Hi Everyone,

I know precisely how you feel. I think it was June 2008 when I started to realize that having weight loss surgery was going to be my ONLY way to be successful. I had a friend who had weight loss surgery and I must have asked her a thousand questions about why she had WLS. She was very patient and kind and answered ALL my questions.

She is a Nurse Practitioner and I really did trust her judgment. I also was not sure about going to Mexico—now I know it was the best place I could have gone because I was a self-pay patient. Mexicali is a very safe plae to go. Their hospital has less infection rate than any USA hospital has. My insurance said NO way would they pay for WLS. My friend also encouraged me to do my own research, and also to ask other people questions—I did all those things.

I was so sick and tired of being fat and riding the roller coaster in my life of lose the weight to only gain in back over time. I felt like such a failure—what was wrong with me? You are sitting there right now thinking “oh my gosh that is where I am too!”

I am writing this to let you know that I had VGS aka the sleeve almost 4 years ago and lost 105 pounds. I have kept it off. So, this was my answer to never getting back on the roller coaster of lose it gain it back. I feel so great now!

The sleeve is not a magical cure, it does require you to make some lifestyle changes and it is ONLY a tool to allow you to reach your goal. You can maintain that weight loss. I never feel deprived when it comes to eating. I eat small amounts of food. YES, by all means I have a small amount of desert; I just don’t do it every day. I also learned sometimes just having a small bite of something satisfies my need to have it. It is amazing how we can change our lifestyle given the right tools. I eat and cook so different than I did as a “fat person.” Yes, I use the word fat because I was fat. I never want to go back to being fat. You have to have your head in the right place too if you want to be successful at this. You can NEVER go back to eating like you are doing now! It doesn’t just melt off you—sure it does the first couple of months, but it does require you to make good food choices and some exercise really does help. I walk everyday—well at least 6 days a week.

I am very prejudice because I went to Dr. Aceves in Mexicali, and I feel I got the very best care I could have ever received. He is an amazing man along with being a highly skilled surgeon. So I would have to say I highly recommend him. He has an extremely skilled staff of people that work with him. They are doctors and nurses who or very professional, but they also care about you as a person. They are all easy to talk to and will answer all your questions. They are great at always making sure you are comfortable too. They want you to be successful, and you receive all your care in a hospital—they never send you someplace else to recover. I have never received this kind of care in the USA. They have 2 doctors who came to see me at least 2 times a day, every day I was in the hospital! When was the last time you had this kind of care from doctors in a hospital?

If you are sitting out there trying to take that BIG step forward, please don’t give another day of your life away being obese and unhealthy. Be your own hero and take that BIG step forward and start making some plans to have weight loss surgery. You have a disease that is called obesity. If you had any other kind of disease you would do something about it right away.

There is NO shame in having weight loss surgery. It is going to save your life. If you have any questions that you want to ask me please feel free to contact me. If you don’t want to ask on the board my personal E-mail is: Suzannesh@aol.com I am more than happy to answer any and all your questions. You can be very successful at this, NEVER give up on your dreams of being healthy and at a healthy weight.

Hugs,

Suzanne

Suzanne! What a great and inspirational story! 4 years post op!!! That is the topic that's been on my mind a lot lately, that is; will this STILL work in a year? two? or even four? Thanks for reading my mind! Congratulations to you and your success!

Suzanne! What a great and inspirational story! 4 years post op!!! That is the topic that's been on my mind a lot lately, that is; will this STILL work in a year? two? or even four? Thanks for reading my mind! Congratulations to you and your success!

Hi,

I am glad you liked what I had to say. Don't wait until you quite working. You really only need about 10 days off and you can go right back to work. NEVER give another day of your life away waiting for the right time.

It is worth the effort it takes. I am always here if you have any questions or just want to talk about what it is like. I will always be honest and tell you the good and the bad side of thigs. I have NO regrets at all and I know it can change your entire life, it sure did mine!

Hugs,

Suzanne