Weight loss surgery or NO?

NancyYale

I researched bariatric surgery, and even went to the classes offered at the hospital. In the end, although my insurance covered it, I couldn't afford the huge deductible without saving for a couple of years. The idea of remaining were I was (a painful 275 pounds) for those years was a motivator to just try to lose it on my own.

Again. 3 time loser, (and gainer) here.

And I did. For the first time I reached goal, and have maintained it over this summer. So far so good.

amyk0202

Bearbo27 wrote: »

I agree that for people with severe medical issues it is a good option. I still believe though that many people go into it thinking that this will be a cure all for any weight loss issues. Once they get done with the surgery, they lose the initial weight and do ok. Over time though, many people slip into old habits and just gain the weight right back. Yeah you can only hold 8oz or so at a time. If you slowly over eat though, you would stretch out your pouch and would eventually gain weight. It is a helpful tool, but nothing more.

I agree that many people are uneducated about WLS & unfortunately that includes many people who end up having the surgery. I do feel like all the emphasis is placed on losing the weight, which is not terribly hard in the honeymoon phase right after the surgery, & not enough education is done about maintenance. It is maintenance which is much harder imo. The day to day things that have to be continued for the rest of your life. Those things seem to get passed over in the whole process. Nobody ever sat me down & told me how many calories I would need to eat to maintain my loss.

Bearbo27

amyk0202 wrote: »

Bearbo27 wrote: »

I agree that for people with severe medical issues it is a good option. I still believe though that many people go into it thinking that this will be a cure all for any weight loss issues. Once they get done with the surgery, they lose the initial weight and do ok. Over time though, many people slip into old habits and just gain the weight right back. Yeah you can only hold 8oz or so at a time. If you slowly over eat though, you would stretch out your pouch and would eventually gain weight. It is a helpful tool, but nothing more.

I agree that many people are uneducated about WLS & unfortunately that includes many people who end up having the surgery. I do feel like all the emphasis is placed on losing the weight, which is not terribly hard in the honeymoon phase right after the surgery, & not enough education is done about maintenance. It is maintenance which is much harder imo. The day to day things that have to be continued for the rest of your life. Those things seem to get passed over in the whole process. Nobody ever sat me down & told me how many calories I would need to eat to maintain my loss.

Yes! You brought up a very good point. I don't think many realize the amount of foods they will have to give up for the rest of their life. The vitamins that have to be taken for the rest of their life. The amount of effort that needs to be put into it. As I said in a previous post on this thread, my mom is the one person close to me that had it done. It helped tremendously with her severe health issues. It is something she is still trying to figure out to this day though. She will never be able to eat birthday cake, never be able to eat pasta, she can't ever drink soda. I think for her, the biggest challenge was not being able to drink within 30 min of eating.

cebreisch

Back in April 2011, I had my "a ha" moment and ended up going to see a Bariatric surgeon. I weighed in at 376. He told me I'd need to lose 90 pounds before he'd do the surgery. Most people would only lose 30 pounds and get frustrated and have a conversation with the doctor on how to proceed. I ended up losing 115 pounds all on my own. I opted not to do the surgery at that time because I felt like if I was losing weight effectively, why go through surgery if I didn't need to.

Then I went and had skin removal surgery for my stomach. The recovery was more than what I expected. Then my father passed away and I had become complacent with my weight loss journey - ended up gaining back 100 pounds.

Yes, I know there's a school of thought that if I had actually gone thru with the surgery that I would likely be at or near my goal weight, and/or if I had stumbled, I wouldn't have gained back nearly as much. Either way - I gained back the weight because, for a variety of reasons and excuses, I lost sight of the goal - not because I did or didn't have surgery.

In all seriousness, if you're really asking the question: Should you gain 25 pounds to qualify for and have WLS? I'm going to say that's up to you, but I wouldn't. It's not about the WLS - it's about whether or not you really want to lose weight. You have to want it enough to stay on track and keep on the path even after you get to your goal. This journey doesn't stop when you get to your goal weight---because if you return to your old eating habits, you're going to end up gaining back whatever you lost. You will still have to maintain the changes you've made to maintain the weight loss.

Good luck to you!

jennyc777

Thank you all for your replies . I have read each comment. I do sound insane. I have decided not to get the surgery as of now. I am 100 pounds overweight with prediabetes and high triglycerides. I am just so sick of this weight loss journey. I have hired a personal trainer to take my health in this direction. I will keep you posted. I would like to make the most out of mfp and stay in touch with the mfp community.

queenliz99

jennyc777 wrote: »

Thank you all for your replies . I have read each comment. I do sound insane. I have decided not to get the surgery as of now. I am 100 pounds overweight with prediabetes and high triglycerides. I am just so sick of this weight loss journey. I have hired a personal trainer to take my health in this direction. I will keep you posted. I would like to make the most out of mfp and stay in touch with the mfp community.

You should also try to engage a dietician through your doctor! Best wishes!!

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10300359/most-helpful-posts-success-stories-must-reads#latest

PaulaWallaDingDong

Just be careful with diet advice from a trainer. A lot of it is woo woo and based on personal "beliefs."

Hearts_2015

PaulaWallaDingDong wrote: »

AlvinaHayman wrote: »

im trying so hard to maintain my blood sugars and weight loss since july 16 ive reduced over 113 units of insulin drop per day compared to 3oo daily. but im on a list for bariatric surgury now for health problems is there any positive feed back about this surgury.

