Bariatric surgery

[Jane2d]

I tend to agree with mermaid, its too soon after quitting smoking.  Of the people I know who have had weight surgery, each of them has had a unintended consequence.   Malnutrition became a very serious issue for one.  She complained about all the things she could no longer eat, many things made her sick at both ends.

For the other, it was a life saving operation, his diabetes was out of control and this was a last attempt to save his life. The operation itself almost killed him, but once he got past that, it did reverse his insulin dependence.  His ongoing struggle is with diarrhea.  Almost anything he eats, and everything he enjoys eating moves thru his system very fast. There are a few foods he absolutely avoids due to prolonged above issue.  

A third, casual acquaintance failed by not adjusting her eating habits after the surgery.  Yes there was weight loss for a while but this person kept the food habit memory alive, pushing her body into accepting larger and larger amounts of food.  IIRC she managed to keep very little of the weight off within 5 years.

I also gained weight after quitting smoking without realizing how much more food I ate.  I am curious as to whether you have ever taken the time to journal exactly how much/how often you are eating, and whether you could bring your weight down to at least your smoking days level, without resorting to surgery with its very real side effects.

[Shell B]

I know two people who have gone through the surgery very successfully. It's been life-changing for them. People will always have had both negative and positive effects related to medical procedures. Listen to your doctor's advice.

[Joods]

I hear both sides and I am happy to say that my doctor is the one who recommended the clinic in the first place. My PCP has been my doctor for 20 years and she knows me pretty well. She wouldn't have recommended it if she didn't think I was ready for it.

Also to add; I didn't do a journal, but in visiting my doctor six times since my initial quit date and watching my weight go up and up and up, I have honestly tried different things. My stress and lack of decent sleep has contributed to my weight gain. Believe me - we have tried different things with no successful result. I've had blood tests and a stress test and everything was normal. This is the next step for me.

[brewer]

I'm not sure that Joods has told us all of her co-morbidities and quite frankly don't think she needs to. 

Any decent surgeon/hospital will address all of the concerns related to her particular condition(s). It's a long drawn out process with several different medical discipline evaluations. She can't just say "I want it" and necessarily get it. The last person I was acquainted with who had surgery, it was 6+ months before her surgery was approved and performed. I'd consider her a success. I've also known some failures. 

The best beneficial results are seen in people who can stick to the post op regimen.

[Clueless Morgan]

Both of my parents have undergone bariatric surgery to very good success. My dad has lost almost 150 pounds and my mom probably close to 100.

They initially had the kind where you get a little cuff put around the stomach that you fill through a port under the skin. Their biggest problem with that was that they would eat something too quickly that they would just vomit it back up so they had to be very careful with their eating habits and they were very restricted in the types of foods they could both tolerate.

Several years ago they both switched to a sleeve that goes over their stomachs which has helped with the vomiting issue a lot.

For both of them it was a life changing surgery but they have also not only relied on the surgery to help in their weight loss and maintenance: my mom and I go to the gym together and she likes to walk to breakfast on the weekends and before my dad messed up his knee my sister got him into walking half marathons which he seemed to enjoy. Their weight now yo-yos a little bit but for the most part they have kept the bulk of their weight off and have been very happy.

I have only witnessed their experiences but from my point of view their surgeries were life saving, especially for my dad.

My dad has accompanied several people through their surgeries and I know that in at least one case it was a failure because the person who did the surgery didn't change their food habits and gained all his weight back so be aware that there is aftercare and this process does require commitment to changing habits. It's not necessarily a cure all of you can't commit to making the changes you need to make to maintain your weight loss.

I would ask questions of your doctor in the way of whether this surgery will get help you get to a healthier weight where you can exercise more. Weight loss on its own is fine but making sure you're getting fit and creating healthy habits to replace the bad ones is even better.

I would say that if you and your doctor decide on this surgery then go for it with your eyes open knowing that there's still a road ahead of you once the surgery is complete.

And congratulations on quitting smoking

[Joods]

Thank you CM

All excellent advice and thank you for sharing your parents stories. My ultimate goal is to get to the point where my heart is not racing every time I start to work out. The doctor didn't see any cardiac abnormalities with my stress test so she said as long as I don't take my heart rate over 150 bpm, I should be fine to exercise. I'd also like to lessen my dependence on my nebulizer and my inhalers. I know this weight isn't helping any.

So this is the plan.

[John V]

Give Weight Watchers a try before resorting to surgery. Wife and I each lost over 50 pounds in the past 6 months.

What, join a group whose sole idea is to encourage their members to engage in unhealthy and dangerous eating habits? And whose members invariably end up gaining back the weight and more once they come off the unsustainable system?

No, I said Weight Watchers.

[vorlon13]

I was just reading up on the wiki and from what it says, there are several types of surgery. I assume, this is why they do seminars or classes for these things. There is just a ton of information out there and I have to see what would work best for me. So far, the stomach folding technique looks like a good match. Although there is a concern for gallstones because of the rapid weight loss, many doctors will remove the gall bladder to avoid gallstones from happening. 

So much information to take in.

Severe gall bladder issues can lead to rapid weight loss.

40 lbs in 50 days for me so far . . . .


(I'm not recommending, to be clear)

[LadyForCamus]

In-house dietitian here... Joods, I’ll PM you. 😏

[Joods]

In-house dietitian here... Joods, I’ll PM you.  😏

Or you could shoot me a message on FB Messenger