Delivery and pregnancy with WLS

[TwinkleToes87 14]

Please help. I’m trying to decide if I should get wls and the right kind for me (sleeve, Sadi, minigb). I really want to have a healthy pregnancy afterwards. Do you have to deliver by C-Section after all wls? It is harder to have a healthy pregnancy/baby? Thank you for any help.

[summerseeker 2,138]

Hello, You really need to talk to a bariatric surgeon about these issues. Their knowledge of the different surgeries and your body are priceless. BUT here is my non medical answer - Why would giving birth be any different because you have a smaller stomach ? Your lady bits are all in the same place.

I imagine the problems would be getting the correct nutrition into your body to support yourself and the foetus. You will need to wait as long as possible to get pregnant if you have issues. Some people have no problems eating and drinking after surgery but I did. For 18 months I only managed an average of 800 cals daily.

Good luck with your journey

[NickelChip 1,211]

This is a very informative research article from the NIH website that should help put your mind at ease. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3345131/

The TL/DR is you can have a safe pregnancy and can certainly have a natural delivery if there are no complications, just as you would without bariatric surgery. Most doctors suggest waiting a year or two before getting pregnant. You want to lose the weight first, and you want to be at a point where you can eat enough calories to sustain the pregnancy in a healthy way. By losing weight, you are likely to have increased fertility and a healthier pregnancy for you and the baby.

[ChunkCat 728]

You can have a safe pregnancy and delivery with any of the surgeries. Your surgical choice should be based on your individual needs like how much weight you want to lose, what your BMI is, what pre-existing conditions you have, etc... There are some great support groups on FB for pregnancy after bariatric surgery! I know of one for SADI/DS patients, but I am sure there are plenty for RNY or Sleeve patients as well! But talking with a surgeon who is trained to do all the surgeries is your best source of information... A surgeon that only does 1 or 2 of the surgeries may give you biased advice on which surgery to choose.

[TwinkleToes87 14]

Thank you for all this great information. It’s a big help! I wish we all didn’t have to make these huge decisions but it helps to have this support through it all. I’m very grateful.