Honest opinions on weight loss surgery

Jetrail · June 27, 2018 12:01PM

Hi , i was looking for some honest opinions on weight loss surgeries such as gastric bypass and sleeves etc. While it's great people are bettering their health do you feel the person who makes hard lifestyle changes and loses the weight on their own works harder ? Is it wrong to feel that way? . I guess to me when you decide to change your lifestyle and really grind for what you want health wise it seems slot harder vs losing weight with surgical help, maybe I'm wrong but I'd like some opinions, like I said it's still grwat when anyone betters their lifestyle

janejellyroll · June 27, 2018 2:39PM

Even if it was the case that someone who lost weight without surgery was "working harder," is there inherent virtue in choosing a more difficult way to do something?

I work harder when I wash the dishes by hand than when I use the dishwasher, but I have no moral qualms about using the dishwasher. I work harder when I do my taxes by hand than when I use tax prep software, but I don't feel bad about taking advantage of the software.

Let's say it is easier to lose weight with surgery. Does that tell us anything meaningful? I'm not sure that it does.

zyxst · June 27, 2018 2:41PM

My opinion is WLS isn't for me. I didn't go that route, but I'm not going to put down anyone who did have it. Some can lose weight without surgery and some can't. Both routes are their own kind of hard.

pinuplove · June 27, 2018 2:43PM

I feel like this is akin to asking which is harder - natural childbirth or c-section. To be honest, they both sort of suck.

Saying someone who has had WLS doesn't have to put in the work is a bit insulting (and I haven't had WLS). It's a tool, one that comes with its own set of challenges and pitfalls. Also a highly personal choice to make, and not for me to judge.

quiksylver296 · June 27, 2018 2:44PM

There's another thread in here touching the same subject.

I think it's a very personal choice. My opinion is that the person needs to do the right thing for them.

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10661273/more-people-need-to-get-educated-on-weight-loss-surgery/p1

jemhh · June 27, 2018 2:49PM

People who have WLS still need to recover from surgery and then watch what they eat (both quantity and certain food types, based on what I've heard friends who have had WLS say) in order to lose and exercise to be fit. Having surgery doesn't guarantee long term success and doesn't necessarily make things easier than not having it. Overall, I don't see a reason to compare the two.

boehle · June 27, 2018 2:54PM

My aunt and cousin both had WLS.
One lost weight but then gained it back
One didn't lose a thing.
I dont think its a miracle cure. You still have to work for it.

Zodikosis · June 27, 2018 2:57PM

People get their egos too tied up in this. I don't see the merit in trying to do things the hard way. You don't get a gold star sticker for doing more work to achieve the same ends.

That being said, weight loss surgery is significantly more risky and expensive than more conventional means of weight loss. It's hardly the easy way out -- if anything I feel like losing weight the conventional low-n-slow method is pretty darn easy, way easier than recovering from surgery. And if surgery actually was easier, then I'd recommend more people to do it, because the point isn't to prove something about yourself, it's to lose weight and be healthier.

urloved33 · June 27, 2018 3:09PM

Jetrail wrote: »

Hi , i was looking for some honest opinions on weight loss surgeries such as gastric bypass and sleeves etc. While it's great people are bettering their health do you feel the person who makes hard lifestyle changes and loses the weight on their own works harder ? Is it wrong to feel that way? . I guess to me when you decide to change your lifestyle and really grind for what you want health wise it seems slot harder vs losing weight with surgical help, maybe I'm wrong but I'd like some opinions, like I said it's still grwat when anyone betters their lifestyle

I think I know what you mean...they got there the same way we all did and are just taking an easier way out than others who choose no surgery

I have a friend who chose surgery and she was the first to say...it was laziness and overdoing of her crack (carb) and now after the surgery...she still says she is dealing w the same thing - her laziness and overdoing it w her carbs. so.

happytree923 · June 27, 2018 3:15PM

I honestly don't understand why anyone would choose to go that route unless they are literally bed-bound from their weight. You still have to diet to make it work and the side effects sound very unpleasant. I kind of think it gets sold as 'the magic bullet solution that really works!' which is obviously not true. But luckily, no one has to ask me what I think to get weight loss surgery so if people want to spend their money and time doing that and it works for them, great.

rheddmobile · June 27, 2018 3:16PM

The people I know who have had the surgery both had serious, even life-threatening, complications. One was able to lose weight after and the other lost but gained it back. Neither lost enough weight to be normal weight. So surgery is definitely not a magic bullet.

