Weight Loss Surgery or Weight Loss without

Renee_Leslie

Hello All,
I've been a member since March 2012, and started working to just lose the weight required before Weight Loss Surgery. Now I'm in a position to where if I keep losing the way I am now, I may be well past my 50 lb. goal weight before September. I talked with my Dietician yesterday, and she told me "if I keep losing the weight the way I am, I could possibly avoid the surgery all together". So, the question is now, Do I want to still to go through the surgery or do I want to try and trudge on and try to loose the total 235 lbs. of weight the way I am now?

My profile says I've lost 24 lbs., but I've actually lost 33 since I started this "Lifestyle Change" last November. My peak weight was 421 lbs. and I am now 388 and still dropping. I know I will eventually hit Plateaus, but will it be frustrating enough to force me to still consider the surgery?

Having a couple of friends has been encouraging, having more would possibly be the difference between slow and steady weight-loss and quick surgery. I am a Christian and have given this weight loss to God and He has blessed me with what I've lost now. With His help and your friendship, you may help my family and I make the final decision. Your encouragement is welcomed very much.

(Also, if anyone knows how to post pictures here and in Blogs, could you please help me? Thank you )

cawitkow1

Hi! This is only my second post but I have to say I wouldn't do the surgery unless your health was in grave danger and you were unwilling to do something about it the healthy way. My husband is a gastroenterologist. That being said, I've heard horror stories about bypass, lap bands, etc. You do not want to mess with the part of your body responsible for vomit and poop. It will NOT be pleasant! You can do this!!! You've already proven that. Keep up what you're doing. There is no limit as to the amount of weight you're "capable" of losing, just the amout you're "committed" to losing!

free2live72003

I am also a Christian and gave my weightloss concerns and burden over to God after years of struggling with it on my own and I give Him all the glory for my new healthy lifestyle.

Here is my journey and I hope it will help you in some way with yours.

I am 52 y/o, have been obese (up to >325 lbs) my whole life. I had my thyroid removed when I was 19 due to a tumor. I have strong family genetics for obesity and I didn't always eat well or exercise well. But, I was generally very active and committed to losing weight throughout the years. But, I lost the same 50 lbs over and over again. I had personal trainers, gym memberships, eating plans, etc. and was truly diligent and gung ho about losing weight and getting healthy throughout much of my life.

Dispite my best efforts, I could not push past the hormonal and metabolic imbalances that kept me from finding lasting success.

Finally, over a short period of time, two different doctors confronted me and asked what I hoped to gain trying and failing at the same thing over and over again. They both essentially said that I was literally dying while trying to lose the weight. I had diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high triglycerides, sleep apnea, needed two knee replacements and needed steroid shots in my back every 3 months just to walk. And with this decline in my healht over the last 2 years I had become seriously depressed to the point of at least entertaining the thought of suicide which I knew was not God's plan for me.

After much, much time in prayer I felt like God's provision for me was to have gastric bypass surgery. Not so much for the sake of having a smaller stomach, but for the re-routing of my intestines which has now been proven to majorly alter some individual's metabolism and the way they process their foods.

It worked for me! Immediately after my surgery I no longer had diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, or high triglycerides as my body now metabolized food differently than before. I didn't have to lose the weight first to experience the health benefits. The way my body was processing food was broken and I needed the surgery to correct what did not work properly.

I have lost 162lbs and am at a weight of 163lb and would like to lose about 15 lbs more. I now do weight training 3 times/wk; Zumba 5-6 times/wk; jog 5K races, etc. My knees and back are much improved. I no longer take any medications except vitamins. My life has totally changed. I now feel that I can more fully serve God in so many ways that my weight, poor health and depression limited me before.

NOW--having said all of that you probably think that I am going to recommend that you have the surgery.

Actually, I AM NOT necessarily recommending it.

First, it is a very personal decision that only you can make. Secondly, it is not really the answer for most people who choose this option in my opinion---most could lose the weight without surgery if they were truly committed to a healthy plan. What I would say to you is BE VERY HONEST WITH YOURSELF---if you can do this without surgery, then by all means do it that way--it will always be the best plan for the majority of people out there.

However, if you are like me and are running out of time, energy , and solutions, and you have TRULY TRIED EVERYTHING--seek out God's word for your life and doctors who will give you good medical advice as to how to be successful (including via weight loss surgery).

But, know that weight loss surgery is not an easy fix---it is HARD. And you still have to do all the same things you are now doing thru MFP (monitoring intake, reduce calories, eat less, exercise more, strength train, etc.).

The only difference for me is that now my metabolism and hormones have been reset and are working with me and my weightloss plan instead of working against me.

I hope this gives you some food for thought. You are welcome contact me if you have any questions that I might help you with.

God's blessings!

angelakj23

I am against surgery unless it is the only option left. So many things can go wrong even if it is just a basic surgery that the doc has done a million times. You are doing a fantastic job on your own. With God, family, & friends on your side you can do this!

KimmySue72

Hi there! I don't respond to a lot of threads on here, but I really felt like I should repond to yours...

I am also a Christian, a pastor, in fact. I'm also a 39-year-old wife, mom, full-time employee in the investment industry, and a college student.

I personally understand the struggle of having a lot to lose and wondering if surgery would be the best option, even though I am typically very anti-surgery if it can possibly be avoided. I have a goal of losing 221 pounds from my starting weight. I started with MFP at my highest weight in June 2011. As of this morning, I have lost 98.7 pounds in 11 months doing nothing but using MFP to track my food every day and following it's nutritional goals and daily recommended calories...and a lot of prayers for strength along the way! I just joined a gym last week to help with muscle strengthening and toning as I lose the next 100+ pounds.

