Search the Community

How do people going about dark sad feelings when doing the gastric bypass diet when you have zero friends or family who support you? I've been having this problem and it has been a struggle. I feel very alone and when I'm lonely and sad I want to eat but I know I cannot emotional eat. On top of that my wls surgery is May 15th so I cannot afford to do that. I feel like I've been feeling a million emotions at once. It's very hard for me these few weeks between not being able to eat much, only liking water and ice and it hurts to swallow due to my bad allergies, I'm just miserable! I just feel like I wish I had more people to vent to about these feelings besides my bariatric journal or my psychologist. I notice when I talk out my emotions it's better instead of feeling them because they derail me tremendously.

My first appt. was with the bariatric doctor in April and I had one in May, June and July. I didn't go to a PCP (didn't have one) until June and she sent me for the blood work and did the EKG, etc. She also signed the required letter stating she recommended me for the surgery. Keep in mind, if your insurance is like mine, you have to have 90 days elapse between the 3 physician visits before submitting. For example, you can't go for the first on June 30th, next on July 30th and last on August 1st. I am thinking you will have to submit in Sept which is right around the corner. My surgery is tomorrow. Woo Hoo! Good luck to you and stay positive!

I have been struggling with my weight since I gave birth to my first kid. I will never forget; I was 185 lbs when I left the hospital (19 yrs. old) and it’s been a roller coaster since. When I left the hospital they put me on the Depo Provera birth control shot and I blew up. I figured that was the best option since taking my BC pills daily was a concern. I was too busy enjoying life lol. My weight at that time increased to 260 so I went on a serious diet and was able to lose 48 lbs. I went down to 212 lbs. and that was my lowest weight in my adult years. My weight gradually increased again but I never went over 260 lbs. I was always lucky enough to maintain that weight. I would occasionally go on diets to lose weight when I had something big coming up or going on vacation, but of course nothing last. I tried Weight watchers, Curves, Phentermine 37.5 mg, Zantrex 3, and the Lemonade diet. I was able to lose the most with Phentermine but I think my body got too used to it in the end. Up until my I had my 2nd child I didn’t really worry much about my weight. I figured as long as I don’t go over 260 I’m good. Well that quickly changed when I had my son. I was 240 lbs. when I got pregnant and only gained 20 lbs. during my entire pregnancy. I was active and tried my best to limit my calorie intake. However, after I gave birth it was a wrap, my weight increased to a whopping 270, and when I got laid it increased to 313. My highest ever! I started thinking about Bariatric back in 2012 but it was going to be the lap band. After speaking to a few ppl I realized it wasn’t for me. My son is now 5 and weight is something I think about constantly. It’s hard for me to keep up w/ him and I find myself missing out because I pretty much hide in my house. He spends a lot of time w/ his father or his sister because it’s hard for me to move around. I get tired quickly, my body starts to ache, and I just don’t want to be seen. I told myself this is not a way to live life and I’m missing my son grow up so I finally make the decision to do something about it. First it was the Sleeve, but after further research and speaking with ppl that had both surgeries done I decided to change my mind to the Gastric Bypass. My surgeon’s office submitted for approval last week and I’m been impatiently waiting. I’m scared to death, but I know in the long run this is the best option for me. When I started the weight loss journey I was 306 and now I’m at 280. Once we get the approval I will start the pre-op diet and hopefully will be able to lose another 10 lbs. before surgery. My goal weight is 175 but my doctor wants me to get down to 150. Personally I think that’s a bit small but he knows best.

I'm glad to see this article. In my opinion, not enough attention is paid to the consequences of Vitamin deficiency. Only rarely are the potential problems described in any detail, but the fact is that Vitamins are really crucial for all our bodily systems. Bariatric surgery--hell, even a general low-calorie diet--can lead to vitamin deficiencies if we're not careful. So take your vitamins!

