Search the Community

I’m just about 3 days post op and I’m experiencing more pain now than I ever have. That’s because I thanked warfarin due to my blood clot and PE problems. Any time I have surgery I must stop the warfarin and have Lovenox injections in my belly it causes large hard hematomas. They are painful. When I had my surgery Monday 11/01/21 and it was a complicated one and add the hematomas on my belly I’m in so much pain. No amount of medication will Make it go away.

Hi I had my op 3 weeks ago. I lost 5kg in my pre op so was over the moon and in the first week of the op lost another 6kg, but for the last 10 days the weight has fluctuated up and down by .5kg. I am following everything. Is this normal? Am i expecting too much? It feels a bit disheartening

It has been 7 months since I had my ESG procedure in March. What a weird ride. I guess I'm just posting this to muse on the situation as a whole. Wall of text time! Six Weeks of Suck A six week liquid diet was awful. It went in 2 week chunks and degraded over time. The first two weeks, it was amusing. I got to tell people what was going on! The first entire week I was basically sleeping anyway and took sick days, so it was just me, in bed, playing Pokemon Sword. A weird sort of vacation, really, even if half of it was crippling nausea and whining to my husband. The next two weeks was boring and a bit annoying, but I at least got to sip chicken broth and relish the fact that my food tasted like actual food. (I bought a jar of low fat chicken gravy at the store at one point and sipped it in the car while feeling like some kind of jewel thief having pulled off a heist. It was the best food I have ever eaten.) The last two weeks, I just wanted to strangle the doctors for not letting me eat solid food. Six weeks! People who have literal stomach removal have less time than that! But no, the surgeon said that six weeks was because the sutures are internal, and thus are constantly disturbed, so in a weird twist they take longer to heal than gastric sleeve surgeries. Did I mention basic recovery sucked for the first few days? When I came out of anesthesia, the doctors said I had been under for a long time, because I was just too sleepy to actually wake after I was technically conscious. They kept me until I could walk, which was way longer than they thought. Even walking down the driveway made me so tired I had to lean on someone. Going to the bathroom and back to bed was enough to take a nap afterwards. I had to rotate constantly to stop feeling nauseous or crampy. I emergency-called the doctors for some more anti-nausea meds because the first ones just didn't work well enough. Then, like magic, around day 7, it all stopped and I could get up and do stuff normally. Not being able to lift more than 15 pounds or whatever the limit was, was almost a deal-breaker. I work with heavy machinery a lot, but I saw that problem coming. My long-suffering (but kind) coworkers carried things for me. But at home, do you know how many things weigh 20 lbs? Stuff full of liquid is right out. A gallon of water by itself weighs 9 lbs, heaven help you if you have to carry anything else with it. My husband had to haul our pet food and litter bags, which we buy in 50 pound sacks because we hate having to shop a lot. Even normal grocery shopping bags can approach 15 pounds if you fill them full. When I was still exhausted, I had to get a very confused Target employee to help me carry a single bag out to the car. I'm sure this guy had no idea what was going on, with a 30-something woman shuffling up to him like an old lady and holding out a fairly light bag and asking if he would be wonderful and carry this to her car because she had picked up too much stuff and now her body was saying it was time to sleep right here on the floor if she didn't hand it off. Did I Cheat on the Diet? Yes. 100%. I absolutely cheated. I cheated like a soap opera spouse. Honestly, the lesson I learned was that this really caused no harm whatsoever. Probably a bad lesson, but in the end, it made those last two weeks bearable. The doctor said clear liquids only, but I added in pureed chunky soups, Greek yogurt, and scrambled eggs. I chewed for a long time and made sure everything in my mouth was blenderized into pure liquid, and I still ate incredibly small meals. But really, anything to get me off those