Should I do it or not?

So here is my deal. I'm 5 feet tall and at my first visit with my surgeons office in Dec, I weighed in at 213. I'm now down to 200 pounds. My surgery is scheduled for 4/24/14. I've always been a curvy girl and to be honest, I don't want to weigh any less then 140. That's just 60 pounds less then what I'm weighing now. I know you're probably thinking, why go through with the surgery and guess what? so am I!! I keep going back n forth for this reason. I don't need to lose a lot of weight but yet, it's so hard for me to lose weight and keep it off! I'm so depressed when I'm overweight. It affects me in so many ways, which is why I feel like I should go through with it! I want and need to be healthy again! and I need to start living again! My question is....Is it possible to stop the weight loss process after I lose my 60 pounds? losing 80 pounds will NOT look good on me!

A very wise man on here told me that this surgery really isn't about losing the weight (because we've all done that a hundred times); it's about having a tool that allows you to MAINTAIN the weight loss once you've lost it.   No truer words were ever spoken...

And YES, it's absolutely possible to stop the weight loss process after you lose 60 lbs.  Haven't you read about all the people on here who are struggling with that last 20 lbs., girl?   Once you hit the goal you set for yourself you will add 100 extra calories per day until your weight loss stops/stabilizes.  And believe me, it will happen a whole lot faster than you think it will :-)  

Best of luck with your decision! 

Thank you so much for that Tracy! That really helped me make up my mind. I'm doing it! Can't wait for 4/24/14. Thank you and best of luck to you too! : )

You are very welcome - good luck!  

Hi Tracy. I'm new to OH.  For the first few days I just read posts; I just made a profile yesterday.  I am in my VERY early stages of this experience.  Your comment about how surgery isn't about losing the weight. . . really struck a nerve.  I can honestly relate to that.  I've lost weight and gained weight a thousand times.  I need this tool to help me so the rest of my life can be the best of my life.  I just got the call today and set my appt for the Mental assessment, meet with the nutritionist and the nurse.  I've researched the process a million times . . .just now starting to act on it.  This forum has been a tremendous help.  I look forward to posting my 'victories' really soon.

Thanks!!

Good for you!

 I vividly remember going to my first appointment with the bariatric surgeon and telling him straight up, "I don't need this surgery to lose weight, I can do that with one hand tied behind my back...done it a hundred times.  I need you to tell me WHY this surgery will help me keep the weight off for the long-term."  And he proceeded to tell me all the how's and why's, including that I would have to start now with making some life-altering changes to how I ate and what I ate.  He was very clear that if I wasn't willing to make the necessary lifestyle changes, that I would have the surgery and end up being 100 lbs. overweight again.

Frisco posted something on here yesterday about commitment.  If you didn't catch that one, go back and look for it.  Lots of good stuff.  If you can't give up your sedentary lifestyle, if you can't give up drinking with meals, if you can't give up sugary treats...then this surgery will work in the short-term, but no in the long-term.    

I'm 4/11 and my HW 206 lost 15lbs before surgery, I'm 4 months out of my sleeve current weight 148lbs my goal is 140/135lbs. I had high blood pressure, very fatty liver with high enzymes, my ankles swelled, my heals of my feet hurt like crazy and I was very unhappy. Now everything is gone. It's up to you if you want to live dieting or want to be healthy. This is not about being thin but healthy and happy. You have a lot to think about before doing this because there is no going back once it's done. I did a lot of prayer before doing this big decision. Blessings..

I want to be able to keep my weight off and stay HEALTHY! that's my main concern. I'm going through with the surgery (VSG) and I just don't want to lose 100 pounds. I want to get to my goal weight and be able to work with it! that's all. Thank you very much for responding. Congratulations to you on your weight loss. That's great! keep up the great work! : )

~Gabby~

Our stats are pretty close.  I am 5'2" and I weighed 234 day of surgery.  I'm hovering around 160 right now and while that isn't where I wanted to be I'm happier than I was before.  I still got my curves too!  I'm what you call a "pear" shape...big bottom girls make the world go round, right?!  haha. 

My experience with this surgery is that when you have less to lose, you stop losing sooner than others.  I know that's true for me.  Could I stand to lose 30 more pounds? Sure.  Do I want to?  I'm not so sure anymore.  I like the way I look, I'm healthier than ever, and I'm (mostly) HAPPY dammit!  I'd like to lose at least ten more pounds to get to 150 but the weight loss has been a real struggle for me.  The farther out from surgery you are the harder it is to lose too but it is easier to maintain.  As long as you don't let too much "bad" stuff sneak in and start gaining weight.  I don't ever want to be on or feel like I'm on a diet ever again.  That makes me miserable but sticking to a meal plan is what works best.

I can tell you that before this surgery cooking/meal planning/dining out was a completely different animal to me.  It was a time to imbibe and gorge and now I've learned so many different ways to cook, different foods/spices that I enjoy that make life that much better.  I say, go for it and don't let anyone tell you "but you don't have much weight to lose!"  Having this tool changes your life in more ways than one.  Good luck!

Thank You! I'm doing it!! I'm so thankful for OH and all the nice people I'm meeting along the way who offer great advise! Best of luck to you! : )