It's funny there are people from all different circumstances and walks of life on this website. Some people whose highest weight isnt even as high as I am with 64 lbs lost and people who are 200lbs or more above where I am now.

I also think it's interesting that there are people with no comorbities, tons of comorbidities, ppl who converted from sleeve to VSG etc

so my question is what made you choose this, ultimately???

I can say that at 33 and weighing 343 lbs, I had always been relatively healthy, even though I'd been overweight my entire life. And even though I was always big, I was comfortable at 250lbs...still pretty active etc. But i think 350 was my fear...the closer I got to that, the more I realized I had to put a stop to this.

Also some weight-related illness in family and the death of a family friend was a wake up call. I remember my aunt's ex boyfriend who was always overweight died of a heart attack last year, and she called me and begged me to lose weight. She told me to do what ever was necessary...and the irony is we were both named Sam. I remember i ended the conversation in tears, and thats when i resolved that no matter how afraid I was that I was more afraid to do nothing and die.

Ultimately, my dad died of a massive heart attack when I was 10, and my mom died of an anyurism to the brain from a clogged aorta when I was like 20 I guess. The rest of the family is also gone, except one aunt who is still alive amazingly, and that is cause she kept herself thin. Anyway, theres more...and I have one and a half feet in the grave at this time, soooooo, the surgeons r telling me the sleeve will save my life. I cant see how this is possible, and am deathly afraid to undergo this, but im taking the risk. I was scheduled for June 13th, but they've postponed it now till the 1st wk of July.

OMG. {{{Ursie}}} Your story really touched me. I totally hope the sleeve is just the ticket for you. Truly.

I have been one of those who have gained and lost hundreds of pounds over the years. I have always carried myself with my head held high and owned any room I walked into. I am an instructor, so I HAVE to own the room, no matter what I look or feel like.

For the last year or so, I have been traveling overseas for my job. We have visited several places in the Balkans. I was not prepared for the smaller seats on the local planes. They are literally made of metal all the way up to the waist, so I had to squeeze and mold myself into one, completely unable to buckle the seat belt. The flight attendants, lovely, thin blonde girls, looked me up and down as I headed down the aisle with my bag and laughed out loud at my girth. I was so ashamed - but continued to hold my head high.

A few months later, when we traveled as a team, I sat next to one of my coworkers. Of course, my shoulders were spilling over into her seat and she leaned forward to get some room to be comfortable.

The worst moment by far was walking to the grocery store (about 1/2 mile) near our hotel. We passed by a school and the children all pointed and laughed at me because I was literally the largest person in the town.

The woman in that particular country are so thin they are nearly transparent. We stayed longer than the 3 weeks that were originally intended and winter turned to spring. I had only packed long sleeves and sweaters and was a little uncomfortable. I found out through our interpreter that there were no clothes in the city large enough to fit me (size 24). I nearly cried.

All my life, I have been called fat, even when I weighed 155 lbs. I was raised to believe that the more you give in and show your fears (and/or tears), the more you give mean people a foothold on your life. So, I have always internalized what I feel; hence, I EAT my feelings.

In October 2010, I looked into my insurance and found that weight loss surgery is indeed covered. That was my green light.

I knew that the band would likely not be very successful for me at 310 pounds and I was a bit afraid of the bypass and all that internal rerouting. So when I found out about the sleeve, I was overjoyed. It was a happy medium and my surgeon agreed.

I was sleeved on 23 May 2011. I go in for my first follow up appointment on 02 June and will update with results. But, so far, so good. No major complications (a little infection at an incision site, easily cured) and the soreness gets better daily.

I would say to all those thinking about having the surgery, you know your body and how dedicated you have been at various attempts to lose weight. If they haven't worked and you are considering WLS, PLEASE, do your research so you can make an informed decision.

