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Following up with a GP is good for general health, but following up with your bariatric surgeon is crucial if you are still having complications from bypass. There are a number of things that can be causing your symptoms, some that can be easily corrected by procedures during an endoscopy. As far as the blood spike, do you mean your blood sugar? Some people that have bypass can develop reactive hypoglycemia which can definitely make your blood sugar levels bounce around and cause fatigue and such. I'm sorry you are feeling bad!

Yeah, I got a pack of these freezer safe glass 4 oz baby food jars on Amazon and they've been really helpful with portioning!! At first I could only eat about half of one, so about 1/4 cup total. A bit less if it was solid protein in meat form other than fish (beef, chicken, and pork sit heavier). That was it for about two months. In this third month my portion size suddenly increased to about 1/2 cup in total now! As far as meat and veggies are concerned at least. I have always been able to eat a little more of soft things like yogurt and pudding... But my PA told me that increase at 3 months is perfectly normal, and I could expect it to increase in stages throughout the first year or two, to not panic over it, hunger is natural and mine never went away from surgery, so I've really had to cultivate a healthy relationship with it. Because those stomach nerves are still healing, I watched my portion size carefully and really paid attention to discovering new fullness cues. For me those are a runny nose, hiccups, burping, and aggressive sneezing fits! Plus this building pressure or weight in the center of my stomach. These are all normal signals for bariatric patients, but we all get our own unique combination so be on the lookout for discovering yours! I think 2-3 shakes a day paired with things like yogurt and soft cereals seems really normal. It is great you are progressing so well! The problem with forums and support groups is we get used to seeing people post with problems and then we expect to have a slew of problems ourselves! And sometimes we do. But often times we don't... The majority of bariatric patients have no complications, progress their diets easily, and worry about eating too much and if their surgeon even did their surgery. 🤣 Your metabolism has been reset, it will handle calories a bit differently now. Just stay on the conservative end with simple carbs, as they can slow weight loss sometimes. Focus on that hydration and protein, and later on when cleared for all foods, on adding complex carbs like veggies, beans, and some fruit. Protein will help with the hunger, as does healthy fat and the fiber once it is safe for you to digest. My dietician told us to think more about macros than calories. So, to make sure things had less than 10 grams of sugar per serving, more than 20 grams of protein per shake, less than 10 grams of fat per serving, and keeping our total carbohydrates for the day under 50 grams in the early months...and that was their advice for all surgeries, with varying protein goals for each different one. Baritastic app has been really helpful with the tracking!

I went that exact route and the bypass was the easiest recovery for me and with no side effects except constipation which is easy to treat. I take miralax (a tsp a day) is perfect for me. But I have to add the common "everyone is different" so this is my story. I had to go from band to vsg due to serious complications of the band, and then I had to go from vsg to rny due to developing severe gerd.I really think the band created that environment by damaging my esophagus before the sleeve. The best way for me to describe the rny revision is... Finally a feeling of normality. I feel so good and normal now, pre-any weight loss surgery normal except I can't eat as much. No severe gerd, no side effects, no hassle anything except taking daily vitamins which I always did anyway pre WLS.I hope this helps.

