**Weight REGAIN**

[Irebrok1992 3]

Hello my name is Kelsey and I’m new to this website/forum. I came on here to seek advice/friends to help me out. I have been struggling so so bad lately.

I had weight loss surgery 11.28.2015 and I was 400 pounds when I did. After about a year and a half I had lost a lot of weight, I got down to 170 pounds. I was happy at this weight, healthy, had less back/foot/ankle/knee pain, etc, you knew the drill. Until Covid i kept most of it off. In the past 3 years I have noticed a steady incline in weight again, so much so that I got back up to 270 at one point.

i went back to my surgeon, dr Scott in search of maybe a revision. What I got instead was a speech on how sncking is bad etc, things I already knew and he told me to do nothing but shakes for ten days. I did pretty well on my shakes, drinking 4-5 a day and got down to 253. Of course, when I started eating again, I’ve gained weight back and I’m back to 265. I am so unhappy, and stressed out about this and I’m not sure what to do.

i did have lbs done, my thyroid is acting up and my B12 is not absorbing correctly, vit D low, etc, im thinking hypothyroidism is the main cause of my weight gain and low energy but my surgeon wants me to see a pcp about starting meds. I don’t have a pcp, so I made an appt (I made this appt one month ago) but I’m having to wait until OCTOBER 25 to see the pcp. I just don’t know what else to do.

i do have history of bipolar and depression, which causes me to stress eat. I’m fighting this very hard, but I feel like I would do better if I had friends or online even pals to help me through this. Anyway. That’s me. I need help, obv, so if anyone feels inclined, reach out to me. We can exchange whatever info we need to stay in touch.

[learn2cook 576]

I’m not going to lecture you. I can’t solve your problems. I got help for my family emotional problems by utilizing psychology today.com and found a therapist locally. Covid emphasized so many existing problems and like you, I reached out for help. It really worked and I can only encourage you to keep reaching out, be persistent because you are worth it!

Even bringing these things up to your PCP will get the ball rolling. You can ask for a social worker to help you navigate the many specialists and paperwork you will need. You can ask for group therapy which is often cheaper and helps you make friends. Some people have tried OA to meet like minded people and support for weight loss. Meeting with real people locally is important for community.

You are not alone, we all get in these ruts.

[BigSue 1,372]

Welcome! First of all, great job on your weight loss. Even after the regain, you’re still down 130 pounds from where you started, which is a major accomplishment.

Secondly, I’m appalled that your bariatric surgeon’s solution was a 10-day liquid diet, as if that’s a realistic long-term weight loss strategy. I do think you’re on the right track to go to a PCP and get your thyroid and Vitamin deficiencies corrected.

Are you tracking your eating at all? I use MyFitnessPal, but there are other apps like Baritastic that have similar features, and I think tracking your eating can really help you see where you can improve. At least for me, there’s something about seeing the numbers that makes it clear what is or isn’t worth eating.

[Tomo 1,191]

Sounds like your doctor has faith in you since you originally went from 400 to 170 lbs. That is a huge accomplishment. Despite the weight gain, you are still way ahead in the weightloss game being 135 lbs down. Maybe he suggested the 10 day liquid diet to try to get you back on track. Similar to the post-op diets, kind of like a reset. I know resets can't shrink your stomach but it does reset some people mentally and they can go back to the dedication they had early post-op and continue doing whatever they did to be so successful before.

Also, since you have Vitamin deficiencies, maybe he feels you having a revision would not be a safe thing right now. I think you seeing your pcp is a good thing to address or exclude any other health problem that may be causing you to gain weight.

If you really want a revision and he is unwilling, perhaps get a second opinion.

[SleeveToBypass2023 2,598]

I agree with @Tomo. I think your surgeon may have been thinking the liquid diet would be a good way to do a pouch reset. There's a lot of sites that recommend doing it at least a week, followed by a week for each stage of the "just had surgery" food diet to get your pouch and mind back on track. Given the Vitamin deficiencies and possible thyroid issues, I'm not surprised at all that he isn't considering a revision right now. I would follow through with a full reset, definitely see your pcp for more tests, and then once you have the full picture, go from there. I would also track what I'm eating (I use MyFitnessPal) and be mindful of snacking, grazing, portion size, slider foods, etc.

