Danny Paul

In my most previous posts I've been lamenting on a weight gain three years post Weight Loss Surgery(WLS). No matter what I did the extra five pounds did not want to come off. It also lead to a spike in my A1c which put me back into the Type 2 category. I'm very fortunate to have friends and family that have had WLS after I had mine. We form an informal support group by calling each other up and helping to assist in times of need. Well, it was my time of need. Two of my fellow WLS pals directed me to a You Tube channel, Dr. Becky Gillaspy. They said her videos have helped them and it might spark an idea or two for me. I looked at her videos and two in particular caught my eye. What happens when late night snacking and Intermittent Fasting. I realized that I did snack prior to going to bed. I don't snack on junk food but no matter what I snacked on prior to bed was having a negative effect on my weight. I stopped eating at 7PM and did not resume eating until 8AM which gave me an intermittent Fast of 13 hours. When I conducted my weekly weigh in yesterday I found that I was down 3.5lbs from the previous week. It is too early to claim success but it looks as if this strategy might prove to be fruitful. I'm hoping that this also helps with my A1c levels. If anyone has any information regarding the late night snacking and intermittent fasting I would appreciate you sharing it. Thank you and I hope you all are enjoying your new found health.

This was going to be my suggestion as well. I have had others who had WLS that I know concentrate on the food aspect of WLS but neglect the hydration aspect. Lack of hydration knocks the body out of sync. Try drinking more even when not thirsty. I hope all goes well with you and you return to normalcy in your weight loss journey.

Right after surgery I was able to lose weight faster than a speeding bullet, my restriction was more powerful than a locomotive and my metabolism could easily leap a tall building with a single bound. Today, my kryptonite is time. Time has made me once again a weight loss mortal. I am able to gain weigh even though my diet has remained healthy. I don't lose the weight gained as fast and I am able to eat more. What to do? I actually fore saw this problem. The first year of my WLS journey when I was researching and going through the process to be approved I went to as many group meetings that I was allowed to attend. I always picked the brain of the people in attendance. Like many on this board they were ALL newbies with the success stories only newbies can tell. Not a single failure in the group. That is until one day a woman showed up and started telling us her story. She was five years out from surgery lost a lot of weight and put most of it back on. She warned everyone that things would change as you get further out from surgery and that it wouldn't necessarily be for the better. She had wished that she did not get caught up in the euphoria of her early success. She said that it's like winning the lottery. One day you have more money than you'd ever dream of having. If you don't plan on saving it you'll go bankrupt. That's what happened to her. She won the weight loss lottery. She lost more weight than she could have dreamed losing. Trouble was, she didn't plan her long term weight loss and now, she went "bankrupt". As I went through my daily routine I came across others who had WLS and many had indeed gained the weight back. I was in my doctors office and the medical attendant there told me about her failure when I told her that I was going through the process to get approved for WLS. She told me that it creeps up on you. Two pounds turns to four, four to eight than you're back to where you started. You start to Feel helpless and give up. As I went to the group meetings pre and post surgery I noticed not many people stuck around. There were no veterans in the group just eager newbies who can attest to the success of WLS. Seems as if the veterans drift away and either gain the weight back in silence or just get tired of hearing the same stories of success over and over. I knew that I would probably lose my WLS super powers someday and I had hoped to plan for it. First, I did lose a lot of weight in the mid 90's and I never thought that I'd get back to being obese. I was so wrong. Like my medical attendant experienced, five pounds turned to ten then to 20 and you know the rest. It took me less that four years to gain back the weight and then some. It took another 17 years to get WLS. I decided that I would use every tool that I could in order to keep the weight off and maintain my health. I joined Over Eaters Anonymous. It's another support group away from the support group my surgeon has. I started seeing a therapist who specializes in eating disorders. ( I'm a compulsive over eater) and I have family and friends who have had WLS who I can call to get and give support to. I also weigh myself every week at the same time on the same scale and set a "Red Alert" weight of 160lbs. ( Have a log since the day of my surgery) If I go above the 160 I know that I must redouble my efforts. Here is where my lost WLS super powers comes in. Despite all this I am having a difficult time losing the five pounds that I am over. I feel as if I am now a mere weight loss mortal who has to work two to three times harder to lose and maintain the weight loss. I can't say it wasn't expected. From all the people I spoke to I knew this day would come. It's that, I was once a WLS immortal and now I have to struggle like all others to lose weight. My saving grace (I hope it is) I planned for it since I went through it before and I took the advice of those who went before me seriously. For all of you newbies who are experiencing the euphoria of being WLS immortal plan for day like me when you lose that super power. Just a note, there are many who do maintain their WLS super powers. They are on this forum and they are truly superstars. They unfortunately are the exception to the trend. I find their advice to be invaluable and I look for their posts for such advice. To everyone, good luck with your new found health.

