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Drs Weiner & Pilcher are great. Lots of information of their sites & you tube channels. I’d probably avoid a lot of social media around weight loss. Bad advice, scary stories, etc. just to garner attention. I stumbled upon one that actually showed you how to purée burgers & fries to eat two weeks after surgery & how to eat around your surgery. Just horrifying! This forum is great. Supportive, encouraging & a wealth of experience. Was so helpful in the beginning & I still learn things about post bariatric surgery life. Personally, the sleeve has been wonderful for me. Do I have a few little idiosyncrasies? Yep but my tummy was fussy & a bit sensitive about certain things before so nothing really different. I lost all my weight & more & have basically kept it off for 4.75 yrs. Never ever been able to keep weight off for any length of time even a month. Does it take continued work? Hell yes. This is a forever thing. Can you eat the same as you did before? No. But why would you? I mean that’s how you (& we all) ended up obese in the first place. That’s not saying you can’t enjoy things you used to. You’ll focus on how much of it you eat. How often you eat it & even look for healthier, more nutritious versions of those foods. You’ll work out a way of eating that is sustainable, doesn’t limit or restrict you & allows you to live & enjoy your life as you want. Are there risks? Sure but there are with any surgery. They’re not common because the risks are very low (I read appendectomy is higher) & often are related to pre existing conditions. Sometimes issues are discovered before of after surgery because of the more intensive medical testing we undergo & then monitoring. Sometimes it’s just our own body & how it reacts which you can’t really predict. Most are easily remedied or manageable. I didn’t have any comorbidities before my surgery (though they were very likely in my future) so I can’t share my experiences with that. Do lots of research on reputable sites like those of the above doctors’ & here. List down your questions & take them with you to your surgeon. Ask for their statistics & experiences too. All the best with whatever path you decide to follow.

It's good to know everything stayed together!! LOL I ate some jello today and it still sat weird but not as bad as before. My stomach did the angry cartwheels thing it has taken to doing and then settled down. So I consider that a win! I get severe nausea from anesthesia for about 2-3 days afterwards, so I can empathize. It has finally abated for the most part unless I try to drink something thick.

I unfortunately fall in the "small percentage" Arabeque mentioned like you most likely could be. I, since surgery still feel hungry and no, its not head hunger. I, like you probably do find it annoying to have gone through all this only to be fighting the hunger yet again. I do know they say it can take up to 6 months for the nerves that register "full" to repair as they've been severed during surgery and I still don't feel full (its been 3 months). I just stick to what I'm told I should be eating and figure the battle continues. Lets hope your hunger levels out or its just the "head hunger" everyone says it could be. Just stick to the plan, drink water when you feel hungry and as others have said distract yourself. I know its probably not what you wanted to read/hear but its the hand dealt - learn ways to handle it. In my case, I want the weight gone and to be healthier more than I want to eat - so I ignore the hunger. Good luck - baby steps to thinner and healthy.

I live alone & had no issues at all. Just did any chores (laundry, dishwasher, etc.) slowly & carefully & took my time - I had all day to do them 😁. Had no trouble sleeping in my bed, getting up & down, showering, though I also did it slowly & carefully to ensure I didn’t pull anything. I have a cleaner who comes once a fortnight & she does the vacuuming, floor washing, etc. leaving me to do basic upkeep in between. My neighbours took my bins in & out for a couple of weeks because of the lifting restrictions. I grocery shopped at the end of week 2 to get yoghurt & a few other necessities for the purée stage. I asked the checkout staff not to overpack my bags as I’d had abdominal surgery & had restrictions on what I could lift. I made sure I had supplies of everything I needed before my surgery. So had all over the counter meds (non nsaid pain meds, Imodium, stool softener, hydralite, …), protein shakes, broths & soups, etc. But yes, some do struggle with movement like getting up & down, sleeping in a bed, etc. I didn’t have any mobility issues or difficulties before surgery which I think helped me.

