im confused????

Mbdb131

hi-

for those of you who have been sleeved do you find dieting to be just as difficult? or do you find the weight loss process easier with the tool? i hear people saying they work just as hard now since surgery and I wonder whats the point of having surgery then? i mean, to go through all that and not have any help seems useless. I would hope its not as much of a struggle but according to some of the posts I read, it is.

Losing_Sarah

You absolutely have to work after having surgery. While it makes weight loss easier (especially at first) it is just a tool. If you don't make changes to your diet you will not be as successful as you would had you made a lifestyle change.

The sleeve gives you restriction, and that restriction lasts forever as long as you take care of your sleeve. The sleeve DOES make it easier than not having it, but it still not "easy". One big difference is that in the long run you is that in most cases you will not regain like most people do who have lost without WLS.

Did you know that the success rate for people to lose weight and keep it off without surgery is around 5%? That's it. This is what WLS does for you. Now, regain IS still possible with WLS, but those people who do regain are "abusing" their sleeve (eating high calorie/low density foods aka junk food in most cases, they are grazing aka snacking all day, not getting their water in, and more).

I firmly believe that a person must be ready in many ways before they have WLS. If you don't think you can make some serious changes to your lifestyle (food choices & activity level) you might not be ready for surgery or if you do you might not be as successful as others (for example, 50% EWL vs 100% EWL). The surgery is not "useless". You just can't go into this thinking your sleeve will do all the work for you.

Good luck!!

juliebccs

I have to admit I am only 5 weeks out but I am finding my sleeve an amazing tool. I am still fighting head hunger as my head is still working out portion size to satisfy but no matter what I serve up, I can only eat a small amount and feel very very satisfied.
As much as I try to eat I struggle to reach 500 calories per day. I know this will increase with more time but I have found the sleeve has changed my idea about food and why I need it. I appreciate foods so much more. Cannot imagine eating a big mac and can happily watch others do so. I don't eat perfectly but I have never found it as easy to keep away from take away or high calorie snacks. I have lots to learn but NO regrets from me at all. I know not to sabotage my decision. Is it hard? You make conscious choices as with all diets but the choices just seem so much easier.

christinammcginnis

I am just a few days out form having my surgery. I can tell you there is a huge difference to me that this tool offers. I don't feel hungry. So...I do not feel like I want to eat. I have to make myself drink the shakes that I need to so far and drink the fluids that are necessary for your body to not become dehydrated.

Mangopickle

Yes, this is the big myth about WLS. That it is the "Easy way out". This tool combined with 70%protein25%veg-no potato5%whole grain and regular exercise can get you to a healthy BMI. Sometimes in less than 2 yrs. But to keep it off you must continue to follow the plan. Are you working on not medicating with food? Are you working on not rewarding with food? Are you ready to let go of your Kryptonite /favorite/binge foods that will not be part of your life? Because if you think you can keep them you would be mistaken. Very few if any of us was obese thanks to steak and salad. Are you ready to give up normal desserts forever? Are you ready to take a lot of vitamins daily forever? 50% of WLS pts gain most of their wt back within 5 yrs. BUT 50% do not. That is the highest success rate compared to dieting. In my opinion WLS will take off 30-50 lbs, but every other lb will be a decision you made to stick to the plan. Anyone can out eat WLS. They just take a whole day to eat a deep dish pizza instead of an hour. Good luck with your decision.

ChelleDJM

12 years ago I lost nearly 80 pounds with diet and exercise. This loss only put me into a size 22. I was ecstatic, but I was still quite heavy. Then over a couple years, I gained it back. Two years ago I started on mfp and lost nearly 60 pounds in 6 months. Then I gained it back. My weight all of my adult life has been over 300 pounds, other than these two losses. I cannot even IMAGINE being a normal BMI. WIth the sleeve I can get there. I think wls is a ridiculously drastic move and I would never have done it if I thought there was any possibility of me ever losing and keeping weight off. I will not ruin this decision for surgery where most of my stomach was taken out by not following the rules. The rules are tough, but easier to follow when you go through everything you need to for surgery.

pawoodhull

What a lot of people don't realize is that once you hit a certain point in obesity, diet and exercise alone no longer work. I was at that point at 386 pounds. My sleeve has helped me to lose, but it's up to me to make the permanent changes to lose it all and keep it off. As my doctor said, you can out eat any of the weight loss surgeries and regain your weight.

