I dont think I want to have surgery!!

Hey everyone... I have been really busy lately. I started working out at the YMCA and I think I am going to chicken out of the surgery!! As I posted a few days ago I have been losing weight on my own. I actually lost 20 lbs in 5 weeks. My goal weight is 180 and I think I can do that on my own. I am still going to meet with the doctor, but I am going to really try before I have surgery and if I do have the surgery, at least I am in shape for it!! I think I will be healthier if I can do it on my own... I never thought I would be able to do this... What do you guys think??? Am I just all hyper about the weight I have already lost, or do you think it is possible for me to do it.... Do you guys think protein drinks are good or bad when losing weight on my own and Sherri where did you buy those coffee drink things at??? I have been CRAVING those things!!! Thank you guys for all the support you guys give me... I greatly appreciate it!!!

Megan, I don't think you are chickening out of anything.  I actually applaud you for the wieght that you have lost!I think that you are doing great, and that you will continue doing great.  Even though losing wieght is hard, what is even more hard is keeping it off!  I say, why not take time and try to lose it yourself before you have surgery, I don't see anything wrong with that whatsoever.  I do, however, think that you should continue to document your wieght loss, just in case!  It's always good to have a medical documented wieght loss.  You know anything can change in the future.  But overall, I think you can do great! And 20 pounds in a little over a month ain't too shabby at all! Also, Protein are great when trying to lose the wieght by yourself!  it burns fat and builds muscle.  When I've tried to lose wieght in the past, I use a brand of protien shake called muscle milk, and it is delecious!  The only downside that it has is that it is loaded with fat and calories, which is not an extremely bad thing especially when you are working out like the way you are!  But on the bright side, they do have Diet Muscle milk too!  Overall, just keep going Megan, you can do anything you set your mind to!

Thanks for the encouragement... I may try the diet muscle milk... Where do I get it at and how much does it cost??? I know if I can do it without having surgery that it is better on my body... I wasnt even working out when I lost all of the weight... I just started working out after I found out how much I lost... When I went to my doctor for my weigh in she was very suprised that I dropped that much weight... She just kept saying WOW, that is great... She was like I wish everyone could do this but i dont wanna tell them I am wanting to back out because I still want to have the surgery if I dont lose it on my own. I am supposed to have it in March... I am soooo scared and confused!!! I think it is better for me just to wait a couple of months and figure out what I want to do!!!

Megan, Everyones decision to hve or not have is their own to make and a very personal decision! I wish you the best no matter which path that you decide on your weightloss journey- surgery is not for everyone! That being said- congrats on the weightloss that you have achieved thus far! Keep up the great work- for me I could lose some weight but keeping it off was my problem! I wish you the best and hope that whatever decision that you choose is the best for you and that you have terrific results! By the way the drinks that Sherri gets are Acheive Ones (sp) ? they are advertised on the left side of the main messageboard! Hope this helps! Good luck- Hugz Dawn

Surgery is for those who have tried and failed.. Who just can't get it off any other way!! I myself tried and tried but couldn't do it on my own I had gone over the edge in obesity that I couldn't recover on my own. MY BMI was 51!! I had gone thru so many diets.. and programs. I would never reccomend surgery as a first or even second resort. It is a life long decision that you have to prep for mentally and physically. and a life long decision you have to be willing to live with. I am very proud you have gotten the strength to "do it on your own". Congrats on the 20 pounds so far.. take what you are learning in YOUR journey and make it YOUR life long commitment. Losing weight.. well even with surgery.. won't stay off if you get to goal then start living the "old lifestyle" With surgery you have to continue to use your tool to keep it off.. Doing it on  your own you have to commit yourself to always eat right and not to forget to exercise. As much as I hated hearing my Dr saying it.. the KEY to weight loss is to eat LESS and move MORE. It took surgery to help me to be able to EAT less and finally when I lost enough I was able to MOVE more..  It is a life decision no matter how you achieve it!! You will always have our support.. we are NOT total SURGERY.. we are TOTAL  HEALTH! We want you to LIVE and Obesity will not allow you to.. My best to you always!! Linda Kay