[LookingForward22 320]

Hi Kelsey. Congrats on the weight loss! The regain is worrisome and I’m glad you’re working to address it before it continues to creep up.

I’m sorry you had a frustrating experience with your surgeon. It’s my understanding many programs try to get patients back on track with basics before doing revisions to make sure that we are using the tools we will need to be successful after the rescission. I hope that is what he was doing but wish he would have communicated that in a way that was more … helpful.

You did well on the shakes, which is encouraging. I’m wondering if you were weighing, measuring and tracking when you went back to food?

Following up with a PCP about your malabsorption and other health issues is a good idea. I’m glad you had an appt, but sorry it’s so far out. Have you ever seen an endocrinologist for the metabolic issues? If not I highly recommend it if possible. While I love my pcp - my endocrinologist has a very different approach to those things and it’s been a big help at dialing in the right treatment.

This forum is a great place for support and I think you’ll find a lot of it! I’d also suggest looking into to finding a therapist if you are able. Please check back in and let us know how you are doing.

[Irebrok1992 3]

23 hours ago, BigSue said:

Welcome! First of all, great job on your weight loss. Even after the regain, you’re still down 130 pounds from where you started, which is a major accomplishment.

Secondly, I’m appalled that your bariatric surgeon’s solution was a 10-day liquid diet, as if that’s a realistic long-term weight loss strategy. I do think you’re on the right track to go to a PCP and get your thyroid and Vitamin deficiencies corrected.

Are you tracking your eating at all? I use MyFitnessPal, but there are other apps like Baritastic that have similar features, and I think tracking your eating can really help you see where you can improve. At least for me, there’s something about seeing the numbers that makes it clear what is or isn’t worth eating.

I am tracking my calories now. I find that i dont do well with tracking apps, i tried my fitness pal and bariastric but I never used them. I bought a calorie counting planner/journal which I am using now. Thank you for the motivating words. I do know I am still 130 pounds down from where I was, but it has gotten discouraging when I see the weight climbing back up.

[Irebrok1992 3]

Thank you all for the kind words, encouraging words, and hard to hear words. I will keep this updated as time goes on, I am putting myself on Clear Liquids tomorrow then doing another week long reset with the shakes again to hopefully get myself back on track once more. I know that the shakes is not a long term solution, but it’ll help me regain focus again and hopefully get myself in a better mind set to be more conscious about what I put into my mouth.

Going to be searching for a new therapist soon. Will keep updated when I can. Thanks to you all again!

[RDC2019 17]

On 9/12/2022 at 3:16 AM, Irebrok1992 said:

Hello my name is Kelsey and I’m new to this website/forum. I came on here to seek advice/friends to help me out. I have been struggling so so bad lately.

I had weight loss surgery 11.28.2015 and I was 400 pounds when I did. After about a year and a half I had lost a lot of weight, I got down to 170 pounds. I was happy at this weight, healthy, had less back/foot/ankle/knee pain, etc, you knew the drill. Until Covid i kept most of it off. In the past 3 years I have noticed a steady incline in weight again, so much so that I got back up to 270 at one point.

i went back to my surgeon, dr Scott in search of maybe a revision. What I got instead was a speech on how sncking is bad etc, things I already knew and he told me to do nothing but shakes for ten days. I did pretty well on my shakes, drinking 4-5 a day and got down to 253. Of course, when I started eating again, I’ve gained weight back and I’m back to 265. I am so unhappy, and stressed out about this and I’m not sure what to do.

i did have lbs done, my thyroid is acting up and my B12 is not absorbing correctly, vit D low, etc, im thinking hypothyroidism is the main cause of my weight gain and low energy but my surgeon wants me to see a pcp about starting meds. I don’t have a pcp, so I made an appt (I made this appt one month ago) but I’m having to wait until OCTOBER 25 to see the pcp. I just don’t know what else to do.

i do have history of bipolar and depression, which causes me to stress eat. I’m fighting this very hard, but I feel like I would do better if I had friends or online even pals to help me through this. Anyway. That’s me. I need help, obv, so if anyone feels inclined, reach out to me. We can exchange whatever info we need to stay in touch.