I wasn't approved due to credit issues, but you can apply at Plastic Surgery financing & Cosmetic Surgery Financing Nationwide. It was a very simple process to apply, you can do it on line in just a few minutes. Then they will contact you within the following days to let you know if you can be approved based on your own information or will offer to re-run your application if you can provide a co-signer who would be qualified. My friend got this information from a reputable LapBand clinic in the area where we live. They provide loans for all medical services-not just weight loss surgery. As for the coverage through your medical insurance.... it sounded like you had already been told that your plan doesn't cover it. If you have a benefit booklet you should look through the list of plan exclusions, or call Customer Service and they can tell you. If your plan excludes obesity treatment then regardless of medical necessity you will most likely not be approved. I worked in Customer Service for a BCBS plan for years and I was the one struggling with obesity myself having to tell people that it wouldn't be covered when they called crying... that was always hard. Only in the most extreme cases did I ever see them approve the surgery outside of the contract. Also, just because you're dealing with a BCBS plan doesn't mean that it will be covered because others are telling you that it was for them. These are independent licensee's of the BCBS Association and they all have their own rules, often times based on mandates required by the state where they are located. One thing you might consider is finding out which employers in your area cover bariatric surgery through their medical plan and seek employment with them... these will be larger groups that make their own medical benefits. Also, it seems like more and more insurance carriers are choosing not to flat out exclude obesity treatment, so you might also check around with insurance carriers, call customer service and ask if, as a general rule, their community groups and individual plans exclude obesity treatment.... if they don't exclude you could look into getting individual coverage or see if you could find an employer insured with them to work for. Be careful of waiting periods for pre-existing conditions.... and there will almost certainly be some requirements for proving you are worthy of getting coverage for the surgery. If you are with BCBS and you do get approved there is a chance that they will require you to go with a Blue Distinction provider. You can find out who the Blue Distinction providers in your area are by going to Blue Cross Blue Shield Association - Better knowledge for healthier lives. My own surgery is scheduled for Jan. 3, 2008. My employer covers it after proving medical necessity, but unfortunately the benefit is 50%. In my area it is pretty typical for the surgery to run around $16,000 and I had to do a lot of work on my credit before I could get the financing for the $8000 that I will have to pay. You might want to start on that first if you are going to try to get financing. Check out your credit report if you haven't already and make sure there aren't any surprises on there and make sure anything unpaid gets paid if possible. That will only be to your benefit. I was declined by surgery loans, and Wells Fargo before finally getting my credit report cleaned up and getting approved the middle of October (I started the process in July). I wish you luck!

Great news Tricare does cover your sleeve, they don't cover the band because they insist it be done in an overnight facility and most lapbands do not require that. That being said I had my sleeve done at a miltary facility and it was fabulous. At my support meeting last month they brought in a local hospital to talk to us about their bariatric center and the fact that they were going to take a few of the patients scheduled for surgery at our local military hospital because they are in the midst of a move to the larger hospital here in town over the summer. So it is possible. I wish you the best, please call tricare and check it out, I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

@McButterpants. Thanks so much for the response. My pre op two week diet required I drank Bariatric Advantage shakes. I did the vanilla and was fine with it. After surgery I now have no tolerance for sugar or the sweetness of the shakes. I actually enjoy the unflavored protein in the skim milk. Strange, right? I'm glad that you say you still drink a shake. The shakes are the only way I'm able to meet my protein goal. I'm two months today, no weight loss in two weeks, but I'm mostly happy about my decision.

I am in shock and so upset. I needed my pcp to fill out a form for medical necessity for the surgery. She also needed to fill in my weights, comorbidities and also a years worth of progress notes from my visits. I faxed the form from work to their office, with a letter stating they could notify me when completed and I would pick it up. Well......a coworker came in to me today with a fax for me. All of my personal health information, my weight for the past year AND the fact that I am in the process of qualifying for bariatric surgery was for anyone to read. They randomly faxed this information to my employer. I have no idea how they got the fax number. I could not believe it. My employer has no idea I am having surgery. Or at least HAD no idea. A good friend got the fax and brought it to me. Next thing I knew, another person gave me another copy that was faxed. Not sure what else is floating around. I am hoping it wasn't read, and I did ask the coworker to keep it quiet. I blasted the doctors office. But I am truly so upset. I wanted to wait until I was approved before i told work. I just feel like any moment someone else is going to drop off my personal health information at my office door Just venting. Ugh!!!