I agree with Arabesque, this sounds like a post viral syndrome. I'm so sorry you are going through this! You were doing so well!! What many people (and doctors) don't understand is getting any sort of virus that hits the body hard can result in a number of conditions afterwards, some caused by trying to recover from the virus, some caused by opportunistic viruses showing up when your system is low from one virus already, and some can actually be autoimmune conditions that are triggered to show up from a viral infection. Any of these could be contributing to your condition. A few years ago I got cat scratch fever (that's what I get for fostering litters of kittens! LOL). I was sick with it for a few weeks. My immune system had already been behaving badly that year, I have an autoimmune disease that flared so bad it effected my digestive system, my eyes (I was having vision problems), as well as my joints. But the virus kicked my butt royally. Then a few weeks later I started spiking high fevers at night out of the blue. I was so exhausted I started sleeping more and more every day until I was sleeping about 18 hours a day. My doctors were absolutely useless and said it was probably chronic fatigue syndrome caused by the autoimmune flare and started putting me on courses of steroids. My bones started aching so bad I would cry. I could barely walk to the kitchen to get a glass of water. My GP made out I was pain med seeking so I fired her, her lack of support was appalling. I started fainting when I tried to shower. I had vertigo all day. After fainting twice with temps over 104 I ended up in the ER where they did labs and said nothing was wrong, it was probably a virus and to go home and sleep it off. A week later I ended up in the ER again where a wonderful doctor said I was experiencing acute kidney damage from dehydration due to the fevers and that I was NOT leaving the hospital until someone figured out what was wrong. I was in the hospital for almost 2 weeks, two different hospitals where I continued to run fevers at night up to 105, it was absurd. Then suddenly one day the fevers and pain stopped. The infectious disease doctor was baffled. But when my advanced labs came back they finally understood what was going on---I had atypical Epstein Barr Virus. Atypical because mono didn't show up when tested for in the ER and I only had one lymph node swollen on my whole body, a tiny one behind my ear. Apparently atypical presentation doesn't show up on mono tests, only the two week test. Epstein Barr Virus is notorious for showing up with other viruses and generally making a pain of itself. It took me another two months before I could reliably get out of bed, and honestly my body took several years to return to a new normal. They thought I had POTS but turns out it was just severe physical deconditioning from the virus and bed rest. All this to say--if you still can't figure out what is going on after a couple of months, you might want to consider talking to an infectious disease doctor or immunologist, whoever is in your area that can treat long Covid and can test for other viruses that might be complicating the picture, as well as autoimmune conditions. Your symptoms sound so viral or autoimmune in origin. My Dad ended up with post viral arthritis. Viruses are such weird things and they can really give our bodies a hard time! Oh and one suggestion. You might want to give this device a look, it was made by two guys, one who had long Covid. https://www.makevisible.com/ I've considered getting one as I love that it helps track your activity in relation to pacing which is shown to help with post viral recovery, and in managing autoimmune conditions, chronic fatigue, fibro, etc...

Finishing up my breakfast and then it's time to get ready to go back to work FINALLY!!! WooHoo!!! It's about time. I hate not working. So glad I was cleared yesterday to go back starting today. Oh, and I'm now down to 233 pounds. I'm 33 pounds away from my goal weight!!!! I started off at 421 pounds when this whole journey began. I've lost a total of 188 pounds from my highest weight. I've lost a total of 155 pounds since my surgery in May 2022 (I was 388 pounds on surgery day). Bariatric surgery, changing my relationship with food, changing my diet, working out and changing up my routines, all of it is why I'm here now. 33 more pounds to go, ya'll!!! I'm in a size 16/18 in clothes (down from 28/30), I'm in a size 6 1/2 ring (down from size 10), I'm in a size 10 shoe (down from a size 11), and I wear 18" necklaces (instead of the 22" and 24" necklaces I wore before). Yes, I've had complications. Yes, I've had several surgeries. But things were found that I never would have known about. Silent killers, they're called. Has it been annoying and painful and frustrating? ABSOLUTELY. Would I do it all again anyway? ABSOLUTELY. I've STILL gained so much more than I've lost. I have 1 more surgery (my hysterectomy) and then I'm completely done. And honestly, I'm still way way healthier than I ever was before. I only wish I would have just done the bypass to begin with and skipped the sleeve. But then again, like I said, the conditions I didn't know about wouldn't have been found without the complications from the sleeve that led to all my procedures. Everything happens for a reason. I firmly believe that. And I'm almost on the other side of all this, so I can speak into existence that nothing else will go wrong, things are looking up, and I'm getting my life back but as an even healthier and better version.

