VSG...Should I do it???

That is how i am leaning i.e. have VSG surgery while i can. I qualified for surgery thru Medicare when i began the program. There is no guarantee i would ever qualify in the future. If the doctors agree to do it I will go for it. My sister is 11 months post VSG and has never had any complaints. She is in Michigan and I am in CA so i dont see her but she has lost probably 60+ pounds and has had no complications. My brother and other sister have diabetes and the sis also has failing kidneys. She is 75 and i do not want to follow in her footsteps.

you will have to eat on plan the rest of your life, not necessarily diet.

why would you want to keep "dieting" off the same 35 pounds the rest of your life when you can lose it once and for all and MAINTAIN the loss by eating on plan?

having WLS was the single best thing I have ever done for myself. I have maintained a122# loss for nearly 8 years.

I have funky EKG. I had High Blood pressure at time of surgery. 56 at time of surgery. No regrets. For the first time in my life I believe I have a chance of maintaining. I had lost weight many times. Maintain? never.

Tbh, it seems a little drastic for someone who is only 35lbs overweight. I would consult with a health professional though as they have the expertise and could give you good advice.

Exactly, i am in the Loma Linda bariatric program and lost weight on their pre-op diet. I am awaiting a call from the nurse. Thanks.

Your BMI is 31.4, that is considered obese. If you get down to 135 that will put your BMI at 24.7, that is the top of the "normal" category. You would want to go a bit lower. I don't know what your frame is like but if you got down to 120 that would give you a BMI of 21.9. That is a nice BMI. The other good thing about that BMI is that there is the infamous 3 year regain. It is very common to regain about 10% of what you lost originally. So if you regain 10 or so pounds at the 3 year point, you are still in good shape. If you get to 135 and regain even more than a couple of pounds you are back in the overweight category. It doesn't really leave you any wiggle room.

You don't want a BMI that is sooo hard to maintain that you have to bust your butt with cardio daily in order to maintain. You want a goal weight that is comfortable to maintain. Your food choices and new food lifestyle should be enough to maintain that goal weight. I am not suggesting that you not exercise, it's good for you and you get toned well thus, you look better. If you are going to do this, do it right.

As for if you should have surgery or not, you are telling us you have never been able to maintain your weight loss. It always comes back. What would be different this time? The struggle is real for all of us. If any of us could lose on our own and maintain on our own, we would have done so. Most can lose but they can't keep it off. I never could lose to begin with. WLS was a great tool. I am 12 years post op and a bmi of 21/22 depending on the day and I really don't work hard to maintain that weight. My change in food habits gets 75% of the credit, my sleeve gets the other 25%.

Losing weight is good, and VSG really helped me. I'm glad I had it, but had quite a bit more weight to lose than you. On the other hand, VSG does come at a cost. Acid reflux is no joke, you wake up choking and gasping with the most severe near vomiting and burning. It's a not uncommon side effect of VSG. For 35 pounds I would probably not do surgery, but that's me. It is irreversible. Of course I'm awake in the middle of the night because I just had a massive acid reflux attack twenty minutes ago and am feeling pretty yucky just at the moment....

There may also be other options soon as doctors continue to work on obesity. The gastric ballon is a recent example, but breakthroughs happen all the time...

The big question is whether the benefits of having the surgery outweigh the risks and you are best placed to assess that. VSG surgery definitely makes weight loss easier. You may have regain. You may get acid reflux issues. You may get a bit wrinkled even with that low level of weight loss. You will need to take vitamins for life. But your health may improve too, and you may feel better in your own skin.

'Good luck with your decision. I hope you find the best path for you! The best thing is that there is a good community here whichever choice you make.

Thank you Doyenne for the kind reply. I will talk all this over with the surgeon.