fake-ass protein shakes. I didn't tell my team the extent of the cheating, but I never felt any pain, and I still made my calorie and macro counts. The first day I let myself eat tuna from a can was the day angels sang in my ear. I furtively snatched it up at CVS, a tiny can the size of one of those Fancy Feast cat food tins. I snuck it in the car and dumped the can in a recycle bin before my husband could see it and wag his finger. Oh, it was good. What I'm getting at is that I was losing my bananas during the last 2 weeks of that dang liquid diet, and I needed something to eat that felt like real food, or I was going to crack. I think this worked out. Have I Lost Weight? 45 pounds so far. From what I can tell, there is really no way to beat the "1-2 pounds per week" rule. No amount of surgery was going to take my resting metabolic rate of 1800 and somehow get 5 pounds a week out of lowering it to 1000 cal/week. I think all the "omg I lost 10 pounds my first week" is water and glycogen, no matter who you are, unless you're very obese. Water weight will get you early on. If you gain weight or have not lost weight even 3-4 weeks after the procedure, it's probably still water weight. There's no way your body can retain fat on 1000 calories a day unless you have a disease/disorder. You will gain weight abruptly when you start putting food back in your body. I'm shocked at how much food in various parts of digestion weigh. That said, according to the Mayo Clinic, food takes about 36-48 hours from entering, to exit your body. Think about how much you eat in 48 hours. Let's say, for round numbers, you eat a meal weighing 3/4 lb, 3x/day. So that's 2.25 lbs a day. 48 hours is 4 days. Before the meal on day 1 exits on day 4, you've put a total of 9 pounds of stuff into your body. 9 pounds! That's like 4 weeks of weight loss, supposedly gone immediately! But it's not. If, like me, your last weight reference was right before the surgery, you fully blasted those 6 or so pounds of food out of your system with the absolutely awful colonoscopy cleanse they made you drink. You know how much you ate at each meal before surgery, at least ballpark. Add those "phantom" pounds to your hospital weight, and you have your "actual" weight. So my actual weight was really around 260, not 251, because it was 251 with my entire intestinal tract scrubbed to a bile-yellow liquid shine. (Ew.) Basically, expect water weight to cover up early weight loss and food weight to cover up weight loss about 1-2 months in, depending on when you're allowed to eat solids. Frustrating Points I am still not particularly lower in my dress size. I have absolutely lost some inches, but it seems to be coming off relatively evenly, so I'm still a 16-18 in a dress. I'm frustrated, because part of the point of this was to fit into my old college clothes, but I expected to lose a couple of dress sizes in 45 lbs of weight loss. I still have a bunch of clothes sitting around waiting for me to be able to fit them. That said, women's clothing sizes are stupid, and I really don't know what my dress size was when starting. I thought it was 18, but I gained weight over the pandemic, so I have no clue anymore. Awesome Points I can eat what I want. Seriously. The physical size of my stomach limits me from eating a lot, but I can eat single meals, and usually they last me the entire day. I routinely take home leftovers now. But in the end, the food I want isn't fast food and pizza -- though to be fair, I still do eat pizza. I just eat way less of it. I don't have to optimize now, and my body seems to actually obey calorie counts now without getting hungry. I still eat pizza every so often. I still have dessert. I had candy on Halloween. I still don't eat salad. In the end, I feel like this was what I wanted: the ability to eat the food I actually like, socially, while having my body go in a direction I don't hate. I have actual hunger cues now, and I'm not constantly thinking about food. Would I Recommend ESG? I will tout ESG from the tops of mountains now. Some suck early on for a feeling of actual control over my body and a sense that I finally obey physics as I know it? Yes. Yes, please. I should have gotten this years ago. When my parents offered to cover weight loss surgery when I was like 23, I should have said "YES NOW" instead of "ugh why would you offer that?".