I'm a sleeve to bypass conversion. I had a hernia, that complicated matters. I'm over a decade out from the horror of that sleeve. I'm just over 3 months out with the bypass. The hernia caused issues and the longer healing time was due to it. If I have any pull or ache, its in that area. For 3 months gone, the reflux (was like yours, actually worse, I had carafate to eat anything) is gone. I've had 1 time where some stuff came up like reflux. A mild little one for the 2nd time it happened. That's it. I control how much food goes in. When I dont, I throw up. I've had a bean get stuck (wow was that painful), couple of times I've swallowed 3x instead of 2 for liquids and it was too much. I've thrown up but nothing like before. If I'm really really careful, watch the time and amount of food at one time frame, I'm good. Stay at 2 swallows, I'm good. After the misery of before, this is great! That having been said, I dropped to malnutrition level because of some other medical problems. As of end of last week, I am 8 pounds from being overweight for my BMI. 36 pounds from being normal weight. So I don't think I'll be dropping it like I did my sleeve. I dropped 27 pounds the first month, and that was 27% of the excess body weight.

only about 30% of bypass patients dump, and it can be prevented by not eating a ton of sugar or fat at one sitting. I've never dumped and I know lots of other bypass patients who've never dumped, either. I had some food intolerances the first few months but now the only thing my stomach doesn't seem to handle well is a really fatty meal. Something like a fish fry with fried fish, tartar sauce, French fries, a roll with butter, and coleslaw (as is a popular Friday night meal here in Wisconsin) would not sit well with me and might even send me into the bathroom. I could handle one or two of those things, but not all (like I could pre-surgery). I also can't eat tons of pasta or rice since it sits in my stomach like a brick, but I can eat SOME of it. I had some vomiting episodes the first couple of months after surgery if I ate too much or too fast or something that didn't agree with me, but since then, I don't think I vomit much more often than I did pre-surgery. Diarrhea isn't that common with bypass - and the adult diaper thing would be really rare - I almost never hear of that, and I've been on this site for about nine years. The opposite, constipation, is really common, though. A lot of us have to take daily Miralax or stool softeners to keep on top of it. yes I suppose constant vomiting could rot your teeth, but I'm not sure where you got that idea that bypass patients experience daily vomiting. I probably vomit 2 or 3 times a year. Plus vomiting now is much easier than it was pre-surgery. Your stomach is really small, so not much comes up. And besides that, you don't have nearly as much acid in your stomach (you can tell because what comes up tastes just like it did going down - you don't get that awful "vomit-y" taste any more after you vomit). Also, GERD is what can lead to Barrett's esphagus an/or esophagus cancer, and bypass usually improves if not outright cures GERD. That's why it's usually recommended over VSG for patients who have GERD. I should add that I'm not a revision patient, but I know of a lot of people who are from this site and similar sites. Most of them are very happy with their bypasses and aren't experiencing the complications that you're worried about (in fact, most don't have any complications at all). I hope you don't take this wrong, but you might want to do more research on the bypass because I think your views on it aren't that realistic. I wouldn't go so far as to say that no one has every experienced any of that stuff because I don't know for sure - maybe someone or a few people have - but we just don't hear about those things on here. If they happen, they're very rare, otherwise we'd hear about them given all the thousands of people who've been on this site over the years.

Goodness, I haven't been on here in quite some time. But I am sad to see you are still have difficulties and complications! I am thinking of you and I hope you get some relief very soon!

Goodness, I haven't been on here in quite some time. But I am sad to see you are still have difficulties and complications! I am thinking of you and I hope you get some relief very soon!

Hey all, I am pre-op for a Gastric Bypass with Heller Myotomy due to Stage 3 Achalasia. I have read some posts about cigar smoking after surgery, but haven't seen many with what procedure I am going to have. That being said, I am not a frequent smoker and I do not smoke cigarettes. I do enjoy an occasional cigar, however my surgeon has stated that there is no way that I can smoke after my surgery. This kind of sucks if I will really have that many complications because of some traditions we have within my workplace as a Paramedic and Firefighter. My question is, has anyone had this procedure and if so, have you had any complications with smoking a cigar post-op. Thanks all.

