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It did not effect my surgery date for next week 4/23/13, I just found out I was hypo thyroid a month ago.

Hey everyone! *waves* THE SHORT STORY I've been hypothyroid for fifteen years. Is bariatric surgery effective and worth the risk for hypothyroid patients? THE LONG STORY So, I'm considering WLS. I can't believe I'm actually thinking about it. My husband had WLS about three years ago and is doing fine. He's regained some weight but is still far ahead of where he was. My son had WLS around the same time. He did not do well. He had extreme absorption issues and had to have a feeding port installed just weeks after his surgery. We lost him in November 2015. The official cause of death was cancer, but we wonder if the malnutrition contributed to his developing cancer. For me, my thyroid died somewhere around 2002. I was on the Atkins program, had lost about 70 pounds, and was on my way to single digit clothing size! Then, bam - one week I gained four pounds. The next week six. And then eight. All while still working out daily and eating the Atkins way. DNA? Age? Splenda? Who knows the cause, but my thyroid was done ... completely. The weight gain, it turns out, wasn't the worst part of hypo for me. It was the depression. My doctor put me on synthetic thyroid that didn't help at all. Finally, in 2009 I found Nature-Throid and a doctor who would prescribe it. Nature-Throid eased the depression, but my weight slowly and steadily continued to climb. In 2015, my hair began falling out. My skin had always been dry. Now it peels off in sheets. And I put on an additional fifty pounds within months. I chalked a lot of those symptoms to stress. The last few years have just been awful. In January 2015, my husband had emergency surgery to place a stent in his heart and I blew out my knee. Mid 2015, I had to shop for a nursing home for my mom. If you've ever done that, you know there aren't any good nursing homes. Mom died on Christmas Day 2015 ... six weeks after losing my son. August 2016, my brother was diagnosed with inoperable brain cancer. Next, I made a super poor career decision and lost my job in December 2016. My brother died January 30, 2017. Yet, I'm still standing ... just barely. Because both knees are now bone on bone. My blood pressure is fine. I'm not diabetic. No heart disease. Except for that damn thyroid, my blood work is all healthy. But I'm at an all-time high of 311 lbs. It hurts to move. It hurts to stand. I carry a lot of the weight in my hips and thighs which even makes it hurt to sit. I hurt and I don't want to hurt anymore. If you've read this far, thank you for letting me rant. I'd love to hear from other hypothyroid patients. What has been your experience with WLS? Pros? Cons?

I am hypo and have lost nearly 75 pounds. I'm 16 months out. At my one year mark I had lost enought that my thyroid levels were a high, so my doctor reduced my dosage of synthroid. He checks it now every 4 months and said as I continue to lose I will continue to have it adjusted. So far I reduced my synthroid medication, I've cut my blood pressure meds in half and completely got off my bladder control medication. The band is wonderful and I feel great! Before surgery, I was convinced I would never lose with the band. I thought with hypothyroidism I was sentenced to a life of obesity. I was wrong. I've been pleasantly surprised.

I have been hypo for seven years now. As long as you have your levels under control with meds, there is no reason why being hypo would keep the band from working. I did have to lower my Synthroid dosage after losing about 65 pounds.

Great info. I had a dr test me for Hosimoto (Spell?) and told me the history about the name - but I forget the entire story now..something about Chicago and a chemical or something pregnant women took during the 50's or 60's??? Anyway, with your new info, I think I will ask for these tests when I go for my exam next time. I have hypo and I will NOT take synthroid...man, that stuff made me so moody, angry, etc. I switched to unithroid (levothyroxin) and much better with moods...but if I miss a dose or two, I get terrible body aches and soooooo sleepy!!! :bored

So, I have had reactive hypoglycemic since I was a teenager..absent of diabeties...so when we are talking about "late dumping", is that what we are talking about, and if so, why do they call it dumping?

