Dr Kelly. Has been my fist choice but according to christy from baratric weight center he normally does a 36 bougie for safety my bmi is 33 I really want a 32 any suggestions Dr cabrera and Dr venezuela

It is what they use as a guide to make the size of your new stomach. During surgery, the bougie is put down your esophagus to your stomach. The surgeon is then able to use it as a guide to staple/cut along side of it to form your new sleeve.

I had a conversation with my surgeon this week on this exact topic. He asked why I wanted to know and I told him that it is occasionally the topic in this forum. He said that probably 90% of what is stated as fact here is inaccurate or misguided. The bougie size opens the stomach so that he can view the work area. What happens after that is a result of the surgeon's technique. Any variations in the actual size of the stomach are so miniscule as to be irrelevant.

I had a conversation with my surgeon this week on this exact topic. He asked why I wanted to know and I told him that it is occasionally the topic in this forum. He said that probably 90% of what is stated as fact here is inaccurate or misguided. The bougie size opens the stomach so that he can view the work area. What happens after that is a result of the surgeon's technique. Any variations in the actual size of the stomach are so miniscule as to be irrelevant.

You are 100% correct.

Good choice! You will be in great hands.

Try not to worry to much about being a slow vs fast loser. You know how you can see every pound a shorty puts on? Well the good news is you can see every pound we lose too I am 5'2 and started with my bmi just barely under 40 too. I think it was 39.6 or something. I hit 5 months out a few days ago and have lost 55lbs. That may not be as big of a number as some the sleevers that start out at 300 or 400 lbs and drop that in 2 months' date=' but I am averaging 2.7 lbs lost a week and while its not the fastest I don't think thats too bad. I also have no excess skin yet (fingers crossed). I am now in the overweight bmi category when just 5 months ago I was a hair away from the morbidly obese range. And I have to admit I have not started to exercise at all yet (bad me I know but I am starting soon).

Some people lose slower and some faster but I promise it will all FEEL fast. It feels fast when have gone from a size 18 jean and an XL shirt to a size 11 juniors jean and honestly (could probably wear a 9 now but haven't been shopping in weeks) and a M shirt. It will feel fast when you are clearing your closet out and everything hangs on you like a sack. It will feel fast when your smallest sizes from yo yo dieting get too big and you realize you have nothing to wear. It will feel fast when you realize you aren't starting fires between your thighs when you walk. It will feel fast when you buy a bunch of Victorias Secret cheekie panties and your tush looks amazing. It will feel fast when you climb a couple flight of stairs and you aren't the slightest bit winded. It will feel fast when you don't mind seeing someone you haven't seen in a while because you aren't ashamed of your weight anymore.

Don't let the idea of being a slow loser worry you. I may be technically considered a slow loser but the sleeve has allowed me to lose slowly but surely through a week long cruise, the fair, a 10 wk pregnancy and miscarriage, Thanksgiving, a vacation to Florida, 2 weeks of Christmas and New Years with my house loaded with company and food. Any one of those things would've knocked me off any diet and I would've gained back all the weight I lost +10.

So being a "slow loser" is pretty awesome if you ask me And probably if we went by percentage of weight lost I bet most of us would be in the same loss range. Its just going by lbs that throws everything off. Good luck and I promise even if you are a "slow loser" it will be awesome.[/quote']

Thanks for that Sass. If I weren't on my phone, I would print this out and stick it on the wall over my scales to ward off any future frustration. What a sweet and encouraging post. You're right. I and others may end up losing slow. But each of these victories are ones I won't see without the sleeve. Slow loss or not, this will be my year to succeed and be happy. : )

I'm not so scared about how fast or slow the weight comes off, I am scared I don't ever want the weight to come back on. I am a horrible yo yo dieter I have lost weight previously only to put it back on even faster. Any advice to that, any time I google long term data it says none is available yet on this procedure. I guess that is my real fear. Thanks everyone for help. I'm not going to worry about bougie size.