mi75

I have relost a 40 lb regain since November using Keto. it was fairly easy but I'm still working toward goal, and actually facing a possible revision to RNY because of persistent GERD. I'm 4 years out VSG and would do it again in a second.

Alex, 4 years after VSG I too am fighting a serious persistent GERD. I actually was diagnosed with Barrett's about 5 years ago which was one of the precipitating factors for my initial surgery. My surgeon really felt that with my weight loss the GERD would resolve. It did some, but returned with a vengeance. Of course I struggled with some regain but have pretty much lost all of that and the GERD remains. So I too face a revision, to RNY. I am a bit nervous but at the same time I'm excited to return to acute bariatric patient status in the hopes that my GERD will disappear. Good luck!

I had some regain and really struggled with losing it, but finally got back on track with Keto in November and have successfully lost all but 7 lbs. I'll hopefully be back at my low weight in about 3 weeks. However, I never officially met goal so I actually have another 25 or so to go to that. I'm struggling with persistent severe GERD and have had it my whole life. I'm looking at a possible revision to RNY which actually sort of excites me because I feel like it will help me relieve the GERD permanently. I'm still down 60 lbs of my surgical loss and feeling good, but continue to work to the goal.

Yes I do and probably always will. At 4 years out I still say "i'm a bariatric patient". Sadly, I had some regain and had to fight my way back from that and have 7 lbs to go. HOWEVER, when I saw my surgeon last fall we talked about the fact that I still have very persistent GERD, and take a PPI twice a day. I've maxed out doses on 2 of them in the past. As a FNP I'm very familiar with the risks of long term PPIs, so I'm STILL probably facing a revision. I see the surgeon again late July so I'm hopeful that maybe things will turn around before then...

i am allowed 'unlimited raw vegetables' on my pre-op diet. I asked my bariatric coordinator, but please let me ask here also. DOES GUACAMOLE COUNT? it's technically all raw, just mashed up together. however, i know that botanically avacado is considered a fruit, just like tomatoes. however, we eat both things as veg here in the US. my coordinator says 'as long as its all raw, i'm ok'. thoughts??? also- dill pickles????

Hi all, the ONE biggest mistake I made post op was not joining a gym and going hard core into gym life. I have regained a solid portion of my initial weight loss. I am struggling. New surgeon put me on Contrave for a few weeks to kick me in the butt. As part of this process, he also asked me to focus on eating 6-8 times a day, with dinner being the only 'meal' and all others being protein focused mini-meals such as a shake, a hunk of cheese, and a deviled egg, a quest bar, a few meatballs, etc. At the same time, I joined the local community center and had a trainer set up a program for me to get started. My ultimate goal is to get fiercely strong, buff and hopefully have enough muscle ratio that my metabolic burn will stay consistent and I can eat like a lifter. A little piece of my brain has a HUGE dream that someday, I'll be fit and buff enough to compete in a fitness competition....But for now, this is just a simple program to get my metabolism going. I'm a bit nervous that I could potentially drop my blood sugar while lifting and get that horrible hypoglycemic feeling. I've dropped before during times of great stress. I THINK if I eat half a quest before I lift, and half WHILE I lift that would help. I don't really have any access to somebody who can guide my process. The trainer at my gym is solely trained in basic exercise science. The NUT at my doc's office is looking at ONLY a bariatric approach. I really would love to find a trainer who could expertly design an eating plan AND a workout plan for me. I'd love input from those gym life folks who can recommend to me WHO to see, what to eat pre workout, intra workout and post workout, and any suggestions for getting myself going in the right direction, once and for all.

I am 4 yrs post VSG. I have regained a good amount of weight- I got back into drinking soda and I really believe it is a major culprit. Unfortunately i'm really struggling in that area, and I work a night shift job which goes against every grain of my being ( I DON'T sleep days, I have a terrible time staying awake at work, but only have about 15 months left because i'll be moving into a different career path after my post-graduate education is done). Anyway, my hubs and I both have about 40 lbs to lose. I tried doing a 'bariatric' type diet, with lean proteins and veg. didn't work too well, I was starved and only lasted 3 days. I tried going back to shakes- I have developed lactose intolerance and vomited from the smell/taste of whey even when I used almond milks. I tried doing a 'low carb' type approach which worked decently (only lasted about a week before I had to go back to work and that blasted soda grabbed hold again). I tried just stopping the soda but it didn't make a huge dent in my weight loss either (I drink mostly diet). My hubs would like to try Keto. I am very nervous about it. I definitely buy into the major science behind it, but i'm scared with all the fats that i'll be in misery. I am very leery of dumping syndrome and think that the high levels of fat might have me bent over in pain. I don't have a gall bladder so dumping is a definite concern. while most people dump from sugar, my body is actually pretty tolerant to sugar, and I get dumping from fat and dairy (milk and ice cream only). Has anybody had any success with keto, specifically for regain? thanks

