Hi Everyone,

I have been absent for awhile and just thought I'd do a check in. I love the new look! Super fast loading and easy to navigate.

I've been out due to injury / illness. I was in a very bad place for awhile and even was a little depressed. I've gained some weight (about 35 Lbs!) and I've lost all my great muscle tone from all my hard work! But enough for feeling sorry for myself, I couldn't do anything to prevent it because I wasn't aware these problems could be a possibility, and some things I already had issues before WLS. The only thing I can or could do is FIX IT!!! Sitting on my bum feeling defeated has never been me nor in my DNA. I had knee surgery and I went through a serious time where I couldn't even get out of bed due to severe lethargy. I had a lot of different issues happening at the same time so here they are:

-Extremely low Iron

-Arthritis in both knees / with trauma and tears to my ligaments (too many to go through)

-Heart palpitations

-Restless leg syndrome

-Depression

-Sinus infection and bronchitis

-etc.

-etc.

Okay so many of the things going on were actually all symptomatic due to my extreme low iron. I didn't know this BUT PLEASE NOTE having a sleeve can prevent us from absorbing all the iron our bodies need to survive and or function properly without supplements. Especially if you are a woman. I am about 3.5 years post op so this might not be something that others will encounter for years to come. It just hit me last year and I didn't figure it all out until I kept going to my PCP's office complaining of one thing or another.

All in all I will survive, but I'm still working toward getting back to 100%. I cannot workout like I once was right now, I have to slowly work my way back up there. I did get a silver lining last night at my PT appointment though. My therapist was very impressed and told me I've finally gotten myself back into the "functional" range! SWEET!! This is not an excuse to abuse myself though and workout too hard... lol. I have to be patient and just keep doing all the right things.

My heart is fine too. I simply have an irregular heartbeat. Apparently the low iron was not helping the situation, though my cardiologist is keeping an eye out and fixing me up for re-checks every six months.

As far as my asthma, well I just keep going round about with prednisone and antibiotics. I'm trying though!

That said I have a new pair of maltese darlings and they've really saved me! They make me laugh and smile when I feel like I'm having a down moment.

These photos were of me just before I got ill. I will FIGHT to get back here if it's the last thing I do. Needless to say you will be hard pressed to find any photos of me right now! LOL my family has to beg me!! Haha!!

So, how's everyone else doing?

Edited January 14, 201412 yr by LilMissDiva

It came to a point that I knew I'd have to come out of the woodwork and share my story. I'm here to help, and I'll do that in any way I can. I need to let everyone know that not everything can nor will turn out peachy or perfect. I always said "I'm far from perfect" and that is the downright truth. I have a hill to climb and that's ok. I've never NEVER been a quitter!!

I want to show the world that even in the darkest hour, there is but a few short more to daylight.

I have to work around my ailments. I can't do everything like I did before, but as long as I have breath in my lungs there is something I can do.

Good luck with your journey! Thanks for sharing your knowledge.

Hi everyone! What a great thread. So many good things coming up here. I'm grateful to see people talking about shame and whatnot. So refreshing, actually. You all are right to be cautious of trainers who don't listen to you. You know when something isn't right. The stress on joints from obesity is part of the problem but most of us could have benched 160# with each leg from carry so much weight! The issue is the muscle and tendon and ligament damage that happens when fat packs around it and then gets soaked in estrogen. Fat and estrogen are attracted and estrogen breaks down muscle fiber. That why abdominal fat is so dangerous (heart is a muscle) and we need tummy tucks. The fat gets in and around everything. The insulator that it is. It grows around the intestines, attacks estrogen and the abdominal muscles start to fail and separate. So yeah, go slow and strong. Respect the inner warrior!

And I forgot the reminder: ligaments and tendon do not get blood supply. That is why they (knees) take so so so long to heal!

Thanks Cheri...my ferratin was 11 ng/mL (normal like you mentioned is 15-150) so I was just outside the normal range. The note at the bottom of my labs (from Sept. 2013) said "labs perfect, though Iron stores are somewhat low (does functionally have plenty of iron)."

I'm wondering if I should redraw labs again 6 months from last time instead of waiting a whole year. Hum. Thank you so much for your update, I'm glad to "see" you around here again, Cheri...you have been MISSED! Hugs!

Wow, I'm very late to this party, but it's amazing to see so many of the experienced vets back here - thank you! Whenever I need inspiration, or guidance, this veterans forum is my favorite place to be! Started off my morning on the wrong foot (in that OTHER forum - why why why do I go there?), and it's so much better here. I just wanted to add another voice of support for supplements and regular labs. I'm about 2.5 years post-op, and still take bariatric-strength supplements religiously - a twice daily multivitamin, 4x daily extra calcium, and an iron supplement (167% RDA), which I'll admit to occasionally taking twice (darn those yummy chewables!). I also eat read meat and spinach regularly. When I had labs done at a year, I was super low on thiamine, and d. I added a b complex, and high dose d to my regimen. Now, 18 months later I recently had labs done again. Thiamine and d (and b12) are great, but my ferritin levels are at 2. Last year they were on the low end of the normal range (12 or 15 - 150), I think I was at around 15. So, despite my regular supplementation, I've dropped to super-low levels. I've been on a high dose timed release ferritin supplement, hoping to get my levels up without having to resort to infusions, I'll know in another 6 weeks if it's working. My symptoms were fortunately pretty mild, so don't count on that necessarily as a warning sign! Lots of folks think sleeve patients don't need to worry about regular blood work because we're less prone to deficiencies than RNY patients, but "less prone" doesn't mean "not prone", right?

