Not 100% certain

[PamelaAM 16]

I have finished my classes and am waiting for my surgical consult. As much as I would like to be 100% certain that I am going to do the surgery, in reality I'm not. I am such an emotional eater I am struggling with whether I can truly go through with this. I know I need to do something drastic because I have about 100 lbs to lose. I have tried it on my own and have never been successful.

How did you all get to the point that you were truly ready to make the final decision?

For the first couple of weeks after surgery, when you are on "clear liquids", what all is that comprised of?

Thanks in advance for your help. This is such a hard decision for me :-(

[MINI-Me 196]

For me, I had a friend with the sleeve. I watched her amazing transformation & just had to know more details. The more I researched, the more this surgery made sense to me. I was considered a "lightweight", but due to my family history & watching my sugar numbers increase, I knew what things would be in 3,5,10 years. It wasn't pretty.

Are there days that I wonder about all of this? Yes. Would I do it again if I could go back? Heck Yes!

If you've been through your classes, you know your options. Talk with your surgeon and get his thoughts. I know that once I met with my surgeon and heard his experiences/confidence, it gave me the confidence to make my decision.

As far as the clears. It was explained to me that it's any liquid you can see through (or partially see through like broth). Full clears are items that you can pour through a strainer - yogurt, sf pudding, etc. You will get exact information from your surgeon and/or nutritionist.

I know this is a hard and scary decision. Keep asking questions ... this board is awesome at helping you do your research.

Good luck on your decision!

[JulyBride 0]

I understand how you feel. I went to the informational meeting and everyone was all for jumping right into surgery and I was thinking, hold on, am I really going to let them cut my stomach off? But what pushed me over the edge was just sitting back and really thinking about all I have done to lose weight. I have done a 50 lbs yo-yo for years. I also have a lot to lose, 200 lbs. I realized that I have lost and gained that 50 lbs more times than I would like to count. The reality is in 10-15 years from now I will be in the same spot continuing to yo-yo and contemplating the same surgery but by then I will have a lot of health problems and the docs will be pushing it hard. So I can jump in now and have the rest of my life to be healthy or I can wait and live with this extra weight for another decade and still have to have the surgery. In the end you have to be secure in your decision but know that this forum is full of people who will support you and help you with any questions you have. Good luck and know that you are not alone! :thumbup:

[Jachut 487]

I remember that fear well before being banded. I had a vague unease about it all, and it eventually hit me that I feared not being able to eat. My thinking "I'll try to diet and this time I'll REALLY do it well" was really me wanting to leave myself an out so that I could overeat!

Before that point, I'd never actually seriously thought I got anything out of overeating other than I just liked food. I still dont know exactly what it is I got out of it, but at least I'd figured out I was dependent on it. From that realisation came the realisation that if I was ever going to lose weight and keep it off, my eating HAD to change that way anyway and I HAD to stick with it. Once I'd reasoned this, it was fairly easy to decide that I may as well make that process easier with surgery since I had to do it one way or another.

And just like everyone told me on the boards when I was panicking over the same thing, I've never ever ever looked back. Fact is (I have a band, not a sleeve but the principle remains the same) I enjoy food more than ever now that it doesnt control me, its not "dangerous", it doesnt make me fat etc. I still get pleasure out of eating, the way we are designed to, I just dont need to overeat to do it.

[bearwitme 1]

I am just starting the process for surgery(been comtemplating for a while) but physically I have been ready for quite some time. Mentally I was not. I kept telling myself "I'll start walking when the weather gets nice". Then it was some other time. Well the time has come that I am now both physically and mentally ready. I am tired of being tired. I am tired of constantly hurting. I am tired of not finding clothes to fit. I am tired of not being abled to things that I was able to do before. I was in the military and always in good shape. But always battled the weight. I had to exercise so much just to keep it off. So, married had a kid, body changed. At one point I lost 30 lbs but the battled to keep it off was painful. I guess I pretty much gave up. Well, quite a few years later I am ready to get my life back. I want to be able to do those things I was able to do. I am 56 years old, only 5' tall and I need to lose around 150lbs. I am doing this for me.

