Post Gastric Sleeve Surgery: Your Experience With Improvement Of Obesity Related Conditions?

[LoserMama 37]

Hello! I'm a pre-op, and I am curious from the post-op side, at what point did you start to see resolution (if any) of obesity related health conditions, like diabetes, sleep apnea, high blood pressure, knee pain, etc?

The one I'm most curious about how you would know is sleep apnea. Do you have to go for a repeat sleep study, and is there a point at which you are advised to do so by your doc? my sleep apnea comes from both my weight but I also have a severely deviated septum, so its possible my sleep apnea won't resolve without treating that. Not sure.

Diabetes seems easier --if we are checking our blood sugar we'll probably see a downward trend in daily readings and then the A1c would drop. But how soon did it happen for you if it did improve or resolve?

[Lissa 2,631]

I'm 2 months 3 weeks post-op and I saw improvement in my knee pain very quickly, probably in the first three weeks. I started using a bi-pap for sleep apnea about 2 weeks before surgery and my pulmonologist wants 15% of my body weight gone before he will schedule my new sleep study. I'm at 295, looking for 280 to make the 15%, but I think it's improved tons already. I think I will either be off the bi-pap when I have that sleep study, or the pressure will be severely reduced.

I was pre-diabetic, my labs are already showing that is not the case anymore. I had also been dx with asthma in May, during a round of pneumonia. My new tests show that I still have asthma, but it has improved nearly 50% since surgery. I imagine that will continue to improve as more weight comes off.

I also had blood clots and two pulmonary embolisms (blood clots in the lungs). I've been off coumadin once, but had to go back on because there is excess clot factor in my blood. That med should disappear in January, 2012. The clots are related to the pneumonia and inactivity, so my increased exercise should help with that one tremendously!

Whatever health problems you have will undoubtedly improve once you have surgery. It's amazing how much better I feel at 57 pounds lost. I'm looking forward to feeling the benefits as I get to 100 pounds, 150 pounds lost and goal! I may literally feel like a whole new person!

Good luck with your journey!!

[swizzly 901]

I didn't have to do a sleep study so I've no idea if I had/have apnea, but I think I don't. Anyhow, pre-op I had hypertension, which resolved in a month or so post-op, so I was off the meds for it by two months I think. It's great!!

[MegInNOLA 531]

My husband was sleeved April 2010 and stopped snoring almost immediately. He no longer uses his CPAP and sleeps well--and so do I--no more snoring or machine from that side of the bed!!

He says I don't snore any more, either.... not that I ever did, mind you! LOL

My husband was also a brittle diabetic--on max doses of 5 different diabetic medications with no real control of blood sugar. He was also taking medication for blood pressure and cholesterol. Now, a year and a half after surgery, he is down 85 pounds and maintaining, and on NO MEDICATION except Vitamins. !!!! What a blessing!!! I get to keep him around longer. YAY!!!

[Brockcrawford 5]

I had severe type 2 diabetes and i was off my meds straight after surgery so I'm glad i did it. The best is not having to check my blood sugar every few hours. I still check it periodically but now I'm down to checking once a month!! So i'd say this was my best choice in life.

[Chicadee 10]

I had severe obstructive sleep apnea before surgery and now I probably haven't used my machine in over 2 months. I have not yet gone for a sleep study to tell me officially I no longer have it but I got to a point where I absolutely could not sleep with the mask anymore (and I always faithfully slept with it before). I had my pressure turned down a couple times and then I just got to where it started making me swallow lots of air into my stomach. I have not been snoring at all and seem to be getting a fairly good nights sleep now.

Other than typical aches and pains from being very obese, I didn't have any other medical conditions to resolve. I do have a lot more stamina now, I don't get winded like I used to walking places and going out shopping. I still have a long way to go and I am sure once I start exercising all the time that will improve even more.

[RickM 1,747]

I still have the sleep apnea six months out and almost 100lb down (almost to goal) though it's not nearly as bad as it was. I slept without the machine three nights this week and am getting reasonable rest, though my wife says that it's still there sometimes. So, I'll use it a while longer and try again.

On the diabetes front, which my wife had for about twenty years before her DS a few years ago, just short of needing insulin, it resolved in her over a few months, sometime between 6 and 12. Our doc said that in his experience, typically the longer that you have had the diabetes, the longer it will take to resolve post-op. So some will drop their meds in the hospital and never need to pick them up again while others will take a few months for it to resolve, though the meds can usually be decreased during that time.

[LoserMama 37]

Thank you all for relating your experiences. This is really great to get some perspective on what others have experienced. You know, the one weird thing is, I am VERY dependent on my CPAP, really, its like a sleep cue for me. I have used it for 7.5 years faithfully, and I find it hard to imagine being able to go to sleep without it... I am sure I am weird that way. part of me wonders if I can have one doc fix my deviated septum while the other doc is doing the sleeve....can you combine procedures like that ? ? :)

[Terry H. 196]

I'm six weeks out now. I stopped taking metformin a week before surgery and actos at surgery. My blood sugars immediatly fell. They were actually on the low side for a while but have leveled off right around 95-110 and that seems pretty normal to me. :biggrin5:

I'm planning to see my PCP soon and hope to get off the BP meds also. My readings since surgery have been normal/low.

[LoserMama 37]

Terry, that is just awesome. I am wondering if I will ever get off the metformin, because I was on it for PCOS at a lower dose before I was on it for diabetes. Any ladies with PCOS care to share if they had to stay on metformin?

[Mr.Mike 3]

im 31, down 50 pounds (2 1/2 months post op) off all bp meds, and metformin..

[CeeCeeFree 2]

LoserMama. I also had low dose metformin for PCOS. I lost about 30 pounds pre-op and my team sent me home from the hospital telling me not to take it any more. my pre-op labs were really good and a lot of that had to do with my pre-op weight loss.

[BroadwayBaby 19]

I too have PCOS and was taking 2000 mg metformin daily and both my endocrinologist and my surgeon said that I should stop taking it after surgery. I just had all of my blood work done and everything is normal! I do notice a slight decrease in Hair growth on my face and haven't noticed a huge loss of hair on my head ( I was already very thin on top from the PCOS). I also snored but had never taken a sleep study and my husband told me I do not snore anymore. I am three months out and down 50lbs - 1/2 way to my goal.

[tjharmon 11]

at about 50 pounds lost, my knees pain stopped---dr is checking me next month (three month checkup) to take me off the cholesterol meds

[Shae 44]

I was not given any of my meds in the hospital. I was taking HCTZ for adema, Metoprolol for BP, Niaspan for high Triglycerides and Yasmine for PCOS (among others but they are not related to obesity). I got back on the Yasmine because I do not wish to have any more children but have not started taking any of the others again. I have my BP and weight checked periodically at my PCM and it has been normal (my BP) and there is no swelling anymore. I have not had any labs done yet so I don't know about the triglycerides.