Ouch you tore your toenail on the refrigerator? 😶😖 Yeah...I'm thinking its the weight loss...even if its still just a small amount. I'm going to bring it up at my 3 month check up..just to see what they say. Thanks for responding.

I started at 373 lbs. Two years later, I was down to 138. I had the expected "bounce back" regain in year 3 (unfortunately, I went over the expected "bounce back" weight of 10-20 lbs - but then, I'd lost a crap ton of weight - more than a lot of people) as GreaterFood said, 65% loss of excess weight is average, but as with any average, there are lots of people who fall above or below that. It all depends on how compliant you are with your plan, and your motivation. I was more than ready to get rid of that weight once and for all. I didn't originally set a goal of a normal BMI; I told my surgeon that I wanted to get to 200 lbs, which at the time seemed like a pipe dream - but I blew through that. I switched goals a couple more times, the last one being a normal BMI. I was told that was a bit unrealistic as only about 10-15% of their patients manage to get there, but I made it (and btw, that 10-15% stat is backed up by some of the research articles I read, too). but even if I'd only made it 200 lbs, I would have been overjoyed. I looked 100% better at that weight than I did at 373, of course - my health was much better, and I could finally do all the things I wanted to do but couldn't while I was super morbidly obese. life is absolutely terrific. I wish I had done this YEARS ago - and I would go back and have it done every year if I had to. I never dreamed I could be at this weight and I am really enjoying my life as a "normal" person again!! excess skin - I had a ton of it, but it was easy to hide in clothes. However, I eventually had it removed because I hated looking at it. But I'll attach a picture of me from BEFORE I had plastic surgery. You'd never know by looking at the pictures that my torso, especially, looked like a Sharpei puppy, but it did. Other than the scars, I have a normal-looking body now.

I am at the very beginning of my WLS journey and meet with the bariatric surgeon for the first time next week. What are some things you wish you had known or had asked questions about at the start?

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.

Hello I know everyone is different, but I would really appreciate any comments as to when you finally stopped losing weight after your surgery? I am nearly 8 months post gastric bypass, but have at least another 2st 8lbs to lose before I hit my goal (my goal is to be outside of the obese category for my BMI). Whilst I would love to lose more than this, as long as I lose another 2st 8lbs I will be happy as my reason for undergoing the surgery (other than for my own health) is because I want to undergo IVF. The further out of my surgery I get the more I am consciously limiting my calories and food, because I am just so scared of the weight loss stopping and I am finding it a struggle to shift 1lb a week. Which is making me worry that soon my weight loss will stop. I would say I am eating maximum of 800 - 1,000 calories a day. Any info would be much appreciated.

I’ve had the gastric sleeve January of 2015, gained a good amount of my weight back. Decided to take another approach and do it RIGHT this time around. 2 week pre op was tough but possible.. Now I’m post op 11/9/23 I had the switch. Thanks god everything went well! Just here with some pain and anxious to start my next phase :puréed 🤮

