KarenLR75

Well, bariatric surgeon did not find anything wrong with my pouch (inside my pouch, no scar tissue causing problems, no hernia/bleeding inside pouch, etc.). Ironically unlike the 3 incisions that I had during my gastric bypass surgery, I have FIVE incisions. I guess he REALLY looked around. I look like I got attacked by a knife-wielding assailant with very precise aim..lol. I have my follow up with the surgeon tomorrow to talk about the procedure (he only saw my husband after the procedure as he had back to back surgeries lined up) as I have not officially spoken with him. I am trying to remember to ask him about their stance/experience on semiglutide/similar meds for their patients.

@kristieshannon - I meant to say the other day how much your statement above resonated with me. The narrative does need to change.

@BlondePatriotInCDA and @SleeveToBypass2023 This discussion has inspired me to talk to the bariatric surgeon I switched to here in Fort Worth when I see him on a post-op follow up appt on 6/10/24 as I want to discuss how his practice is managing this new set of 'tools' with their bariatric surgery patients. I wish he'd been my original bariatric surgeon. Due to abdominal pain I've been chasing for 2 yrs (right side) I ended up referred to him. TOMORROW, he is performing an investigative laparoscopic procedure to 'scope' the inside of my pouch and see if some of the occasional 'old blood' I have in my er..stools and the pain that hits out of nowhere that feels like my intestines are knotting up, is related to any issue inside the pouch or with scar tissue. I've already done an upper & lower GI in May, gall bladder has been gone for 2 yrs, had a CT-scan, etc. Wish me luck tomorrow. I'm looking at it as very nice and expensive nap with hopefully useful information obtained. I'm also curious what he has to say about my pouch now that it has been 5 years. Is he gonna say 'wow, you sure managed to stretch that sucker!'...lol

OMG! I'm so thrilled for you!! I remember this!! You are looking so great in your pics!! AWESOME JOB!! I noticed your highest weight was 421. My highest was 400. When I joined here, I only entered 390 as that was the weight I was at when I started trying to lose some more 'on my own' as I was going through the insurance process (SO LONG) to get approved for bariatric surgery. 5 years later and I'm wondering if I should have changed my weight to the highest I ever was or if that is confusing to anyone. Again, I'm just so very happy for you!

Yeah, I worry that people, including 'us bariatric surgery patients' who haven't done the mental/headspace work (and I don't mean this in reference to the 2 people you know that have done the weight loss injections) that most of us try to look or are 'made to look at' at when preparing for gastric bypass will have to stay on them 'forever'. Of course, doing a sleeve or gastric bypass is a very permanent 'anatomical' decision that can, if we are not vigilant also not be successful in the long term for people who feel the surgery is the 'only fix' needed. Since all of my health issues are already under control after my gastric bypass - I NEVER had high blood pressure despite weighing almost 400 lbs and I was not a diabetic but I could tell the toll that being that heavy was taking on my body (my knees, sleep apnea, DVT's/PE's, etc.) I was leery of doing anything that would require 'forever' outside of the bypass surgery. I'm looking for a new therapist right now that specializes not only in anxiety and depression but in working with bariatric patients/weight loss as I know I can I have to be constantly vigilant with my headspace or NOTHING will work. I also am not willing to take the shots for the rest of my life for myself. For other people weighing risks versus benefits I can see this being a highly individualized and personal decision especially if weight loss surgery is not an option for them no matter the reason (leery of it, insurance won't pay, BMI not high enough, etc.). Everyone's journey is their own. The only thing I advocate is for everyone to be as informed as possible and to do their research and make the best decision for themselves. I need to do more research about long term implications of these drugs, but I haven't found much data out there (too new to have that much historical data yet). I'm within 10 lbs of when I told the clinic I'm going to that I would be tapering off and ending the weekly shots. Will try to remember to post more when I've been off the shots for more than a couple of months to talk about struggles or successes I have.