I had a check-up with my primary care doc last week, and as he commented and congratulated me on my progress, he told me how proud he was of me for losing the weight in a healthy, natural manner. Although there are certain medical exceptions where surgery is truly the best option, he talked about how most people could actually lose large amounts of weight on their own through food and exercise choices.

Now, to anyone on here and has had the surgery, believe me when I say that my coments are not meant to offend anyone. I simply hope to encourage others with a lot to lose that it really can be done without surgery and to pass along information as shared with me by my own physician.

Renee, I pray that you are successful in your weight loss endeavors and that you hear the voice of God speak clearly into your heart the direction and path that is best for your life!

If you're interested in following my blog, you can find it at: www.polyestertospandex.blogspot.com

Blessings!
Kimberly

emnk5308

Don't do the surgery You will be so much more proud of yourself if you don't.. its so much better for your body too! Keep working on it. If you can do it without surgery, than do it!

pauldbarnhart

You have proven you can lose weight without surgery. Keep up the good work, and don't stop.

I know people that have had the surgery - it worked for some, and didn't work for others. My personal opinion is that surgery is not necessary. While I like to believe that all doctors are ethical, the fact remains that it is the doctors that conduct the surgery that tend to recommend it...can they really be unbiased about their recommendations? They don't do the surgery for free - they make money doing it.

Again...you are losing weight the right way...keep doing it! It's not easy, but neither is the surgery option.

Angelfromokc

Your doing great so far on your own! I should personally avoid surgery also. Keep up the awesome job your doing!! Please feel free to add me! I'm always looking for friends!

Renee_Leslie

Thank you all, I appreciate all your honesty.

Free2live7200, I am living very much like your life.
I am 48 and have had 2 separate doctors over the last 7 years suggest this surgery, but because of insurance and other personal issues I was not able to get organized until February of this year. I have High Blood Pressure with Chronic Edema, all weight related. I also have Severe Arthritis in both knees and the onset in my right hip, and Carpel Tunnel in both wrists, which gets aggrivated constantly because I have to use crutches to walk long distances. No Orthopedic Surgeon will touch me to repair my knees until I get down to about 225. I will be going to my second Sleep Study this Wednesday, as they seem to have found something in my last study 2 weeks ago. This one will be with a CPap machine (I hate masks on my face :-C ) I guess I'll find out if I have Sleep Apnea too.
I've tried many diet programs and have used many Rx drugs for weight-loss, but nothing ever worked for long and then it would all be gained back plus more. When I had to go on dissability in late 2008 because of my arthritis, my weight rocketed up. I don't truly know what my true peak weight was, because I don't have a home scale that could weigh that high, but when I went to my Doctor's appointment in November 2011, I weighed 421 lbs. and my BP was getting worse. The only thing that has remained good has been my actual blood-work... good tri-glyserides, good Cholesteral (it's all the garlic I eat :-D ).
So, what is so different this time? This time I asked God to be involved and gave it to Him. He is the one who has led me on this path, if for nothing else, to make me more aware of what will happen if I don't get this weight off, and to put the proper Professionals in my path to help me make the right decisions. I agree the ultimate decision is my own, I can choose to go ahead and do it, pospone it for a few months, or stop the process all together. In the meantime, I am going through medical testing that will prepare me for the procedure, as well as maybe bring to light other illnesses that are caused by or causing my weight gain.
I am looking at a new procedure called Sleeve Gastrectomy, I will know in June if insurance will cover it. If not, I may consider Lap-Band, if I am eligible. Either way, if I can get this weight down by myself, I would definitely prefer it, as this procedure is more permanent (there is no reversing this one, because they completely remove a large portion of the stomach).

I would love to add you all to my friends list, if you would like to. Again, all honestly and support is appreciated. Thank you all and God Bless.

free2live72003

Do what you feel the Lord is leading you to do. I was very anti-surgery for many years. I am a nurse and well understand the risks.

However, when I (through prayer) reached a point of greatest peace with my decision to have surgery versus not, I moved forward in faith that my Lord had opened a way for my healing with this surgery just as open heart surgery might provide healing for someone with heart disease.

There is alot of stygma around this issue, mostly from people whose bodies respond to traditional weightloss strategies and who have never had to fight the battle of a body that does not respond.

I do not believe in randomly recommending any surgery to anyone, but I will defend MY decision for ME til the day I die as it has saved my life when people suppporting MFP, Weight Watchers, The Zone, a gym, a personal trainer, etc. ended up scratching their heads when I worked the program and still could not achieve or maintain significant wieght loss and health.

I would not change my decision for anything in the world. I GLADLY WORKOUT 6 days a week now, not because I have to, but because I CAN and because I SO ENJOY BEING ABLE TO MOVE AGAIN.

If after time you find that you are not successful with the traditional weight loss strategies----by all means CHOOSE LIFE & HEALTH however and wherever you can find it. Many will say the cost (or potential cost) is too high. Unless they have walked in disability as we have they do not know the cost we pay every day as an obese individual.

I am thrilled to now be healthy and active again and am not ashamed to say that I used a surgical approach to help me get to this point. At the end of the day, it is not the vehicle that I arrived in that matters, but that I ARRIVED.

dingorock

From a medical perspective, if you're losing weight without it...keep it up and wait on the surgery. Weight lost through exercise and diet is the best method and avoids all sorts of complications associated with surgery. For one, you avoid all the pain and recovery time and problems with enzymes and vitamin absorption issues. Gastric bypass patients aren't allowed to take NSAIDs, I don't know about you, but I'd miss the ability to take Advil when I really need it. Also, even after the surgery, you need to maintain the diet and portion control or it doesn't work and then things can really go wrong.

I'm not saying no one should have it done. But if you're at all able to lose weight on your own and avoid the surgery...that's definitely a better way to go.