So I do feel kind of guilty and am in the first week of seeking medical help with my weight... But I am learning to look at my life and I've watched hours of you tube testimonials and realize this is just as hard as dieting without it.... I've been overweight since I could remember .... I started weight watchers the first time at 7 at 140 lbs..... I've been up to 350 three times in my life... I've lost 155 lbs to gain 110'lbs back 4 years later. Lost another 100 lbs to be in a wedding... As soon as I took that bridesmaid dress off the weight piled on.... And then my weight has crept back up through the trials of life And success.... I never feel full and sometimes I never feel hungry.... I'm not sure what's wrong with me in that respect... I'm doing the surgery if I get approved for me and my kids.... It's time to let my pride go and get the help I need ... I love being active but my weight is hindering me from succeeding as im always in pain.... I'm convincing myself I need this and I want to share it with go workers so they know that although I laugh at myself because I'm on a different diet every month...I'm trying and do want help... And maybe they will understand why I don't need temptations....

I know that many people say that this is "just as hard" as any other thing they've tried. I'm sure for some it is, but for me it isn't. Historically, by this point in any kind of food-restriction program, I would have had a "breakdown" and be chowing down on a large pizza or a bucket or fried chicken or something by now. I wouldn't be able to handle it.

And yet, that hasn't happened. Not at all. I haven't had even one whole slice of pizza (though I did have a few bites of one slice a few days ago.) The difference between then and now is now I don't have that desire to just go to town and eat everything in sight. When I get hungry, I eat, but it's just a little bit and that's good enough for me. That's why I think this is much "easier" than anything else I've ever done.

Justin, that's what I worry about. Eating the wrong foods. Don't get me wrong, right now I am at the point where I see my friend (who has the sleeve) eating the same crap she did before she got it and hasn't lost anywhere near where she should be a year later. I'm wondering if I'm gonna end up like her. It scares me.

Justin, that's what I worry about. Eating the wrong foods. Don't get me wrong, right now I am at the point where I see my friend (who has the sleeve) eating the same crap she did before she got it and hasn't lost anywhere near where she should be a year later. I'm wondering if I'm gonna end up like her. It scares me.

You decide what you eat your friends don't. For example my wife loves her junk food aka Snacks. I don't eat all the chips and muffins,and Cookies that my wife eats, and I don't let her decisions influence mine. On my days off I like to have a cold beer with plenty of ice. Now I know that If I would drink beer every single day just because someone else did it , then I wouldn't be me anymore I would be them. So its hard to have self control but there are plenty of things that other people do that I don't, and just because someone I know does these things does not mean they are good for me. As some have stated the sleeve does give you more self control because you are not able to sit at one meal and eat a large pizza or whole pie at one sitting. Your sleeve is good portion control . These are just my opinions but, at some point you have to decide whats right for you and just stick to it,no matter what.

For me I think the sleeve is hard work, but in a different way than dieting before the sleeve was hard work. Before the sleeve, dieting was mostly about resisting temptation, and damn, that was HARD. Keeping my mind off food while eating "only" 1200-1500 calories a day was hard.

Now, post-sleeve, temptation isn't a problem for me (yet, I assume it's coming down the road some time). Choosing to eat small portions of food is not hard, it's easy. But in the past I didn't have to be completely OCD about tracking everything I ate in terms of calories, fat grams, protein grams, carbs, etc. I wasn't rigid about getting my vitamins every day; in fact, I rarely took vitamins. I didn't weigh or measure all my food - I hardly ever did. If I wanted a "cheat" meal or day or snack, I took it. That's all gone. Now I'm following someone else's extremely rigid rules with no room for variance. This is all hard, not in the sense that I want to be doing it another way, but in the sense that it takes a lot of work and vigilance.

OP, don't get me wrong, I am not complaining. I love my sleeve and think it's the best decision I've ever made for myself, for my physical and emotional health. I have been exactly where you are with the yo-yo dieting and weight gain. I also struggled with admitting that I needed medical intervention and couldn't do it "on my own." Good luck in your progress - I believe you'll surprise those around you and even yourself with your ability to succeed with help from modern medicine. And there's nothing wrong with taking advantage of medical advances even if there may be some people who don't understand that.

Justin, that's what I worry about. Eating the wrong foods. Don't get me wrong, right now I am at the point where I see my friend (who has the sleeve) eating the same crap she did before she got it and hasn't lost anywhere near where she should be a year later. I'm wondering if I'm gonna end up like her. It scares me.

Even if she's eating the same foods, I bet she's eating much smaller portions. It won't be as effective as someone eating healthy food, ,but still better than before.

Thanks buffleheads! That's was my point of the original post! It's taken a lot for me to ask my doctor for help because I "want to do it on my own" and have done it twice I. The past.....but now I know I need help because I've been losing the same 15 lbs for the last year .... Thanks for the encouragement and help!