Interesting message.  I agree with the others if you can keep on the path without surgery yes that is a great thing.  You look young in the picture posted.  Most if not all of us our older and have tried to keep a good weight.  I have weighed what I do now at least 4 times in my life but always gained it back.  I had the closet full of 3 sizes of clothes.  Heavy, obese, Morbidly obese.  The surgery is a tool that keeps me aware of quantities of food that I should eat.  I just finish 1 pck. of oatmeal and am stuffed.  Before the surgery I could eat the 8 pck box of oatmeal and not feel stuffed. By all means keep on the right road and don't use food to reward or punish yourself.  Get in Weigh****chers, become a life member and go to the meetings both to help yourself but also others. Will be praying for you. E

Megan,

I am young like you and I think that surgery should be a LAST RESORT!! You should try as hard as you can to lose the weight on your own. And I say that because this surgery is a TOTAL life change. You will in no way be prepared for the things that you are going to have to sacrifice if you haven't given it 100% beforehand and failed. I was on a perpetual diet and exercise regimen for 5 years before I decided that I couldn't do it... that no matter how hard I tried how regimented or devoted I was the weight just would not come off. Now if i could work out 5-6 hours a day like they do on the biggest loser then I would be able to lose the weight, but the reality is in the real world that's not possible. I have a job and a family tot ake care of and i didn't and don't have that time to donate to working out. With all that being said... if you really haven't TRIED and given 100% to lose weight, then you definitely need to pursue that path before you have surgery. It changes your whole life whether you want it to or not. When you're working out and dieting you have the choice to go eat that hamburger, now you shouldn't, but you could if you wanted to. After surgery that choice is taken away from you, don't get me wrong you can eat, but you will be sicker than HELL and regret it for a long time.

Keep at it... take care of you and make the best decision for where you are RIGHT now in your life. We're young... this is going to effect us ALOT longer than some.

Megan By all means TRY the diet first...and like the others said...give it 100%. You are young...this is a LIFETIME adjustment....IF you can lose the weight without surgery GREAT! More power to ya! AMEN!   CONGRATS on the weightloss so far...you are doing GREAT! Keep up the good work! We are all here for you! HUGGGGGGGGGS Janene

I don't really have much more to add to what everyone else has said! I agree though if you can do it on your own by all means do it. Also agree with Brok if you can go and have it documented (some doctors allow you to come in and just get weighed each month) do so in case in the future you decide that you do want to have the surgery. I decided in the early part of 2006 that I wanted to have WLS after much thinking about it and almost getting my referrel I decided that it wasn't a good option for me because I hadn't felt like I did everything I could ( I had tried all the fad diets etc and would lose 10-20 lbs but always gained it back) so I went on a strict 12-1500 calorie diabetic diet (I was diabetic) and did that and exercise for a year and still yo yo'ed between the same 10 lbs. Ya my eating habits were part of what got me super morbidly obese to begin with but at the time I was on steroids constantly for my Asthma, my diabetes had started to get out of control and I was on 4 medications for it, I had PCOS with severe insulin resistance which made it super hard to lose anything also and I finally felt like I had done EVERYTHING I could. I talked to my PCP and a couple weeks later I had my consult with Dr. Cacucci. I was over 300 lbs and just too unhealthy to keep living that life. I guess my point is like everyone else said REALLY use it as your last option.