It took about 2 to 4 weeks worth of injections for the true total benefits to settle in and when it did, it was so FREEING. I still absolutely am delighted I had gastric bypass. I also could not afford to pay $1000 a month. I found a local 'wellness' clinic here in Fort Worth where I pay roughly $300 a MONTH for weekly injections. I skipped their package of B12 and Semiglutide as I'm already on an inhalable B-12 supplement. Definitely shop around. I do worry about it causing long term complications (unsure what those are at this point outside of blurbs I've read) but I'm also not wanting this to be something I end up needing to do every week past this 6 to 9 month window. They have other clients that after they got where they wanted, they tapered off completely or come in for monthly or bi monthly injections only. I'd like to taper completely. I have gone a month with no injections after i started and while I had a slight hunger increase, the food chatter was so dang muted. I actually ended up reducing my dosage as I got to a point where I was not eating enough which is ALSO NOT my goal. My protein intake plummeted simply because I was not taking in enough calories. Luckily the place I work with is conservative with dosing and they have multiple patients that had bariatric surgery years ago and they are always ready to discuss 'what is the least amount of semiglutide that you need to be sudcessful'.

Agreed catwoman7 - that was my BIGGEST concern. I was trying to remember how high into the 180's I hit and I found my paperwork. I had gone up to 187 (17 lbs over my weight I had been holding stable on and mentally remembering the 'brief period' at 167, I felt I had gained 20 lbs but it was really more like 17 from my 'stable weight). Prior gains I had ALWAYS kept within a manageable 5 to 10 lb window. We have an adult daughter with multiple mental health issues that moved back in with us over a year ago and the combined stress between her needs and my job was seriously impacting every aspect of my life. I'm also seeking a new therapist that also specializes in clients who are considering or have had bariatric surgery who can help me with multiple issues as I never want to return to food again as a 'medication' for stress and heartache.

Hey I know you did this last fall, I think. Can you let me know how it went, how you are doing, etc?

It's been 5 years since my gastric bypass. Have done fairly well in staying in my safe zone. My goal weight was 170 initially although mentally I wanted to put 150. After starting at almost 400 lbs, I wanted to see if I could even hit 170 which I did. For 2 days about 2 years ago I briefly 'dipped' down to 167! LOL. Fast forward to 9 months ago, I hit a rough patch and went up to 180'ish. I knew some folks going to a local place that compounded their own semiglutide if I understood them correctly. After asking repeated questions about whether taking this would disrupt the supply to diabetics who needed the medicine, I decided to try it. I was never one of those fortunate ones who after bariatic surgery lost the desire to eat (grehlin?). Even though I obviously had the 'restriction' kicking in due to the pouch size, I had to white-knuckle SOMETIMES during the first 6 months. Part of me feels like I cheated by introducing semiglutide but there are also people who think that weight loss surgery is the 'easy way out'. I can tell you that none of those people, in my opinion, have ever had the surgery. I actually really like the semiglutide, it removes the..trying to think of it as I saw on someone else's post, it is the first thing that has ever removed the mental 'food chatter' in my head. Sometimes I will skip weeks on the injections and I'm already making plans to taper off now that I'm down to 163. I realize I will need to be able to then try to maintain in my new 'safety zone of watching for a weight gain of more than 5 to 10 lbs over current weight. I like to nip those things in the bud. Just curious if anyone else post weight loss surgery (by years) has brought semiglutide into the picture whether to break up a stall, or to get weight gain that has started to creep up halted.

