I'm 41 and need to lose about 100 lbs. Im going through the steps to get cleared by insurance, but I go back and forth? Should I just try a serious diet one more time (even though I've been steadily gaining this weight since my mid-20s and dieting off and on the whole time). Does anyone regret having the surgery?? I know its nerves, but its so drastic to remove part of your stomach...

I am down 93 lbs in just over 5 months and the people are like WOW! I love the ability I have to squeeze by people in a crowded room without saying excuse me a thousand times....I like crossing my legs because I can...my collar bones have reappeared! I love the sleeve and the restriction it gives me!

Hiya Serendipity--just wanted to say' date=' based on your ticker, you're not a slow loser at all! At 107 days out from surgery, with 104 lbs. lost?! That's just about a pound per day! That's fantastic!![/quote']

What is a "ticker"? I feel like I'm not doing this correctly. Lol. Back to the subject. NO REGRETS! First few weeks were the roughest but I'm 6 weeks out & have felt "back to normal" for awhile. The sleeve was the right tool for me! No more binge eating for me.

Absolutely NO regrets, but I have to say that being emotionally ready is critical to this process. The first few days after surgery, you will second-guess yourself. That's normal. The strict post-op diet--you may second-guess yourself. At first, I couldn't say, yes, I'd do it all over again. But now, six months out, minus 75 pounds with 45 to go, I know I did the right thing. Just make sure you are emotionally ready to deal with changes that have to be made. My ins company made me wait six months for clearance, and then it took a other six months for all the pre-op testing. I was mad and angry it was taking so long, but without all the time to think and prepare, I would not have been emotionally ready. Do it when you're ready and not before. At least that's my advice.

No regrets here. Would do it all over again knowing how great it is.

The only thing I regret about my surgery is what I paid out of pocket for it. $17,500. Now that I am 7 months post op and get a better glimpse of how things are now that I an in the real world, I would not pay more than $7,000 for the surgery. It is not worth more than that in my opinion. But if your insurance pays, that's great.

Absolutely no regrets here. Best decision I ever made. Wish I had done it sooner. Wish it had been available sooner. I wouldn't have wasted 40 years on dieting.

Overall No. However there are aspects that I regret. For one, I had complications so my surgery and recovery were not as simple. My Dr had to go in twice (to open me back up because I was closed too tightly).

For that very reason, I feel like my restriction is a bit too much at times. I'm glad to have good restriction but boy, sometimes even liquids don't go down so that gets tough.

I also regret the amount of time it took to heal (4 weeks off work) and what that did to my family during what would have been a great summer (no vacation this year). My kids still worry about me and that is tough to deal with sometimes (esp when something does not agree with me and I'm doubled over throwing up).

I still throw up A LOT. So, that I also wish wasn't my fact of life post-op. I also regret that I'm not a fast loser. At times it can be daunting to know you have almost 150 lbs STILL to go and the scale doesn't move for...WEEKS.

But again, overall I'm happy. I'm down 70 lbs (including pre-op) and feel so much more energy. Plus my inch loss has been awesome! So I would do this again!

I'm an optimist if you haven't figured that out. So a couple of issues now to have great health later make it seem worth it to me.

Hey there, I appreciate your honesty. I feel it's important to hear it all, the good, the bad, the ugly before going into surgery. If you'd care to expand I'd be interested to hear more about your experience and why you have regrets.

Yep, I regret it. I have had no complications except dehydration & I have lost 72 lbs...and I am just over 15 weeks out... I move more toward peace & acceptance with this terrible decision each day, but there's not a day that goes by that I don't wish life had a rewind button... but most people love their sleeve & love their decision to have wls. I am in a very small minority that happen to not love their love & not love their wls decision. Best of luck to you.

I have not once regretted being sleeved. I was overweight for over 20 years and at age 57 I knew it would soon start affecting my health. I was sleeved 2/12/13. The best gift I ever gave myself.

I can go places now and I am no longer the biggest person in the room. I can climb stairs and still breath. I can play with my grandchildren. A whole new world is re-opened to me. My husband is now going through the process. I pray he gets accepted. He has only 60 lbs to lose but has 4 co-morbidity's including diabetes. He wanted to make sure I was not going to be sorry before he proceeded. Now he wishes he had done it at the same time as me.

I love my sleeve!!!

I will miss a lot of things.

NOTHING, tastes as good as healthy feels!!!

I regret that I had to have the surgery. So many people have this surgery and hear all the whistles and bells about it and decide to have the surgery. I had some complications that I didn't expect and am still struggling to drink and eat 8 weeks post op. This is not a simple procedure and one that requires some serious reflection and behavior changes. You may not feel great 2 weeks post op. Are you prepared for possible complications? I thought I had done all the research and was prepared, then my experience did not go as planned. I wondered what I had done to myself. What if I could never eat and drink properly again in this body. What would that mean to my family and to my quality of life? On the flip side, yes, I am 40+ lbs lighter. I can cross my legs again and get in to smaller clothes. I am off of my diabetes and blood pressure meds too. All of these are possitives, but I cannot eat a normal meal or drink fluids on any given day without knowing if it is going to stay down. I can only believe that in time, this will get better. People ask me if they should get the sleeve and I am honest. I tell them that I cannot answer that question. I share my story to date, and my hope for a better tomorrow. Because if I give in to regret, then I am in trouble! Best of luck with your journey.

I'm 2 weeks out, and have not had complications nor any regrets....am glad I had it.....eating is still tough, I won't lie, but each day gets better.

I am 2 months post surgery. I started my journey in May 2012 and with the help of a dietician i feel very prepared for the rest of my life. I had so many health issues prior that now I feel happy I actually did it. I wish I had done it sooner.

Yep' date=' I regret it. I have had no complications except dehydration & I have lost 72 lbs...and I am just over 15 weeks out... I move more toward peace & acceptance with this terrible decision each day, but there's not a day that goes by that I don't wish life had a rewind button... but most people love their sleeve & love their decision to have wls. I am in a very small minority that happen to not love their love & not love their wls decision. Best of luck to you.[/quote']

Luckysmomma what is it that you regret ?

this is a question I wondered myself, how many people actually regret it being I see SO MANY positive people ! lol Im in just the first steps of my journey now and cant wait to actually get a move on. . . I do question myself is this for me? am I making the right choice? but like others I have invested so much time, energy and money in other quick fixes and diets that either didn't work or came back like a boomerang and the weight knocked me off my feet. Since I have reached into 300+ numbers I cannot get past 290lbs ! it gets soo frustrating and discouraging .. I have realized I need the help of a tool, and having a football sized stomach isn't benefiting me lol Congrats to everyone on being sleeved and on all of ur weight loss... I cant wait until I get to join u on the losers bench ! save me a spot lol