Hi everyone- I am desperate to find a GOOD thanksgiving dessert that isn't full of chemical sweeteners. My mom and daughter both are very sensitive to chemical additives, preservatives, sweeteners, and emulsifiers. I usually make a great pumpkin role or a cake of my gram's, (both are heavy in sugar) but really looking for something a little lower carb this year that we can all enjoy. I've recently gotten back on track and doing great with weight loss- don't want to totally blow it on one day but still want to enjoy. Any good ideas? TIA

Hi everyone, just wanted to update. I QUIT soda immediately after having some ugly medical results come back. I've been off it for about a month. I also dove in and tried keto, had great results. Now that I feel like I've got a good handle on things, i'm trying to adjust a little bit to more of a low carb (40 a day) vs keto and seem to be doing well. changing my mindset was the key and i'm definitely headed in a good direction!

I have been trying hard for the past several months to try and lose my regain. I have struggled a LOT. well, now things are starting to make sense. Saw my surgeon, had EGD. My GERD-which was pretty dang bad pre-op- never really went away after surgery. Now it's BAD. I also have sleeve stretch and although this part of it could probably be fixed with some weight loss, the GERD is significant enough that I am once again at risk for my Barrett's returning. Doctor wants to revise to RNY. While I am ALL FOR doing what is best for my health, and doing it quickly, I sort of feel like I failed at VSG. Even though I should have never been given a VSG in the first place, I still feel a bit defeated. My new surgeon actually gave me some published research to read up. I'm a post-Master's student and have done my fair bit of research that has been published, so i'm all about the statistical data. The most recent data shows that patients who suffer GERD pre-op are not really good candidates for VSG at all, and should be only offered RNY. There are also some very interesting published numbers on the occurance of GERD post op, the return of GERD and what those numbers look like for RNY patients. So, I guess that once I'm approved by my insurance, I'm onward to a revision.

Vets- I am STILL struggling with my regain and have tried a couple different approaches. Online I found much info about doing 'resets'. However most of these call for drinking shakes again. I'm just not sure if that's a good approach. In fact, my new surgeon laughed when I mentioned it to him, because he said that at 3+ years out, shakes aren't going to do anything for me. PLus, I have developed a fierce case of of lactose intolerance so there is more to consider. Any thoughts on this? I really would love to communicate with any veterans who had regain and how you went about losing it.

I am giving this yet another shot. I KNOW I have it in me somewhere to lose this regain. I just can't seem to see that light in the tunnel at the moment. I have been fighting this war for several months now. I have an EGD this week to look at my sleeve and assess my GERD. hopefully my doc will be able to give me some good direction after that. I am still lost on this journey and simply cannot seem to get control. I could use your good vibes, prayers, positive thoughts, etc. First for an easy EGD and no complications, but also for the support that I need to get back on the wagon. thanks

