I am trying to decide between the sleeve and the RNY. I know it is just a tool and we have to work at it. I am just afraid that the sleeve will not be enough for me due to my weight. i have more than 200 lbs to lose. More like 250. I am a self pay so I don't want to do something that will not be enough. I am goign to see the surgeon tomorrow to discuss it but would like feedback from those who might be in similar boat. Thanks in advance.

My sister in law weighed 430 and was sleeved about 1o months ago and is down to 265. She looks amazing!!!

That is great.

I started this post when I was looking into surgery so I thought i'd come back and update. I had the surgery in July and I'm down 95 lbs 5 months later. I wish I was losing a bit faster but I have not been as diligent with my protein/water/calories as others. Basically I have no desire to eat and I am never hungry. I've kind of been relishing in that feeling! I think it's amazing. However, I want to maximize my progress so I'm going to get back to being diligent about getting all protein in. This has been a true answer from God for me in my life!

Great job!

The first year is the easiest to lose in, the honeymoon, work it girl! Now is the time! Also, if you are not exercising, get to it... you will feel fantastic. Congrats on your 95! That is great.

LATE POST!!

IF YOU HAVEN'T DECIDED ALREADY I WOULD ABSOLUTELY SAY START WITH THE SLEEVE PERIOD!!!! LIKE SAID IN EARLIER REPLY YOU CAN ALWAYS GO BACK FOR THE COMPLETE RNY. I STARTED OFF AT 619LBS. NOW IM AT 375LBS. THIS INCLUDES THE DR. PRESCRIBED DIET, liquid DIET AND THEN THE SLEEVE SURGERY! IT IS POSSIBLE TO LOSE 250LBS. I HOPE THIS HELPS!!

I started at 444 and am now 301. I got my sleeve on May 19, 2011, it was hands down the best decision I ever made!

Boy, so many have said it so well. It does change life and kills the old life as well. I started at 407 lbs a year ago and I'm now at 209 lbs. A year ago, I could barely get up the stairs to my place with out losing my breath. I've just completed my first triathlon and first marathon in the last month. If you go into this knowing you need to make the change or your old lifestyle will kill you, you can accept anything thrown your way. It's not just a lifestyle change but getting your life back.

Hi Holly, I had my sleeve on 5th Dec 2011 and before it I weighed in at 483lbs... I am currently 428. I had the sleeve done as I was too big for the by-pass to be done safely. The surgeon said that i may still have to get the by-pass done if sufficient weight is not lost but I dont think I will need it. Hope whichever u decide goes well for you.

Hello, Well I hope to have my sleeve surgery in a few months I also starting at 410. I am an Officer riding around in a car all night. I know there will be a lots of hard work ahead

I loved reading through this thread today, seeing the old posts and looking at the signature tickers to see how successful people had been. And then to see Holly's update! So inspirational! Congrats to each and every one of you!

Well Jim once you have it done, you'll be glad you did. It will be the best thing I've ever done. I am so glad I had it done. I'll pray for you.

Hi everyone!

I am so happy to see how many of us started at such high weights and have been successful. This surgery has totally changed my life in so many ways. I started this thread and I remember still writing that first post. I was so hopeless. I felt nothing could help me. I thought the rest of my life would be spent in a constant state of hunger. It took me years to make up my mind to have the surgery but in the end it was the best decision of my life.

I have lost 125 lbs in the past 7 months. I post regularly on my blog about my experiences and I love to hear from others on this journey. It has helped me so much learning from others experiences!

Hi Holly, I know your post is older but I just noticed the 200+ forum today.

In deciding which procedure is going to help you, consider the reasons for your obesity (other than generic overeating/lack of exercise). That's a really important step in selecting the right procedure for you. Just the other day I had a really good conversation with another lady who has elected to get the RNY. We were talking about why. She (like me) was previously banded. Here's the gist of our conversation.

Me: did very well with the band, had no problems with a restrictive procedure. Enjoyed ownership of my weightloss. Enjoyed the flexibility of still being able to eat a scoop of ice cream if I wanted, and finding that I was full after that 1 scoop. Have numerous acquaintances with RNY and do not care for their standard of living (what I would call the long term health effects). Also do not care for their regain stats.

Her: did not do well with the band. Quickly found which foods she could "eat around" and did. Did not want to have to "work" at it, wanted it to be as auytomatic as possible. Did not trust herself with portion size or good food selections. Did not mind dumping if it meant she would quicky learn to avoid problem/trigger foods (hers were sweets).

Granted we're not talking about the band, but it is similar in that the sleeve is a restrictive tool. Some people experience select dumping, and maybe there's a teeny bit of malabsorption, but we still have everything we're supposed to have (just smaller) so it's not in the same league as RNY.

So I would suggest looking at what's hard for you. Are you a compliant person? Are you a quantity eater? Are you a behavioral or emotional eater? What kinds of foods are your trigger foods? How is your will power? How much flexibility can you manage, vs. how much will you need something to be more locked down? How much work do you want to put in, versus how much do you want to be a bit more automatic or "handed over"?

IT really is a tool, and you need the right tool for the job. Questions such as those should help you start figuring out which tool is right for you.

BTW, I weighed about 485 when I had my band. I got down to around 220 and was still dropping until I got knocked up & ultimately my bnad slipped (prolapse). So high weight losses are entirely possible with restrictive-only procedures. Statistics are statistics, and should serve as the generic benchmarks they are. I pimp-slapped them, and so can you.

I am trying to decide between the sleeve and the RNY. I know it is just a tool and we have to work at it. I am just afraid that the sleeve will not be enough for me due to my weight. i have more than 200 lbs to lose. More like 250. I am a self pay so I don't want to do something that will not be enough. I am goign to see the surgeon tomorrow to discuss it but would like feedback from those who might be in similar boat. Thanks in advance.

Wondering what you decided Holly. I had the sleeve 6/29/10 and currently have lost almost half of what I want to lose at 8 months. It might take me a total of 20 months but I feel sure I will get there this way.

I had the sleeve end of June and I'm 7 months out. I've lost 130 lbs so far and it was the best decision I ever made. I totally agree with the others it's one of the safest surgeries for those at the high end and as others have said can be part one of a DS if someone chooses to keep going. For me, it has been a life saving miracle!!!