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Even though it's 4th of July and everything is closed, I'm doing some research today on new doctors that actually have knowledge about massive weight loss in patients who have had bariatric surgery. I plan to make some calls on Friday and set up a new patient appt or 2 (this time around, I'm interviewing them before I commit...neve ever thought I'd be doing THAT, lemme tell ya). I wasn't going to go to my appt on the 17th, but I think I still will to get my blood work done and my vitals, and to tell her that I'm seeing a new doctor and why. Actually, I want to tell the medical assistant because she'll put it in my chart. At this point, I'm not sure if the doctor will. I know I'm due for my 6 mo ekg in office, my full vitals, my meds refilled, and my blood work. I want all of that done before I go to a new doctor so they have the most recent and up to date records on me and the most accurate place to start. I will NOT be entertaining any discussions about phentermine or losing more weight. I may go ahead and lose those 3 pounds that @ShoppGirl mentioned, that way nobody can say anything either way. But still.... I'm leaving that practice no matter what. I'm not happy or comfortable there at this point.

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Wow... You are absolutely right that you need to find a new doctor, because this one clearly has no understanding of extreme weight loss patients or about weight/BMI in general. I could almost understand if she didn't know how big you used to be, but if she knows you went from 421 pounds to 183 and still doesn't think that's enough, she is woefully ignorant. It's not just a matter of principle, here, but the question of whether she is knowledgeable enough about extreme weight loss to treat you effectively. She should be embarrassed that you, the patient, had to educate her on the fact that the number on the scale/BMI chart means nothing on its own. The only hope here is that this could prompt her to educate herself on weight loss.

I agree with Mrs. Fritz - anyone who started off at well over 300 lbs and is now under 200 lbs should be celebrated..that is an amazing loss!

BMI isn't always the best way to judge for people who've lost massive amounts of weight because even though we've lost muscle and bone mass in addition to fat, we still have more muscle and bone than "normies" who weigh about the same but were never obese. (we needed a lot of infrastructure to hold up all that weight!). The PA at my bariatric clinic said we often look 10+ lbs lighter than the scale would suggest, because of that extra muscle & bone (well, there's the extra skin, too - but skin doesn't weigh very much. I think I "lost" about 4 lbs after my skin surgery - but there's that, too, if you haven't had it removed). Your PCP evidently hasn't worked with a lot of massive weight loss patients....

For me, I can't really have another decent sized meal until I've used the toilet... This is coming from an RNY patient. Everyone's anatomy and post surgery results will be different. This is the reason why weight loss surgery results can not be replicated for each patient. One patient may have problems with one thing while another patient who underwent the same surgery won't.

My advice to everyone is to first trial the GLP1 type drugs and see if it helps with weight loss. Maintaining the weight loss will be a lifetime commitment no doubt. But it's much better than having drastic bariatric surgery. Why change your anatomy if drugs can do the trick. So if your insurance covers weight loss medication, please consider that route first. Weight loss surgery does improve one's quality of life, but it has its fair share of drawbacks too.

That’s exactly how I felt. I got down close to my doctors goal for me (18’ppunds shy) stalled there for about three months and then the hunger came back and I started to gain. If you haven’t spoken to your surgeon yet, definitely do that. They have some weight loss meds you may want to try (I couldn’t take because of other meds I’m on) and also the GLP-1 that some people are having a lot of success with (my insurance doesn’t cover but some do now). Plus there is the option of revision if/when you are ready. I am learning that it’s not super uncommon for people to have to revise the sleeve. Don’t quote me but it seems like it was 26%! Of people need revision within 3’years. Dom‘t personalize it like I did. I felt like I was such a failure that I stopped going to my follow up appointments and gained it all plus some. Hopefully they can help you before it comes to that.

Just found a recipe for chicken that uses a glaze made of honey, soy sauce, garlic and red pepper flakes called 15 minute honey garlic chicken. Thinking of doing that tonight with a little cauliflower rice and some broccoli. I’m still looking for ideas though. I don’t know how to cook that many things to begin with so when I try to go healthier I swear I have to eat the same like 5 things over and over. I’m curious if the honey will cause issues post surgery though. It’s only 3tbsp for a pound and a half of chicken I haven’t ever looked at the carbs in honey though.Yikes, one tbsp Is 17g carbs. I guesstimate each serving will have about half a tablespoon?! Not certain if this will work in weight loss phase or not. I need to get the number from my surgeon at my post op because the nutritionists are incompetent but that’s for a whole other topic.

