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I don't know which surgery you had, but it's more of an issue with bypass than it is with sleeve (although my surgeon forbids it for either surgery). Although the PA at my clinic once told me that I could take it on a VERY OCCASIONAL basis...like if I have a terrible headache that Tylenol is doing nothing for. But again, only very occasionally. After eight plus years, though, I still haven't taken any. I take Tylenol for headaches. It doesn't do as good of a job as ibuprofen, but it does help.

I've found different foods to process differently (bypass +hiatal hernia repair, June 6th of this year). My wife made a Bolognese sauce (ground turkey) that went down like it was meant to, and caused no gastro-intestinal distress. @Penguin733, fwiw, I suspect that at 7 weeks, I was just getting into real food. I got religion when I got stopped up, and got the "foamies." Talking to surgeon, and folks here, I was told to measure or weigh. I now know better what I can eat, both in terms of volume and nature of the the food. (FWIW, I had a nice small loin lamb chop tonight and et the whole thing!). Give yourself some time and also recognize that some foods are harder to digest than others; if you look at the surgical procedure that you underwent, you'll understand that there is a stronger filter in place than before; that can help you lose weight. In my case, it also reduced the amount of gastric acid blowing back up my esophagus, which was the driver for me. I've also lost a massive amount of weight in a short time. I respect what this operation can do.

I went to see my GP this week to get some testing done. I actually looked forward to going, knowing things would to be better than the last time I saw her pre-op. She along with everyone in the office flipped out when they saw me. I'm down over 80 pounds in 5 months. The nurse said I lost a small person. LOL I could fit comfortably in the chair when they drew my blood. You know that little table that folds down in from of you? I had room to spare. She asked if I was having fun buying new clothes. I told her yes. I love thrifting and now able to get around to do it. The head nurse had to come in and take a gander at me. She called me yesterday and told me my bloodwork results were amazing. Everything is in normal range now. I am no longer pre-diabetic. Even my liver and kidney functions are normal. Those things scared me the most and my main reason to get the Gastric Bypass. Don't ever let anyone tell you those things aren't reversable. My GP said she can't believe my numbers. Told me all her sleeve patients don't have these kinds of results in a year, even after prescribing them Ozempic. She sees patients from a local surgeon who only does the sleeve with no follow up support. I'm guessing most of those people aren't following any protocol because I see the good results on here, every day, of sleevers' success stories. I love reading them. I went out of town to get my bypass in April that thankfully has a great Bariatric support team. I go back to see them for my 6-month checkup Oct 11. They did a vitamin panel on me last time and all was well except my B12 was a bit high but nothing to worry about. And I go back in January for my annual physical with GP. Was told they can hopefully start taking me off my meds. I will be closer to goal weight by then. Something else to look forward to.

Hey, @Jlw1403. I had my bypass + hiatal hernia repair on June 6th of this year. The operation went fine, and being on liquid, then pureed, all the various stages, wasn't hard, I just wanted more. I took the supplements (multi + iron, and calcium) but as I progressed now more than 3 months out, I'm less hungry, find a lot of food or the thought of it, almost distasteful, and have to force myself to eat. Drinking liquids is not a problem simply b/c I get dehydrated, especially in the Texas heat. You should talk to your surgeon/dietician and see if there is any physical reason why you are having a problem. I would not do it in an accusatory fashion- more in the "I need help here " vein. I think, from what I've read here, that everyone's experience varies. It's like we all have different sensitivities to certain foods after the surgery, but-at least to me, you should be able to intake the basic minimum-- I was OK with the Max Protein drinks for about 2.5 months- then I found them gag worthy and couldn't digest them. I'm told it's about sips, not guzzling, but still. It is a pretty serious surgery- one that has a ton written about it in the med journals, and pretty safe in terms of outcomes. But tolerance for food and drink is probably very individualized. Get help. You don't have to suffer.

I never lost my hunger when I had my sleeve. It really sucked. Ironically, when I had the revision to the bypass, I lost hunger. I'm now 1 week shy of being 3 months post op from the revision and I still don't have much in the way of hunger. Try having the unflavored protein shakes, since the flavored is too sweet. Have mostly broths and anything else you can that has protein in it. Right now, that's the most important thing. Definitely get your fluids and protein in.

I just had my gastric bypass surgery on 9/18/2023!

