Curious

TutuMom41
TutuMom41 Posts: 278 Member
I am just curious about why are people so opinionated on WLS? I know people who have done well with it, People who have regained after it, and many people with failed diet after diet. After reading someones profile that said they were against WLS I was just curious

Replies

  • Madame_Goldbricker
    Madame_Goldbricker Posts: 1,625 Member
    Sounds like you just answered your own question. It's divisive because it creates so many differing results for so many people.
  • TutuMom41
    TutuMom41 Posts: 278 Member
    Sounds like you just answered your own question. It's divisive because it creates so many differing results for so many people.

    I think like any lifestyle change in the end its up to the person. I just wonder why people are so opinionated on it. "easy way" Dangerous, Lazy way, best thing I ever did....
  • stuart160
    stuart160 Posts: 1,628 Member
    I don't judge people that have WLS. I think people are opinionated because a large number of people who have had it done gain the weight back. I run a Health and Wellness Center and sending people for the Surgery now seems to be the quick answer for many Doctors. If someone goes through the trouble of getting the surgery they really should spend more than the small amount of counseling time that they get after surgery so that they realize that they still need to eat healthier and exercise or the weight is coming back.
  • TutuMom41
    TutuMom41 Posts: 278 Member
    My friend is trying desperately to loose wight and my advice to her was to join MFP and not to enter a goal but the weight she wanted to weigh. Eat like that and eventually she would be that weight Its slower but no huge calorie restrictions and an easier way to create a permanent lifestyle change. While I told her this another neighbor is pre op for WLS
  • jstavix
    jstavix Posts: 407 Member
    I am pretty much against it because I feel it's a band aid that covers a deeper problem. I never really had an opinion until my cousin's wife had it done. She lost 250 pounds and then what happened? She gained it all back and then some. The same Dr. did it for her again and she repeated the process. It was obvious that what she was doing was not going to help her at all. For those who use it and keep it off, that's great but, all I can think of is Peggy and how she did it twice and failed. I think in hindsight, maybe I am biased because of her. I know for some people it is literally a life saving operation. I look to Ruby the woman who had her own show for a while. She once weighed over 700 pounds and she has taken off the weight all natural, she has slipped a few times but, dang, she is an amazing woman.
  • Madame_Goldbricker
    Madame_Goldbricker Posts: 1,625 Member
    In all honesty I think stuart160 hit the nail on the head. It's not the surgery itself that's the problem it's the lack of support around it from medical practitioners aftercare services. There is no point in any kind of quick fix weight loss if people don't learn to control their dietary habits/calorific intakes.

    If I could pop a pill that would make me wake up a size 6 tomorrow would I do it? Probably

    Would I then binge my way back to a size 16 over the next 12mths? Probably

    The only way I'm going to keep any weight gains in check is if I rein in my eating habits & exercise consistently. It's not rocket science but it's amazing just how many people (including myself in the past) don't take that fact on board.
  • TutuMom41
    TutuMom41 Posts: 278 Member
    In all honesty I think stuart160 hit the nail on the head. It's not the surgery itself that's the problem it's the lack of support around it from medical practitioners aftercare services. There is no point in any kind of quick fix weight loss if people don't learn to control their dietary habits/calorific intakes.

    If I could pop a pill that would make me wake up a size 6 tomorrow would I do it? Probably

    Would I then binge my way back to a size 16 over the next 12mths? Probably

    The only way I'm going to keep any weight gains in check is if I rein in my eating habits & exercise consistently. It's not rocket science but it's amazing just how many people (including myself in the past) don't take that fact on board.

    37 lb weight loss Congrats!!!
  • Madame_Goldbricker
    Madame_Goldbricker Posts: 1,625 Member
    In all honesty I think stuart160 hit the nail on the head. It's not the surgery itself that's the problem it's the lack of support around it from medical practitioners aftercare services. There is no point in any kind of quick fix weight loss if people don't learn to control their dietary habits/calorific intakes.

    If I could pop a pill that would make me wake up a size 6 tomorrow would I do it? Probably

    Would I then binge my way back to a size 16 over the next 12mths? Probably

    The only way I'm going to keep any weight gains in check is if I rein in my eating habits & exercise consistently. It's not rocket science but it's amazing just how many people (including myself in the past) don't take that fact on board.

    37 lb weight loss Congrats!!!

    Thank you! :blushing:
  • stuart160
    stuart160 Posts: 1,628 Member
    The best thing that you can do for your friend who is having the surgery is to advise her to get in a good support network that will keep her on the straight afterwords. Also caution her, if she is doing Gastric bypass to be careful with how she processes alcohol. Many have trouble afterwards.
  • kgeyser
    kgeyser Posts: 22,505 Member
    After reading someones profile that said they were against WLS I was just curious

    If it's in their profile, then they are probably saying that to let people know should the person want to send them a FR. A lot of people have caveats in their profiles about the friends they want on MFP because they are looking for people with common goals and weight loss ideologies. Some people just don't want to deal with the drama that extreme weight loss measures inevitably are going to have or do not feel like they would be a good support system for someone going through that, so they want to be upfront about it.
  • kinkyslinky16
    kinkyslinky16 Posts: 1,469 Member
    I'm not that big of a fan of weight loss surgery for particular patients. I am in the medical field, and I've seen entirely TOO many complications as a result. Complications that, unfortunately, affect an individual's quality of life on a profound level. For some patients it works very well, but I've seen too many complications to recommend it to most people.
  • melb_alex
    melb_alex Posts: 1,154 Member
    keen to know what WLS is?
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    It'd probably be better for you to ask that person as reasons vary (as a few others have said).

    When asked on this forum, people will try to persuade someone not to do the surgery. It may seem like anti-WLS but it isn't. More often or not, people have a tendency to think that getting the surgery is a guaranteed thing - both in the loss and the maintenance. It isn't. Many people end up gaining whatever they do lose and sometimes even more.

    Since being aware of your intake/calories and fitness is something you'd have to do anyways, people will reason that you can obtain the same success without spending the money.
  • kinkyslinky16
    kinkyslinky16 Posts: 1,469 Member
    keen to know what WLS is?
    Weight loss surgery
  • brower47
    brower47 Posts: 16,356 Member
    It'd probably be better for you to ask that person as reasons vary (as a few others have said).

    When asked on this forum, people will try to persuade someone not to do the surgery. It may seem like anti-WLS but it isn't. More often or not, people have a tendency to think that getting the surgery is a guaranteed thing - both in the loss and the maintenance. It isn't. Many people end up gaining whatever they do lose and sometimes even more.

    Since being aware of your intake/calories and fitness is something you'd have to do anyways, people will reason that you can obtain the same success without spending the money.

    This, both on asking individuals their reasons and on why the majority of this forum tends to advice away from it.
  • melb_alex
    melb_alex Posts: 1,154 Member
    good luck, I hope you get the answer you are after as this tends to be a controversial subject and most participants give a bias view.