I got one of every class to 80 (and got many of them epic/raid gear), then got bored and quit. Now I'm addicted to LotRO, but I'm also finding that my newfound energy due to weight loss is pulling me outside a lot more! I used to play mostly PVE on Baelgun. Look up Drhfuhruhurr (80 Warlock) sometime. When Cataclysm comes out, I may reactivate my accounts long enough to bring my 80 Pally (my favorite) to 85...

I was diagnosed with Hypothyroidism about ten years ago. My levothyroxine has been decreased since surgery also. I can't say I've been a slow loser but. I am a very happy loser either way you look at it. My stats: HW 289lbs SW 251lbs CW 183lbs Highest BMI 43 Current BMI 28 I am 5'8" and feeling healthier that I have in many, many years. I try to exercise daily, Walking for 5+ miles is my new freedom. I am now 9 months post-op. My weight-loss has slowed considerably in the last 2 months but I expected that as I get closer to my goal of 160lbs. The main thing is......I am still losing. My Dr's goal for me was to lose 70% of my excess weight. I've met and exceeded that goal by 17lbs. My personal goal is to hit 160lbs. That will put me just under 25 for a BMI. Woohoo! Only 23 more lbs to go! Good Luck to all of my fellow Hypo's.

I went with the sleeve because, fundamentally it does the same thing as an RNY - amount of weight loss, regain resistance, etc., but "costs" less in terms of trade offs and potential problems. The sleeve is predisposed toward GERD problems (that simply means that more people in that population will suffer from that problem than in the genera; population. In contrast, the RNY is predisposed to marginal ulcers, dumping and reactive hypoglycemia.. It is also fussier in supplement need - you can get into more trouble if you are lazy about your supplements with an RNY, while a sleeve can be closer to that ideal of getting all of your nutrition from your food, if one is so inclined (and your natural body cooperates.) Even with all the supplements in line, there is still a greater risk of iron issues or osteoporosis with the RNY as its malabsorption is focused on minerals. And, the marginal ulcer risk makes it more limited with some medications (it is the origin of the "no NSAID" rule in bariatrics - the sleeve based procedures are more tolerant in that area. If I need something stronger than the VSG, then the DS is readily available, as it starts with a sleeve and adds a stronger malabsorbing component than the RNY offers, so there is better weight loss and most importantly, regain resistance provided there if needed. Finally, there is the "Plan B" factor of what if it doesn't work for me and I have/want to revise? The sleeve is readily revisable to either the RNY or the stronger DS, while the RNY is something of a dead end procedure which is very difficult to revise (it can be done, but there are few surgeons around who are qualified to do so.) Overall, that is why I would start with the VSG and move up later if needed (or if I was starting from a very high BMI or otherwise challenging metabolic situation, I would go straight to the DS and avoid the risk of having to revise the bypass if it wasn't strong enough.)

Being even an older bandster than ReneBean (!)...I whole heartedly support your decision to do this as a preventative measure to the health problems facing you in the future. Being proactive beats being reactive! Personally I did not have any serious weight issues until my 30's...but how I wish I could have done this then, and had back the years I spent inactive and privately ashamed of how I had let myself go...but I am doing it now, and loving it! I am back to actually wanting to DO things. Exercise is something I enjoy, as opposed to avoid. It sounds like you are doing all the proper research, and have a good handle on the work you will be required to do with the band! If you have any questions we will be happy to help. You have come across a site, full of helpful people, with lots of band knowledge---welcome! Kat

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??