I just made an account to answer this. I am two and a half weeks post op from gastric sleeve. I too have PCOS. I am 37 years old and my highest weight was 330. At surgery and after the pre-op diet I was down to 305. I'm currently 289 today. My comorbidities were hypertension, high cholesterol, newly onset GERD, and insulin resistance. (never made it into the diabetic range). I watched a ton of videos on youtube after I decided to have surgery. I watched the testimony of patients ranging from a few weeks out to twenty years. I also listened to bariatric surgeons discuss the process, pitfalls, and successes. My PCP had been talking to me about this surgery for three years and at first I declined because of all the people I knew of that experienced full weight regain. I only decided to have the surgery when I had determined that not being able to eat as much and what I want all the time was a small price to pay for my health and quality of life. Some things to consider between sleeve and bypass. Myth: Bypass patients are much more successful at keeping weight off. The sleeve is a newer surgery and was discovered as the first part of the duodenal switch. The 5 and 10 year outcomes for weight loss and regain tend to be around the same with the bypass slightly better. The sleeve is less punishing and is easier to 'stretch' out with poor eating habits but it can be done with the bypass as well. Overall, a change in relationship with food is a higher predictor of sustained weight loss than either surgery. The Switch is the surgery with the most rapid weight loss and sustained loss without regain but it is a heavily malabsorption procedure, carries the most risk of post operative complications, including dehydration and vitamin deficiency and requires a very strict regiment to sustain a healthy lifestyle. It can also result in some interesting bowel changes. Too rapid weightloss can also result in gallstones. Quite a few bariatric patients have had gallbladder removal after surgery. It should be noted that actual operative complications are low for all surgeries but not zero. Another controversial topic of sleeve vs gastric bypass is that the bypass is better for GERD. There are contradicting experiences for both surgeries. One thing is for sure you can certainly still have GERD with the bypass, although it seems revision from sleeve to bypass has worked to cure GERD for a lot of people. My GERD was very mild before surgery and so far I have not experienced any after. I am on a daily dosage of omerprazole but that's nothing new to what I was taking before. My triggers for GERD were fried foods and canned tomatoes. I know to stay away from that now. Keep in mind that the bypass is reversible in most cases while the sleeve is not. Also, the sleeve can be converted into a bypass or switch if complications arise or you fail to lose or sustain a meaningful amount of weight. There are very few options for bypass and switch if regain occurs outside of dietary changes, exercise and will power. Bypass patients can no longer consume NSAIDS, steriods, and possibly other medications after surgery for life. Switch and Bypass patients are more likely to experience dumping syndrome but Sleeve patients can also suffer from it. Constipation, diarrhea, and blockages and strictures can occur with all surgeries. Very minimal risk for long term serious complications. I have read quite a few posts that spoke about pain after surgery with the sleeve. Speaking for myself the only pain I experienced was gas after surgery from the surgeon introducing it into my abdomen during the procedure. I was given liquid pain meds but never took any, and no otc pains meds either. I felt discomfort from the surgery port sites for maybe a week. After that I was good. My surgery team has stayed on top of any side effects that could occur after surgery and I was very lucky. They gave me medicine for nausea before surgery, put an anti-nausea patch behind my ear also before surgery and discharged me with anti-nausea dissolveable meds. I took the meds for about a week though I never experience sickness and still luckily have not. I was a water drinker before surgery and can still easily drink water without any pain or nausea. Cold or hot temps don't seem to upset my stomach though some have reported either can cause pain. I am on the puree stage and things are going well. Really, experiences vary. I'd choose a doctor carefully and if possible speak to prior patients to get their experience pre and post op. I was lucky my Aunt had the procedure done the year before and could report on her experience. We chose the same surgeon. He had a 98% success rate. So after this long-winded wall of text I choose a sleeve because: I wanted a slower and steady weight loss. I did not want to re-route my insides. Had a co-worker suffer a bad bowel blockage with a bypass and had to have part of his intestine cut out. I did not want restrictions on not being able to take certain pain or treatment options should they become necessary in the future. I did not feel I have a dependent relationship with food. I ate too much of it. And sometimes the wrong things because they were easy and accessible. But I also enjoyed a lot of healthy foods. My kryptonite has always been lack of exercise and even skipping meals so that I overate when I did eat. I'm from the finish your plate generation, but I did not and do not rely on food for comfort, bordem or pleasure. Therefore, I felt and still feel that the more punishing procedures were not right for me.

