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Yay my nutritionist told me that I don't have to do the shakes just must eat a no carb, no sugar diet. So essentially just preparing me for the rest of my life. Also forgot to mention in the above post Height - 6'3" Starting Weight - 140kg or 308lbs Surgery date - 7th June and I'm Australian. I've struggled with my weight my whole life, can't remember being anything other than fat from about 8 years old, being teased, having to shop in different clothes shops, shopping used to make me so sad when I was younger. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease at the beginning of this year and one of the meds I'm on caused me to gain 25kg or 60lbs in 3 months regardless of what I ate. I'm actually so excited about this, it's the first time I felt this happy all year 13 days and counting Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

So I started my pre op VCLD shakes and Soups today, surgery date is June 7th. I'm still hungry but I don't care cause it will all be worth it in a years time I'm pretty sure I'm only allowed to eat, well drink lol the shakes and soups but I'm going to ask my nutritionist tomorrow. But after reading some posts I think SF jelly might be okay?? I took some photos of myself today in only my bra and underwear and I can't believe how huge I've gotten, I suppose you just kind of pretend that you're not. But no need to pretend now as I intend to look very different eventually Two things I'm worried about: 1. Saggy and baggy skin. My surgeon said the only way you can combat this is by exercising?? Is this true?? 2. I have an autoimmune disease and am required to take a sh*t load of drugs daily. Is it still easy to swallow pills after VSG?? Would love to hear about your experiences and any advice Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

That it's not shingles My nurse practitioner doesn't actually know what it is, and ordered lab work to test for autoimmune disorders (I have family diagnosed with lupus and MS). Don't get me started on what happened today when I attempted to get to my appointment for her to discuss my bloodwork - 5 minutes late due to a payroll issue at work and poof - they had cancelled my appointment and suggested that I call and reschedule! Their words were "we are too busy to fit you in now". In all my years on this earth I have NEVER had a doctor's office do that to me! And this is a podunk town of maybe 18,000 folks, not some big city clinic. Apparently I'm not sick enough for them to see me even being 5 minutes late, but it's ok for them to make me wait upwards of AN HOUR every single time. I take my health very seriously and try my hardest not to ever be late. Maybe others do this on a regular basis but not me. I will have to cool off before I call and reschedule that appointment.

No but an underlying autoimmune disease can cause fibromyalgia. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Is Fibromyalgia an autoimmune disease?

Hi LisaMergs!You are well met! Thank you for your advice. It is very encouraging to hear about someone who has had this serious of a problem and is managing well without nsaids. You hit the nail on the head when you said you were dreading being without your advil more than your favorite foods. I have been worried that I will be thinner but in pain. My quality of life is too important. I'm too old to worry about vanity...give me health! Girl you can have both health AND vanity! Take back your life! Lol. I'll be sure to follow your journey!!! As an aside, my surgeon, upon consultation with my rheumatologist, felt bypass was the safer alternative for me- with autoimmune issues. But that's me. Lol! I certainly am gonna give it my all. Thank you sooo much for your help and I hope I can one day return the favor. I wish you the very best in life and weight loss! ❤

In keeping with my rant about flying, does anyone have issues with their autoimmune when traveling? The airport and flight wore me out much more than I'd expected, and I'm glad I packed my pain meds, I definitely needed them the first night in the hotel. sent from mobile device

Hi LisaMergs!You are well met! Thank you for your advice. It is very encouraging to hear about someone who has had this serious of a problem and is managing well without nsaids. You hit the nail on the head when you said you were dreading being without your advil more than your favorite foods. I have been worried that I will be thinner but in pain. My quality of life is too important. I'm too old to worry about vanity...give me health! Girl you can have both health AND vanity! Take back your life! Lol. I'll be sure to follow your journey!!! As an aside, my surgeon, upon consultation with my rheumatologist, felt bypass was the safer alternative for me- with autoimmune issues. But that's me.

