complications--but it is up to the individual if he or she feels the risk of current obesity and possibly future morbid obesity is worth the trade off.
The words "only" and "55 pounds overweight" really shouldn't be used together. There is a lot of risk there.

I agree this is not helpful and I disagree with the thought - I had a relatively smaller amount of weight to lose as well and I am glad I didn't wait to have this surgery. In addition, I remember the first few months after surgery having regret and being miserable - in pain, nausea anytime I ate, Constipation, etc - however, in my case, it was just a matter of adjusting to my new life.

When did I name call? Please show me. You've called me a liar, dishonest, etc. I was unaware that this was a formal debate group. I'm not derailing the discussion. I'm merely trying to understand who you are and why you are so judgmental of those who don't live the same way as you. Admit failure about what? I don't even think you know what you're talking about. I personally don't understand how a person could be so judgmental. You are extremely defensive and hell bent on telling people how much you disapprove of the way they live. Do you feel better about yourself?

People are telling the truth when they say that they are eating smaller portions and watching what they eat! How is that a lie? VSG is only a tool, it doesn't do the work for you and people can easily gain...........maybe not right away but people have been known to gain all of their weight back or lose very little. I personally didn't sign up to be the spokes person for this surgery. Since when did keeping something private=embarrassed? Do you feel comfortable discussing the number of people you've slept with, how much money you make, how much you spend shopping, how much debt, financial/marital issues, sexual abuse, STDs, etc? If you choose not to disclose the answer to these questions, does that mean that you're "embarrassed" or "ashamed"? Privacy is something that should be respected. I highly doubt anyone can claim to be "truthful" 100% of the time.

I'm not arguing with anyone but I did propose (define: to engage in talk or discussion) a question to those who believe that we should be "truthful" and "honest". Would those who feel open about discussing their surgery, also be open to discussing the number of people they've slept with, how much money they make, how much they spend shopping, how much debt, financial/marital issues, sexual abuse, STDs, etc?
It's not about keeping a "secret" for the rest of your life but merely about respecting someones decision to doing whats right for them and if that means taking their surgery to the grave, then fine. Neither decision is more right than the next. A lot of people come to forums like these so that they can share their journey and be open. VSG is not my life and I hardly ever think about but I didn't sign up to be the spokes person for this surgery.

I've been looking into getting the switch done. I've been losing very slow but I told myself that I would give myself until 18 months post op and then further evaluate if having a 2nd surgery is necessary. The VSG was my first surgery ever! For some people this is their 3rd plus wls attempt. I do feel as if I'm dealing with metabolic issues and that malabsorption will address them. My surgeon would easily convert my VSG to RNY but my main thing is keeping my pyloric valve. I still have about 50 pounds till the high end of my weight goal but my ultimate goal would require me to lose about 80 more pounds. I do understand why people don't post openly about why they want to revise from vsg to a ds or rny. The responses tend to border the line of self gloating about how well the vsg is working for them and how awesome the vsg is. The vsg is great surgery but it doesn't work for everyone and I'm coming to realize that with my very slow weight loss and my own struggles, I may never make it to goal at this rate of weight loss. I haven't given up but I'm also being realistic that this surgery may not work for me in the long run.
ETA: Here's the link to obesityhelp DS board http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/ds/ You will find several vsg to ds people and they are very supportive and understand your struggles. Good Luck with whatever you decide to do.

People do fail to get to a healthy BMI with VSG sometimes, especially if they start with a very high BMI. I know you are only speaking for yourself here, but it doesnt necessarily follow that someone has an eating disorder because they have had regain or not gotten to their goal. Maybe so, but maybe not.

We feel attacked also! We're being told that we're liars, dishonest, and lack integrity because we choose to keep our medical history private! If anything us people who choose to keep our surgery quiet, we've mostly said "to each their own" or "do what's right for you. How hard is it to respect that?

I 100% agree that it's a major surgery and we should be thinking of ALL the possible risks and complications prior to doing it. So many lives have been changed because of it.
Still, I'm going to call it a "tool". Just like obtaining regular exercise is a "tool". Just like obtaining counseling will give you some mental "tools" to employ to help you make better food choices and avoid emotional eating. The point of calling it a tool is to drive home the point that it IS NOT a magic pill... and it WILL NOT lose the weight for you..... It is still only a tool that we can choose to use or not to use.... and getting the sleeve is only ONE part of the equation. Granted, it's a tool that we have risked our lives to obtain.... it's a tool that if used properly can add many years of health to our lives... but it's still a tool... and to me to hear it called that in no way detracts from the gravity of the surgery.
It's all about context.. if someone is saying.. "it's just a tool.. no big deal" when they're contemplating surgery.. then yeah.. they definitely are looking at it wrong.. but when you've got people saying "Remember, this surgery won't FIX you.. it's only one tool that will help you on the journey"... that's a completely different context.

I'm also pear shaped but the more inches I lose I'm becoming more of an hourglass lol. My hips are wide and butt has become more plump with age. My breast are large and they definitely aren't shrinking. The only place I'm noticing my weight loss is in my stomach and arms. My hips are definitely getting smaller but they will always be wide. I definitely have child bearing hips. I personally can't do low carb long term. I start to feel depressed, anxiety goes through the roof, severe Constipation, zero energy, insomnia, etc. Low carb can really screw with your serotonin (feel good hormone) and mentally I would rather not do something that makes me so miserable. I eat a moderate carb diet and IMO it gives me the best of both worlds because I'm still in fat burning mode while also being able to avoid the negative effects of low carb. Low carb isn't good for everyone and I don't get why some people try to force low carb dieting down other peoples throat. We are happy it worked for you but it's not healthy for everyone and some of us just look at it as another diet that we've tried in the past. NGM was saying that adding healthy fats worked for HER.

Good topic! I was just wondering about this question myself. When I finally made the decision to go ahead and pursue this surgery, I was shocked to find out how much it cost here in Denver, CO. My insurance won't cover this at all. I was quoted $17,500 for the sleeve. The doctor came highly recommended by my best friend and her sister. And when I went to his free seminar I found out he had only done 163 sleeve's. Are you kidding me?! I knew there was no way I could pay that price. And I was so heartbroken. Then I started doing research and found out that I could have 2 very qualified and very experienced surgeons in Mexico do my surgery for $4,700 all inclusive with hotel and transportation, food, etc. Not including airfare. Each surgeon has over 2,000 sleeve surgeries under their belts. Now tell me that's a no brainer. I will be sleeved on July 9, 2013.

Wow! You had surgery at 159? I WISH I was 159! :-/

Before 266 after 217. I am losing super slow, but feel so much better

Here are another set of B&A photos

There's a whole bunch in a thread of its own!

I wish I would have done this years ago!

My NUT told me to eat around 900-1000 cals a day. I've lost 53 pounds since surgery 10/2. I have about 55-60 pounds to my goal. I started doing what my NUT said and the pounds started coming off again. I'm eating 5-6 meals a day and each meal weighs about 3oz each. She told me not to count cals and just measure and so far so good. I weigh 207.2

That's weird he didn't recommend Isopure. I like the isopure dutch chocolate powder and it has only 2g of carbs and 50g of Protein per serving. It's not as yummy as muscle milk but it taste way better than all the other that I've tried.

A struggle is a struggle regardless of when you're struggling
Not all of us were over weight or obese as children or even as young adults, but before surgery we were all unhealthy and not happy with it. It's a struggle we don't want to have the rest of our lives.