Honestly I think this is one of the reasons therapy is so helpful when going through this experience. Even if you don't go every week, having a person who has both perspective and understands the ins and outs of abusive relationships and how they echo through us for years after can be immensely healing. You are changing a LOT and it is normal to have feels about that. And he will have feels about it too, because he loves you and as you change, he will have to change in some ways too, to accommodate and appreciate the ever-changing being that is you! My partner doesn't care what weight I am. I gained 100 lbs since we were first married. We've been together 17 years. They look at me with just as much, if not more, desire than they did when I was young and smaller, which is hard to wrap my head around! They have always encouraged me to dress in ways that feel good. They prefer curvy women, always have. I have been worried that as I lose weight they might lose some of that attraction to me because in time, I will be smaller than they've ever known me, smaller than I've ever been in my adult life! But they assure me that while they aesthetically like the look of curvy women, they LOVE me in all my forms and my health and wellbeing is more important than anything else and no matter how I change, I will still be beautiful. If they loved me at 200 and they loved me at 320, they will love me at 170 or wherever I land. I've done enough work in therapy with the abuse I dealt with in the past to be able to trust what they say. But it still gets to me sometimes... Today I noticed my boobs have become visibly flatter. This is really hard for me because I LOVE MY BOOBS. 🤣 I have always been booby and I like it! Last year I found out I carry the CHEK2 mutation and with my cancer history combined with it I have a much higher risk of developing breast cancer than I'd like. The specialist I saw advised I consider an elective mastectomy after my weight loss stabilizes. I understand the logic, but I've already had to bid goodbye to my reproductive organs thanks to cancer, I wasn't expecting to have to consider saying goodbye to my boobs too. So I was standing in the bathroom today having the feels about my flat boobs and my partner came in so I pointed out the change. They admitted they could see the difference but very stubbornly said "These are my favorite boobs in the whole world. They are the best boobs ever, no matter what size they are." FFS, really?? Am I not supposed to cry at that?? They said something similar when we talked about a mastectomy. I feel very lucky to have a partner that can abide all the changes that I've gone through in this life and still look at me through the eyes of love. I hope I succeed at giving that back to them...

thank you for the facebook recommendation! i’m part of a weight loss support group through my hospital but they’re all in a significantly different age bracket than me so i’m always looking for groups with similar current life experiences to mine! good luck on your surgery next month! ill be keeping you in my thoughts and prayers. 🥰 i was a tiny bit worried that one year was too soon but i was so ready to do it now. surgery is complete! i requested to have an arm list at the last moment and they said if i’m still in a good state at the end of everything else then yes. THEY DID IT! it took about seven hours cuz i had tons of skin. they removed about five pounds from my back, ten pounds from my tummy, and six pounds from my arms! i feel great right now, but i’m sure that’s the pain meds talking lol. the cost was approximately $19,000 and that’s for tummy tuck with fleur-de-lis, lower body lift, 360 liposuction, BBL, breast lift and reduction and small implants, and arm lift. the price also includes pickup and drop off from san diego airport, a day exploring tijuana pre-op, lodging in the w hospital the day before and day after surgery, and then five days in their recovery home where i’ll have prepared meals and 24 hour access to a care team, medicine, and doctors. very much worth the price! and i went to multiple plastic surgeons in my area in the us and they were all $60k+ and i would go home day of! o.O i paid 1/3 of the price with significantly more care!

I didn't lose my hunger with surgery, it is still here. In fact, I woke up from surgery in the recovery room hungry. 😂 However, my taste buds have changed. It happened about 2 weeks out. I can't taste sweet spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. It sure does make holiday treats less tempting. My brain hunger is a lot quieter too, I'm assuming that's from the surgical effects on GLP-1 in the body...similar mechanism to what quiets head hunger on the meds. I don't know how long this effect will last. I had the DS so it alters more of your anatomy than a sleeve does, and there are metabolic benefits to that alteration. So I'm hoping it is an effect that stays around for a while.

by "second surgery", do you mean you have a second stricture that needs to be stretched? That's not unusual. I had to go in twice to get mine stretched - after that, I was fine - never had problems with them again. About 5% of bypass patients get strictures. The PA at my bariatric clinic said it's the most common complication - and it's an easy fix. They almost never happen once you reach the 3-month-post-op mark, so it's doubtful you'll have one again after you get this one stretched. you'll be able to eat more the further out you get from surgery. It's really just the first few months that you have certain food restrictions and can only eat a tiny amount of food. you should feel a lot better once they stretch out the stricture - and it's unlikely you'll have another one after this.

November 16 and I just started my 2 week preop and it’s brutal! Would love to find someone who is also going thru it!

This is good to know! I've been a little worried about it too. I'm having a DS in less than 3 weeks and there aren't many around to talk to!