Hi everyone. I'm 14 months post-op and struggle with maintenance. My iron has been very low and I take an iron supplement every night. Escape, can you tell me which iron supplement you take? I have tried several and they really tear me up. This thread is a great reminder to keep up the supplements. Thanks all.

Just to chime in in the iron issue - I haven't found any iron supplements I can tolerate. I have had to have quite a few infusions since my surgery in May 2012. I ended up getting an endometrial ablation in August 2013 to help with at least one cause of low iron, and it has improved my levels. Obviously it isn't an option for women who are interested in having children, but as I was infertile already it was a non-issue for me. I will be keeping an eye on this long term though, especially after reading the experiences of some of the other folks here. Thanks!

Hi all,

Just a reminder to not take your Iron supplement with your calciuim supplement (space them out) or with your morning caffeine. Vitamin C enhances iron absorption. It is good for me to know that it is not unusal for vets to have this issue - I will keep my eyes open!

Quick question re the low Iron. Have have never had low iron, didn't even get it after plastics where at least in theory I lost alot of blood. I don't supplement for it. If I get my bloodwork checked yearly, would that show problems before they become critical?

I have "graduated" from my surgeon's two year program and don't need to be seen by him anymore but he invited me to come every 6 or 12 months or whenever I want to - lifelong if need be - and I think an annual blood draw from a bariatric point of view is a good idea even though so far my labs are always "perfect" this thread has pointed out that can change.

Hi everyone. I'm 14 months post-op and struggle with maintenance. My Iron has been very low and I take an iron supplement every night. Escape, can you tell me which iron supplement you take? I have tried several and they really tear me up. This thread is a great reminder to keep up the supplements. Thanks all.

I'm taking FerroSequel. It took me about 7-10 days to stop getting headaches every afternoon, but other than that it doens't bother me. It's time-released. However, I won't get retested until end of February, so no idea if it's working.

Hi Diva!

I feel bad that I never saw this thread. I knew from FB that something was going on with you but I could not figure out exactly what was wrong. I am so glad you're back here!

I take Bariatric Advantage chewable Iron with vit C. I was anemic for a long time, and I don't even have periods. My last labs were perfect. I am no longer anemic. I think the bariatric advantage chewable have been better than anything I tried.

I got iron from Vitalady which was supposed to be the best. I talked to her on the phone and told her I was still anemic and she suggested some other iron that was supposed to be really good for sleeved people. My iron still did not go up. It really did not go up until i got on these chewables. Maybe the iron is absorbed better.

I know I have seen whole entire pills in my stools, so I don't think our tiny tummies can break down some pills.

I am sorry to hear about your knees. I know how much you like to work out. Can you do weight training? I really like the weight training classes. Mine is called Group Power. And the elliptikill. As much as i hate that machine, I think it's easier on the knees than the treadmill. I try to walk fast at an incline, but I get so bored, I end up running, and I am not supposed to run either.

My problems are in my spine.

Again, I am so glad you are back!!

CgJ, that's a really great idea to continue getting your panels checked yearly. My PCP does that for me (for anyone out there that cannot see his/her bariatric surgeon) and each time they kept getting lower and lower. It's getting better though. A lot of the symptoms I'd been having are going away thank goodness.

Od, thank you I am very glad to be here and posting again. It's a lot easier to get the whole story out in one whop than in bits and pieces! Ha!

I am so thrilled that I logged on a whim. It's so nice to read posts from people that have influenced/ inspired me. Diva, I'm sorry to hear that you were struggling, but you are one hard core chick. You can definitely get those 35 lbs off! It was really nice to see a post by you.

OMG I love this thread! Sad that I've missed it and love reading posts from all the people that I have grown to love and respect. Speaking about Iron, I have blood panels done every 6 months and my iron has held fast. I've hardly taken my iron tablets because I can't take them with Calcium. But now that I'm reading others have had horrible results with anemia, I am going to make more of an effort to take my iron.

Irene I'm glad your getting back on track and love the new look of the old VST to the new BariatricPal.... We have a lot of great people on here.... Cheri it's good to see your doing well too.....I have found myself drifting away from this site due to taking a lot of time catching up but it does help keep be focused. Right now I'm in a WaWa moment and just want to hide. Haha.......XOXO

I have those moments often. A break is understandable from time to time. But just like that kitty I always come back!

OMG I love this thread! Sad that I've missed it and love reading posts from all the people that I have grown to love and respect. Speaking about Iron, I have blood panels done every 6 months and my iron has held fast. I've hardly taken my iron tablets because I can't take them with calcium. But now that I'm reading others have had horrible results with anemia, I am going to make more of an effort to take my iron.

Irene I'm glad your getting back on track and love the new look of the old VST to the new BariatricPal.... We have a lot of great people on here.... Cheri it's good to see your doing well too.....I have found myself drifting away from this site due to taking a lot of time catching up but it does help keep be focused. Right now I'm in a WaWa moment and just want to hide. Haha.......XOXO