Many of you probably don't 'know' me from these forums, but I have been around for several years. i'm almost 4 years post VSG. I have struggled through many chapters in my life since my surgery and have regained a good amount of weight. since I carry ALL my weight right around my middle, I look horrible and my self esteem has tanked. Since my surgery I changed jobs and moved, lost a parent, had to change doctors, and gained a master's degree. I'm currently in the final few classes to become a Family Nurse Practitioner. on top of all that, I had managed to lose enough weight initially to be off all my medications-GERD and BP. Now i'm back on both. My GERD has worsened with the weight gain and i'm at the point where I can't lay on my left side if I've eaten within the past few hours because the food and acid will backwash into my throat. i'm miserable. I have been to the psych doc, the NUT, to the surgeon, and to my GP. none of them can give me an exact direction of what to do. my GP says they simply don't know enough about bariatrics to guide me. The bariatric team trialed me on Contrave, I got so sick I had to stop. I tried Keto and spent two days in misery from all that fat. My brain is the issue and I don't know how to get it back under control. I am taking straight Welbutrin for the time being to see if that will help with behavior AND with appetite. my surgeon is very concerned that from the GERD, i'll need a revision. I don't really WANT a revision, I know that the GERD has worsened because I carry ALL my weight in my waistline and it's pushing up on my sleeve- badly. I have an EGD this week with my GI doc which will look at the GERD and also the condition of my sleeve. I have no excuse, the regain is completely my own doing. One day about 20 months ago, I thought that drinking a diet ginger ale at work would be ok, and it has spiraled out of control from there. I am trying badly to get off of soda again, which I think is really the first step. As I walk this very difficult road to get back on the path where I belong, I ask for your prayers, positive thoughts, and vibes.

I agree with James on this. There has been a mass exodus of many of the vets that were here when I started my journey. I agree there are a lot of newbies in all of the forums attempting to give advice. While i'm glad they are all here, truly i'm glad they have found this site, it's a little tough to get advice on my regain by somebody who admittedly hasn't even had their surgery yet. I have been very selective about which forums I post in and read from now, because there is a lot of information that doesn't apply to me.

In reply to above, I'm a NP and have never had history of hypos during workouts. My feeling of hypo post VSG comes with typical symptoms of shakiness, foggy brain, slowed speech, etc. All very typical. I will definitely consider this option. thanks!

Berry, the data I looked at was the stuff my surgeon gave me from www.duke.edu, and I found a very good article from Abraham et. al, 2016. Interesting views on GERD, and revision. My GERD is absolutely terrible. doctor put me on Contrave to see if losing some of my regain would help. I'm having some side effects from the med, not too many, but it IS killing my appetite. For some reason the past 3 days I've eaten much more but today I start the increased dose of it so we'll see what happens. It seems like eating starchy foods really helps with the GERD, and i need to stop eating that crap, so I'm going to attempt to do another round of a pre-op type diet until I see him again in a couple weeks. I hope it will help both with my weight numbers AND let me get some sleep at night. I also have another EGD and upper GI scheduled (GI doc did the initial EGD, and now surgeon wants to do his own)... Hopefully I'll have some news, although i'm not too confident at this point that the news will be good.

Keto can be a great balance of meats, fats, non-starchy veg, the occasional berry, and full fat dairy. The unfortunate side effect that I found out is that because of the high percentage of fat (true, real keto represents about 100+g of fat a day), I had terrible stomach issues and dumping syndrome. I think the SCIENCE behind keto speaks for itself, and there IS a LOT of science out there. Tons of research has been done regarding Keto and cancer, diabetes, inflammation etc. I feel unfortunate that it's not an option for me, I have 2 non-WLS friends who have lost 75+ lbs each on it, and they eat a pretty nice balance of foods.

I am having a revision too, seeing my surgeon next week to discuss final details and plans. I SO never thought I would ever need a revision. I've had regain, but this revision is more for the severe GERD that never resolved after my VSG. So i'm moving to RNY. I'm happy to get the GERD out of my life, as i'm popping Prevacid like M&Ms, taking 3-4 in a 24 hour period most days. Obviously i'm happy to have another part of the tool to help with my regain too, but I also feel a bit defeated having to accept this as part of my battle. I could not get the regain off myself and that feels a bit like failure. BUT........onward to better things. I am for some reason, SCARED TO DEATH to have a revision. I am much more stable-health wise- than I was with my VSG but for some reason I feel like this is SO much more involved. Ironically, my surgeon told me that the whole process shouldn't take him more than 30-45 minutes.

