To all you YO-YO'ers,Why do you feel this time will be different?

Hi. I have never had the problem of NOT being able to lose weight. I have done it MANY times from 20-60pounds but like many others I can't keep it off. (I'll admit I am an extreme dieter) That's why I am worried that I will do really well with this surgery at first, maybe a year or so & then start to gain it back. I know nothing tastes a good as thin feels, I know there are no longterm studies, I've read from people who are out 2years here & seem to be doing fine. What I am wondering is how you have put your mind at ease that this is not just another crash diet? & once you start to be able to eat more the weight will come back on? thxs.

 

I think I read somewhere that the surgery is only a tool, and that some kind of food and exercise plan should be followed for long term success.

If you don't follow your surgeons and NUTs advice you are probably setting yourself up for disappointment and failure.

There appear to be no guarantees with the WLS, and from what I read, it takes work.  The surgery alone will probably not make you reach your goals, you need to work that tool.

That being said, I believe your attitude, and support from your family, friends, and other OHers will help you stick to the plan.

HTH,

Fred

Hi there, What a great question!! I too had no problem with losing weigh pre op. It was the maintaining, that I couldnt do.

Well, to be honest with you I dont think my mind will ever be ease. I know that I will never be cured of my obesity mentally, and I know that I have to work my tool every day to make healthier choices. I am definately able to eat alot more but I really try to stick to my surgeons guidelines, and track everything in my food. Its different post op. Your taste buds change. I was an extrememe chochoholic, and now I much rather crave salty foods than sweet.I guess I just think the vsg is a wonderful tool, that has helped me but I am the one that did the work. For me its just alot easier to hop  back on the wagon than it was before.. I also try and keep a positive attitude. If I think of the what if's in life, I think I'd go crazy. I just try and think about how wonderful it feels in my new skin, compared to before, and it motivates to continue on my healthy lifestyle. Maybe thats the difference now-I dont feel like I am on a diet, I just feel that I've made a lifestyle change..

You hit on my biggest concern- regain.  However, never before have I had this wonderful tool to use. The restrictive part as well as a reduction in ghrelin are the main selling points.  I have to do this for me.  This time I have a medical team behind me as well as a psychologist if I need him.  Ultimately, success is in your hands.  You can out eat the tool.  I have no plans to do that.

My thoughts are nothing is guarenteed. But I can almost guarentee contiuned failure with conventional weight loss plans. When my BMI got up to 56 and my health deteriated, I knew I had try something drastic. Would I do it if I was a little smaller and a litter healthier????? I just don't know. I'm not dying to be thin, just healthy. And currently I am dying..... a slow super morbid obesity death. My 13yr old son said to me "Mom, I want you to live forever" Hmmmm, I can't just sit by until I can't leave my bed. Now is the time to do something different and I'll hope and try, that when I have weight regain (everyone does) that it is minimal and I can keep the obese monster under control. Good luck on your decision.

Great question! I have yo-yo'd for decades, so I can relate. A couple of things--first, I DO worry about this. There are no guarantees with ANY WLS, and you must hold yourself accountable for what you put in your mouth. But I can tell it's different this time in that I'm not fighting constant hunger. Oh, I get hungry, but at 9 months out, I'm still satisfied with a few ounces, and I'm quite sure I'll never be able to eat in the quantities I used to. Because we eat so little, we MUST concentrate on protein first for our health, so if I do that (and keeping healthy is a big motivator!) there just isn't room for too much more. And because I'm not as hungry and easily satisfied, I don't obsess over "when and what will I eat next?" as I've done in the past on a diet. I do have a tendency to graze, and I need to work on that! The second thing is--yo-yo-ing eventually catches up with you and it becomes VERY hard to lose weight because it ruins the metabolism. At 54, without this surgery, I could no longer have lost this weight. I tried and couldn't anymore, so I realized I NEED this tool to get the weight off and help me to keep it off.  Best of luck! Lizanne

I too have lost alot in my life, but always gained it back. I paid alot of money to lose weight this time, and I got  a great tool out of it. I will continue to work my tool and hopefully I will not regain. I worry about it, but the great thing about this surgery is it is so easy to get back on the wagon when you fall off. Before, when I fell off, I could never get back on. Now its easy. Sometimes, it takes me a few days to get back on, but I always do.

I can't even yo-yo. I am just lucky when I stay the same. mostly, it's gain. 

My surgeon and nutritionist, as well as physical therapist, have repeatedly said that each of us must make a *lifelong commitment* to *permanent* changes in eating and exercise. The focus is healthy choices of food and daily exercise. If you miss any component, success my be continually elusive. The VSG tool does help us in doing this, but it's up to each of us to make sure our choices are healthy. If we continue to make good choices and exercise, we can't fail. If you have any health problems or co-morbidities with obesity, it can be a very strong motivator (as in my case) ... or if you are just wanting to avoid those complications, that's enough motivation for most.

Lots! of great answers above. My feeling is that I'm not suffering while I'm losing.  I'm not suffering even when I'm stalled.  Because I am not hungry, and when I do get hungry, it takes a tiny amount of food to get satisfied. Even when I feel like saying "forget about it, I'm going off the wagon" I can't!!!  I just can't eat very much!  So I feel like over time I am just eating so much less, and my splurges are so modest, that I'm not behaving the ways I did in the past when I got done with a stringent diet.  In the past I felt like my body was SCREAMING for a normal amount of food, and when it got it, it SUCKED it up.  Now, I'm just moving along at a slow steady pace. . . If you are one of the unfortunate few, like me, and hit major plateaus, you will get mad, and you will have periods of rebellion, BUT, your bad days will be NOTHING like they might be if you had a normal size stomach, and hopefully you will be able to say, hey:  You look great, you feel great, get back on track, and think about something else and keep on keeping on.