WitchySar

That's how I see this too. Yes the surgery is going to be on my stomach but it's a drastic step and I have no desire to sabotage myself. Right now, today, what do I have stopping me from eating crap? Not a whole lot. It's been my entire life basically. But after surgery what will I have to stop me? I'll have the knowledge that I was committed and serious enough to alter my body to make it work. That's a pretty strong tool, IMO. I need a boost to my willpower and I see the surgery as being that tool.

The only time I've ever successfully lost weight was when I followed strict Atkins. I ate over 2500 calories a day on that diet and lost almost 150 lbs in a year. But I lacked the will power to STAY on it. I'm seeing surgery as being the tool I need to not start eating crap again. I'm certainly not going to sabotage myself after going to such extremes. But yes, I lack the will power myself to never eat crap again unless I have another tool in place.

You know what, you're right. I think I'm concerned that even eating better choices and in small amounts isn't going to be enough. I've been fat my entire life (weighed 100 lbs in first grade), it's hard to imagine that anything will ever change that.

And as I have said, I am fully committing to this. That means changing what I eat. How is that not understood? I was wondering if WLS would work when what I HAD EATEN (not do eat, but had eaten) was the cause of the gain. I am NOT going to continue eating the same. I see not point in saying this over and over.

My husband already knows we can't have junk in the house anymore. He's sad about it but supports me on it. My kids also don't need to eat junk so they'll survive the changes.

I'm going to say this again... I am fully committing to WLS. I am planning 100% to change what I'm eating (in fact already have) and will not sabotage the surgery. Sorry if I sound snippy but I feel like people aren't actually reading my words.

If you are truly staying overweight on "too few" calories. Weight loss surgery won't help you, you have something else going on. How many are too few? There are days when I struggle to even eat 1000 calories. My doctor in the past said for me to lose 1lb a week I should be eating between 2000-2400. Because of my thyroid I gain weight if I even LOOK at a carb. So eating a diet consisting of mainly carbs was causing me to gain weight. Not because of total calories but because of the type of calories.

I plan fully on committing to this. I never said I wasn't going to. I was asking if this can help when weight gain before was from eating crap vs eating large portions of everything.

Well I've been tracking my foods and I struggle to eat enough calories in a day. Even my thin husband comments on how little I eat. So it really isn't portion control I have a hard time with, just the choices. I know that after putting in all this work and pain to have surgery I'm not going to want to sabotage it so I think it'll help me make the better choices for what I need to eat. I just needed to hear from someone else that this really will help.

Mostly carbs. Things like chips, pasta, pizza. Sugar is delicious but I can stay away from it for months at a time without a problem really. I can't have the RNY because some meds I have to take can't be taken with it so I'll be going with the sleeve. I don't mind putting in work with will power but having a tool that makes it harder to eat those things would be nice.

I've seen several long lists of medications you have to avoid if you have gastric bypass but I haven't found a list for the sleeve. Is it the same? Specifically I'm worried because I have severe allergies, I have to take 3 allergy meds a day (zyrtec, claritin, and allegra) just to be able to leave my house, and my allergist told me to always have benedryl on hand in case of a severe reaction. Most of those meds were on the *do not take* lists I've found. This worries me. I'm planning on getting the sleeve though so hoping maybe there's a different set of med rules for this surgery.

My biggest sleep issue is a problem falling asleep, so not something related to apnea. If something wakes me up at night (like a cat jumping on my head, knock at the door, those kinds of things) then I have a hard time falling back asleep again. So no signs of apnea at all. I can't wait for my appointment next month so I can talk to the surgeon and it all.

Thank you for that list! This has confirmed for me that the sleeve is the way to go.

So you can have more meds with the sleeve?

I've heard some conflicting info and would like to hear from some people who have maybe gone through this. I know that some (most?) insurances require a medically supervised diet before surgery, usually about 6 months. I know mine does. The conflicting info I've heard though is regarding losing or gaining weight during that time. Some people I've heard from said they were told they couldn't get the surgery unless they lost weight on the diet, but I've also heard that if you gained weight on the diet it would make it more likely to get the surgery approved since it shows that regular diets don't work. I can see it both ways... one way they want to see proof that you can make changes and losing weight shows that, but the other way proves that regular diets don't work and the surgery is your best option. Maybe it depends on the insurance? I'm just concerned because I don't know what kind of diet the nutritionist is going to want to put me on. My primary is a strong advocate for going vegetarian but that makes me gain weight. The only way I've ever had luck losing weight is when I followed very strict low carb but I don't know if the nutritionist will agree to a low carb diet for me. Last time I saw a nutritionist was, oh god, almost 20 years ago and of course low fat low calorie was the suggestion. I've tried so many diets over the years, I gain weight on nearly all of them, even when following perfectly. Needless to say, I'm nervous about this. I talk to my primary tomorrow to start the ball rolling so I haven't seen a surgeon or nutritionist yet. Just was thinking about that tonight and figured I'd ask.

