Considering Surgery...

Hi - I am very new to this, so please bear with me.  For a little background, I am a 42 year old female, 5'8" and weigh 345lbs, approximate BMI of 52.  I have been overweight most of my life -- all through childhood and high school.  When I went to college, I actually lost about 100 lbs, but since I did not address the issues that made me overweight (emotional eating/emotional abuse/etc), it did not stay off.  I gained about 50lbs back and stayed at that weight for a year or so, but then was diagnosed with depression.  The meds made me gain more weight, my boyfriend was emotionally abusive and on the weight came.  Then I met my wonderful husband who loves me for me and proceeded to get married and have 2 wonderful children!  My oldest is a boy and is almost 5 and my youngest is a girl who just turned 3!!  However, I feel like I can't be a good mom to them because I am so overweight!  I want to run around the yard with them, take bike rides and walk on the beach every weekend, but my weight is stopping that to an extent because when I push myself to do things, I pay for it the next 3-4 days with horrible back pain, knee pain, etc.   Anyway, enough of the back story!!

I have researched the many types of WLS and I think my best option would be VSG.  However, I would like to find out from people who started around my weight if: 1)  You have been able to lose to your goal weight??  2) Did you have the issues with extra skin??   3) Was your surgery done laparoscopically and if so, what was your recovery time back to work? 4) If not laparoscopic, what was your recovery time back to work?  5) Did you keep off the weight??  6) Would you do it again if you were in the same situation (not a revision, just was it worth it?)

Sorry for so many questions, but I don't know anyone who has had WLS so this is hopefully a way for me to gain "real world" info!!  Thanks in advance and I look forward to hearing from you!!  :)

Hi there! I am still pretty new post op but your story sounds a lot like mine.  I am almost 5'9" and my highest weight was 362.  I have also been overweight my entire life. Just chunky as a child but once I hit about 10 or 11, I gained a ton of weight and became obese.  At about 16, my mom took me to a medical weight loss center and I was able to lose about 90 pounds, taking me to about 160.  I became obsessed with exercise and that helped keep the weight off until about 20 then I stopped and started gaining.... Hit 200, stayed at around 220 or 230 in my early 20s... then just started packing on those pounds. I got married at about 280 and gained some pounds in the first year but once my husband's sons moved in with us, I gained about 50 to 60 pounds in a year, putting me at 362.

I made the decision to have VSG because I felt exactly like you.  I was embarrassed for my stepsons to go places with me, I was always tired and never wanted to leave the house.  I had no energy, no clothes that fit and felt like crap most days. Food was the only thing that made me feel better and I ate constantly.  I had given up on dieting and trying to be thin or healthy and I would probably be close to 400 pounds now if I hadn't made that call to the surgeon's office.

I had VSG on January 9th and I haven't regretted it at all! I am not at my goal weight, but today I found out I am halfway there!  I don't have extra skin issues yet but I can tell you that most people who start at our size do.  It's just a fact... one thing I am doing to help with that is exercise and weight training.  I started a month after my surgery and I am beginning to love exercise again. I know it won't totally keep extra skin at bay but it will make me strong and feel better!

My surgery was lapro and I was back at work in 2 weeks.  I was tired but it was doable.  I also work from home though so I was able to lay down on my lunch break which helped.

I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.  This was the best thing for me; I know for a fact that I couldn't have done this without surgery. I was at a deadend and I had abused my body and my stomach for so long that I was constantly a ravenous pit. 

Good luck with your decision. Have you gone to a surgical seminar yet?  I learned a lot at the seminar and it got me excited about changing my life. Let us know what you decide.  Welcome to the forum!!!

 

Hi - Thank you so much for your kind words and information.  Our stories do sound very similar and you give me hope that maybe I can make the decision to do this!!  I noticed the name of your doctor and see that she is from Jacksonville.  I actually live in Daytona, but I am having a really hard time finding a doctor that both takes my insurance and has had really good results/great reputation/well recommended.   I have actually been looking at Jax and Orlando as alternatives, because, as I'm sure you can understand, this is a huge undertaking and I want to be sure that the doctor that I choose is going to do what is best FOR ME!!   And, since I have just started with this journey, I have not attended a seminar, but it is something I definitely want to do once I find a good doctor!!

Anyway, I would like to ask a few questions about your doctor and a few more about your surgery, but I don't want you to feel obligated to talk to me about that, so I will leave it up to you.  If you are willing to discuss further, which I really hope you are, please send back a message so that I know.  And if not, no worries -- this is a very personal thing so I totally understand if you want to keep it that way!!  Thanks for your response and as I said, you have given me hope that maybe I can make this work, not only for me but for my kids!!  :) 

Hi! I think it is awesome you are considering surgery. It has helped me tremendously.  I had surgery 6 months ago at 25 yrs old. I am down 92 lbs since then but 109 overall. I am obviously not a vet but I can tell you this is not easy.  It is hard work but it is so worth it. I had RNY laproscopically. I took a month off from work only because my job sometimes required lifting things high and lots of bending. The first month I was exhausted but I have heard many people (who have desk jobs) say that it was definitely doable to go back to work after 2 weeks.

