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Hi all I am 4 months post gastric bypass and so far so good. The first couple of weeks were hard but I’ve got into the grove now. I don’t seem to have any kind of issues with meat, fruit, fat etc. but I haven’t really tried anything with sugar yet apart from the occasional spoon in a cup of tea now and then. Does anyone find it’s sugar that causes dumping? Not that I intend to go on a sugar binge but the occasional sweet thing would be nice, just scared of dumping!

Hi! I had my heart set on the sleeve as well. However, my gerd started getting worse and worse, and I thought...I can't logically get the sleeve and have my Gerd worse. I was afraid that getting my intestines all re-routed....and I was super afraid of the malabsorption. I'm really happy with my Bypass. I have had no complications, and I am still losing...and I am a bit over a year. I did some research on the malabsorption aspect of the bypass, and it sounds like it's not really a malabsorption in the truest medical sense. There are tons of great scholarly articles on the internet that can help with some of the myths of WLS. Have you met with a surgeon yet? They would also be able to help with some of your questions and fears on the medical side of it. Is there something is particular that makes you feel uneasy with Bypass?

Why are you afraid of Bypass?

Im having a really hard time with this... I have had my mind set on going with the gastric sleeve for months. Now the past month right before surgery Im thinking more going bypass as Im seeing bigger weight loss.... I need to loose 200-230 lbs. I know they are both tools and will give me what I put into it but I dont want to get a life changing surgery if I am only going to loose some of what I need to. On top of that im really scared of the bypass for some reason....

I forgot to add I'm getting the bypass because I have severe heartburn as it is. My doctor told me that getting the sleeve would give me more heartburn and I sure didn't want that. Sent from my Pixel 6 using BariatricPal mobile app

I am still looking into places in Tijuana, I have mixed feelings about renew because the people who answer the phones are not really competent and are nor the best at coordinating. Right now I am looking into Dr. Illian, I am considering either the mini bypass or the full bypass. I am a VSG revision patient. Are you a first time patient, looking into the VSG? Sent from my SM-G991U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

Hi I have been reading through some of these to see if anyone has any of the same issues as me. This is the first time I'm writing anything. I had gastric bypass surgery on 12/2/21. I have had a lot of downs and some ups. I haven't seen anywhere if someone had the same complications as I had. They said that they scratch my liver but there was no bleeding so it was fine. But what actually happened was they punctured it in two places and my abdomen filled with bile and collapsed part of my lung so much pain. Then the bile came through one of the incisions. So gross. Had to go back in to surgery to see what happened that's when they found the punctures and put in a drainage tube also gross but made the pain less. I was down about a month and a half. Went through going through the motions of throwing up with nothing coming up for a month or so. Gas pains for about 2 months now I'm just super burpy which at times can be super embarrassing at times. I'm 5'6" started my journey at 290 and was 286 just before surgery and now I'm at 205 so I'm down 85 lb total and 81 since surgery December so I'm happy about that went from a size 19/20 pants and 3x shirt to a 10 in pants and medium shirt. So I know I'm doing good but there are days I look in the mirror and just can't see the weight loss. Does anyone else have this issue? I also can't stand chicken it makes me physically sick even the smell makes nauseated. Pork chops are also gross. And the crystal light I always liked can't stand. Also the only water I can drink without getting sick is smart water. So has anyone else had any of these things? Did anyone have their liver punctured? I know I asked a lot of questions but if anyone has any info on any or all would love to hear.

