Redsfan19

I’m at almost a decade post op and moved away years ago from where I had RNY surgery. Over the past six months I e had repeated abdominal pain that my Dr keeps trying me on Pepcid for and is referring me to a gastroenterologist. I’d like to find one with experience/interest working w post- bariatric patients but most bariatric specialists are surgeons. Anyone else dealt with this? Particularly in the Phoenix area? Ty!

I want to also add that I’m 9 years out and while I am not an alcoholic (I can be around alcohol without the urge to drink), it scared me how quickly alcohol hit after surgery and how often one glass hit like 3 used to. I quit pretty much all alcohol about 1.5 years ago now and am loving the growing mocktail and Non-Alcoholic Beer scene. If you feel out of control, it is not your fault and you can get help.

I’m about 9 years out from RNY and I’ve also had a lot of issues with meds. I’ve found (1) I absolutely cannot do anything that’s an extended release med and (2) I have to be constantly on my doctors as an advocate for myself about things like this. No matter how many times I tell them, they forget about my specific med needs when prescribing things or I have to remind them that in medical care situations they might need to think outside the box because of my digestive system’s format. Currently dealing with this right now Re: a medical issue so I sympathize.

I hit the century club this week (Over 100 lbs down about 8 months out from surgery), but more important than that, I just got back from vacation in Hawaii. A year ago, I wouldn't have been able to enjoy it nearly as much as I did this year. This year, the humidity didn't bother me nearly as much as it would have in the past, because I felt comfortable in shorts and dresses and swimsuits, much more than I did 100 lbs ago! I'm still technically obese, but I feel SO much better in my own skin. Also, during a hike, rather than stopping and sweating and wheezing, I was able to hike up steps without gasping for breath or wanting to sit on the ground.

I know people debating the surgery worry about exactly how much weight they'll lose and whether they'll be able to wear a two piece swimsuit, but even if I don't get into a bikini I have no regrets for the life my successful surgery has let me live to the fullest. The numbers on the scale pale in comparison to that!

Best of luck to those of you struggling through tough days pre or post surgery - better days are ahead!

I couldn't bear the taste of plain Water my first few weeks post surgery (and my surgeon's PA said that is really common and she has no idea why), but now that I'm a few months out, nothing really TASTES different/bad to me vs. how it tasted pre-op. I know other people lose the taste for certain meats and things like that, but the thing that has changed the most for me is food preferences. I crave fruits and vegetables more than things like chocolate/sweats and carb-heavy products like bread just because the former makes me feel better and the latter makes me feel sick if I have more than 2 bites. Even high quality chocolate will make me nauseous if I eat more than a bite or two. So it's kind of more of a behavioral aversion (which is something I hoped my RNY would cause!) than the change in taste that other people have experienced.

I had my bypass on the 7th and I've been so sick. I can't keep most things down. I have terrible pain anytime I do eat. I'm so miserable I've been to the emergency room twice. Meeting with ny surgeon on monday. Wishing ud never done this. Was anyone else this sick the first few weeks if so did it get better

Have you seen your surgeon since your surgery? What does he/she say?

Honestly, I'd love to say I will when I get to my goal weight, but I might have too much loose skin. But you know what? I am already finding that I kind of don't care. 65 lbs down, I'm already having sagging skin on my upper arms. I'm not sure if I'll be able to afford the plastics when I get down to my goal weight. The thing is - I was self-conscious about my arms at my highest weight. Now, I'm kind of proud of that sagging skin - it wouldn't be sagging if I hadn't lost the weight. I agree with people who say this isn't something to get hung up on. Nothing wrong with just asking the question, but if it's the kind of thing that genuinely concerns you, focus on how good it feels to be able to live your life after surgery :-)

Nothing I consider to be a complication here - I'm about 3 1/2 months out, but so far, so good. I picked up an infection in the hospital, but we handled it with meds and it didn't overly complicate my healing process. I followed my surgeon's instructions to the letter and have been RELIGIOUS about taking my Vitamins so far. The weeks before and after surgery are tough, but a successful surgery is worth being careful!

