Advice please - BMI of 35, 6'6" tall, 290lbs, 44 years old

Hey All,

I could use some advice. I've been heavy all my life to varying degrees. I got to 310 in my 30s, lost a ton of weight down to 230 after a rough divorce, back up to 270 a few years later, then down to 245, where I stayed for about 5 years. The last three years its been creeping back up to my current weight. I'm tall, so my frame carries it ok, but my playing weight in college was 205, so my underlying frame really isn't the football type.

I'm reasonably healthy, but have tons of orthopedic problems which have really sucked the enjoyment out of my life. I used to be a very good athlete, but now I have severe foot and ankle pain, low back pain, the list goes on. They all get much better as my weight gets closer to 260, and are gone below 250. I just havent been able to get back there.

The last three years weve spent close to 50k on weight loss retreats, lipo, supplements, home delivered diet food, hmr etc. I always do well at the start and then fail, then feel terrible about myself. I lost 20 lbs at a intensive weight loss and exercise retreat over thanksgiving and put it on again a month later which just really broke my spirit and left me feeling like I won't even be able to do this on my own again.

I'm a doctor by day, and Ive also noticed that while I don't have any severe co-morbidities, many signs of disease are slowly creeping up. In short, I feel like my health and weight are heading in the wrong direction.

I'll be a self pay if I move forward, but I'd love to hear from other folks who chose to have this surgery without a BMI over 40, whether it was worth it to them and their opinions on my situation. Sometimes I feel like its the only way forward, and other times I feel crazy for considering it.

Any advice appreciated.

Thanks,

-S

I'm 5'2" and was 90 lbs. overweight. My weight issues started when I was about 10. As an adult I tried many weight loss program but Weigh****chers was the one I chose most of the time. I lost 50 lbs. but put it back on because I became over confident and didn't follow the program. I joined WWs more times that I can count and never got close to goal.

In 2007 I started to consider WLS but my husband was against it. He went with me to a seminar presented by the surgeon and he became a fan. July 8, 2008 I had RNY and I've never been sorry. I lost 70 lbs. and was so pleased that I could shop in the Misses department that after that first year, I didn't work at getting the additional 20 lbs. off. After surgery, I no longer needed 3 BP meds, cholesterol med or acid reflux meds.

I maintained my loss until about a year ago and then I started to have some regain. I'm back on my bariatric eating plan and have lost 8.4 lbs. I'm hoping to lose my regain plus another 20 lbs.

Sounds like losing weight would really help your orthopedic problems. If you haven't gone to a seminar about the surgery, please do so.

I think looking into surgery is a good idea. I was Military for over 30 years and did a lot of damage to my back and knees. Lower back surgery before I was 50, but with the weight loss taking me to within normal BMI, almost all the pain is gone. I say go for it and good luck.

--gina

I'm not the typical WLS patient. I was an athletic young woman and weighed right around 120lbs most of my 20s and 30s. I didn't start to have weight problems until my late 30s. In 2008, I was diagnosed with early onset menopause which caused massive metabolic imbalance almost overnight. I gained 65+ lbs in a single year. Along with the pounds, my blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol went through the roof. Within 2 years I had developed sleep apnea, GERD, and severe lower back pain. By the time I was 45 I had arthritis in my lower back and almost constant sciatic nerve pain. My back hurt, my hips hurt, my ankles hurt. Just being so obese was extremely painful. Over the years I tried almost every diet known to humankind. I tended to go back to hCG because of the rapid weight loss, it kept me motivated. Unfortunately, my metabolism was still shifting, so as soon as I stopped using the hormones, I gained weight back, plus a few extra pounds, as if to add insult to injury!

My BMI was 37.1 when I first went to a weight loss surgery seminar. It was not my heaviest weight, but it was close. Being only 4'11", I never had more than 75-80 lbs to lose. I also carried it evenly distributed, and most people would comment that I wasn't overweight, just curvy. When I first looked into WLS I was not in a good situation financially and didn't have insurance that would pay for the surgery, so I could only hope that someday it could happen.

Fast forward to 2015, my situation finally improved enough that I started to consider WLS again. My husband was not happy when I brought it up, but once we talked a few times, he knew I was serious. I brought him along to meet with my surgeon after the weight loss seminar. My husband asked all of the pertinent questions, and finally ended up just asking him -- as small as my wife is, don't you think this is too drastic a measure? My surgeon said to my husband, obesity is a disease. If she had 'xyz' disease, would you expect her to keep trying things off the internet that you knew wouldn't work long term, or would you want her to get medical advice from a professional who specialized in her disease? After meeting my surgeon he knew this was right for me, and this guy was the right person to take care of me.

This surgery is a huge commitment. I chose to have this surgery because I knew I could never be successful at long term weight loss, and my health was worth the sacrifice it takes.

(Yeah, I've had the thought, man this is crazy! But in less than a year I'm back to under 120 lbs again and I don't hurt anymore. I have normal blood sugar, blood pressure, cholesterol, no more arthritis pain, GERD controlled, and no more sleep apnea.) I call that a crazy win. :)

Really appreciate everyones comments and thoughts. It is anxiety provoking to be sure, but I think I am going to proceed.

I was slightly to moderately overweight in my teens/early 20's and then I gained 60lbs with my first pregnancy, had a small amount of loss and then gained 40lbs with my 2nd pregnancy. I topped out around a 44 BMI and realized I needed to do something. I lost 90lbs via calorie counting and exercise, but then I had a regain of of about 30lbs. I lost it again and regained 40lbs.

At my info session for the Bari center I had a 36.2 BMI. I requested a consult with the Nurse Practitioner and I straight up asked her if I was "barking up the wrong tree" and she told me she didn't think so. My process with the center was strange because they were focused on teaching good habits, but stressed that if I lost weight I would not qualify for the surgery anymore. I had about 8lbs when I went in that I could have lost before I was under 35. I actually gained 7lbs before my pre-op diet just trying not to lose!

I had the VSG and it's been one of the best decisions of my life. I'm 11 weeks post op and I'm no longer obese (just plain overweight!). I work the plan and work out and I actually enjoy it. I'm early yet, but I do not regret anything.

I did have feelings where I wondered what people would think of me because I wasn't "that" big, but remarkably very few people questioned my decision.