Thoughts on surgery for weight loss? Gastric by-pass, stapling.
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I'll allow it. I mean, it's their call.
lol somebody had just said that. I agree! I'd do it myself if I were 350 or something.0 -
MamaBirdBoss wrote: »It IS a quick fix. You walk in being able to eat 3000 to 8000 calories in a day. You walk out with a stomach the size of a walnut. Even people with the most atrocious habits/addictions/attitudes lose weight at first because they cannot physically keep down food.
HOWEVER...for a certain segment of people, it gives them the ability to use their willpower when before their willpower failed and after the initial stages. They continue to lose weight and end up merely overweight or, sometimes, even healthy weight, which they will maintain.
The majority of surgeons require a psychological evaluation to determine if you have the willpower to do it. They refuse to do the surgery if you cannot control your eating habits. If I eat too much, i.e. have poor willpower, I can cause my stomach to burst. So, yeah. I've experienced pain that makes people cringe. I've set broken and dislocated bones of my own. I've given myself sutures. Addiction doesn't care about willpower: that's psychological scientific fact.
The truth is that obesity is a disease of calories in and calories out, but that it's also a hormonal disorder. It's both medical and behavioral.
Any successful weight loss requires a change in thinking. Whether you get weight loss surgery or not, you must change what you were doing. Surgery is merely a tool. For some of us who were obese it's a tool we need. I would argue that most people who are morbidly obese suffer from an addiction. The several months post surgery provide a significant attitude adjustment that is very different from just dieting and exercising. It requires a whole other process than just dropping 50 pounds. A very rare few people can go from 400lbs to 150lbs on their own, or with minimal support. In reality, it requires a large amount of complex factors to go right for there to be success.0 -
christinev297 wrote: »@BitterGrace can i ask what happens when you reach your maintenance weight? Say it's 2000 calories a day. Will you eventually be able to eat that much or do you have to stick to tiny portions through numerous meals throughout the day?
The reason I ask is because I had an acquaintance who had wls 10 years previously, and I never saw her eat more than 3-4 fork fulls of food at a time.
I have had the vertical sleeve gastrectomy. My stomach will never hold more than maybe 4-6 ounces at a time. It is permanent and irreversible. As far as I'm concerned, I'm fine with that. I'll be able to eat near to what a normal modestly-sized meal is, but arguably most people's "normal" meals are way too big as it is, especially at any restaurant.
I doubt I will ever eat near 2000 calories again. I will likely eat between 1000-1200, but I work with a nutritionist, so I will consult her then. While it sounds like a little, it will be all nutrient dense food that is mostly protein (we have to eat protein first) and high-quality carbs. I will most likely prioritize protein and vegetable carbohydrate for meals, and it's difficult to eat more than that when all you have is lean protein and veggies, volume wise. It's much easier to overeat bread, pasta, etc., which I will always severely limit.0 -
Thank you for sharing this. I appreciate hearing about it, and learning. WLS is not in my horizon but it's something that I have pondered about if I was unable to stop binge eating (have ocd behaviours/anxiety/compulsive eating).
I put it off for six years until I could lose a few hundred pounds on my own and get my binge eating under control via counseling. You can definitely lose weight without it! Everyone needs the tool that works best for them. Good luck in your journey!
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You lost three hundred pounds on your own and then had surgery? Am I reading that right?BitterGrace wrote: »Thank you for sharing this. I appreciate hearing about it, and learning. WLS is not in my horizon but it's something that I have pondered about if I was unable to stop binge eating (have ocd behaviours/anxiety/compulsive eating).
I put it off for six years until I could lose a few hundred pounds on my own and get my binge eating under control via counseling. You can definitely lose weight without it! Everyone needs the tool that works best for them. Good luck in your journey!
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I have people in my life who've had it done.
You couldn't pay me to do it...no way no how.
It isn't a quick fix, it isn't easy.
