Lilmz81

it's a tough one pre-surgery...should I, shouldn't I? Maybe I can do this on my own? And sometimes people can do it on their own. I did it off and on over the years..put on 50 lbs, took off 50 lbs, snuck up 50+, dropped maybe 20..and on it went over the years with the scale gradually climbing until at 58 I was up to 350. Sad...but the way it was.
I'm 5 weeks out from surgery and definately one of the lucky ones for post operative issues. I've had very little pain, energy has been fine. I went back to work part time in week three and full time in week four but certainly could have returned full time week 3. I have to be careful, obviously, but I have followed the instructions and am not regretting it for a minute.
Like Swanton_Bomb noted above, the stomach controls the volume (at least if one doesn't continually push it!) so when I get out of schedule and am really hungry (my bad for letting that happen!) I think I will be able to eat too much food as I am so hungry, but I just can't. After about 1/3 to 1/2 cup of whatever I've made, that's it, I'm done..I simply can't take in anymore.
So I'm absolutely thrilled I made the decision to do this. I look at people eating their dinners now and I am amazed at the volume being consumed and I calculate what I could actually have from these plates and how much..it's amazing how the mind changes your whole concept of food. At least it has for me.
Good luck on your journey!

I am also 5ft., and it is exceptionally hard to stay at a healthy weight at that height. We really can only handle small amounts of calories. This surgery is not easy. I am 6 weeks out and it has been tough, but I already feel like it is the best decision I've ever made. I had a really, really, really bad week, with something truly awful happening each day. Pre-surgery I would have consumed 3000-4000 calories on each one of those terrible days in an attempt to soothe myself. This time around I only had one of those days when I really wanted to cheat, and I couldn't really do any serious damage even if I tried. I wanted to overeat, but as soon as I started eating my dinner I realized I didn't want to overeat anymore. It has been extremely helpful for me and I hope it continues to do so.

I do not know if It is covered by insurance. But since it is usually performed on patients with a lower BMI, there is a possibility that it might be. When I had my Gastric Sleeve surgery (11/1), the surgeons office confirmed with my insurance ahead of time to make sure it was covered....Perhaps that is what you should do once you find a doctor that performs that procedure. Let us know what you find out. Good Luck!! and Happy Holidays :)

Found out that ESG is a relatively new procedure that is non-surgical. It's official name is Endoscopic Sleeve Gastroplasty. The surgeon does not remove any part of your stomach, but will use stitches to to reduce the size of the stomach. This is done endoscopically (spelling?) and the recovery time is much shorter than the VSG.

Endoscopic Sleeve Gastro, instead of being done laprascopically the way most WLS are done these days it is done with an endoscope, so it is done from the inside, there is a whole forum on Bariatric Pal, think two places they do it prominately are North Carolina, St Louis Missouri and I think maybe Colorado. But my friend LynnV had it done in the Cincinnati Ohio area. I think they reduce the size and surface area for food absorption with internal stitching, Lynn had a very quick recovery and is doing well. Often done for people around BMI 35 that maybe don't have enough co- morbs for traditional or just prefer the convenience of not having incisions in the skin to heal. Wouldn't have worked for me, I was pretty well mandated into a RnY bypass by my conditions.