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you really do need to take your vitamins. Gastric bypass involves malabsorption of nutrients, so you could develop deficiencies over time. Some deficiencies you can recover from, and others not. Taking vitamins for life is part of the deal. on your other topic, if you stick to your plan, you'll eventually get to your goal. The closer you get to it, the slower the weight loss will be. The last few months I lost like 2 lbs (about a kilo) a month, but I kept at it and the weight loss didn't stop until I was 20 months out.

I'm 3 weeks out from gastric bypass surgery. Weight loss has stalled.

I think people notice, but are quicker to comment on the negatives then the positives unfortunately! If they don’t notice my weight loss yet at 60lbs I like to think they notice my confidence gain lol.

I think those thoughts are pretty normal. I had them myself. BUT....I know what would happen because it happened a million times before. I tried to lose weight for DECADES (I'm in my 60s). On my more successful attempts, I'd lose 50 or 60 lbs. I'd sit there for a couple of months, and then the weight would start piling back on. On my less successful attempts, I'd lose maybe 20 lbs. Same thing. Every time. Over and over. For decades. I was over 200 lbs overweight. I finally had to get real with myself. If I couldn't even keep 50 lbs off, how in the heck was I going to lose and keep off 200 lbs? I came to the conclusion that weight loss surgery was the only way I was ever going to get the weight off and keep it off. I'd do it again in a heartbeat and my only regret is that I didn't do it years ago.

Hi Its been a year since my WLS and I am roughly a stone / 14lbs away from my goal. I have been a slow loser, there are times I have slipped up which lasted for weeks, due to changes in my life. However when I am consistent about my eating, weight loss widely varies. All I do is make sure I eat around 700 calories a day. The content of the food is mostly carbs / processed food, but it keeps me happy. I dont monitor my water intake but I do drink alot of tea / coffee. I also dont take vitamins or supplements as I hate swallowing pills, but I suspect that has an effect on my energy levels. Dinner is my main meal , so doing physical activity before that is difficult. Also....I know u cant eat and drink at the same time. But for half of the year, I ve not been leaving a 20 min gap between food and drink. Mostly because of time constraints (work) and yeah laziness. This is definetly gonna stretch my stomach inthe long run right? So any tips to improve weight loss is appreciated, thanks.

I sure do hope it goes back to normal eventually. I don't like not knowing when it's coming nor this extreme bloatedness I'm experiencing. I swear I'm retaining like 8lbs of water weight right now. It's nuts. And of course I'm no longer on my prescribed water pill (that went with my BP pill) so no help there either. Ugh!

Thank you for your thoughtful post. Right now I'm scouring through the "NSV" thread that was quoted above, and my heart is letting some joy come in thinking of these things. Having lost some weight before, I can recall how GOOD some of them felt. So freaking GOOD! Congratulations on your being thisclose to the twos as well. I never thought I'd see 300 again, and I did just before my pre-op diet. That, also, was a reminder to me of where I've been, how far I've come, and where I want to be a couple years from now. ♥️

I had exactly the same thoughts... if I can drop this weight like this during the pre-op diet, why can't I just... continue? But I couldn't have, and I talked to my surgeon's staff about it. The pre-op diet (not that I had one necessarily, I put myself on it so I didn't go from nought to sixty in one day) is meant to be a crash diet. It is meant to shrink things and get a little visceral fat off you so that it's safer to do laparoscopic surgery. It is not sustainable long-term without surgery, and it is not meant to be. The other thing is—all or nearly all of us have binge-eaten in our past. Whether we have a healthy or unhealthy relationship with food, we've all overindulged. Well, after surgery, you literally CAN'T binge... and, bizarrely enough, most people don't WANT to. The first time you take ONE BITE too much, you will really feel that restriction and the resulting sensations (for me, it's massive chest pressure, and terrible gas that causes me to spit up) will make sure you learn what "full" feels like. I was a pizza eater. I could demolish an entire pizza myself in one sitting, because once I started I couldn't stop. Yesterday (just over 7 weeks post-op) I delivered pizza to my daughter's dress rehearsal, opened up the box, took a slice, had one bite, shrugged, and threw the rest of the slice away. It's like my body's been given this tool and it is forcing my brain to reckon with how I eat/ate. I wish I had found this site and gone for this surgery ten or more years ago. When I was nervous about the surgery—I had exactly the same thoughts as you—my family reminded me that I had tried REALLY hard, and never gotten below 330, then gained it all back until I was two cheeseburgers shy of 400 lbs. I went below that 330 mark 13 days after surgery. I'm now closing in on TWOsday, and I honestly feel like a different (and happier) person. Ultimately, only you can make the decision, but I think you'll find the ratio of yeasayers to naysayers here at BariatricPal to be massively tilted in the "yes do it" direction.