I'm sorry you regained, that is so frustrating! 80 lbs in 3 months is a lot, I'd talk to your doctor about checking your thyroid and your fasting glucose level... Most of us gained weight during Covid due to less physical activity, comfort eating, and more time and accessibility to snacks. Snacking is notorious for gaining weight back after surgery. The hard thing is we don't feel like we've changed anything big in our eating habits but unless you are tracking literally everything you put in your mouth you really won't notice how much extra you are eating. Changing drinks from water to other things is a big culprit too and easier when we are at home next to the fridge. And tasting things/snacking while cooking. There is no shame in regain IMO, life happens in unpredictable ways. Covid was a huge hit for most of us and caused a lot of changes in living habits just to get through! I haven't had surgery yet but I gained about 50 lbs in the years around Covid, I'm immune compromised so was on strict lockdown for forever. Converting to a DS can help with more weight loss and maintaining weight loss better, it has the highest statistics for total excess weight loss and weight maintenance. However since it is a conversion for you (not a virgin surgery) the weight loss will be slower than it was with the initial sleeve surgery. You will still lose weight with it if you are diligent, you can still get the weight off if you got it off before, but in order to do that you need to figure out what is causing you to gain weight so you can correct it and help the surgery work. Revisions can be game changers for some, but they aren't miracle workers, they still require hard work and effectively using your tool.

Echoing RickM, bile reflux is different than acid reflux. Make sure you are dealing with a doctor who understands the difference, it matters a lot because best treatment and best course for revision are different between the two. I believe they should have you on something like cholestyramine for the bile reflux, it absorbs the excess bile. And yes, if bile reflux is the main issue, a traditional DS would be a useful revision because it cures it... So I'd research that and talk it over with your surgeon!

Bypass is pretty amazing for GERD sufferers. There are a fair number of those that have had revisions from sleeve to bypass on this site. That said, my surgeon says there is a way to make a sleeve that is less likely to cause GERD if they already know you have issues with it. Something about the top being a bit wider? I'm most likely going with the DS which causes much more malabsorption than the bypass. The way I see it though, I'd rather trade my meds and chronic illnesses for daily vitamins and stable weight maintenance. It is important to remember that each person has a surgery that is right for them. I have gone over the medication malabsorption issue with my psych several times. But she says that in the end it comes down to the individual. Sometimes even sleevers need med adjustments after surgery. And sometimes bypass and DS people do fine with no adjustments. It all depends on the person and their individual system. Things can be adjusted, there are always options. I'm lucky that my ADHD meds are a disintegrating tablet because its most often given to children. And I have always chewed my benzos so they kick in faster (I only take them in emergencies). My biggest worry is my anti-depressant but we'll cross that bridge when we get there. DSers tend to absorb tablet vitamins well so I'm hoping the tablet anti-depressant will do equally well!

I had gastric bypass about 4 years ago. I've lost 200 lb and I want my excess skin around my belly removed but I haven't had any children and honestly I plan on doing so if I find the other half but I waited almost a year to see the plastic surgeon. I get there and they tell me they can help me and I'm so excited that I can finally be done with this irritation. I don't want this done because I want a flat belly I'm tired of being itchy and sweaty and uncomfortable all the time that's why I want it done but they told me I had time to think about whether I wanted the fleur-de-lis or if I wanted the regular procedure done. I wasn't sure so they told me I could check online. I did so and then in the process found out that most people recommend that you not get pregnant or that you don't do this until you're done with having kids. I'm just so confused are there saying I'm going to have a little bit of a belly again or are they saying the whole thing is going to come crashing down and I'll be right back where I am now. I don't know. I'm just really upset because I feel like I did a lot to get here and now that I am at the end goal, I'm being denied. Sorry if this sounds like a rant. It probably is but I do genuinely want to hear from others.

So I had my first meeting with my surgeon. She said that a bypass would be contraindicated for me for several reasons, the main one being because of my history of lower abdominal surgery (I've had nine stomach surgeries (counting my c-sections), and all but one of them were lower abdominal). But she also said it could turn out that the doctor would get in there, and there would just be too many adhesions from scar tissue, and they wouldn't be able to do it. A CT scan was done of my stomach recently, and they're going to evaluate that, but it has me worried now that I won't be able to get it. Has anyone else been told anything similar?