Gingeryank, thank you for sharing your post. Hope you feel and get better. After reading your post I believe my wls has been impacted with something similar to you but I'm just learning about my new symptoms and kept wondering why I haven't been as successful as others, aside from my injuries but also my pain which your posts rang a bell in my head. Reason why I've come here to search if anyone else with the wls was experiencing and autoimmune disorders since their wls. I need to find a specialist to help me find out if I suffer from any autoimmune disorder. What sort of doctor did you see for your autoimmune?? I had my WLS Nov. 2013 and due to low back and knee injury I was never able to workout nor do weights. I've lost of total 55 lbs combined pre/post surgery. I've gained a few pounds but have go up and down and have been able to maintain so that's a good thing. And even though I'm losing pounds I'm still losing inches slowly but still happening. I'm on the site today to research if any other have experience a sudden autoimmune disorders. I most certainly felt the fatigue after the wls but progressed and here and there when not feeling would go see me my primary doctor with symptoms of feeling achy flu like symptoms and she would order lab work and few times lab shows high wbc and she would tell me it could be S virus I'm fighting and just to rest up. More recently I've suddenly got a fungus on my toes nails, mainly the big toes, I'm very clean/shower etc and was dumbfounded to learn I had this toe fungus and unclear how I got it. Then I started getting these weird scaly red bumps that itch like crazy on different part of my body, they itch more at night. So I then went to see a dermatologist and prescribed Jublia for my toes nail and a fungus lotion for my body rash. Well 5 months out and I still can't get rid of both the toe fungus or rash that conf and go. Now another issue, with last 3 weeks I've been experiencing major pain/aches on my finger/hand joints So I started to research cause of fungus, joint pain and lean be yo possible autoimmune disorder and possibly to also see rheomologist for joint pain. What I've learned to eat for home all natural remedies is to eat fresh garlic and add apple cider vinegar to my diet/food intake which helps with detoxing our digestive system without killing our natural bacteria. I've also recently started to shed lots hair like I did 4 month after my wls. Since I had my surgery I also learned that it may cause autoimmune disorders and I believe my wls may be the culprit as I eat well and healthier more than ever and all these symptoms started after my wls. Today I go see my endrocongist and wil inquiring with her of yo refer to an autoimmune doctor, not sure if she handle these condition as she's treating me for my hypothyroidism which I became after wls and for my type 2 disburse which I had prior to my wls Thought to share my experiences and not sure if 100% related to wls but didn't have any of the issues before. I hope everyone feels and gets better and will share anything I learn as I go. Take care! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

@@bellabloom - I am so sorry you are dealing with this and my response is a bit off topic, but I wanted to mention something. Have you ever been tested for autoimmune diseases? The reason I ask is that many of your symptoms sound like what I had when they discovered I had Graves disease (and likely Hashimotos but long story on that). Graves is when your immune system attacks your thyroid and you become Hyperthyroid (not hypo which is what you hear most people have). it was discovered when I was 44 and still at 320 pounds. The thing is, I had massive hot flashes, sweating, sudden weight loss, tremors, heart palpitations, etc. With Hashimotos, your thyroid will swing wildly back and forth between hyper and hypo and some of your symptoms sound hypo (hair loss, cold, low heart rate). (I too swung back and forth which is why I think mine was also Hashimotos but they had already destroyed my thyroid before testing for Hashis.) Anyway, all to say, is it at all possible there is something else going on in your body? A good rheumatologist can run a lot of tests but if it is thyroid related, they will refer you to endocrinologist. Might be worth checking out.... Best wishes on your recovery.

One part is an autoimmune deal, but it should have resolved with the steriods already. I think I've stumped them.

My thyroid is dead and has been for the last 15yrs or so before that it was barely functioning from autoimmune disease and exposure to toxins. I take a high dose of synthroid every day to replace what I'm not making. Weightloss wise, it has effected me. I'm considered a "slow loser" by my NUT. I've never met one of her goals on paper, but I am still losing consistently for me(minus the many many stalls). I'm doing ok though. At the 6 month mark, I've lost around 105lbs since surgery and the rest was from my medically supervised weightloss.