Personally I would be willing to endure a lot of dieting and exercise before I would resort to suffering through surgery, especially after seeing how rough it was, but that's me. I don't understand the mindset of wanting the surgery, but I understand enough to know that different people are different. It's none of my business whether other people are lazy or work hard to lose weight. I just hope that they do whatever leads to the best outcome for them.

Mandylou19912014 · June 27, 2018 3:32PM

I think that if you have the money to get one and feel that you could then maintain afterwards then go for it! Some people choose to exercise and diet over a period of time and some people have surgery. Your end goals are similar so it doesn’t and shouldn’t matter how you reach it

buffinlovin · June 27, 2018 3:34PM

If you've known someone who had weight loss surgery, you would know it's not an easy way out. Yes you lose weight quickly, but that's more because it limits the amount of food you can eat in one sitting, and in the case of gastric bypass (vs the sleeve gastrectomy), limits the calories/nutrients absorbed by the intestines. It can cause a lot of discomfort and illness if you try and continue the same lifestyle as before the surgery.

My mother had gastric bypass 15 years ago before it was more of a laparoscopic procedure, so she has a scar down the front of her stomach. I remember vividly the times where she would be out with us and almost pass out because she needed to eat something, and times where she was so sick because she ate something that, all of sudden, did not agree with her stomach (known as dumping syndrome). It was several years before she knew how her body would react to certain foods, and she's been able to maintain most of her weight loss by keeping an eye on what she eats (I believe her lowest was in the 120s, but that was actually too low for her, and she's more comfortable in the low 140 range).

I have a friend who went through gastric sleeve, and he has not been so successful. He lost a lot of weight and looked really great when he got to his goal, but he went back to poor eating habits and has gained most of what he lost. It's not an issue with the type of surgery, but the fact that my friend did not adhere to a diet that would keep his weight in check. In his own words, "I like great food and I don't want to deprive myself".

I am not eligible for WLS (5'2, 90lbs overweight, no weight related health issues), but if I met the requirements I would definitely pursue it. Not because it's an easy way out but because it would be a tool to help curb the issue I have with eating (I'm a volume eater and enjoy larger meals, so making it harder for me to eat larger meals would be ideal). It's a tool that is great for some, and not helpful for others. It's not going to make your cravings go away, so an emotional eater may have a harder time unless they change their relationship with food. Same with a grazer who likes to eat a lot of smaller meals.

CSARdiver · June 27, 2018 3:36PM

There are several variables that must be considered prior to any surgical intervention, which is applied simply "Does the reward outweigh the risk?"

Weight management is an output of behavior. Behavior is not altered by surgical intervention alone. If you do not address the underlying behavior you cannot hope to change the output. As this is an undeniable truth can you tell anyone that surgical intervention is necessary? I could see in those extreme cases where weight itself carries an unacceptable risk of death or serious injury, but in other cases...the risk as I see it is certainly not worth any potential reward.

nutmegoreo · June 27, 2018 3:41PM

Not everyone does it because they think It's an easy way out or because they are lazy. It's not an easy way out. They need to still do the work. And in some cases need to live with permanent changes in the way their body works (malnourishment and vitamin and mineral deficiencies are a real possibility). Sometimes depression has made the required effort appear hopeless. You just don't know unless you've been in their shoes.

happytree923 wrote: »

I honestly don't understand why anyone would choose to go that route unless they are literally bed-bound from their weight. You still have to diet to make it work and the side effects sound very unpleasant. I kind of think it gets sold as 'the magic bullet solution that really works!' which is obviously not true. But luckily, no one has to ask me what I think to get weight loss surgery so if people want to spend their money and time doing that and it works for them, great.

