catwoman7

I finally broke down and had a facelift. Honestly, I think that's probably the only permanent solution - but I'd hold off awhile because sometimes things shift around during year 2 or 3 and you look less gaunt. As far as full vs lower face lift, it just depends on your situation. Another WLS patient and I went to the same plastic surgeon. He recommended a lower face lift for me, and a full face lift for her - so it depends on the sagging (where it is and how much).

it's almost always temporary. The first few weeks post-op are hard. And yes, unfortunately, you will enjoy food again, and at that point this all becomes a lot more challenging. I know it probably sounds odd to you now, but there are days I wish it was like at the beginning when I was never hungry and didn't give a flip about food.

I would never even consider a Lapband. So many people have had theirs removed because of complications. VSG and RNY are both proven, excellent surgeries (DS is not nearly as common - and yes, there tend to be more complications with it. So sorry about your sister!). I'd go with one of the proven ones (VSG or RNY) - both are excellent surgeries with few complications - and any complications that do crop up tend to be minor and "fixable".

Hard to say - ulcer? Liver? Gall bladder? Make an appt with your doctor - they'll likely check all of those things.

It's really contingent on how well you do and what kind of job you have. I had a desk job (I'm now retired). I took three weeks off but could have gone back after two. I'm glad I had the third week because I was still pretty tired and it was nice having the time to get used to the eating progression, but yes, I COULD have gone back after two weeks.

there shouldn't be a need to re-do the sleeve - it's already been done. The sleeve historically was part 1 of the DS procedure, which used to often be done in two stages. They'd first create a sleeved stomach, and a few months later, they'd come back in and bypass most of the small intestine. Some people lost enough weight with just part 1 that they didn't end up doing part 2. Thus, the sleeve surgery was born.

I'm a bypass patient. I was told I could take anything the size of a pencil eraser or smaller as soon as I got home from the hospital (which covered all but two of my pills - I had to wait 2-3 weeks before trying those - and it did "work" - I was able to swallow everything perfectly after the 2-3 week wait on the two larger ones)

if you can afford to pay the difference, I'd go for the full tummy tuck. The results are going to look a lot more natural.

you won't have food restrictions once you're a few months out. That said, you may have trouble TOLERATING some foods, but your clinic will lift all restrictions at some point ice cream is one of those things that some people have trouble with though, even though they're technically not "dumpers". Unfortunately, I'm not one of them (a dumper OR an ice-cream intolerant person). I can easily eat a cup of it. I just try not to have it very often or else have one scoop if I'm at an ice cream store.

I remember hearing about him a few years back. He had several patients die, I believe. I'm shocked that he's still licensed..and I'm so sorry you're dealing with this...

here are the 15K+ posts (and no, I am NOT kidding) from members who've experienced the infamous "three-week stall" (i.e, just about everyone...): https://www.bariatricpal.com/search/?q=three-week stall

I know - yuck! But...it's a lot harder to reach around when you're carrying a bunch of excess weight. One of those things that few people talk about, but...

weight loss after revision is almost always slower than after a virgin surgery, but it can be done. You just have to really work at it..

I've been on antibiotics a handful of times since my surgery (eight years ago) and never had any issues. Maybe some are absorbed in different places of the small intestine than others? Not sure. but I've never had any issues. I also don't think I've had a UTI since I had surgery. I used to get them occasionally prior to surgery. Maybe because it's easier to keep cleaner without all that extra weight (?) (I think I remember reading that a lot of UTIs are caused by fecal bacteria contamination) EDITED to add: I just glanced at these articles. Yes - one does say that most UTI's are caused by E. coli bacteria - that particular bacteria is usually carried by feces, because there's a ton of E. coli in your intestines. I bet the ability to keep cleaner "down there" is probably the reason I haven't had a UTI in years.

