I read some interesting comments today and I wanted to make something really clear.

Out of all these people around the globe that are on this website, there are going to be some of us that have found post op, that this surgery was the wrong decision.

If you want this website to be honest and truthful, a source of good solid information for people considering surgery and a source of support for people post op, then everyone's experiences should be welcome.

The reason's I think this surgery was wrong for me has ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with my post op complications!

And as for comments about people who regret their surgeries and have complications because:

• "houses were dirty"

• "they didn't follow instructions"

• "they haven't seen the great results yet"

• "they are just negative people and negative people are more vocal

So, just let me tell you this, some of us simply made a mistake.

We thought this was a good plan, we took advice, did our research, attended the seminars and weigh ins (in my case, two years attending).

We met our surgeons, we discussed our pre existing conditions, we spoke to our family and friends.

I myself have a counsellor, did CBT counselling for the entire two years pre op and am deemed emotionally and mentally sound. (just as an aside, my NHS CBT counsellor did not agree with this surgery).

I checked with my pain mgt team about the efficacy of my medications post op.

And it was still a mistake!

And so what?

It happens. And people like me should be able to explain these things without others trying to negate our admission of this mistake by offering excuses as to why we are unhappy with our decision.

I could have floated onto a cloud, had magical unicorns lick away my stomach, and woke up in paradise fully healed, sipping a cocktail in the sun and I would still tell you that this was a mistake for ME. And for many of my friends.

It doesn't matter how many years post op I get, I will consider this a mistake.

My house is not dirty, I followed instructions to the letter, I consider my bariatric discharge booklet my life guideline and I never variate.

I keep in touch with anyone and everyone in my medical care stream that might be helpful.

And complications happened. And yes, to many of us in our bariatric system. But again, it was not the complications that disturb us.

We all have different reasons for regretting it.

Most of us feel that we were misinformed, which doesn't help. My neighbour regrets her bypass because of her now permanent diarrhea and no improvement in her diabetes. She tells me that she has to think about food most of the day just to keep herself fed (choosing the right foods so as not to vomit), and she could have simply dieted harder if she had known she would have to think of food all day. She is three years post op and she still struggles with dehydration. Her hair never grew back after the initial drop out.

I myself am only 9 weeks post op and have had complications so I can't know what my future holds.

I miss eating quickly and simply in a way that doesn't have to be well thought out.

I want to be able to eat a full salad, maybe even with dressings, without worrying about which component might not agree with me.

I want to be able to eat any kind of meat I want cooked how I want in the quantity I want.

I want to drink beverages with my meals.

I miss a morning coffee or afternoon tea. I miss ice tea. (I know other people can drink it but I can't now).

I don't want to have to plan my food day meticulously or be different from others around me eating.

I want my medications to work again in the way they did pre op to control my fibromyalgia symptoms.

And I have definitely seen weightloss results. As I was lying there starving to death for seven weeks, I have lost all but 20lbs of my expected and required excess weight to satisfy my healthcare team. ( I am still only getting around 500 cals a day in, but have constant diarrhea so who knows how much stays in).

I now look "normal" except for the grey pallor in my skin and the nappy I now have to wear because of fecal incontinence (my IBS-d was totally controlled before surgery).

I am six dress sizes smaller but can only leave my house if I don't eat anything and wear adult protection in case of Water causing an "accident". Or in case I become faint from lack of food and fall.

So I do actually feel that had I read a forum entry like this, I might have thought twice.

And that's a good thing. If people are scared, that's okay. Let them hear more than just "don't worry, I was fine, you will be too!" Because maybe they won't!

So this is not about complications, it's about people.

One size does not fit all. Some of us should have simply accepted our weight, or worked harder to diet it off. Had I taken in only 300 to 500 calories a day for 9 weeks pre op, I would have lost all this weight anyway.

If you are happy, well done! If you are dead set on going ahead, ignore this. If you are a high BMI person (think 600lb life), God bless you, this may save your life, if you are a food addict, I feel your pain.

You will still have to diet post op! You will still have to exercise.

If you are undecided, then simply take a breath, think about it, really examine your food issues. Could you do more to lose weight? Could you move a bit more and eat a bit less?

Anyway, I am where I am and I plan to make the best of what I have left. And I intend to keep making sure that pre op people have a good think and post op people like me have someone they can talk to.

Thanks to everyone who is supporting me.

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@@GinaCampbell please post a pic of the pink eyebrows!

lol Will go outside and do it! Apparently they glow out in daylight. I can't see it myself!

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@@GinaCampbell please post a pic of the pink eyebrows!

Can you see it (inside photo)

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I think it is excellent for preops to see all sides of bariatric surgery - the good, the bad, the ugly.

@@GinaCampbell I would respectfully request that you update us when you hit about 3, 6 and 12 months post op. It is good information for people regardless of the conclusion you draw.

@@GinaCampbell

Ahhh... That makes SO much more sense. When you said EVERYONE you knew who had surgery had complications/regrets, I thought perhaps you lived in some sort of weird vortex of WLS disasters. Now, knowing it was people you met along the way, it's much more clear.

I do think it's kind of an unfair statement. Of course the people who have complications will gravitate to each other. I belong to a WLS group that is comprised of the snarkiest, most sarcastic, foul mouthed, humorous people I have ever met and I love them all. NONE of us are unhappy with our surgeries and we all have the above characteristics 100% in common.

Your implication that statistics are high on the complications side is just as weighted as if I were to say NO ONE I know who has had surgery has had problems regrets their decision. Same if I was to say EVERYONE I know who had WLS are sarcastic heathens, just because my peeps are.