Hi there!!! I have been summoned, I see lol Ok, so a little about what I've been through, and then I'll give any advice I can. I had the sleeve in May 2022. Initially, I was doing awesome. Lost a lot of weight, got off several meds, health issues corrected, it was awesome. Right up until it wasn't. Around 6 months post op, I started noticing some reflux issues (which I had never had before). It steadily got worse and I had to have a barium swallow (NASTY!!!) to see what was happening. I had severe GERD, gastritis, and esophagitis. I also had a narrowing esophagus. So I was put on Nexium (40mg once per day). The GERD steadily got worse and worse until I was put on 80mg of Nexium daily as well as Pepcid for break through (which I took daily). It still didn't completely help. I was on such a high amount of PPI for such a long time that I ended up developing an OBSCENE amount of polyps all through my stomach and duodenum. This year, I had 7 surgeries to remove all of the polyps, stretch my esophagus, and have a revision to a bypass. I also had to have the part of the stomach that's bypassed removed because that's where so many of the polyps were forming. When I had the sleeve, I had so much pain, trouble tolerating anything cold, trouble taking pills, trouble getting in enough water. It was completely miserable. With my revision to bypass, it was like the heavens opened up and the angels started singing to me. No pain meds at all beyond Tylenol. Up and around within 4 days. Was able to take pills from day 1. No GERD at all. No constipation like with the sleeve. Able to get my fluids in from day 1 (drank a 20 oz of water in the hospital within 2 hours of getting back to my room from recovery), no issues with temps of liquids. My only regret is that I didn't just get the bypass to begin with. Because of all the surgeries, my abdominal wall weakened and I developed a ventral hernia that was repaired 3 weeks ago. Still recovering from that one. I was freaked out at first at the thought of getting a bypass. It's why I opted for the sleeve to begin with. I was afraid of dumping, I was afraid of malabsorption, I was afraid of getting a stricture. Well, I only dump if I have too many carbs, so I just avoid them for the most part (I never even get to my allotted amount, I'm always way under). I haven't had any stricture, but if I do, it's a super easy fix (and after everything I've already been through, I'm not even a tiny bit worried). And malabsorption is only an issue with extended release meds (I don't take those now) and vitamins (take bariatric ones or double up on the regular ones). There was nothing to be worried about, but I let the chatter from those that weren't in my position freak me out and cause me to choose the sleeve instead of the bypass. My advice to you is to not listen to anyone else. You and your doctor know what's best for you. The revision will give you your life back. Being pain and complication free is worth its weight in...well...everything. When you look at everything you've been through up until this point, the recovery from the revision will be a walk in the park. It's better for your health (physically and mentally) and it will allow you to get back to your life. This surgery is supposed to afford us the chance to have the life and health we've always been meant to, and complications can really do a number on us. The revision will be a godsend to you, mark my words. I don't have a single regret.

Hey everyone. I am new to here and my gastric bypass surgery is on December, 13th, 2023. I have been very nervous but thankful to have found this page with such wonderful people. I recently subscribed to this gentleman on youtube as he went through gastric bypass. I just wanted to share my frustrations over this as I feel it is important not to fantasize WLS surgery. This guy recently posted about surgery risks, death, complications, etc. He also asked people to share their concerns and stories to which I shared my concerns. Sharing his response to my concerns. I just feel it worth sharing how insensitive he was and that just because his surgery went well, does not mean others are so lucky. Bariatric surgery is not all butterflies and rainbows, so there is no harm in trying to prepare for the unexpected as a way to help you get through this big life altering surgery. I personally felt it worth writing letters to my kids who are 11 and 8 and my husband. They will not see them unless something bad happens of course. My hope is they will never see them, but I rather have them for them just incase than not. Never let anyone tell you something you did to prepare was "not needed".