I'd be surprised if they weren't accepting of a 1-2 lb gain (if that's all it is) since people's weight fluctuates every day (in fact, MORE than once a day!). But if you're really worried, you could always do low sodium or low carb for a few days before you're weighed since either of those would rid you of excess water (which is what usually causes those temporary fluctuations).

yes - I'd see if I could get a referral. People generally see a bariatric surgeon for follow-ups at least for the first year - and then some start just doing them with their PCP (I saw someone in my clinic for eight years - they kindly kicked me out just this year! Although I think a lot of people have switched over to their regular PCP long before I did....)

neither surgery will help with food addiction - they just restrict how much you can eat at one sitting. For food addictions, most people work with a therapist who's familiar with eating disorders.

you guys are lucky. We were allowed to have 4-5 protein shakes a day, all the ultra-low-cal clear liquids we wanted, sugar free Jello, sugar free popsicles, and 1 cup each of tomato juice/V8 and chicken broth. No solid food - at all.

yep - common but for most people, temporary

you've lost more than I did at that point, and I started out much heavier than you. there are many factors that determine your rate of weight loss, most of which you have little to no control over - age, gender, starting BMI, genetics, metabolic rate, how muscular you are, if and how much weight you lost prior to surgery, etc. The only two things you have a lot of control over are how closely you stick to your plan and how active you are. If you do well with those, you WILL lose the weight, whether fast or slow. I was a slow loser throughout my entire journey, and I ended up losing 100% of my excess weight, over 200 lbs. honestly, except for people the size of those on "My 600 lb Life", most of us lose somewhere in the 15-25 lb range the first month after surgery. Since you've lost 20 lbs in six weeks, you were likely in that range at the end of month #1. You'll always find some who lose above or below that range, but they're outliers. Your amount of loss is completely normal (and also, men tend to lose faster than women - hence, your husband...)

like others have said, as soon as you can meet your protein requirements through regular food, you can kiss the shakes goodbye. I still have one every day at eight years out, though (although unlike many others, I'm not a protein shake hater, fortunately...). I have higher-than-normal protein requirements because if I average less than 100 g a day, my prealbumin level tanks (although this is not very common). I can do it through food if I really focus on it, but I'd just rather have a shake every day and not have to be constantly thinking about whether or not I'll meet my goal. I know I'll make it if I have a shake every morning.

yep - went back and forth for 10 years. But I finally admitted to myself that I couldn't do it alone - I cannot tell you how many times I lost weight, just to gain it all back again. The most I could ever lose (and this was just a handful of times) was 50-60 lbs. But most times it was more like 10-20. I had over 200 lbs to lose. How on earth was I going to pull that off i I couldn't even keep 50 of? I finally realized this was the only thing left to try. And I was afraid of a drastically shortened life if I didn't get the damn weight off. So I finally did it. It wasn't easy - but it worked.

I've never been much of a drinker because alcoholism also runs in MY family, so the most I drink now is a glass of wine (and this only once or twice a month). I just know I get "buzzed" much more quickly now -- but I stop after one so I can't really comment on the rest of your experiences. And yes - transfer addiction is real. I unfortunately know of some WLS patients who are now dealing with alcohol addiction. I never feel social pressure to drink, fortunately. Even before WLS, I'd usually just order soft drinks after my one and only drink - and sometimes I wouldn't drink alcohol at all - just soft drinks. Even at bars. I never felt particularly weird about doing that, thankfully...

I lost 16 lbs the first *month*, so you're losing it faster than I am, and we started out about the same weight. So many things affect your rate of weight loss, many of which you have no control over. If you stick to your clinic's plan, the weight will come off, whether fast or slow. I was a slow loser from the get-go, and I ended up two years later having lost 235 lbs (which was 100% of my excess weight). I gained about 20 lbs in year 3 (which is very common), but besides that, I've maintained my loss pretty well. Like you, I also lost a bunch of weight before surgery - and that's one of the factors that'll influence who quickly you lose it, at least during the first month or so. Most of the weight people lose the first month is water weight, and since you lost 49 lbs before surgery, that water weight was long gone by the time they rolled you into the operating room (same with me...). So don't worry - the weight WILL come off as long as you stick to your clinic's plan.

at my clinic everyone had to have an EKG (when they just hook some electrodes up to your chest and take readings - it's nothing), and then on top of that, everyone over age 50 (which I was) or had had previous heart issues had to do a nuclear stress test as well. They stick you in a machine, take a bunch of readings, then like the person above said, they inject some kind of drug through your IV that makes your heart beat like you've just been out running, and then they stick you back in the machine and do the readings again. They're measuring how your heart reacts under stress, and how long it takes it to recover. The only weird thing is the way that drug makes you feel. It's a bit weird having your heart beat like crazy when you haven't done any actual exercise. But other than that, it's a pretty easy test.