Compression Garments Increase Sleeve Restriction...?

[AvaFern 3,516]

I am one year and about 10 days post-op from my sleeve and almost exactly a month post-op from plastics, which among other things included an abdominoplasty. Prior to having my plastic surgery, I was very comfortable with my sleeve. She (yes, I gave it a gender, lol) didn’t make me sick or burpy all that often, she very rarely caused surprise puking, and we had worked out a system where I knew that if I ate sugar, most junk food, or too much of certain things I would get sick, but otherwise we had a pretty friendly relationship the last few months. Immediately after surgery this all changed. I went from knowing exactly how much and what type of food I could eat without getting sick, which had finally worked out to a nice balance of Protein, low calories, and occasionally a few bites of junk food, to not being able to eat more than few bites of anything without feeling like I was right back to being a month or two out from sleeve surgery. I have thrown up more this month than I have since the very first few months of having the sleeve and nearly everything I eat creates massive restriction.

At first I thought maybe it was just a reaction to the surgery, however it has now been a month and it seems the only variable that is now different is major compression of my stomach. Following an abdominoplasty you need to wear an abdominal binder or a compression garment for anywhere from a month to two months after surgery. While logically it doesn’t seem like you should be able to smush, squish, or otherwise manipulate your stomach pouch that much with a compression garment, the few times I have eaten without wearing it, oh happy days, there was no sickness and the restriction was about what I had gotten used to at around 8-10 months after sleeve surgery.

I really don’t mind the fact that my compression garment is making me more cognizant of what I am eating…I actually lost 10 pounds this month after plastic surgery without being able to workout, which I never thought would be possible. It just seems that if the compression garment is legitimately working to make my sleeve more effective, and keep in mind I have no empirical evidence of this, it has just been a personal observation, perhaps those of you who have experienced a drop in the restrictive sensation of the sleeve after a few months might want to give a compression garment a try? It may help you re-establish healthy eating patterns if you wear it for a few weeks, and worse case, if it doesn’t help with the sleeve, it does make you look skinnier, lol.

[Ava324 413]

Hello, fellow Ava!

This makes a lot of sense for me. I used to get quite nauseous when I wore Spanx for special events, and earlier in the year I heard a bunch of news about it: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/20/spanx-shapewear_n_4616907.html.

[AvaFern 3,516]

@Ava324 Hey Ava! Thanks for posting that link! I feel validated now!

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

Seriously? Wearing a too-tight girdle that makes you throw up is a viable solution for weight maintenance after WLS?

Well, if that doesn't wind up working for you, you could wear a chastity belt with an hook that pokes you in the stomach. Or you could wear a full coat of armor that's a size too small. Or you could lock a full-face helmet onto your head without any opening to your mouth. Or you could find an old Iron lung and move into it with only your head sticking out and no way to feed yourself.

Seriously ... if you lost 10 pounds in a month because you didn't work out, it's likely that most of that weight loss was muscle mass.

Edited September 18, 2014 by VSGAnn2014

[AvaFern 3,516]

@VSGAnn2014 Wow, rude much? First, no, I am not wearing a girdle, I am wearing a medically prescribed compression garment which fits exactly like it should. Second, I lost 10 pounds in a month because I was extremely careful with what I ate and because I didn't have the option to eat as much as I usually do.

And honestly, if you want to lose weight, you do what needs to be done and for people who no longer feel any restriction, a week or two of wearing a compression garment, which by the way is completely safe, is a cheap way to remind yourself of how to eat. Wearing a compression garment is not even remotely the same thing as any of the other things you suggested, but thanks for being ridiculous.

[Paloma68 31]

Seriously? Wearing a too-tight girdle that makes you throw up is a viable solution for weight maintenance after WLS?

Well, if that doesn't wind up working for you, you could wear a chastity belt with an hook that pokes you in the stomach. Or you could wear a full coat of armor that's a size too small. Or you could lock a full-face helmet onto your head without any opening to your mouth. Or you could find an old Iron lung and move into it with only your head sticking out and no way to feed yourself.

Seriously ... if you lost 10 pounds in a month because you didn't work out, it's likely that most of that weight loss was muscle mass.

I think that's the rudest comment I've ever seen on this forum. I'm with Avafern. Loved her suggestion.

Using your logic, VSGann2014, then you should've never had this surgery.

[deedadumble 1,033]

I had the same thing happen after my plastics. I never vomited as much as during the initial stages of the sleeve as I did when wearing my garments. I had an arm lift, BL/BA, and lower body lift, so had to wear a top and bottom garment. They both pressed on my stomach area. I only lost a few pounds, but mainly because they took 4 pounds of skin. I really tried not to lose weight because I know how important Protein is to healing. I switched over to drinking more Protein Shakes to get it down.

[TrailriderJulia 39]

Vsgann2014 you are just mean. This is not the first time I have seen your hateful comments.