@@Redsfan19, thank you SO much for your post. My surgery is scheduled for one month from today. I've gone back and forth between being excited, happy, nervous, and scared. I am confident that my surgery will go well and am hopeful that I won't have any of the complications or problems I've read so much about on these boards, but the more I read the more nervous I become. I really needed to find an encouraging post and yours was just that! Keep up the great progress and keep us posted!

@@laurenjane, I'm glad to offer you some encouragement, and I felt the same way, which is why I wanted to post my story. There are a lot of scary things online and I feel like the more you read, the more you start thinking about those, so I wanted to come back and post my success. Good luck with your surgery - you're less than a month from the loser's bench!

I'm RNY, and most foods have tasted the same to me....but I had my first post-op banana yesterday and HATED it! I was shocked!

After agonizing over this decision for months and going through the process many of you know so well, I had my RNY surgery three weeks ago tomorrow, and I haven't felt this great in a long time. I know a lot of people post on these forums for help with their struggles pre-and post-surgery, and these are great resources for help and support. But I also wanted to share a success story, and to let people who might be browsing right after surgery know that it DOES get better. I left the hospital no longer needing to take my insulin for diabetes, and now the back pain I was suffering when I walked more than 10 feet is already gone, 28 pounds later. I have more energy than I've had in probably 2 years, and people have already commented on how happy I seem. I've been lucky that most foods I've tried so far (according to my surgeon's plan, I haven't cheated once, i'm proud to say) have gone down ok, and the number of horror stories I read made me relieved that only a few didn't work out well. Stay focused on the delicious foods you're still able to eat and your successes - both scale and non-scale- and you'll be thrilled with your results.

I did have a minor complication, picking up an infection in the hospital, but working with my doctor, we were able to resolve that with medication. I know others aren't as lucky as me, and that complications do occur, and the best we can do is be fully aware of these going in. I'm grateful that I've been lucky that things have gone this well, and want to thank the support I received on these boards when making this decision, which was a GREAT decision for me!

I'm in the same boat five days post op myself, @@innwtitdtity . So much noise!

I'm going in tomorrow too, and only a few years older than you. Best of luck - we'll be awesome!

I have a choice of the 2 week Optifast or 3 day pre-op liquid, but most people choose the liquid, as I am.

Agreed with everyone that your doctor should be forthcoming about his/her individual stats, particularly when you ask. My surgeon, was insistent that as a potential patient, I be thoroughly aware of the various risks this surgery holds in general, and he and I talked about my individual concerns. Never take what you read as the final say on this stuff - use it to put together questions for your medical team, and they'll help you understand what those statistics mean, as other posters here have, both in general and for you in particular.

Agree with everyone - research the various options available, but consultation with your surgeon will be key for you. I did a ton of research, but my surgeon had thoughts on one procedure that I hadn't even considered until I spoke with him.

After doing a lot of research and consulting with my surgeon, I'm confident committing to moving forward with RNY. However, I wouldn't feel so confident without having been able to do a lot of initial research, and a big part of that was reading these boards and being able to ask questions. Most specifically, what I read here gave me a lot of really good questions for me to discuss with the surgeon, who not only addressed my concerns, but his answers helped me assess whether I was confident moving forward with him as my surgeon (the answer was yes).

I feel really prepared to go into this process (I hope to start the physician-monitored diet in Jan, shooting for surgery a few months later), but it took me a while to get to this point. So, a big THANK YOU to all of you for sharing your stories, ups and downs, and encouragement.

OP, what insurance do you have? others with same program may be able to chime in. 1 year prior weight loss attempts for me were, myfitnesspal (I printed off my weight chart), and other various diets just writing them down with starting weight, time on diet, and ending weight.

I have BCBS Federal Employee Program

I'm BCBS Federal too. The comments in this thread are raising my hopes that this could POSSIBLY be less time consuming then I feared!

This is exactly what my 6 month medically weight loss program was.....

