I just got called yesterday with my official approval - and surgery date for December.

I'm completely confused.

I'm at 39 Bmi and 34 years old. I just have this nagging fear about regrets in the long term. I'm scared of not losing much weight -- of not keeping it off...

I'm part of a church tradition that advocates a vegetarian or vegan diet. I've never done it. But I know that there's lots of research indicating that plant based diets are the most healthy -- disease fighting even. I'm afraid of ending up not getting healthy through this surgery and then finding that the plant based diet thing was my real solution. I'd hate that regret.

I'm worried about where I'll be in 15 or 20 years. I'm scared of complications or regrets. I'm scared the research will turn and that this decision will eventually come to be known as a foolish one.

My wife is super supportive and is crystal clear that I should go through with it. I'm fully conflicted.

Did anyone have these kinds of mixed emotions?

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I think we all go through the process of deciding. For me the turning point was reading an article that said if you have more than 50 pounds to lose, you have a 1% chance of keeping it off without surgery. I have yet to find one single person who regrets the decision to have the surgery. You will be adding about 13 years to your life by doing it and losing the weight. Good luck deciding.

At this moment after having been in this hospital four times within three weeks of surgery, I'm 100% regretting this decision. I'm waiting to get to the good part, but as I lay in a hospital bed writing this, I feel that I was much happier before the surgery. I've been told I will feel different in the long run, but even after having lost over 30 lbs in less than a month, I still don't feel good about the decision. Being away from my daughter and my kids on my case load (I'm a children's social worker), this feels like torture! I'm praying it gets better and I can go back to my regular life. As I was never a "lazy" fat person, but just ate really bad, mostly out of convenience for the sake of time while working, raising a kid and doing a master's program. Looking back now, maybe I could have just buckled down and made time for a healthy lifestyle. At your bmi, I think it's worth it to give one more conscious effort...as you are just below the threshold for what is considered morbidly obese which is bmi of 40 or higher. But if your heart tells you this is the way to go, by all means you have lots of support here. Just thought I'd offer a different, honest perspective.

I think this surgery pairs with a plant based diet very well. If anything, it helps to be successful on a plant based diet and not terribly hungry all the time. Granted, it will probably be a little tricky getting all your Protein in the beginning. I still haven't fully switched over to full based plant eating but am slowly getting there (90% vegetables/fruits, 10% fish).

I lost 150 pounds and got to goal weight after 7 months post op. Even after this successful weight loss, my depression was not cured. However, I am relieved that I no longer have to deal with diabetes and high blood pressure. That, and the fact that I will live a longer and healthier life and be able to raise my son.

Dr. Weiner (a bariatric surgeon with many YouTube educational videos) promotes the benefits of the plant based bariatric diet. You can learn about his "Pound of Cure" plant based eating plan at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1M1OUvHM_D4. It is for bariatric and non bariatric patients, so you can even give it a try before surgery.

I just wanna say thank you to everyone who replied. It was helpful both to me and my wife as we've been weighing options.

I appreciated the video as well. Has anyone here read his book? I'm curious.

Anyways, I'm feeling more clarity and firmness about having the surgery....December 1 is marching toward us. And I've been talking with the hospital and my clinic.

Just wanted to say thanks!

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I can say for myself this was part of a journey. I know that sounds trite, but it really was. I've been a long time vegetarian, but I can honestly say at least 10 of those years I really should have considered myself a junk-a-tarian. I didn't eat meat or seafood, but I wasn't eating healthy. Part of what made me decide to have this surgery was seeing the changes that cleaning up my diet did for me. Cutting back on fast foods, processed foods and sodas made major changes in how I felt and my health. However the damage was done. I was morbidly obese with chronic ongoing health issues. This surgery was just as much a tool as deciding to cook from scratch and go to the gym regularly was.

I actually never gave surgery a second thought once I did my research on the VSG. And I convulsed that it simply returns my stomach to the size/shape it was when I was a kid (before my mother started loading me up on Fritos and Ho-Ho's).

BTW, I probably would not have done r-n-y because of all the plumbing reroute that goes with it. And the band does not work (which may be the case with the propel your therapist was talking about).

The second thing I did was take both the pre-pre opt and pre-opt diet very seriously. My understanding is that this is the only sound way to avoid post-opt complications. I lost 30 pounds in 2 months before surgery. I exercised my core every day and went to a top rated hospital near Boston rather than the one nearest my house.

My surgery went incredibly well. Other than dealing with my post opt eating restrictions, I already feel better than I've felt in a very long time.