First, congratulations! It was the best decision of my entire life and 3 months after the surgery I can say, it will ALWAYS be the best decision of my life. I believe it will be one of the best decisions you made. I colored my hair after couple of months, I had no problem. I did not loose hair, although I was expecting it. I believe I did not loose hair even though I lost 51 pounds in 3 months, because I always eat the right amount of protein and also took a biotin supplement in addition to Calcium, Iron and multivitamins. I am happy, energetic and blessed. All my blood tests came back PERFECT! No high bad cholesterol, no high triglycerides, and after 15 years of being a diabetic and juggling metformiin and insulin, I am no longer a diabetic. My last A1C was 5.5 which places me in the normal range, I am not even a prediabetic. I was so scared of the gastric bypass that I considered not getting the surgery up to the time they rolled me in the operating room. I really hated my liquid diet and was in tremendous pain after the surgery because I had a hiatal hernia repair surgery at the same time with the gastric bypass. I cannot believe that there are only 3 months and 10 days since my surgery! So, while there are scary stories out there and the journey is not easy, please know that each individual is unique, and trust that your story will be one of success as mine is! One doctor told me couple of years ago that getting a gastric bypass was the best decision of his life. I can say the same about me and wish for you the same!

I would want to look closely at this, verifying the bile reflux and determining if there is any acid reflux component to this before getting into long term treatment options as the treatment can differ widely depending upon that diagnosis. If it is bile, then I wouldn't expect Pepcid or other anti acid meds to do much as the are treating acid and not bile, a base. I'm not sure what meds they do use but likely different ones. Bile is used to neutralize the acid coming out of the stomach along with the digested food into the intestines. Is your surgeon in the loop on these findings (I assume so, but check if you haven't heard from them yet,) as that may change his prescriptions. If it is strictly a bile problem, then a bypass will probably correct it, but not guaranteed as it moves the stomach/pouch outlet downstream into the natural path of bile secretions; the key, according to one surgeon I discussed this with, is the length of the roux limb, as that is the one that connects the pouch with the mainstream intestine and how far any bile would have to travel to reflux into the stomach. This doc noted that at 80cm or greater (IIRC) he didn't run into any bile reflux problems. The basic RNY procedure has been around for some 140 years for gastric cancer and gastroparesis (it is usually termed just a partial gastrectomy, or likely some other fancy latin names as well,) and it that use, bile reflux is a not uncommon complication. My non-MD take on it is that in those cases, they tend to keep the limbs short to minimize malabsorption and weight loss (last thing a cancer patient usually needs is more weight loss!) So, the longer limb makes sense here. Discuss this and make sure that your surgeon is up on this aspect of it. The other option if it is basically a bile problem is the DS, duodenal switch, which is pretty much a guaranteed cure for any bile problems owing to the very long path between the bile ducts and the stomach, but relatively few bariatric surgeons offer it owing to its greater complexity. Note this only applies to the "traditional" or Hess DS and not the newer SIPS/SADI/"loop" or simplified DS, which like its mini-bypass cousin has bile reflux as one of its common complications. The DS will not help any acid reflux problem as it uses the existing sleeve (though may resleeve it if it was malformed causing GERD rather than just overproduction of acid,) while adding the intestinal rerouting for malabsorption. The DS is a better choice over the RNY revision if slow or inadequate weightloss is an issue, too, as it is a stronger metabolic tool. Good luck on this - bile is surely a much less common problem with the sleeve than acid reflux, so the industry isn't quite as settled on solutions for it.

Yes, very common, and here is one of the factors - In the middle of the video he goes over the typical progression of meal volume that we can expect, and it is consistent with my experience. I you simply let things happen and eat the same way we did the first year, but more, then there will certainly be the tendency to gain. While I'm not a big fan of everything this guy preaches (or any online guru, for that matter,) one of the things that I do like is his "eat your vegetables first" concept, which he applies after the first few months of protein first. My general evolution was to increase the veg content of my meals over time, rather than the protein, as the protein that we are advised to consume early on is usually our basic requirement, as we can't get that from pills like we can most micronutrients. So, I still have about 3 oz of meat in a meal today like I did the first year, but a lot more veg in there. And, it's still something of a struggle because the junk still wants to creep back in there stimulating old habits (we usually spent a lot more time getting fat, and getting used to it, than we have trying to be healthy now!) With a sleeve, or a bypass, at this point it is basic dieting/healthy balanced eating that we are all familiar with; it is somewhat easier than before as our volume rarely returns to where is was pre-op, but our old bad habits sure can come back.

