Would you have the VSG with only 45-50 pounds to lose??

Hi

Happy New Year!  My brother after seeing my success with my Sleeve asked me tonight what I thought about him having the same surgery.  He is 6 feet tall and weighs 225.  He needs to lose about 45 pounds to have a normal BMI.  He's had high blood pressure for years and he is having some issues controlling it with meds.  His pressure on blood pressure medication is 140/90.  We have a history of heart disease, strokes and diabetes in our family.  He is 44 with young kids and is concerned about his health.  Over the years he has been able to lose weight but like most out there always gains it back.

i love my sleeve and believe it is the best thing I have ever done for myself.  But I'm  not sure if it's too drastic of a measure for someone that's not too overweight.  On one hand it is major surgery with life long effects.  On the other hand, I wish I had this surgery 10 or so years ago when I was 50 pounds overweight rather than 100 pounds overweight when I had my surgery.

I'm curious to see what other sleevers would advise.  Knowing what you know now, would you have this surgery if you needed to lose only 50 pounds?

Stephanie

I would say that he should meet with a professional to discuss whether WLS is right for him.

I agree..have him speak to your surgeon.  Call the person who makes appts for the surgeon and ask them to make an appt for a consultation with your brother..or have him make the call.  They may want him to go to an informational meeting..which you could do first.  Hope it all works out for him. :)

Given the fact that Ive suffered with relatively bad acid/acid reflux and chronic constipation since surgery, I'd have to say hell no I wouldn't have it to lose 40-50 lbs.

But, if I did not have to deal with those two things, I'd say I *might* -  you have to balance the possible consequences/complications of the sleeve with what you hope to gain from it...

 

What is the reason he gains the weight back? If he is a volume eater and tends to eat very large meals, then perhaps the sleeve could help. If he simply makes poor choices in food, and eats a lot of sweets, liquid calories, then the sleeve may not help much since he will have to change all those habits regardless of the sleeve. 

Just my thoughts....No, I would not have the surgery w/ that amount to lose. Most of us are at least 100 lbs overweight. It just is so drastic....it kinda sounds like talking out of both sides of our butts (why didn't we just lose it at 50+). But still, it is very invasive and I would avoid it I thought I had a chance of taking off the excess on my own. I know I was not able, but maybe he feels the same way. It's really hard to get into another person's head. I do know that when I was 50+, I was busy being pregnant or busy raising small people. I'm not sure I could have at that point in my life. Tough road to walk on....no easy decisions

I haven't gotten my sleeve yet but it would seem to me that his BMI wouldn't qualify him for the surgery even with co-morbidities.  My BMI is 37/38 with co-morbidities and have been told to keep track of my pre-op loss because of the insurance issues.  If he's planning to self-pay I don't know if the doctor's use the same sort of cut-off to determine eligibility. 

Elisa

 

It doesn't hurt for him to get a medical opinion, but keep in mind he may have a hard time getting insurance to cover it if his BMI isn't a certain number.

6' and 225. No Way. Have him do the pre-op diet and he'll be half way there. High protein diet and some exercise and he'll be there in no time. 

I started my journey by going with my wife, to a seminar for WLS, as a support person. After going there it sparked my interest in also having it.

I started with a BMI of 42 at the surgeons seminar, I was 267lbs. I lost 60 lbs before surgery on my own, I can lose weight really good, just have a hard time keeping it off. I have been up and down the scale all my life, I am currently 52 and am 5'7". When I had surgery I was 207, I got approved when my BMI was 35 with 2+ comorbidities. I knew in my heart after doing all the research for my wife, that was having this surgery, that I needed this tool to help keep me at a healthier weight. So in my head I have a weight of staying between 175-185 with my body frame. I'll never be a "normal BMI" with my frame. I only had 20 some more lbs to lose and I had surgery. It's not the losing part that I wanted this tool for, I did it for keeping the weight off. I mostly over ate, not so much bad decisions.
I wish him Good luck on his decision. I will be 3 weeks out on Thursday and don't regret my decision!!!

Hey Bill, You have the same stats as I - started at 268, am 5'7" (but was 47 at time of surgery). Also my frame is far too large to get down to 159 to a "normal BMI". I've kept my goal range to be 170 - 175.

Good luck and don't be surprised if you lose a little bit past (or maybe a lot past) your 180 goal. You're so early out, it may be hard for you to stop losing that early out. Just a word of warning!