So, are you doing the right thing?? Only you can answer that question. Sit down and weigh out the pros and cons. You have to want to do this for you. For your health and for your future health. Talk to the doctors and the nutritionist. Maybe you need to see mental healh specialist to find out about the emotional eating.

I hope that you come to the decision that best suits you. Only YOU can make the decision. I wish you the best of luck. Hope to see you on the forums..

Connie

[AnneGG 0]

This has been a very helpful thread. I'm in the same boat, trying to make a decision. I'm pretty certain I'm going ahead with the sleeve if I'm approved for it both by my insurance and by my doctors. I won't know for another week, and I suspect the time waiting is going to go excruciatingly slowly.

It is a major step- it's hard to get my head around what I'm actually contemplating doing. But I have to think of my long term health. Losing weight on my own is so hard, and the thought of that struggle the rest of my life is awful.

The sleeve is also the only option I'm considering. I can't get a lap-band because of a huge hiatal hernia, and a bypass is just too much.

I wish both of us courage and clearheadedness!

[Stacy160 201]

All I can offer is that even at only 4 months out, life is so totally normal... the only difference is that it's SOOOOO much easier to not eat bad things, and that we eat so much less than before. There are too many good things to list!

As far as losing the stomach goes, what helped me was that I thought of my stomach as a toxic entity that needed to get out of my body. It made too much ghrelin, drove me to eat when I didn't need to, didn't tell me when I was full until I was stuffed so I was bloated and uncomfortable most of the time, and made me sick on a regular basis because of heartburn and reflux. Why would I miss that traitorous thing? Think of it as divorcing a cheating, abusive partner and move on to a healthy, productive life! You won't regret it. :thumbdown:

[AnneGG 0]

As far as losing the stomach goes, what helped me was that I thought of my stomach as a toxic entity that needed to get out of my body. It made too much ghrelin, drove me to eat when I didn't need to, didn't tell me when I was full until I was stuffed so I was bloated and uncomfortable most of the time, and made me sick on a regular basis because of heartburn and reflux. Why would I miss that traitorous thing? Think of it as divorcing a cheating, abusive partner and move on to a healthy, productive life! You won't regret it. :thumbdown:

Now that's a funny and useful way of thinking about the stomach!

Tiffykins on another thread was saying that for centuries people have lost their stomachs to cancer and other things, and gone on to live long, productive lives. That was also a helpful point of view.

[PamelaAM 16]

A huge thank you to ALL of you for your responses! You have no idea how good it felt to know that you are all out there. I know it is the best thing for me to do. And I really like the idea of "divorcing" my stomach. . .LOL! This board is amazing and I truly appreciate all of you taking the time to respond. I'm sure I will be back and a part of this fabulous group :-)

[Tiffykins 673]

Pamela, and any others out there reading this one. I just hit my 1 year post-op today, and believe me I thought for a fleeting moment that I was insane for losing 85% of my stomach. But, as that thought left my mind, the scariest thought entered my head. I thought about my life in 10, 15, 25, and 40 years. Where would I really be? Sitting at a solid 300lbs? Probably, and with co-morbidities to boot. I was 32 when I had surgery and was 270ls. I knew that life wasn't going to get easier, and the pounds weren't going to come off and stay off. It's drastic, but for me the alternative is dangerous.

My life is so normal now. Do I have bad days? You bet I do, but I don't know one single person on this Earth that doesn't have a bad day here and there. We all have issues, it's how we manage those issues.

You know your triggers, work on those, and let the sleeve work on. I promise it works, and you will be successful as long as you believe in yourself.

Mini- cleared up the clear liquid questions. And, every surgeon/nutritionist/program is different, just follow your post-op diet to the letter, and remember the post-op diet is only temporary. You will be able to enjoy your favorites at some point, it'll just be in smaller quantities. I promise

[PamelaAM 16]

Tiffykins, thank you so much. You seem to be such an incredible source of information and inspiration on this board. Thank you for being there for all of the rest of us. It means alot.