Hi Jen: Are you seeing a Rheumatologist? If not you might want to consult one to help with a diagnosis. I went to doctors or 14 years, most of them told me that my symptoms were all in my head. It wasn't till I sat down one day and wrote down everything I though was a symptom and when I was done I had 2 sides of a piece of paper. I went and saw a new Rhematologist and gave him the paper with the symptoms, he spent an hour and a half with me going over everything and then sent me for a million x-rays and tons of blood work and some other tests. He had told me he thought I had reactive arthritis. I went home and looked it up and thought hum, that doesn't sound too bad. When he got my results he told me I have Ankylosing Spondylitis! I said what the HELL is that I can't even pronounce that. It is also a form of arthritis and is an autoimmune disease with no known cure. I also have a secondary diagnosis of rheumatoid arthritis , along with Fibromyalgia. He is constantly testing me though for Lupus, that's what they thought I might have in the beginning, but it is hard to diagnos. Don't give up on a diagnosis, only you know your body and you need to keep pressing the doctors for a diagnosis, not just arthritis of unknown origin. I am pre-op right now, but will be getting sleeved in July. My doctors say it should help with some of the issues I have. Also when you have one autoimmune disease, it is possible to have more than one of them. I hope you get a clear diagnosis in the near future it will help put your mind at ease when you have a name to what is causing you so much troiuble. Sorry for the long post....Jill

Hi, My name is Jennifer. I had VGS surgery October 17, 2011. My highest weight (that I am aware of was 308 lbs). I had always been heavy, but never had tipped the scales at over 300 lbs. I decided to research WLS and went to see my surgeon, Dr Audencio Alanis in August prior to my surgery. Dr. Alanis was knowledgable, kind, and understanding. His office staff (in particular his lovely wife), were more than helpful with choosing which surgery would best work for me, and with assisting me in getting financing for my procedure. I was able to be scheduled fairly quickly, and was excited to begin my new life! The surgery went as expected. I was up and walking around soon thereafter, and released the next day. Recovery for the first 1-2 weeks was painful, but I followed all of my post surgical orders, and the weight began to fall off. Follow up care was crucial during the first several months. By the summer of 2012 I was down to 242 lbs, but had hit a massive plateau. It didn't seem to matter what I did, the weight had simply stalled out. So, I searched for a trainer who could help me push past this mountainous plateau, and found one. I worked out rigorously (and I do mean rigorously - think Cross Fit) for months and was finally able to get down to 213 lbs. I had also developed a good little amount of muscle as a bonus. In the Spring of 2013 I began to experience severe pain in my lower back that spread down throughout my legs. I thought perhaps I had overdone it. That was not the case. To make a long story short, I began to get weaker physically, and the pain began to spread all over my body. After much testing I was diagnosed with Fibromyalgia, arthritis of an undetermined origin, and to this day continue to be tested for various autoimmune diseases. I am still waiting to be diagnosed on that front. Also during this time, I developed cataracts in both of my eyes. They quickly advanced and I was legally blind in at least one eye over the past 2 years. None of this was a result of my WLS. I have now had my cataracts removed, and am being treated for my pain levels. This leads me to my biggest problem to date. I had gotten down to 213 lbs. I could see 199 around the corner, and then it all went haywire. For 2 plus years I was able to keep my weight in the 215-217 range. I thought perhaps this wasn't bad because I have only been cleared to walk and swim as exercise now. Honestly, most times I don't feel like I have the energy for either. Then about a year ago I began to gain weight. At first I could get it to drop back down, but eventually it has continued to creep back up, and up and up. Two weeks ago I reached 247 lbs and was horrified. I started going back to Protein shakes, and salads, and have been trying desperately to not let myself slip back into bad habits. ​I am simply looking for anyone out there like myself, with a physical affliction who has gone through this and come out of it with better results than before. I worked so hard, and I can't stand the thought of not being able to lose not only the recent weight I have gained, but to never be able to reach my goal weight. Thank you for taking the time to read this. I am not a sad person with a sad story. I am someone who laughs a lot, and has faith. Just looking for any answers any of you might have. Jen