For me, I kept it private because I did not want to be that guy everyone pointed to and said, look he had WLS and he gained all that weight back. ( Been there done that) From my posts you can see that I still feel that way. I am much more comfortable telling people that me and five others put $1,000 in a pot to see who could lose the most weight and in the end I didn't win the pool but I lost weight. That's my story, I'm comfortable with it and I'm sticking to it. A family member told people she had her Gall Bladder removed and after the surgery had a difficult time holding down food. That accounted for her weight loss. I don't feel that I have to advertise the virtues of WLS to help others who are comfortable in making the decision to tell others about it. I'm very comfortable with my decision and I'm sorry that the OP has a difficult time when she should be basking in the glory of her weight loss and new found health. In the end people like me who don't advertise our WLS have nothing to do with the negativity people have towards those who do. Those people are usually jealous, low self esteemed petty individuals to begin with.

I found that my tastes for certain foods has changed. For instance pre surgery I could not stand canned sardines or mackerel or liver Today I can eat them with no problem. Others I know have sworn off certain foods that they ate pre op. It's something that affects some but not all and for the most part cannot be explained.

I was at a funeral and ran into a friend who had lost a lot of weight and told me that she had WLS. She told me to watch a You Tube channel Flav City with Bobby Parrish. Bobby goes into stores like Costco, Whole Foods, Walmart,etc and shows what is healthy to buy. It turns out that the ingredient list is the most important part of the labeling to look at. Bobby breaks down a lot stuff that relates to nutrition when reading the ingredient list. I'm sure after watching Flav City you might want to rethink some of your choices in food. I've found this channel very useful. He is also a chef and has live cooking demos of healthy dishes he prepares. Give it a look and see if it might help you as well.

This is part of my game plan as well.

Eight months post op, 100 lbs down so far, you're doing well. I've been told the so called honeymoon period is somewhere between 12-18 months. You still have time to make your goal. That being said look at your numbers. How has your A1c, cholesterol, etc been? Are they on the way to a healthier you? If so, you're a winner. I've found through family and friends who have had WLS that you might not get as much weight off as you wanted but your health will improve to be the "normal' range. Remember your health is your wealth and getting healthier is the goal. Work on your success, don't despair and congratulations on your new found health.

My choice as well

During the time that I planned my meals post Gastric Sleeve I never ventured off the "reservation" so to speak. My diet has consisted of dense proteins as these things gave me nutrition and filled me up. The added benefit was, they also helped maintain my weight goal. In my last post I described a slight weight gain that I'm having difficulty taking off. I recently visited my surgeon for my regular six month check up and while all of my blood tests were good my A1c went from 5.6 to 6.5. Diabetes that I have lowered with WLS has come back. I realized that I changed my diet from all dense proteins to a mixture of dense proteins and fruits. Post surgery I did not eat fruits or vegetables ( my choice) as I found the proteins to give me adequate substance and to be filling. A family member had WLS and her surgeon told her to eat fruits and veggies. I went along with her meal plan and it had a negative effect on me. I gained weight and my A1c was elevated. She on the other hand has maintained her goal weight and her blood tests including her A1c are in the normal range. What do I take away from this? Could there be metabolic changes in our bodies post WLS that either assist or deter our abilities to switch diets or to lose weight after a regain? I asked my surgeon and he wasn't sure himself. Since we have many people on the forum who are staying atop the newest science as it pertains to Weight Loss Surgery maybe someone could help me shed some light on this subject. As always, I appreciate the advice and I wish everyone success with your new found health.