There are some cute ways to put a rubber band on the inside of tops too that creates a cute design while pulling it in to be more form fitting. I’m sure you can find some of the fancier ways if you poked around online but the easiest I’ve seen is to turn it inside out and put a small hair tie or whatever off to the side around the belly button area. You can also do it in the back and near the bottom then tuck it under. It actually looked really cute in the tutorial. They also sell waist tightener clips for pants.

I am at 6.5 months post op so relatively early out. Reached goal at 3.5 months but continued to lose (and still losing albeit slower). I have increased by calories by 200 and the weight loss hasn't stopped but that is all I can manage now. I will try to increase my calories gradually and see how it goes, from what I hear - and subject to you following your plan - it is unlikely that you stop losing before the 1 year mark. Best of Luck!

I agree with others that it’s normal and it will slow down and stop eventually. I remember that phase all too well. I couldn’t really see the loss in the mirror but I hurt my back pretty bad and was down for a while. Before I vacuumed I noticed the hair collecting near all the baseboards and.i was horrified. I never lost enough for anyone else to notice either. It just seemed like I was going to. Just keep getting that protein in and you will be fine.

My PS required a sign off from my primary care doctor to say I’m healthy for surgery. It may be a US standard for PS to adhere to. Although I don’t think it’s a bad thing at all though. Being skinny doesn’t always mean “healthy” to withstand a certain amount of blood loss, anesthesia time, healing etc.

Hello! My surgery is scheduled for 7/10. I am having the gastric bypass. I'm on the pre-op diet right now. Doing well but am so weak from this diet. Last night I could barely finish my evening meal - got nauseated and just felt terrible. This is a revision surgery. I had the VSG 2914, lost 100. Foot surgery and the covid lockdown started my regain of 80 lbs. The surgery is to fix my hernia and hopefully get rid of my acid reflux. I am hoping to lose but more importantly to maintain my weight loss. I'm currently on 3 hbp meds and 3 acid reflux meds. How do I complete the settings about my surgery, weight, etc.?

I think I’m entering my ‘stall’ period now. Having had numerous attempts at weight loss in the past, I know my body sulks between week 3 and week 7. I’m just beginning week 5 so the timing is bang on. My weight has gone up 1.5lbs from my lowest weight this week but it happens so I will just keep on keeping on. Once my body has got over its sulk the weight should start coming off once again. A couple of NSV this week. I don’t know about anyone else but my clothing sizes can be a bit all over the place. One size of clothing can have 3 meanings for me, depending on what it’s made of. So, for example, there’s the ‘I’m kidding myself’ sizing - plenty of give, elasticated, stretchy material. It may say 22 but I know it’s really a 24+. There’s then the ‘huh, it’s not too bad’ sizing - some give, not that stretchy, a definitely generous 22, and then there’s the ‘unforgiving’ sizing - no give, no stretch, no elasticated waist etc, a definite 22. For long enough I’ve been at the ‘I’m kidding myself’ stage but I went shopping in my wardrobe and found a couple of tops with no give, a definite 22. Tried both on - they fit!! And they didn’t look like sausage skin!! Very happy dance around the bedroom! I also went out of my comfort zone at the weekend and bought myself a size 22 no-stretch denim maxi skirt. I can fasten it, just, but don’t rate my chances of sitting down and/or breathing in it 😮‍💨 However, I’m keeping it as I know I will fit in to it comfortably at some point. We’re off to London for a few nights in 3 weeks or so, so fingers crossed it may fit a little better by then 🤞🤞 Meds have finally been sorted and delivered, had my Oximetry test last week so hopefully that’s gone well. No Bariatric appointments this week but I have my endoscopy next week plus knee X-rays for my arthritis. Food wise things are going OK. My new favourite thing is Lindhals Stracciatella Kvarg protein yoghurt - oh, I could eat barrels of the stuff! I’ve also tried the Warburtons Protein Power bread as a change to the whole meal. It’s definitely nice as a change but doesn’t want to make me eat lots and lots of it, which is a definite plus! Hope everyone has a great week… Onwards and Downwards!

I remember gaining a pound or two and always just figured it was the time of day or whatever. You know one salty meal or a full bowel can make a two or three pound difference. To this day k weigh two or three pounds more in the afternoon than morning time. Your loss will not be a straight line downwards, but it will trend down. Everyone says it and I know firsthand how hard it is to listen because I didn’t but try to stay off the scale for a while in between because then you will see the real losses. After my sleeve surgery I would weight myself daily but i only recorded it one day of the week so I could better see the number decreasing. Even still it didn’t always go down so honestly if you’re self disciplined enough, weighing like once a month would probably save a ton of mental anguish.

