axlr8n

I'm 3+ years out and I still don't get hungry... if I don't eat on a schedule I forget to eat and then end up with low blood sugar. I remember the taste issue as well but that came back for me after a few months.

Hey Guys - I'm almost 18 months post RNY and have been maintaining at my goal weight since April. I moved to Chicago (Lakeview) a few months ago and wonder if any of you are from the city? I've started looking for a good support group or friends in the area to help me stay on track - the holiday was pretty rough with all of the temptations, but I made it through pretty much unscathed. Any recommendations you have would be great!

Same here... by the end of the first week, I was drinking beef broth and feeling like I was having a filet mignon :-). The first two days were definitely the worst.

I just switched to them recently... was having some issues with Vitamin D and Iron and my bariatric surgeon recommended that I switch to these. I haven't had labs done since, but it sure is convenient!

I had a 360 body lift and thigh lift. I took 3 weeks off work, but continued to walk around like a grandpa for a couple months. I had two spots where my incision didn't heal quickly and I had to keep packing them with gauze and wait for them to heal from the inside. It was at least 3 months. While I want to be optimistic, you should know that there is a chance that everything won't go perfectly and heal as quickly as you want... it's a pretty major surgery. I'd also say that your stomach is going to be quite tender for some time and even if you're healed and can get in the water, swimming or snorkeling might be a lot of activity. So... cruise yes - lots of activity, who knows.

David Shiffrin

It's been almost a year and my scars are fading really well on the sides and back, unfortunately... my tuck was really tight in the front and actually split open from the pressure on the incision (took about 3 months to heal). That scar is much wider and darker. The surgeon said he would revise it if I have another procedure, but I'm not sure about getting anything else done yet. I kind of like myself the way I am now :-).

I had that in combination with a horizonal thigh lift last September. It was about $15k here in Chicago. I know I could have done it cheaper elsewhere, but I liked the surgeon and am happy with the results. Be prepared though - it's not fun!!!

In the first few months, no... definitely not. But after a while I was able to drink a full bottle of water at a time and can definitely consume that much in a day. Dehydration is a real risk though so it's good that you're thinking about it.

I think it's pretty normal a few weeks after surgery to start to feel a little sluggish and have less energy... your body is adapting to some very significant changes. If you're tired, take a nap - listen to your body. You are by no means fully healed and recovered at three weeks post-op. As for the hunger... you're probably eating a lot of liquid / soft things. It'll probably get better when you start filling yourself with dense protein. That was also very uncomfortable for me though, and even after 3 years I often get that sick to my stomach feeling after a few bites of chicken or steak. It's a balancing act and something you'll figure out with time.

Hi - and congrats! I'm so happy for you. My plastic surgeon insisted on high protein and hydration and lots of rest for the first few weeks... he also said that most creams and treatments don't work, it's just a matter of time. Not stressing the incisions for the first few weeks is probably the most important, the areas on my stomach that were really tight and got pulled on a lot are where the scar is most visible and taking the longest to fade away. After the incision healed over, I just used regular moisturizing cream to keep everything loose and moving, but that was more for comfort than scar treatment.

I did the 360 body lift and vertical thigh lift the first round... no major complications, but there was a deep hole both front and back that I had to pack with gauze and took a long time to fill in and heal. Next up is the moobs... but I don't want the long horizontal scars so I'm looking around to see if there is another option. I don't understand why they can't do a lift and raise with the main scar in my armpit, but my surgeon says that he can't do it that way. I haven't scheduled anything and probably won't if it means big scars - I'll just live with the extra skin.

It looks a lot better - another few weeks and you'll be all healed up! There were times early on that I really regretted having plastics, but now that it's been 7 months I'm starting to think about round two :-).

I'm game - how can I help?

That looks painful - I hope you're getting better every day!

Hey Lucas. When did you gain the weight, and how long have you been overweight? Is 190 your true goal, or just a weight that you think is accomplishable right now (your ideal BMI is around 170 based on your height)? For me, I started gaining weight in high school and basically spent my entire adult life losing and gaining weight (mostly gaining). Even when I dieted and lost weight, I never got down to an ideal weight and didn't keep it off long. The surgery has allowed me to lose down to a healthy BMI and maintain it now for over 2 years. The biggest change for me is that I'm not hungry all the time anymore (hormones?). Given my history, I can certainly relate to your desire to have a long term tool to help you keep everything under control... but the reality is that you can eat around your surgery if you really want to and it probably gets easier over time to do so.