I've been told by a lot of vets to ride the weight loss down for as long as it lasts, even if you dip way below your goal weight. Usually the weight loss will taper off by itself unless you have extreme complications, and that breathing room will be welcome when you hit that rebound and gain some before balancing out. At least that was the advice given to me by DS vets that have maintained their weights for well over a decade, so I assume the same holds true for bypass patients. It is very rare to lose too much, but it is possible that your body's happiest set point is lower than your goal weight, and you'd never know if you don't let the weight loss continue until it naturally tapers off. I don't know what maintenance looks like for a bypass patient, but I suspect like Catwoman7 says, there is some measure of monitoring and portion controlling that will always be there, just like a lot of naturally thin women engage in to maintain their weights. I figure you either track your food (with an app), or you track the scale, or you track both. But most women I know track something regularly to maintain. I'm so excited for you being so close to goal!!

Same!! I have to wear the full mask as I can't have the nasal one also. I will admit I am still getting use to it also. Some nights I just yank it off during my sleep lol. Oh no I am so sorry to hear about your ex not being one you feel you can talk to, that would be awful for sure. As for those that lost their lives, do you feel comfortable sharing what complications they had from their surgery? If not no worries at all. I got sick actually on December 3rd and thought oh great on the final countdown, I have let them know I am feeling much better, but I do wonder if they may reschedule. I am waiting to hear from them tomorrow when they are back in. Agreed I am so thankful to have found this website! Thanks for the positive vibes. I hope all the best for you as well. Much love to you.

Just a quick follow up, I'm 2 weeks post op and doing well. I was happy with my experience at Blossom. At first, I did have concerns with it being just a surgery center and not in a hospital, but I was treated well by the staff and surgeon, and haven't had complications. I'm also pleased with their level of communication before and after the surgery. I got checked out by my primary care yesterday and he was happy with the results too. At this point I definitely recommend them. Definitely follow their instructions pre-op and post-op, and it will make it easier.

Yeah, I have a machine for mine but I’m still getting use to it. The mask is irritating and I can’t use the nasal one. I completely understand wanting to be healthy. I originally was going to have surgery 36 years ago. I was two weeks from my surgery date and found out I was pregnant and then ended up with chickenpox. So here I am trying again. 😂 yeah I don’t really have many people to talk to about this either. My daughter is good , my ex I have not told because he is all about the negative (we see each other almost everyday it’s complicated) two of my friends that had the surgery have passed, one I don’t talk to anymore, he had a really bad experience, the other lives in another state and she is in a gaining condition right now so I don’t think it’s good to talk to her. I have a couple others but we aren’t friends anymore. It is nice to have a group to talk to. I can only wish you all positive vibes.

I would not be too concerned about losing too much weight. Unless you have extremely rare and serious complications, it is infuriatingly easy to eat more than enough calories to maintain. For most people, avoiding regain is the biggest concern in the long term. I’m about 3.5 years out and I have to be super careful to track my calories and work out every day. If I weren’t careful to eat low-calorie foods, I could easily gain back a lot of weight. The effects of the restriction wear off over time and I can eat much larger portions than I could, say, 1 year out. Not nearly as much as I could eat pre-surgery (I was a bottomless pit!) but if I were still eating the same high-calorie foods, I would be in trouble. The only reason I’ve been able to maintain my weight loss so far is because I completely changed the way I eat. Going through the post-op diet progression forced me to reset my diet, relearn how to eat. Now that my restriction has weakened and I can’t rely on my stomach to limit my portion sizes, I have to fill my stomach with low-calorie foods. In some ways it’s easier than before surgery because I’ve retrained my palate and developed good habits, but it is definitely still a struggle every day.

Thanks everyone. Guess I'm just venting....I only thought of peanut butter because of the protein. I usually have 2 30gram premier protein shakes a day and one cup of chicken broth. Try to get in more fluids but it's very hard to get some 64 fluid ounces in daily. I haven't had any complications so far, thank God....pain is diminishing.....do my daily walks up and down the hallways. Just tired of the monotony. I have doctor's appointment this Friday, maybe she'll let me move on to at least some scrambled eggs.