Congrats on the loss, Warren! Tomorrow is my scheduled 'peek'. Luckily the doctor doing this is a bariatric surgeon that specializes in revisions. Things at work and home are so stressful that I'm ALMOST looking forward to anesthesia simply for the temporary 'rest'...lol.... If there is nothing wrong 'there', then I'm going to have a long talk with my new 'GI' doctor. I hope this doesn't sound bad but after chasing this pain for almost 2 years, I really want them to find 'something' and hopefully minor, but I'm running out of options and I'm still completely salty on my primary doctor's response.

oh my gosh...I was on the edge of my sofa reading your story! Your reply as to whether it was the plane trip or your surgeon just cracked me up! I had to quote it! One thing I wasn't clear on and this is where I'm also afraid of getting surgery done 'out of the US/out of country) is if there is some sort of issue/medical emergency like you had, will my insurance refuse for me to be treated so I will be forced to make an unplanned trip out of the country to figure things out? Or did your insurance pay for your wound care/full extraction? Did you have to pay to get the 're-implant'/'new implant' done here in the U.S.? I'm still marveling at what an incredible job you did losing weight and what a tough cookie you are! You look tiny but FIERCE! Amazing!!!

LOL...now I'm wondering if I should consider surgeons that are in Canada! I HATE flying but was willing to consider it although you would think in a state the size of Texas I SHOULD be able to find a really good surgeon. I haven't been looking HARD but I'm about ready to start. I've returned here honestly to re-read this forum and try to figure out how to find a really good surgeon-match that I trust and to also figure out 'how much am I looking at' and 'what are my top priorities'. My chest is SO bad I want to say a boob job, but my arms are just horrific and bothersome. So probably arms are first, followed closely by my chest...and if I could fit it in. I'd do something with my neck..OMG..my neck. Just don't get me started..ugh.

This July it will be 5 yrs out since my gastric bypass. Originally I wanted to put goal weight at 150 but even when I was 16 and on the swim team and burning calories like crazy, the lightest I ever was, was roughly 145. As a teen I even did VERY UNHEALTHY things to try and get down to what at the time, according to the notorious insurance standards, was a medical goal weight of 114 -135 lbs for my height at the time. I never managed to get down to 114 despite going on under 600 calories a day (again, with no medical guidance..I was a teen and listened to peer pressure and society tell me what was 'ideal'). So to think that in my 50's that I need to even try for that kind of weight, I figured I'd just disappoint myself plus I'm older and my body has changed. I finally set my goal at 170. Fast forward to THIS year (year 5) - I had consistently been tracking between 169-175 (and been THRILLED) and for some reason I hit a rough patch about 7 mos ago where I was hungry all the time, scary hungry considering I had been more at ease with my life and not feeling like I had to monitor anything. Things felt like there was a natural rhythm to hunger and how I addressed it. I didn't feel desire to overeat and my family said I still 'ate like a bird, but I realized I had let bad habits creep back in and it was more a boredom thing and honestly, extreme stress. What I was doing that let calories creep in was I was eating more frequently. You can overcome any 'restriction' at some point by eating frequently. I gave myself 'guard rail'/target weight zone instead at the end of my first year post surgery. If I'm in my 'zone', then I'm not actively trying to gain or lose, I'm content. If I get up towards the high end of my zone, I re-evaluate what I'm doing. I ended up in 1 month blowing past the high end of my zone to a weight spike that I had not had for 3 solid years. I had been consistent AND happy with where I was at. Thankfully I've course corrected and with some help I'm at my lowest weight ever since I was...er...18? I'm 165 right now and as I am also considering plastics, I'm going to re-review the valuable info on the plastics forum/threads as I know I want weight 'stability' for sure. I knew when I did the surgery that I personally wanted to wait until a few years out because honestly, I was afraid I'd find some way to tank the surgery even though I waited 5 yrs before having the surgery to work on myself mentally/emotionally. I also knew I'd have to pay for it out of pocket so I would need YEARS to save so I figured I could lose the weight and tone what I could so the plastic surgeon, if I was fortunate enough to find one I could trust, would know what they had to work with. I'll let them tell me if they also feel I'm ready. I have SO much loose skin that I honestly don't know with it removed if I'd weigh 5 lbs less than what the scale says. I also learned my watching my 1000 lb life that loose skin doesn't weigh as much as I THINK it should..LOL. That is why I'm only attributing 5 lbs to my loose skin I think you are doing AWESOME! I'm glad you are keeping your goal where it is. Just settle into your 'new fantastic self' which is just another facet of the already awesome person you were! We can both spend time researching the plastics info while you are in this new chapter of your life and I'm hanging out at 5 years hoping I win the lottery or at least a big payoff scratch off so I can put some money 'down' with a plastic surgeon..LOL!

