What made you guys decide on surgery?

the day my boyfriend said my weight concerned him............. though, he wasn't doing it maliciously or to upset me. and I specifically asked him if my appearance bothered him - so I guess I should have expected it.

Also, growing up, I remember in highschool...kids wrote "butterball" all over my locked in permanent marker... that devastated me. Those same kids have packed on more than I've lost - so I truly do believe karma is a real thing.

Basically, my main reason for getting the surgery was so that I couldn't be judged anymore. I lost out on a lot of potential jobs, lost jobs because of how I looked, never really had a serious boyfriend, didn't have many friends, my weight affected my personality (though I find the drastic weight loss has affected my surgery even more in that I'm more depressed NOW than I was before the surgery, and I have extremely uncontrollable mood swings!).

My reason was that I have a neurological disorder that stopped responding to medication. My neurologist started talking to me about brain surgery and shunts and well that scared the crap out of me. I got a second opinion and this neurologist said that many patients respond well to drastic weight loss. I researched gastric bypass and felt I would rather have that then brain surgery. I am a year out and have met my goal weight. I am now on preventive medications for my disorder and rarely notice the symptoms! I am so happy I made this decision it was truly the best for me! Good luck to you

When I realized that I could no longer do my job to the best of my ability and had to depend on others to pick up my slack, I knew I needed to 'get a grip' on my reality. I had wanted surgery for at least three years prior, but unable to drop the required 30lbs. I had lacked the committment to change. When reality 'smacked' me, I was ready to make that committment. I dropped 50lbs before the surgery and never looked back. My first surgical anniversary is 1/15/11. I still have 50lbs to go and looking forward to plastic surgery to remove the sagging abdominal apron in July '13.. You can't cheat yourself. If you make the committment to yourself - you can do anything. Good Luck.

Hi...I'm new here also. I had gastric bypass on 9/27/12 and my weight loss is very slow. I was 218 the morning of my surgery and am 199 right now. I have had weight issues my entire life--have seen the low end of the scale and maintained it for years (in a very unhealthy way,) but eventually it all piled back on. My decision for surgery was not an easy one. I am a Type I Diabetic, have been for almost 29 years. I eventually found myself on so much insulin and was very insulin resistant because of the weight (my highest weight was 246.) I also have hypothyroidism, high blood pressure, and sleep apnea. I got to the point that just walking to my mailbox at the curb was too much for me. Every time I saw my endocrinologist, my weight was higher. For years I told them I could not take it any longer. I never was a big eater--just got into the rut of eating out a lot after my parents and my sister died. I went through a lot to have this surgery because there was no surgeon in my insurance network area. I had to fight for an out of network procedure that would be done 2 1/2 hours away from home. After paying for the dietitian appointments (which financially was not easy for me,) and the psychologist, buying all the vitamins, etc. I was denied three times before the surgery was approved. I had decided to lose weight on my own. I managed to lose 32 pounds before the surgery. I am very glad that I had this surgery. My health is improving greatly, and it has only been 6 weeks. My insulin use is down from 155 units of Novolog thru the insulin pump to about 46 units a day through the pump. My blood pressure is down and I am able to walk a couple of miles a day without problems. The diet is very easy. I seldom have problems with food. I am at about 700 cals a day now and managing to get in all the protein required, as well as the water. I haven't had any real cravings that have not been able to be satisfied sensibly. I don't even have a problem going out to eat and choosing the right things and taking the remaining portions home. The funny thing is that my sons (who are 20, 21, and 23) make me order water to drink, even though I can't drink it. They drink it for me. I think they don't want to have to explain to the servers why their mom doesn't want to order a drink. Other than that, they are very supportive. Yes, this is the best decision I have made in a long time. I love the compliments I am getting!

Sick and tired of being overweight..I've tried everything and my health issues were mounting. I'm 4 weeks out and inititally lost 57 on my own after surgery 23lbs. I am very happy with my decision. It was a emotional roller coaster making the decision but i'm glad I stuck to my guns.

I have worked my butt off over the past few years to try and do this on my own. I have been on MFP for a couple of years already. My PTP brought up the subject of WLS after I lost my brother last year to a heart attack. He was 1.5 yrs older than me. I saw what was possibly ahead if I didn't make some drastic moves. I decided in September this year to start the process. By going to info sessions at the hospital, meeting with surgeon, fillling out gobs of paper work and attending many different medical appointment requirements I gained more and more knowledge. I joined this group and have gained alot of knowledge, read thru some of the old posts, reached out with questions. Knowledge is power you know. If you are serious about this I would recommend you find the best bariatric center in your area you can. You may want to make a preliminary call to your insurance. Mine confirmed that my hospital was a "bariatric approved center" and therefore provides me the best coverage under my plan. Sure there are other hospitals and docs that will do the surgery but mine has a full staff that helps coordinate all your needs. As you will see from reading thru the forum threads some folks have had some horrible experiences with the docs/insurance approval process. Do your homework, be informed, the process takes months to get through so this is certainly not something you can enter into hastily even if you wanted to. My main reason is to get healthier by using this tool to the best of my ability. Hopefully I will get thru the insurance approval swiftly and be looking at having my sleeve gastrectomy in late Feb-early March 2013.