JupiterinVirgo

I would not define myself as skinny, but I have lost 160 pounds and weigh about 160 pounds. People definitely treat me differently, and almost every situation. I am included more in social activities, and frequently told that I am beautiful. I have come to be known in my community has a bit of a party girl, because I am always dancing and smiling. I'll admit that I am also different and more ways than just the shape and size of my body. I hold myself differently. I am happier. I feel better physically. But I have no doubt that the reduction in the size of my body has made a huge effect on how other people perceive me.

Bariatric pal is working with a plastic surgeon now Dr Alejandro Galvez you can email Michelle@bariatricpal.com to get a quote and see his work

Thank you all for your experiences. I'm not worried about overdoing it and blacking out or anything like that. I'm really just concerned about my waist line! As far as addiction goes, I'm not worried about that either because I have always been to some extent an addictive personality he and I have never had a goal to not be that. I've never had long-term problems with drinking or stopping drinking. I just don't want to gain weight.

I've never really been a huge drinker, and before surgery it was not uncommon for me to go many months without a drink.

I had my surgery Nov., 2015 and am living an entirely different lifestyle in a new country where drinking alcohol is the one common denominator at every social event.

Because I suffer from social anxiety, this appeals to me because it calms me down and makes me more outgoing and friendly. That is, if I wasn't drinking I would stay home.

My question is how does this effect weight loss and maintaining weight?

I live in Mexico, but I've only been here a few months. I am almost ready to seal the deal on my weightloss with plastic surgery. By the end of the year, I hope to have several procedures completed. Does anyone have any good recommendations for someone who does an extraordinarily good breast lift in Baja Mexico? I have always had very large breasts but now they are very long-though there is still a lot of tissue. I don't want implants, but I want them to look good from every angle so may also need some armpit Lipo or something! Lol

Thank you all so much for your feedback on this issue. I definitely think I probably have low Iron and maybe some other nutritional deficiencies. I will get it checked out!

You might find that with so little weight to lose, you become a lot skinnier than you want to be. I had over 150 pounds to lose and I am having trouble eating enough even 2 years out. Some people who have the surgery with less then 80 pounds to lose find themselves in a struggle not to starve! LOL

Beautiful then. Beautiful now.

My insurance company did not require this procedure to approve me.

I had this problem recently myself. I am almost to years out of surgery and just a few pounds from goal/normal BMI. About six weeks ago I had a dream that I had a bald spot on the top of my head. A few days later I got my period and my hair started to fall out again. Hormones and thyroid play a big part in Hair loss despite the myth that this is normal after weight-loss surgery. When they say that, what they mean is it happens to many patients but it is definitely not normal. It shows that there is an in balance in the body that needs to be addressed in your surgeon will not address it.

Thank you my friends for all your support! I really appreciate your kind words and I am grateful to have people to share this journey with. I love you guys

No, you cannot stretch your sleeve in 10 days. The swelling goes down. Some foods will slide where crumble and feel like you can eat much more than you should. Stay away from them. I'm almost 2 years out from my surgery and just a few pounds from a normal weight, and I find that as long as I don't need sliding foods, the restriction is still plenty to keep my weight loss happening slowly and I'm very nearly at maintenance

Before I had my surgery, and during the majority of my weight loss, I spent a lot of time looking at other people's pictures so I could reassure myself that I too, could have the results I had hoped for. Well let me tell you my friends, you inspired me so much that I actually have done it!Still planning for my plastic surgery to remove my excess skin, but this is what 150+ pounds of weight loss looks like!

We all know that one of the effects of the surgery for weight loss is possible hormonal and thyroid and balance that causes Hair loss. Like many people, I started losing my hair several months after my surgery and continued losing it pretty steadily for 6+ months. My hair was fine to begin with, and so this breakage and thinning has really affected my self-esteem.

I'm down over 150 pounds now and very close to my goal weight. So close, that I am starting to look into plastic surgeons to correct skin issues that are creating physical pain for me.

I'm over a year and a half out from surgery now, and all of a sudden my hair has started to come out again. The weirdest part of it is that this is following a dream in which I developed a huge bald patch on my head. Yesterday in the shower I almost cried after shampooing my hair and seeing my fingers covered in hair that was falling out of my head. It's very upsetting.

Has anybody else had a new cycle of hair loss start very late in the game?