I researched WLS pretty thoroughly pre-op. I do my vacillating in the research phase of the process. I researched every horror story during the research phase. Once I decided I was going to have Gastric Bypass I never had a doubt after that. I definitely was a higher risk patient. I was 6'4", early 40s, had about 1/4 ton excess weight. This was the best decision I've ever made. Good luck, Tek

Hi, Zack, and welcome to the site. My high weight was 277, so not as high as you. I hadn't really thought of myself as being a candidate for WLS, but when I mentioned to my voice doc that I wanted to get off the proton pump meds, he suggested I consider it. I had sleep apnea, high blood pressure, and reflux. My age (67) also put me at higher risk. Now I'm 180 and off the proton pump meds. Also off the blood pressure meds. And my weight is down to 180. A guy I sing with had a gastric bypass before I knew him. He weighed 525. Now he's 280 and MUCH healthier. He told me he got down to 240 before settling in at 280. He says he can get down on the floor and play with his grand kids, which he would never been able to do at over 500 pounds. He's happy. If I were you, I'd go for it. But monitor yourself carefully and take care of yourself. A few weeks after surgery I had some chest pains. It was a Friday night, so I went to an urgent care place. They hooked me up to the box and scanned me, and there were no problems. You should probably adopt the same attitude about symptoms that might be nothing. Good luck!

When I had the surgery, I was 41, 6'1", HW of 505, CW 490, surgery day weight of 460. I had sleep apnea, prehypertension and a BMI of ~60. I also had to take blood thinning injections post-surgery. I also had bypass surgery (which has a higher risk of complications). So you and I are/were in roughly the same ballpark. I came through the surgery fine. Definitely sore. But it drastically improved my life and I would make the same decision in a heartbeat. Heck, I was able to look down today and see my toes, instead of them being covered by stomach. I've gotten to experience stepping on a scale and having the first number be a 2. I am approaching the nine-month mark and I weigh 295 and wear 2xl/3xl shirts (I'm like a 2.5xl at this point, I was a solid 6xl pre-surgery). Do you have risk factors? Yeah. But here is what I noticed from that list: you don't have a major condition that will obviously cause complications (like some disease that makes it difficult for your blood to clot or something like that). Do you have a higher potential for complications than someone who only weighed 400 pounds? Yeah. But its a generalized risk, not a specific risk. My recommendation, if you are still interested in the surgery, is to determine right now that you are going to follow your surgeon's post-surgery advice to the letter. If you need 28 days of injections, decide right now that you will do all 28 days. Whatever meds or vitamins he tells you take, take them. Commit right now, "I am not going to disobey my surgeon in a way that increases my risks." You cannot eliminate the risks entirely and if I am being honest, those risks will come to mind when you are being wheeled around on the gurney. You have no guarantees about what the other side of the surgery will look like and feel like. And you will wake up from the surgery in pain. But if you decide that you will do everything you can control to minimize the risks, I think you will be happy with a decision to have the surgery.

I don't have any solid advice. All I can say is to weigh the risks of living at that weight with those health problems and see if it out weighs the risk of surgery or not. I don't think any decent surgeon would operate unless they were confident they could succeed. Not that there may not be some hiccups but still a successful surgery. I was 38, 6ft tall and 422 lbs but I had no health concerns other than high BP kinda controlled by meds. Not exactly the same stats but pretty close, less the heath issues. There were no emergencies that came up and everything went smoothly. I ended up having 3 surgeries in 1 too, per my surgeon. Hernia repair which was planned but it was much worse than they thought, I had massive esophagus damage (unexpected) that they removed and corrected and then I had bypass. My 2 hour surgery ended up being 5 and still went without a hitch. I really wish you the best!

hi, and welcome. I'm 67 and hoping for bypass and hernia repair in mid-june. I meet with my surgeon for what they call the Results (from pre-procedure testing) Visit on may 16. I am hoping that I can be given a date for surgery at that visit. What someone told you here is what I have been told regarding post surgery eating plan, BUT I do know that it all depends on one's healing. I wish I had done this about 10 years when the lbs started coming on, the weight fluctuation began, and no matter what I did, I did not lose. Good luck!