I look at it this way. My dad said if he bought me a car I would appreciate it a little, but if I paid for it myself I would appreciate it a whole lot more and care for it better. That's the sleeve for me. I invested myself in the surgery, risked myself as all surgery has the potential for death. That investment is now paying off in weight loss, being healthier, no longer having high blood pressure and the beginnings of diatetes. Because of the investment I have made, going back to old habits and eating isn't an option for me. Surgery isn't "the easy way out", for some of us it's the ONLY WAY OUT. This is a tool, and if used properly and used for the rest of my life, it's a tool that will help me get healthy, be a normal weight and help keep me there.

bikrchk

I'm 6 moths out this week. 75 lbs down, 25 to go, (I'm 6 lbs from a "normal BMI!!!) and yes, it is easier, (of course I'm still in the "honeymoon phase"). I don't "diet" anymore. It feels like I eat "like a thin person" now. But I have to say, I'm more food focused now than I've ever been now with the constant food logging and supplement tracking. If I don't, I way under eat, and not in a good way! I exercise 5+ times per week. Hard. And track the intensity with a heart rate monitor. I've lost up to 60 lbs before, but was unable to maintain the lifestyle to keep it off. Now, if I cross the line, there's an uncomfortable price to pay for it so I keep myself in check. So yeah, I work at it, and will for the rest of my life, it's just that the work is no longer a "diet".

JxAAA

I think the biggest difference between losing weight with diet & exercise alone vs. having surgery along with diet & exercise is with the sleeve you have a built in safety net that helps prevent you from going off your "diet". Plus you have the extra help of not having the hunger you had pre-surgery.

I've dieted before lost 40lbs hit a plateau, got discouraged and slowly but surely started eating the way I did before surgery and the weight crept back on after a period of time. I still have concerns about what will happen when I reach maintenance and my stomach allows more food, I just hope all the hard work and the drastic measure of having this surgery will help me not sabotage myself.

garber6th

to go through all that and not have any help seems useless.

It does help, but just like with anything else, it doesn't help if you don't help the process along, too. I believe you have mentioned before in other posts that you had the lap band - is the decision to have surgery harder for you this time for some reason? Are you fearing that you might have the same issues with the sleeve as you did with the band?

lee91356

Im not sure what your getting at, sorry, but IMHO maintenance is WAY HARDER then the weight loss portion of this journey. I always find myself wanting to indulge and find that its SUPER easy to fall back into old habits and that everyday is a struggle and it will probably always be.

The sleeve or any WLS is only a tool to help lose the weight not keep it off. If you dont follow the diet and guidelines then you wont lose in the first place. Moreover, if you lose but dont keep at it then you certainly will regain.

If you 'dont see the point' of WLS and how much work is required in the long-term then perhaps you may need to reconsider committing to it.

DJRonnieLINY

Mbdb: For some people managing eating will be a problem until they identify and address any emotional/psycological triggers. That's why we have to have a mental health evealuation prior to surgery and attend support groups. The sleeve simply reduces stomach capacity. If a person is intent of stuffing themselves at all times or circumvents the restructions by grazing on high calorie foods they will not achieve or maintain a healthy weight.

For me - the sleeve, and the process of getting aproved, provided me with valuable tools to start over. The sleeve helps me address my own personal eating issues; hunger and portions. I simply cannot overeat at a meal and am never hungry so I do not run for snacks. This double shot jump started weight loss which motivated me to make other needed changes. Specifically; I started to understand portion sizes, began logging EVERYTHING into MFP, started an exercise program and bought a FitBit.

Prior to the sleeve I was able to lose up to 50 lbs on one diet or another but could never solve the hunger issues which just lead to a larger weigh regain. 6 months post sleeve I am 10 pounds from goal and am more physically active than I have been in 25 years. I will never go back.

Mbdb131

yes you are correct, I had a lap band and YES Im very much so more afraid this time around because if the problems I had with my band. I lost a good amnt with my band and I was loving it. i mourned the loss of my band when I had to have it removed. I lost my only hope to have a normal body weight. So now I have alot of scar tissue because of the lap band surgeries and that puts me at a greater risk for leaks. So I have this little voice in my head questioning me saying what makes me think ill be safe this time around? after all i didn't plan or expect this to all happen to me when I was banded. so Im just extra nervous! ive been doing a whole lot of soul searching and much praying on this to help ease my fears!



