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Ok. I really thought I was going to get a pass on this hair loss thing. I have long, thick hair and it was doing fine until last week. I neglected to read in previous post it starts at about 3 months post op. So if your hair has started falling out, now is the time. I was just getting over my last c-section hair loss. I should have known. Thinking about chopping it all off.

Everyone will have a different experience, but here was mine: 3 mnths - started falling out (LOTS OF IT. By month 4-ish you could see my scalp) 6-7 months - noticeably slowed down (i.e., less hair trails everywhere I went) 11-12 months - visible chicken hairs (i.e., new growth) sticking up all over my head 2+ years (i.e., now) - all my hair is basically the same length (i.e., no more chicken hairs, ends of hair are basically at my shoulders now), and i like to think it actually looks thicker than it did pre-surgery...but this may be just be wishful thinking...lol I think its pretty much inevitable to go through a hair loss phase during massive weight loss (see the link regarding Telogen Effluvium above).

My hair fell out like crazy. I never got bald patches, but my pony tail went from being the diameter of a quarter to the diamater of a dime. It was super scary! Over three years later now, and my hair is super thick again. AND THIS IS WEIRD! It grew back much more curly than before! Maybe has to do with the vitamins or something? But my hair is MUCH more curly now, and my skin is better. Used to get little red bumps on my upper arms and legs and they're all smooth and soft now. Again, maybe a vitamin thing? Give it time. Let the butterfly come out of the cocoon:)

Congrats on getting your date! I’m almost a week out so can’t speak to hair loss yet. I was preemptively taking biotin with keratin but post surgery...no way can I take them. I have read that the double stress on your body from very low calories and surgery can cause the hair loss.

I experienced that same as to no visitors and just a drop off and pick up at the hospital door. I liked not having anyone so I could just concentrate on recovery but it was very hard for my husband. I only brought the lip balm, toothpaste and brush, hair brush, lotion, phone and charger, magazine, and underware. I wore the same clothes home. I did end up staying an extra night due to severe nausea but found that ice chips for a god send. I could not eat the broth or jello and the protein shakes were hard to swallow. They did offer crystal light lemonade which was ok. Walk as much as you can. This moves the gas and I found lifted my spirits also. I found that watching cooking shows on the TV made me nauseated also. Best of luck and use this time to read up and get ready for your surgery and new life.

I was originally scheduled for surgery on 12/16 but postponed due to Covid cases escalating at the time. I was 4 days into my liquid diet when I got the call. On the positive side I was able to enjoy the holidays but ready to get this show on the road! I am having this useless lap band taken out at the same time. I got up to 315 and currently at 303, I am a 6 ft tall 63 yr old male. Has anyone had trouble with hair loss? I am taking Biotin,Keratin, B1, propecia, and rogaine. I would like to lose about 100 pounds. I think 210-215 is a good weight for me. I am wondering how long it will take to lose 100 pounds. Also what vitamins are you guys taking?

Hey everyone, I'm new to this whole process. I just had my consultation at the beginning of the month and have started my three month process for insurance. I have been overweight for quite some time now and I'm just ready to start my weight loss journey. What are something that you wish was told to you before you had your surgery? Did you already start taking vitamins? Was anyone on birth control before and after surgery? I've heard a lot of different things about pain also after surgery and I expect pain, but was you able to do some of your normal daily routine? Was bending, sitting or laying hard for you to do? I've had two C-sections so I'm familiar with abdominal pain after surgery, but is it anything like that? Sorry for the over load of questions. I'm just nervous and anxious and don't want to miss any information.

I've gotten to the point (Gastric Sleeve, just over 6 months out) that the stalls happen more often than consistent loss. But even still, it does break and then I lose for a few days and then I stall again. But I stay focused on the fact that this is a marathon, not a sprint and I'm still losing!!

I'm eating around 4oz per meal, and around 250-350 calories per big meal (50-150 per snack). I've slowed down on my weight loss because I'm enjoying where I'm at, and I maintain around 1350 calories. If I eat 1200 or less, I lose.

I really enjoyed reading through your journey. The pandemic threw off a lot of people with their weight loss- I think a lot of us got to our high weights because we are stress/boredom eaters, and the pandemic has been a great mix of incredible stress mixed with boredom. I kind of laughed reading your initial comment hoping that the surgery would change the type of food you liked, because I had the exact same hope. Alas, it’s still the same me and I still like the same trash food I did before. Kudos to the people who leave surgery with their love of unhealthy food gone, I’m pretty sure they’d have had to remove part of my brain as well as my stomach to have me no longer want chips and candy.