Some things I'm looking forward to: Being able to find clothes at local stores instead of having to order online. Not feeling like someone is stabbing my knees when I try to walk upstairs. Being able to sit on my husband's lap without worrying that I'll crush him. (He swears I won't but I'm terrified anyway). Horseback riding.

I've used mine to carry kittens before. LOL I used to store pens in there at a previous job. Often times I'd come home at the end of the day, take off my bra to air out the ladies and several pens would fall out from under my boobs.

Thanks, I've never heard of that test. I Googled it and took it. Comes up as low risk, as I suspected.

Well I chatted with a friend who had WLS, as well as her husband, and they didn't have to have sleep studies. So hopefully I won't either.

This has been an interesting thread for me. It really seems that the amount of pain is so individual. I've had three children, each all natural, no pain meds at all. Easy peasy. I had my gallbladder out laparoscopically and they had to give me dilaudid while in the hospital because I was in such pain. I was on oxycodone for almost 2 weeks after because the pain wouldn't go away. I literally couldn't stand up straight for over 2 weeks. Worst pain ever. I really really hope WLS doesn't hurt like that.

With my anxiety there is zero chance I will be able to sleep anywhere other than my own home, unless my husband is with me, and even then it's unlikely. And I freak out when anything is on my face, so no masks while sleeping for me. Not unless they are willing to knock me out first. I'm talking full on panic attack, hyperventilating, etc. Even with my last surgery they left the oxygen mask off my face until I was knocked out. I really hope they're willing to work with me on this. With my husband's schedule I normally don't go to bed until about 3:30 am, not even tired until then.

Ugh. I already have such a hard time sleeping. I've suffered with sleep troubles my entire life. My psychiatrist said it's related to my anxiety and bipolar. I also can not sleep AT ALL with anything on so I don't anticipate being able to complete a sleep study since they probably need me to actually sleep during it. *sigh* Because of side effects I don't take any sleep aids so no ambien for me. I know I'll have to figure something out, and will talk to the surgeon about my concerns as well since I'm sure he'll order one. My husband has told me that I only snore when I'm sick and horribly congested but that's pretty normal, and he says he's never seen or heard me stop breathing while sleeping, so I'm really not worried about sleep apnea. And I've already had surgery just last year and had no issues with not breathing during the surgery. I get that it may (most likely) be required but it just sucks. Not enough to stop me from pursuing WLS but still... bleh!

They can be done at home? I've always heard of people having to go into the sleep study center place. I could handle it if I'm at home. Maybe. I'm a terrible sleeper and having something attached to me would probably make me stay awake all night. I just had surgery last year, no problems with breathing but they probably won't take that as proof.

I decided to go with the dietitian at the surgeon's office instead of with my primary. The office said I could do them there since I'm out of town but after seeing how little my primary new about bariatric surgery requirements I decided against it. Last thing I want is for something to get documented wrong and then I'm pushed back another 6 months. I'm also definitely not going vegetarian. It's not a good choice for my body, especially since I have to stay away from anything with soy in it. Kinda limits me. As far as my primary goes I'm going to go on South Beach, but in reality I'll be doing closer to Atkin's since I'm familiar with it and have had good results on it.

Hi all. I'm pretty new here and just recently made the decision to pursue weight loss surgery. I've always been happy being a fat woman, I've never been thin, but I can't do it anymore. My tipping point was when we moved a few months ago. We moved into a second floor apartment. A few years ago that wouldn't have been a problem, but now I can barely manage to go up and down once a day. I have injured my ankles many MANY times in my life including breaking each of them thanks to being a complete klutz, and I injured my knee years ago when I was younger in a dancing accident and was told then I'd likely need surgery. Well it's 25 years later, no surgery because of my weight, and now I can barely move. I have three kids and can't take them anywhere, can't play with them, I'm in constant pain. I also have high blood pressure that my primary can't get under control despite me being on 3 different meds. I also have hashimoto's (a thyroid disorder) and chronic pain. Because of my thyroid problem it makes it even more likely that I'll develop diabetes. I know losing weight won't fix everything but it surely will help a lot. I haven't talked to my primary yet but I'm going to call tomorrow for an appointment. I would prefer to call a surgeon directly but I can't find any in my town. Well, google did find one place that offers mini gastric bypass but my research, and chatting with all my friends who've had the surgeries, has led me to wanting the vertical sleeve instead. So not sure how that's going to play out. If anyone knows of any weight loss surgeons in the southern Colorado area (preferably Pueblo) that take medicaid I'd LOVE to hear about them. I did have my gall bladder removed last year... is that going to cause a problem with having the surgery? I can't find info on that. At least my experience with that surgery has shown me that I can survive surgery, which is one of my biggest concerns. I know I'm rambling. I'm just excited to start the process and very nervous at the same time.