I started this post yesterday under general post op, I suspect my lack of responses was because either it was in the wrong forum or no one else has personally experienced this. It goes like this. Hello folks... I am 23 months postoperative. I was 3.5 lbs from goal and decided to up the daily routine of exercise wanting to hit goal, I am a slow loser. More importantly the emotional victory was really all that I cared about, not the physical. So Instead of my normal 600 calorie a day burn on the elliptical I started burning 750 calories daily. I managed to lose 1.4 lbs in a month, but started to become ill. Having all the signs and at times severe, of hypoglycemia. After three weeks of fearing to drive at times, I finally went to see my Dr. My normally very nice blood pressure was extremely high and she followed up with lots of blood work, a kidney workup etc. I was asked to check my blood sugars randomly and especially when feeling ill . I'll call them spells. I would tremble, feel light headed, blurred vision, rapid heart rate and overall weakness with a strong desire to EAT. This at times woke me in the middle of the night accompanied with cold sweats, feeling much like a heart attack or my impression of one. There were times at work I'd have a project in my hand and not know why, my thought process was on "hold". I was lethargic and my memory would shut down. After googling hypoglycemia I was convinced that was what I had, yet my blood sugars were always within normal ranges, my A1C (three month average of blood sugars ) was great. So more testing was ordered, I do not have the results yet, of all the tests but one thing I do know is that I had a 2 hr fasting glucose tolerance test and that was not fun. The test is simple. They check your blood upon arrival, my number fasting was at 93, then they make you drink a bottle of sweet syrup within 5 minutes, then I was SICK. Many of the same symptoms were replicated, although not all, I was near passing out, blurred vision, not even being able to focus on my Ipad. I thought I was going to vomit, defecate in my pants and maybe even stroke out. I could barely speak. and actually didn't dare to in fear I'd throw up. This lasted nearly an hour. At hour two they draw your blood again and it is suppose to be 140 or less to be in normal ranges. Mine was 56. I have done further reading and honestly never read about this prior to my surgery, but this seems to be a delayed symptom of the Gastric Sleeve. It's called Reactive Hypoglycemia. http://en.wikipedia....ve_hypoglycemia I have not had any real symptoms since cutting my calorie burn back to 600 per day and trying to incorporate more complex carbs to my diet. I ate mainly protein and vegetables. I've added a slice of 15 grain bread or a whole wheat English muffin to my diet daily and overall do feel better. I've had a few spells, not nearly as bad as before, and no more night issues. My question is there anyone else here with the same problem? If so why had I NEVER heard of this? If someone has had this experience I have questions about whether this is temporary, will I end up gaining because i'm eating more carbs etc. Thank you in advance for your help!

Reactive hypoglycemia is low blood glucose (sugar) that occurs within four hours after eating. Symptoms of reactive hypoglycemiamay include anxiety, fast heartbeat, irritability (feeling very stressed or nervous), shaking, sweating, hunger, dizziness, blurred vision, difficulty thinking and faintness. But, reactive hypoglycemia post–gastric bypass generally can occur in patients one year or more after their bariatric surgery. ... The further out from surgery you are, the more tuned in to your body and reactions to food you become. Since you are 9 days post-op, I suspect this is not the problem. Another possible explanation is that you were diabetic prior to surgery. If that was the case and you were taking blood sugar medicine, it might be time to reduce the amount of medicine your were taking. So you might want to check with your doctor and reset your prescription. I was diabetic prior to surgery and I went off all my prescription medicine the day I left the hospital after surgery. Another possibility is that it is not a blood sugar problem but rather an electrolyte imbalance. Common electrolytes include sodium, calcium, magnesium, and potassium. ... When the amount of electrolytes in your body is too high or too low, you can develop dizziness, cramps, and problems with an irregular heart beat (heart rhythm) or symptoms of mental confusion. This may happen if you don't take in enough fluids daily. Another possibility is dizziness can be caused by a blood clot. Embolism can occur when an embolus, or blood clot, forms around a heart valve that is not working properly, or is released within the arteries to the brain, causing a stroke. The effects of a stroke may include temporary dizziness. However, if the embolus travels to the vestibular system, it can cause severe dizziness. This is a very serious condition. Or there are other possible causes for dizziness and fainting. I would refer to your hospital discharge directions. There should be a page that describes when to contact you surgeon's office. On my discharge directions it states: Chest pain, rapid heartbeat and/or dizziness. Better to be safe than sorry!

i have a lapband, was pregnant almost immediately after surgery, and now can finally get started losing... I am on a natural thyroid for hypo [slow] thyroid. They did have to raise my dosage during pregnancy to 2 grains 60mg i/o 1 grain 30mg. You will lose with the combo of medication, lapband, healthy eating, and exercise~ i walk and weightlift. I say go for it!!!