It's normal and will eventually slow down. Mine stopped after my first surgery around month 9. After my revision, around month 11. I cut my hair shorter this time around and it REALLY helped. I also use thickening and volumizing shampoo and conditioner, and I changed up how I style my hair so the part at the top of my head isn't so obvious. For extra protein, add a protein shake in at some point during the day. Use it as one of your snacks, or have it right before bed. That will give you a ton of extra protein, which is what your hair needs to grow. Hair can't produce protein, even though it needs it. Biotin helps hair be healthy but does not reduce hair loss or promote growth. Same with collagen and keratin. Only thing that really helps is protein. But I promise, no matter how it feels, you won't go bald.

Temporary hair loss is very common after surgery. Your body is going through a lot is stress: the surgery, reduced food intake, weight loss, anaesthetic, hormonal flushes & changes, etc. The result is a temporary acceleration of your natural hair loss cycle. It actually can occur after child birth, periods of extreme stress, other more major surgeries, etc. The hair you are losing is dead & you were going to lose it anyway just not as quickly. You can’t stop it. Or slow it down. Some people will suggest adding additional supplements but this period of hair loss still lasts about 4 month -/+ regardless of taking the additional supplements or not. Those supplements won’t help hair that is already dead. As long as you’re taking the vitamins your team recommends & are meeting your protein & other nutritional goals, you don’t need to do anything else. Your new hair is still growing just at its usual rate & it is only this new growth that may benefit from the supplements. How much you’ll lose is very individual & you can’t predict it. You may lose more if it’s summer (when we usually shed more hair) or if you are in your 7 year hair shedding cycle (just went through mine again & was losing a lot more than usual). Try cutting off some of your length if you have longer hair. Many of us do this so the new growth reaches the length of the old growth more quickly. And shorter hair is always bouncier & looks fuller than long. I decided some temporary hair loss is a small price to pay for the benefits of your weight loss. Oh, and try not to stress too much - it only adds to the stress your body is already under which influences the hair loss. PS: You can update your weight by scrolling to near the bottom of this page. You’ll see a section titled Together we have lost… Add your current weight & click Update Your Weight. It will display the next time you start a thread or respond to a post.

I am 4 months out. I had sleeve into bypass. I can’t figure had to change weight yet on this site. I lost 50 pounds. I can’t believe the hair I am losing. I’m freaking going bald. Taking vitamins but 65 grams of protein a bit difficult for me. I get around 55. I can’t force the food. I talked with doc and they said it’s common to lose hair but he said it’s a lot. Try more protein. Ugh! So frustrated!

YEP!!! I'm getting this literally right now. I have people that I've known for 15, 20, even 25 years that have never seen me below 250 pounds. So to see me at 185 pounds is understandably jarring for them. But once the compliments stopped the critiques started. "You're starting to look sickly, slow down the weight loss" and "you're going to look like you have an ED if you keep losing weight" and "your sagging skin is going to get so much worse if you don't stop losing weight". I mean...seriously????? My body FINALLY found its new set point and is happy where it's at and now the weight is resettling and redistributing itself. There's nothing I can do about it. Your comments are UNhelpful and UNnecessary. Ugh.....

Agree with Summer. I went thru sizes so fast there were some items of clothing I barely had a chance to wear before having to bag it up and take to Goodwill. This is probably one of the funnest parts of my weight loss journey for me. Buying smaller sizes, then being able to fit into them in a few short weeks. Also, not having to hang dry clothes so they wouldn't shrink up on me to intentionally putting them in the dryer so they would shrink up for me. So I could wear them longer. LOL

I have learned to deflect. - Aw thanks, I had a coat like that in the 60's Aw thanks, do you know you have something stuck in your teeth ? Aw thanks, I really wanted to say, did I see your husband/ wife at that charity singles dance last week ? He really is a good dancer. Aw thanks, Did you cut your own hair ? Aw thanks, I really needed a laugh today, I love it when people have been gossiping about me. I wonder who they are leaving alone today ?

Heya! I have an underactive thyroid & PCOS and I am about 5-6 weeks in now I think? I can't even keep track at this point 😂 But I definitely have been going through a stall! I went from losing 3+ lbs in a week, to just staying still give or take 1 lb. It is very very frustrating, but it is just our body trying to recalibrate and it'll soon realise it isn't in danger of starvation, and it'll stop holding onto everything and weight loss will resume!

Would it be wrong to ask why don’t you come along to my next follow up and discuss this with my doctor because all my labs and his medical expertise say I am perfectly healthy. If you know something he doesn’t I’m sure he would love to hear you out. 😂 ahhh if only I would have the guts to actually say it. lol Sometimes I seriously think that people actually NEED us to be the heavy friend/daughter/niece/whatever in their life because it makes them feel better about themselves. Whatever their insecurity is they always make themselves feel better by saying at least I’m not obese (I’m not smart or funny or beautiful but at least I’m not as big as so and so). It’s really sad that some people who claim to love you are actually keeping score but unfortunately some are and they would rather keep you down than to deal with their own issues. if they know that the weight loss is intentional and that you are under the care of a physician that should be the end of it. Beyond that the benefit of the doubt that its genuine concern goes out the window. I mean seriously what gives anyone audacity to think that their opinion matters more than your own and that of your medical team.