That is astonishing. Well done! And inspirational. I am closing in on double digits down from my start weight (in old money!) and can't wait for that to happen.

I did not have a lot for some reason but it is not at all uncommon to have doubts pre surgery. It is a major surgery which is a major decision. You are the only one who knows what’s truly best for you but my guess is that you are doing this because you have already tried everything else. Try to focus on WHY you want the surgery? And your non scale goals. You started down this path for a reason. What is your why and what do you hope to gain. There is a thread on here called “weirdest non scale victories” that I think everyone considering WLS should read. It will help you if you don’t already have a list on non scale goals for after surgery.

So I'm on the 11th day of my pre-op. It's going OK, have not strayed or anything, but I keep having intrusive thoughts (or maybe logical thoughts) that I should bail. Not because I have a better way or think I can lose it on my own, but because cutting out half my stomach inviting in possible unknown complications and more stress into my already complicated life seems pretty irrational. Fear of the unknown is in every corner. I could have issues in other areas of my life arise, and would have to deal with them as they come. But this seems like an unnecessary venture - at least that's what 1/2 my brain is telling me. The other half is excited and thrilled with the idea of feeling better in my own skin, continuing working on a healthier relationship with food, and getting to a new normal that is satisfying. Literally telling people about the surgery, my husband has off, I've got my protein, my physical being is proceeding forward as if this is going to happen, That's my plan, at least. But then a part of me just wonders why I don't just DO that without surgery. Work a healthy path of eating, etc. I may not lose as much weight, but I can continue on the path of healthier relationship without surgery and without inviting the unknown complications in. I realize this is probably part of the mental battle. And maybe it's harder because I'm pre-surgery. Post, I wouldn't have the option of deciding on surgery or not, just to move forward and work on the food/emotions/etc. I had surgery scheduled for May, but got sick and had to delay. Part of me wondered if that was actually serendipity/God/fate letting me know that it wasn't for me. There was relief, but also sadness. Regardless, I stuck with the program. I've learned healthy habits, and learned a lot about myself through the program, honestly. But my weight hasn't really changed because of it. Just my head. Did anyone else get cold feet? Sometimes I hate my brain!

My coach wants me to get a weight vest, load it up to where I was when I started, and try to run even just 400 m. I'm skeert.

This was the visualization that shocked me realizing how much weight I was carrying around.... 😲 We all know how big and heavy those 50 lbs suitcases are, when traveling... Well, at some point - while packing for a vacation - I realized I was carrying 4, yes F O U R !!! of those suitcases around on me, at all times. 😲🤪😭 Boy, does it feel good NOW, to have put down those four bags and stroll around with my hands in my pockets! 😊😁

Today - almost 18 months out - I met my first goal: over 200 lbs lost, and joining the double digits club (in kg... of course 🙂 ). 99 kilos today (218 lbs), lost 204 lbs from my top weight. Feeling good! Friends, it's a (life) long process, hang in there and have fun with it. Never mind the small ups and downs, look for the trends.

Haha, we will see. I actually GAINED weight one day, and then stayed the same today. I swear. I hope my liver is nice and small, 'cause the scale can be a devil.

Wow, you're doing great with the weight loss, I hope the pain gets better! Glad you are loving it. Wishing you continued success!

Update: It's about 6 months since this post, and I made the decision to pursue the surgery. Wife is on board too, since it will help to alleviate other health issues I have. New job stress, wife having an awful pregnancy (but healthy baby boy!), and now the stress of chasing after a 2-year old and infant haven't helped the weight loss. Hoping for a 3-6 month window to surgery depending on insurance, which works out as I'll have more vacation time at my disposal in the new year. Sent from my SM-G973U using BariatricPal mobile app

Anyone had plastics done in portland Oregon after weight loss surgery ?.. where , who and how much was the quote ? Thanks

Your body is relearning how to hold itself with your lower weight. Back, hip & knee pain and balance issues are not uncommon since your muscles, tendons, skeleton used to compensate for your excess weight & now it doesn’t. Your centre of balance is changing & your posture is improving. I had upper shoulder pain & then I realised my bras were too big for my shrinking breasts & were not supporting me correctly. Got fitted for new bras & my back pain vanished. Otherwise try acupuncture, therapeutic massages or a physio to help ease the postural transition. I tend to agree with the others @jadj65 & the cause of your discomfort could be from eating too fast &/or eating too much. The restriction usually is felt across the chest but your signal for eating enough maybe discomfort across your back. It takes time for the message to get through that we’re full & we get full much more quickly, so it is easy to eat more than we need (past eating enough) especially if you’re eating too quickly. Don’t be afraid to put your cutlery down & sit back from your plate.