I still want to lose another 145 or so but I have faith I can get there because I chose the surgery that I felt (and my surgeon felt the same way) that is best for me.  It's a good thing you have researched your options, you don't want to go into this blind, and some people do!

Good luck in this process,

Kendra

I had a different surgery, but at almost 20 months out I am only 10 pounds from goal. I do have extra skin. When we are obese we grow extra skin. The severity is hard to predict. I had a very large stomach but now only have a small pannus. My arms are floppier than I thought they would be. Plastics are always an option.
I had laproscopic surgery and went back at two and a half weeks. I am still losing so keeping off the weight hasnt been an issue yet. I would do it again.
Most of this is mental. You have to deal with all the head stuff. Any surgery can be eaten around.
You might find it helpful to go to a support group in your area so you can talk to people in perdon too.

I had the VSG about 23 months ago and am 1.2 pounds from goal :) I've lost over 223 pounds in that time. Started at 375.

Yup. Doable. Hard work (all WLS is hard work) and worth every single minute. The 21st is 23 month surgeriversity and I'd like to hit goal by then... not sure if I will, but hey... I can't sneeze at 223 pounds!

Hello Dear One,

I had the VSG one year ago and I have lost 120 lbs. I am 55 lbs from goal and feel magnificent. I was 356 lbs when i began this journey a year ago. Today I am 230. I have lost 8 sizes and look at my old clothes and cannot believe I was so big. It is surreal.

I am 55 y/o and my daughter (an only child) has been mad at me my whole life for being morbidly obese. I wish I had done something like this years ago. My life would have been different in so many great ways. i suffered from great shame for my size. Don't get me wrong, I had a great life....but I wish I could have run all over the park or zoo with my daughter when she was small like i do now with my grand-babies.

The surgery for me was a piece of cake. I went back to work 8 days post op, it was done laprascopically. The worst was not being able to sleep on my tummy for 2 weeks. A year ago i ate like a bird. Today I eat like a normal person. This little pouch keeps me on track. I have never gained a pound since surgery and i eat regular food.

I went from being a verified couch potato to an athlete. I never worked out a day in my life until I had surgery. Now I work out at least an hour a day and am strong and have lots of muscles. I have hanging skin, but hanging fat is worse. As you get older that cute bouncy fat will start to hang and begin to negatively effect not only your appearance but your health. I could hardly walk anymore. The weight had caused my knees to be bone on bone. I had to have steroid shots in my knees when i hit age 52 every 3 months. They hurt like the dickens too. Since losing the weight, I have not had any knee pain.

If I can do this, anyone can.

And in answer to your final question;  I would do this over in a heart beat if i had to. If I had to have the surgery yearly in order to keep this pouch i would do it. Nothing would stand in my way.

This was not only a gift to me, it was a gift to everyone i love.

Blessings and hugs,

Sharon

 

I can't tell you how happy I am that I found this website!!  Everyone seems so nice and really wants to help.  Kendra, you mentioned that you feel someone with a desk job (like me) could return to work in 2 weeks.  Would the rest of you concur on that estimate??  Can you tell me what you found to be the hardest part during the first 2 weeks??  Was it the pain?  Was it getting used to eating so much less??  Did you have a lot of nausea and vomiting?  When did you start to really start feeling better??  Sorry for so many questions but I am just trying to gather as much info as I can??  And again, thank you all for you help!! :)

It really is different for everyone. I would suggest heading over to the VSG board and checking them out as well, you may be able to get more info and from people who have had the same surgery you are looking at (although Sharon, Karine, etc here are fabulous!) The first few weeks I was exhausted..actually more like the first month but once that went away I was good. I had RNY so my needs are probably different than yours will be at first. The only time I had any nausea was really right after surgery, the first day but I think that had more to do with the meds.

Good luck!

 

Hi Sun Fairy!

I am 36 and had surgery almost two years ago.  My highest weight was 351 with a BMI of 51.  It was the scariest decision of my life, scarier than having children, and I had three at the time that I decided to have the VSG.  I was an active big girl, did a lot of things with my kids, and suffered from depression too.  More weight gain with every child.  Many different weight loss diets, etc. I knew of many people that had had RnY, but chose VSG.

  I am 5'10" and now bouncing around in the 180s.  This is where I want to be and am well below my surgeons goal, which I wasnt sure I would make, and below my personal goal, though I keep nudging it down ;-). I have extra skin, its flabby, but no rashes or such, though i did pinch my batwings in a file cabinet once.  My surgery was laproscopic and after about three days I felt fine. I went back to business as usual around a week after surgery.  I had to be careful though because the bouts of fatigue that come after the WL**** out of nowhere, so I kept my activities low key. I would have bouts of crazy energy, then bouts of fatigue, but you learn how to deal with them over time.  I am still new to this, my weight has been in the same range for 4 months or so.  I am not a vet by any stretch of the imagination, and am still learning how to grow more comfortable in my flabby-but-amazingly-incredibly-smaller body.  If I had to do it again, knowing what I know now, I'd do it in a heartbeat, but my goal is to never have to do it again. Its a full blown emotional, spiritual, physical, mental journey, and I am glad (and still amazed at times )that i took that chance on myself.