400 does seem pretty low for three months out & that’s coming from a low calorie eater while losing (I was about 900 at 6months & took almost 3 years to get to where I am now at about 1500/1600). Though you can only eat what you physically can eat (quantity & quality). Best advice is to speak with your dietician to see what they recommend you should be consuming - we have different needs. Then work at slowly getting to their recommendations. They may be able to suggest some things you can add to your eating plan to boost your calories & nutrition (which is equally an issue to watch).

I was given samples of the Celebrate tropical chewables (the Celebrate One 45, which has 45mg iron) and one of the fruit calcium chew (cherry, maybe?). They were better than anything else I tried by far. I set up an account with Celebrate directly and have them ordered on a 3-month cycle. You can get 90-day bundles and save a little that way, and the calcium you can get with one bag in each flavor for variety, either fruit or the sweet treats (chocolate, coffee, and caramel). I don't have surgery for another month, but I started them early so I can get in the habit, and I actually look forward to taking them. The fruit calcium reminds me of Starburst, and the caramel is the best of the sweet treats, in my opinion. I also tried Bariatric Fusion and I found the texture and aftertaste unpleasant by comparison.

That's really great that you're able to tolerate things so well! When I was having trouble getting liquids in, my surgeon gave me an example: in the first week post-op, one of her patients asked 'is it normal that I can drink 80 oz a day in the first week after surgery?' and she said 'it's normal for you!' I wouldn't worry, every person is different.

Lots of nerves are cut during the surgery so messages either don’t get through or feel different until you’re fully healed (about 8 weeks). It’s why it’s important to stick to our plans, portion size recommendations, to eat/drink slowly & listen to our bodies carefully. When they do return you’ll be more conscious of them & may find they are different to what you knew. For example, you’ll discover your signals for real hunger vs head hunger are different (no cravings for a specific food, flavour or texture, & I feel restless) with real hunger). Some people sneeze or their nose runs when they’re close to feeling full or had enough. The tightness across your upper chest (makes me want to thump my chest to alleviate it - it doesn’t) is your restriction. This usually doesn’t kick in until you’re on solid food & your nerves are more fully healed. Yours may have started early. It’s usually your signal you’ve eaten too much &/or too quickly. Remember your tummy is quite small now, it doesn’t extend as low down in your abdomen & it doesn’t take much to fill it. Sometimes certain foods can set it off too if they sit more heavily in your tummy. It’s considered a benefit of the surgery. It can fade in intensity over time (years) & we also get better at understanding how much we can eat & so don’t feel it as often which really is the goal. All the best.

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.

My Costco keeps running out of Fairlife. I’ve been ordering from them online but it is a little bit more to have it shipped. I’ll have to try the cafe latte. I’ve been off Ozempic for a few weeks. Good news is that I haven’t thrown up for over a week a the bad news is that some of my hunger is coming back here at the end. I’m trying to drink water and remind myself I’m already down 30 pounds from this month of preop (my wife and others have made comments about looking skinnier). I’m still trying to mentally prepare for Monday. I actually read a few of the papers my surgeon wrote about bariatric surgeries and his view on the process. It was interesting. Tomorrow is my last day of work and I just want to get to it.

Surgery scheduled for December 4th, 2023!! I've been fast tracked because I chose to go the self-pay route VS Insurance. Doc wants me on liquid diet 2 weeks prior to surgery... so no thanksgiving meal for me. A little stressed & second guessing like a normal human would; am I making the right decision? Ultimately the answer is always YES. New things are always scary but there's no way to grow (mentally, physically, emotionally) if you never step outside of your comfort zone.

This is so true, you have to be your own best advocate!! I'm glad this time around is going much better for you! Make sure you get your rest, it is easy to overdo it at this stage, I am 2 weeks post op and pacing myself even though I feel like I have more energy than ever! I hope your recovery continues to go smoothly, you sure deserve it. ❤️

I think I was well over 3 months. Absolutely love them now though - they're one of my go to snacks. I had a sleeve, just in case you had a bypass. I stuck pretty rigidly to my programme - I know we get little demons saying 'try this, it won't do any harm' but luckily I managed to ignore them!