# Can I just cut off my belly? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 19, 2015, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955 "2015-06-19T16:58:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/1 "2015-06-19T16:58:30Z")
I’m morbidly obese, about 400lbs. I look like I’m 13 months pregnant. So with electric carving knife in hand could **Miller** cut off my belly, with **Asimovian** following along with a road flare to cauterize the wound? 😕 Yes, it’s a stupid question, maybe we should have a forum for really stupid questions.😃 ---
**Author:** ![TheFaerie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c57346/32.png) [@TheFaerie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TheFaerie)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/2 "2015-06-19T17:02:08Z")
Well, sure, you CAN, but whether or not it’s a good idea, ummmm…😉 ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 5:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/3 "2015-06-19T17:17:25Z")
I’m more interested in how **Miller** and **Asimovian** got their roles. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/4 "2015-06-19T17:20:44Z")
Let us know how it goes. Er, leave word for us to be told how it goes. ---
**Author:** ![simster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/simster/32/1047_2.png) [@simster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/simster)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/5 "2015-06-19T17:24:13Z")
Isnt this functionally what [liposuction](http://www.plasticsurgery.org/cosmetic-procedures/liposuction.html)is? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/6 "2015-06-19T17:29:56Z")
You can cut out some fat, but not all of it or, usually, even most of it. Fat isn’t just fat. There’s also connective tissue and blood in there. Doctors have to be very careful about how much blood and how many inches of blood vessels they take out at once, or your hemostasis goes all wonky. Your body struggles to maintain your blood pressure, and your brain may be starved of oxygen. In an emergency, of course, they may lop off a whole leg at once, but they’re going to have you in ICU with a crash cart nearby and lots of blood pressure needs and fluids on hand to keep you going. Not to mention infection and scarring, of course. ---
**Author:** ![swampspruce](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampspruce/32/261_2.png) [@swampspruce](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampspruce)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/7 "2015-06-19T17:45:15Z")
Of course you can. The real question is whether you should, and to that I would say; no. ---
**Author:** ![crazyjoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f14d63/32.png) [@crazyjoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crazyjoe)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/8 "2015-06-19T19:06:35Z")
> [@simster](#): > > Isnt this functionally what [liposuction](http://www.plasticsurgery.org/cosmetic-procedures/liposuction.html)is? Short answer: NO. There is such a thing as Large Volume Fat Reduction surgery but I believe they are restricted to something like 40 - 60 lbs of fat at once… Liposuction is when you want a few oz to a few lbs of fat removed from an area like the chin/neck or cheeks. This is why surgeries like gastric bypass exist, so that the fat can be lost non-surgically without killing all the blood vessels and connective tissues. ---
**Author:** ![Becky2844](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@Becky2844](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Becky2844)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/9 "2015-06-19T20:51:50Z")
**Foggy** since my belly is the biggest part of me (I look like an apple with toothpicks stuck in it for arms and legs) I sure can relate. You go first, we’ll see how it goes, and I _promise_ I’ll be right behind you. At my heaviest I weighed 200 lbs. I’m 5’3" so I looked like a balloon about ready to blow. How tall are you? I did force myself to walk a treadmill some until it became habit. And not in any way fast. And not for long at a time. Twenty minutes once or twice a day, but not every single day. Here’s how I lost 70 lbs in about a year, because I didn’t feel driven to hurry up and look like Kate Upton, and because if you lose weight slowly your skin reduces it’s self also and you’re not suddenly svelte—except for the flab you’re trying to stuff into your sleeves with a long-handled wooden spoon. I dieted in a way I could live with. I denied myself _nothing_ I really craved, but just ate way smaller portions of it and included it in my calories eaten that day. I tweaked the diet a dietician worked out for me and, still counting calories, spread out how I should be doing over a whole week instead of white-knuckling it every day. Vegetables (love them) were supposed to cover most of my plate but that didn’t work for me so here comes my illogical math: I ate half veggies and half protein. (Increasing the protein is what staved off hunger for me; it takes longer