Deep6

I never look at the scale at home. The only time I get weighed is at a doctor's and periodically, at my gym, where they use one of those impedance machines that distinguishes fat, muscle and skeletal mass. Instead of worrying, just stick to whatever program you are following---my appetite was severely diminished after surgery, I had one instance of the foamies early on, and I learned pretty quickly that eating the wrong food or too much to fast led to gastro-distress. I don't know how much exercise you are getting. That has been a big factor for me. I work with a trainer, and it isn't just building muscle, but a lot of attention was paid to balance-- Learning how to breathe is something I'm still working on- sounds stupid but makes a huge difference in your stamina. Walk. A lot. I wasn't a food junkie but like to eat. I'm now constrained, but the trade-offs are worth it. Give it time. If you are persistent and consistent, you will be rewarded--- I slug down a 30 G protein drink, work out, hit another 30 G protein drink, a light lunch, a dinner primarily of protein and veggies. There's a certain amount of positive reinforcement that comes from success. But you should not measure your success by the scale or any other external measure. Overall, I feel better, am far more ambulatory and that alone allows me to capitalize on the surgery--and that's where the self-reinforcement comes in. I would have been out of breath after a couple of blocks walk. Now, I can go miles and feel good while doing it.

Well, I guess I'm not alone in this. Thanks to each of you for your thoughtful responses. Yes, it is mainly to get to sleep, but also to bring the brain down to normal ticking- I'm a wound up person, always was, when I worked a career I was a demon. Now retired but still, that tighter than a spring quality is part of me-- and yes, addictions are transferable for sure. I've been honest w/ my docs about it. They don't see harm in a couple drinks, generally. And yep, with the bypass surgery, the line between nice buzz and blitzed is a fine line--that much I learned pretty fast. Crazy thing is, I don't really have demons haunting me. Life is generally good. Sure, there's the usual life stresses but my life in general has never been richer (in quality). Thank you, my fellow/colleagues in this adventure.

I'm killing it, body fat down below 10 percent, I'm working out at least 4 times a week, am lean and strong. But I've found solace in whiskey. I drink it neat, no mixers. I don't drink during the day, but need to quiet my mind. Good quality whiskey does that, after 35 + years of total sobriety. I'm in Texas, so pot is largely illegal- and the illicit vapes make me paranoid. Crazy thing is I don't wake up with a hang over- I take Pharma sleep meds but am careful about the combo. I did talk to one guy who lost a crazy amount of weight through surgery and told me that heavy alcohol consumption is not uncommon. I was not fixated on food before surgery, but gained a lot during Covid sitting on my ass without serious exercise. I'm now working hard at the gym with a good trainer, and the results have been impressive. But the alcohol is an issue. I don't drive or go out when I drink, I'm home. I'm a high functioning boozer, but still. I hate being dependent on any substance, but I need to turn down the noise in my head. There are some legal CBD outlets in Texas which I can explore. I know the volume of whiskey I'm consuming is not necessary good for long life, but it definitely chills me out. Would love input from others who have had the same experience. Physically I'm in amazing shape, and generally, my mental attitude is quite positive. TIA!

I'm actually amazed. Lost 90 lbs, down to fighting weight based on weigh-in at gym using one of those machines that measures body fat + weigh- in at doctor's with clothes on a day later. Went from 40 waist to 33 (American size), can now fit into clothes I could not wear for quite a while, work out 4 times a week at a serious gym, most sessions with a highly experienced trainer. I haven't done one sit up yet- it's about balance, step up, step down, with kettle bell, 12 reps, 5 sets, squats with a dumbbell, 12 reps, 5 sets, then next exercise, etc. I do my warm up 1/2 hour in advance of the trainer session so I don't waste time--it's all exercise when I work with the trainer. I drink a 30 gram protein drink before and another after, so I'm finally building some muscle on what is now a diminutive appearing frame. I can't quite press my body weight yet, but I will. I have long hair for a guy, and yeah, it was coming out when washing it (not every day, more like every 4 days unless I get sweaty) but that seems to have finally stopped. I have no cravings for foods that I cannot have because I get sick if I eat a slice of pizza with toppings or eat more indigestible foods. So I just stay away from them. I have developed a fondness for medium rare lamb chops and roasted potatoes with rosemary salt. My wife is a good cook but we still eat at restaurants and I'm careful. I found out that alcohol just doesn't work- a beer is too filling and carbonated, for some reason wine doesn't taste good; I'm a high proof whiskey man and it doesn't metabolize. I'm on my ass with far less than what I could normally consume, so I just stopped altogether. (Good because I have Barrett's and alcohol is inflammatory). Punchline- this surgery really turned me around. Trade-offs to be sure, but I feel so much better and look far younger. I can walk fast and not get winded as easily. I'm in my 70th year and don't look like a geezer-- more like a ruffian in rude health. I had targeted 185 as a goal weight and reached that but I still have a small roll of fat around my middle. I figure that I can continue to lose a little more given the surgery stats, and tighten up my core as my work-out regime continues. I'm gonna start swimming this summer-- where I am in Texas it is 3 months of summer and 9 months of hell. Hell is just starting here. The really hardcore stuff is pilates. I used to do that with a women's class and they kicked my butt. I'm planning to advance to that as well. I think the "whole picture" outlook is optimal for me- I don't check the scale at home, I do my thing and get routine blood work done. Though I have a few health issues which come with age, I'm in pretty decent shape now, physically and mentally. Thanks to all you kind folks for your advice and support.

