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This has been... just a whole crazy crazy adventure. Highest weight 402, currently around 200-210. Had my surgery at 325lbs 2018-01-22, will have my TT on 2021-06-04 over 3 long years. I am happy I am stable (weight shifting a bit up and down but never too major) and i was approved for a panni. But with my weight loss and how my skin hangs, the surgeon suggested a fleur de lys since my upper stomach have what I call my second set of boobs. I am excited and scared of this new adventure but I will say my self confidence took a big hit with how my body now is first two is the current me, and the last one probably at my highest. I hate showing my stomach now, even to my partner. When i bought my bikini, they had a hard time to find a bottom that I was asking for to cover the whole stomach. While the skin on my arms bothers me, it will most likely never be done. My legs will be as they are covered but should be in a year from now I assume.

Slv 9/23/19 5’3” 67 yrs HW 285 SW 245 CW 152 GW 140 “It’s never too late to be who you were meant to be “

It took my doctors office like 10 days to send it in and then my insurance responded in less than 24 hours. I work in healthcare so I understand that I’m not the only patient but still I was restraining myself from calling and being like SUBMIT IT!!

I've been battling my weight since I was 6 years old. I've been big for as far back as I can remember. I did just about every diet there was and not a single one worked. Eventually I just gave up. I had looked briefly into WLS in my 20's but I didn't think I'd be able to change my eating habits so drastically. I didn't think I had that kind of willpower. Plus, potential complications scared me and the permanence scared me. So I stopped looking into it. When I was 21 in May of 2009 my eldest niece was born. I was still in pretty good health despite being over 300 pounds. So I didn't really have the determination to go through with WLS. However, when her sister was born in February 2019 my health was very bad. I was 389 pounds, I have two permanent back injuries (one caused by my osteoarthritis), high blood pressure, tachycardia, hypothyroidism, the aforementioned osteoarthritis, I was pre-diabetic, have EoE (an autoimmune disorder), and I'd had brain surgery in May 2017 for my trigeminal neuralgia. When I held my new niece I was hit with the realization that if something didn't change, if I didn't find a way to get myself healthier and lose weight, then I likely wouldn't be around to watch her grow up. I cried, because watching my eldest niece grow up has been my greatest joy. It broke my heart that I may not be around to watch her sister grow up. That made things more real for me, I suppose. It pushed me into making that change and taking it seriously. I was referred to a bariatric surgeon and had to do a 6 months of monitored weigh-in's per my insurance. I didn't actually have to LOSE weight. I was just told not to GAIN weight. But, I took the initiative to try and make myself as successful as possible by using that time to prepare myself for a new way of eating. I used the first month to cut out seconds and cut my portion sizes down. The second month I cut out soda. The third month I cut out rice. The fourth month I cut out pasta. The fifth month I cut out bread. The six month I cut out potatoes and beans. The last two months before my surgery (they were overscheduled and pushed me back) I just maintained that diet and on my surgery date I was 321 pounds, meaning I'd lost 68 pounds on my own. I'm still very proud of myself for that. For me, the final push was my family. My family is my strength. They are what pulled me through the absolute worst time in my life (August 2016-May2017 when I had a 10 month TN flare that led to my brain surgery) when I KNOW I would have given up without them. Since my weight loss surgery? I have a new niece (from my brother and his wife) and my first and only nephew (from my sister and her husband). Now that I've lost over 200 pounds I don't worry so much that I won't be there to watch them grow up. And when I see my 2 year old niece light up when she see's me I know I made the right choice, the best choice, to have this surgery because now I get to watch her and her brother grow up just like I've got to watch her 12 year old sister grow up and just as I'll get to see her cousins grow up. Everyone has a different reason for why they do this. Sometimes it's for family, like myself. And sometimes it's personal. Every person who goes through this has a different journey, different experiences, and a different story to tell. And I wish you the very best on your own journey.

So I am only at Day 10 and don't start puree until next week but my dietician gave me a list of bariatric approved canned soups and I was going to throw them in the blender. That way you get protein and veggies etc and pureed.

Are you still pretty swollen? I had sleeve 5/10 and I feel like a balloon.

I had surgery 5/10, I’m glad I’m past the 3 days post op. There was no way I could get the recommended amount of water or protein down. Pain was steady but manageable, I slept a lot. Evening of day 2 the gas was releasing but was never painful. On day 3 I was able to drink a lot more but the protein water doesn’t taste good. Start of day four and I’m back to protein shakes and yogurt which is the first real subsidence I’ve had in 5 days. Incisions are healing well also. I’m looking forward to my post op checkup on 5/18 then get to the puréed diet. Good luck all. JMK.

