Starting to SERIOUSLY question what I am about to do...(long)

Well, everyone else has given you the best advice so I can't really add much to it.  I do want to say that this is the hardest thing I have ever done in my whole entire life.  There are days that I think "what the hell have I done?"  I am an emotional eater and some days it is so hard to resist eating things that I know aren't good for me or things that will make me feel like a mack truck has run me over.  I was a big sweets lover before surgery and I am a big sweets lover now too.  I can tolerate some sugar but I definitely know if I have gone too far.  When I go overboard with it, I feel like total crap for a while but some days that doesn't even stop me.  It's all about behavior modification and when you are an emotional eater, that is one of the hardest things to control.  You really do have to change your lifestyle habits that got you here.  You have to be totally committed to trying your hardest to stay the course with your eating, vitamins, water, and exercise.  It's definitely not easy!

Now, having said that, I will say that I would do this surgery again!  I have gained so much more in life than the 137 lbs I have lost!!  My self esteem is so much better, my health is so much better, I look "normal", I feel "normal" most days, and I know that I am going to live a much more happy and productive life than I would have without the surgery. 

You can worry yourself silly with all the "what if's" and I believe it's quite normal to do that.  But in the end, you have to know yourself and what is realistic for you and your lifestyle.  This is hard, yes, but most things in life worth having are hard.  Just believe in yourself and do your research and you will know what is best for you.  Hope nothing I've said upsets you ~ just trying to keep it real and honest. 

Here's my 2 cents.

I also have been reading plenty and having second thoughts about whether or not I want to have WLS.  I am in good health even though I am overweight;  I have slightly high blood pressure which is under control through exercise and a low dose of one medication. 

I have decided that I do not want this surgery right now.  Maybe, if I had diabetes I would change my mind.

So, to you I would say, you need to be sure FOR YOURSELF about going ahead with WLS.  I would not do it if it were mainly for vanity reasons.  I would not do it because I "might" develop health  problems later on due to obesity, although I might if I were super obese.  I would not have WLS  even if everybody on the OH board assured me that they would "do it all over again. "

You need to read about all the possible complications, and be convinced that your life would still be better if you were to have WLS and develop some of those complications.  For me, I couldn't agree that it would be worth it.

Now, I might change my mind in the future.  Even so, I would probably be interested in the duodenal switch, not the RNY.  The DS'ers don't have all the restrictions of the RNY'ers.  But I can't find enough people who have had their WLS long term and are in good health, to convince me to have it.  I notice that most of the people who post on these boards are only 1-3 years out.  They are still excited about their weight loss but not far enough out to have time to develop long term problems that can occur. 

So for now, I am waiting.  Watching and waiting.  You do what is going to be best for you and don't let anybody talk you into or out of your decision.

Nancy S.

KIm,

I am also going to put my 2 cents in...  I have read everyone's replies and they all say what I would say to you.  Keep doing your research and make sure you're doing it for you and for the right reasons.  You are the one who will need to make the life changes.  Just like if you were going through Weigh****chers or any other "plan", you need to make changes for the best results.  We have chosen to have WLS to be given a tool to use to aid in our weight loss...  Most of us don't have any problems and reach our goal but there are a few who have complications or aren't happy with their progress.  I had RNY and I'm 6 years Post Op and haven't had ANY complications from the WLS.  I've lost 217lbs and my health is now much much better.  I have a future worth looking forward to now.  I did regain 25lbs (old habits creeped back in) over the past 2 years and I got scared.  So I went back to the basics and I'm watching what I'm eating again, I've lost 8 of those 25lbs so far and feel like I have a handle on it again.  Having RNY was the only thing that has worked for me, and I've tried EVERY diet there was prior to my WLS.  I did about 3 years of research before I made my decision to have WLS and technology is much much better now than it was then.  Anyway, I'm basically saying what has been said over and over, only you will know when or if you're ready for WLS, make sure you have the answers you need to make a decision you can live with. 

I wish you all the luck in the world!  If you have ANY questions for me please feel free to PM me anytime.  I will help you any way I can. 



Anyway,

I've always been a proactive person.  I always felt (like most other guys I know) that I LOOKED just fine, even at 320lbs.  What motivated me to do the WLS was the onset of diabetes, more of a discovery than an onset I just never wanted to go to the doctor and learn the bad news.  No one did more research than me.  I have two small kids, a huge mortgage to satisfy somehow between now and 2023, and a wife that I love dearly, so I wanted to make REALLY sure that I wasn't doing something that was overly dangerous.  Major surgery was something that wasn't in the cards for me.  But back to me being proactive, I had diabetes, I was hypertensive, I had GERD, I was unhappy with myself, I couldn't play with the kids without almost dying in the process, I felt like I was less of a father, husband, provider, and protector than I should be.  I talked to my doctor about diet plans (I had already trired a million) and exercise plans that were "sure to work", finally I told her..."Let's just fix the damn problem...ok".  I was referred to my surgeon that day and saw him later on that month.  I can truly say it's been a blessing for me (and my wife also a WLS'er, 1 year postop).  I have "fixed" all of the issues that I had above, yeah fixed.  You can (and will) read all sorts of horror stories online and otherwise about things that have gone wrong.  However, (this is what I did) just PICK ANY surgery out of thin air and plug it into a search engine with the word "botched" or "horror story" and you will find probably almost as many negative stories as you do with WLS.  Bottom line: ALL surgery can be dangerous, life is dangerous, but it's alot happier at 210 than it was at 320 (and safer)!  Best of luck to you in your decision. 

Jason

320-299-208-200
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