Hi All,

I am new to the board as of yesterday. I am still at the beginning stages of all this and have not even yet met with a Doctor. One of my concerns is that a Surgeon will deny me because of high bmi or very high risk. I am 480lbs and i am only 5'7 which puts my BMI in the mid 70's.

Thankfully at this time I have no health issues other than sleep apnea and arthritis.

I am concerned the Doc is going to want me to drop a lot of weight before will to do the Surgery. If I could drop the weight then I wouldn't need the surgery.

Thanks,

Jim

Every doctor is different. I would start by looking up a center of excellence in your area. You don't want just anyone operating on you especially with the high BMI. Understand that if a doctor recommends that you loose weight on a liquid diet prior to surgery it is because he wants to minimize your risk of complications and as with any surgery death is always a possibility. I don't say this to scare you but you just can't simply choose a doctor because he or she is willing to do anything. Many many many people here have to lose weight before surgery so it is possible, not impossible. This is not a magic bullet. It is all going to require a lot of effort. I know you can do it and I wish you lots of good luck .

Hi alicab,

You are right and once I re-read my post I understand your response. I am in no way seeking just any doctor who is willing to swing a scalpel at me. I found an actual weight management facility in my area which covers Soup to nuts. Meaning they hold information seminars. They have in house nutritionist, Psyche counselor as well as insurance specialist who can work direct with the surgeons and insurance companies.

One of the other main attractions is the Support groups they have for before, and after surgery.

I can lose weight without the surgery but it will take forever especially if we're talking a 100 or more. I am not looking for the lapband to be the "answer to my weight issues" I am simply looking at it as a tool to help give me a head start in the right direction and in combination with a good diet I should be able to get back down to a healthier weight.

thanks, Jim

Don't let the numbers get to you. There is a great chance that your doc will ask you to come down. This is only for your best interest. I wouldn't seek out a doctor that wouldn't tell me otherwise. Mine told me to lose aprox. 3olbs but I was only able to give him the 23. If I were you I would start cutting back on anything that I can so you can start to lose. Then when you have your visit you can let your doc know of the sacrifices that you already have made and find out if there are any others that need to be made. Good Luck and I hope to see you on the losing side!

Hello:

I was wondering why you chose the band as opposed to gastric bypass, which is sometimes better for people who have a significant amount of weight to lose. I do know that many people have chosen the band and been successful with it, I was just curious. I also know that the weight loss is a lot faster with the gastric bypass as opposed to the band. Had you ever considered it as an option?

Kay

Hi Jim,

Welcome to the forum.

My BMI was 60 when I first saw my doctor and I weighed 415 pounds (5'10). I think most surgeons will ask you to lose weight. My surgeon's office requires patients to be below 400. Please dont be discouraged if you do need to lose weight because you can do it. 5 years ago I lost 100 pounds in 9 months. That was just doing weight watchers and exercising. Of course I gained it all back. Losing weight is actually not the hardest part for me...its keeping if off.

I looked into bypass, but for me I didn't feel it was the right choice. I have a friend on another web site who is a guy (37y) who has lost 155 pounds since being banded about a year ago. He eats about 1100 calories a day and works out at least 5 days a week. So I know the band does work.

This is important for you and your life...persevere and do what you have to in order to accomplish your goal. I know it looks tough sometimes, but we are much stronger than we think we are!

Good Luck...if you have any questions about surgery or other stuff, dont hesitate to ask.

By the way...my BMI is now 51.6!

Welcome aboard Jim! I can only tell you what I know of.

My Surgeon was from a CENTER OF EXCELLENCE in BARIATRICS, and he was Chief Surgeon.

He would explain that if you were 600-700LBS., you would have to come down to 500LBS., because

that is how much weight the surgical table can hold...

I have seen people around 550LBS., with no legs do to Diabetes, and they are in Wheelchairs busting there BUTT

trying to get down to that 500LB. weight..

They would come in 1x a week, just to get weighed.