I chose to do the surgery because I was tired of being held back, energy-wise, by carrying two of me around everywhere. I'm an aspiring filmmaker and photographer. I've been at this for 3 years, and my weight was holding me back because I would go into a shoot knowing that I had a finite amount of energy to work with and I better make it count. I had to tap out early from a once-in-a-lifetime shoot over the summer because after I had dragged all my gear up the stairs I was too tired and sore to keep going for much longer. I fainted while taking a friend's wedding photos over the summer because I overheated. Additionally, my content is on YouTube and I was constantly worried that someone would discover my "dirty secret"--that the "Betty Badass" urban explorer they were watching was morbidly obese. I'd go out of my way to edit around portions of my footage where you could see my reflection in shop windows, etc, because I didn't want to be made fun of. My fear of my own camera kept me from connecting with my audience. I decided to appear on camera for the first time two weeks after my surgery--I told myself it was time to be fearless and if someone had something to say, they can watch me shrink over the next year and eat their words. I managed to accumulate about 3-4 months of content before my surgery that I'll be putting together while I'm recovering, and I can't wait to hit the road again. I can't wait to be able to actually ride my motorcycle. I can't wait to not get winded going up stairs. If I can survive this process, I can survive anything. There have been moments since the surgery I've felt like I was walking barefoot through hell, but I'm starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. I know how indestructible I am now.

Hi I had my op 3 weeks ago. I lost 5kg in my pre op so was over the moon and in the first week of the op lost another 6kg, but for the last 10 days the weight has fluctuated up and down by .5kg. I am following everything. Is this normal? Am i expecting too much? It feels a bit disheartening