You might want to start another thread, or look for a support group for diabetics on MFP. For someone who may actually need weight loss surgery, the responses might come off as hateful towards the idea of it. The OP's situation is very different from yours and warrants a completely different response.

@PaulaWallaDingDong What a kind response to Alvina

@AlvinaHayman Paula has a good point, pop in the group below and see what others share about WLS and diabetes.

The diabetes group below is a really helpful group to be a part of, I think you'll like it.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/1772-type-2-diabetes-support-group

Bearbo27

jennyc777 wrote: »

Thank you all for your replies . I have read each comment. I do sound insane. I have decided not to get the surgery as of now. I am 100 pounds overweight with prediabetes and high triglycerides. I am just so sick of this weight loss journey. I have hired a personal trainer to take my health in this direction. I will keep you posted. I would like to make the most out of mfp and stay in touch with the mfp community.

Definitely keep in touch on the forums. Use it for support. I started "again" in July with 120 lbs to lose. I have so far lost 24 lbs just logging my food here. It is a long journey, but will be worth it.

northcoastbeauty

Bearbo27 wrote: »

WLS surgery is only a tool that should be used in situations where you have medical issues affecting your life and need to lose the weight NOW. My mom had such issues (congestive heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, diabetes) and had to lose the weight fast before she ended up getting worse. It has been a long road this past year since she got the surgery and she has lost almost 140 lbs, BUT it has not been without side effects. She has had issues this past year with malnutrition and dehydration. She is still trying to see what foods she can have and learnings how much is ok. Her typical breakfast is one scrambled egg wth a sprinkle of shredded cheese. Lunch is some plain tuna over lettuce. Dinner is often a very small piece of chicken. Other things she eats is mashed potatoes, yogurt, cheese, etc. She is not allowed soda at all, no caffeine, no white breads or pastas. Sugars are iffy, she can handle a small amount of some sugar, but just her eating part of a plum a while back made her sick and throw up. Her health has improved and that I am thankful for, but it will be a life long task for her to get down to a healthy weight and be able to maintain it. She'll never be able to have a cheat day out with family, she can't enjoy foods at birthday parties...

It is not a quick fix by any means. My mom has had to work so hard to get where she is at now. If you are not willing to make a complete change of your eating habits now, how do you plan to do that after surgery. If you don't change your eating now, you'll gain back all the weight lost from surgery.

Was she over or under age 63 when she had her surgery? How is she doing now?

northcoastbeauty

Bearbo27 wrote: »

WLS surgery is only a tool that should be used in situations where you have medical issues affecting your life and need to lose the weight NOW. My mom had such issues (congestive heart failure, pulmonary hypertension, diabetes) and had to lose the weight fast before she ended up getting worse. It has been a long road this past year since she got the surgery and she has lost almost 140 lbs, BUT it has not been without side effects. She has had issues this past year with malnutrition and dehydration. She is still trying to see what foods she can have and learnings how much is ok. Her typical breakfast is one scrambled egg wth a sprinkle of shredded cheese. Lunch is some plain tuna over lettuce. Dinner is often a very small piece of chicken. Other things she eats is mashed potatoes, yogurt, cheese, etc. She is not allowed soda at all, no caffeine, no white breads or pastas. Sugars are iffy, she can handle a small amount of some sugar, but just her eating part of a plum a while back made her sick and throw up. Her health has improved and that I am thankful for, but it will be a life long task for her to get down to a healthy weight and be able to maintain it. She'll never be able to have a cheat day out with family, she can't enjoy foods at birthday parties...

It is not a quick fix by any means. My mom has had to work so hard to get where she is at now. If you are not willing to make a complete change of your eating habits now, how do you plan to do that after surgery. If you don't change your eating now, you'll gain back all the weight lost from surgery.

how is she doing now? Was she under or over 63 years old when she had her surgery?

evileen99

Morgaen73 wrote: »

NO!!! WLS is not a magic cure. It is not magically going to solve all reasons you had in the past yo-yoing. After the surgery you are still going to have to put in exactly the same discipline and effort as before the surgery.

This. I worked with a woman like you, and, like you're considering, she gained weight to qualify for weight loss surgery. It worked for a while; but since she went right back to the same old eating habits, she now weighs more than she did before surgery.

amyepdx

jennyc777 wrote: »

Thank you all for your replies . I have read each comment. I do sound insane. I have decided not to get the surgery as of now. I am 100 pounds overweight with prediabetes and high triglycerides. I am just so sick of this weight loss journey. I have hired a personal trainer to take my health in this direction. I will keep you posted. I would like to make the most out of mfp and stay in touch with the mfp community.

Sounds like a great plan! Just remember, 90% of your success will come from staying within your calorie deficit. Enjoy your trainer and working out because that will give you a few more calories a day and help keep you focused but at the end of the day - it’s all about the food intake! Good luck and keep us posted!

lois1231

jennyc777 wrote: »

Thank you all for your replies . I have read each comment. I do sound insane. I have decided not to get the surgery as of now. I am 100 pounds overweight with prediabetes and high triglycerides. I am just so sick of this weight loss journey. I have hired a personal trainer to take my health in this direction. I will keep you posted. I would like to make the most out of mfp and stay in touch with the mfp community.

I had it done in 2001. I have posted about my experience with it on my page if you want to read it. I have mixed feelings about it. I did lose some weight, about 80 pounds but regained it all back over the years to my highest weight of 317 pounds, then got back down to 220 with the help of a nutritionist and then yo yo dieted to between 250 and 275 pounds which is where i started in January of this year at 275 pounds. My surgery weight was 292 pounds.