Anyone else in here heading towards WLS??

susanletarte

Hello everyone,
I have been battling obesity for most of my adult life. I have gained and lost, gained and lost, and gained back plus more and lost and gained...and so on and so on!!!! AAAAHHH!! It has been the bane of my existence for well over 25 years. I had success with Jenny Craig and lost over 60 lbs putting me half way to my goal weight. I loved the program and the food but couldn't afford to stay on it. The food is VERY expensive and when you still have to buy food for the rest of the family it just cost too much. I was doing great on my own and then I got pregnant! I managed to gain very little weight with my pregnancy but three months after my daughter was born I found myself expecting again. I wasn't so lucky in the weight department that time.. I gained back all of my ugly weight... sheesh!! Ok... it has been 5 years since my youngest was born and I am stuck or was stuck at the same weight for the last 5 years. I am a very busy mom, I work full time, have my two girls to tend with and also my elderly mother and nephew live with me now. I am lucky if I get 20 minutes to scrape together to have on my own. Right at this moment my girls are whining for my attention so I better wrap it up...
I got so freaking tired of trying to lose weight, feeling like a failure, hating my self for being weak, that I decided to do something about it. I am going to have WLS. I need this tool to get me to a healthy weight. My girls need a mommy that can keep up with them and have the energy to do the things they want me to do...I look forward to feeling normal. By the way I am 46 and my daughters are 5 and 6 year old balls of energy. Cheers!

JenniferArichardson

I have been preparing for that as well. I am 28 with a 3 and 1 year old and I have struggled with my weight even as a child. My first diet was in the 5th grade, and I have been an emotional eater for a long time. I have been working with a nutritionist,and behaviorist who is part of my WLS center that I attend. They require weight loss and completion of classes in order to change your habits so you don't regain the weight even after you have surgery. I think I am learning a lot about myself from attending the groups and meeting with the behaviorists and nutritionists. I don't know if I will go through with the surgery yet, but I needed something in my life to help me regain myself again, and get my weight under control.

Jenn

mamma_nee

My doctor was totally against it , so here I am .


Please read read read about it more -- If money is an issue - WLS is not the route to take because you will have to take a ton of different vitamins afterwards because your body will not absorb all nutrients and most insurance will not cover them - A one a day will not be enough - most people say they spend 150.00 monthly just on vitamins.

Document your weight with your doctor because if they do not have proof that you were morbidly obese, the insurance will not cover and then to get to a healthy weight before surgery ? thats half the battle . Many people gain back everything and then some . Nothing is guaranteed.

speechpath68

I had WLS 8 months ago, and do not let the previous poster scare you about the vitamins. Most of the vitamins you need to take are ones you should be taking anyway- I take a multivitamin, B12, calcium and iron (which I was taking anyway for pre-surgery anemia, and most women should really take calcium as well). If you hit the sales, you can get tremendous buy- one- get -one free sales on these vitamins.

As far as the malabsorption factor, it depends on the type of surgery you have. You will most likely experience malabsorption if you have the roux-n-y- traditionally known as the bypass type of surgery where they re-route your intestines. I had a vertical sleeve gastrectomy (partial removal of stomach) and have had no such issues.

I am like a previous poster- an older mother (45) with three young children ages 5, 6 and 8, and needed to lose weight to keep up with them and a hectic life. I have lost 90lbs in exactly 8 months- something I have never been able to do in my entire life with the many, many diets I tried since childhood. Let me stress that WLS is NOT a cure- it is just a tool to help you overcome the intense craving and hunger that many of us cave into. You will still need to confront emotional eating issues, but its easier when you don't have the hunger monkey always on your back. It has not been a total walk in the park, but I would do it all again...I am so happy to be going into a New Year without having to be depressed about all of those weight loss commercials that are circulating the media!

Good luck with your decision.

khelm31

I just had the lapband surgery on Jan. 7th. I was the same. I had tried many diets, personal trainers, etc and never could lose more that 10 lbs. I'm just starting this new journey, but feel free to add me. I've been keeping blogs since I started on myfitnesspal.