chasingpolaris321

This isn't specific to WLS, but I find that nutritionists in general have vastly different opinions about what a typical diet should look like. The education background and degree requirements for nutritionists don't seem to be particularly standardized. That being said, I think more often than not NUTs at bariatric clinics at least agree on lots of protein and water. I have a pretty balanced one who feels that healthy carbs are fine and don't need to be limited as long as you get protein in. The idea is that it isn't possible to overeat carbs if you are actually getting the amount of protein in that they say. Also, it is important to eat fruits and vegetables, both of which have carbs, to have a nutrient rich diet. I am suspicious of any NUT who says no to all carbs and any NUT that says bread and pasta are okay, especially in the beginning.

I hope you feel better. I am revising from sleeve to bypass. W ould love to hear more about your process.I sure will share so far I just in pain... but I had a lot of scar tissue taking out I felt sick earlier and bad cramps Has the pain improved? I am leaving towards sleeve to bypass revision because of bad GERD/Barrett's and I am worried about the recovery. Why did you have your revision done?

I'm really interested in this too. I am actually going to be a sleeve to bypass revision because of GERD/Barrett's, and am wondering if the recovery is any easier than your initial surgery if you now how a normal BMI. I'm also sort of nervous about losing too much too quickly.

This is from a slightly different perspective, but I was in a relationship over the course of a few years when I went from being mildly overweight to morbidly obese. Part of my weight gain was for the normal reasons of poor eating habits, lack of exercise, and emotional disregulation, but the speed in which I gained was largely because of medications I was taking for a mood disorder. When I look back over that relationship, a big part of the deterioration was because of the weight gain. When you date someone who's 170 pounds and they shoot up to 250 in such a short period of time, it just changes everything. Part of it was the physical attraction, but I think more of it was how poorly I coped with my body image. I struggled with moving, I hated myself for letting it happen, and I projected that negativity into my relationship. My partner wasn't being shallow as we fell out of love, they were experiencing the pain of what it's like to love someone who doesn't value themselves. We ask ourselves on this site how we are going to address the emotional aspects of what lead us here, and we fight a battle to get to where we want to be. And when you look at all of the obese people throughout the country, we are in the minority of people who are actively fighting and winning this battle. Everyone deserves to be valued and treated with respect, but when it comes to choosing romantic partners, I don't get angry when people aren't interested because of my weight. Like others have said, we choose people who are most attractive to us, and obesity is one of the most visible personal demons out of them all. If every alcoholic had a bottle of wine on top of their heads, Id be hesitant too.

I have a couple of thoughts on this. First, I am sleeved and have had wonderful success in losing weight and avoiding early complications. Up until a week ago I would have told anyone debating sleeve vs. bypass to go sleeve all the way. It is a less complex surgery and the idea of it stretching is very controversial. It's also not entirely true that there's w lack of data. The sleeve has long been preformed on stomach cancer patients and as part of a the DS surgery with good results. There's just less data on long term weight loss success compared to bypass. It's not a new surgery though. However, I just discovered that since my surgery 11 months ago I have developed severe GERD and Barrett's Esophagus and am now faced with the decision of whether or not I need to convert to bypass. Most people with the sleeve don't develop really extreme GERD and if they do can manage it with a PPI. But since finding out that I now have Barrett's I'm finding more cases on this site and in research that show that the sleeve does increase acid reflux and is contradicted for people who already have it. Just my two cents for anyone debating.

I had my sleeve surgery in August 2014 and had to have my gallbladder removed in October 2014 because of gallstone attacks. Having to abdominal surgeries that close together was not fun and I was in terrible pain after the gallbladder surgery, probably because they used the same incisions to go in. That being said, my doctor told me that there's no way my gallbladder deteriorated that quickly and that I probably had the stones and sludge before my VSG. I would ask your doctor to at least check if you have an issue with your gallbladder before surgery. I wish I had!

I love traveling more than anything, and I was on a family cruise to Alaska when I realized that I spent most of my time in my room because I was too tired and uncomfortable to leave the ship. It hit me that the chances of me losing all the weight I needed to was nearly impossible since I had access to expensive weight loss camps and programs and it had made little difference. I'm only 26 and that's not how I wanted the rest of my life to be. I started researching WLS and was thrilled when I found out about the sleeve. A little more than a month later I had surgery.