It has been 7 months since I had my ESG procedure in March. What a weird ride. I guess I'm just posting this to muse on the situation as a whole. Wall of text time! Six Weeks of Suck A six week liquid diet was awful. It went in 2 week chunks and degraded over time. The first two weeks, it was amusing. I got to tell people what was going on! The first entire week I was basically sleeping anyway and took sick days, so it was just me, in bed, playing Pokemon Sword. A weird sort of vacation, really, even if half of it was crippling nausea and whining to my husband. The next two weeks was boring and a bit annoying, but I at least got to sip chicken broth and relish the fact that my food tasted like actual food. (I bought a jar of low fat chicken gravy at the store at one point and sipped it in the car while feeling like some kind of jewel thief having pulled off a heist. It was the best food I have ever eaten.) The last two weeks, I just wanted to strangle the doctors for not letting me eat solid food. Six weeks! People who have literal stomach removal have less time than that! But no, the surgeon said that six weeks was because the sutures are internal, and thus are constantly disturbed, so in a weird twist they take longer to heal than gastric sleeve surgeries. Did I mention basic recovery sucked for the first few days? When I came out of anesthesia, the doctors said I had been under for a long time, because I was just too sleepy to actually wake after I was technically conscious. They kept me until I could walk, which was way longer than they thought. Even walking down the driveway made me so tired I had to lean on someone. Going to the bathroom and back to bed was enough to take a nap afterwards. I had to rotate constantly to stop feeling nauseous or crampy. I emergency-called the doctors for some more anti-nausea meds because the first ones just didn't work well enough. Then, like magic, around day 7, it all stopped and I could get up and do stuff normally. Not being able to lift more than 15 pounds or whatever the limit was, was almost a deal-breaker. I work with heavy machinery a lot, but I saw that problem coming. My long-suffering (but kind) coworkers carried things for me. But at home, do you know how many things weigh 20 lbs? Stuff full of liquid is right out. A gallon of water by itself weighs 9 lbs, heaven help you if you have to carry anything else with it. My husband had to haul our pet food and litter bags, which we buy in 50 pound sacks because we hate having to shop a lot. Even normal grocery shopping bags can approach 15 pounds if you fill them full. When I was still exhausted, I had to get a very confused Target employee to help me carry a single bag out to the car. I'm sure this guy had no idea what was going on, with a 30-something woman shuffling up to him like an old lady and holding out a fairly light bag and asking if he would be wonderful and carry this to her car because she had picked up too much stuff and now her body was saying it was time to sleep right here on the floor if she didn't hand it off. Did I Cheat on the Diet? Yes. 100%. I absolutely cheated. I cheated like a soap opera spouse. Honestly, the lesson I learned was that this really caused no harm whatsoever. Probably a bad lesson, but in the end, it made those last two weeks bearable. The doctor said clear liquids only, but I added in pureed chunky soups, Greek yogurt, and scrambled eggs. I chewed for a long time and made sure everything in my mouth was blenderized into pure liquid, and I still ate incredibly small meals. But really, anything to get me off those fake-ass protein shakes. I didn't tell my team the extent of the cheating, but I never felt any pain, and I still made my calorie and macro counts. The first day I let myself eat tuna from a can was the day angels sang in my ear. I furtively snatched it up at CVS, a tiny can the size of one of those Fancy Feast cat food tins. I snuck it in the car and dumped the can in a recycle bin before my husband could see it and wag his finger. Oh, it was good. What I'm getting at is that I was losing my bananas during the last 2 weeks of that dang liquid diet, and I needed something to eat that felt like real food, or I was going to crack. I think this worked out. Have I Lost Weight? 45 pounds so far. From what I can tell, there is really no way to beat the "1-2 pounds per week" rule. No amount of surgery was going to take my resting metabolic rate of 1800 and somehow get 5 pounds a week out of lowering it to 1000 cal/week. I think all the "omg I lost 10 pounds my first week" is water and glycogen, no matter who you are, unless you're very obese. Water weight will get you early on. If you gain weight or have not lost weight even 3-4 weeks after the procedure, it's probably still water weight. There's no way your body can retain fat on 1000 calories a day unless you have a disease/disorder. You will gain weight abruptly when you start putting food back in your body. I'm shocked at how much food in various parts of digestion weigh. That said, according to the Mayo Clinic, food takes about 36-48 hours from entering, to exit your body. Think about how much you eat in 48 hours. Let's say, for round numbers, you eat a meal weighing 3/4 lb, 3x/day. So that's 2.25 lbs a day. 48 hours is 4 days. Before the meal on day 1 exits on day 4, you've put a total of 9 pounds of stuff into your body. 9 pounds! That's like 4 weeks of weight loss, supposedly gone immediately! But it's not. If, like me, your last weight reference was right before the surgery, you fully blasted those 6 or so pounds of food out of your system with the absolutely awful colonoscopy cleanse they made you drink. You know how much you ate at each meal before surgery, at least ballpark. Add those "phantom" pounds to your hospital weight, and you have your "actual" weight. So my actual weight was really around 260, not 251, because it was 251 with my entire intestinal tract scrubbed to a bile-yellow liquid shine. (Ew.) Basically, expect water weight to cover up early weight loss and food weight to cover up weight loss about 1-2 months in, depending on when you're allowed to eat solids. Frustrating Points I am still not particularly lower in my dress size. I have absolutely lost some inches, but it seems to be coming off relatively evenly, so I'm still a 16-18 in a dress. I'm frustrated, because part of the point of this was to fit into my old college clothes, but I expected to lose a couple of dress sizes in 45 lbs of weight loss. I still have a bunch of clothes sitting around waiting for me to be able to fit them. That said, women's clothing sizes are stupid, and I really don't know what my dress size was when starting. I thought it was 18, but I gained weight over the pandemic, so I have no clue anymore. Awesome Points I can eat what I want. Seriously. The physical size of my stomach limits me from eating a lot, but I can eat single meals, and usually they last me the entire day. I routinely take home leftovers now. But in the end, the food I want isn't fast food and pizza -- though to be fair, I still do eat pizza. I just eat way less of it. I don't have to optimize now, and my body seems to actually obey calorie counts now without getting hungry. I still eat pizza every so often. I still have dessert. I had candy on Halloween. I still don't eat salad. In the end, I feel like this was what I wanted: the ability to eat the food I actually like, socially, while having my body go in a direction I don't hate. I have actual hunger cues now, and I'm not constantly thinking about food. Would I Recommend ESG? I will tout ESG from the tops of mountains now. Some suck early on for a feeling of actual control over my body and a sense that I finally obey physics as I know it? Yes. Yes, please. I should have gotten this years ago. When my parents offered to cover weight loss surgery when I was like 23, I should have said "YES NOW" instead of "ugh why would you offer that?".

My weirdest thing was chairs. Like not having to worry about chairs in restaurants, the embarrassment of not fitting in chairs in a conference room at work, weight limits on patio chairs, etc. I can’t list how many amazing things have happened to me since I lost almost 170 lbs but every time I sit in a chair in the conference room at work and there is tons of room on either side as I sit with my legs crossed (another fun victory) it’s a reminder how far I came.

I have that when I eat too fast. Does eating slowly help? Did it just start or has it been going on since surgery/starting solid foods? But, it could be just from losing weight - I've had back pain since starting to lose significant weight and I've never had back pain my whole life.

This isn't about her, it's about you. Maybe this is her way of covering up her fears about you having surgery. Yes, there are risks, but the risks of being obese are much higher. Maybe she feels guilt for any role she may have had to your weight struggled (I am not saying she did, just that people have strange hang ups about things). Similarly, maybe she feels like you having surgery suggests something about her as a parent (again, not saying it does, just that people have all sorts of hang ups and this is one I can see being out there). At the end of the day, you know what is right for you. And, calling this the "easy way out" is just asinine. Seriously, would anyone say that to a cancer patient getting chemo or surgery? Or a diabetes patient who needs insulin? No, they wouldn't. The data says that long term weight loss of significant amounts of weight is nigh impossible without surgery. This is the best tool in your toolbox to get you to a healthier you.