Megan, I get my AchievOne drinks from BariatricEating.com. They are pricey though. Regardless of where a person is in their weight loss journey..and that is a journey with or without surgery, PEW is the key to weight loss...Protein Exercise Water. You need all three and the more you do of all three, the better your results will be. With whatever protein drink you choose (if you do) be sure to check the calories vs protein. The AchievOne's have 120 cal per 20 g of protein (6 calories per gram of protein). Some of the protein drinks I've seen have 300-600 cal with 10-15 g of protein (20-60 cal per gram of protein). The lower the calorie per gram of protein, the better. I wish I had realized all the things I know now when I were your age...and had the determination I have now. I would have never entered my 30's as an obese woman and I would had done it without having a weight loss surgery. What many people don't understand is that just about anyone will lose weight with a weight loss surgery...the first year or so. After that? To continue losing weight or to maintain the weight loss, you HAVE TO have learned some new lifestyle patterns or that weight is going to come right back..just like it did when we got off of whatever diet we were on. We all know or have heard of someone who had the surgery, lost weight and then gained it back. Those people never learned and/or adopted new lifestyle patterns! And basically, that is what it is going to take to lose weight..and keep it off...with or without surgery. Megan, I have never regretted having my RNY, but I had tons of complications. But if I had it all to do over again? I would have started out by changing my lifestyle. Start checking your food labels and get low/no fat and/or sugar-free whenever possible. When you buys your meats, remember that poultry & seafood are going to be the highest protein with the lowest fat (no breading or batter..and no frying). When you do buy pork & beaf, choose those with less fat..or trim away the fat. If/when you get high carb foods (potatoes, pasta) buy the healthier versions (whole wheat) and prepare them 'light' (baked instead of fried). Cut down on the breads..and when you do have them, wheat is better than white..and you can find low cal bread also that is only 35 cal per slice (regular bread is ~80 cal per slice). Eliminate certain things like pop and caffiene. Eat your veggies! Have fresh fruit (much better for you than fruit juices!). All of these food changes, your taste buds will hardly even notice..but your hips will! Ask yourself 'what nutritional value will this give me?'. If you can't think of any and the label doesn't list any, why bother putting it in your body? Drink water. The old thing about drinking eight 8oz glasses is a minimum that each of us need...no matter if we are post-ops or not! Carry a water bottle with you 24/7. I get the 24 oz ones with the pop-top (so I don't have to unscrew a cap constantly..I know, lazy! lol!). As long as I drink 3 of these a day, I know I've exceded what I HAVE to get in...I usually get in five of them.  And exercise? That is probably where most dieters set themself up for failure. Why? Well..let's see if this sounds familiar... Monday:  I'm starting my diet today. I'm going to to the gym and work out for two hours and then I'm going to have lunch. I'm having a nice salad. Tuesday:  OMG! I busted it at the gym! I am so sore today!! I think I'll take it easy today. The gym will be there tomorrow. The salad was good though and mmm..love their blue cheese dressing! (Blue cheese is loaded with calories!) Wednesday: OK..I'll go back to the gym today. I better get ready though. Since I'll be working out, Denny's Grand Slam should give me enough energy to make it through it. Thursday: I know, I know. That Grand Slam yesterday made me so sleepy, I just came back home and crawled back into bed. That felt so good. The heck with the gym! It only made me hurt anyway. Get the idea? Often times, we over-do it on the exercise and end up doing more harm than good. The exercise program we choose needs to be first of all: ENJOYABLE! If you don't enjoy it, you won't continue to do it! It needs to be something you look forward to going to, not something you dread. It needs to be a friend! Don't be afraid to try out different things to see what you enjoy (or don't). And just as we have many friends, it's fine to enjoy more than one kind of exercise. I love walking, swimming, and dancing. All three are excellent forms of exercise. And do these exercises 3-5 times a week. Keep those muscles limber! Megan, you CAN do it without surgery. But it is going to take you dedicating yourself to a new lifestyle...not to a 'diet'. Diets do NOT work. We're here for you for whatever you decide to do. The things that those past the honeymoon stage (+1 yr post-op) have to do to be successful are the same things you will have to do to be successful. The only difference? Our pouch won't let us pig out...your stomach will...so it is going to have to take even more self-control for you than for us. But you CAN do it!! Sherri