Was it denied specifically because you had your procedure in Mexico? That doesn't seem fair! I am on prilosec, I think my concern is that I developed Barrett's in under 11 months without any history of acid reflux. They think part of it is that I had my gallbladder removed a month after my sleeve and that it led to bad bile reflux too. If you had Barrett's do you think you'd have the bypass (if your insurance wasn't an issue)? I am trying to assess whether the revision is something that I should take very seriously or if I should hold off. Because of my job I'll be back in the States for a couple of months this winter to sort out a visa issue, so I feel like I need to make a plan to prepare for having surgery then if I decide I need to.

I am definitely worried about having bypass. The primary reason (besides all of the other normal ones about complications and recovery) is that I work in South Africa and there is both little medical support for this type of surgery, and I also know it is going to make eating much more difficult. I travel very frequently to other African countries for work which means eating out, sometimes with co-workers and sometimes solo. It has been quite the challenge even navigating this with my fully healed sleeve because portion sizes are massive and it's more frowned upon not to finish your food here than in the States. I end up getting take away boxes and throwing food out which is less than ideal. I also just worry because I'm so far from family if something goes wrong in those initial few months that I would be back. I can't decide what to do. My Barrett's developed so quickly (I had no reflux pre surgery) and I feel like having the revision is so drastic, but I also feel extremely alarmed by how rapidly I developed these symptoms. I have Cigna insurance which fortunately seems to cover Bariatric surgery and revisions. I'm in the process of trying to speak to a surgeon where my parents live, but it's challenging because I would need to coordinate most of this from abroad so that when I return I could have the surgery quickly so I wasn't away from my job for too long. Sorry for the long response it's just a lot to think about and I can't tell if I'm doing the right thing.

Thanks so much for your answer. It sounds like you have had some more challenging complications than I have- my concern is the amount of damage in such a short time and developing Barrett's. I'm 26 and I feel like there are a lot of years ahead of me for that damage to continue and possibly lead to cancer. I just can't figure out the right thing to do. An added issue is that I'm currently working out of the country and I will have to return to the US with a solid plan of being scheduled for bypass if I go through it. It really is helpful to hear from you. Do you have an idea of when you're doing the revision? Have you tackled the insurance element yet? Wishing you the best!

Also, a quick follow up that complicates things a bit, I currently work oversees so I'm trying to make this decision remotely since there's only an 8 week period of time I'll be back in the States in late November that I'd have to have the revision done in. It would also be with a different surgeon. Just trying to provide context for why this is so daunting. Thanks again everyone.

Hi everyone, I'm glad I found this thread. I'm 11 months out from the sleeve, and have overall had a good experience. I have been having some chest pain and burning in my esophagus, but nothing really extreme (no vomiting, choking etc.). I had an endoscopy yesterday just to see what is going on, and they told me that I have severe reflux that had eroded some of my esophagus, and that I also have developed Barrett's Esophagus. Obviously this is very alarming to me because I had very little to no reflux before the sleeve, and all the sudden in 11 months I have a precancerous condition. I also have some mystery polyps that they are biopsying. My doctor has told me that I should think about sleeve revision to bypass, and I am just having a hard time wrapping my head around the whole thing. On the one hand, I don't feel like my quality of life has decreased from these issues, but on the other hand I am terrified of getting Esophageal cancer and feel like developing Barrett's this quickly isn't a great sign (as an FYI I am 26, so that's a lot of years left for acid to make things worse). I guess I'm just looking for input on what you would do in my situation. It's hard to find people who get this kind of choice. Thanks in advance, and I admire everyone on this thread for persevering through these complications.

Hi All, I have seen some people with these conditions before surgery, and know that developing more acid reflux after surgery is common, but has anyone developed serious GERD and Barrett's Esophagus? Going into the surgery I knew I had very minor GERD, but my doctor wasn't concerned. I'm 11 months out and am scared that it has changed this rapidly. I just had an endoscopy done today and found out the results, and am having them sent over to my surgeon (I currently live out of the country). Any stories or experiences in the meantime are welcome!

Just as a brief update (in case this is relevant to anyone), my surgeon is urging me to consider a revision to gastric bypass. Right now I'm just sort of in a haze and haven't wrapped my mind over what it would be like to go through this whole process again. I have a family friend who is dying of Esophageal cancer at the moment, and it's horrific, so I'm taking my doctor's recommendation pretty seriously. Life's a rollercoaster I tell you!

I actually hadn't really realized that my GERD was so bad- I never really had it before surgery and afterward was on the prescription Prilosec for a few months. Pretty much since surgery I have a really loud kind of painful gurgle noises and I assumed it was just part of the process. But I got worried when recently it started happening when I wasn't eating or drinking. It really didn't feel like typical acid reflux but I wanted to be safe so I had it tested. He showed me the pictures and you can see that the inside of my esophagus is really burned and he showed me where the Barrett's has developed. He also showed me three polyps that he biopsied. I'm just concerned because if I'm having these problems in such a short period of time, what does that say for the long run? I also have no idea why polyps would have formed. Ah!