My ultimate rationale came down to this:

1. How much do I need to lose to become healthy again (in my case, this was probably 70 pounds).

2. What are the chances that I'll lose this much and keep it off on my own. My answer was 0%.

3. If I take that leap of faith and assume I could lose 70 pounds on my own, how long would it take and how much of my life would I have to change.

This third question turned out to be the key. No matter how I looked at it, it would take much more time and sacrifice to lose 70 pounds through conventional methods than with the VSG. In my case, probably a year plus vs. about 6 months. And of course with the sleeve, my odds of keeping it off go through the roof.

Finally, going vegetarian or vegan will do nothing to help you lose weight. Consider the following are on most vegan diets:

French Fries

chips and guacamole

Sugar and all the evil things that come along with it

Bread, P&J

Onion Rings

Home Fries

I know how unhealthy a vegan diet can be. I watched my daughter put her husband on it and all he ate all day was the stuff in this list. After a year, she switched to pescatarian and he's much healthier.

Take the time to truly evaluate the alternatives in terms of time/sacrifice and do not allow staying or returning to a heavy unhealthy weight to be an option.

I think it will become a no-brainier.

I meant concluded not convulsed (damn spell checker)...

Also "people" not "propel" (can I shut spell correct off!)

I have read Dr. Weiner's book - it was very informative and I plan on following his recommendations for eating as much as possible. I actually had a Skype consult with Dr. Weiner about possibly doing my surgery even though I ended up going to Mexico for it. Even with the great deal Dr. Weiner was offering, I couldnt afford surgery in the US.

I find the book helpful in describing how obesity develops, why it's difficult to lose weight and how certain foods impact metabolism over the long term. The core principle is that we should try to move towards a plant based diet, eating 1 pound or more of vegetables a day including Beans, leafy greens etc. He provides guidelines for how many servings of other food stuffs to have such as raw nuts, fish, etc. It's worth a read.

I also just wanted to add that his videos were very helpful for me when I was doing my research on having this surgery. He really explains food, obesity and metabolism in a way that I finally understand what has happened in my body. He is the first healthcare professional I have ever spoken with who showed me true compassion and understanding around my issues with weight and food. Anyway...I am a definite fan and am probably biased but I do think the book is helpful.

Hey I just wanted to give a note of thanks and an update for anyone who's interested. I appreciate all of your advice and feedback as I said before. I have decided to have my sleeve surgery. It will take place on December 1 and I'm going to have my preop appointment this week… I should start the pre-op diet soon thereafter. Right now I feel really excited about it and very clear that this is the right thing for me. Hopeful that this will help me get a jump on getting to A healthy weight. I really like Dr. Weiner materials. I've watched most of his YouTube videos now and I am almost done with his book. It really makes a lot of sense and In a way, it combines the ideal of A plant-based diet with the acknowledgment that weight-loss surgery is appropriate for certain people. His attitude really helps me to have more self acceptance about this actually...

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Great news, I'm now down 58 lbs since August and people who think "I'm just dieting" are asking me why I'm still doing it.

I actually have about 30 to go, but seeing that bright light at the end of the tunnel makes it all worthwhile.

I'm late to the party. ..I went vegetarian 2 years ago. I lost 30 lbs without trying. But I didn't make any healthy changes with it so the weight came back. You can definitely be an unhealthy veggie.

Off to check out Dr weiner materials.

I ❤️❤️ Dr. Weiner. He is my surgeon!

I am a fan of his YouTube videos and book. His post surgery plan was what grabbed my attention. I didn't want surgery to lose weight, but not have nutritionally dense diet.

I am just over 3 months post-op and trying to slowly shift over to a veggies first approach. I have only recently started tolerating a few more foods. I have been pretty limited following surgery.

I ❤️❤️ Dr. Weiner. He is my surgeon!

I am a fan of his YouTube videos and book. His post surgery plan was what grabbed my attention. I didn't want surgery to lose weight, but not have nutritionally dense diet.

I am just over 3 months post-op and trying to slowly shift over to a veggies first approach. I have only recently started tolerating a few more foods. I have been pretty limited following surgery.

Where does he make available his post surgery approach?

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Wwboy, I can so relate to your feelings in your first initial post. My surgery is on Monday. I have made myself a wreck reading and overthinking every possible issue/complication that might happen! Can you share with me what made you finally decide you were doing the right thing?

My concerns go from the worst possible outcome (dying on the table) to just flat out loving food so much I'm afraid I will miss not being able to eat the things I love. Feeling so conflicted

Edited January 14, 201610 yr by time2live4me