After my WLS I had a few family and friends (F/F) get WLS also. Post WLS is different for most everyone. I see it first hand with my F/F. People do feel hunger after WLS. Surprised me but it is true. The main thing is to reassure them that it will take some time for your brain to catch up to your new stomach. After awhile the brain adjusts and the hunger somewhat subsides. The saving grace is the restriction at the beginning will save you. No matter what your brain is asking for your new stomach cannot handle it. Your stomach will will stop you from over eating. The most important thing that I advise those F/F that want to deviate from the program is not to. Do not deviate from the planned diet your medical team has given you. It is there for a reason. It is there to protect your new stomach from damage, it is there to help you start a new healthier way of eating and it's there to set you up for your future success. This forum is good but if you can contact people "like us" and be able to talk to them when you feel that you're going to deviate you'd be much better off. I'm fortunate as I not only have F/F that I can call and talk to, I'm also a member of Overeaters Anonymous which also gives me another support group. Don't ever despair that you didn't stick to the plan 100% learn from it and try your best to improve on it. Positivity I find will always help you more than beating yourself up. Good luck and congratulations on your new health.

My experience is the surgery won't be cancelled. Surgeons despite being medical professionals still need to generate income. Especially If your surgeon is affiliated with a hospital network. With the losses in revenue from cancelled elective surgeries they need to recoup as much as possible. WLS is a money maker for them. Continue to lose as much as you can but, I'm almost positive we will be reading about your post surgery journey on this forum. Enjoy the good health you'll soon be getting.

The response to WLS is different for most people. Beside myself I have four other family members and friends that have had WLS. Their experiences are different from mine and each other. One went through what you are experiencing. There was so much doubt that her surgery was not successful compared to the others. That could not be further from the truth. She does get hungry but she gets a feeling of fullness because she eats dense proteins as her primary source of nourishment. While eating fruits and vegetables (F/V)are good for her eating dense proteins is great for her. F/V do not fill her up as much as the dense proteins do. She eats a lot of fish which gives her a feeling of fullness faster and longer. This quells her hunger. Despite eating fewer F/V her blood work shows she is on point with all of her nutrients. One other thing, to this day she (1 1/2 years post surgery) practices eating 30 minutes after drinking water. This allows her to better space out her eating. My experience is different as was the experience of other family and friends. Don't worry, continue to reap the benefits of the rapid weight loss but prepare yourself for the hardest part of the journey, maintaining the weight loss and keeping the health benefits.

Later this week It will be three years since my sleeve surgery and this is what I've learned. The surgery gave me hope and a jump start to rapid weight loss and better health. That's it. Nothing magical to it, you lose a good portion of your stomach therefore you eat less and you lose weight. I learned that without any work on my part the weight came off rapidly and in eight months I was at my goal weight. Now, here is the most important lesson out of this whole process, ( need to capitalize this) THE HARD WORK IS MAINTAINING THE WEIGHT LOSS. Since April of 2018 I have been struggling daily to maintain that weight loss and to stay at my goal weight. For those of you who have had long term success you are truly the best and you should be proud of your accomplishment. Early July I saw that I had a weight gain of eight pounds. I redoubled my efforts and was able to lose 4 1/2 pounds in three weeks. I am still struggling to lose the other 4 1/2 lbs. So, to date I am 4 1/2 lbs above my goal weight. I don't consider that a good thing. For the first time since my surgery three years ago I am forced to work twice as hard to lose weight rather and to maintain my goal weight . I'm still ahead of the game being so much healthier. To those who have recently experienced the euphoria of weight loss and better health after surgery. Enjoy it, embrace it and most of all keep in mind that it can be lost if you are not vigilant in your maintenance. I wish everyone the best of health and the best of success in your weight loss journey.

Sorry to hear of your setback with your WLS. Let me try to put things in perspective for you. My good friend contracted the Corona Virus. At first he thought he had the flu, then bronchitis and finally hospitalized with pneumonia. It wasn't till he was hospitalized and tested that he was diagnosed with Corona Virus. Unfortunately for this hard working soul a day after checking into the hospital he had to be placed on a ventilator. Mind you there are no visitors allowed in the hospitals these days. His family could only call the nurses station and hoped the line wasn't busy, someone picked up and if they did pick up would get back to them with information on their loved one. ( In the best of times hospital care is a little above average) . The news is always bleak and after a week and a half my friend passed away. The family had to visit four funeral homes. Each one saying we will service you but by appointment only. After three funeral homes not calling them back they finally found one that could "process" his body for burial. They paid for a full funeral despite the funeral home only picking up my friend at the hospital and placing him into the casket with out being embalmed or having proper clothes on. The casket remained closed due to health concerns and they don't know if the person in the casket is their family member. They could not have visitation due to the virus. At the cemetery only a handful of people were allowed to attend once again due to the virus. This Covid 19 virus is cancelling a lot of planned events (I also had to cancel my vacation) but there are those who like my friend suffered and died alone. Who like his family can't be there for a sick loved one and who had to endure an Odyssey just to lay a loved one to rest. I was going to put a post on the boards of my two year Maintenance - versary. But after writing this it just doesn't seem important anymore. Please don't take this as a criticism of your reaction to having your surgery cancelled. You have every right to be disappointed. You will get your surgery, you will be much healthier and all of the things you wanted to do will be a reality. Unfortunately, in these tough times the reality of many isn't what they envisioned or hoped for. To all my fellow WLS friends. Stay safe, healthy and please be kind to others it really makes a difference.