I know I have posted many MANY times about my struggles with regain. I have attempted resets and restarts multiple times but fail every time. Today I am ready. I just have had enough. Absolutely enough. I am SICK AND TIRED. I am angry at myself for having lost all of my will power. I did SO great post op and then things changed. My personal life went into chaos-it's like I totally forgot that I'm a bariatric patient. Today I realized that there is NO MAGIC PILL for regain. I've tried it all, but right in this minute I realized that going back to basics and getting my butt into a gym are the key. There is no secret. I promise I won't ever post again asking WHAT to do. I may post asking how to tweak something or for a bit of guidance, but I KNOW WHAT TO DO... so today, today is my day. Today I start back with dense proteins, tracking my water, giving up the pop permanently, cutting all the carbs, treats, snacking, etc. I WILL add shakes too, because I work nights and part of my problem has been eating through the day, then eating all night at work just to stay awake. If i'm going to have to do SOMETHING to stay awake, i'd rather it be a shake than pizza or junk. Please. PLEASE pray for me, cheer me on, drop me a smile or a piece of support. Whatever you have, please help me along. I have little access to a surgeon (I had to leave my original surgeon due to a move, and my new surgeon only wants to talk revision). I attended a new support group and liked them, they only meet once a month. I'm walking in there again in a couple weeks and going to ask for email/phone/text contact info of the members so I can stay in touch with them. Ok. I'm ready. Seriously, truly ready. Here we go. Day 1.

I'm relying on a bariatric-keto type approach. I know that drinking purely shakes at over 3 years post op won't really do much for me, so I'm dropping carbs below 30 or so a day. But i'm also going to keep my old bariatric favorites on hand, like Quest bars, some protein powders (if a shake is necessary i'll probably have them with water or a 'lite' sugar free juice). Also going to take some of my most favorite bariatric recipes and cook all day today. Hubs is hopping on board too, he lost almost 40 lbs initially when I had my surgery- just from the change in my cooking. he gained that all back and feels terrible physically from the added weight. Having already prepared food on hand is key for us, which is guess is PLANNING for the most part. without the food prepared and in the fridge, we will both hit the cafeterias at work and pick bad choices.

Yes there are many types and I've tried nearly all of them! the liquid vitamins and calcium ended up regurgitated. the chewable had similar effect on me, I gagged and heaved etc...(you all don't need details). The gummies seem to have the very best outcomes for me. i'm doing great with my levels and did a lot of homework to find the best carb count gummies so I wasn't eating pure sugar. so far so good. Ironically, I take Vit D gelcaps and the only vitamin level that i'm low on is Vitamin D! so I had heard about Vit D drops and i'm thinking of trying those.

Thanks for the insight! I kind of fell the same way. I feel sorta guilty because I have a bunch of different protein powders that I bought thinking it might help, but I've had a hard time drinking them. they don't taste great to me, and I cannot seem to stomach milk at all. I did 'resets' in the past but it was early out, and I feel like I was still in a losing phase, just possibly stalled. when that happened I would tighten up my eating and go back to shakes/liquids. Now at almost 4 years out, I think drinking shakes would be hard for me. May I PLEASE also ask, did you eat ONLY dense proteins, and what would a day of eating look like? THANKS!!

I have GREAT NEWS!!! Even though I haven't had much success in the way of actual LOSS, I have gotten my job sorted out and will be going back to a solid predictable schedule. I know this will help a lot. The only disruption to my schedule will be my weekends, about every 4 weeks I'll work a full night/weekend shift. My shift will also allow me to get a solid 7 hours of sleep most nights and leave room in my day for a cat nap if necessary. It will also give me a time frame to allow for the gym or the Y. Now it's all up to me to actually MAKE all of this happen, and to get my eating back on track. I know this probably seems like small potatoes, but considering the work schedule I've had for the last few months, this is a dream come true for me.

When I approached Alex Brecher to ask him to form this Regain/Back on Track forum, it was out of sheer need for me. I am 3 years post op and have struggled with a serious amount of regain and having a heck of a hard time losing it. Please keep in mind that whoever we all are, wherever we are in the world etc., we may not have access to support groups, therapists, or even our surgeon. In my case, I moved and had to leave behind my surgeon, family doctor, support group and everything familiar. We all have different stories and cases that make our regain as individual as our original weight-loss-surgery stories. Please remember to be kind and gracious to each other as this group is all that some of us HAVE in the form of therapy or support. Thanks

I am now 3.5 years post op, struggling with some regain after some serious life events. A co-worker of mine has an incredible trainer at a local gym where she prepares for her women's fitness competitions. I am thinking about hiring this trainer to start working with me, but curious about how gym trainers approach nutrition, and specifically with bariatric patients??