I've watched them lose the weight fast...guess what that means...skin surgery later if they can. Compression garments, weakness, no exercise or very little.
And guess what some (can't remember the stat) gain the weight back as they haven't dealt with the underlying issues.
Again...you couldn't pay me to do that.0 -
I have had it recommended to me in the past and even went on the waiting list to have it performed, but in preparation I changed my eating habits on my own and the weight started coming off consistently without any surgery. I made myself inactive on the waiting list because I was going to wait this thing out and see how long I could keep it up. A year and a half and nearly 130 lbs later I'm still going and I'm very glad I didn't go down the surgery road.0
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You lost three hundred pounds on your own and then had surgery? Am I reading that right?
Not on my own - I had a counselor who held me accountable. He worked with me on the issues that contributed to my maladaptive eating behavior. I followed a very strict low carb diet since I was completely immobile. Walking just 20 feet was nearly impossible. My spouse had left me after I had nearly died many years prior and it triggered my eating disorder.0 -
As someone who is underweight and seems to have developed a rather unhealthy relationship with food, I'm curious what your goal was for this thread.0
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If they need the surgery due to severe health issues that may not be resolved by losing weight naturally then yes, I think surgery should be an option. If they are doing it because they are to lazy to do what it takes to lose weight and be healthy it doesn't matter because they will just end up fat again anyways because they haven't learned what it will take to keep the weight off in the first place.0
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BitterGrace wrote: »You lost three hundred pounds on your own and then had surgery? Am I reading that right?
Not on my own - I had a counselor who held me accountable. He worked with me on the issues that contributed to my maladaptive eating behavior. I followed a very strict low carb diet since I was completely immobile. Walking just 20 feet was nearly impossible. My spouse had left me after I had nearly died many years prior and it triggered my eating disorder.
Why would you undergo WLS after you lost 300 pounds naturally?0 -
BitterGrace wrote: »You lost three hundred pounds on your own and then had surgery? Am I reading that right?
Not on my own - I had a counselor who held me accountable. He worked with me on the issues that contributed to my maladaptive eating behavior. I followed a very strict low carb diet since I was completely immobile. Walking just 20 feet was nearly impossible. My spouse had left me after I had nearly died many years prior and it triggered my eating disorder.
Congratulations on your amazing success!
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I can see where you're coming from, but I feel sad for anyone who gets into that state. I guess they're 'cheating the system' when they can accelerate their weight loss, but then they've probably lived an unhappier life than they might have had for years.
If it can get people on track then good for them. It would still take a lot if time and effort to get to a good size. Plus they'll have excess skin and other issues to deal with.
I'd rather stay in control of my weight than eat everything I ever wanted and then go though that0 -
My niece - in her early 20s - was told by her physician that if she did not have weight loss surgery she would die young. She had been obese her entire life. The surgical option was not an "easy way out." There are a lot of changes that must be made to one's lifestyle - including eating very small amounts of liquified food, daily vitamins, high amounts of protein and daily exercise. It is a lifestyle change, too. It is not a decision to be taken lightly and requires psychological counseling. Approximately one year after surgery she has reached her goal weight.0
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I watch my 600 lb life - a show where super morbidly obese people are documented while they undergo surgery, lose weight and attempt to save their lives. I watch it because the success stories are encouraging and emotional. The thing that I can never really wrap my head around is that fact that nearly all of them are told by the doctor that they need to lose 50-60 lbs before they are considered for surgery and most of them do. If you can lose 60 lbs on your own, why rearrange your insides, putting yourself at risk for hernias and vitamin deficiencies? Why not just continue to work on it naturally?