My primary doc has been pushing me for GF for years. The nutritionist I had to see pre-surgery was pushing it as well. I know some people do get significant relief from changing their diet. I just wish people wouldn't assume that because I can't/won't go GF or Paleo or whatever that I don't really care about getting better. There are more people with autoimmune that see no improvement with a change of diet than those who do. It obviously works for some people, but that doesn't mean it will work for everyone. I'd try it if I could manage it, just to see if I'm one of the people who would benefit, but like I said, I'm doing good if we stop eating out/drive through multiple times per week. Baby steps.

@@Scorpion11 I got the best results once I got referred out to a rheumatologist. Not all of them are as good as mine, but that's the specialty that usually has the most experience with autoimmune especially when it starts affecting the joints. Prepare for huge amounts of blood to be drawn, and lots of xrays! And sometimes it takes a while to get a diagnosis. I didn't show any specific factors in my bloodwork, just generalized inflammation. I had to go off the steroids (the only thing that ever gave me relief) and deal with the pain for a few months (without even Advil) before the swelling in my hands could be seen. Then my doctor gave me a diagnosis of non-serologic (no bloodwork that specifically indicates) rheumatoid arthritis last year. I'd been seeking a diagnosis for the pain and fatigue for about a year - I understand the average time from symptoms to diagnosis is around 5 years, so I count myself lucky. Then a few weeks ago a new symptom (plus an old symptom my doc had ignored) pointed to a new diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis. Not much of a change in the treatment, but it did move us along to a biologic medicine faster than we would have gotten there with the RA. Good luck, I hope they're able to find out what's wrong with you!! Edit to add: BTW, the WLS won't be the ONLY cause if you do have auto-immune. It can't cause it on its own. But if you had an underlying auto-immune problem, and just hadn't seen symptoms yet, then the trauma and stress of surgery and recovery could have activated it. It's a fine distinction, but one I think is important. Stress and trauma are known to trigger or flare auto-immune.

Gingeryank, thank you for sharing your post. Hope you feel and get better. After reading your post I believe my wls has been impacted with something similar to you but I'm just learning about my new symptoms and kept wondering why I haven't been as successful as others, aside from my injuries but also my pain which your posts rang a bell in my head. Reason why I've come here to search if anyone else with the wls was experiencing and autoimmune disorders since their wls. I need to find a specialist to help me find out if I suffer from any autoimmune disorder. What sort of doctor did you see for your autoimmune?? I had my WLS Nov. 2013 and due to low back and knee injury I was never able to workout nor do weights. I've lost of total 55 lbs combined pre/post surgery. I've gained a few pounds but have go up and down and have been able to maintain so that's a good thing. And even though I'm losing pounds I'm still losing inches slowly but still happening. I'm on the site today to research if any other have experience a sudden autoimmune disorders. I most certainly felt the fatigue after the wls but progressed and here and there when not feeling would go see me my primary doctor with symptoms of feeling achy flu like symptoms and she would order lab work and few times lab shows high wbc and she would tell me it could be S virus I'm fighting and just to rest up. More recently I've suddenly got a fungus on my toes nails, mainly the big toes, I'm very clean/shower etc and was dumbfounded to learn I had this toe fungus and unclear how I got it. Then I started getting these weird scaly red bumps that itch like crazy on different part of my body, they itch more at night. So I then went to see a dermatologist and prescribed Jublia for my toes nail and a fungus lotion for my body rash. Well 5 months out and I still can't get rid of both the toe fungus or rash that conf and go. Now another issue, with last 3 weeks I've been experiencing major pain/aches on my finger/hand joints So I started to research cause of fungus, joint pain and lean be yo possible autoimmune disorder and possibly to also see rheomologist for joint pain. What I've learned to eat for home all natural remedies is to eat fresh garlic and add apple cider vinegar to my diet/food intake which helps with detoxing our digestive system without killing our natural bacteria. I've also recently started to shed lots hair like I did 4 month after my wls. Since I had my surgery I also learned that it may cause autoimmune disorders and I believe my wls may be the culprit as I eat well and healthier more than ever and all these symptoms started after my wls. Today I go see my endrocongist and wil inquiring with her of yo refer to an autoimmune doctor, not sure if she handle these condition as she's treating me for my hypothyroidism which I became after wls and for my type 2 disburse which I had prior to my wls Thought to share my experiences and not sure if 100% related to wls but didn't have any of the issues before. I hope everyone feels and gets better and will share anything I learn as I go. Take care!