From a past post it appeared that you had surgery on September 26, almost a week ago. The three most important elements after RNY gastric bypass surgery are to meet your daily Protein, Fluid and Vitamin requirements. In part not meeting these requirements can cause you to be tired. Tiredness can also be a side effect of some medication. It might also be due to low blood sugar. If you were diabetic prior to surgery and took prescription medicine for the condition, it might be time to reduce your medication. Also some people who had no signs of diabetes prior to surgery also developed reactive hypoglycemia after surgery. But all in all, you are only one week out and your body may need a little extra time to mend.

When your hypothyroid, yours doesn't work.......... weight or no weight that doesn't change...... Diagnosed hypo at the tender age of 22.... I'm down 81 lbs size 24 to 12's! I LOVE MY BAND

I'm almost 2 years out, and I can tell you that my sleeve has not stretched that much, and I've been drinking soda for over a year without any ill effects on my weight loss. Also, there is not enough tissue left behind to stretch the stomach back out like there is with the stretchy pouch and stoma. You can easily stretch your pouch and stoma (the opening from the stomach to intestines) Dogg pretty much put out there my reasonings for choosing sleeve over RNY for my revision from the band. If you are on obesityhelp.com, you should check out the revision forum to see just how many RNY patients are seeking revisions from RNY to ERNY or DS because of pouch/stoma issues and major regain. And, now there are 2 (5 years out) RNY patients that are converting to the sleeve because of reactive hypoglycemia and they have to get rid of the bypass.

Now that you say it, perhaps I was hypo prior as my weight was escalating since November. I thought it was just holiday eating. Hopefully blood work shows this and Doc will up my meds. Thank you for the reminder about meds and calcium. I had been taking a multi Vitamin since my balloon with my synthroid...need to figure out a better routine.

Hello new friends. I had a lapband 4 years ago and it has given me trouble from day one. It simply wasn't the best tool for me. My sister had full gastric by-pass the same day. Shes down 100 pounds. (she made the right choice for her). Four years ago I thought lapband would be best for me. My body has not responded regardless of amount of Fluid in I have had port pain- side pain- and choking and vomiting. I recently decided to go forward in my life and after prayer, research and counsel I have decided to have the sleeve. My doctors feel that I will be successful. I also feel that I will be successful, but I have to share that I am not willing to share with friends and co-workers. I don't want to continue to be the person they always greet with A. How you feeling? B. Have you lost weight? C. Wow Your looking great!. The only loss I had before was during the pre-op. After that I started gaining off and on throughout the years due to not able to get meat down (protein) and choking even on the smallest bites and frothing. Ugly story. My doctor shared that when you can't get Protein down, you live on carbs therefore- your body thinks its going to starve so you hold on to all the carbs and the carb results. Needless to say- I went up 25 pounds in 4 years. I just did'nt want to give up on the band. I wanted to be successful so bad. Now, things are different, I am tired of being tired, chaffed, taking blood pressure meds, the arthritis, swelling and uncomfortable in clothes, uncomfortable sitting, standing and walking. I want to be healthy. The same thing I wanted 4 years ago. I am ready to be bandless and to be sleeveful. :wub: MollyBsleeve wants to be sleeve- full very much. I do have a question and hope someone will have the answer for me. If you have Hypo-glycemia how do you keep from having sugar drops when you are so limited on getting nutrition in at the beginning. I had very few sugar drops after surgery but I know when I am weak and can't eat due to stomach virus or such I get sugar drops and it usually takes Peanut Butter - (small spoons at a time to get me back up). Blessing for a new journey for all.