Three month surgaversary! 38.8 lbs lost after surgery, 96.6 total loss. Current weight 242.4. For reference I’m 5’10 and started out at 339. I continue to have no issues, I’m enjoying being able to eat pretty much whatever I want although I’m trying to stick to a lower carb diet still. I’ve been exercising some off and on but I really need to kick it into higher gear if I want to speed up my admittedly slower loss rate. I’m actually fitting into non-plus size clothing now, which is a huge accomplishment for me. I feel so much better and just physically comfortable now. I can cross my legs, fit into chairs and actually walk places without getting out of breath. My goals for this month are to lose 15 lbs and fit into my wedding/engagement rings again! I’m super close to fitting into them and I’ve spent more of my 13 year marriage in “temporary” rings than I have the actual ones.

I know we're all different but this thread did make me smile. I don't know why but pizza (sourdough base) has gone down really well for me from about 6 weeks onwards. I was so nervous trying it but it was fine & for about 2 weeks recently when my sleeve hated everything (even after going back to liquids/soft food) was all I could eat. I can only manage a couple of slices & having been to the US, the slices here in the UK are a lot smaller! No impact on weight loss either but it was a rare meal for me pre surgery so don't plan on adding it as a regular thing as can see it derailing as the restriction lessens.

I wish that I wasn't out of pocket, that is what has held me back before is the $10,000. My BMI is about 32 which I know is low. Its more than just the weight loss that I'm hoping to have, its freedom from medicine for diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol. I sure hope that is it money well spent, I keep talking myself in and out of it.

I hear it used to be common to remove gallbladder during weight loss surgery. I’d ask your surgeon’s advice on it.

Starwarsandcupcakes, my med bottle says the same. How has you weight loss been since your revision? @maven, have you had your surgery already very? All of our stories are similar in ways!

Hello, I'm incredibly new here but i've been reading people's posts. I still considering weight loss surgery and I will most likely do it due to my years of weight gain and loss and my family history of health problems associated with obesity. I just wanted to say hello and tell you that I think you are courageous. You made a really big decision for yourself and from what I understand it is normal to grieve or feel symptoms of depression as you consider the many ways your life has changed. You chose surgery for a reason. I think that finding new ways to celebrate ourselves can be a challenge to anyone. I wish you happiness and the drive to hydrate ; )

Hi, I belong here too. After menopause, I found it impossible to lose weight. Just kept getting bigger and bigger. I had very small losses along the way but the slowness of the loss was so disheartening that I kept giving up and putting what weight I'd lost and some more on. I'm hoping the gastric bypass will allow me to actually lose weight and help me to not lose morale. So far so good. I keep thinking the weight loss will slow down - but actually, after so long with no progress at all, even if the weight loss is quite slow I'll still be happy. I feel hopeful for the first time in ages. My weight was starting to really affect my health. I just want to be healthy again. I didn't realise I needed to leave four hours between my levothyroxine and my vitamins. I've been using spray vitamins probably an hour to two hours after my levothyroxine so I've learnt something new here already. I shall change my vitamins to nights.

Same feelings here! It feels great to get back into some physical activity I used to love. I let myself get really out of control for a long time and I'm just now recognizing how much my love of food took away my love of everything else. I decided to only step on the scale maybe once a month and just focus on working out and eating right. I'm leaving for a snowboarding trip in Armenia next week. Its my first time going in over a decade. When I was a teenager and in college I used to compete and was an instructor. I'm excited to go again, even if I know my weight is still too high and will be a hindrance. One psychological struggle I'm having is that I'm a total fashionista. At every weight I've managed to have a great wardrobe and made it look GOOD. It's really hard to do that during weight loss and while I love that my clothes are way too big now I also don't want to buy anything new until I'm closer to a goal. However, that means a long time not having my fashion fix and I'm struggling.