I had gastric sleeve oct 29 2014 and still have about 50 pds to loose. I have an autoimmune disease that causes inflammation and weakness in muscles. Anyway had a bad flare up and have been on 40 mg of prednisone for past month. I haven't gained any weight according to scale but I can tell in my clothes I have gained ... Very discouraged. I am praying that when I get off prednisone it will help. Has anyone experienced this ? Thanks Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Well i lost my way for the past year and need help badly... i will provide the background of my story & why im at a point where i really need help getting back on track. . I had my Gastric sleeve surgery in jan 2013. At the time i had been struggling with multiple autoimmune diseases ( sjnogrens syndrome, SLE or lupus, RA, fibrimyalgia) about 4 months post op my marriage was falling apart & the nasty 27 months of a horrid divorce started. I was doing well til i was diagnosed wirh cervical cancer in march 2014. That is when it really went down hill. sfter treatment i ended up back on more steroids and balooned. .. let me explain why...its a little long sorry. I hope you can follow and someone can help even if its just words of wisdom. i moved to New Mexico in 2007 from Michigan . When i was pregnant with my daughter that year is when i got sick.No one down in those small communities could figure out why! After she was born in nov 2007 i got worse & worse. On a visit back to my hometown in Michigan i fot extremely ill and decided enough was enough & went in to see the dr i had most of my life! After lots of tests he discovered i had multiple auto immune diseases. Upon returning to NM he had set me up with a rhuematologist in Lubbock texas which was 2 hrs away from our home in NM. This dr put me on such high doses of steroids & methotrexate( it looks like yellowgreen toxic waste & is used for cancer trestment as chemo therapy & also used on auto immune patients to eipe out their immune systems) injections that in Dec 2009 i had been hospitalized for weeks and my family had enough and moved me back to michigan. My ( now ex) husband went back and forth as he was a oilfield supervisor for halliburton. After moving back i got a good rhuematologist and internest. i was on 85 mg of prednisone a day at that point & it was killing me. I ballooned over 300pds. After i got pregnant with our son in 2011. Things got really bad weight wise. I was at 380ish at the time of his birth in april 2012. That is when my drs snd i decided gastric sleeve surgery was the only way that i was going to loose weight after several failed diets that they suoervised. Unlnowingly the stress i was under was not going to make things wasy. My son was born with a rare type of spina bifida called lypomeleomeningicle. He had surgery in sept 2012 at 5 months. They found things that they were not expecting when they opened my 5 month old baby up. Long story short we were at U of M for almost 3 weeks. Got home and within 45 min wrre rushing back & he had another 2 week stay. In Nov my body just gave out. I was hospitalized for 3 weeks. My drs said thsts it. Your approved for this surgery. They weened me off the prednisone which i was down to 35 mg a fay at that point. So end of dec 2012 and beginning of january 2013 i did preop. Lost about 38 pounds. I did well post op as well. But then my diseases slowed my healing process & progress had a few hospital stays. In April my marriage had gotten to its boiling point and began the process of one of the ugliest nastiest divorces i could have imagined. But i still was doing better and loosing weight everyday. I was ginalky able to participate in life again with my children etc. Instead of sitting on sidelines or canceling olans because i was sick. In the end of August 2013 i went out eoth some girlfriends ( i was under 300 pds by this time.) And met the most wonderful man. I wasnt looking at all it judt happened. We ended up habing one of those " holy cow what a small world" conversations. And how wed never cross pathsbor met before then was amazing. I was updront about my situstion, disease & gadtric skeeve surgerybupfront. And i wasnt looking to date. But from that night on we were inseperable. By Dec 2013 my divorce was in full swing but my soon to be ex husband was not happy that i was happy ( even though he never had been home even when he had weeks off and stayed 1500 miles away from us. whichbi found out he was having affairs when i decided i wanted a divorce because of a text my daughter whom was 5 at the time showed me. and when he was home he slept the whole time & never wanted to participate with our children or myself. even when i begged) he got a secret bank account & all our joint accts he closed and left me with NO money. Mind u he kept me a stay at home mom. He was very sbusive and controlling. Things were getting worse every day. My grandmother passed on dec 12th which is my oldest sons birthday. It was such a huge loss. In january 2014 