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1 vote for the next,president of Bariatric Pal Ms FLUFFY CHIX! Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

My dad was also on Metformin for years and the only hair loss he experienced was due to the natural aging process (he's in his 60s), but it seems to impact younger women differently than men from what I've been reading on various other forums like ones for PCOS and diabetics. A lot of women have talked about hair loss while taking Metformin, but aren't sure if it's the medicine or the weight loss it caused. With me, I lost most of the weight prior to taking Metformin, so I don't know if it's the weight loss catching up on my hair, or the Metformin, or something else. I haven't read any posts yet from someone who has had bariatric surgery and taken Metformin. I consume quite a bit of protein, but am no longer tracking exactly how much. I'm going to start doing that again. Thanks for your response.

If anyone needs a bariatric surgeon in Jacksonville, please give Dr. Sharma a chance. He took over the old office of Dr. Cywes. The number is the same, 904-399-4004. Dr. Sharma really listens to you has awesome bedside manners. FYI, Jody is there too!!

I began this journey towards a healthier life in March. Finally I have a date, August 1, 2012. Today I spent the morning at the Barix clinic in Pennsylvania. I had preadmission testing. After agreeing to give them my first born child if I couldn't pay my bill, (haha, no one wants a .22 year old journalism major), the fun began. I stepped on the scale. I was down 6 pounds from my consult. This is only about 1 1/2 pounds a month, but apparently was not expected. Everyone who entered my room started with "Wow, you've lost weight already." I thought this was the expectation, after all we all want a tinier liver before surgery. In my exam room I was given a gown that actually met in the back. Wow, love a bariatric specialty hospital. Next came the blood draw. My phlebotomist was excellent. As she says, "I do this every day" Thank God, because I really hate when people go fishing for my veins. Next the nurse came in to do an H & P, however the computer put a hate on her, so on to xrays. Had a total of 5 takes for 2 pictures, the first was fine, view 2- into the developer too soon. Repeat of view 2- artifact on the film from the developer. Shot 3 of the second view, I coughed which is not a good idea during a chest xray. Shot 4 after juice and a break=success. Next up- Respiratory therapy. First up, she did my EKG- no I am not confused, small hospital- every one has multiple jobs. Lesson for the day- Powder and EKG tabs don't mix. Then on to spirometer practice. You get to bring this home to practice before surgery. One more thing on the list- looks like a hooka attached to a piston. Next pulmonary function tests or PFTs. Does anyone ever realize how hard it is to exhale forcefully over 10 seconds? Apparently the 4th time was the charm. Yeah! Jen the nurse is back and has conquered the computer gremlin. She does a history, then gives me my preadmission and discharge instructions. What a great system. Patients should know what to expect before every surgery. My next visitor is Elana. She is the dietician. I am now the proud receipent of a glossy magazine style book with all my rules and recipes for taking care of my sleeve. She also reviews how to read a label and gives protien shake samples. I wish you could sample all, because some taste like medicine instead of food. My last hurdle- the independent physician exam. The good news, I passed, the bad, I still have low iron and ferritin levels as well as low B-12 levels. Back on supplements. How can someone who weighs almost 300 lbs now have enough nutrients? One of life's ironies I guess. After 3 hours I am on my way with a very heavy tote bag, B-12 tablets and overwhelming information. Now to digest everything in the next 2 weeks.

Hi All, I am new to this this community. I am happy to find a place where I can receive the support and knowledge I need. Here is my situation: In January of this year, my Kaiser PCP and I discussed bariatric surgery. He agreed to send the referral and to get the ball rolling. A few weeks later, I went to an information meeting and completed the psych exam a few weeks later. Since February of this year, I have heard nothing from the Kaiser Fremont, CA Bariatric center on my status regarding my referral. My doctor said that I qualified, and the psych dr. told me that my evaluation looked good. In the summer, I e-mailed both doctors. The psych dr. told me to talk to my PCP. The PCP told me that the program has over a year long list. However, I feel like this is too long to wait to hear about the status of my acceptance into the program. I knew that this would be a lengthy process...but jeez...just to get my orientation appointment or get the current status of my application. This process has left me discouraged and frustrated. If I am not being accepted, I would like to know so that I can plan my appeal or jump through more hoops or whatever. No one at Kaiser will give me a straight answer. I have asked to speak to the bariatric department directly to get more information, but the doctors tell me that will get me nowhere closer to moving the process faster. I could see reacting this way if I expected everything to be done in a month, but I have waited over eight months to even hear from Fremont. Has anyone else had this problem. Any suggestions? All help or any advice would be greatly appreciated!:thumbup:

I'm having the revision surgery cuz I've had nothing but complications with my band i have it for about 4 years I never could find my sweet spot is either over filled under-filled I just thought I would go about my business and deal with it! sometimes I can eat and sometimes I cant eat most the time I am vomiting because my food gets stuck I finally made an appointment with a new bariatric surgeon and found out that it slipped and is at the top of my stomach and bottom of my esophagus which means I don't have a pouch anymore so when I am able to eat without any problems I totally over it because I never know when I'm going to be able to eat again which sucks!!!!also I have a hiatal hernia I gained all my weight back plus a couple pounds and I also have slowly and gradually been getting heartburn more frequently I believe that is due to the hernia I was just approved by my insurance and hopefully get a call today to get my surgery date.. for the revision. I wish I would have went in a couple of years ago and caught it in time but I didnt there is no way that I would want to be re banded just to go through all of this again I want the damn thing out and I want a permanent change it is definitely scary though but in the end I'm sure it'll be well worth it!!! In facts my surgeon and a lot of Surgeons are not doing the Lap Band anymore because of the complication rates I'm happy for the people that have not had any problems or complications:) Sent from my SM-N910V using the BariatricPal App

This really is bariatric related. Today I received a visit from a very good friend of mine. He started out as a student. We became friends about eight years ago, and have been close friends ever since. He had sleeve surgery about four years ago. What is strange though, is that of all the people who knew I was doing this, he has been the least supportive. He practically begged me not to do it. He came to visit immediately after surgery, and fairly shocked me with his imagery of huge sandwiches, sumptuous meals, and high calorie Desserts I would never be able to eat again. I have been learning more about him and about this new lifestyle, and how the two aren't working out so well. We are still friends, and will remain so, but following is a lot of what I learned. My friend is one of those who is failing, and will continue to fail. I am pretty sure he was coerced into the surgery by his wife, who didn't want to see him dying prematurely of all the things that were going wrong with him. As far as I can tell, he never really bought into the premise of changing his lifestyle along with the surgery. As such, he has not changed it. He had enormous success during the honeymoon period, but has since regained at least 80 lbs of the weight he lost. His blood pressure problems have returned, and if I had to guess, he is going to have blood sugar issues again, if he isn't already. So he came to visit this morning, and we had a fairly blunt conversation. He was impressed with my progress to date, so I let him know, un no uncertain terms, that it was because I was FOLLOWING THE RULES. He does not eat Protein. When he gets hungry, he will eat a small piece of fruit, or a vending machine snack. He will often eat a Caesar salad for lunch. On his way to visit, had a coffee roll as the sole sum and substance of his Breakfast (along with coffee, which he drank to wash his roll down). When he is not hungry, he will not eat. I offered him several items, including some freshly made chicken salad, which I had for my mid morning snack. It was no go. It was kind of sad. I discussed some of his culinary choices, and offered him some ideas (he refuses to talk to a nutritionist). Simply put, he has not changed his mindset, and is fairly surprised that I have. But that is the difference between success and failure. While he was here, we were out doing some recon at the local Cabela's. I am about to embark on making my own beef Jerky, so I wanted to peruse the offerings they had in the way of food dehydrators. They didn't really have anything that got me excited. And we really did go to Taco Bell. We were on the way home, and I knew he had to eat something. Heck, I knew I had to eat something! So I asked him if he liked Taco Bell. I already knew the answer. It was kind of funny though. Even though he is completely off the reservation on content, he is chained to his sleeve for volume. So we go walking in, and up to the counter. I ordered a beef and bean burrito, figuring I would eat the insides and scrap most of the wrap. I also ordered an unsweetened iced tea for later on down the road. My friend said to the guy, "Can I get just one taco?" The kid taking our order looked at us like we were some sort of weirdos, eating practically nothing. He asked a few times if that was all we wanted. The total for our tab came to $6.43. For two people. I almost burst out laughing at the expression on the kid's face. As we were sitting at our table, slowing eating our pittance, a hugely overweight woman came lumbering by. She could not contain her interest in seeing two big guys eating almost nothing, and doing it very slowly. I almost wanted to get up and tell her why. He munched down his entire crunchy taco. I ate the insides of my burrito, and had a couple of very small bites which included part of the wrap. I tossed the rest of it. My friend was impressed that I did not stuff the whole thing down my neck. And the tea? It was awful. I don't know if my taste for tea has changed, or if it was just this batch or this brand. But I won't be getting any Taco Bell tea ever again, unless I am about as desiccated as a mummy. As for my friend, he has all the tools he needs. He just needs to change his attitude. I hope he does, now that I am in this thing right along with him. Why am I posting about this? This is for any of you out there who might be tempted to be like my friend. Most of this is in your head. You will win or lose mainly because of your mindset. Your sleeve is a tool, and one of many. If you learn to use your tools well, you will do well. If you think they will do the job for you, and you need not put any effort in, you will be left wondering why others are enjoying success while you linger in the land of the large.

