Just starting this whole procedure

I've gone to my first intro class...and I feel commited, to a point and it bothers me. I want my diabetes to end...my high cholesterol to end....and if I lose weight along the way, that's great. But now, I have creeping in my mind more and more what I will look like....how I will be to be 'normal' and I don't want these thoughts to be my main objective. I'm 63! I'll be a bag of wrinkles! and that's OK! I don't want to be diabetic! I don't want the expense, the worry of eyesight, losing a limb, dialysis in the future...I'm already having kidney problems....what suggestions, thoughts have you got for me to ease my mind?

I'm not far behind you in age, and I'm a bag of wrinkles. But....I DON'T CARE! i worried about this, too, when I was pre-op, but I would take my wrinkly body ANY DAY over weighing 300+ lbs! I feel like I have my life back!

Thank you! I'm working through the vanity part of it now! at 63, soon 64, one need not be concerned abut wrinkles, I am getting them anyway! I just want to be healthy. And as the class lecturer said, "You all will get to love Spanx!" I can't wait!

Honestly, the skin isn't fun. We all know that. And yes, when I look in the mirror and critique myself I get bummed about the loose skin...wrinkles... etc...

BUT

When I'm walking down the street, fully dressed and made up... I feel like a million bucks!

I promise you, no matter your age, your health will trump your vanity (most of the time), and you'll never regret the weight lost after that!

I got in touch with my cousin....she had her surgery in 2004....and lost too much, had to regaiin 15 pounds....I can't imagine such a problem for myself! But now, she says she's gained another 15 and having trouble getting that off. 15 pounds???? That to me is so small even though I know to her it is a lot! But we are talking 15 pounds compared to 150! My mind has trouble wrapping around these numbers! and this is going to be true for me one day! I will be normal! and yes! WHO CARES ABOUT WRINKLES!!!! and her final comment was and I hang dearly to this, "I had mine in 2004 and I've never looked back..." She has also gone through the loss of her mother that she was very close to and cancer and chemo as well. No excuses for her.....she's my hereo!

Hi Zomac,

You and I are the same age! I'm going to have my RNY on June 12. I look at it this way - I am certain I'll look a lot better at 300! No matter if I have to deal with some wrinkles, etc., I know I will look and feel so much better. I have lost weight before from this size down to that (but not via surgery) and honestly nothing was that bad, and absolutely everything was better, looks-wise. I am a few years older now but even so I am calm about that aspect of this journey. This time I really am fiercely committed to taking great care and staying very true to protocol both during the honeymoon phase and especially during maintenance as well. I will take advantage of therapy and the classes offered by my surgeon's team and really embrace the gamut of what is available to me.

Don't look forward to the worst possibilities, you may find that nothing is as negative as your worries, and find yourself very, very happy with your outcome. Good luck to you!

My post got weirdly truncated. I meant to say that I'm certain I'll look a lot better at under 150 than I do at over 300!

Thank you so much for responding....I didn't mean to say that I was worried about looks and wrinkles! I DON'T want it to be about that at all! I want it to be about getting over diabetes, high cholesterol and doing this while I still have a functioning pancreas! But there are times, when vanity slips in and I'm beginning to deal with that part too. I wrote a letter to a friend and it ended up being a diary instead of a letter and I didn't send it to her, but saved it FOR ME TO READ! I was chiding myself for having to go to 'this extreme'....and after writing a few more sentences I realized I was in denial about all of it....my weight, how I look to others....(you know those good hearted folk that say, "Oh! You're just a big girl! You're not fat!"....and after rereading it all, I realized just how badly I do need this surgery and how important it is that I have it. No playing around or making excuses now. My blood levels are up, I am barely eating (compared to before) and I realized, if I have to eat like this to regulate my blood level, having the surgery fixes it all and at least I WONT BE HUNGRY!!!!! So, concerning food amount, I'd be the same except with a smaller stomach, I HAVE TO STAY ON THE PROGRAM! No getting tired of this 'diet stuff' and "if I'm going to be happy in this life, let me eat!!!!"....I'm weak, I'm lazy and I have to go to extremes. And now, I want extremes!'' What happens afterward, I pray is loss of weight, happiness and a longer life span than I will have if I don't have the surgery. Thank you again for answering!