Trust me when I tell you they work hard in that chair trying to lose weight. Cutting Calories, Lifting Weights, what ever

it takes to get the weight off, so the surgeon can, and will do the work.

So get with a CENTER OF EXCELLENCE, look for a good surgeon (check him out) I went to 2 different surgeons,

and boy where they different ! So I made my choice. Also The University of Michigan recommended them. So that

worked for me.

You get the idea,, look around, it's your Health, Money, and Life. A good surgeon won't shy away, but don't be shocked

if your told to lo lose weight. If you choose to lose weight, then they see your serious.

Good Health to you, Shirley.

Hi All,

Thank you for the advice and the warm words of support. As with Jen above my biggest problem is keeping weight off. If the Doc says I need to lose a significant amount before a surgery then so be it. It will be done. It has to be done or I am going to die a young.

My Story

In early 2003 I stepped on the scale and it topped out at 393. It was at the time the most I have ever weighed in my life. It was also at a time where I was 'depressed' (really hate the word) a lot and at times didn't care much for life. I hated my job although I did it well and was well like by my boss. It was just a dead end job in my eyes. I was 36 years old and single with no love interest. I was at a pretty low point in my life.

I considered weight loss surgery many times and this was well before the Lap Band was really known about or popular. Only surgical weight loss surgery I knew about was hardcore surgery where they re-route your plumbing. This was not something I wanted. I heard to many horror stories surrounding this type surgery. My PCP had asked me if I had considered the surgery. He said he would back me all the way with documentation to get insurance approval.

I decided to take a different route...

Two friends I worked with approached me one day and dropped an Atkins low carb book on my desk and they convinced me to read it. I read it and didn't think it would work for me but I agreed to give it a try with them and we would form our own little support group.

It was not easy but from 5/2003 to 12/2004 I had dropped 174 pounds. I got on a plane for the first time in my life on 12/20/04 for a Disney World Christmas vacation with my family. I had never flown before but was told that the seating was very cramped....ya that was not a problem for this kid who weighed in at 219. I was not skinny given my height but damn I felt like I was on top of the world at the time.

So if your still reading this you must be saying 'OK what is so sad or pathetic about that story'. Well like the old saying goes when you lose weight on a diet and don't keep it in check you gain it all back and then some. Well for me that is very true and my then some turned out to be 87lbs.

If you did your math right you will figure out that I am now tipping the scale at 480lbs. In 6 years I managed to gain 261lbs. My 'depression' has not fully returned and that is mostly due to my very supportive and beautiful wife of 3 years. She deserves more, she deserves better. I often feel at times I cheated her by marrying her and then gaining all my weight back.

I have tried several times to get back on Atkins and get back the same motivation I had before but for some reason or another I just cannot seem to get it going or at least for any long period of time.

I guess the reason I want the lap band is to help motivate me and give me the edge I once had.

Sorry for rambling on....

Jim: A couple things here. First of all, Ithink it is safe to say that most of us have lost, and gained back more. Like you said Diets don't work... That alone is True. For some reason we again a lot of people on this site, have had this surgery. If you listen to your Dr., Keep up with the fills, stay on a weight loss program, Protein shakes and exercise, you will lose weight...

It's that easy, but ! ! ! It is a slow go... It took time to get to your current weight, it's going to take time to come off. But I know it is possible, ask Jen's opinion !

You have a GOLDEN Opportunity here. You have people on this site, that when you have questions, they can help answer them. FOR FREE ! and they would be glad to help you.

That includes me.

My highest weight was 356. I lost 155 lbs. when my surgeon deflated me by a mistake, I regained most of it back. At I think I was 328 when I said no more, it ain't happening again, so I went on 1200 calories a day, until i could find another surgeon to take me. I found a student of his, and the band was in beautiful shape, so he filled me, and were off and rolling again.

Once you take this off, you won't have to worry again. All the fills will help deaden your appetite, and limit what you can eat.

Go to myfitnesspal.com and look and view the diets that you will be a part of. A lot of us belong to this site, so check it out.

Hope this helps.

Shirley.