to digest. They could keep their “size of a deck of cards” and I raised them one…yes, what would be considered a double portion at each meal was my norm.) Then A carb, whether a potato or bread or pasta, whatever. Then a little fruit. Don’t forget to add a little fat or you’ll never shit again…a little butter here and there, cheese on pizza. You get the picture. I stopped drinking juice and instead would eat an orange. And I ate 1-3 salads a day, many different veggies, with nuts (some fat) but not “loaded” and no creamy dressings. Vinegrettes kept it a-ok. A year later I weighed 130 lbs with no hangy-down loose skin. It takes as long as it takes. Treat yourself where you can, make up for it later with something less calorie laden. It’s a process, don’t let it become an obsession. Now I’m “back up there”, will aim for 140 or 145 this time. (That’s weight I felt best at so…that’s where it’ll be. Eventually. 😃 No worries. ---
**Author:** ![Typo\_Negative](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/typo_negative/32/484_2.png) [@Typo\_Negative](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Typo_Negative)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 10:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/10 "2015-06-19T22:45:27Z")
So along with the obvious blood loss and near certain infection, would he have shock to deal with? Could a human withstand that kind of pain? ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/11 "2015-06-19T23:35:51Z")
**Se7en** was not a documentary. ---
**Author:** ![Morgenstern](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Morgenstern](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Morgenstern)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 11:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/12 "2015-06-19T23:38:09Z")
I’m pretty sure they won’t let the mods handle anything sharp or hot. ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 19, 2015, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/13 "2015-06-19T23:52:36Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I’m pretty sure they won’t let the mods handle anything sharp or hot. I should hope not. ---
**Author:** ![kaylasdad99](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kaylasdad99/32/3398_2.png) [@kaylasdad99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kaylasdad99)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/14 "2015-06-20T00:39:46Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I’m pretty sure they won’t let the mods handle anything sharp or hot. > [@carnivorousplant](#): > > I should hope not. I dunno. I find **jsgoddess** to be generally witty and quite presentable. So **Asimovian** ’s got that going for him. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/15 "2015-06-20T01:26:06Z")
> [@Morgenstern](#): > > I’m pretty sure they won’t let the mods handle anything sharp or hot. Just a ban hammer. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/16 "2015-06-20T01:35:31Z")
Ask THIS lady: Probably NSFW (or kids) ---
**Author:** ![G0sp3l](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c68b51/32.png) [@G0sp3l](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/G0sp3l)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/17 "2015-06-20T01:45:57Z")
> [@Typo\_Negative](#): > > So along with the obvious blood loss and near certain infection, would he have shock to deal with? Could a human withstand that kind of pain? If I may paraphrase… "There’s no limit to the amount of pain a man can endure; provided, of course, it is some other man." ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/18 "2015-06-20T02:38:01Z")
> [@kaylasdad99](#): > > I dunno. I find **jsgoddess** to be generally witty and quite presentable. So **Asimovian** ’s got that going for him. Let us not annoy them, okay? :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![Foggy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foggy/32/1082_2.png) [@Foggy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Foggy)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 3:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/19 "2015-06-20T03:22:50Z")
This is just a silly & stupid thought that ran across my mind. > [@kayaker](#): > > I’m more interested in how **Miller** and **Asimovian** got their roles. I trust the mods here and **Miller** and **Asimovian** are the closet to me, at least until **Asimovian** moves across the country. > [@Becky2844](#): > > How tall are you? 6’4" ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [June 20, 2015, 3:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955/20 "2015-06-20T03:46:26Z")
Interesting question. I did see something similar to this in an animated documentary\* except I believe it was the gluteus that was lopped off. I do believe the patient suffered no ill effects, in fact I think he just stuck it back on, probably because he realized he no longer had a nice cushion to sit on. \*aka a cartoon. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-i-just-cut-off-my-belly/722955.md?page=2)