My insurance co. wanted, for the record, that I have attempted in good faith, traditional methods for loosing weight, and have failed...thus WLS being the last resort.

I told the staff every diet I have ever tried, and failed at....but they it was only my word, and that was not good enough..it had to be medically supervised by a MD, with accurate progress reports, graphs, etc. etc.

So I had to sign up and do a 6 month program, supervised by a MD and staff....with weekly weigh-ins and counseling...it all had to be accurately documented....

And just like every diet I have ever been on, I started out good, then leveled off when I started to cheat, then by the end of the 6 months I started to gain again...voiding all the previous progress....

But there it was, in black and white...actually color graphs and pie charts....conforming that I sucked at dieting, and no matter what, I was a failure....THAT qualified me for WLS.

I read here all the time about people taking the 6 month diet program and being told that if they fail, they would not qualify for the WLS...to me that is bass-ackwards....if one could loose weight, why in the world would they need surgery of all things???

Exactly, it seems really stupid. And a waste of money, since my insurance doesn't pay for medical weight loss or other types of weight loss programs. I saw an article by a bariatric surgeon as I've been researching these procedures arguing this very thing - why are we asking people who have accepted we have continually failed at this to prove once again they can't do it before we can get surgery?

I had to provide documentation for two years of medical weight loss attempts and three months of a closely monitored specific program with a bariatric nutritionist. For the first part, my primary doctor ran a copy of my medical records for the previous two years, and I highlighted every mention of my weight and his recommendations for various diet changes. For the second part, the bariatric clinic has a nutritionist on board, and I had regular monthly visists (3) which she documented. That was good enough.

@@Miss Mac, I saw in another thread that we have the same insurance, so I'm hoping I can use your experience!

As someone considering whether to get surgery, I really appreciate this totally happy yet healthy look at your real and very human journey. Thank you for sharing with us!

But does this mean you have to try things you've done in the past all over again, or is it often enough to tell your dr all the things you've tried (I've done Weight Watchers countless times, Jenny Craig, meds, met with dietitians, etc.) and have them sign something for you acknowledging that? I'm mostly just asking so I can try and get some idea of how long all of these things might take me to complete if I decide to go through with it.

I plan to raise this with my surgeon's office when I meet with him on Thursday (and of course, eventually my insurance), but since there are a lot of people on the board who have successfully gotten insurance coverage for WLS, can others tell me how you have proven this to your carrier successfully:

− Evidence that attempts at weight loss in the 1 year period
prior to surgery have been ineffective

I know insurance companies vary and can change even from person to person regarding what they'll accept, but what have you all used to meet this type of criteria? Does it have to be something structured? Can it be loose? I'm really just curious about everyone's experiences.

PS - I also have this criteria "− Participation in a medically supervised weight loss

program, including nutritional counseling, for at least 3
months prior to the date of surgery.", but that sounds more structured.

Right now, what's holding me back MOSTLY is the fear of complications. I'm 31, and while I'm also afraid of the complications of my weight and co-morbidities, I'm really afraid of doing this and suffering from some type of permanent damage to my digestive system or from Vitamin malabsorbtion (even though I fully intend to take Vitamins and supplements RELIGIOUSLY) that I just have to live with for the rest of my life. I am meeting with my potential surgeon this week, and have a HUGE list of questions to ask re: complications, both generally and specifically related to his stats and my particular health issues.

However, I still keep coming back to the fear of what this excess weight, T2 Diabetes, etc, will do to me in 20 years if I DON'T do this.

@@James Marusek, that's part of what I wasn't clear on, whether the people who were experiencing these more extreme absorption problems tended to have a history of not following the program or not, and what I also want to ask the surgeon. One thing I've found difficult to tell from my own pre-appointment research is how many complications tend to relate to a lack of close adhesion to plan rules vs. how many can just crop up as a result of the surgery. It's good to hear that some of you guys have yet to have any problems as you've worked closely with your doctors and taken your supplements as prescribed!