You posted that you work within the same hospital system as the office where the fax came from. If you look at your HIPPA documentation there is a statement in there that there is a relaxing of HIPPA rules when "communicating within the same hospital systems, and their representatives." Was there some mistakes made? Yup.--on both sides. In this day and age, no one should never fax personal information that you want to keep confidential--unless you KNOW that the fax is going to a PRIVATE fax machine/computer. Once again, I have to question the reasoning of "hiding" one's bariatric surgery?? Are you ashamed of having it?? --afraid of what others with think?? Does it really matter? Aren't we all supposed to be having WLS for OURSELVES?? Especially those of us who work or have worked in the Healthcare field. I would hope that we would want to set an example.--to stand up proudly that we had the courage and determination to conquer our "disease demons". I find absolutely nothing to hide nor be ashamed of by having WLS. Once we try to hide it, cover it up or lie about it, --that is when the spider web of telling two lies to cover up one lie and so on and so on. I don't know about you all, but my memory isn't good enough to remember what lie I told to whom. Getting back to the faxing fiasco: Lesson learned by all involved--I hope. You know. I've been sitting reading and rereading this trying to decide if I was going to comment. Sorry, but the ugly monster got the best of me. Valentina- I may be new-ish to this forum but why do you think it is ok to bash someone who was sickened at the thought of her personal information being spread around a large office? You say you aren't ashamed of having surgery- good for you. But do not project your opinions on others as though you are right and they are wrong. In fact- YOU are shaming anyone who does not subscribe to your belief that you need to tell everyone your business. Heck- I bet you have told tons of people who actually couldn't care less. Who we choose to share our surgery with is our own business and ours alone. That goes for you. Rent a billboard for Petes sake. But don't think for one moment it is ok to tear down those who think differently from you. As for Hippa laws- there has not been any "relaxing" since the days it was set in motion. Your facts are wrong. I've been a healthcare provider since 1985. Been there. Done that. When she is acting in the capacity of a patient, her rights are to be maintained just as any other non-employee patient.

Maybe this info will be helpful to someone: So I was stuck at a plateau weight for a couple of weeks, and I was okay with it b/c I know it happens. But then I actually GAINED weight. In fact, I was feeling overall lousy, bloated and sluggish, with headaches and stomach discomfort. Frustrated, I called my bariatric team and they asked me to give them a run-down of what I was eating. I was drinking a protein shake every day for breakfast, sometimes another protein shake for lunch, and sugar-free pudding was my go-to snack. Long story short, turns out I am lactose intolerant, and the protein shakes I was drinking are made with milk protein, a/k/a lactose. What I thought was helping was actually sabotaging my efforts! I stopped drinking the shakes, cut out milk-based products and BOOM started losing weight immediately! I'm told that it is very common to develop a lactose intolerance after VGS surgery. Had no clue.