HOWEVER, do not let anyone talk you out of what you know is best for you. I have only told my brother and his wife and a couple friends who I knew would 100% support my decision. I am NOT ashamed of what I've done, but I do not waste words on others about the decisions that I make for my own life. It's not their business or place to have an opinion, especially since they don't walk in my skin and endure my high blood pressure, hemorrhoids, aching knees, bad back or humiliating stares.

Handle your business and take care of yourself. You only get one life and one body. Adore YOURSELF enough to make a change.

The woman in that particular country are so thin they are nearly transparent. We stayed longer than the 3 weeks that were originally intended and winter turned to spring. I had only packed long sleeves and sweaters and was a little uncomfortable. I found out through our interpreter that there were no clothes in the city large enough to fit me (size 24). I nearly cried.

Man, I can only imagine. I spent a few months in Russia back in the 90s, and at the time, I was only like 40 lb overweight. But I was huge compared to most of the women there. The middle-aged women and babuschkas were *fascinated* by me -- they wanted to know how I'd done it, they wanted their own kids to be fatter, they saw it as healthier. It was a very weird experience to be the biggest person everywhere I went, and only be in a size 16 or 18 misses. But yeah, the younger women were soooo thin, and I just felt like a monster walking around. Sigh.

You have a ton of courage and moxie, I like that about you.

Thank you so much!

Man, I can only imagine. I spent a few months in Russia back in the 90s, and at the time, I was only like 40 lb overweight. But I was huge compared to most of the women there. The middle-aged women and babuschkas were *fascinated* by me -- they wanted to know how I'd done it, they wanted their own kids to be fatter, they saw it as healthier. It was a very weird experience to be the biggest person everywhere I went, and only be in a size 16 or 18 misses. But yeah, the younger women were soooo thin, and I just felt like a monster walking around. Sigh.

You have a ton of courage and moxie, I like that about you.

This whole thread is just wonderful, I've read through it twice already.

A couple of things really spurred me on -- getting diagnosed and put on meds for hypertension, which doesn't run in my family so it was all on me. Wow, that made me feel old and fat and on the beginning of a decline. And I've also been watching a friend have all kinds of awful experiences with diabetes (also not in my family...yet?) and it scared the crap out of me.

However, I think the thing that actually finally made me say YES I'm doing surgery was learning about the sleeve. It's the first one that made sense to me, though I'd toyed with the idea of GBS before, there was no way I could go through with it. The sleeve procedure itself was like a lightbulb moment for me, it just clicked. It's been a great experience so far, I would do it again in a heartbeat.

same here

it is so heart-warming to hear everyone's stories....it's funny how although they are similar, they are still so personal.

We are all gonna do it!

Ursie I am praying for you that all goes well and the sleeve works for you

Thank u kindly Swizzly. I really hope Im making the right decision, cause im terrified all the way around, but I feel I really need to do something, and hopefully this will be a start....maybe....., but thx again! Keep up the good work...

OMG. {{{Ursie}}} Your story really touched me. I totally hope the sleeve is just the ticket for you. Truly.

THANK YOU SOOOOOO MUCH SAMANTHA I need all the prayers I can get. Im just hoping to make it through it first! .....but thank u

it is so heart-warming to hear everyone's stories....it's funny how although they are similar, they are still so personal.

We are all gonna do it!

Ursie I am praying for you that all goes well and the sleeve works for you

My best friend got brain cancer, and the stress triggered Atrial Fibrulation in me. I started getting more co-morbidities...after starting drugs to treat them, my 20 year high, 257, was no longer the high. My arthritis was getting in the way of my exercise practices going forward.... Enough was enough, I was falling apart. I started looking into WLS. So glad I did!

I will be 40 years old this year and weigh 273.6lbs. I'm the fattest person I know. Sometimes I cry when I get dressed because I don't want to go out of the house looking like this and have people see me. Sometimes I make excuses just to stay home. I'm always the biggest person in the room. I've never had an opportunity to be the girl that men look at and say "wow". I don't take pictures with my family. I'm embarrassed to stand next to my great looking husband because I know what people are thinking. It's time for a change.