I think you hit a big nail on the head-- going back to first principles- the why? is not just a reminder of what brings you into this process, but a good question we should all ask ourselves periodically. I'm no expert on weight loss, but have a fair amount of experience with various "rehab" and group support programs--as time goes on (I'm only 11 months out from my surgery), my experience has been that you change (emotionally) and your perspective changes. It's been a constant for me to periodically reevaluate my commitment to all sorts of things and ask the very questions you posed. Healthy thinking!

I had a gastric bypass around 11 months ago. I turned 69 in January, which means I'm in my 70th year. I had no issues with the surgery or recovery. My eating habits are curbed by what I can tolerate and I now go to the gym 4 times a week, most of the time with a very good trainer. It's been a long time since I've felt this good-- sure, there are trade-offs but to me, totally worth it especially compared to where I was pre-surgery. The biggest issue for me has been building muscle mass.

When in doubt, I slam an Ensure with 30g protein plus caffeine. It isn't a substitute for food but it is better than nothing. My problem is often that I don't have much of an appetite; and when I do, it's always for something that isn't readily available in the house. Sure, I can get food delivered from a restaurant but even good restaurants tend to use things like butter and salt, in addition to who knows what else, to provide flavor. I also tend to keep the dishes simple- steak and eggs after a work-out. I love pasta but won't eat much of it- I'll do pasta plus meatballs, heavy on the meatballs, with just a taste of pasta. I don't know about "apps" but you could stick a reminder in your calendar.

Anxiety is awful. I used to stress out majorly due to my career, but even having been retired for ten years, I still have problems sleeping. I work out like an animal, now that I've lost most of my excess weight, and keep myself mentally engaged in a lot of things, but I still suffer from insomnia. My one doc, who I've used since the mid-90's, still has me on diazapam (addictive, but at some point for me, it just doesn't work so I stop and clean out) and Mirtazapine, which definitely puts me down most of the time. Only problem with the latter is that I don't wake up til 11am. Not good if I'm attempting to live a normal life. But, he's against sleeping pills and I get it. The other things, like Melatonin, just make me woozy. I'm in way better health as a result of the surgery and working out constantly. I'm consuming lots of protein through drinks plus food. I feel good. The lack of sleep can definitely ruin your day. I don't know what the current thinking is in the medical community. I trust my guy but still, it kinda sucks to have to medicate to get sleep. I'm real big on integrative medicine. Maybe there's an answer there. Dunno. Nice to see you folks!!!!

Thank you all for the kudos. I'm wondering if my dramatic weight loss is partly due to malabsorption; I'm pretty vigilant about taking my supplements and focusing on protein. I'm going to go get tested for SIBO tomorrow- I had it before surgery and it was pretty awful. This time, it isn't quite as acute, but despite my care in diet, I find that food passes through. I did that crazy expensive anti-B the last time-- rifaximin-- not sure I want to spring for that again (cost is over 2k for a bottle of pills with a $700 co-pay-- the retail price for the drug outside of the States). Anyway, I should know the results quickly- the gastro I've been using is very good. And I cannot stress enough getting in some strength training, particularly if you are older. Even though I felt sort of lousy thing morning, working out made me feel better.

I did gastric bypass + hiatal hernia repair June 6. I have had very few "issues"-- a couple of "one step over the line," one incident of the dreaded foamies, but generally, smooth sailing. I was at around 274 lbs and now am at around 206-7, depending on scale and time of day. That's crazy! I look at the stats for how much folks lose on average and this seems to be beyond the norm. I'm not complaining-- I not only walk, but got into a rigorous exercise regime with a trainer. His focus, for now, is balance, and "whole body"--I do some weights but the "balance" stuff has been a real blessing. I have checked the boxes with the M.D.s- my cardiologist has no problem with testosterone treatment as a means to build muscle mass. I need to get my surgeon to sign off on that, just to be sure. But man, this has been an amazing journey in a very short time. I'm way more mobile, fit into clothes I forgot I had (I used to buy really nice stuff, turned into a slob, and now I'm caring about my appearance again!). I'm closing in on 70 years-- and have not felt this vigorous in a long while. My taste buds have definitely changed. But it's worth the trade-off in health and fitness. And no more GERD!!!