I started at 213 lbs 5’1”. I was on pre liquid for 5 days and lost 12 lbs. I had gastric bypass on 4/18 . I lost another 9 lbs first week. Since then I have been at 192 lbs. I am frustrated too about stalling weight loss after 1 week. I have read if you are diabetic it’s harder to lose weight. Is this true? I am diabetic and my sugar has been going back up steadily. My endocrinologist increased my insulin to 20 units of lantus. Am I going to lose weight? Has this happened to anyone else? I also had to go to ER couple days ago due to impacted bowel. I didn’t poo 11 days then poo then another 7 days no poo. I went to see my endocrinologist and pcp yesterday. They are puzzled why I am not losing weight either. I drink 3 bottles of water and about 70+ protein per day. Please help!!!

I’m curious to why your experience there was not the greatest. I’m trying to find a surgeon. I was supposed to have the bypass on May 27th 2022. My husband changed jobs. Now UHC plan they have doesn’t have coverage.

It will seem like it takes forever but it will be here before you know it, I had my 1st appointment in November 2021 and my surgery is next week. It still feels unreal.

My surgery is May 12, having Gastric Bypass. Started my pre-op diet today.

The often sited NSAIDs prohibition generally applies only to Gastric Bypass patients. VSG patients still effectively have a normally functioning stomach with a normally functioning pyloric valve, so NSAIDS are no more an issue for VSG patients than non-ops. There is a school of thought that NSAIDs are best avoided by everyone. Cream aspirin generally doesn't contribute to the issues created by swallowing NSAIDS for anyone. Now I had Gastric Bypass and my Doc has no issue with me taking NSAIDs as long as I paid attention to possible side effects, as anyone taking anything should do. Most folks claim Acetaminophen is okeydokey to take while my personal medical issues prevent me from even looking at them. Long and short of it is we should pay attention to what our Docs say about our personal medical situations. Since we're here, Gastric Bypass folks may have issues with certain time-released medications. It depends on the time-release mechanism, where the meds are absorbed, and other things that seems to vary by person. Again, we need to pay attention to how the medications appear to work. Talk to your medical team. I'd wager dollars to doughnuts you are in the clear. Good luck, Tek

Hello! Thank you all for allowing me in the group🥰 I just had a consultation and I barely qualify for the sleeve but I do! Yay! I'm 5'6 194 lbs. A few questions: I heard going out of the country is cheaper - anyone go out of the country for the surgery? Like, Mexico. I'm in Florida. How did it turn it? I was not comfortable going out of the country, but my insurance covered it, so that was even cheaper than going to Mexico. I know many people who have been happy with their results in Mexico, but I know one person who felt that she needed more care than she got, plus I know that some people go there when they are not approved in the US, and they may not be as careful about turning people down in Mexico. What's the pros and cons I should be aware of? Pros: you will most likely lose a good amount of weight. You MAY see improvement in certain health conditions. You will be able to fit in smaller clothes. You MAY be able to me more active. If you lose weight, people will be nicer to you (sick, but true!) Cons: This is major surgery, and while the chance of a bad outcome is VERY SMALL, there is still some risk. Losing weight will not make you a completely different person - most of your problems will be the same, but you won't be able to use food to cope with them anymore. You will need to take a multi-vitamin every day for the rest of your life, and if you're like me, the multi-vitamin may make you throw up. You may lose some of your hair for a few months I've heard so many horror stories ie people throwing up, not being able to ever eat "normal" again, higher risk for cancer, etc etc etc. I've been doing research but id love to hear yalls thoughts since i know you're live ppl I can actually communicate with😊 I threw up once because the food was too dry (3 weeks after surgery). About once every two weeks I throw up from my multi-vitamin. I've tried three different brands, but it sucks. The only way you could be at a higher risk for cancer I can think of is if you have really bad GERD after sleeve, develop Barrett's esophagus, and this becomes cancer. However, if you get really bad GERD after sleeve, you could have a revision to bypass. Many forms of cancer have higher rates in people who are obese, so it's likely your risk of cancer will go down if you have surgery and lose weight. I eat more "normally" now than before surgery. Before surgery my portions were WAY TOO BIG and I was eating unhealthy food too often. Now I eat a more normal sized portion and less junk food. The only things I can't really eat easily are lettuce and rice, and those are getting easier. Thanks a bunch!