At five weeks, I was just a few days into eating cooked regular foods as tolerated. But, since your doctor has you on a slower transition, you should just roll with it. I am surprised that you seem to be eating mostly carbs. Even at the mushy stage, you can eat regular food, just cook it to softness and then run it through the blender a bit to break it down. On soft mushy foods, I was eating yogurt (protein), scrambled eggs (protein), refried Beans with cheese and a little sour cream (protein), beef stew run through the blender (protein), moist chicken meat (protein), moist ground beef or turkey (protein) and steamed fish (protein). Let the blender be your friend. For every 1/2 cup of Protein, I was to eat two tablespoons of veggies. One of my biggest issues with food was changing my habits developed around food. I loved sweet rolls, muffins, pancakes, etc. for Breakfast as soon as I opened my eyes - sweets with a cup of sweet tea. Now I have eggs for breakfast, but one day it's a fried egg, one day it is boiled, maybe another day it is a small cheese omelet with sauteed peppers, onions, mushrooms and ham, and today I am eating deviled eggs. lunch was frequently an hour after breakfast. Now I make a point to drink at least two bottles of Water before I eat anything else, and then it is a snack. Today I had a gherkin and an ounce of cheese. Some days the snack is 1/2 an apple with a tablespoon of Peanut Butter. A couple of days a week, my snack is 1/3 cup yogurt with some berries. See, it is not the same every day. lunch is now early afternoon, and I am starting to eat more tuna salad and other cold salads and vary the ingredients. My late afternoon snack might be a little dark chocolate with a handful of almonds. In my soft phase, yogurt was my go-to. I could put a little sugar-free jam in it to give it a little flavor. Supper was any soft meat I wanted plus a couple of spoonfuls of mashed veggies. My favorite was/is green beans because they are not starchy. My bedtime snack, if I have to have one, is usually oatmeal with stewed apples, or 1/2 banana and peanut butter....there are so many things you can do. Meals cannot be the highlight of my day anymore. I have to be creative and find interesting things to do that don't involve mindless munching on popcorn or chips. Bariatric surgery changes your life. You need to think differently to feel differently and get healthy. This gets better as you graduate through the various phases because your options open up. No, I do not eat Pasta anymore. Last night for dinner, I had two meatballs with spaghetti sauce and parmesan cheese, and a few green beans. I have had pizza a couple of times and just use a fork to pull the goodies off the crust. There is no flavor in regular crust anyway. It's just a plate you can eat. Dessert will be a peach, not peach pie. Put on your thinking cap and get creative. Drink water, sip, sip, sip until your eyeballs float. You can do this!

Hello surgery buddies! I like that we can share our experiences with each other. I’m thinking of you all and hoping you all get better in your recoveries! I got in quite a bit of walking yesterday and that makes me happy! I’m doing well on liquids and I actually had a tiny bit of butternut squash soup last night and it was amazing! I was not discreet about my surgery. All my close work peeps and friends and family know. At first, I got some negative feedback like “well I’ve heard so and so had a bad experience...” blah blah blah but I was like look this is my body and I’m excited for this change! After that, they settled down and started supporting me. I finally got my Bariatric fusion multivitamin with 45mg of Iron yesterday from Amazon and I have felt good the past two days from taking it. I’m down 10 pounds today and 36 pounds altogether with pre-op weight loss. I started about two months before surgery eating less. I was only having one meal a day and ensure max protein twice daily. I’d have a banana or cottage cheese when I felt hungry in between. I still had a rough go on the pre-op liquid diet tho, but thank Goodness that part is over! I hope you all have a great weekend! Hugs

There is nothing scary about going to Mexico as long as you pick out an excellent surgeon. I was banded by Ortiz and have nothing but wonderful things to say about him but Rumbaut and Kuri are also very good too. As far as your aftercare each of those surgeons bariatric coordinator should be able to give you a list of docs in the US who will take you as a patient for fills. Or you could contact Inamed and they will help you. That is key to being banded in Mexico though, make sure you already have that straightened out before you go. *(Unless you live in Cali or close to Mexico where you can drive there). I don't know of any docs in the States for as cheap as 8K but I have heard the Wish Center doing it for 10k. I have also heard good things about Capital One for financing for surgery from others. I got a 0% credit card and put my expenses on that. $8500 was the total for Ortiz and it was worth every penny. Good luck on your upcoming surgery! ~Liz~ 03/10/06 241/167/160 5'7''

Yep, if you have a 40,plus BMI you have met the criteria. Come,on down Daizeoh, you are the next lucky contestant in the Bariatric Bowl a thon. Step,up to the line, lose some weight,and put a pretty smile on your face. And h -e -r -e we go! Sent from my VS880PP using BariatricPal mobile app

Went to the seminar on 3/14 and have since seen surgeon, had EKG, and met with all the specialists the surgeon requires (NUT, fitness, mental health). I still have to do my pysch eval next week (nervous!) and then submit for insurance approval. My insurance has their own bariatric coordinator that I've had to speak with as well- I think all the various things that I've already had to handle the past month have maybe made it seem like more time has passed? Idk, just feels like I've been waiting forever and I've only been in the process for a month. lol Surgery date is looking like very end of May- maybe the 30th. I can't wait to actually know my date though- I think that once I know how much longer I have to wait I'll calm down some.

