bariatric surgery

goldthistime

jgnatca wrote: »

I had the bypass and the entire process including the lifestyle change has transformed my life. The head surgeon that supervised my program is not a fan of the lap band or the balloon. These surgeries are NOT proven and are based on a false premise.

(The false premise is that the obese got that way by consuming large volumes of food at a sitting)

My (proven) surgery is thought to work by reducing/impairing absorption. It also changes the production of ghrelin and "turns off" insulin resistance.

Whichever way you decide to go, OP, I'm roooting for you.

Well said. I'm rooting for you too OP, whichever method you choose.

Bekah7482

firef1y72 wrote: »

[quote="Bekah7482;c-39822774"

Because if weight loss was as easy as "just stick to the diet," we wouldn't have overweight people. The pre-surgery diet is a very specific set of guidelines for not only what foods to eat but how you eat those foods. You need to change these habits before surgery because you can literally hurt yourself if you do not follow the new eating guidelines after surgery. The general population seem to think that WLS patients have surgery then sit on their *kitten* and watch the weight drop. They still have to diet and exercise for the rest of their life just like everyone else. Surgery is just a tool, if not used right, you will not lose the weight or gain it all right back.

As far as complications, the complication rate of surgery is very low. It has become a pretty routine surgery and is relatively safe. The side effects are generally short term throughout the healing process; nausea, dizziness, food getting "stuck," constipation, etc. Most of the issues that are dangerous have to do with a patient who does not follow the post surgery rules (again why the pre-surgery diet is so important). If you do not eat right, get in your water and protein, take your vitamins, etc are far more dangerous than the actual surgery.

Also with surgery, most of the time you are required to take 6 months of nutrition courses, meet with dietitians and therapist and go to support groups to work on your relationship with food. There is far more to WLS then get the surgery and lose weight.

Sorry but weight loss really is as simple as "just stick to the diet", whether you have WLS or not. As I said, I was told there was no way I'd be able to lose the weight without surgery, but by sticking to the diet, and moving more I have. If the same resources and effort were put in to helping these people continue with the pre-surgery weightloss who's to say they wouldn't also be able to shed the weight without resorting to surgery. It seems to me that the possibly life long rules after surgery are just over restrictive, I enjoy the occasional "naughty" meal where I blow out and that hasn't stopped me losing the weight.


[/quote]

The point of that is that there are more complex things working against "just stick to the diet." I am not arguing against the fact that by sticking to a diet, ANYONE can lose the weight without surgery. I completely agree with that. I also disagree with your doctor who said that you couldn't do it without surgery and I am happy that you were able to. But not everyone has been as successful as you. If you look at most people who are morbidly morbidly obese, there is another issue besides food that has led them to where they are and work against their ability to just stick to a diet. Surgery is a TOOL to HELP people lose weight while they work on their underlying issues and relationship with food. As you can see from people's comments above, it does not guarantee weight loss success, it is only a TOOL.

The post surgery diet and rules are not as restrictive as one might think, especially the farther you get post op. Just because you had surgery, doesn't necessarily mean that you cant have a "naughty" meal. Some people get food sensitivities that may prevent them from eating certain things, but for the most part, people can handle all foods(bypass patients have higher sensitivity to sugar, sleeve patients not so much).

Everyone has their own plan to lose weight. If someone needs this tool and it's resources to be successful then who cares? You didn't want to have the surgery so you worked hard on your diet and exercise and lost the weight, good for you. Someone else has the surgery and works hard on their diet and exercise and loses the weight, then good for them. Weight loss is hard work no matter what route you choose to take and as long as you put in the work and lose the weight (and preferably keep it off) then good for you!! My problem is that a lot of people with zero knowledge of WLS and what it entails always seem to have a lot to say about it.

GailK1967

I'm 4 months out from gastric sleeve and 100% happy withy decision. It's given me control over my insatiable appetite and eating small meals of healthy foods has made me nutritionally healthier than I've been in 30 years. By that I mean the extensive blood tests they do show my vitamin and mineral levels are now normal as ate HBA1c, cholesterol etc.

I found the surgery and recovery a breeze, was back at full time work at 8 days. Haven't had a singlevissurvitger than the frothies because I ate too fast one day.

I researched it extensively and made sure I would change everything. So for me it's been a fantastic tool.

I work in a hospital where I'm the 18th person (all health professionals) to have it and only 1 has regained and weight mainly due to 3 pregnancies in quick succession.

auntiesmj

I am morbidly obese and have seriously considered bariatric surgery, but after much research, I have chosen not to got that route. I know surgery saves/changes the lives of many people who experience success. However, those who gain the weight back may be worse off.

I'm only in my 30s, and it terrified me to think that if I had the surgery and regained my weight in 10, 20 or so years, then I'd be older, with the same or worse obesity-related health issues that might make it more difficult to be active at an older age. Also, depending on the surgery, people will experience some degree muscle/bone loss with an hindered ability to build muscle. Plus, my mental health would surely suffer after regaining weight.