I had the sleeve in 2010 and lost about 3 1/2 stone then in August 2021had the bypass it isn't the easy way put you've still got to watch what you eat and its protien first my recovery after the bypass was worse than the sleeve I had to stay in hospital for four days , but would do it all again in a heartbeat dont let people make your desition for you if your thinking about it go and speak to your doctor good luck

Having bariatric surgery is not "the easy way out"... it's really the only proven treatment for obesity. One surgeon told me that if you have more than 100 lbs to lose, the odd of losing it and keeping it off are 1 in 2000! I had lost 50, 80, 100 lbs various times and always gained it back. Yes, I might gain my weight back this time, but the odds are much better since I had surgery. You can try to lose that 85 lbs but even if you do, you will almost certainly gain it back, and based on your history, you will end up heavier than ever. However, in order to keep the weight off after surgery, you will have to make permanent changes to your eating habits. For example, I'm 8 months out and I can eat anything I want... which means it's up to me to choose the best options. Right now, I'm limited in how much I can eat as long as I eat protein rich foods, but if I'm eating cookies, I can eat too much too easily. I had sleeve, not bypass, but the outcome/recovery is basically the same. You just have to be more careful with vitamins after bypass. I don't feel that I'm "missing" 90% of my stomach, but eating definitely feels different, and that can be frustrating sometimes. However, I am happy I did the surgery.

Hi! I had a revision TO the Distal Bypass. I started out with the RNY Gastric Bypass, now I have a duodenal switch. My surgery went pretty good! No complaints, just sore from the operation, but it's better each and every day. Down 15lbs already, which isn't as much as I hoped for

How long after surgery until all restrictions are lifted? I'm looking at having gastric bypass but I'm a correctional officer and am not allowed to return to work with any kind of restrictions whatsoever ((lifting, etc)). I'll ask my surgeon next week, but I'm genuinely curious on what to expect. Fortunately I have the luxury of taking off whatever time I need as my husband has plenty of sick leave he can donate to me when I exhaust all of my own leave hours, but I don't know what I'll do with myself if I'm facing being at home for a month, lol.

Gastric Bypass

I'd love to be honest about it. The weight loss is nice...but I still have to be VERY DISCICPLINED in what I eat or I REGAIN weight. Also, I woke up from surgery with horrid GERD that has not gone away and HUNGRY. I still get hungry (famished) just like before the surgery. Long term GERD and PPI use have significant health issues associated with them. I have moderate anemia now (10 years post op), and can't seem to absorb enough through food. I may have to have Iron infusions. I have to have an endoscopy to check on things next month. I may have to have a revision to bypass. I hope it's not more serious than needing a revision (Please God, no Barrett's esophagus, or {gulp} cancer). Most times, I am OK and have come to acceptance for the most part...but other times I seriously regret having 85% of my stomach removed (I really didn't have any co-morbidities) and I get a little freaked out about what I have done to myself and what might happen as a result of this serious surgery (no going back). I was so desperate I was to lose weight. I gotta tell you... the biggest problem was a selfish, unloving, critical, abusive husband and my own lack of self-esteem. I was glad to get rid of all 180 pounds of HIM! Now that was the best and healthiest weight loss of all. I wish I had gotten rid of him first, because after he was gone, I started working out, lifting weights and got in shape. That was a game changer. I would encourage everyone to do their own research. Look up the rate of weight regain after the sleeve. Look up the risk of GERD associated with the sleeve. Look up the rate of hunger after surgery. Weigh the pros and cons. This is not a benign surgery. At least that is how I feel about it today

Hi All. May 24th will be one year since I had my sleeve surgery. And June 28th, 2022 will be my revision to bypass surgery. I have lost around 25 pounds since May 24, 2021. At one point it was about 33 pounds. But Its been the same weight since August/Sept 2021. And now I have GERD really bad as well. So back to surgery I go. I am happy to read your progress and see you all are doing well. Continued Best Wishes!