So I'm new here and started a thread last week with some questions I had. You can easily find it if you want but pretty much I was asking WHY the bariatric office would contact the insurance company BEFORE they even allow me to go for an initial consult. I mean, the initial consult would better help me understand IF I even wanted to go through with the surgery to begin with and here they were almost acting as if they won't see me at all unless I have insurance that will cover it. Was just strange to me. So then yesterday they write me back. They simply say this (they also sent a separate email with details on classes, links to videos to watch and told me to look in the mail for a binder): Deductible: $150 Met to Date: Out of Pocket: $2750 Met to Date: Copay: Coinsurance: 100% Medically Supervised Weight Loss Classes: 0 That really doesn't explain anything. I mean, it tells me how much any coinsurance would cover (which I don't have) but not what my primary and only insurance will cover. So I messaged back to ask: What DOES MY insurance actually cover? When does the out of pocket expenses come into play, and can payments be made towards it instead of one lump sum? Does the "Medically supervised classes: 0" mean I attended none or I don't need to attend one? Are any of the additional tests needed for the surgery covered by insurance? So they respond today and still don't really answer all of my questions. One of the things she said was: "For the amount covered by your insurance you will need to call them for clarification." Huh, I was told last week that's what THEY were doing. SMH Then the last sentence she says: "Once you have the surgery we will submit to your insurance company and they will let us know what part of the balance is your responsibility. At that point you would receive a bill. I hope this helps!" ONCE I HAVE the surgery? WTH? Shouldn't they/I know what the insurance will cover BEFOREHAND? Gotta say, I'm not really happy right now. This is exactly why I wanted to go for a consult in person to ask all these questions. I mean, is this normal? Out of everything I've read here I can't say that I remember anyone saying they got the surgery and THEN were told what the damages were after the fact. This is all very discouraging but they are supposedly 1st tier in my network which means it SHOULD be covered 100% as I do believe my insurance covers this surgery 100% (a co-worker had it done with the same insurance a year ago). I mean, what is the job of these people if I am to call and find all this out myself? I was told in the first email they sent me that THEY would be contacting my insurance to see what all it covers then they would get back to me with the answers and the next steps to take. SMH I mean, am I over reacting or is this confusing and crazy to any of you too?

I have been on metformin since starting the 6 month weight loss required by insurance. I was not losing anything before taking the metformin so I know surgery is right for me. I believe that I will be taken off the medication after surgery or so I hope.

I am in the same position now rethinking my decision as I get closer to getting my surgery. I have to keep reminding myself that I have lost weight and regain over and over for years, my original decision to start this journey was more about being able to maintain the weight loss long term. It is the long term success that I think will be achievable with the surgery that keeps me focused, nerves and all. Good Luck to you.

I, too, am on weight loss medication during my countdown towards surgery. It has been the only thing that helps me lose weight. Which tells me that if I don’t get the surgery I will just keep gaining and gaining more and more weight. I’m trusting in the surgery and postop diet to do it’s work.

The reason I decided to have my surgery when I was so young was because I was still on my parents insurance plan until I turned 26 and they always had phenomenal insurance so I figured it was now or never. I think having it young made the weight loss and recovery process much easier anyway so it worked out very well for me.

I went to buy some new shorts a few weeks ago since my shorts were falling off when I unfastened the belt due to the weight loss. I was a size 44 and thought I must be in a size 38 so took them home and they also were falling off. I went back and found some stretchy size 34 shorts and they are a bit tight but they fit pretty well and are not overly tight. I am shocked at how quickly these sizes have changed. My wife also had VSG surgery the same day as me and has kept up with my weight loss (since we started the pre-op diet) and we are within 10 lbs of losing the same amount of weight. She had kids tugging on her pants and she would have to grab them at the last second or they would come off. She also bought some new pants and is now down 6 sizes. She also has some older pants from when she was smaller so she is able to wear these as she is downsizing. This journey has been amazing for us and we have now lost more than our 11 year old daughter weighs now. Our 11 year old is just barely shorter than my wife, so my wife has the ultimate goal to be our daughters current weight when she is done. My wife and I have never had a significant stall during this weight loss phase. We usually have a few days where our weight stays the same but it has never been more than a few days.

i assume with gold coverage that you'd be covered for weight loss surgery as along as you meet the criteria for the surgery to be also covered by medicare - which from memory is BMI 35 and greater with weight related comorbidities or a BMI 40 and over (without comorbidities). You will be given a medicare item number which you can then check with BUPA for coverage, also determine whichever private hospital you end up at is a hospital BUPA deals with for the best hospital coverage.