This is a 4 year old thread so you may not hear back from the previous posters. I’ve heard great things about Doctors Wilhemy, Esquerra, and Ungson at Mexicali Bariatric Center. People I know that had DS surgery there were very happy with the experience and have had great weight loss & maintenance results. You couldn’t make a better choice as they’re the preeminent DS surgeons in Mexico. Good luck!

Mostly it depends on what you are going to eat. There are a ton of bariatric cookbooks out there. But I did find this link: http://obesitycoverage.com/before-after/top-7-apps-after-weight-loss-surgery/

Hello. It's going to be a month since I had the surgery. I'm 29 years old and having this surgery was about the idea of wow, being able to lose weight, not be controlled by appetite. If you follow the 4 rules of my surgeon then I'll get my weight loss down without being hungry!! It seemed like a dream. Well it has been hard. I did practice eating without drinking before surgery and it was difficult at first, I didn't notice how much I would drink to get what I was eating down. Well this past week I started solids. It has not been fun. I notice that even tho I chew my solids, I am still doing something wrong because I throw up after. I have not had dumping. I eat what is on my sheet. I concentrate and eat, but I guess my bites are still bigger than they should be. They told me a chick pea size bite (check), chew it 30 times, (well I honestly can't chew it 30 times) stay the table for 25 min. (I get full before the 25min.) Eat sitting down (this is kinda new to me too) Drink 64oz of Water (this is also hard, because you can't just chug water you have to be consistent and remember to drink) I have also been good at drinking water, and crystal light, and if I feel like I don't have energy because I couldn't keep up with my meal I drink gatorade. Anyways this is where I am, everyone around me says I look great, That I look younger. I went down 2 sizes for my top, being a 3x and now 1x, and 1 size from my jeans and sometimes 2 depending on the brand. I was so happy. This is hard tho. It wasn't as easy as I thought. Sometimes when I have been throwing up this week I asked myself. Was this worth it? I was clearly upset because every meal I was throwing up, trying different foods and having the same outcome. I have narrowed it down and I have to be believe that I am not chewing enough, that has to be it!! I know my surgery was worth it. I can climb the stairs without shortness of breath, I can clean my bathroom without taking breaks, I took my 7 year old son out because I haven't been tired. I got on a Ferris wheel (I could always go on a Ferris wheel, but I was always worried with my weight) and loved it. I speak without hard breathing anymore. For the last 3 weeks I felt great. Even tho I couldn't eat certain things, I wasn't hungry. I'm not going to lie tho, at night I thought about food. It doesn't mean I was hungry because I was not. I would be watching my hour of t.v. after I put my son to sleep and the commercials, and my imagination. It seems funny now, but I realized I have more of a problem than I had realized. I wasn't going to eat because again I wasn't hungry, but being in bed thinking about food, made me realize I have a problem with food. Before surgery I was a person who ate 2 huge meals a day. They were usually store bought too. I also drank a lot of coke. Like a lot maybe 4 coke cans a day. When I went to discuss this surgery with my surgeon he told me, if I gained 1 pound, I would be exempt and wouldn't be able to have this surgery. I cut my coke to 2 a day, but continued to eat the same about but I would kind of say healthier, as in no longer burgers and pizza, but more Proteins to see if I could eat chicken, fish every day. It turned out I could, I also gave up eating potato bread, well all bread but that was my favorite. Anyways of course everyone one here knows that changes have to be made. I made mine. I wish that before I had surgery I would have read someone else's take. I think besides wanting to write it all like a journal right? Anyways it has not been easy and this week with solids, has been hard and draining. I have to continue to move forward and if it means to just eat completely alone with a sign in front of me to chew or else I will throw up, I will have to do just that. I can't wait to see what a couple of months has in store for me. To have more energy, to change my life from sitting to actually getting up and having energy to go out and do something. To be able to go to the zoo with my son without having to take breaks. To be able to go to Lego land next year and be able to get on the rides with my son, and not having him go with another family member. To go bike riding. Damn so many things I will be able to do, just now to clean my bathroom without having to stop to have some rest is awesome. I have read some people say they see someone to talk about their ideas of foods, and I think that is a great idea. I think I will look for someone who helps people after bariatric surgery. I just wish to meet people who have had surgery around the same time I have and I can have a buddy. I think it's easier when you have someone to talk about it with!!