Surgery scared the crap out of me too. I always thought that bariatric surgery was a very extreme approach to weight loss. And then at some point I realized that my weight was so out of control that extreme measures were necessary to rectify the situation. I agonized for months and even after I made my decision to go for it all I wanted was for it to be over with.

Well let me tell you something: it was the best thing I ever did for myself in my entire adult life!

I know nobody likes ads, but the truth is that the people who put the site together, pay for hosting and traffic, and put in all the hours it takes to maintain site deserve to be compensated. They made this wonderful forum available through their efforts brought so many Bariatrics people together. You benefit from it; they deserve the opportunity to benefit as well by letting us know what they have available.

Your body needs time. The weight will come off. This is not an expensive diet; this is a massive physiological change to your digestive system. Your body is going to be different now.

I was not required to get one. I would be willing to bet my insurance wouldn't cover that. Most surgeons offices will put you through every test they can get your insurance to cover, it increases profits.

I couldn't get the approval for surgery until I quit smoking. I was still allowed nicotine cessation aids.

Hi there,
New to this forum but don't feel like I have any other place to go.
I just want to emphasize that this post and forum is a judgement free, genuine place for like minded people
I really don't want a lecture about how I am "poisoning" my body or going to all this effort to "ruin it." Whilst I respect these types of opinions, I don't need them here as I want to know if there are like-minded individuals out there who are willing to share their experience.
I guess this is me more asking questions and wanting advice than telling my story so I'm not really sure where to start...
Firstly, I've been smoking marijuana for about 6 years, it's beneficial for me as it calms me (suffering from depression), keeps me creative and helps keep my binge eating under control (I know, contrary to poplar belief but everyone is different and that's okay.)
Being in a country (Aus) where marijuana is illegal and also having a surgeon who is close with your family makes it very difficult for me to talk about this to them as most doctors, nurses and surgeons will give you the classic spiel of just not smoking, which is fair.
Anyway, I'm saying all this because I want to know how long I should be waiting before I start smoking again? I was thinking around 6 weeks post as I should be healed up by then but wondered if anyone has had experience with this?
I just want to clarify. I don't drink alcohol and don't plan on drinking again after surgery and have never touched tobacco/cigarettes in my life however, being a millennial who likes to go out with her friends, I do enjoy experimenting every now and then with more "harder" recreational drugs however, that I don't plan on doing at least 6-12 months after surgery.
So, after this massive basically I want to hear your stories, all my stoner friends out there (medicinal or recreational) let me know, how long you waited, if you noticed anything different and if your relationship with food was effected + any other experiences you may have.
Again, I want to emphasize that this is a safe, judgment free zone and please refrain from commenting if you disagree with any part of this post and my lifestyle choices.
Thanks!

Hello,

My doctor wants me to undergo Bariatric surgery because I'm 5'3" and weigh 289lbs. My BMI is 51 and I have been dieting and exercising all year without any results whatsoever (have not even dropped one pound). I have arthritis, fibromyalgia, diabetes, a thyroid condition, PCOD and ulcerative colitis. All of which my doctor thinks can be helped by weightloss.

Part of the "preparation" I guess you can call it is I have to watch a bunch of videos explaining the different types (band, sleeve and bypass). I was wondering if any one could tell me what kind of success they've had with the different ones, and if possible, share their stories (I know it may be personal, so I won't try to push any one or anything).
I won't lie. I'm a bit anxious about all of this. I have never had any surgery before in my entire life, and this seems like it's a major surgery. But if it will help me get healthier and get some of my medical conditions under control, then I am willing to give it a shot.

Any help would be appreciate, thank you

I live about an hour away from Tijuana in Mexico and I am definitely inspired to check out the surgeon. I would like to have all my work done at once but I don't know if I will be able to afford that. I know that this doctor is the Tummy Tuck queen of bariatric patients in Baja. How did your breasts come out? I was thinking I will probably have my breasts done first.

Thyroid and hormones! It is not about losing insulation.

I had the sleeve and I lost a lot of hair, but not so much that I needed to wear a wig. Even though Hair loss is considered normal after bariatric surgery it is not normal. Surgeon should be instructing bariatric patients to have their thyroid and hormone levels checked every few months. I'm almost 2 years out of weight-loss surgery and my hair is just starting to thicken up again and grow. I'm about 10 pounds from my goal weight and some of it is still coming out

This post moves me to tears. I am so close to being a normal weight, and I have been dreaming of having corrective plastic surgery on my body. And when you said you nearly cried when you saw your flat belly, I nearly cried! I'm really happy for you!