It has been close to 2 1/2 years since my WLS surgery. I hit my goal weight around April of 2018 and have been struggling daily to maintain it. I have what I call a red line weight of 160 lbs that I don't want to go over. I weigh myself every Friday and if I hit 159/160lbs I automatically go into full drop weight mode. It seems that I'm going into this mode more and more as I get further from my surgery. I had to take a deeper look into not only what I'm eating, how much I'm eating and when I'm eating. What I'm eating is pretty much the same as before since I usually eat the same thing every day. It makes it easier for me to plan my meals since I tend to make poor food choices when given too many options. As for the quantity, I do eat more since I have less of a restriction. I don't mean to say that I eat plates of food. in the past I might eat 1/2 a can of tuna fish for lunch now I eat the whole can. As to when I eat, that seems to be my downfall. I have noticed that I am snacking a lot more in front of the TV. I believe that I snack on healthy stuff such as nuts, peanut butter and edame beans. But it's the time that I believe is causing me to have weight fluctuations. Usually late night. I now have started to cut all eating from 8PM to 8AM in the hopes that the 12 hour cessation of foods will allow my body to somehow balance itself out. I'd be interested if anyone here has tried this and if so, has it helped or does anyone else have any other suggestions. Mahalo in advance.

I I'm doing the same. (Great minds think alike)

Mahalo for all of the great advice. I do measure the nuts at 1/4 cup. That's the main reason to stop eating at 8PM I'm trying to break that pattern. It is difficult but I'm getting used to it. I don't have hunger it's like Tea quoted associating food and entertainment. (Eating and TV) That's been a problem since early on in my post surgery. I guess I've come to realize it now.

I love to hear about the long term success stories. It will be 3 years for me this coming August and I struggle every day to stay on track .

You hit the nail on the head. Great post.

I worked what was termed the grave yard shift (12 midnight to 8AM) for many years. The food that I ate was food that I sought. There was really nothing healthy or good to be found at that time. After having WLS you will seek better food choices than you did pre WLS. You will in all probability bring your own foods with you. It takes a different breed of person to work the night shift that's why we bond so well with them. Don't worry about the food after your surgery you'll see it in a different light.

When I was discharged I was given medication for nausea just in case I needed it. Glad I didn't. Two friends who had WLS also experienced nausea and did have the medication. Call your surgeon and he/she should be able to prescribe something for you.

Amen to that

I'm post surgery 2 1/2 years and to this day I adhere to the 30 minute no liquids before or after a meal. This helps me to slow down and be more mindful of my eating. I use it as a tool to change my eating habits. Mind you, my prior eating habits were quite atrocious. If you are on a liquid diet this rule does not pertain to you. It is used when you are back on solid foods.

Since my weight loss and I'm sure that I'm not alone here, my health has greatly improved. I no longer have diabetes, high blood pressure, Gerd, gout and sleep apnea. I read postings from individuals who all attest that their weight loss resulted in a health benefit. At one of my group meetings a person who recently had WLS told the group how she found pancakes that were fortified with protein and that she enjoyed her pancakes. The group leader who is a nurse in the surgeons practice told us that even tough the pancakes had protein it was a bad food choice to make for a WLS patient. I brought this up because this is another example of a person looking for reasons to do an end around on their WLS. Look, if you feel comfortable adhering to that study, I say go for it. I nor anyone on these boards should be telling you how to attain long term success. Just because I don't agree doesn't mean that it isn't right for you. I will end with this, I wish you continued success with your weight loss journey and continued good health.