You are so not alone. This is a tough lifestyle change- for the better. You've done great, know you can achieve your goals and may have stalls,setbacks,... but get back up and reassess what you're doing differently. I'm not perfect no one is and we have to keep trying to get better everyday. My fav snack of chips is really improving because I try substituting things that occupy my mind and body,ie doing my hair, nails, long leisurely soaks, exercise,... sometimes it doesn't work, but I've stopped beating myself up because of the accomplishments I have made. This forum is great with great ppl. So I would suggest to keep reaching out here, find a pcp, social wkr., or someone in your surrounding community with experience to assist you in meeting your goals. You can do it, I can do it and we will meet and surpass our goal(s) and move on to the next thing because it's called living our best life! Blessings ❤

[Bee kami 21]

On 9/12/2022 at 12:16 AM, Irebrok1992 said:

Hello my name is Kelsey and I’m new to this website/forum. I came on here to seek advice/friends to help me out. I have been struggling so so bad lately.

I had weight loss surgery 11.28.2015 and I was 400 pounds when I did. After about a year and a half I had lost a lot of weight, I got down to 170 pounds. I was happy at this weight, healthy, had less back/foot/ankle/knee pain, etc, you knew the drill. Until Covid i kept most of it off. In the past 3 years I have noticed a steady incline in weight again, so much so that I got back up to 270 at one point.

i went back to my surgeon, dr Scott in search of maybe a revision. What I got instead was a speech on how sncking is bad etc, things I already knew and he told me to do nothing but shakes for ten days. I did pretty well on my shakes, drinking 4-5 a day and got down to 253. Of course, when I started eating again, I’ve gained weight back and I’m back to 265. I am so unhappy, and stressed out about this and I’m not sure what to do.

i did have lbs done, my thyroid is acting up and my B12 is not absorbing correctly, vit D low, etc, im thinking hypothyroidism is the main cause of my weight gain and low energy but my surgeon wants me to see a pcp about starting meds. I don’t have a pcp, so I made an appt (I made this appt one month ago) but I’m having to wait until OCTOBER 25 to see the pcp. I just don’t know what else to do.

i do have history of bipolar and depression, which causes me to stress eat. I’m fighting this very hard, but I feel like I would do better if I had friends or online even pals to help me through this. Anyway. That’s me. I need help, obv, so if anyone feels inclined, reach out to me. We can exchange whatever info we need to stay in touch.

I am 20 years out and have experience just about everything that comes with having weight loss surgery. I am also a pharmacist and have been like a community resource for the docs in my circle. It was a struggle to keep the weight off and to get back on track after regain. sw 296 lw: 126 regain weight 177 cw 145-150. But it is possible. 2020 and 2021 broke me mentally and physically. I was a front line healthcare provider struggling with my own bought of Covid and pneumonia then being rushed back to work to help serve my community. My staff experienced so much loss personally and collective but our cooperation didn’t seem to care at all…this had me rethinking my entire existence. So much of my identity was my job, it was where I escaped all my personal tragedies. My place of escape became a even bigger tormentor. I had a breakdown suffered anxiety and major depression to the point were 3 doctors took my of work on disability. The mental distress factor plays such a larger role in how we cope and what we use to cope; our hormones and the selection of meds we need despite our desire to keep weight off. Support is so important. An advocate is so important. A provider that listens and understands your complaints is extremely important. You are on the right track! I know this was a few months ago, how’s everything going with you now?

Edited January 9, 2023 by Bee kami