EIGHT YEARS POST-OP AND GAINING WEIGHT

[Gemini001 0]

Hello all. I am new to the group and am looking forward to reading all the posts and possibly making some new friends! Being a bariatric patient feels lonely at times so I am thankful for this group. I had RNY gastric bypass 8 years ago and lost about 80 pounds which I lost within a year and surpassed my goal weight of 100 pounds. My lowest weight was 93 pounds, which was too low for me, but it was very difficult for me not to get sick at practically every meal for a while. I pretty much started eating anything I could keep down so I could gain some weight as I did not look healthy. I was able to bounce back and maintain a 98 to 103 pound ideal weight for about 6 years then I slowly started to gain weight again. I was able to eat more and more and dumped less and less, seemingly overnight, and now I have crept out of my wardrobe I worked so hard to get into! I am very depressed as I now have some medical issues I have to deal with due to vitamin/mineral deficiency, scariest one being osteoporosis. I am only 45 years old. I feel so vulnerable to other diseases due to the malabsorption aspect of the surgery. I am popping so many pills a day to try and keep up with the Vitamin deficiencies that it is cery sifficult to keep up. It is so unnatural and difficult to live this way. To make matters worse, i have knee problems and have pain every time I start an exercise program, which is now so important due to the osteoporosis. I live in South Florida and am looking for a good physician who is experienced working with bariatric patients. Any suggestions? I also need some suggestions on how to get back on track and lose weight. I apologize for the length of my post and thank you for taking the time to read it and for your suggestions. Also, i would love to meet some buddies in south florida!

[Baconville 578]

Well, I don't know how much help I can be. I am only a year out and have just hit my goal weight, so I am now focusing on maintenance. I live in Minnesota, about as far from south Florida as you can get!

However, I do really fear gaining my weight back. I do relate that I think I can eat quite a bit more than I should be able to and I have never dumped. The combo scares me. So, I am being very vigilant about my diet. I record everything I eat on MyFitnessPal.com, this I think is key to my success thus far.

Exercise is difficult with knee problems. Do you have access to a pool at all? Swimming or even walking in a pool is much easier on your knees and is great exercise. Resistance or weight training is also very beneficial. You don't need much equipment, just some light hand weights work great.

Finally, I would get in touch with a bariatric clinic that is convenient to you. If you are still in the area where you had your surgery give them a call, otherwise choose a new one. Most good ones will take on patients from other clinic's. Set up an appointment for a complete work up and see where your levels are at. You might have better luck with some of the medically specialized bariatric Vitamins that you find on line if you are not adequately absorbing the nutrients in regular Vitamins. The clinic NUT should be able to help you with an eating plan that will work for you.

You have done amazingly well for YEARS! You can definitely get back on track and feel good again. The journey doesn't end with attainment of our goal weight. We will all face challenges, it's what we do about them that will determine true long term success. YOU ARE WORTH FIGHTING FOR!! GO FOR IT!

Carol