HashiHope121

I think you’ll be OK. I was happy to be alone & just rest after surgery. My surgeon sent a visiting nurse a few times, which made me feel safe. I slept in my bed but with some body pillows to help. I hear the medical lazy boy style chairs are awesome to sleep in & can be rented. I didn’t take the pain meds, I didn’t need them & the Constipation wasn’t worth it. As for standing, I don’t think you’ll need help but, I would slide off the couch or bed and stand from my knees. You can do this, it’s not bad. The dentist is worse IMHO. Good luck!

Hey there! I started with a lower BMI and had lots of success! I am 5’ 5”, started at 209. Within 6mo I was WNL and a year later I was about 145lbs & am happily staying there.

I have actually heard that lower BMI (30-35) has more long term success with the sleeve, in part because folks at that level tend to not have as many food addiction or unhealthy habits. There are some studies going on to demonstrate the success of lower BMI folks, with the hope that eventually insurance will cover lower BMIs more often. (I just eeked in at BMI of 35 at my highest- may have purposefully gained a few to do it.)

IMHO the trick is to track what you eat and have a balanced diet (not another low carb, highly processed fad nonsense diet that’s just going to fail long term.)

So, yes! Lower BMI patients absolutely have a ton of success. And potentially have greater long term success. So go for it! You will do great.

Hey there! I started with a lower BMI and had lots of success! I am 5’ 5”, started at 209. Within 6mo I was WNL and a year later I was about 145lbs & am happily staying there.

I have actually heard that lower BMI (30-35) has more long term success with the sleeve, in part because folks at that level tend to not have as many food addiction or unhealthy habits. There are some studies going on to demonstrate the success of lower BMI folks, with the hope that eventually insurance will cover lower BMIs more often. (I just eeked in at BMI of 35 at my highest- may have purposefully gained a few to do it.)

IMHO the trick is to track what you eat and have a balanced diet (not another low carb, highly processed fad nonsense diet that’s just going to fail long term.)

So, yes! Lower BMI patients absolutely have a ton of success. And potentially have greater long term success. So go for it! You will do great.

Yep! No problem, I would have been bored otherwise. I was actually on an important project with HQ at the time and I don’t think anyone noticed. I went back to work 2 days after surgery, working from home. It was totally fine.

My team/ Dietician is VERY balanced. Nothing is off limits. They only stress to hit your Protein and fluid goals before eating other things.
Some days I eat 150g carbs and some days I eat 30g carbs. Just how it works out, not with any extra efforts.

Most insurance won't pay since typically they use a BMI of 35 with comorbidities, or 40 with no comorbidities as their cut-off.
If you're self pay, there should be more options open to you. I do think a lot of those tend to use a BMI of 30 as their cut off, but I'm no expert there. Your best option might be to talk to a few different clinics about what they can do for you.

Hey there! I started with a lower BMI and had lots of success! I am 5’ 5”, started at 209. Within 6mo I was WNL and a year later I was about 145lbs & am happily staying there.

I have actually heard that lower BMI (30-35) has more long term success with the sleeve, in part because folks at that level tend to not have as many food addiction or unhealthy habits. There are some studies going on to demonstrate the success of lower BMI folks, with the hope that eventually insurance will cover lower BMIs more often. (I just eeked in at BMI of 35 at my highest- may have purposefully gained a few to do it.)

IMHO the trick is to track what you eat and have a balanced diet (not another low carb, highly processed fad nonsense diet that’s just going to fail long term.)

So, yes! Lower BMI patients absolutely have a ton of success. And potentially have greater long term success. So go for it! You will do great.

Hey there! I started with a lower BMI and had lots of success! I am 5’ 5”, started at 209. Within 6mo I was WNL and a year later I was about 145lbs & am happily staying there.

I have actually heard that lower BMI (30-35) has more long term success with the sleeve, in part because folks at that level tend to not have as many food addiction or unhealthy habits. There are some studies going on to demonstrate the success of lower BMI folks, with the hope that eventually insurance will cover lower BMIs more often. (I just eeked in at BMI of 35 at my highest- may have purposefully gained a few to do it.)

IMHO the trick is to track what you eat and have a balanced diet (not another low carb, highly processed fad nonsense diet that’s just going to fail long term.)

So, yes! Lower BMI patients absolutely have a ton of success. And potentially have greater long term success. So go for it! You will do great.

Like some of you I was lower BMI. I was healthy but I had struggled for 10 years, my deciding point was when I realized that I didn’t want to suffer for another 10 years and then get the surgery. It was the best thing I have ever done for myself & recommend it to anyone struggling. Good luck!

Hey there! I started with a lower BMI and had lots of success! I am 5’ 5”, started at 209. Within 6mo I was WNL and a year later I was about 145lbs & am happily staying there.

I have actually heard that lower BMI (30-35) has more long term success with the sleeve, in part because folks at that level tend to not have as many food addiction or unhealthy habits. There are some studies going on to demonstrate the success of lower BMI folks, with the hope that eventually insurance will cover lower BMIs more often. (I just eeked in at BMI of 35 at my highest- may have purposefully gained a few to do it.)

IMHO the trick is to track what you eat and have a balanced diet (not another low carb, highly processed fad nonsense diet that’s just going to fail long term.)

So, yes! Lower BMI patients absolutely have a ton of success. And potentially have greater long term success. So go for it! You will do great.

Yep! No problem, I would have been bored otherwise. I was actually on an important project with HQ at the time and I don’t think anyone noticed. I went back to work 2 days after surgery, working from home. It was totally fine.

