MarinaGirl

You need to find out if your insurance will agree to pay for 2 bariatric surgeries (i.e.one to remove the band and the second to do gastric bypass). If not, you need to work with a surgeon that will do both procedures in 1 surgery. I had MGB surgery in April 2017, which resolved my acid reflux and allowed me to get below goal weight, BUT now I’m dealing with bile reflux so will be revising to an RNY in the very near future. YMMV

My bariatric surgeon recommended no coffee for 3 months post-WLS to minimize risk of an ulcer after gastric bypass and then to limit it to decaf for up to 6 months. I followed this approach and did well.

Great article on why bariatric surgery is the most effective tool: https://www.vox.com/platform/amp/science-and-health/2017/12/7/16587316/bariatric-surgery-weight-loss-lap-band

Without knowing what you’re eating I’d guess that you’re eating too many calories. Focus on these steps and see if you get better results. 1. Log everything you consume with an app like MyFitnessPal (MFP). 2. Do not drink with meals; instead wait 30-60 minutes after eating. 3. Weigh/ measure your food with a scale as we don’t always eyeball portion sizes correctly. 4. Eat dense protein first then non-starchy vegetables. Fill up on these items before eating other foods. And minimize consumption of processed food (e.g. crackers, bread, protein bars, etc.). 5. Do not chase being full. 6. If you’re consuming artificial sweeteners, try limiting or stopping them as some studies indicate they may lead to weight gain. 7. Walk as much as possible in your day-to-day life. Good luck, you can do this!

I was self-pay and low BMI. I had surgery within 2 months of speaking with the surgeon and I lost all my excess weight in 5 months so I wasn’t a slow loser.

Track total carbs, not net carbs, which are a marketing ploy developed/pushed by food manufacturers like Atkins.

Untrue that OP will never need Synthroid again if she loses the weight. That is not a legitimate claim you can make about WLS, that it will resolve autoimmune hypothyroidism. Hashimoto’s is an autoimmune disorder in which antibodies directed against the thyroid gland lead to chronic inflammation. This means she’ll almost certainly need to be on medication the rest of her life. What changes with weight loss is the dosage she’ll require. I have this disorder and as I’ve been losing weight post gastric bypass I’ve had to have labs drawn every few months and my medication adjusted a couple of times. I’m currently below goal weight and am at the low end of normal BMI. My endocrinologist is very happy with my weight and T3 & T4 levels.

I did not have any nausea or vomiting after gastric bypass.

I’m so sorry you’re feeling so awful. I hope your current issues don’t end up being a long term VSG side effect. Make sure your surgeon is aware of and takes care of it. All the best.

Frequent vomiting is not normal. Are you sipping your fluids or trying to chug them similar to what you did pre-WLS? Have you seen the surgeon in person to discuss your vomiting or just spoken to his office staff about it? I’m worried about you. Is there another physician you can talk to about this issue?

In an effort to cash in on the low-carb craze, food manufacturers (e.g. Atkins) invented a new category of carbohydrates known as “net carbs,” which promised to let dieters eat the sweet and creamy foods they crave without suffering the carb consequences. But the problem is there is no legal definition of the “net,” “active,” or “impact” carbs appearing on food labels and advertisements. The only carbohydrate information regulated by the FDA is provided in the Nutrition Facts Label, which lists total carbohydrates and breaks them down into dietary fiber and sugars. Source: WebMD Net carbs is just a marketing gimmick, nothing else. You’re much better off tracking total carbs. Do not fall into the trap of subtracting fiber from total carbs.

Congratulations on your progress thus far! It’s great to remind everyone that many people have MINIMAL pain or issues post gastric bypass, which was my experience too.

I find my weight fluctuates based on a variety of factors: 1. What time of day I weigh myself 2. Naked or wearing clothes & shoes 3. Whether I just ate or drank 4. If I just went to the bathroom or not, especially after large BM(s) Therefore, I try to be very consistent and weigh myself naked (or nearly naked) first thing in the morning, after going to the bathroom, and using the same scale. This way I can eliminate any variables that can skew my weight data.

I agree with Jess.

I’m so sorry you’re going through this. Unfortunately, GERD issues after VSG are not uncommon. Moving forward, you should do a lot of research to find a highly experienced bariatric surgeon who is capable of performing a revision as many WLS surgeons are not skilled in this area.

You may have orthostatic hypotension. Does your blood pressure drop when you stand after sitting or laying down for awhile? My father has this and he’s managing it by increasing his fluids, including oral rehydration therapy (e.g. DripDrop powder or regular Gatorade, not G2), as well as getting up slowly after sitting or laying down for awhile.

As Chief of the Grammar Police, you may want to review the Punctuation Guide on the proper placement of a period at the end of a sentence, with parentheses, and with quotation marks. You made sure to point out soready17’s grammatical errors but you also made some in your response.

When I’ve felt dizzy post-op, it always correlates to dehydration.

Yes, very normal.

Not true Markg17. Post surgery hair loss is called telogen effluvium and it’s not known why some people experience it and others do not. But stress is believed to be a major factor in surgery-related hair loss. To reduce the effects of stress on your hair, try to eat a nutritious diet as much as possible and take your vitamins.

I never had a problem with sugar alcohols pre-WLS but now I do post-gastric bypass. I especially experience discomfort with chewable vitamins that contain SAs.

I don’t care for the taste of Quest bars at all and I’ve tried MANY flavors. Instead, I sometimes eat Atkins protein bars. But a lot of compnies’ protein bars are full of fillers, artificial sweeteners, thickeners, palm oil, preservatives, etc. So my new favorite on-the-go bars are from the company, RXBAR. Their bars just contain egg whites, nuts, and dates.

No binder for me. I also thought it was mainly used post-PS. I never had issues with my incisions that made me want or need to protect them.

In 3 weeks and 2 days (i.e. since 10/23) you’ve lost 19 lbs. And that’s in spite of the extra weight from the fluids pumped into your system during WLS. That’s not “a slower rate of losing” at all. You’re doing better than many people at this point in their journey. Please don’t label yourself a slow weight loss loser; instead, no labels at all if you can. Good luck!

It was something made up on the Internet to sell products/services. People falsely claim that going back to consuming liquids only for 5 days will shrink your pouch, which is medically impossible.