My surgeon's office recommended Bariatric Advantage- both the multi-vitamin + iron and the calcium chews. I get both from Amazon, though I'm Stateside. I opted for the chewable multi-vitamin after the first bottle.

You might find this paper interesting: https://asmbs.org/app/uploads/2021/10/PIIS1550728921004238.pdf I went to the Mayo, which has a stop smoking facility (Betty Ford for cigarettes). They got me on nicotine replacement, which allowed me to quit. Some of the medications, like Wellbutrin, made me feel crazy. I stopped smoking years ago, without pain. Unfortunately the medical group who wrote the above article is an outlier. AFAiK, Medicare doesn't want any nicotine, even pharmaceutical. Fact is, the Pharma version is pricey in the extreme, although the patent expired. I loved smoking. I only stopped b/c I was told I would stroke out. Drooling in a wheelchair was not my idea of a good future. Otherwise, I'd still be smoking -- unfiltered ciggies, cigars from a small island off the Florida coast and roll 'em ups, using Turkish, Dutch shag, and other things-- Virginia tobacco, which I used to buy in a can, was really good. Stop if you can. Not preaching, sympathetic, beoyotch of an addictive substance, many of which were easier to quit than tobacco. It's insidious.

I've used this forum so far to ask questions, and obviously, people who are trying to adjust figure out if their experience is "normal" or have some issue with the process, and are going to ask questions-- some posts/threads document the challenges to this "adjustment." I thought it might be valuable to lay out the positives. I don't much care how you got to the surgery point- whether by some unhealthy attachment to eating or anything else. But for whatever reasons we underwent surgery, I'll assume that the path we were on was not healthy and beyond that, our quality of life was compromised by weight. So, I'll say-- after 3 months, X weeks, I'm far more mobile. I can walk now, without feeling out of breath. I fit into clothes I couldn't-- I look and feel "better"- yeah, it is tricky to learn how to eat, and it seems like things changed (they did), but totally worth it in my estimation. I had gotten to the point where I was eating a FODMAP diet (to reduce gastric blow-back up my esophagus) and it was more limited in food choices than what I face now, post surgery. I'm not sure I could have done this with diet and exercise. I did that in 2010, went from 250 to 180 through several hours of exercise a day plus hardcore paleo. But now I'm older, and I really needed help. The surgery and low volume diet plus movement (which I could not do at a certain point-scary) has made a quantum change in my physical being, and given me a revitalized outlook on life.

I've found different foods to process differently (bypass +hiatal hernia repair, June 6th of this year). My wife made a Bolognese sauce (ground turkey) that went down like it was meant to, and caused no gastro-intestinal distress. @Penguin733, fwiw, I suspect that at 7 weeks, I was just getting into real food. I got religion when I got stopped up, and got the "foamies." Talking to surgeon, and folks here, I was told to measure or weigh. I now know better what I can eat, both in terms of volume and nature of the the food. (FWIW, I had a nice small loin lamb chop tonight and et the whole thing!). Give yourself some time and also recognize that some foods are harder to digest than others; if you look at the surgical procedure that you underwent, you'll understand that there is a stronger filter in place than before; that can help you lose weight. In my case, it also reduced the amount of gastric acid blowing back up my esophagus, which was the driver for me. I've also lost a massive amount of weight in a short time. I respect what this operation can do.

Hey, @Jlw1403. I had my bypass + hiatal hernia repair on June 6th of this year. The operation went fine, and being on liquid, then pureed, all the various stages, wasn't hard, I just wanted more. I took the supplements (multi + iron, and calcium) but as I progressed now more than 3 months out, I'm less hungry, find a lot of food or the thought of it, almost distasteful, and have to force myself to eat. Drinking liquids is not a problem simply b/c I get dehydrated, especially in the Texas heat. You should talk to your surgeon/dietician and see if there is any physical reason why you are having a problem. I would not do it in an accusatory fashion- more in the "I need help here " vein. I think, from what I've read here, that everyone's experience varies. It's like we all have different sensitivities to certain foods after the surgery, but-at least to me, you should be able to intake the basic minimum-- I was OK with the Max Protein drinks for about 2.5 months- then I found them gag worthy and couldn't digest them. I'm told it's about sips, not guzzling, but still. It is a pretty serious surgery- one that has a ton written about it in the med journals, and pretty safe in terms of outcomes. But tolerance for food and drink is probably very individualized. Get help. You don't have to suffer.