catwoman7

you don't have your stats listed, but keep in mind that most of us experience a 10-20 lb rebound weight gain in year 2 or 3. I was really worried about going too low - and for months I was pretty gaunt and bony, but I've put on about 30 lbs since then (I'm almost nine years out). The first 15 was welcome -and expected. I'm not that happy with the last 15, and it's a bear getting anything off. So be careful what you wish for. On the other hand, if you're so low that you're unhealthy, then that's another story. The commenters above have some good tips.

wow - that is terrific - and you look great!! A huge congratulations!!

They don't actually remove any bowel - they just bypass part of it - but the two parts meet up again about a foot from the stomach. He may have just made the "Y" shorter than usual - as in had the two parts meet up sooner. I'm not a revision patient, so there are probably others on here who know more than I do, but you may not be feeling full because of nerves being cut during surgery. If so, they regenerate fairly quickly. Plus you're eating soft foods, also. I didn't really start feeling restriction until about a month out when I started eating solid food. lastly, only about 30% of bypass patients dump. I never have - and know lots of others who don't, either. If you turn out to be a dumper, though, you can prevent it by not eating a lot of sugar or fat at one sitting (which we shouldn't be doing anyway...). I never worried about dumping (although at times I wish I DID dump since I have no problem eating tons of sugar at one sitting, unfortunately...)

in this case, your rate of about a lb a week sounds pretty normal. I was a 60 BMI - so super morbidly obese. You're starting to get close to a normal BMI, so that explains why your loss has slowed down. Just keep at it - you may still lose more weight. Like I said, there were months after the first year post-op that I was only losing a lb or two a MONTH.

not everyone makes it to goal, although you still have a shot at it. I didn't stop losing until I was 20 months out - and I was definitely a slow loser! how close are you to goal? the last 20 lbs or so can be a BEAR to lose. There were some months that I only lost a lb or two the entire month, despite following my program to a "T". (this was during year 2 for me - before that, I was losing It faster than that. But I started out at well over 300 lbs (I don't know how overweight you were, but people with higher starting BMIs tend to lose faster - at least at first)).

$19K for all that is super cheap! That was about the cost of just a lower body lift when I was doing my consults about seven years ago (in the US).

Who's doing your surgery? (I'm from Wisconsin, too)

Your relationship may or may not change - and sometimes they actually get better! (mine did, for one..)

she won't care about your comment about the dietitian (well, she may CARE if the dietitian is a friend of hers, but it's not going to change her mind about clearing you for surgery). They're more concerned with things like mental illnesses or certain behaviors that could hinder people from being able to follow the program.

normal. Wait it out. Make sure you're sticking to your program and stay off the scale - maybe just weigh yourself once a week until the thing breaks. And it WILL break. This will likely be the first among several stalls, just so you know. You just have to wait 'em out and just keep doing what you're supposed to be doing...

not me, but several people on here have had revisions. Most of them VSG to bypass since VBG is an older surgery that is rarely (maybe never?) done anymore.

I've had three plastic surgeries! They're a tougher recovery than weight loss surgery (especially lower body lift - that one was really tough!), but you'll be so glad you did it once you're a ways out and all healed! I'm really glad I did it. I now have a normal-looking body! P.S. it can take up to a year for you to look like you'll look permanently - although you'll have a really good idea after the first four months or so, when all the swelling is gone and the scars are starting to fade. The biggest thing I noticed after all that time is that my breasts dropped into a more "normal" location (at first they were way high up - it was kind of jarring - but my surgeon reassured me that they'd eventually drop into a more natural place - and they did) is Dr. Laura Carmina Cardenas doing your surgery? She's supposed to be really good (she specializes in plastic surgery for massive weight loss patients, so a lot of WLS patients have gone to her)

I'm surprised she can't give a clearance regardless - at this point, she's not treating anything, she's just monitoring it. Plus I can't imagine that's going to affect your stomach anyway. I wonder why she just can't tell them that you had an abnormal reading but at this time she's just monitoring it, and that in any event, it shouldn't affect your surgery one way or the other. This is kind of weird...

yes - a majority of people do have a 10-20 lb rebound gain, usually in year 3. It's not inevitable, but it does seem to happen to most of us. maintenance wasn't too hard for a year or so - but since then, it's been a challenge. I hate that I constantly have to watch everything I eat and log every morsel, but for me anyway, if I quit doing that for too long, my weight starts heading north. Everyone is going to have a range of normal (as opposed to one specific number), since weight can fluctuate up or down by a couple of lbs any given day. So give yourself an acceptable range - maybe a 5 lb range. Once you hit the top of that range (or go over It - eek!), it's all hands on deck until you get back down comfortably within range again. so a struggle, yes, but then, a lot of my never-been-obese women friends have to do the same thing. I know it's easy to think that some people can eat anything and not gain weight, but I think that's an extreme minority. I think another thing that's an adjustment is the idea of weight maintenance itself. I've spent a huge chunk of my life either gaining weight or trying to lose weight. Maintaining within a certain range was a foreign concept for me...