14 days post surgery - got my sleeve at 8:30 am on Oct 20th. I've followed the program perfectly - easy, since I have little interest in food - and been able to get in 60 grams of proteins every day and 64 ounces of water every day, although it was not easy the first week. First week was rough - felt bad physically, pain from surgery and from drinking/eating, fearing loss of food enjoyment as a thing in my life. Days 7-10 I started to gradually feel better. By this last Monday, Day 12, I guess, I felt totally normal, back to myself. Although I don't crave it, I find drinking a tasty broth or eating a sugar free jello or pudding pleasant. So much better. I averaged 300-350 calories the first week and 500-600 calories the second week. Down 12 lbs since surgery date, total of 22 lbs since pre op diet, and 40 pounds since I started the bariatric program in July. Sometimes it feels a little unreal, and I'm startled I undertook something that is going to change my life so profoundly, but I'm looking forward to a future with improved mobility and health (I hope) or at least proud I have done all I can to move towards that goal.

OMAIGÁ. I could take one of these suckers plus extra B12 and my calcium (separate from the iron) and just be DONE. Thank you!! Note: These are US$13.40 for a 30-day supply from the maker, $16.99 from BariatricPal, and $19.99 on Amazon. Use code Susan10 (as of today) for 10% off on the maker's website, so it'd be $12.06.

I had hernia repair and pouch reset 10/25/2021

Hello All, re-sleeve is feasible. I was resleeved on 10/27/2021 original surgery was in 2017. However insurance paid both times. My surgery was the exact same as the first, through the same incisions. 

So all my life I have had period issues. When I was a teen and into my early 20's I was on birth control pills to give me more normal and regular periods. Was also told that it would help my PCOS, Endometriosis and Adenomyosis . My GYN really wanted me to get a hysterectomy saying that was really the only thing that would cure that stuff but I wasn't ready. I was also young and not sure if I wanted another kid or not. So I didn't get it and stuck to the pills. And the BC pills worked for a while. Until about 10 years ago when I was diagnosed with high BP. Then the doc took me off of them. I was back to square one with the monster migraines, heavy, clotty periods, the periods coming whenever they felt and staying as long as they wanted sometimes lasting like 14 days at a time, etc. Right around the time I was diagnosed with high BP and taken off, I was also diagnosed with Insulin Resistance. So my endocrinologist put me on Metformin and said that would help the IR and PCOS/Endometriosis/Adenomyosis issues and help me becomes regular again without BC pills. And it did!! I would get my period like clockwork within a few days time (usually every 28-33 days). And it usually only lasted like 4 days. So I get the sleeve surgery and was told that my periods could be irregular to start. It was kinda heavy the first few times after surgery and lasted a lil longer than normal but nothing nuts. One of my main goals for getting surgery was to get off of my medication or at least have it cut down. Well on September 13th I had my Metformin cut in half by my regular doc! Needles to say I was very happy! However I now think it's the reason my period is 47 days into my cycle today, 16 days late!! Like I said, I had gone to the doc Sept 13th and got my last period on Sept 17th. I've yet to have one since!! I swear weeks ago I felt like I was gonna get it. I had the aches, the tenderness down there and in my breasts, etc. so I'm not sure why it hasn't come. Has anyone experienced this? I do believe it's due to the Metformin being cut in half. Otherwise it would be very coincidental it was anything else like me going through the change/menopause suddenly when I've had no other signs or symptoms thus far. Has anyone gone through something similar? And no, no chance of being pregnant. Hubby was fixed years ago. Don't really wanna have to go on the pill again just to be regular. And especially not now since my BP meds have also been cut down and I'm doing great BP-wise.

I suggest you check out "My Level 10 Weight Loss" videos on YouTube by Erin Branscom. She had surgery in Mexico and has a FB group (private, $10 a month, but I think it's worth it!) where many people talk about this. However, this is not really "research". I think you would have to see if there are any clinical studies on patients who had their surgery in Mexico and compare them to patients who had their surgery in the US, but then I'm not sure if you'd find those studies. You could contact ASBMS (American Society for Bariatric and Metabolic Surgery), to see what data they have, but I suspect they are biased in favor of people doing it in the US. I wouldn't have done it Mexico. Sure it's cheaper, and most people come out fine, but what if you have a complication? Some doctors in the US won't treat you if you had your surgery elsewhere - at least based on some posts I've seen. And you may have to take a flight home. It's risky to fly right after any surgery due to the increased risk of blood clots, which are also increased if you are obese.

ditto what Hop Scotch said. A 10-20 lb gain after you hit your lowest weight is VERY common. It's not inevitable, but it seems to happen to most of us. It's just your body settling in at a weight it wants to be (a "set point"). Of course, you can always go lower, but it'll take effort if this is indeed your new "set point". I know - I first gained 10 lbs that I was actually happy about since I'd gotten too low, but these last 10 lbs I am NOT happy with. It's a constant battle. But it can be done...

