Hello (+ seeking some advice/opinions)
I think that its a great idea to take time to decide what procedure is right for you. I don't know that much about the Vertical Sleeve as I had the Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass. I have a friend that had the Sleeve over a year ago and isn't where she should be in her weight loss journey. My younger daughter had the Roux-en-Y surgery one year ago. She weighted 289 and now is at 148. She looks and feels great, not a lot of saggy skin and medical issues are gone. I had it back in 2003, so a lot of things have changed since then. What hasn't changed is the fact that a lot of people don't think they are over weight enough to have the procedure. I'm 5'1 and weighed 319 pounds, yet my doctor never suggested it. I brought it up at one of my many appointments and she was immediately on board with it. She sent me to the Weight loss Specialist to be evaluated. At that time insurance companies wouldn't pay for laparoscopic weight loss procedures, it was considered experimental. So I had open surgery which means I have a scar from my breast bone to my belly button. I am still happy with the decision to have the surgery after all these years. I have a scar and some jiggly skin on my upper arms and I'm okay with that. What I don't have is anymore Sleep Apnea, High Blood Pressure & Diabetes! The older you get the more being over weight will affect your health. You can go to a Weight-loss Seminar in your area. You can also join a Support Group. I don't know how it works in Canada, but here in the States your Weight Loss Doctor requires you to go to the Support Group meetings, a psychological evaluation and to drop some pounds before the surgery. Whatever procedure you decide on, don't let your friends, family nor your medical professionals try to lead you in a different direction. You do need to do more research on all the different types of procedures. This is a wonderful Site with great information, but there's other medical sites to look at as well. I tried doing it on my own, doing it with Weigh****chers, Jenny Craig and some liquid protein diet and failed at all of them! Good luck with whatever procedure you decide on!
Thanks so much for your response and for sharing your experience! It really does help me! I agree - so much research is needed, and I've just been devouring info on the forums here for the past two weeks now. It's still kind of a shock but I'm getting my head around it. I didn't even realize how much I weighed, at all. I thought I weighed around 250lbs, not 350lbs. But I mean, I walk about 5km per day, swim for about an hour once or twice per week, play street hockey and broomball with friends, etc, and I just had a cardiac work-up last year and they said my heart was in textbook health and I thought, ok, I'm doing better than I thought! Going from that basic self-image (overweight, but all-around pretty good?) to applying the term super mobidly obese is just... yeah. Taking some time to adjust to the shock of, but I'm getting there. I don't have diabetes or sleep apnea (though I snore and it embarrasses the **** out of me - I'd LOVE to get rid of that!!!!), and diabetes runs in my family, so I figured I'd always best be cautious of my sugar intake, etc. So now I'm looking into diets, because for the next six months I'll be in a different city where they speak a different language (and I don't want to join a group that isn't speaking my language, you know?) and need to get my BMI down at least five points to even qualify for the surgery if it's going to be covered by Canada's health coverage. Apparently it depends on the hospital here, which I didn't know! Anyway, I'm rambling on and on, but thanks again for your feedback - it's really valuable to me!
Hi,
I will start off by telling you I had gastric sleeve surgery on March 27, 2017. At my November doctor's appointment I had loss 105 pounds and my BMI was 25.
I have a similar story to yours, I never gave gastric bypass surgery a passing thought. Of course I wanted to be thinner, but I ate healthy and I exercised daily and my weight stayed the same. My doctor sent me to an endocrinologist to see if I had a thyroid issue (I did not). This wonderful man told me I was morbidly obese, had an enlarged liver and was pre-diabetic. The thought of testing my sugar and giving myself insulin shots freaked me out.
I have had major surgery, but the fear of this was overwhelming. I had scheduled and cancelled the surgery 3 times, and almost this last time. Thank goodness I didn't, it is the best thing I have ever done for myself.
Yes I have excess skin, but it is not terribly bad. I was told it was because I did eat well and that I did exercise for most of my life. Also, I don't know about Canada, but in the States if you have excess skin your insurance may cover its removal.
So my surgery was not bad, had it on a Monday came home on Wednesday. The pain was very mild, I was walking the halls on Tuesday,by Friday a mile. The diet (my surgeon's was strict - clear liquids, liquids, puree, soft and so on) was a little tough at the time. There are still times where food doesn't sit right, or I struggle to get enough protein and or water in my diet.
This surgery changed my life, I would recommend it to anyone who is willing to commit. Just do your research and get a good surgeon. Good Luck