How much loose skin you have depends on a number of factors like age, genetics, how many years you’ve been overweight, how much excess weight you carried, ... Think of your skin as an elastic hair band - ain’t nothing can unstretch a well used, old elastic hair tie. Unfortunately, the only way to really reduce sagging skin is surgery. I don’t have a lot of excess skin - pinches not handfuls & I decided not to have surgery. I scar & decided loose skin was better than scars. It doesn’t bother me that much - I’m way past showing a lot of skin. LOL! I’d rather have some saggy skin than the fat. I added collagen & silica to my diet but don’t believe it did anything really. What helped me was I had bounced around 60 - 75kgs for most of my adult life, gained 16kgs over about 3 yrs & only sat at that weight for not quite 2 yrs before I had surgery. When I hit my 60kg goal I had hardly any loose skin at all but when I lost the extra 10 odd kilos there was noticeably more. A friend did weights to help ‘fill in’ her loose skin but while she gained some muscle, she still has all the loose skin on her tummy, under her arms & between her thighs that she had to begin. Moisturising is likely only going to help the texture of your skin which is always good.

Your surgery is on my one year surgery anniversary! I only have one child, a 10 year old son, and he has been amazing and not really phased at all by the whole process of me getting surgery and all the changes I've made. Considering it's been the year of COVID, virtual school, etc, I think he has dealt with it very well and he really is my biggest supporter. I talked to him a lot about it beforehand and prepared him for the changes. I think kids are actually pretty good at handlinh stuff like this as long as you prepare them. I know my son is happy to have a mom who can do so much more with him now! Sent from my Nokia 7.2 using BariatricPal mobile app

So I didn’t have a good experience with communication with my surgical team. And I thought I was getting “resleeved” when I had my SIPs revision but my stomach wasn’t touched just the malabsorption piece was done. I’m kind of bummed because I really wanted a do-over and I’m not sure how successful just the malabsorption piece is. so back story I had sleeve done in 2014 day of surgery weight 265 I got down to 170 but it didn’t last long I started gaining weight and once covid hit I gained about 45lb in 2020 alone. I got up to 268 on the day of my revision (went all the way to 280 before I started liquid diet presurgery.) I’m about 2 weeks post and yes I’ve lost 11 lbs but I feel it has to do with the fact I’m still on liquid. What happens when I start eating solids again? Has anyone had experience with SIPs malabsorption piece only so many years post sleeve? Is it still successful? preop liquid diet 4/21 280lbs Revision surgery 4/26 268lbs Two weeks post 5/10 258 lbs

I'm only here (pre-op for VSG) because a colleague, who had dropped a bunch of weight, told me she had weight loss surgery after I commented on how great she looked. I wouldn't have considered it otherwise as my doctor had never mentioned it, and in my head it was this crazy dangerous thing where 10% of people died in the first five years (no clue where I got that stat in my head). So I'm grateful she told me. But, I don't feel as brave. I'm embarrassed to be at this point - and worried I'll fail and regain weight and it will be even more awful because people knew I had surgery. But I'm dreading people commenting on my weight loss. I'm still teleworking fulltime due to COVID, and I'm hoping I can drop a bunch of weight before I have to go back to the office so people (who I haven't seen in 18 months at this point) will think it was something that happened over a longer period.

I got married in 2019! I hope all is well with everyone!

Asics Gel Quantum 180 4 Sneakers. Tiosebon Athletic Walking Shoes. New Balance FuelCore Nergize Sneakers. Adidas Ultraboost 19 Sneakers.

I’m not in San Antonio, but just some advice from someone who had the same issue - in the fall of 2019, through a wellness program sponsored by my employer, my bloodwork came back as pre-diabetic. The wellness program has a diabetes prevention program but you have to meet with a doctor once a quarter, do bloodwork, and meet with a nutritionist at least twice (which helped immensely once I met with the surgeon - I didn’t have to do 6 months of work with their office because of it). When they set up my first doctor visit, I specifically asked for a non-judgmental doctor because I didn’t want to spend the entire time lectured about my weight. What I am really trying to say - look for PCPs that may specialize in pre-diabetic or diabetic care and read the reviews for them. The doctor they gave me for this program (it had to be at a certain clinic to qualify) was fantastic and so great to work with. It is always a struggle when you meet a doctor for the first time when you are worried all they will see is your weight. (PS - I got my A1C down to the lowest pre-diabetic point - 5.6 - prior to surgery and post-op it is now 4.9 😊. I’m about to graduate out of the prevention program - my doctor just wants to check it another time or two and then I’ll be released.)