Hey Tracy, I live in the Topeka area... I had my banding done a the Tallgrass Surgery Center. Dr. Brent Steward was my surgeon and he is great. He has a wonderful bedside manner and answers all of your questions for you. I will give you a more direct link to the Tallgrass surgery center, and I can also give you the email address to one of the bariatric coordinators so you can get more answers. Feel free to email me and I will give you the email address as well as any other information you want. http://www.tallgrasstopeka.com

@@tracybshaw , call your insurance and ask if you fall below 40, will this disqualify you. My bariatric center requires all patients to ask our insurance this. My insurance (BCBS Ohio) doesn't care as long as you qualify at initial weigh in. @everyone else with thoughts similar to Mexciosleever's, I encourage you to research. It is insanely popular for those with a borderline BMI to make the same decision for WLS as you. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Mmmmm well my doctors (both Bariatric surgeon and OB/GYN) said I should be fine trying for pregnancy 3 months post-op provided that I do my labs prior to trying.. They don't usually recommend that for anyone else but I have much less to lose anyways and will probably lose all my excess weight at 4-6 months.. So I guess it's safe to start prenatals now Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I had purchased patch vitamins and EZ melt vitamins to meet vitamin requirements. Purchased Propel water at Sam's club, 15g protein, 0 cal, 0 sugar to meet liquid intake to prevent constipation. Purchased from Bariatric pal soups, chocolate drinks, shakes replacements to be sure all protein was met. After surgery on the 28th of August 2020, no pain, some discomfort. Went home the next day after x-ray showing no leakage at Mayo Hospital in Florida. I did walk in place in the hospital to help release excess gas. I did purchase a abdominal binder on Amazon and used it after the surgery. This helped a great deal and Dr said this was a good idea to do this. My goal is BMI 20 or less. Enjoy your healthy journey. Dr. Stephen Bowers did over 1000 gastric bypass surgeries and he was awesome.

I think it's good you are questioning if you are ready for surgery. I say that, because I think some people go into this unprepared. I see it all the time here, head hunger. I can safely assure you even though many don't admit it, if we're to the point of having surgery. We have food addiction issues. I took a year, before surgery and got into intensive therapy. Because I am a food addict. That's how I got to 345lbs. I weighed more than that in my life too. I am just like any other addict. (I am disabled, so I don't drive, and rely on others to take me shopping) I hid my consumption from others, even the food I was buying in my cart. I lied to people about what I was eating. Or that I was making food for others, and it was really all for me. Whole batches of cupcakes and pans of Enchiladas or enough donuts, chips and Snacks to kill an elephant loaded in my cart, was explained away as food for an upcoming party. I started panicking when I was getting low on my favorite foods. I, an out of control diabetic, was eating extremely carb heavy meals, topped off with 3 cupcakes and big glass of milk, and would sit on the sofa....and start nodding out like a heroin addict. I'd sleep for hours, wake, repeat. That was my life. Trust me, I am so aware I could fall off that wagon at any time. Emotional upsets tend to set me off...but, with the help of my therapist who I still see, twice a month, helped me find other things to replace that good feeling I got from nodding out on the sofa. Now, that I am 50 lbs away from my goal...I am so determined, and have said goodbye to not only 145lbs, but all those huge clothes that used to hang in my closet. Along with all those bad eating habits I had. Gone, but not forgotten. I kept the outfit I wore the day of my surgery, as a remembrance of where I came from. My surgeon told me, I shouldn't experience physical hunger, and for the past 10 months he's been right. I have not had physical hunger since my surgery. He did his job. I did my job too, because I have not had head hunger either. That was because I worked through the what's and why's. What happened in my life that made me want to eat my emotions? What was missing in me that made me want to fill it up with food? Why couldn't I stop on my own? I had a LOT to face. More than most of these bariatric programs ever even attempt to cover with their psych evaluations. Sorry, 1 test, and an hour with a Psychologist is NOT enough. So, yes, ask yourself if you are ready, because the head hunger, that's probably not going to go away. In my opinion, you really need to get that in check. I'm not being mean or harsh, just real with you. I wish you luck with everything. If you really want this....it's yours.