slight weight gains when you're in or near maintenance are very common, but I'd try to get ahead of that because it could start getting out of control if you're not careful. It's way easier to lose 5 or 10 lbs than it is to lose 50. I've been in maintenance for about five years now, and I allow myself a few lbs of fluctuation, but when my weight gets up to my "oh crap" number, I spring into action. It's all hands on deck until I'm safely back in range. If 172 is comfortable for you, maybe have 180 as your "oh crap" rate? (just a suggestion - you could make it anything). To get back down, just really buckle down and make sure you're following all the rules until you're safely back down to where you want to be. note that a 10% gain (10-20 lbs for most of us) is VERY common after you hit your lowest weight. It usually happens during year 3, but then, you lost your weight very quickly, so you're likely already in maintenance even though it's only been a year (and congrats, by the way!! That's an impressive loss!!). That 10-20 lb gain is not inevitable, but it seems to happen to the vast majority of us without much "effort" on our part. I think it's just your body settling in at a weight it wants to be (not saying that you're doomed to stay there - with effort, you can get lower - but our bodies do seem to want to settle in at some "set point" - unfortunately, my "set point" is about six lbs more than I want to be, so it's a constant struggle!!)

Hi there! I just had a VSG done on 10/27. I have PCOS also. It’s too early for me to tell how the surgery has affected the syndrome but the nurse practitioner stressed the need to get on some sort of birth control post op because fertility does usually increase after bariatric surgery. I’m interested to see what others say. Hope all goes well with you.

Going down the water slide on a cruise ship without getting stuck! (Yep, I did it about 10 times!!)

We are at the end of day 4, our surgeon only had us do 10 days. It has for sure been a struggle days 3 and 4 but hoping for it to slowly start getting better!

I’ve tried Miralax, Milk of magnesia. Senakot and none of them worked. Unfortunately the only thing that gets things moving for me is Exlax (which causes pretty painful cramping 6-10 hours after taking) and sugar feee chocolate. I know the sugar free chocolate isn’t the answer even though it’s within my calories for the day, so I do the exlax every week and a half. I do have bowel movements 2-3 a week otherwise. Coming from a consistent 1-2x a day my whole life, this has been a frustrating change.

that price is insane. I bet I spend $10-20 a month tops. I just get a bunch of drug store vitamins. If you have a Flexible Spending Account (FSA), they may cover vitamins if your clinic writes them up as a prescription and says they're medically necessary (which for WLS patients, they are...)

Hi! I had my surgery on 10/11, too! I’ve been feeling pretty good actually. I haven’t had any issues with foods (although I miss bread, I really want a good deli sandwich). I’ve been good about listening to my stomach when it’s full and not over eating. My go to was scrambled eggs and the ricotta bake for dinner! I moved onto soft foods today, had 1 hard boiled egg with a turkey sausage patty, and chicken salad with avocado for lunch so far! And keeping up with my water and vitamins although sometimes it’s hard to get to the 64oz of water every day without wanting to chug.

I am The Most Unlikely CrossFitter (started at my heaviest weight) and also mourned the enforced detention from the barbell. I was told absolutely no weight at all for two weeks, walk only. After my two-week visit, I was cleared to for running, jumping rope, and biking (but not rowing, just because of the mechanics of it) and given a 10-lb. restriction which I will freely admit I stretched to 15 lbs so I could use a training bar. I went back to the gym and modified things heavily. I was cleared to return to the gym fully at 6 weeks which was last week. I strongly, strongly suggest you plan to go slow as you return. If you used to go five days a week, go 2-3. If you went 3 days a week, go 1-2. Scale. Absolutely. Everything. Your body will hurt just like it did when you started, and after the gyms reopened post-quarantine. We are finishing a strength cycle that I wasn't here for, so I'll just be kind of doing moderate weight and seeing how my mechanics have changed (cleans feel TOTALLY different), and will start the next strength cycle. I will say that my running got better IMMEDIATELY. I went from a 14-minute mile where I had to stop and use an inhaler, to an 11-minute mile in just four weeks, and my inhaler is in a drawer. I ran an 800 m in under 5 minutes and didn't die. I actually can't wait to see how much closer I can get to a pull-up or a toes-to-bar with the increased mobility and less of a leaden weight in my @$$. Oh, and for what it's worth, I was able to pull 60% of my heavy deadlift for 5 reps absolutely cold the week I returned. Will there be strength loss? Probably. But it's not as bad as I feared.