Had mine done May 5th. Went really well. Lost 10 lbs. in first week. Stalled for past two days. So far - really glad I did this!

I am 10 days post op. The first week was challenging for me me because if nausea, but I am doing much better. I am still on liquids, but I start pureed foods this weekend—I have never been so excited for mashed potatoes! I am still tired and a little “weak” but I am only getting around 300 -400 calories a day. I got on the scale today, and I was shocked that I have lost 25 lbs since my pre-op liquid diet weight!! I am back in the 100s—overjoyed that I finally feel this was worth it! 🥰

I'm not measuring or counting calories but at this point, I'm doing a version of whole30 which is just meat/veg/nuts/healthy fats. I struggled to finish one egg from my eggs in purgatory dish (it agrees with me again!) and probably ate 1.5 ounces of sous vide pork chip last night with 6 slices of roasted mushrooms. I eat until fullness, which tends to feel like tightness in my chest. I have not experienced any hiccups, runny nose, or sneezing. Usually, I'll get a "warning" which is a slight chest tightness but it goes away in a few seconds. I'll slow down and wait a few min and have one or two more bites and then I'll feel a sustained tightness and I know I am done. Also, weighed myself this week and lost 4 pounds since last week, 19 pounds since surgery (~5 weeks), 30 since before pre-op diet (~7 weeks). I felt like it was somewhat slow but the average is about 4 pounds per week, which would land me to nearly 90 pounds weight loss in 6 months if I continue at this rate.

Hello everyone! I am two weeks post op. My doctor had me on a clear liquid diet one week after surgery, then clear liquid with protein for another week. I have just started soft foods. My doctor said I should only be doing about 6 small bites in 30 minutes. I'm doing more than that. I had about 8-10 bites of cottage cheese yesterday, then I had a piece of cheese with hummus, then about 4-5 oz of tuna tetrazzini for dinner. Then I had a small cup of sugar free pudding later for snack. I am having a hard time getting my water in. Could that have something to do with it? I don't want to go through this surgery for naught. Help!

This happened to me with fluids, it would not go down. The reflux, heartburn were so painful I would throw up. Not to mention I was severely dehydrated, it was awful. I had a scan that showed the fluid stuck literally in my throat. They said this was very dangerous because it can go into the lungs and I went into surgery days later, right in the middle of the pandemic when hospitals only took emergency cases, last July. I was so scared, everyone in the hospital was paranoid as was I. My surgeon looked like an astronaut he was so covered up when he performed the surgery. I had to mention this because that showed how incredibly dangerous the lap band can be. And that is where the nightmare began. I had this weight so under control that I truly felt I would never put on the weight again. Exercising daily, eating very healthy, I really thought this was it. No more struggles after 10 years of keeping it under control. And then in one year, it all came back and then some. I remember my surgeon saying, most people have a revision to remove scar tissue and then have the sleeve done to keep the weight under control. Who could have known that this would be so incredibly hard? It was devastating. If I knew then what I know now I would have done it even thinner because this is, for me anyway's, a way of life. I must always try and try hard to stay on the path of mindful eating and exercising. Day 16 post op 13lbs weight loss Started bike riding. I had mine on the 26th and have lost 13 lbs. I am so excited !!!!! i have the go-ahead to exercise but I am not really eating so I am being careful. so excited to start this next chapter. It was impossible for me to lose 13 lbs before, I feel so much better knowing the weight is finally starting to come off!

I had Lapband surgery 2008 and went from 322 down to 148…. seemed like I could never eat first thing in the morning or at least until about 9:30 or 10. I just had my gastric bypass revision 4/13 after having my band removed 12/1/20 due to esophagus erosion from severe acid reflux from my band and so far no issues with eating… not feeling hunger currently and have reminders set for when it’s time to eat

you can eat around ANY surgery, even the DS (the most powerful weight loss surgery out there) and regain all your weight. However, stats on that are a little better for bypass than for sleeve (in other words, you're less likely to regain all your weight with the bypass). However, stats are stats - it really comes down to the individual. Regardless of surgery, you'll always find people who never gain any of it back, and others who put on a few lbs (10-20 lbs after hitting bottom is very common - but with some people it's more like 40 or 50 lbs), and still others who gain it all back. I wouldn't say that MANY people regain all their weight with bypass (or with sleeve). Some do, but they're in the minority. There are a lot who gain a good 40 or 50 lbs though (or even more) if they start slacking off too much.