I've been struggling too and it's so helpful to come on this site to get back on track. I am 11 months out now, and I think what tripped me up was reaching the point where food was enjoyable again. For the first 7-8 months the thought of eating a lot of foods was really unpleasant, because I knew it would hurt my stomach. But all of the sudden I was healed enough and started eating junk here and there, and then it turned into a bit of a frenzy. Everyone is right when they say that this is the hard part- pre-surgery brain is back in action, and I have to use the sleeve as a tool instead of a cure. I'm doing the 5 day pouch test, and it's already reminding me how hard I fought for the weight I lost (aka I despise protein shakes). Thanks for threads like these and to everyone who is struggling. You really don't think you'll ever go back to your old eating habits right after surgery, but it's amazing how you can slowly slip, even if you realize it's happening. We can do it!

I know this thread is a little old, but I just wanted to chime in and say thank you for posting! I am almost nine months out and these past two months have been so much more challenging than I imagined. Like you, I was 1000% dedicated to this surgery and have done really well up until recently. Now I can feel the old habits slipping back in and that is a very scary thought when you have spent so much of your life letting yourself down with weight control. I have really been trying to get back on track, and one thing that has helped me is asking my friend (I live with three close friends from grad school) look at my food journal every evening. It sounds a little weird, but it helps me to stay on tracking knowing that if I write cookie on my journal she is going to see it. Obviously that won't work for everyone, but my point is let's get creative and make sure we can keep winning the battle! Good luck!

Hi All, So, I have been at a conference abroad (South Africa) for almost a week now and have a week left to go. The food here is catered and I have found myself getting really off track after following my doctors instructions to a T for the past 7 months. I'm getting that familiar spiraling feeling and I think because I am so far removed from my normal routine at home I've allowed myself to slip into bad habits, especially because I'm getting close to goal and am becoming complacent. The way the food works is buffet style three times a day and tea breaks with biscuits and cookies two time a day. Because of crime issues, I have no way to leave to conference center to search for healthy snacks and so I feel a bit stuck. The meal options are definitely do able with meats, salads and veggies, I just find that my resolve has slipped compared to my super disciplined program up until recently. Any suggestions or support would be great appreciated! I'm so glad to have this site as a support system.

Thanks so much everyone! Even though I know other people go through this, it's good to have the reminder that it's not the end of the world. I managed to eat a very Protein centric Breakfast and am going to focus on my Water intake to curb the hunger. That's also a good tip about going last on buffets because it is awkward to be the first one done and encourages me to eat beyond what I should (which leads to awkward gurgling).

157.8! 2.8 pounds away from goal, but I couldn't care less after weeks of stalling. I wish everyone a sincere congratulations regardless of where you ended up- we all literally work our butts off and numbers don't always reflect that. To health and happiness! :-)

Hi All! I recently found out that there's a strong chance that I am going to be relocated to South Africa for work for an indefinite amount of time, and I'm trying to figure out what sorts of things I need to think about related to my sleeve. I am six months out now and tolerate everything pretty well, but I am going to be traveling around Sub-Saharan Africa for about 50% of the time and I just haven't come up with a good strategy for managing my eating. I don't have a super specific question, I guess I'm just wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience with extensive travel in developing countries. Thank you!!!!!

Thank you both for your responses! I will definitely look more into that cookbook. I will be living in Johannesburg which is very large and modern, so I am not really worried about eating there. It's like any other big city with large grocery stores etc. I am more worried about times when I am being hosted while traveling to the other countries. I spent around a year in East Africa, and it's considered very rude in many places to not eat large portions when you are a guest. I cannot physically eat nearly that much, and so I'm just worried about offending people. I'm also worried because a lot of the foods I ate while there were rice based, and I know rice is mostly a no no with the sleeve. I think most of my travel will be in relatively urban areas, but I'm sure I'll be in rural parts from time to time. I have host families all over the place who I miss and would like to visit.

162.7

My surgeon asked me what I thought my goal should be, and I told him, and then he said he thought that with my age and height I should be able to lose to about ten pounds below that. From the way our discussion went I got the feeling that it was more of a motivator than a measurement of failure or success, and I don't think he's the type to be anything but positive about weight loss regardless of goal. I plan to stop losing when I feel comfortable and healthy, and only use the number as a guideline.

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