I have been doing my nightly researching and came across something that woudl really address only long-term band users (probably those that got banded at least 5 years ago) but am sounding if off you guys. Some sites say that because of the silicone in the band, autoimmune problems could THEORETICALLY result. THe full quote is here: Silastic reaction- it is possible that the material of the Band could create some type of body immune reaction that stimulates a separate disease process such as arthritis or Systemic Lupus Erythematosis (SLE). However the Band is made of a silicone elastomer which is completely non-reactive to the body tissues, as far as it has been possible to determine. The same type of material has been in use in a number of implanted medical devices over time, and no problems with tissue reaction have been demonstrated. Here again, the early data is reassuring but no true long-term information exist There was another quote I believe right on Inamed's site, but I can't seem to locate this. Has anyone heard of someone's body actually rejecting the band? And causing autoimmune problems to boot? I am going to post this on an Australian band mailing list, since I believe they have had the band alot logner than the States has. Sonia

I got dizzy too for about two weeks. I also had some nausea with it. For me it was around week 10 and 30 lbs down. The doc thought it was vertigo and said sometimes people loose the fat pad in their inner ear with rapid weight loss. I wore a scopolamine (sp?) patch for about 10 days and it helped. (I even went to Disneyland.) warning this did make my vision blurry and I had to make the font really big on my computer for a while. Another poster mentioned hypoglycemia. My doc suspected that and had me test 30 min after eating. Apparently there's a phenomenon card reactive hypoglycemia where you overproduce insulin.) Hang in there!

What's an OM egg? Leatha, I think I'm getting to the same point you are. I've noticed recently that I can eat faster than I've been able to for a long time, and before I know it I've eaten too much and have definite discomfort. The feelings that used to stop me from eating too fast are much less evident now. Naturally my thoughts stray first toward wanting a tighter fill, but I worry that my esophagus isn't as reactive as it used to be and that's the problem, not the restriction level. My doctor says he expects to see more and more examples of reduced esophageal sensitivity as time goes on, and I don't want to be one of them. It's SO HARD to break those habits!! Even 21 months out and I still have a tendency to eat too darned fast!!!

It definitely sounds like reactive hypoglycemia, but with your meds and medical issues you need to see your doctor. An English muffin and peanut butter has too many carbs in it. To many simple carbs and your blood sugar shoots up then crashes. The crash is going to make you feel horrible. You'll struggle to keep your eyes open, your hands get really shaky and you may start sweating. You feel like you need to eat more carbs, but resist and eat some protein like cheese, nuts, or lunch meat. The best way to manage it is to have 5-6 small meals a day and avoid simple carbs. No bread, Pasta, rice, sugar, or peanut butter with sugar in it.

One of the major reasons I had VSG was to get off my diabetes meds. I haven't taken any since immediately post-op. Yay! Now I have the opposite problem. My fasting glucose yesterday was 71, which is approaching the danger zone. I'm shaky every morning and I can't exercise or I feel like absolute garbage. Three "meals" per day isn't an option - I have to snack or my levels tank. At only 6 weeks out, I'm not eating any carb-heavy foods or anything not on my plan, and I take in the appropriate number of calories for this stage. All water and protein goals met 99% of the time. It's too early to have "reactive hypoglycemia," so they're sending me to an endocrinologist to figure out why this is happening. They also suggested I eat some yogurt before bed and before exercising (I'm only taking the dogs for walks around the neighborhood at this point) and that actually seemed to help. Their reasoning is that it contains both protein and carbs. Anyone else have this issue? Is it our bodies trying to adjust to the new normal? Is it too few calories for too long a period? I had grand plans of taking up hiking with my Life Scout son, but at this rate I'll never be able to go anywhere I can't get medical attention.

Hey girls, I have a hypo active thyroid and diabetes as well. Between those two and the required meds weight loss is a struggle but I keep at it. I take 200 mcg of synthroid daily.