I also had the RNY. It took a while, but everything is balanced out and working well now. Good luck with your surgery!

2 years for me... I've heard you should wait for a year after your weight has stabilized. That is unless you're planning to have multiple surgeries throughout your weight lots journey to help with mobility, etc.

I've been knocked out for surgery a few times now... every time, I remember getting wheeled back to the ER, the nurse telling me she just gave me something - and that's it. No count down from 10, no nothing. After surgery was pretty uneventful too. I think the meds really just amplify your personality - I'm pretty quiet. If you're the star of the show unmedicated, you might just go full Eddie Murphy :-). Either way, I agree that the staff is used to it and just goes about doing their job.

I too had problems for a long time after my surgery. One day I was so desperate that I ask a nutritionist at work to look at what I was eating. Turns out, there was very little fiber in my diet. I started eating more fiber - berries, peas, quinoa, etc... and all of my problems went away. I spent so long chasing a remedy that I missed the root cause of the issue.

After I got through the major portion of my weight loss, I had to work with my nutritionist to figure out ways to eat more calories and make the weight loss stop. At 6'2, I wasn't comfortable in the low 170s but kept losing weight because of the amount of physical activity I was doing combined with the ~1200 calories I was eating. That was a bit mind boggling mentally... but we figured it out and I don't feel limited in anything that I want to do physically, I just have to eat more often and add in health fats (avocado, nut butters, etc) when I exercise a lot. I'm confident that you'll be able to figure it out too!

I lost about 150 pounds, and just had plastic surgery to take care of the extra skin. There are some areas that did pretty well - my arms for instance look pretty good as I've built up some muscle there... but there was really no help for my belly and thighs. There are a number of factors, but the reality is that your skin can only shrink so much, and it's going to be a matter of how much you personally are okay with. For me - I wanted to take care of it so I chose to have a lower body lift and thigh lift. Don't want to be a Debbie Downer, but I think the reality is that if you're losing 100+ pounds you're likely to have extra skin regardless of what you do.

Hi everyone - I'm 10 days out from a lower body lift and inner thigh lift... I'm finally starting to feel human again. I knew this was going to be rough, but wow... Luckily, other than pain I've had no complications. I had 2 of my 4 drains taken out on Wednesday and am pretty sure the other two will come out next Wednesday at my 2 week checkup. I had my surgery with Dr. Shiffrin in Chicago. I think it was a little more than some of the quotes I've saw tossed around here, but I felt really comfortable with him and knew that I was going to get a good result based on feedback and pictures of the work he's done. He's just a really down to earth guy. I've been wearing really loose sweat pants ever since surgery. Today, I tried on a pair of jeans for the first time. They fit fine in the legs but were tighter around my waist than pre-surgery... but I had to laugh because I'm not really sure where my waist is anymore. I'm used to my pants going under my gut, but the gut is gone! Did any of you find that your clothes fit a lot different after surgery (or even go up a size), or is it just a matter of giving enough time for the swelling go down?

How did your appointment go?

Hey guys - these issues are familiar to me too. I found that I could only go 2-3 pant sizes before things just got really sloppy (I went from a 44 to a 32). I found myself shopping clearance racks and places like TJ Maxx and Marshalls to find cheap clothing that I then donated later. I just kept a minimal wardrobe while I was losing weight because it seemed like every couple weeks I was rotating something out. Some clothing like dress shirts don't change that much - my neck size went down a 16 1/2 pretty quickly and only at the end did I get to a 16 slim/fitted. Even after hitting my goal weight my body shape changed and I became more comfortable wearing different styles of clothing (slim fit jeans, etc). As for food, I still feel that way even though I'm 2+ years out. I don't get hungry... but if I don't eat then I get low blood sugar and cranky lol. I eat when it's time to eat - sometimes feeling like I obsess about eating more now then I did when I was dieting. I have to in order to eat enough calories throughout the day to keep my weight stable. I had gotten down to 175 but at 6'2, that was just too skinny for my liking. I'm happy now at 185-190 but have to make sure I eat something about 6 times a day in order to maintain that weight.