Hey 👋 new here. I have my gastric bypass surgery booked for December,13th,2023. I currently reside in Ontario. I am 34 years old and a mom of two. Current weight was 381lbs. Not sure what now as I have been avoiding my scale. Heaviest I've ever been, but I've always been a bigger girl who struggles with her weight. I am very anxious about surgery, and I stupidly have been reading horror stories about this surgery. I have health anxiety which does not help lol. I actually went as far as typing goodbye letters to my children and husband just incase... I cried like a baby while thinking of what all to say incase the worst did happen. How does one put all that on paper?! But that is my brain worrying about what if? Does anyone else share this surgery date with me? Do you have reservations due to possible complications or death? I feel I need someone who is going through what I am to talk to. Thanks so much.

I haven't had revisions, I just had DS surgery 6 weeks ago. But I have seen a fair number of multiple revisions around here and elsewhere... I'm sure if your doctor approved you for the surgery then you are good to go! But any surgery can be scary, so I understand the worries. Sleeve to Bypass revisions are pretty common. It is likely your surgeon has done a fair number of them. The weight loss is slower for revisions, but I have seen many end up reaching their goal weight, it just takes a bit longer the second time around. You don't say what your starting weight is or what you hope to lose... Advice is just like for any of the surgeries---take it easy. Trust your team. Drink your fluids in baby sips and get in as much as possible, this will keep you out of the ER hopefully. Stay ahead of your pain. Ease into food gently. Walk as much as you can. Rest when you feel tired and give yourself extra rest for the first few weeks because surgery can take it out of you! Remember that a lot of nerves have been cut and have to heal, so you may not feel any restriction for a while. Stick to the portions your dietician advises for the first few months until you are getting accurate communication from your healed tummy! And whatever you do, do NOT let yourself get constipated!! Take the stool softeners, take Miralax if you haven't gone in a few days and are concerned. The most common complications I see are nausea, dehydration, and constipation! Most of all, good luck! Have a really routine, easy surgery and an uncomplicated recovery! ❤️

I had the sleeve and the revision to bypass. I had to have the revision due to so many complications that came about because of the sleeve. I started off at 421 pounds, and I am also having a hysterectomy (mine is March 6th). And I have PCOS. If it were me, I would choose a bypass over the sleeve. My one real regret is that I didn't just do the bypass to begin with. Recovery was way better and easier, so much less pain, all around better experience.

The hospital administration continues to prove they have handled this in the worst possible way. I went to see my endocrinologist at the weight management center on Monday. She was fighting back tears as she explained the way news of the closure was handed down, along with a timeline to wrap up the practice by early February that frankly puts profits before patient well-being at every turn. I have left 2 messages and filled out a contact form with the new center but have yet to hear back from anyone. There has been no official letter from the hospital to explain their decision to disrupt my treatment only 3 weeks before surgery, no apology for having to learn of this through an automated cancelation notice, no indication they care at all about what this is doing to any of us who have been caught in this mess. Still not sleeping well, experiencing high anxiety, and very worried about how I will have to rearrange my work schedule to accommodate a new surgery date, but of course having no clue when that will happen makes planning impossible. On the bright side, I have confirmed my new insurance coverage that starts Jan 2, 2024 does cover bariatric surgery and the out of pocket for me will be comparable to my current plan, so I'm no longer worrying about that, at least. For now, all I can do is focus on healthy eating and exercise. My doctor offered to restart me on weight loss medication in the meantime, but I just think it's one more thing to have to juggle and I'd rather not complicate my life more than needed.