@Kaguragetshealthy_87 we are born again sister my gastric bypass was done 10/28 and finally all my numbers are heading into normal will be finally discharged today by the Grace of God. Is great to know you are at home and recovering. Thank you 🙏 for always sharing

I am 10 mos. post RNY and am recently diagnosed with Covid. I am well past the recovery time you are specifically asking about. I have lost all taste and smell. As a result, I need to be especially mindful of drinking and eating. It’s not usually an issue for me. Right now, I’m eating mostly shakes so I can maximize my protein intake. I can eat and am not nauseated but with no taste, have no desire for anything. I’m hoping I regain my senses sooner rather than later. I believe that’s happening as I’m starting to get tiny bits of taste here and there.

Hi guys, so I’m nearly 5 years out from gastric bypass. Original weight was 364lb I went down to 153lbs and was scheduled in to have my excess skin removed. The operation was cancelled due to Covid (I’m in UK) but during lockdown I’ve developed really bad eating habits and gone back up to 196lb so again of 43lb :( I’m absolutely devastated. Enough is enough I need to get this weight off and look forward to my skin removal. I’ve been looking at the 10 day pouch reset and thought yes it’s just what I need to get my brain back thinking about good food and good portion sizes again. For me food is an addiction so it will be incredibly hard but I’m determined. I was just looking for some good / kind words from anyone who tried this and succeeded. Success stories/tips would be much appreciated . Thankyou x

I’m having a consultation with the surgeon tomorrow and have lots of questions, but following a telephone consultation with a clinic admin/advisor with the provider a few days ago, they have said I’m not suitable for a bypass as my BMI is too low at 37.7. I wanted a bypass and concerned a sleeve won’t be effective. Three things I’m concerned about are: 1. I’m honestly not a big eater. I eat two meals a day and glass of orange for breakfast. My two meals are a single sandwich (usually cheese) for lunch and then a dinner. Dinner is typically a portion of tortellini and baked courgette with a couple of slices of garlic bread. Not huge portions. I do drink alcohol most evenings…3 glasses of wine as average. Some evenings I’ll have a bag of crisps (26g) too. My kids, friends etc comment on the amount I eat being so little. I don’t eat any sweet things. I sit at a desk at least 10 hours a day as I own my own business. I go home and sort my kids then work more. Very sedentary lifestyle. Will a sleeve be effective? 2. The admin asked if I suffered acid reflux, to which I said no, but since looking into a sleeve I’ve learnt that this includes indigestion…which I do get, especially at dinner with my kids (the arguing, bickering usually accentuates it!). Will the consultant think I’m making this up as I was so set on bypass? 3. I’ve read the sleeve isn’t as effective as bypass and it concerns me that I may only reach part way to an ideal bmi. I think if I’m doing this, and self funded, that I want to go all the way with it. It’s disappointing that I may not reach the best outcome with a sleeve. Can anyone weigh in on this (excuse the pun!).

@Cookie.Monster My gallbladder was remove prior my gastric bypass last year to exact. The pain I had from that surgery was greater than my gastric bypass and hiatal hernia. To my surprise the risks are a bit higher than gastric bypass. I had low grade fevers for like 10 days, felt my upper quadrant if as someone had punch 🥊 a million times, I did manage though. Hope you feel ok 👍 just talk to your surgeon 👨‍⚕️ and speedy recovery

@Arancini I'm doing good. I was in hospital 5 days, had stomach drain removed after 10 days. It was key hole so I have 5 holes plus the drain one. The drain is still healing but nicely. The main work site is still bruised and tender but surgeon said I will feel swollen and pain for probably a few months. It feels like I've been punched and punched and punched but it's not as bad I thought it would be. I'm just over 3 weeks now and progressing from mush to more solid mush if you understand. I will be under the hospital for a year. But mine was done private and its a package which covers a year. I see surgeon again 18th. But see my nutrition lady and bloods doctor on Thursday where he will advise what supplements I require. I add protein powder to food 3 times a day to keep my levels up and do b12 injections once a month. How are you doing? My hardest problems are in the mind. I was brought up yo have 3 meals a day Breakfast lunch dinner But now I'm on 7-8 tiny meals a day which I think is too much in my head but they are the portion similar to a very small yogurt. But to eat anymore makes me so ill. But the advice my nutrition lady gives me is spot on (she has trained to do it I suppose) Stay strong and positive G Xxx

It's strange but I've had a stuffy nose since my surgery 06/10 But now everytime I eat my nose runs? Strange