My name is Nicole, 45 yrs old, 250 lbs. My heaviest ever. I've struggled with my weight since my early 20's. I was diagnosed with MS in 2004 and since then have put on weight consistently. I kept telling myself "by my next birthday..." Well, many birthdays have come and gone. I started thinking about surgery a year and a half ago and my insurance would have paid for it, but the criteria was near to impossible to meet. I have since gained a terrific job with 'Cadillac' insurance that will cover it easily. The final straw was that my knees are shot, my mobility is like an 80 year old at times, I now have sleep apnea and have to use a CPAP.

Portion control has always been my enemy. My friends ask, "Why can't you just do the diet portion of the surgery without doing the surgery it self?" Because I obviously do not have that kind of will power. Knowing that if I overeat with the sleeve, 'dumping', 'pouch stretching', or any number of unpleasant things can happen will keep me in check. I have tried many diets...many times and I feel the sleeve is my last hope.

My father is obese with diabetes, my grandmother was obese with diabetes and I'm built just like them both. I need to get a handle on this weight so that I can enjoy the second half of my life. I have wasted a lot of mine and my families time with being unable to do things like hiking (knee pain), Disneyland (too much walking), and going to the beach (not about to put on a suit). I have a 12 year old daughter who I know is not happy about my being tired all the time and unable to do the things her friend's mom's do with them.

I have finally decided that it's time to get real about my weight and do something about it. The sleeve is for me and reading all of your stories has really helped solidify this decision.

I'm 2 months away from surgery and can't wait to begin working on the new me.

I just got out of operation like 10 hrs ago I'm still in a ton of pain even with this morphine my stomached plus all the gas pains I'm an 9 out of ten with pain

I am so sorry to hear that, I had to walk a lot to start to feel better, but they need to get your pain under control first.