I've had a sports medicine physician give me an ultimatum: (1) bariatric surgery or (2) therapy combined with changes to diet/exercise. However, my orthopedic physician flat out said he'd never recommend bariatric surgery because of the damage it does to the musculoskeletal system. It would have been easy to take that advice and just say, "well, my doctor said no." But the skeletal damage may be a worthwhile cost for the benefits of significant weightloss... it's a huge decision, either way.

In the end, I decided to find a therapist to help me address my underlying issues that keep me from losing weight. Three years later, I still meet regularly with my therapist, and am just now beginning to shed the weight. It takes time, but now that I am able to recognize the causes of my eating habits and my relationship with food, weightloss no longer feels like an unscalable mountain.

NOTE: My view of bariatric surgery has been influenced by people in my life who had the surgery, never lost more than 70-80 lbs, and have started to regain the weight. Although, I also know people who have had success and love the results of their surgery.

Also, therapy and bariatric surgery are not mutually exclusive. I know it's recommended for bariatric surgery patients to seek therapy before and after their surgery.

creatureofchaos

COMPARING A BALLOON TO SURGERY IS VERY INACCURATE.

I had a balloon inserted in mid-January as part of a medical study, and it has been AWESOME. It's not a surgery, and shouldn't be compared to one. You won't lose anywhere near as much weight, nor will you have anywhere near the same negative effects. Think of it as an "assisted diet." The balloon doesn't make it at all impossible for you to overeat (you could eat 5000 calories a day if you wanted), but it does make it much much easier to feel satisfied if you eat less. I don't have a lot of trouble sticking to a diet once I actually push myself to make a committed start, so it was perfect for me. If you are the sort of person who's always starting and then giving up a couple of weeks in, really think hard about whether it's worth it.

Even though I'm incredibly happy and grateful I did it, I'm not sure if I would recommend it to you outside of a study. Some people do have some really rough side effects (although I had essentially none). And it is very very expensive if you have to pay out of pocket (I of course did not). Ultimately, the results you get with a balloon will be no different than what you'd get if you had a medically supervised VLCD for a few weeks and gradually upped your intake to a typical high protein 1200 calorie diet. Be realistic with yourself. If you don't have the willpower to stick to a diet without a balloon, within a month you'll be back to eating whatever you want and feeling super annoyed with having spent around $10k on nothing.

99Joe

jgnatca wrote: »

I had the bypass and the entire process including the lifestyle change has transformed my life. The head surgeon that supervised my program is not a fan of the lap band or the balloon. These surgeries are NOT proven and are based on a false premise.

(The false premise is that the obese got that way by consuming large volumes of food at a sitting)

My (proven) surgery is thought to work by reducing/impairing absorption. It also changes the production of ghrelin and "turns off" insulin resistance.

Whichever way you decide to go, OP, I'm roooting for you.

Amen to this statement! Anyone can gain and lose weight. Choices are so important for health and wellness. No matter which way we decide to lose weight, or gain weight for that matter, let it be healthy. We all know success stories of this method and that method, stay with what works for you. I was greater than 340 pounds this time last year, and with the aid of gastric bypass I am 205 pounds. I still have to make choices of which food I shove in my mouth. I chose much healthier food now than I ever did. I stare down junk food each time I shop and feel like such a winner when I leave the store with no chocolaty, salty, fatty foods. I pick them up, read them, look at the label and ingredients and happily put them back. Yes, I will have an occasional snack that one would consider junk food, but, control is everything when developing a lifestyle change. My wife and I had surgery the same day last July and we have both lost well over one hundred pounds each. Careful out there. Gaining only three pounds per year starting at twenty years old equals 105 by 55....

150poundsofme

One question I asked at all the numerous WLS seminars and bariatric support groups was - afterwards, do you lose that "need" to eat. Because it would be awful to have to go through the surgery and possible side effects only to still have that wanting of needing all those carby comfiting foods in large amounts. I just yesterday read an old balloon question I wrote on here. The majority felt that therapy and nutrition counseling is what was warranted. I think after the 6 months you will have lost the weight but will the feeling you need to eat/binge be gone. I did read there are some complications to the balloon. I was told one of the balloon procedure was $5,600 (might have been for the one you just swallow every 2 weeks (3x) and $7,00 for the other one - endoscopy. I do think it would be a great jump start. And the crazy thing is I never would want people to know I did WLS so I never could figure out how when you are with people in their house/restaurant and you can only eat so little, what would you say. And just yesterday I was thinking that even with the balloon you have to eat just like you do with WLS. One thing I like is that with the balloon there is no cutting of your body. I would think the complications and side effects are not so great with the balloon. I may still do it myself. Need much more research though. You can you-tube people for their thoughts who have had it. Good luck. p.s. I found that the doctors like to you too. The gastric sleeve does come in different sizes. I wanted to get a little larger one so afterwards, after I lost my weight, I would be able to eat more "normal". The docs lies and said one size. I found out that it is not true. They do not put the same sized sleeve in a 6'5 large boned man as they would put in a 5'2" petite frame women.