i had alot of pain and called my gynocologist. I had a paps and check up in Nov previous and was all clear. They did biopsies. Long story short after 2 round of biopsies on my cervix and uterus. I was diagnosed with the end of stage 1 A cervical cancer. Jeffs ex was also a psycho. They had been divorced for a few years before i met him. He had one child with her.she had began withholding his son because we were dating. She knew many people i did and it got ugly. I was in no shape to handle all of the things thst were entering my life from his ex wife. but i had fallen so in love with him unlike id ever fallen in love with someone before. We ended up breaking up for oh.. a week.lol. and it was one of the hardest weeks in my life when it came to a break up. he still texted and called me daily. But he called begging for me to forgive him at day 8 & we got back together. I needed him. He hadd become my best friend & a huge support system. my divorce had gotten so ugly. My ex cut off the medical flex card i used for myself and the kids for copays on drs visits, medication etc. Mind u our son needed this as much as i did. He also came up unannounced and threw all of my things put. When i came home thst day after picking up kids he called the police and i was told i had to sleep somewhere else while he was home as he has no family etc of his own in michigan. This is when i had no choice but to move in with jeff. which was his idea. Its not how we wanted to do things. But my still husband was becomming increasingly physically , emotionally etc abusive and would show up unnannounced often. But i was fighting cervical cancer. Going through surgery & treatment. I needed almost 24 hr care or someone to be there. As i said things just kept getting worse. my treatment was done by august 2014. I tried working again. But ended up passing out at my job. friend of the court finally ordered child support to be paid to me that Oct. Things escalated to peak after that. Including me finally calling thebpolice after he assaulted me when we were doing kiddo drop off in dec. He fles the state when he foun out i called and filed charges. He decided he didnt want to pay 1800 a month in c.s mind u he was making about 260,000/ a year at thisnpoint. So in feb 2015 he wuit his job. By august 2015. He was behind thousands of dollars. I was in and out of the hospital and my drs snd lawyer felt this divorce would kill me before it was finished if it wasnt over soon. So i settled just to have it done. my kids & i had lost our amazing medical insurance when he quit Halliburton. Jeff and i had gotten engaged. For the first time in my life i was truely happydidnt say yes because i felt obligated because of my kids. ON Dec 16th 2015 my Jeff was at work and dell aprox 37 1/2 feet at work. His back explodednon impact as well as his spinal sac holding his spinal cord. It was by far the biggest trama of my life. So here is where i am worh my post op that i need help with. In feb 2015 i got shingles again asbi fo almost every year at that time. But i needed to be back on prednisone and lots of it for about 4 months. And have been on & off it til january this year. Between the steroids, stress etc i ate bad as well. but also stopped eating toom so when i did eat it was something fast. Especially since jeffs fall. Between taking care of him bow, my kids, my sons special needs which hes facing 2 surgeries one next month. My body breaking down. The fact i havent seen my surgeon for my sleeve since my ex quit his job snd we lodt thst medical insurance. I had gotten down to 170 pds. I began my sleeve preop journey at 396 pds. So that is 226 pounds and i felt i had reached my goal. But a month later is when the steroids started again and the climax of my divorce and then jeffs accident. Jeff and i did get married in january. Its not whst we had olanned. We had a wedding olanned, dress bought etc for October 1 2016. But for legal reasons etc and the fact i had almost lost the love of my life we decided to get married on jan 15th. So i know this is a long post and basically i laid my life out for all to see. But i need help. Im back to 240 pds. Jeff is also going on the diet with me. We began today. I don't have my diet book that i got when i had the surgery. If anyone has a copy of one they could maybe email me if love one. My husband has gained weight but has alot of muscle atrophy. Can anyone give any advice how i can get back on track. I know mh stomach didnt stretch out huge as it still only allows me to eat so much and i get full very fast. Im off the prednisone. But have been put on a new short term steroid. And i am not sure ifnit will hinder my diet. But weather it does or not i need to get back to my lifestyle. Yes it was a life style chsnge for me. Thank you for taking the time to read or give advice in advance. Again so sorry for the long post and kinda vent session. Lord knows i have alot to vent these days. Lol. Mrs.Krish Sent from my SM-G900P using the BariatricPal App