Barimelts, Bariatric Advantage, and Calcet Creamy Bites

I agree with @@Bertie16 - the Bariatric Advantage caramel ones are my favorite. It's like eating candy.

So.........you're flying to Siberia or Venezuela from Newfoundlad? My best suggestion would be sealed sample packs and a shaker cup. Ask the flight attendant for Water. I buy bariatric supplies from Bariatric Pantry and Bariatric Choice all the time. Bariatric Pantry has a sample pack of Syntrax Nectars here: http://www.mybariatricpantry.com/SYNTRAX_NECTAR_PROTEIN_POWDER_SAMPLES_p/nectar-sample.htm

I did not find a lot on Dr. Wilhlemy on this forum, so I wanted to share my experience for anyone researching him and the hospital in Mexicali. I flew in from Canada to have a revision from LB to VSG done. I learned about Mexicali Bariatric Center by 3 coworkers that had been there to have surgery with Dr. Aceves and they spoke very highly of the hospital, the staff and had marvelous results! I must admit that I looked at a couple lower priced places but immediately knew that I wanted a certified doctor a certified hospital, a place where I knew patients were having very good long term weight loss results and my chances of a complication were low. I found all of these in Dr Wilhelmy and the magnificent team at Mexicali Bariatric Center. I also found a lot of caring people, professionalism and made friends for life! The experience started out a bit bumpy because my flight was delayed for 5 hours. I had to be in San Diego Ca before 11 am and this delay would make me miss the shuttle to Mexicali. I called Nina at the office at 5 am ( sorry about the time honey) practically in tears not sure what to do. She calmed me and assured me they would not leave me in Sd and we would make it work. She kept her word and they had a driver to pick me up and take me to Mexicali that same day. It was too late to have all my tests done that evening so I just had EKG and x rays and spoke the nutritionist and bariatric doctor, Dr. Campos. Dr. Campos did a barium swallow and checked my band. Everything looked good. Yolanda and Carla met me and helped me through this stage. I spent the night at Lucerna Hotel and thanks to the sleeping pills I had a good night sleep. Ernesto, the driver, was bright and early at the hotel to pick me up and took me to the hospital. I had blood work done that early morning and was admitted into the hospital. We waited for my test results and in the meantime I was put on the IV, I was given blood thinners and did the final paperwork. Time flew by, my tests we done, I saw all doctors that morning, internal medicine doctor, anestheologist, Dr. Wilhelmy and nurses Sergio and Esmerald. By 9am I was in surgery! My band was removed and my sleeve done that morning. Surgery took 1.5 hours and was told I had a lot of adhesions but nothing they had not seen before. Phew! The next 3 days passed so quickly. I was in the hospital for 3 days in total, I had 3 leak tests and recovered without any problems. The attentiveness of the nurses was impressive. They have a caring spirit helping patients get as comfortable as possible and always with a smile on their face. The cleaning ladies are there all day, they clean over the clean, I swear I wanted to take one of them home! I saw the doctors 2-3 times a day and was reassured daily about my recovery and my questions were answered. My husband talked beer and sports with the doctors, he is a big fan of both so needless to say he is now a big fan of MBC's doctors too. I had NEVER gotten this care anyplace else. I was not a number, I was a patient, someone they cared about and that along with their surgical experience make them an exceptional medical team. It was a very big difference from my band experience at home.

Has anyone ever used or heard of omnifast? I have to be on 4 weeks of liquid meals (3 a day) prior to surgery and that is the name of the supplement I have to purchase from the bariatric clinic. I was wondering about cost and taste/flavors. Also, I have a flex health spending account through my employer that I think will pay for the omnifast as it is required for surgery, although I suspect it will require a medical necessity letter from my dr.

HAS ANYONE used DR. KRAHN from WESTERN BARIATRIC.

