Is VSG for me?

[Cali-Girl 0]

(I hope this is the right forum for this question).

I'm a 37 year old woman who has struggled with YO YO dieting my entire life. I've been looking at surgery options but of course I've never qualified through insurance because my BMI is too low (32.9) and I have no comorbidities. That said, I'm fully willing to pay for this on my own.

I am 5'7", 210lbs, 32.9BMI. I've yoyo'd up to 220 and down to 170 for all of my adult life. My ideal weight would be around 140-150 but always fall short and gain everything back plus some.

I'm wondering if I can even get this done and if its something that has worked for people in similar situations.

There is a clinic near me that performs this surgery and Im signed up to go to a seminar this saturday. I'm just really nervous and don't want to get my hopes up if this isn't something that can come to fruition for me.

Any feedback or advice is greatly appreciated!

[cbd 78]

Obviously this is a personal decision. I had surgery 1/10/13, I started at 231 before my five days of Clear Liquids, was 227 the day of surgery and this morning.....less than one month after surgery I am 207 and knocking on the oneworld's door. It is a huge lifestyle change. i am still on blended food till next monday then I can go to solids. The fact that you fill up sooooo fast takes some getting used to...I am full at 2 oz of food and you really do need to stop when you are full. i have gone out to eat and it is kind of hard to eat your two ounces over twenty minutes while others are eating the whole time. i put my untensil down between bites, talk more, move my food around....I am sure I will get used to it. Good luck with your decision....this is a good site to read up on and ask questions.

[Cali-Girl 0]

Obviously this is a personal decision. I had surgery 1/10/13, I started at 231 before my five days of clear liquids, was 227 the day of surgery and this morning.....less than one month after surgery I am 207 and knocking on the oneworld's door. It is a huge lifestyle change. i am still on blended food till next monday then I can go to solids. The fact that you fill up sooooo fast takes some getting used to...I am full at 2 oz of food and you really do need to stop when you are full. i have gone out to eat and it is kind of hard to eat your two ounces over twenty minutes while others are eating the whole time. i put my untensil down between bites, talk more, move my food around....I am sure I will get used to it. Good luck with your decision....this is a good site to read up on and ask questions.

Did you qualify for insurance to pay for your sleeve or was it something you went and did on your own?

Congrats by the way

[cbd 78]

Insurance. I had a BMI of 37 but had hypertension and high cholesterol. I took 8 months from my first informational meeting till surgery and one denial from insurance. A lot of paper work and jumping thru hoops. If I had the resourses to pay cash I would of. It would of been a lot easier and quicker.

[MichiganChic 3,262]

Its a personal decision. So far, I'm 7 weeks out and happy with my personal decision to move forward. It was worth the risk to me because my BMI was very high, and I have not been able to lose weight for the long term. I was starting to have other weight related health issues that I wanted to avoid. However, if I didn't have so much to lose, I would not have done this, because the risk would not be worth it to me. There is always the potential for life threatening complications as well as life altering complications. Even with no complications, it is permanent, irreversible, and life changing. There is a reason insurance companies don't cover it for lower BMIs. You might want to go to the complication forum and read some of those posts to get an idea of what a real life outcome could be. Good luck with your decision!

[iggychic 1,405]

I was low bmi and like you I was doing this mainly for vanity reasons. I wanted to look better and do it the easy way, not to mention permanent way most likely. I had zero risk factors and paid cash for the surgery here in the US.

I had massive bleeding on the operating table that lead to a leak. I was hospitalized several times, several ambulance rides, visits with the Chaplin about the end of my life twice and was completely unable to care for my son or myself for two months. My lungs are damaged now, I have a risk of hepatitis from the blood transfusions, I got blood clots, went through unimaginable pain several times, had two surgeries, all to look better in jeans. There is a reason that insurance companies don't pay for this surgery with low bmi people, because it's risky and it might kill you. My twenty grand surgery turned into half a million give or take a few bucks. I was hospitalized for several weeks. It was hell. I'd like to see that it's not legal to even have this surgery if you don't have a reason to take the risks (ie comorbidities or high bmi) but fortunately for many who want to look good in jeans, I'm not a law maker.

I would advise you to do anything else before you take a step as drastic as having 3/4 of a vital organ removed. I almost lost my entire stomach due to the complications....wouldn't a feeding tube for life be a hoot? This surgery is becoming more and more popular with lower and lower bmi folks doing it for vanity reasons. Having an organ ripped apart to be pretty makes very little sense IMO. To be fair, I've lost weight...but if I had known then what I know now, the toll it would take on my family and myself....no I wouldn't say it was worth it. I should have joined a gym, or done the band (which has a high success rate if you don't have an eating disorder, which I don't). While complications are supposedly rare (there are an awful lot of people who are going through them now on here) they are significant and long lasting. They don't fix you in a week and you go back to life. The fixes are very painful, long to take effect, and then you have to hope you don't lose another organ in the process.

My opinion mind you and whatever you do I wish you the best, but don't go into this thinking it's going to be a simple surgery and an easy process. It could be devastating.

[pania 22]

Cali girl

I'm Pania. And I was 32 bmi when I had surgery. Surgery weight was 190. I was actually 200 but lost 10 during pre op. I have no commodities and I self paid in Mexico. I was tired of dieting and I wanted to make a conscious health decision for my self. The sleeve has been the best tool I could have asked for. Of course you have to do your part but the sleeve limits your eating drastically

I'm 167 23 pounds lost at my one month mark. I'm in a stall now but I'm losing inches. I fit comfortable in a size12 shorts and I used to be a snug 16 in a months time I be lost more weight than I would have. It's all possible because if the sleeve. You will not regret your decision best of luck to you

[#Redy4chg.org 40]

I am 5"6 was 210 day of surgery with a low BMI. I was self pay bcuz I'm impatient and didn't want to go through the red tape. I had surgery 1/21 with no complications other than my current stall. Everyone is different. But it can be done. Will ins cover it or not that's a whole nother question only your ins can answer.