So I had my 3 month post-op follow up yesterday (at 14 weeks out). It went... about as well as my cynical little heart expected? Maybe better? LOL My follow up was virtual, so I didn't have to go in to the hospital which is a plus. The dietician I saw today is mmmm... fifth I've spoken to in my program. I honestly would feel a little better if I could have the same dietician every time but I understand that can be hard to schedule. Plus it's still not the worst -- to be honest, I've only actively liked one of the dieticians and yesterday's I passively was ok with -- so at least it's better than the weirder three I've seen in between. Review of my meds, of my health conditions as per usual. Somehow there's always something being left off from last time -- or several last times. Like, yeah, still have diabetes. My numbers are obviously a lot better now in my latest bloodwork, but considering it was one of the comorbidities that got me approved for this program/surgery it would be swell if I didn't have to surprise my care team 4/5 times by informing them of my past diagnosis. Review of my eating habits. Fingers-rapped (gently) over a few things -- not getting enough fruits / veg with skin, not getting enough fibre in each my meals and snacks because it's mostly just in one or two meals. I mean, if my fibre intake is within the 25-35 per day range that they suggested, does it really frickin' matter if it's split up between 3 meals and two snacks? (Also, the fibre range wasn't brought up until yesterday -- it hasn't been mentioned to me at all by any of my care team, or in the pre-op and post-op guidelines and manuals they've distributed to date. The only actual numbers I've gotten from my care team has been about protein, everything else has just been "keep it low fat" and "keep it low carb" and "stay away from sugars" etc in mildly vague terms. I figured out my own daily goals and limits for everything else by taking the average of what I could find online / in books / through the forum) I asked specifically if my bloodwork reqs could be combined with the bloodwork my PCP wants since both of them want it every 3 months for mostly the same things, and I'd rather not take time off work for multiple blood tests -- or sacrifice my blood twice in a one-month period due to timing -- particularly because of the low iron. And considering they both get copies of each other's test results anyway (thanks Ontario Health Care!). But no, no, we can't do that. They can't put his name down in the 'send a copy to this physician' area right in the form. Because apparently even though my PCP is the one to referred me to my endocrinologist, she's the one who referred me to the program. So they send the results to her, and she's on a network with my PCP which is how he gets my results as well. But they can't directly ADD him. ((Can my PCP just ask for the tests that he wants to check but they don't? Nope, cause in order for it to be approved by insurance they look to make sure there are corresponding requisites. Can I have my PCP just add them to his requisition? No, because as the surgery providers they need the requisition under their name for Ontario insurance purposes, and there are certain tests that my PCP can't request 'without reason' and that reason seems to be that everyone wants to bill the government insurance plan for every test they can, and my iron will 'replenish' so it's fine. Nevermind that I've had anemia on and off for most of my life and know from personal experience that the more often I'm tested, the more slowly my iron is replenished.)) ((He was just a dietician. I shouldn't have bothered asking him. But the fact that he had an answer ready makes me feel like they get asked this a lot)) Other than that, it was ok. I've lost half the weight towards my goal weight. He reminded me to expect things to start slowing down. I nodded along even though I started a stall literally the day I hit my halfway score and even though my logic knew to expect and accept all this, my gut reaction was of course 'what have I done to eff this up???'. He was kind of crossing all his t's and dotting all his i's in terms of chiding me on dietary choices -- ie, every meal and snack being 50% protein, 25% non starchy veg, 25% complex carb. Suggested that I eat all these things that their own program handouts say not to start until between month 4 and 6, like nuts and seeds. I was ever so grateful for the internal consistencies. ((This happened with the last dietician at my 1 month -- which happened at my week 3. She was asking me why I hadn't been choosing to eat this or that, and I had to remind her that their handout and biweekly seminars both said not to until week 5-9)) All in all... I feel 'meh' about my follow up, but good about myself and good about my loss so far. And great about the salt & vinegar roasted edamame beans I just had as a snack even though it was lacking a vegetable and isn't 'high enough in fibre per serving'. In other news, I'm only day 7 into my second stall and have been fluctuation between calm acceptance and riotous panic that I'm messing up somehow even after nitpicking my diet and exercise with a fine tooth comb. My ADHD is saying I'm only working in one extreme or the other today/this week.