I struggle with the same thing. I am definitely still low energy. My surgery was 3/9/16. I think it is pretty common to be totes the first few months. I guess no one posts they are too tired to work out in Instagram. I have done workouts, but I was super tired the next day. Everyone keeps telling me it is still very early on. I have a bariatric small group training I do that really helps. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Hello, sorry this is going to be long. I hope someone will have advice. I had Rny in July of 2014. Since surgery I have been extremely exhausted. I have had my blood work done. Many times. My hands and feet go numb. I have a vibration in my left foot that feels like I am stepping on a cell phone on vibrate. Sometimes I get dizzy even when sitting. And my feet will sometimes just not work. It's all mostly in my left foot. Sometimes I have a hard time lifting it and it feels like it's not there. I also get body tremors. Mostly my hands. Sometimes my whole body. They have tested my bloodwork, did a CT scan looking for ms or brain cancer. They have done an emg. I have seen a neurologist whom looks at me like I'm insane. I am about 10 pounds under my goal weight. And I either keep losing or stay where I am at. My bariatric program has high turnover for all their staff from Dr's to secretaries so I have been doing all my follow up with my primary Dr. I take a multi Vitamin, Calcium with Vitamin D, Biotin, fish oil, b12, and Iron ( iron every other day so I don't get constipated) potassium and magnesium. I was doing them all twice a day but my neurologist took me off of them all to see if I was having a reaction. I added them back in once a day myself because i started getting horrible migranes. I juse added b complex and a vitimin d pill to see of that would help. So far it helped with body tremors but my hands still shake and I still have all other symptoms. I'm tired of seeing Dr's. I just want to feel half way normal. Any advice would be appreciated. Sorry it's so long.

Do you have any bariatric stores near you? The one by me allows you to try samples of all of them for a small price. Vitamin Shoppe has quite a few sample packs to choose from (next to the big containers on the shelves) and GNC has Quest protein sample pouches to try.

Welcome. By the way there is a bariatric surgery support group that meets in Bloomington once per month on the west side.

Know this an old post. But this is very common. Id imagine every surgeon doing bariatrics using some kind of local block. From what ive seen the most common is a transverse abdominis plane block. Depending on how stingy the hospital is they could use some longer acting medication for this (lasting 48-72 hours) instead of the "basic" stuff that many use that lasts 6-12 hours. Regardless I always see pain medication given on top of this, as its easier to avoid/prevent pain than to fix it after the fact.

Biotin does not help and taking it could impact lab work so best to not use it. The hair loss associated with bariatric surgery (and other surgeries, acute illness, and trauma) is called telogen effluvium and has to do with the normal hair growth process, stress to the body, and hormonal changes. It often starts abruptly and doesn’t usually last longer than 6 months. Not much you can do to prevent it from happening or shorten the process.

Take a very deep breath and decide if you are truly ready for this to happen. If you are, none of the other stuff should matter at all. Take things one step, one day at a time and that is how it all becomes less overwhelming. This includes the 3 week diet. It really is not that bad and will kick start your weight loss, ensure you have a healthier liver and make things safer. I can tell you that every bit of this is worth it in the end. I am 14 months post op, down 135lbs and 10 lbs from my goal. I thank god everyday for putting the Bariatric community on this earth to help us get healthy. When you feel the stress practice breathing very deep, it can be calming. Good luck to you!

I got my first appointment with the surgeon at Fairfield Bariatrics today. The secretary said that they had verified my insurance and I am covered. :tt1: My first appointment is on July 3rd 2008 and I cannot wait. I received my benefit package from Oxford Health and it said that as long as the surgeon authorizes the lap band procedure, then it is covered. It also stated that I don't need to see a psychiatrist. Everything is going really well and faster than I expected. I am a little scared but mostly I am excited. I even got more hours at work so I will have more money. I told my friends at work and they are all being so supportive. So are my kids. I am sooooo happy :cool:!!!!

I had my RNY on Tuesday, and am tolerating liquids ok. I was also able to mix 1/2 scoop of Protein shake powder with 8oz of Water, and sipped 1oz every 15 minutes, as advised by my surgeon. However, when I tried a teeny bit of yogurt, I had heartburn for 3 hours. I have to crush up my Nexium and anxiety medicine, and the taste literally makes me heave when mixed with water or Crystal Light. So that's why I tried the yogurt. I literally had maybe 1/4 of a teaspoon. So now I'm not sure when to try it again. I'm also finding that a few of my incisions are starting to itch. They were closed and a medical glue put over them, and I will not scratch them, but it's becoming more difficult not to. I hope tomorrow to have the courage to try one of the Bariatric Pal Soups, since I'm supposed to be able to try strained cream soups. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using BariatricPal