I was talking with someone who had the surgery followed by life threatening and permanently damaging complications. She had the surgery following a health scare and was genuinely scared for her life.

Diatonic12 · June 27, 2018 3:47PM

There's nothing easy about WLS. I lost my cousin months after her WLS, young children, husband left behind. There is no moral high ground with weight loss. Obesity and the fix, whether it be through dieting or WLS is not easy. I have searched high and low for the permanent WIN.

I hold these things to be self-evident. Pain is the precursor to change.

No one wants to be treated like an option B. We all want to be a stronger version of ourselves. Never run back to what broke you. For me, that would be dieting. A perpetual diet and eating it all back will break you. Never let an old flame burn you twice. That goes for relationships with people and diets.

Whatever you do treat everyone with dignity. We have all suffered the slings and arrows of bullies because of something. Dignity is everything. It's classy. Afford that to everyone who's here fighting for their health or trying to pick up the pieces of their life. Dieting sux. Anyone tries to knock you back out of the saddle while you're tooling along there's plenty of others to help you get back up on your feet.

Anyone calls you names while you're on your way, let them eat your dust. You will not be deterred.

nvmomketo · June 27, 2018 4:24PM

I think WLS can be good for some people but I think it could be avoidable fir some if they were given more support, direction and help.

I know of a few people who were going to do WLS but when they started the diet they would need to follow afterwards, they had success without the surgery. I think some people don't understand how to lose weight or what weight loss tools and diets are out there. With help, they may be able to avoid invasive surgery.

bennettinfinity · June 27, 2018 4:42PM

I'm not opposed to the concept, and I know surgery candidates often have to demonstrate some level of non-surgical weight loss as part of the program.

That said, I only know two people that have had WLS and both of them re-gained the weight - so, it's not a miracle cure and there still needs to be the same level of discipline to maintain results as those that lose weight without surgery.

urloved33 · June 27, 2018 4:45PM

bennettinfinity wrote: »

I'm not opposed to the concept, and I know surgery candidates often have to demonstrate some level of non-surgical weight loss as part of the program.

That said, I only know two people that have had WLS and both of them re-gained the weight - so, it's not a miracle cure and there still needs to be the same level of discipline to maintain results as those that lose weight without surgery.

I thought I read that less than 5% keep the weight off...seems like a failing procedure to me.

janejellyroll · June 27, 2018 4:54PM

urloved33 wrote: »

bennettinfinity wrote: »

I'm not opposed to the concept, and I know surgery candidates often have to demonstrate some level of non-surgical weight loss as part of the program.

That said, I only know two people that have had WLS and both of them re-gained the weight - so, it's not a miracle cure and there still needs to be the same level of discipline to maintain results as those that lose weight without surgery.

I thought I read that less than 5% keep the weight off...seems like a failing procedure to me.

Statistics are terrible for sustaining any weight loss long term, including that accomplished without WLS.

urloved33 · June 27, 2018 5:01PM

janejellyroll wrote: »

urloved33 wrote: »

bennettinfinity wrote: »

I'm not opposed to the concept, and I know surgery candidates often have to demonstrate some level of non-surgical weight loss as part of the program.

That said, I only know two people that have had WLS and both of them re-gained the weight - so, it's not a miracle cure and there still needs to be the same level of discipline to maintain results as those that lose weight without surgery.

I thought I read that less than 5% keep the weight off...seems like a failing procedure to me.

Statistics are terrible for sustaining any weight loss long term, including that accomplished without WLS.

while that may be true...when you are going under the knife at phenomenal expense and becoming a high pay out for the insurance company ...you would want the COSTLY PROCEDURE to be viable and it does not sound like it actually is.

Honest opinions on weight loss surgery

Replies