I'm hoping for surgery in February. I know this is the right step - it's the only thing I HAVEN'T tried to lose weight!! But the nagging thought in my mind is what's different this time? I've read so many posts and the answer is always "stick to the diet and exercise and you'll lose the weight". Isn't that true of every diet we've ever tried? I just can't wrap my mind around how this will be different. I know this is not the easy way - but my question is this - is it easiER (emphasis on er) than all those other diets we tried and failed at? Is it harder? I've hated every diet I've ever tried - am I setting myself up for a lifetime of hating this one too? Would love to hear from some experienced sleevers on this topic....

In the hundreds of diets I tried and re-tried over the years I always failed because I would always go "off program" when I got sick of starving and go back to my old eating habits. I was either off or on, no matter how hard I tried to see it as a life style change. I had the gastric sleeve done on Sept. 17th and the main difference is my portions and appetite. I eat WAY less and stop because I am full not because I reached my 1/2 cup portion the book told me I could have. ALSO, I am not starving all the time like I was before. I don't miss food I don't want food. I eat a small bit and I am happy and I go on. It is like the food obsession is gone. If we order pizza, I eat a very small piece of thin crust and I am done. Before I would eat 4 slices. The surgery is not a diet program at all, it is the tool that makes food controlable.

For me this has been the easiest way to lose weight. Much easier than all of the diets I tried and failed. I didn't have complications and recovery was easy for me. Mentally, it was hard and still is but being obese was much harder mentally than this is. I would never say that surgery is an easy way out, it's not, but like I said it has been the easiest way to lose the weight. I might also add that when I decided to have surgery I knew that it would work. There was never a question in my mind. I had tried everything else for years and was sick and tired of being obese. I knew that I would have this surgery and would do what it takes to make the changes for life.

it is different !! I am proof. The beginning is rough, no doubt. There is built in self control. I do eat "normal" I eat 1600-2000 cals a day and I have maintained for 8 months now. I don't stick to 'the plan" per se... but I do make sure I get enough protein and don't go wild. Its easier post op- you feel satisfied so easily. Instead of eating 6 slices of pizza I have 1, maybe 1 and 1/2 if I want. (bam- saves me hundreds if not thousands of calories) Also I should add there has never been at time that I have made a "goal weight" ever (before my sleeve, that is) So there is a lot of motivation to NOT fail, to NOT gain weight back) I don't want to be that girl that gains the weight back- it would be horrifying. that is a huge motivator.

I just read the rest of your post, it is easier to lose weight with the sleeve. I get full on small, tiny amounts of food. I am not starving and thinking about food 24/7 and for me that makes losing weight easier, faster, just better! I could not have lost weight without the surgery. It does not come off as fast as I thought it would but I am losing, not gaining and that is a plus. I would suggest it to anyone!

What is different is it is virtually impossible to overeat - yes there are certain slider foods that we all can get in a bit more of than normal - but I keep a close eye on that practice. I am as interested in changing my body chemistry and its reaction to nutrients (i.e. very limited processed carbs, high Protein, Fiber,etc.) as I am in losing my excess weight.

Honestly - I am not as hungry now, yes i do feel hunger but I cannot use food the way that I did pre-surgery AT ALL. It would simply be physically impossible.

After going through a year of prep - laying on the table and having most of your stomach surgically removed - well that seems to do something big to change one's mindset At least it did for myself and my dear husband. You experience success so rapidly that it is almost unthinkable to turn your back on yourself again, after this commitment. My husband said it well the other night (he also had a vsg and is down 130+ since May) - that it is a relief to not always be thinking about when my next meal is and if I will get enough in.

I quit smoking after 28 years of 1-2 packs a day, this feels like the same kind of freedom.

I never thought I would beat this - ever.

Now I am - slowly but surely. And it s a darned good tool that is permanent.

It is a transformational tool - it is night and day from pre-surgery to our lives post.

I've been wrestling with this a little too. I mean, why not try HMR (an 800 calorie diet) without the surgery? If I'm willing to change my diet drastically, why do I need the surgery too? That's what I'm asking myself anyways.

Here's the conclusions I came to. I need to lose 130lbs. I can probably do Atkins or HMR or something for 6 months an lose a lot of weight, but I won't lose as much as I will with the surgery, and at some point I'm going to get tired of the diet. I'm pretty confident that I won't gain it all back, but I would gain some. I'm counting on the surgery to help the diet be more successful, and to help keep the weight off.

In some ways its frustrating, because I really don't have a lot of hang-ups regarding eating. I feel like if I could just lose the weight I have, then I could keep it off without the surgical help. Unfortunately, losing such a large amount of weight with just dietary changes is not realistic.

The biggest point here I would like to stress is that you have the inability to ever eat large amounts of food again. You also get very full on very small amounts of food. Now I am not at my goal weight but I do assume that in the months to come they say you can eat more(yes like 1/4 - 1/2 cup more). This is the magnificent tool to help you reduce your food intake for life and help you shed those pounds. Totally not doable in my opinion without it. I will always be thankful for what the sleeve has enabled me to do.

I've been wrestling with this a little too. I mean, why not try HMR (an 800 calorie diet) without the surgery? If I'm willing to change my diet drastically, why do I need the surgery too? That's what I'm asking myself anyways.

Here's the conclusions I came to. I need to lose 130lbs. I can probably do Atkins or HMR or something for 6 months an lose a lot of weight, but I won't lose as much as I will with the surgery, and at some point I'm going to get tired of the diet. I'm pretty confident that I won't gain it all back, but I would gain some. I'm counting on the surgery to help the diet be more successful, and to help keep the weight off.

In some ways its frustrating, because I really don't have a lot of hang-ups regarding eating. I feel like if I could just lose the weight I have, then I could keep it off without the surgical help. Unfortunately, losing such a large amount of weight with just dietary changes is not realistic.

Exactly! For me, though, I've been close to goal and gained everything back plus double! I know if I don't have a permanent solution that restricts what I eat that I'll gain it back again and again. I'm just having a hard time acknowledging how weak I truly am. I hope the sleeve is my solution to stay strong and stay the course. I guess I'm just worried that I'll ruin my life in the process. I hope that make sense.