Question:
Please tell me this isn't true, AMOS family.......

I was "skimming" the message board last night and could swear I read where someone posted that their surgeon said the most a female would lose is 85 lbs. with the WLS. Please tell me this isn't true. I've lost 75 lbs. since November 2nd, '01 but I also have another 75 to go. Is this a realistic goal? I know the weight loss has slowed down, but my goal IS a realistic one, right? Everyone is different, correct? How could a surgeon/doctor latch a magic number like "85 lbs." into the issue? This got me down. P/S A friend and her family ordered Chinese last night and brought me a taste of everything. I tired, and man, did I get ill. I'm still not ready to eat normally, guess I never will be. The dog ate well.    — blank first name B. (posted on April 13, 2002)


April 13, 2002
I think you should read it again. Why would that be true when MANY ladies on this board are members of the century club! If you read some profiles you will see that many people ..men and women have lost many hundreds of lbs after surgery. I have heard the stat. that 85% of excess body weight is all that is expected to be lost after surgery.. but then there are many people on this site who have proved this wrong as well!
   — Allie A.

April 13, 2002
Carolyn, I was the one that posted that. It was what the kaiser preventive medicine doc told me. I think that they try to give people the worst case senario. I personally do not think that what he said is accurate as I have seen many many many people lose much much more weight. I am sorry if my post discouraged you. Regardless of what you hear it is just best to continue to strive to your goal. Wow 75 lbs that is awesome..... Lisa
   — Lisa B.

April 13, 2002
I'm sure that there was a misunderstanding, the Dr. probably meant 85% of excess weight. However several females here have lost 100% of excess weight. I have lost 70% of excess weight in 7 months. It is slowing down to a slow crawl, so 85% maybe all I get.
   — Danielle M.

April 13, 2002
That's not true. I'm post-op 4 months and I've already lost 110 pounds to date. It has a lot to do with how much you have to lose. I still have a bit to go. My surgery date was 12-11-01.
   — milleralm

April 13, 2002
My surgeon also gave me the worst case scenario of not loosing all the weight I want to. However, he also reminded me of what I'm sure you have read hear a hundred times before-"This is a tool." A hammer in the hands of a carpenter is much more useful than one in the hands of a mechanic (lol) Your success is up to you, and i'm sure that you have had enough experience with weight loss in the past to use your tool expertly. Your success is directly related to you effort. He said many of the people who don't quite meet there goals can more easily do it by excercise and appropriate diet. This surgery puts us on an even playing feilsd with all those genetically thin people. Dieting is easier with this surgery, and once the weight is down, so is excercise. Don't be discouraged. See your future and then make it what you want it to be. Good luck. ((HUGS))
   — Laurie V.

April 13, 2002
Hi! I'm sure you got it wrong. I lost 170 pounds and started at 280. I'm sure, like everyone else has said, that he meant 85% of your excess weight. Some lose more, some alittle less...good luck and don't stress....it was a misunderstanding.
   — Barbara H.

April 13, 2002
Don't let this terrify you. It's simply not true and is most likely a mis-statement. A loss of 85% is considered a successful outcome. (85% of your EXCESS weight...not of your total weight). I am ten and a half months out and have lost 89% of my excess weight. This is do-able. It's NOT a freebie though...everything you read about this being a 'tool' is absolutely true. Don't be fooled into thinking that you will have a free ride to skinny-dom after surgery...what will you have is a helping hand to healthiness. Best wishes on your journey.
   — Sharon L.

April 15, 2002
Well my wife has lost about 100 lbs (over the 85) and some in our support group have lost 150 or more. They probably were referring to 85% of excess body weight (amount over what the tables say you should weigh at a specific height). Most people will loose 75%-85% of their excess body weight, however there are always individual differences on that depending upon a variety of factors from amount of intestine bypassed, excercise levels and eating habits. I have heard that someone said that 65%-75% of your weight loss comes from the surgery, the rest is up to what you do.
   — Dell H.

April 29, 2002
Good news!!! My friend Jack started with a weight of over 625lbs He lost all of his weight and more, his doc actually said he needed to gain back 20lbs!!! Jack eats whatever he wants now and his weight stays about the same now!!! After seeing Jack I desided to have WLS and now have my appointment for my first consult!.... The neatest thing about Jack is that people used to call him Fat Jack now he's called Skinny Jack! I never called him Fat Jack before but sometimes I do now and he just grins big!!
   — Mark L.




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