give us an update when you're able to, Courtnay - we've been thinking about you!

if your clinic didn't give you a calorie limit, then I wouldn't worry about it. Pre-op diets vary so much between surgeons that if any did have limits, they may all be different (I wasn't allowed to have any food at all - just protein shakes and no-cal (or ultra lo-cal) liquids)

that's not normal. Have you seen a doctor about this?

it'll be over before you know it! It's been almost nine years for me, but I remember talking a nurse one minute, and the next minute I was waking up in the recovery room!

I agree with Arabesque, you need to follow your plan. You were given that plan for a reason. You may feel like you've healed, but nerves were cut during the surgery and it takes them awhile to regenerate. You could be doing damage if you progress in your diet too quickly. we've all had to move through a specific progression, about or exactly the same as the one you've been given. Yes it can be frustrating and seem agonizingly slow, but it's temporary and we've all survived it! You'll be able to eat more "normal" foods soon enough. and yes - you can thin your shakes out if they're too thick (I remember not liking the thickness, either). Just add some water to them. good luck and stick to it - the first few weeks can be tough, but again, they're just temporary.

I know people who have a protein shake in the morning (mostly because they're not "breakfast eaters", but they can handle a shake). I see no problem with that. In fact, I remember one of the dietitians at our clinic telling us that if we can't stomach breakfast, just having a protein shake then is fine. So you're good!

I remember seeing a LOT of signs about WLS in front of hospitals when I was in New Delhi a few years ago, so I know there are a lot of surgeons who do it, but I don't know anything about their reputations. Maybe suggest he google hospitals in New Delhi (or Mumbai - or another large city) that offer it, and then check for reviews??

like others, eight lbs in eight years is actually great. Most people have a 10-20 lb rebound - and usually earlier on than you - usually at about three years out. And fortunately, as someone implied, it's eight lbs and not 40! It should be do-able, although that said, the closer you are to a normal BMI, the harder it is to lose even a few lbs. I've said this before on here, but I remember going to Weight Watchers meetings before surgery and listening in disbelief to those barely overweight women moan and complain about how hard it was to lose 10 lbs. And there I was - 200 lbs overweight. But I totally get it now!!! I've been dealing with regain, too (I'm 20 lbs above my lowest weight and have been since even before the pandemic), but I've been weighing back and forth after all this struggling if it's even worth the struggle (and my doctor is fine with my current weight, so she doesn't "get it" - which is no help!). I know a ton of long-timers who are dealing with the same thing. Some have just given up trying and are just focusing on maintaining where they're at, some have had some success with Weight Watchers, others swear by intermittent fasting, some go really low carb for awhile. And some go back to eating the way they did the first year post-op (not all the way back to purees and soft food - but they way they were eating when they were 6-12 months or so out). Whatever works and fits your lifestyle is worth a shot. But know that it's tough - your loss will be in ounces at this point rather than pounds, so it's hard to see your successes - but it can be done and some people do succeed! Anyway, best of luck to you!

I think it's fine to be prepared, but on the other hand, death and major complications with these surgeries are VERY rare. These aren't the same surgeries that they did 30 or 40 years ago, which WERE very risky. Mortality rate on the modern bypass is 0.3%. It's even lower on sleeve (can't remember the stat on that since I didn't have sleeve, but I do remember it was lower than bypass). So you have at least a 99.7% chance of sailing through just fine. And you will. Those odds are actually excellent - better than those for a knee or hip replacement surgery, and they do those all the time. I read all those horror stories, too, and almost talked myself out of having surgery. I suppose it's good to know what kinds of complications are possible, but at the same time, you need to keep in mind that very few people have those. Most of us have no complications at all or only very minor ones that are "fixable" or preventable. A friend of mine who'd had her surgery a few years before mine (and served as my "mentor") said she was at greater risk of complications and early death by staying morbidly obese than she was by having the surgery, and she was right. there is a slight risk of death from any surgery. I'm remembering the girl in California who died from a tonsillectomy a few years ago. But that is exceedingly rare - and death from WLS is exceedingly rare, too. It's fine to prepare, especially if it gives you some peace of mind, but I'm sure. you'll be fine and we'll be seeing you on the forum again once you're a couple of days out of surgery!

we were advised not to the first few months out of surgery. I've been eating it since I was about a year out, but I can't eat much of it. Maybe a 1/2 cup tops (usually more like 1/4 C). Otherwise it sits in my stomach like a brick.

I'm sure it's fine - since it's affiliated with Northwestern, it's probably a research/teaching hospital. Those tend to be excellent.