I was good up until about 4 months, then started losing a lot. I had Bypass surgery Oct 10. I have steadily taken in a lot of protein with Unjury and Premier Protein, as well as lots of chicken, cheese, eggs, etc. I have lost a lot in two months. I also took Biotin from the beginning and two months ago started on another product that has horsetail product in it, etc. Still lost hair. I believe it is finally quitting and I am at six months from surgery today. My hairdresser said it is coming back in, but it is very thin and I have always had thick hair. From what I read there is not much you can do about it except take some supplements. I am very good at taking my bariatric vitamins and calcium 3x a day as well. I think it is just part of the surgery.

I am 7 1/2 years into my band and it is being removed and revised to the sleeve in about 2 weeks. It was great the first 2 years, then GERD and vomiting, then issues with dilation of the upper pouch (which I of course am likely responsible for, too), which causes food waste to be trapped in the upper pouch, and then recently a gastric bleed from the band slipping down and causing a blood vessel to pop, which caused me to lose half my blood and spend a week in the hospital. My gastroenterologist said he wanted it out of me asap due to the risk of another bleeding episode. I have been advised by doctors involved that it just seems like everyone who has the band will need to have it out at some point. My insurance will not cover bariatric so I am off to Mexico. $18,000 here to remove band. $4500 in Mexico to remove and revise to sleeve.

I have a few Protein bars on hand, but they are not a daily staple in my plan. Usually I will take one with me for the return trip home from 2 distant specialists that see on a regular basis. My favorites (Rocky Road and Lemon Merange protein bars) come from Bariatric Choice's website. They have many flavors. BariatricChoice.com From that same website, I also bought high protein chips and pretzles. My favorite chips are the pizza and BBQ flavors. They shipped quickly. But like I said I don't eat one every day. Hope this helps in some way.

Hi I've just been searching for this topic as I've recently realised I have just started showing symptoms of Reactive Hyplogylcemia. I'm exactly one year post-op sleeve surgery and I had no idea us sleevers could suffer these symptoms. I'm a vegetarian so trying to cut out carbs has been a huge challenge for me and must admit that recently they have come back into my diet and my weightloss has also stalled. I now find that if I try and exercise in the mornings I have a massive hypo attack, the shakes, sweating, low blood sugar, feel like I'm going to faint, need to sit down and then an urgency to eat something. I then continue to feel terrible for the rest of the day like I'm all washed out and very tired even though I've done almost nothing. This is a very worrying new complication of the sleeve surgery that I did not sign up for and I'm trying to find out as much as possible about the condition so I can learn how to manage it. I'm confused as to whether I need to cut the carbs or increase them? I've been eating about 1,000 calories a day but burning around 2,700 cals per day (I wear a BodyMedia monitor so I know exactly what I'm using). I'm now really worried about this new development.. I'm seeing my surgeon next week for my one year review, I will be asking about this as from what I've researched, it seems as though there are a lot of people post bariatric surgery complaining of the problem and not much can be done from what I know??. Mine so far has been manageable but I am very worried it might get worse and I've read some people having their Pancreases removed which seems very extreme!. Any help or advice would be gratefully received. Prior to surgery I had PCOS, under-active thyroid and had been told years ago that I was insulin resistent but I never had diabetes. I must say, had I known about this complication it would have made me consider very carefully whether I should do this? Please has anyone any advice as it is worrying me a lot??

@@RNYGal I am sitting here in shock after reading your post. How is that even legal? How does someone not "believe" in helping his patients pain level? What happened to do no harm? You body needs to heal, and part of that is staying on top of that pain so your body can rest and relax. I am so sorry and send such positive healing thoughts your way. How brave you are. I don't know if it's feasible but is it too late to visit another Bariatric center? Did you know this going in? Is it written down somewhere, that he doesn't "believe" in using narcotics? I just feel so terrible, that you have had to go through this.