Like some of you I was lower BMI. I was healthy but I had struggled for 10 years, my deciding point was when I realized that I didn’t want to suffer for another 10 years and then get the surgery. It was the best thing I have ever done for myself & recommend it to anyone struggling. Good luck!

Yep! No problem, I would have been bored otherwise. I was actually on an important project with HQ at the time and I don’t think anyone noticed. I went back to work 2 days after surgery, working from home. It was totally fine.

It’s all about what you eat that will determine if you can feel your restriction. If you eat slider foods - then you can definitely over eat.
if you eat chicken - I guarantee you can’t over eat. I’m 15 months p.o. and the restriction is definitely still there. I always focus on Protein first.

You should call your insurance company and get clarification on what the requirements are. My insurance was 35 with at least one co-morbidity (I was diagnosed with sleep apnea in my pre op sleep study) or over 40 w/o any co-morbidities. At time of surgery my BMI was 41. A agree with a previous poster...check your height. I had always been 5-'5'" but turns out I was 5'-3.5". Since everything was virtual until time of surgery I just rounded down to 5'-3".

Hi Bluemoon, no I don’t mind saying. It was $25K at Cleveland Clinic (CC), including all the pre- and post-op nutrition, psych, etc. appointments. I could have found a cheaper place, I know, but I had had a heart valve replaced at CC two years earlier, and just felt comfortable there. I had initially gone to CC looking to get a gastric balloon, but the surgeon said they didn’t do those any more there. He recommended a sleeve or bypass (I hadn’t realized that was an option, even as self-pay), and the rest is history. Worth it? Absolutely! Wish I’d done it years earlier!

Hey there! I started with a lower BMI and had lots of success! I am 5’ 5”, started at 209. Within 6mo I was WNL and a year later I was about 145lbs & am happily staying there.

I have actually heard that lower BMI (30-35) has more long term success with the sleeve, in part because folks at that level tend to not have as many food addiction or unhealthy habits. There are some studies going on to demonstrate the success of lower BMI folks, with the hope that eventually insurance will cover lower BMIs more often. (I just eeked in at BMI of 35 at my highest- may have purposefully gained a few to do it.)

IMHO the trick is to track what you eat and have a balanced diet (not another low carb, highly processed fad nonsense diet that’s just going to fail long term.)

So, yes! Lower BMI patients absolutely have a ton of success. And potentially have greater long term success. So go for it! You will do great.

How low is low? How tall are you & what’s your BMI?
I was 200lbs but at only 5’3 my BMI was 35. I lost all my weight and more. Got to my goal in 6 months & lost another 11+kgs over the next 11 months or so. I maintained at about 49kgs for a year. I put on 2kgs in a month because of a necessary dietary change & a change of a med & have been sitting at about that 51kg for almost 10 months
There have been posters here who started with BMIs of less than 35 & had the surgery because of existing health issues & they were able to lose weight.
The main difference between people with higher starting weights & those with lower is that those at a higher weigh lose more quickly at first. But their rate of loss slow as they lose weight just like everyone else.
Recovery is an individual thing - just how your body reacts to the surgery & heals. Nothing really to do with your weight as such but existing health factors may influence your recovery. Some people who carry a lot of weight in their abdominal area sometimes struggle with more discomfort when getting up & down & generally moving as the weight around their tummy pulls at the internal & external surgical sites. A binder is often helpful as it supports the tummy & abdominal muscles.

What has been your experience with going into surgery with a weight of 205lbs or under? My starting weight was 220 but I've lost 15 pounds pre op. I've heard people smaller will not loose any weight. Going into surgery smaller what is the recovery like?

(I am doing this surgery because I've tried everything to loose weight and live a better lifestyle)

I'm also interested to hear other low BMI weight loss surgery experiences! I am having VSG in 6 days and my starting weight (before liquid diet) is also 205.

I'm 66 and tired of taking meds for diabetes, high blood pressure (that never seems to go down) and thyroid issues brought on by the various meds for diabetes. I'm a 35 BMI , so on the low end but assorted diets and exercise never seemed to work. Hoping that the sleeve helps reduce the weight (245) and allows me to possibly drop some if not all of my meds.

I was a lower BMI to start but only because I had basically been on a never ending diet for years. Just because of the portions of what I ate (even when it was nutritious food) I was gaining like ten pounds a year). Well my knees were starting to hurt when I exercised and I just knew that within a year or two when I weighed even more it was going to hurt that much more and make it impossible to exercise making me gain even more weight. I could see it snowballing and I decided to do something before it got out of control.

I think you’ll be OK. I was happy to be alone & just rest after surgery. My surgeon sent a visiting nurse a few times, which made me feel safe. I slept in my bed but with some body pillows to help. I hear the medical lazy boy style chairs are awesome to sleep in & can be rented. I didn’t take the pain meds, I didn’t need them & the Constipation wasn’t worth it. As for standing, I don’t think you’ll need help but, I would slide off the couch or bed and stand from my knees. You can do this, it’s not bad. The dentist is worse IMHO. Good luck!

I think you’ll be OK. I was happy to be alone & just rest after surgery. My surgeon sent a visiting nurse a few times, which made me feel safe. I slept in my bed but with some body pillows to help. I hear the medical lazy boy style chairs are awesome to sleep in & can be rented. I didn’t take the pain meds, I didn’t need them & the Constipation wasn’t worth it. As for standing, I don’t think you’ll need help but, I would slide off the couch or bed and stand from my knees. You can do this, it’s not bad. The dentist is worse IMHO. Good luck!

I was alone. I had someone take me and take me home, other than that....I slept a lot. It is an easy surgery--(I have had several, so I consider myself an expert, LOL) I have kids, but an hour away. Eat the way you are supposed to, take the pain meds, make sure you have something for nausea.