150poundsofme

I wish there was a free clinical trial going on now. No more going on now?

namelesshere

I have lost a friend to bariatric surgery. She died on the table. Another friend came very close to dying due to complications :-( Any type of surgery is not without risks. My doctor at one time recommended it for me. I refused and changed doctors. When I asked him about the success rate, he said it was low. Even with the surgery, you still need to relearn how to eat or the weight will come back on so why not just learn how to eat now and save yourself the trauma and risks of the surgery?

Sheisinlove109

I can't speak for surgery personally but I have had several friends that have had the different types and almost all of them have decent complications. Food allergies, etc.

Does your doc recommend it?

Hard work at the gym, stay within calorie count, sleep and water... should do the trick. 90lbs of mine have disappeared that way.

Pm me if you'd like to chat.

cheryldumais

So sorry I just saw this but would like to weigh in, lol. Pun intended. I had a lapband. It was NOT worth it. I ended up having to have it removed due to complications. I never really lost any weight with it but I certainly vomited alot. I have learned that for me the best way to lose weight is to go slow and sure and do things that work for me. I've been dieting all my life and at 60 I finally have lost 84 pounds. You can do it.

I don't want to knock anyone who choses to do surgery. That is a very personal decision and I think it takes alot of courage to do it. I just want to let you know it isn't always all it's cracked up to be. Please be very careful and only use surgery as a very last resort. Even after the surgery you can end up gaining alot of the weight back if you aren't careful and you are left with the health issues that go with the surgery.

I wish you the best of luck whatever you decide but please do your homework and talk to people who have had the surgery and are a few years in. See if they managed to maintain the loss. Most of the people I knew that lost did not keep it off. Some kept part of it off and some gained most of it back.

missshea

This may not be popular, but there is a diet that mimics bariatric surgery called the 5 bite diet. There is a large Facebook following. You can modify your bites as well but some people try doing the diet without the surgery. Maybe worth looking into there is a book on amazon.... a lot of people I have seen have been very successful...

garber6th

I had VSG 3 1/2 years ago. At my highest weight, I was 386 lbs. Before I ever had surgery, I chose to find a good therapist to help me sort out the issues that got me to where I was. In my opinion, you don't get to be that big simply from bad food choices and laziness. I considered my weight a result of disordered eating and I KNEW that if I didn't work on the emotional/mental part, nothing I would do physically would work long term. I was in therapy for a year before I considered surgery. I made sure I was ready to accept that it was a tool, not a fix, and that I would still need to put in a lot of work for the rest of my life to stay successful. It was worth it to me. I knew the risks of surgery, but I also knew the risks of going into my 50s being morbidly obese. Surgery helped me save my life. It helped me to be able to live a much better quality of life. I watch what I eat, and I am active now. I have not had any major issues or complications. The thing to remember is that surgery in and of itself will never be the answer, but it can be a part of your tools and checks & balances to keep you on track, healthy, and successful. If you don't think you can commit to making a lot of change, surgery might not be right for you.

creatureofchaos

150poundsofme wrote: »

I wish there was a free clinical trial going on now. No more going on now?

I don't know if there's still space, but this is the study I'm in: http://www.newballoontrial.com/

Bearbo27

I recommend following myfitnesspal' method of counting calories and learning those smaller portions for a period of at least 6 months before you make any decisions. By following it, that means you need to stick with those calories though and not go over. I have a feeling if you do that, you will see enough results that you will change your mind. 11 months ago I was 258lbs (I'm only 5'3"). I am now 162.1 lbs (97.9lbs down) by doing exactly what I told you to do. I still have about 25lbs to be in a healthy weight, but I finally established a healthy relationship with food in these 11 months that overeating is not really an issue anymore.

With that being said, my mom had gastric bypass. It was crucial for her immediate health and has pretty much saved her life. That is not without side effects though. She is down about 150lbs. She has a very limited diet that she can eat. She cannot have sugars or carbs (any thing white, some wheat does ok). She can only really consume a certain about of oz of food at a time. She's had issues with nutrient absorption even with all the vitamins she has to take. She also had to have skin removal surgery and that recovery was horrible. I am very grateful that she got the WLS so that she could live a longer life, however, in my opinion that should be the only reason to get it done.

If you need any motivation or support, friend request me on here. I keep my diary open to friends. You'll see I eat what I want (bacon, cake, sugars, etc) just less than I used to The most important thing is finding out what your issue with food is. If you don't fix that, no weight loss surgery will. Many people have had WLS and gained back most or all of the weight from not fixing the issues that caused the weight gain. WLS is definitely just another tool in your weight loss tool box, not a solution.

Chadxx

Everyone I know who has had surgery lost weight but either gained weight back or is still overweight because they never learned healthy eating habits. I lost 150 pounds, am in the best shape of my life, feel truly in control of my weight, and didn't have the pain or expense of surgery. This sight is full of similar success stories. Do yourself a favor and forget about surgery and just learn to budget your calories and eat sensibly. It absolutely works.

150poundsofme

Thank you Creatureofch