@@theantichick ... that was an awesome post about the interplay of fat cells, estrogen, autoimmune diseases, etc. I never knew ANY of that stuff! Thank you.

I asked my surgeon the same thing because I have an autoimmune disorder and I get sick often badly and he said if my caugh or cold is not very bad at the time of surgery then they can figure something out, if not they can reschedule. -Surgery Date 4/29/16

@@Amurillo04, you've got a lot on your plate. And you have some very significant issues not related to whether or not you have WLS. First, whether or not you take an antidepressant, and which one, is NOT up to your mother! It's up to you and your psychiatrist. Second, if you are not currently in therapy, I heartily recommend finding a therapist that uses Cognitive Behavioral Therapy - these are techniques you can learn to handle stressful situations so that they don't spiral out of control. Third, if you are not seeing a specialist about your psoriasis, you need to. Psorisis often has an autoimmune component and a specialist needs to work with you on this. These things need to be dealt with BEFORE you have any life-changing surgery. Why? Because having the surgery itself is stressful. You need to know what medications work for you for both the psoriasis and the depression before surgery. You need some tools to use in order to work your way through the immediate postop period. You've got a lot going on and I really, really hope you are able to get the help you both need and deserve for it all. Good luck to you.

@@t1da Thanks for sharing your story. I can't imagine the insulin/steroid combo and how that must have felt. I only had steroids to contend with. I'm down just under 40 lbs, so we have that in common. Maybe someone with type 1 diabetes will reply. If not, consider starting a new thread. The "autoimmune disease" title might not catch their attention. Keep feeling better, and good luck to you! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I was not a candidate for anything but bypass as I have autoimmune issues- rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and Hughes syndrome. And pretty much everyone I know personally had severe issues with the lap band and eventually had to have them removed.

Simply put, I do what works, and I don't count meals/snacks. I just feed my body when it feels like it's running out of steam, I put quality food in it, and I try to track calories. I admit that this is more of an intuitive process for me. I'm 5+ weeks post op, and I don't track every day (yet). I'm just finding my way, and I try to give myself a little grace. Stress doesn't help. I also take a lot of medications throughout the day due to a genetic, progressive autoimmune condition, so when/how often I eat also depends on when I need to take meds. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App