I'm actually scheduled for an exploratory peek into my pouch on June 6th so it should be interesting. If they don't find anything there, the bariatric surgeon said the traditional upper and lower GI do not go through every part of either our intestines or the bowel, cannot remember, but that he knew of 2 doctors in this area that had an 'extra long scope'. Gah, I don't want that to be the NEXT thing we try considering I just went through the yucky 'prep' for a traditional upper and lower GI last month...lol. I would think my 'new' GI doctor should have come up with some of this stuff and not just punted me to the bariatric surgeon and told that I may need a 'revision' as it sounded to him like 'dumping'. It has never felt like the dumping we experience after a bypass/sleeve. It has felt different from it this whole time. This GI doctor has decent reviews so maybe I will just follow up with him after exhausting the 'could it be related to my bypass' route he has sent me on and see if he has any other ideas of what it could be. At this point, I'm getting kind of tired. My primary who is usually really good to work with told me 'you may just have to deal with ongoing, chronic pain'. He and I will talk about that 'not helpful at all' statement.

Hey Warren, I'm presuming because they would only look at fixing the opening if they did feel it was contributing to the pain and other issues I'm having 'downstream'. This would not be a true revision in the sense of reducing the size of the pouch. My insurance company also only pays for 1 bariatric surgery in your 'lifetime'. They would only pass for the revision of opening if it were medically necessitated, and they would not consider 'failure to lose weight' or a 'weight regain' as medically necessary. My GI wanted me to talk to the bariatric surgeon who specializes in revisions. The surgeon does not think what is happening to me is 'dumping due to widened opening'. He said it doesn't sound like dumping to him and if that happened to everyone whose opening widened, everyone would be having "dumping" issues after a couple of years. He did point out that both the upper and lower GI I had done do not look at the inside of the pouch so if there is a hernia that is causing the on again/off again pain and on rare occasions bleeding (looks like coffee grounds), then the GI doctor would not know as they never 'scope' the pouch for a routine upper/lower GI. He also indicated that depending on the scope size a GI doctor uses, it doesn't go through every single space that we have (due to us having been um "modified"?) so it would take a doctor who uses an extra long scope. That last part I must confess I do not understand at all. He does have me scheduled right now for a laparoscopic investigatory procedure to take a look inside my pouch and see if there is scar tissue or a hernia that needs to be addressed. He also gave me prescription acid reflux meds and said if i got better after 'taking' them, I could cancel the procedure in 2 weeks. What he fails to understand and I've tried telling his office, I can go a month with no pain. Then I go back to back days in extreme pain. Have not been able to tie it to specific food, time of day I'm eating, etc. My right side starts with a stabby/cramping pain (closest I can compare if it feels like the pain I used to get when I ovulated or that 'stitch in your side' type feeling. It often goes downhill from there. I have tried to get it figured out now for 2 years but taking ANY medicine and 'not having an episode in the next 2 weeks' does NOT give me a definitive answer as I do not have this pain all the time, it is just enough to be frustrating and has lasted LONG enough to be concerning. The 'coffee ground' type bleeding that I have observed is one and off for the past 3 months (maybe it started a while ago but now I know what to 'look for'. I don't like going under anesthesia but I'm probably going to keep that procedure scheduled as I have no guarantee that ANY medicine given for the next 2 weeks has 'fixed' any issue. I wonder if anyone else has ever had their opening revised but not their pouch out of curiosity.