Any Bariatric Surgery People?

I read barbaric sugary people.......WOW.....I think I need to go to bed!

I started to log here in preparation for the Roux En Y and lost so much weight so fast, the surgery is now on hold. My diabetes is in control with diet and exercise and my BMI is too low for the surgery.

How much volume are you able to eat now? Are you hitting the protein shakes to help curb your hunger?

Original non-adjustable lapband here from 1994!!! oh yeah, 20yrs of lapbanding here :laugh: :sad: it's been a total roller coaster nightmare for me! I was 30yrs old in 1994 and weighed 430lbs after a lifetime of weight issues and giving birth to 2 children. My birthday gift that year was this wonderful amazing surgery that would solve all my problems! Back then there was no psychological or physical evaluation or therapy offered before or after surgery. The one and only hurdle was INSURANCE!!! As long as your doctor worded everything right and your insurance accepted, then you were in and out in a blink of an eye! My doc only required that I follow up 1 year later for a checkup and suggested that I be a good patient and continue to keep my general doctor appointments and checkups. Other than that, I was floundering around on my own trying to figure out this lapbanding lifestyle. Right off the bat, I was "sick" (my word for throwing up) pretty much every single day, sometimes even several times a day. It was hit or miss to find out what foods I could tolerate at any given moment because believe me it changed constantly. Somehow I kept it together through each day and managed to add walking to my daily routines. Before I knew it, I was losing poundage!! It was awesome to see it melting off of me...but the payback for me was constantly being sick. I dealt with it. By 1 1/2 years out I had lost half of my weight! That's 215lbs off and I then weighed 215lbs! Hadn't been that size since 8th grade.:ohwell: I felt and looked great...well, to me I did But that was the end of losing for me. At the end of 1995 I fell down my backporch stairs and messed up my foot pretty bad. I was laid up for 6weeks and on crutches for 2 more weeks after that. This not only kept me from walking, it also put me in a weak frame of mind. I lost my hope and will power. Soon I started gaining again. This carried on throughout 1996 and into 1997 before I had another awakening. My spirit returned to take control of myself once again and start walking and eating smart. I started to lose again. Throughout all of this time I still had too many sick days out of the week. But once again I thought it's finally gonna be worth it once I can get this weight off. However, in 1997 I had an emergency appendectomy that floored me once again!!! This time I was down and out for 9 weeks recovery. That officially screwed me up. It was over. I couldn't regain myself after that. I just settled into my doomed life of eating and being sick every single day with no spirit or will power to rise and exercise. While I never was a person to really snack on sweets or chips, I enjoyed veggies very much and soups and chilis in particular. These surely were high in sodium and lots of carbs due to all the veggies I added to the soups and the beans in the chilis. I know this now, but back then I never ever counted calories, carbs, proteins, fats, or sodium. Being sedentary and eating lots of beans and veggies (even though good, still high in carbs) was what I believe was my downfall. My doctors said a few years ago that my body had went into starvation mode. It just would not allow me to lose weight since I was regularly eating probably 300-600 calories daily with no exercise at all. My body was holding and storing everything that I ate and turning it into fat, so I continued to gain even at that low caloric intake. It does happen!!! I found myself at 369lbs in April of this year. 20years after my lapband surgery at 430lbs and I've only accomplished a 60lb loss???? Fed up!!! So I met with a modern gastro doc who first unfortunately informed me via endoscopy that I now have Barrett's Esophagus as a result of 20yrs of acid reflux from my friend the lapband!!! Since April I've had 2 ablation endoscopies to laser reoccurring cancer cells in my esophagus. I'm hoping that I can claim myself to be rid of them soon. Once my gastro doc is sure my Barrett's is under control and clear, he recommends removing my lapband since it is the source of my illness. He wants me to rest up and regain normal health and eating for several months after that and then have a Roux-en-Y bypass. I'm scared of the possibility of another ruined experience with a new gastric surgery. I'm nervous for new illnesses to erupt due to RNY...like the hyperglycemia I keep hearing about. I'm nervous because this is definitely a permanent surgery, whereas my lapband is easily removed and life goes on. My mind wonders and HOPES that my time here on MFP will encourage me to maybe just fight my weight loss on my own after my lapband removal. I just don't know....:ohwell:

BettJo64: Once my gastro doc is sure my Barrett's is under control and clear, he recommends removing my lapband since it is the source of my illness. He wants me to rest up and regain normal health and eating for several months after that and then have a Roux-en-Y bypass.

Bettjo64, wow what a story!

I almost got the surgery 20 years ago and I chickened out. Those were the bad old days and they've learned a lot more.

You would be a great Roux en Y patient since you've already been through all of this.

But after your band is removed and you've regained your health, I recommend trying to live as if you were post Roux en Y. Do your eating, walking, logging, vitamins, go to support groups, everything as if you were post Roux en Y. Run this by your gastroenterologist and see if he'll support this plan and give you a calorie limit and exercise that he/she will supervise and that you will prove through your logs.

Since your body is so used to lower calories, I would also suggest taking whatever goals and swinging them 25% each day. On Monday, eat 125% of your calories, on Tuesday eat 75%, on Wednesday eat 125%, on Thursday eat 75%, and so on. Do the same with your exercise intensity or length. Try to untrain your metabolism. Run that by your gastroenterologist too.

This accomplishes three things:
1) You won't gain a bunch of weight after your band is removed while you're waiting for the Roux en Y.
2) You'll be a better and safer Roux en Y patient both on the table and in the 2 years afterward.
3) This plan has the possibility that you could delay or avoid surgery altogether with enough support and supervision.

Had RNY in April of 2008 Was 300lbs going in give or take 10lbs and at my lowest (2010) I was 145-150. I lost half of myself LOL!!! It has been a great tool. I got pregnant (something I didnt think was possible having PCOS) in March of 2012 and had my baby 12/12/12 (My miracle baby ) The first 5 months I didnt gain a lb but after they put me on strict bed rest due to a very thinning cervix and subsequent cerclage installation I gained 30lbs the last 4 months of my pregnancy and I have been struggling like hell to get it off. Before I became pregnant I fluctuated between 150-165 which was just fine for me. If I had the chance to do it all over again, I would a million times over. One thing I believe that helped me was learning how to eat from Weight Watchers about 3 years before I had the surgery. The surgery for me was really a tool because I already knew HOW to eat, my issue was and still is will power. Good luck!!

On facebook there is a Bariatric for Newbies Group and it is closed where it does not show on your page or your friends page I have learned a lot from them.

Just realized I already commented lol