Ronee

My name is Sharon (Ronee) and I am 58 years old. Married and live in KCMO. I have approval through Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois for my bariatric surgery, however I switched surgeons, so I am now having to meet the requirements of a new group, before being scheduled. Have to admit to a little bit of nervousness about the whole thing, wondering if it really is the right thing to do. Maybe I am just having cold feet....Sharon

I've been struggling with hunger too.
Are you getting enough Protein? Getting in 60+ gr/day will help with the hunger. But it may not eliminate it Also having 3 planned meals and 2 Protein based snacks/day might help.
Antacids &/or PPI's may - or may not - help as well.
This may help too; it's a cut/paste from a similar comment. The first part is someone else's response to a comment similar to yours. My response starts with "I'm going to have to disagree......"
I am not hungry. You will not be hungry as they remove the part of the stomach that stimulates hunger. What most experience is head hunger, the wanting of foods. What I have also posted is that having an empty stomach is not hunger. As a fat person we are always filling our stomachs so as not to feel this empty. This will be something you will experience. Water will always fill you up so it is a good way to make sure you get your Water intake daily.
I'm going to have to disagree. I know the difference between head hunger & "real" hunger. I, for one, am not looking to fill myself up with anything. In fact, my stomach physically feels hungry even though I do not feel like eating and there is nothing I'm craving, etc. I drink at least 70 oz per day so I know water doesn't "always fill you up."
According to the PA/NUT at my surgeon's office, hunger is in part caused by hormones and it can take some of us longer to achieve a hormone reset than it does others. The hunger is REAL and to always call it "head hunger" is to minimize a true, real, physical condition that some of us feel - and may feel for many long weeks post-surgery. There are some that may always feel hungry (I pray I'm not one of them!). Additionally, (having just called to ask the PA the question - there is not one part or another of the stomach itself that stimulates hunger so there's not a way to "remove the part of the stomach that causes hunger.").
It's also not always a case of acids in the stomach being misinterpreted for hunger, as verified by the PA/NUT. I'm taking an antacid & a PPI daily and this doens't negate the hunger.
While it's awesome that most people don't feel hungry, and yes, SOME people will sometimes experience "head hunger," but some of us feel "real" hunger and can only hope that the hormones (ghrelin in particular seems to be a primary culprit), etc. will reset soon.

Sorry, I was a little off topic, with the start of this thread, but I had to come back and respond to that portion too. I tell everyone about it. I am proud I have made this decision for myself and I figure that when I start losing weight people will notice (I hope!! ) and I will tell them anyway.Other than my family, I don't care what people think about it, as their opinion doesn't factor into what I do. I feel empowered by being in my fifties with all the self knowledge that this age has given me and I want to tell everyone!! Sharon kcmo

I had this surgery so I will be around to see my granddaughter grow up. Not to impress anyone, just to be healthy. In our 50's it's hard to "just" diet it off. This sleeve is the tool I needed to help drop the weight & a second chance to live my life right. Not going to stretch the sleeve like I did my old stomach!

Most of the people I know who've had this surgery are young - in their twenties and thirties. I've had people ask me why I would do this at age 57. Why not just see if I could diet if off?
A young woman I work with wanted to know if I was doing this so I could look slim and "hot" and why would someone my age worry about that? LOL
I did this mostly for my health. I have high blood pressure, high cholesterol and am pre-diabetic. I would by lying if I said that I am not interested in looking good, too.
I'm single and, yes, even "old" men in their 50s and 60s want an attractive (slim) girlfriend.
Thoughts from the 50 something members?

Ronie, you are doing the right thing. You are just having cold feet at the moment. I was sleeved on 4/10 and I'm doing great. I'm not saying that it is easy, but the sleeve is just one more tool to use to lose weight. This site is a God-sent. It has calmed a lot of my concerns and I know that I am not alone in this journey.
It's also good to have a forum for us older folks. We tend to lose weight slower than the 20-30 yr olds! Let us know when you are having your surgery and we will be there to support you.

Hi, My name is Sharon and I live in the Kansas City area. I am 58 years old, married and have been overweight for 20 years. My journey toward bariatric surgery started about a year ago when I started and failed, yet again, another diet. I work in the healthcare field as a medical coder, and I knew about bariatric surgeries, having coded some of them in a local hospital, but I had always told myself that surgery would be the last resort for me. I realized that I had reached that final place, for me, another diet was not an option. I researched lap band and proceeded to the point of being scheduled for lap band surgery. But something didn't feel right about this decision for me. I had had my gallbladder removed about twelve years ago, and as a result I burp alot after I eat and continue to have GERD. I was terrified that I would not be able to relieve the stomach gas and would have a problem with acid reflux, with the lap band. I cancelled the lap band surgery and knew immediately that I had made the right choice for me. I attended another bariatric surgery seminar with a different surgeon and this seminar changed how I felt about everything. As soon as the surgeon started talking about VSG, I knew this was the right path for me. Finally, I felt confident about my decision and once again I am on the correct course for me. I have my first surgical consult tomorrow and hope to be able to get scheduled for surgery soon. I have joined this website as a way to track my progress and share the journey. Sharon

Hi, My name is Sharon and I live in the Kansas City area. I am 58 years old, married and have been overweight for 20 years. My journey toward bariatric surgery started about a year ago when I started and failed, yet again, another diet. I work in the healthcare field as a medical coder, and I knew about bariatric surgeries, having coded some of them in a local hospital, but I had always told myself that surgery would be the last resort for me. I realized that I had reached that final place, for me, another diet was not an option. I researched lap band and proceeded to the point of being scheduled for lap band surgery. But something didn't feel right about this decision for me. I had had my gallbladder removed about twelve years ago, and as a result I burp alot after I eat and continue to have GERD. I was terrified that I would not be able to relieve the stomach gas and would have a problem with acid reflux, with the lap band. I cancelled the lap band surgery and knew immediately that I had made the right choice for me. I attended another bariatric surgery seminar with a different surgeon and this seminar changed how I felt about everything. As soon as the surgeon started talking about VSG, I knew this was the right path for me. Finally, I felt confident about my decision and once again I am on the correct course for me. I have my first surgical consult tomorrow and hope to be able to get scheduled for surgery soon. I have joined this website as a way to track my progress and share the journey. Sharon