That being said, I don't think it's "a quick fix" in any way shape or form.0 -
I know 4 ppl that have had some kind of weightloss surgery ..each one of them have said they wish they never had it done they have had alot of health problems since having it done .one messed up her stomach by eating more than she should have another one kidneys are failing now and she cant eat anything without getting sick ...everybody has a right to do what they feel is best for them0
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BitterGrace wrote: »I had weight loss surgery recently, and it has made things immeasurably easier. I eat between 500-1000 calories a day (800 on average) and I am never hungry or miserable. It makes everything so much better in general. The surgeries often reset the metabolism. The mechanisms for this are not quite understood. But, for example, my fasting blood sugar went from 180 to 83 two days after surgery. Even just fasting will not do that. It has been 100% normal ever since.
As for easy, it's not easy at all. You need six months of attempts at weight loss before a surgeon will do it. Additionally, insurance requires a psychiatric approval, about eight tests involving a heart test, a lung test, sometimes a colonoscopy and an endoscopy, etc. Then you must make several appointments with a nutritionist before and after. There are often severe complications with the more detailed surgeries. It is definitely not easy.
I track everything that I eat in terms of volume because overeating damages my stomach. I have to get between 75g-90g of protein a day and drink 64+ ounces of water. With a stomach that holds only two ounces that takes a lot of time management. Many of the surgeries also require you to permanently take vitamins for the rest of your life.
Is it worth it if you are morbidly obese? Absolutely. Easy way out? Absolutely not.
This is exactly what my loved one went through with their surgery. It was literally a 7-year process to actually do it. One doesn't just decide "Oh I can't do it anymore so I'll just get surgery". There's so many facets to the process. So many appointments, tests, and evaluations. And for people who have serious health risks because of their morbid obesity, there's even more to think about.
Edit: It was a 7-year process because my loved one decided the first time that it wasn't the right time. Turns out it was a good decision because the docs suggested lap band, which now has been found to have problems. And the 2nd time around, they had to go through the ENTIRE process again in order to be approved for surgery (this time the gastric sleeve).0 -
I have very mixed feelings about WLS. I definitely don't think it's "the easy way out" because I think it creates a whole host of different problems - maybe better, maybe worse - than being obese. For some, I think it's a life-saving choice, but in all cases, it's a decision best left to the doctor and patient to decide together and there needs to be a frank discussion about all benefits and risks. I think a good doctor should require a WLS candidate to have both nutrition and psychological counseling ahead of the surgery. Both to understand the risks and ramifications of the surgery and how to eat in a healthy sustainable way after the surgery. I know several people close to me who have had WLS surgery (my SIL, my college roommate and my mother's best friend). All three are at least 5-years post surgery. Only one of them has been successful long-term and I believe she is the one that had the most counseling/help prior to the surgery. While only one of them has kept the weight off, all three have lingering issues related to the WLS. Some minor and some not. I know three people is very, very far from a scientific study, but based on just that limited sample, WLS doesn't appear to have any better success rate than just plain old diet and exercise.0
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levitateme wrote: »I watch my 600 lb life - a show where super morbidly obese people are documented while they undergo surgery, lose weight and attempt to save their lives. I watch it because the success stories are encouraging and emotional. The thing that I can never really wrap my head around is that fact that nearly all of them are told by the doctor that they need to lose 50-60 lbs before they are considered for surgery and most of them do. If you can lose 60 lbs on your own, why rearrange your insides, putting yourself at risk for hernias and vitamin deficiencies? Why not just continue to work on it naturally?
That being said, I don't think it's "a quick fix" in any way shape or form.
That's a great question, and one I often ask myself. I think it's mostly that these people are desperate for the tool they think will be most successful - and I think the initial weight loss is prescribed merely to be a test of their mental dedication.
I don't necessarily agree with the surgery, and when I was heavy enough to qualify for it, I chose to go the natural route (diet and some exercise). That being said, if my mom wanted to sign up for it, I'd be all for it, and would support her. It's one tool in a giant tool box. IMO, just because someone's hoping for a little help in achieving a deficit doesn't mean they're looking for a short cut. (Although - speaking of "My 600 Pound Life," it's obvious that some are. I've seen the doctor on that show reject patients for that very reason.)0
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