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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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