It does help, but just like with anything else, it doesn't help if you don't help the process along, too. I believe you have mentioned before in other posts that you had the lap band - is the decision to have surgery harder for you this time for some reason? Are you fearing that you might have the same issues with the sleeve as you did with the band?
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Mbdb131

you are doing awesome too!! keep up the great work!

Missjulesdid

I naturally entered maintenance in August 2013..which was rather soon after my March 2013 surgery (I think I entered maintenance sooner because I had lost a LOT of weight prior to surgery... AND because I wasn't really following the rules very well and under a BOATLOAD of stress. I wasn't binge eating or eating tons of junk... but I was grazing a bit and definitely eating higher calorie foods than I needed to be eating.

The good news is, I didn't GAIN weight as I would have with diet attempts that didn't involve removing 70% of my stomach. I simply maintained at a 115 pound total weight loss until I was ready to buckle down and lose more weight. Now I'm mentally ready to be back in the game and I'm dieting. OMG.. It's AWESOME. Dieting is SOOOOO much easier than it was pre-sleeve. Yeah, it takes mental work to say no and it takes discipline to not graze... but it's sooo nice to not have to battle constant hunger! I feel like what a "normal" person who has to diet to lose 20 extra pounds must feel like... It's like, yeah, I want those chips, but I don't obsess over them like I would have done presleeve.

whitgetfit

I feel like what a "normal" person who has to diet to lose 20 extra pounds must feel like...

This was really just an ah-ha moment for me. I spent so many years thinking I need to lose 50, 60, 70+ pounds. And now I'm to the point that I don't. I need to lose 20 pounds, what a great feeling compared to where I was at the beginning of this journey. Until reading your quote, I hadn't realized that I weigh what I always thought "normal" people weigh.

And to add to the main post, the TOOL does help. I couldn't imagine ever getting by on 1000 calories or less/day pre-sleeve. Having the sleeve makes me WANT to do better just by having it. But, if you cannot to commit to changing old habits (for me it was Diet. Mt. Dew, bread, pasta, pizza, donuts), you may not do so well. I'm not perfect, and I still make mistakes and indulge more than I probably should, but my lifestyle is so different than what it was 7 months ago.

Ksh1055

MDHD,

I only gained weight during the past 7 years due in large part to extreme stress and medications to get it under control. During this time I also did not care what or if I ate and was drinking every night. I stopped drinking almost 8 years ago shortly after my grandson was born on my own and haven't wanted any since. Same with cigarettes - cold turkey about 6 years ago for my grandson.

Never having been overweight in my life, going through an extremely rough time a few years and now with the right combination of medication working for my stress/anxiety I WAS READY. I had researched this procedure for years and wasn't ready to commit to any extreme change in my eating habits.

In several of my required classes (pre and post) there were a number of individuals who were having a "revision" (previously banded, didn't work out) and now opting for the sleeve with their surgeon's okay. This surgery is so much less invasive than the band, there is no adjustment needed again and again, way less recovery time. You have to have complete faith in your surgeon for your fear to subside. You also have to be fully committed in keeping all of your appointments with your weight management staff, attend the classes required, contact them if you are having a problem before it gets out of hand, and to follow the eating and drinking instructions to the best of your ability. You have to ready for this "lifestyle change" for the rest of your life. If you can't do this, you will not be successful.

Starting from my initial appointment up until this point (sleeved 2/5/14) I found out just how much I DID NOT know about proper nutrition. My weight management team, family and this support group have been instrumental in educating and encouraging me to be successful. I now read labels, learning what is a good for me and what is not, pay close attention via FIT to my caloric input for the day in my 5 most important areas, along with tracking exercise and being able to see the calories I've burned that day.

I WILL BE SUCCESSFUL BECAUSE I HAVE THE COMMITMENT, WILLINGNESS, KNOWLEDGE AND SUPPORT NEEDED TO ACHIEVE THE RESULTS I WANT. :happy:

Hope you got some encouragement from all the replies to your post. That is what this one is meant to be.

Karen