My highest recorded weight was 341 pounds, but I lost about 70 pounds before surgery. I'm almost 3.5 years out and I'm in the mid-130s now. I didn't expect to lose this much; I wasn't really hung up on a specific number, but I think my original goal weight (based on average WLS data) was about 180. It was initially fairly easy to lose weight after surgery (the "honeymoon period" when my restriction was very strong and my hunger was almost nonexistent), but it took a lot of effort to get to where I am and maintain it. I've completely changed my diet and eating habits and I work out a lot (at least 90 minutes every day). A lot of my life revolves around diet and exercise to maintain my weight, but I still enjoy food and eating at least as much as before, and I have discovered a love for a lot of healthy foods. After losing over 200 pounds, I do have excess skin, and I don't currently have any plans to have plastic surgery. I have a flabby belly and sagging thighs. I have a little arm flab but not as bad as I expected. My butt and chest are quite deflated. I'm never going to have a bikini-ready body and I accept that. A shaping cami works wonders to hold in the belly, and flattering clothing can hide the rest well enough that no one would guess that I used to weigh more than twice as much. I care much more about the non-scale victories than the number on the scale, and for someone who started at a super morbidly obese weight, getting to my current size is a whole new world. My health has improved in so many ways -- my blood pressure is normal, lipid panel is good, and my doctor undiagnosed type 2 diabetes. I used to have a hard time finding clothing in my size, as I was too big for even "plus size" clothing at some stores (I used to wear size 26/28), and now I can find my size almost anywhere (I am now size 6/8 or medium/large). I used to struggle to walk short distances or a couple of flights of stairs, and now I can walk miles without breaking a sweat and glide up 10 flights of stairs without stopping. It's amazing how much easier it is to get around when I'm not carrying the weight of a whole extra person. I used to be hyper-aware of people judging me for my weight, and I dreaded meeting people face to face, knowing that they would think less of me when they saw my size. It is hard to describe the emotional burden that has been lifted by not having to worry about people making negative assumptions about me based on my weight. I have not had any direct complications from the surgery, but because of the rapid weight loss, I developed bradycardia (slow heart rate) and had to get a pacemaker. That's been rough, but overall, I am far better off having had the surgery and losing the weight.

Just wanted to follow up on a few things from the post above: 1. DS patients do not typically experience dumping syndrome. We maintain our pylorus valve during the sleeve part of the surgery, so we dump at the same rate as the non-surgical population. 2. Bypass patients have about a 30% chance of dumping, lower if they avoid the food behaviors that trigger it. For all but a few it is a manageable phenomenon. 3. Diabetes goes into remission MUCH more frequently with Bypass and DS patients because of the alterations to the small intestines. As do most other co-morbidities. 4. I don't personally view my DS surgery as "punishing". My body has done nothing wrong. I feel no need to punish it. I personally don't have emotional eating issues but I don't judge those that do, nor do I think it is a reason to punish the body... Having my small intestines rerouted was not a punishment. It was a BLESSING! My fasting blood sugars normalized within 24 hours of surgery. So did my high blood pressure. I'm not on medication for either one. I'm currently 7 weeks post op. I consider remission of those two conditions to be a modern medical miracle... I didn't choose the DS to be harsh to my body. I picked it because it had the best chance of restoring my health and keeping the weight off long term. My surgeon put it best "You have a metabolic disorder. You need a metabolically potent surgery. The DS is the most potent one available..." My bowels habits have changed, but nothing unmanageable. I have to watch my carbs, that's no different than before surgery. I no longer have to count calories because I malabsorb a portion of them. I'm at risk of vitamin deficiencies if I don't take my vitamins, that to me is no different than risking a blood sugar or blood pressure emergency from not regularly taking my meds pre-surgery. Nothing about this process is free. There are always trade offs. Any GI issues that occur with the DS can also happen with Bypass, including vitamin and protein deficiencies. But protein and vitamin deficiencies are also possible with sleeve patients. They may happen at different rates, but they are unusual across the board. As are serious complications. Gallbladder failure can happen with ANY surgery. It is caused by the rapid weight loss and low fat diet many adhere to post surgery. It is not unique to the DS or Bypass. I don't think DS and Bypass patients are choosing to punish themselves because they pick these surgeries. They pick these surgeries because of their own individual medical challenges and what they need out of their surgery. Most of us are working to heal various dysfunctional relationships with our bodies, or with food, or both. None of us are exempt from that. These surgeries are ALL support tools, not a punishment for past misdeeds.