What do you wish someone had told you? My surgery is a month away. I know there will be lots of unexpected pop ups. But if there was one thing you could share that caught you by surprise what would it be?

After surgery you can have blurry vision...from drugs...I did not realize that.

Thanks for posting this!! Im curious myself!!

A few things. The fact that coffee no longer agrees with me was an adjustment. I do miss coffee. (I have ongoing acid post-surgery, not everyone does). That, and the fact that I cannot sleep on my stomach anymore because the pressure it puts on my insides causes acid to burble up and wake me up. I now sleep on my side and totally MISS sleeping on my tummy!

If someone told me six months ago that I was going to take up dance (Zumba) and totally LOVE it, I would have said they were nuts!

What a great question! I hope you get a lot of POSITIVE feedback. Like so many other things with this process, "your results may vary."

I'm 3 years out.

For me, I did A LOT (I mean A LOT) of advance preparation, both physically and mentally/emotionally. I was well equipped with the knowledge that my poor eating habits were the exact reason I was obese, and that processed foods/fast foods and simple carbs could no longer be in my life. My new lifestyle's eating plan had to be lean Protein and veggies/fruit for the rest of my life.

I feel that many bariatric programs don't seem to prepare patients very well for the mental/emotional part of WLS. For many sleevers whose hunger eventually returns (not everyone's does), they are caught totally off guard by not knowing that the emotional work needs to be done. MOST of us will have to deal with the returning hunger and/or cravings, and I think many of us do not realize that will happen. This sets us up to go right back to eating the way we had for so long.

Even I, who DID BIG-TIME PREPARE, thought that my hunger and cravings would be MUCH less from what they were pre-surgery. I definitely still DO get hungry and I DO have cravings. I have done a lot of difficult (but so worth it) head/emotional work to learn that I must make the CHOICES, every time, that are healthy and nutritious to deal with my hunger and cravings. The personal accountability and responsibility of every bite that passes my lips is my CHOICE is still sometimes hard to reckon with, especially since I spent so many years of my life NOT being accountable. Is it worth it??? Nothing has EVER been MORE worth it!!!

What a great question! I hope you get a lot of POSITIVE feedback. Like so many other things with this process, "your results may vary."

I'm 3 years out.

For me, I did A LOT (I mean A LOT) of advance preparation, both physically and mentally/emotionally. I was well equipped with the knowledge that my poor eating habits were the exact reason I was obese, and that processed foods/fast foods and simple carbs could no longer be in my life. My new lifestyle's eating plan had to be lean Protein and veggies/fruit for the rest of my life.

I feel that many bariatric programs don't seem to prepare patients very well for the mental/emotional part of WLS. For many sleevers whose hunger eventually returns (not everyone's does), they are caught totally off guard by not knowing that the emotional work needs to be done. MOST of us will have to deal with the returning hunger and/or cravings, and I think many of us do not realize that will happen. This sets us up to go right back to eating the way we had for so long.

Even I, who DID BIG-TIME PREPARE, thought that my hunger and cravings would be MUCH less from what they were pre-surgery. I definitely still DO get hungry and I DO have cravings. I have done a lot of difficult (but so worth it) head/emotional work to learn that I must make the CHOICES, every time, that are healthy and nutritious to deal with my hunger and cravings. The personal accountability and responsibility of every bite that passes my lips is my CHOICE is still sometimes hard to reckon with, especially since I spent so many years of my life NOT being accountable. Is it worth it??? Nothing has EVER been MORE worth it!!!

Thank-you for this response. I agree...the mental/emotional preparation of the pre-surgery weight loss program I attended was slim to nothing. For a while I felt that it was simply a machine to funnel patients to the surgeon. As in most things, we must seek out our answers and educate ourselves. There is a lot of information out there. The choice is ours to utilize it.

Which someone had told me about this sooner!!!!!

Preop I pretty much lived on this and two other forums, reading every single post for months. I read books and asked questions of others who'd had WLS. I felt very prepared...mentally, emotionally and physically. And there hasn't really been any big surprises. I had the can't drink Water, coffee upset my tummy, lactose intolerance things, but generally a smooth recovery. I've had stalls, I still get hungry and I still have cravings. I have to make good choices everyday.

But after all I read I figured pretty much anything could happen. There seem to be more exceptions to the "rules" than there are actual rules. I didn't read about anyone else getting a C. diff infection and needing a fecal transplant, but it happened to me, so expect anything.

Edited June 3, 201412 yr by Kindle

I'm almost 3 months post op. I've lost 68 (including 28 preop). I regret nothing. And there wasn't anything that surprised me. I read, and read, read before surgery. I think I underestimated a few things: the mind boggling frustration of a stall, how hard it is to drink plain water, how easy it could be to "cheat". Those were the biggest things that really required an adjustment. The psychological preparation should not be underestimated. From the way others see you change to your own self esteem. It's a major lifestyle change (for me anyway). It is probably worth stating that it's different for everyone with many common themes. And also - try not to judge your progress against everyone else's - unless you want to make yourself cuckoo.

There is an EXCELLENT thread titled: 4 Things I Wish I Would've Known Pre Op. It's long and wonderful and so very helpful. If I was more techy, I'd know how to put a link here but I can never successfully do that on an iPad or my phone. Search for it, it's worth reading if you are preop.

I wish some had told me my hunger could return so quickly. I mean, I knew it would return at some point, but I didn't expect it a week after surgery. I eventually worked it out, but being hungry and on liquids for the next month was not a happy time

After surgery you can have blurry vision...from drugs...I did not realize that.

I'm so glad you posted this!

The funny thing (to me) is that I think everyone, particularly the surgeon's office, TRIED to tell me everything. There was a lot I didn't absorb, some I ignored so as to save my own sanity, and some that I simply couldn't comprehend.

My approval to surgery time was very quick, and that prevented me from really dwelling on the possible complications. I don't think anyone is really prepared for the first stall. Or the second. Or third. I know people who had complications were not prepared, really, for those.

Overall though I would say that the best thing I did was have a couple of WLS buddies in real life. I know it's not easy to always find those people; I was lucky enough to have a friend go through it 4 months before me. It completely helped with the little questions and the immediate post-recovery period.

Thank you all for great responses!

Here is the link of the other thread that was mentioned:

http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/289288-4-things-i-wish-i-wouldve-known-pre-op/?hl=%2Bthings

Great info!

I'm two years out from sleeve. I wish I had been told more about the emotional aspects of it too. Not everyone will be happy for you. With each phase there will be comments. For me, I just had to realize there were comments when I was big and now there are comments when I'm smaller. I've learned to tell people to mind their own bees wax. I also didn't know there were going to be so many victories and so much to relearn. I had to relearn how to walk. It sounds funny but I carry myself completely different with 118 lbs gone. It was interesting to find my stride and to learn to walk in heels differently or across a parking lot quickly. Sometimes I just giggle. I also didn't know it was going to be difficult to find clothes in my size. Apparently most stores only carry average size 8-14 in the ladies section. I'm still over weight for my height and I am in a 4/6. I'm finding that if stores do carry that size that they don't always carry a wide variety. I'm not a young spring chicken so I'm not exactly crazy about the styles in some of the junior stores. Lastly, I didn't know how men would respond different. I am very happily married and I didn't do all of this to catch some other guys eye. It kind of pisses me off sometimes how much men will flirt, make inappropriate comments, open doors for me, etc now, when they never did it before. to be quite honest, sometimes it pissy me off because I still think I am the same person inside, the only thing that changed was my weight. Any who, it's a learning process. Ya just kind of have to work through it.