Hi all - I'm so sorry to hear of what you are facing guys; I'm sure you had not bargained for that! I wondered what procedure you all had. I had a gastric bypass and seem to have healed well thus far. I only feel nauseous very occasionally and the feeling is fleeting and thus I'm not actually put off of eating my food. I have not yet experienced 'dumping' and threw up only once much earlier on. I have not yet had a bad reaction to anything that I have eaten but I do try to be careful. I'm three and a half months post surgery and feeling ok. I swim daily and feel sufficiently healed so far. Have you all spoken to your health team? xx

I had my VS in 2012, lost 150 lbs and maintained that loss almost effortlessly for 8 years, then Covid hit and in a matter of 3 months I gained 80 lbs back WITHOUT CHANGING MY EATING HABITS!!! I feel like I’ve been robbed. By no fault of my own, the weight came back and stayed. I still can only consume 4 or 5 bites to eat and I’m full. I just don’t understand why this happened and if I do a revision to a DS will that help?

Update: Gastric Bypass Date 8/16/2023 Starting weight 376 Current 339.9 Down 37 pounds

You can use whatever protein shakes you want. I used ready made the first 2 weeks, then I bought protein powder from Arbonne and made my own. You can take liquid vitamins as long as they have the same amount of vitamins as bariatric vitamins do. I wasn't told not to take capsules or any kind of pills with the sleeve when I had it, but I WAS told that when I had my revision to bypass. It took a little bit but I'm able to take all my normal pills and supplements like normal now.

With my sleeve, I had major pain for almost 2 weeks. With my revision to bypass, I had very little pain. Mostly, it was uncomfortable for about 4 days. Wish I had just done the bypass to begin with.

Hello all! Newbie here! I had gastric bypass surgery on August 8. Since then, I have not been able to meet my fluid or protein requirements, or even get close honestly. My Dr and dietitian just say "well, you have to." I'm still feeling weak and tired and just want to feel better! Does anyone have any tips, tricks, recipes (I'm on stage 3) that might help?

Its rare but I got it with the sleeve. It was not bad enough to take me to the ER but was really debilitating all the same. If I am really careful in what I eat and take my PPI twice a day and use sodium alginate after foods it keeps it at bay. I would have got the gastric bypass if I knew beforehand.

Well, this was me in August. I had to fight again. My revision is set on 09/25/23. Wow, I have undergone a heck of a fight. Can't wait to be free from pain [emoji18] Sent from my SM-G996U1 using BariatricPal mobile app

For those who just got it done how was it I'm scheduled for the bypass on Monday 9/18//23 and not going to lie I'm second guessing it right now I'm 35 years old is this what I want for my life Im only 320 pounds yes the weight sucks and my quality of life sucks but I don't know if I'm ready for all the medications vitamins etc idk I'm just thinking. Any input

Tomorrow will be my 1 year anniversary since my gastric bypass surgery. I have lost 86 pounds. I’m not going to lie, I honestly thought I would have lost more by now. Although weight loss has slowed down tremendously, I have yet to see a gain on the scale so I take that as a win. I would like to lose at least another 50 pounds so I have to remember this surgery is not a cure-all, it’s simply a tool. I’ve been extremely lucky and have had no complications whatsoever. I don’t experience dumping syndrome at all (well I did once when I ate some ice cream and have steered clear ever since) but other than that there really isn’t anything I can’t eat, I just eat a whole lot less. I can definitely be better about my diet, like always, but one thing I’ve incorporated into my life that has stuck is exercise. I don’t feel good unless I exercise so it’s become addicting (in a good way). Anybody who is reading this and contemplating this surgery, or is in recent post op and struggling, I have absolutely no regrets about having this surgery. The first 2 months were rough, but I got through it and so will you!

I'm 7+ weeks post-op from Gastric Bypass/RNY. I have zero appetite. I've spent over a month in the hospital because of infections, dehydration, etc. Since I wasn't getting results from the surgeon's facility post op, I decided to see my PCP for help. Best decision! Small changes (doubling my nausea meds, etc.). I may even receive IV fluids when necessary, maybe even from home, if possible. I realize the part of my stomach that communicates with the brain has been removed. I don't see an end in sight. I was told by nurses at the hospital that this aversion to food and drink is not unusual; for some it lasts months, or even years (I'm going on 8 weeks). It sounds like this improves with the sleeve, but has anyone else experienced this long term after a gastric bypass?