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Low BMI Pre-op nerves



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apologies for re-posting this, but I think I posted it in the wrong forum initially :)

Hi everyone, first time poster here! I am scheduled for a gastric sleeve on 10/19. I am currently 184 lbs, 5'4, bmi 31. After I first met with the surgeon and scheduled the surgery I was very sure this was the right thing to do. I have battled my weight for almost 10 years (I'm 30) and have tried every diet and drug under the sun with no success. My only success has ever come from a combination of medically supervised protein-sparing diet combined with phentermine. But even that 30 lb loss came back on pretty quickly.

Now I'm starting to question this choice. It just seems so completely elective -- I'm healthy and young, I even completed a triathlon this weekend! But the choice goes beyond vanity, I struggle with significant depression that I never dealt with prior to the weight gain, I feel constantly exhausted (possibly from sleep apnea) and just generally feel that I'm living my life in someone else's body under a cloud of failure.

I'd love to hear from others who had the surgery at a low BMI - are you happy with your choice? I'd especially love to hear from anyone who went on to have healthy pregnancies afterwards, the concern about pregnancy at my current weight has led me to hold off on having kids! Any other thoughts would be much appreciated, I do think this is the right choice for me but I struggle with feeling selfish to put my loved ones through the stress of worrying about the outcome when I'm not facing an immediate health crisis. And God forbid something happened, I wouldn't blame them for hating me for putting them through that.

I was fairly low BMI when I started this whole process (37ish). This is one of the best decisions I've ever made in my life. My recovery went really well and I didn't have any issues at all. By day 3 post op, I was off all pain meds and walking 2 - 3 miles in the evening.

I'm almost 5 months post op now and am down almost 50 pounds. I feel so much better physically (joint/back pain gone, decrease in my blood pressure medication dosage, and lighter periods), not to mention the fact that I am looking better overall.

I, like you, battled with my weight all of my life. I am hoping this is the "last time" and this time the weight REALLY stays off for good. On the preop diet, I lost 13 pounds and started to have second thoughts about going through with the surgery. I am really glad I went through with it. Good luck with whatever you decide!

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
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    • KimBaxleyWilson

      Three months and four days ago... I was in Costa Rica having a life changing surgery! Yesterday we had a followup visit with Dr. Esmeral via video chat and this morning my middle number changed.  I'm down 47lbs and two pants sizes. I can wear a Large tshirt for the first time in like... 14 years! Woot!! Everything is going great. I have zero regrets. I went down to the riverwalk with a friend and walked 2 miles on Monday without even getting fatigued. And no more snoring or chugging pickle juice for crazy leg cramps! I need to go to the gym more... I'm making new shirts next week so that will motivate me. LOL But I'm also just not as TIRED all the time! I have a LONG way to go...but seeing the progress on the scales and in the mirror is a huge motivator!! Thank you all for cheering me on and supporting me!!
      · 0 replies
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    • bellaamey

      https://alluniqueguide.com/java-burn-coffee-reviews/
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