TwinMom2020 How exciting! This month is flying by! I am right there with you! I keep saying enough is enough and eat well must of the day then dinner rolls around and I am crazy! I am eating things that I wouldn’t usually even eat just to eat! I agree, it will be hard, but necessary for me as well. I’m a twin mom as well :) My two are 10 and they are nervous that they are going to starve because we won’t eat out often after my surgery lol! Keep me posted on your journey and if you need any support just let me know :)

I’m heading to the hospital soon, scheduled for 10:30 this morning. Definitely nervous and hoping everything goes well. See you all on the other side!

Technically I didn't have the gastric sleeve surgery as I had the Loop DS/ SADI-S/SIPS surgery instead, BUT my surgery INVOLVES a gastric sleeve stomach. It just has the added intestinal bypass bit. I don't know if that counts for what you want to know though lol. But I'll answer anyway about my own WLS experience. I'm 15 months out. I had only one complication. That complication? I developed a wheat allergy. Any surgery with the malabsorption bit has something like a 3% chance of developing either a wheat allergy or Celiac Disease. I just happened to be one of the unlucky ones, but the bright side of it is that it keeps me on track because I can't eat 95% of the foods I used to love now due to the allergy lol. If I had to do it all over again I'd either stick with the surgery I chose or go with the old fashioned DS (but only because I really hate constipation issues and with the old DS you have the opposite problem, which is a problem in itself I guess lol). I was told the best WLS options to help with diabetes or pre-diabetes are ones that have malabsorption. And those are the ones that involve the intestinal bit (this was what my surgeon told me, btw because diabetes runs in my family). Those surgeries are Gastric Bypass, Duodenal Switch (DS), or Loop Duodenal Switch (SADI-S/SIPS). When I first went in for my surgery consult in May 2019 in which I'd had my mind set on the Gastric Sleeve I was told that since I had a BMI above 50 (it was almost 61 at the time) I was in the highest class of obesity and classified as 'super morbidly obese' (I cried). They recommended the DS or Loop DS to me because statistically they have the highest weight loss percentage and because I'm partially disabled (due to back injuries and osteoarthritis) I needed to really rely on average statistics (if you're not disabled and can exercise and follow your surgical and dieting guidelines then you can by all means surpass the average so don't get stuck on statistics if you don't have those issues). However, I also bounced around with whether I wanted that or Gastric Bypass due to potential GERD issues with the Loop DS because of the sleeved stomach (my gastroenterologist wanted me to do the GB lol while the surgeon was pushing for the DS or Loop DS). I ended up choosing the Loop DS after months of going back and forth between that and the Gastric Bypass. I had high blood pressure before my surgery and because mine is genetic (literally my sister is the only adult in our family who doesn't have it) I still have it. I was TOLD if my high blood pressure is genetic then the surgery likely wouldn't help it. It did improve it though. I used to take my BP meds every other day, but now I take them every three days and my blood pressure has been perfect with that. In the end the choice of what surgery you choose is very much your own. Do your research. Weigh the pro's and con's. Ask the surgeon questions. If you actually go to the office and SEE people (damn Covid may make it so you don't see people) ask if they've had surgery and ask them about their experiences (I did). Just choose whatever surgery you feel comfortable with. Every surgery has their ups and downs and everyone's experience is different. Also, congrats on the start of your journey and I wish you the best! You can do it!

It all depends on your insurance and their requirements. But most are the same and still make you follow the same guidelines whether the BMI is 35, 40, 45 or 50. They might approve you easier with a higher BMI but it's still a 6 month long process. My BMI was over 40 and I had to have atleast 2 comorbidities (i had several) such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea, acid reflux, etc. And you have to see your primary 6 months in a row for weight documentation, visits with a nutritionist/dietician, have a psych evaluation, sleep apnea study (its 2 different nights if you are diagnosed with apnea). EGD. And Some require you to see a Cardiologist. And then a month before your surgery you meet with surgeon again, get surgery scheduled, some require a class or two regarding the surgery, EKG/labs days before, covid test. Its a 6 month long minimum process. Sometimes longer. Just hang in there. Be patient and go to all of your appointments. Be on time (some docs will mark you as a now show and charge late fees, rescheduling you a month out just for being 10 minutes late). Good luck on your journey.