Birds of a feather and all that jazz... Make sense?

Touchy! You haven't hit a nerve...You're just getting on them! I didn't HAVE to pay for my surgery. I chose not to drain an already overstretched NHS and pay for myself. It will take me 2 years to pay off the loan I took out to pay for it. That was my choice. I've paid into the system for over 30 years but think the money is better used elsewhere. You think people have an interest in you. They don't. Quite the opposite in fact. They just want you to stop whinging and move on!

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Edited August 10, 20169 yr by madadams

And did I mention I have had raging Water poo for most of my three years out? It's seriously ridiculous at times. When I have to go, I have to go NOW. Probiotics was MY answer somewhat. Someone else on this site who has since left actually had to have a fecal implant. (Yes, as gross as it sounds.)

Most people I know who have lost weight rapidly have had their gall bladders out. I lost my little Joey (that was it's name -- I name all my organs) after a WWs victory and a run in with an Italian sausage. I am no doctor, but I have never heard of a medicine being able to stop that. Meh. Easiest surgery ever. I got three days off work and as an added bonus, I got to skip Turkey Day with the inlaws. WIN!!

Good luck to you. We all have our own individual journeys with our own unique internal organs. We are all do different, it truly isn't fair to judge anyone for their choices. With or without surgery we all strive to be healthy and happy in our challenging journey of life. Life is a bit easier when we support each other without having to agree or disagree with their choices. Wishing a healthy happy life to all!!!

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@@GinaCampbell please post a pic of the pink eyebrows!

ImageUploadedByBariatricPal1470848154.337654.jpg

Can you see it (inside photo)

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Kind of! I was expecting them to be sort of fluorescent.

Touchy! You haven't hit a nerve...You're just getting on them! I didn't HAVE to pay for my surgery. I chose not to drain an already overstretched NHS and pay for myself. It will take me 2 years to pay off the loan I took out to pay for it. That was my choice. I've paid into the system for over 30 years but think the money is better used elsewhere. You think people have an interest in you. They don't. Quite the opposite in fact. They just want you to stop whinging and move on!

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It is you, here, on the regrets topic thread.

If you don't have any, why are you here?

The NHS is making itself bankrupt by barrelling forward with bariatric surgeries riddled with complications. It's a statistics game. Call the post op complications something else and hide it out of the bariatric program.

I don't care what anyone thinks of me personally, my objective has been made very clear. But you said that you were "interested" in blah, blah, blah.

"They" who want me to stop "whinging" can unsubscribe, ignore and find a topic that "they" have some experience in.

I am free to express myself here and will keep doing so!

You don't regret your surgery so you have no experience in how some of us feel.

I think that you are just angry that you now have to pay for two years for a surgery that your employer did for me without additional cost.

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@@GinaCampbell please post a pic of the pink eyebrows!

ImageUploadedByBariatricPal1470848154.337654.jpg

Can you see it (inside photo)

Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Kind of! I was expecting them to be sort of fluorescent.

Apparently, it's shocking when the sun hits it, will take a photo the next time I am outside, whenever that is.

Having to stay close to the loo at the moment!

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And did I mention I have had raging Water poo for most of my three years out? It's seriously ridiculous at times. When I have to go, I have to go NOW. Probiotics was MY answer somewhat. Someone else on this site who has since left actually had to have a fecal implant. (Yes, as gross as it sounds.)

Most people I know who have lost weight rapidly have had their gall bladders out. I lost my little Joey (that was it's name -- I name all my organs) after a WWs victory and a run in with an Italian sausage. I am no doctor, but I have never heard of a medicine being able to stop that. Meh. Easiest surgery ever. I got three days off work and as an added bonus, I got to skip Turkey Day with the inlaws. WIN!!

I have heard of the fecal implant! I was hoping that once the IV antibiotics wore off that things would improve. I need to take moviprep (harsh clean out stuff) prior to the colonoscopy so the probiotic doesn't stand a chance just now. I do have some though.

The medication to protect your gallbladder is called Urso and Urdiol. Some surgeons prescribe it after WLS.

I am terrified to let the same team remove my gallbladder. I still have a 3 cm abdominal abscess from 31st May, (was 6.6 cm).

I am even scared to let them do the colonoscopy at this point!

Post op care on the ward is dreadful at the moment too as industrial action has caused some real upset amongst the staff. I heard plenty about their employment problems but could I get a bowl of broth or a yoghurt, not so much. So a bit scared to be admitted yet again.

Waiting for a callback (nurse was on holiday???) about blood etc results from 28th/29th July and to ask about the cyst they found in, on , around (no one knows) my kidney, how big it is etc.

I am hoping to ask for a referral to a gastroenterologist when she eventually phones me.

I am sorry to hear about your bowel issues, did you see anyone about it? Did they put it down to the WLS?

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@@GinaCampbell I've read all the posts on here and am impressed with how masterfully and swiftly you managed to dilute the goodwill that has always been extended to you on these boards. Bravo.

People showed up to support you yet again on this thread and one by one you slapped them away, picking on words that were never meant to attack, harm or 'bully' you. Perhaps you should have prefaced in your original note that you were not looking for compassion or support and that might've effectively kept any love coming to you, at bay.

What's been phenomenal to see however, is the continued decency and patience showed by most of the responders on here, even in the face of serious vitriol spat out by the person you were doing your best to support. I thank these people for showing that nastiness can be responded to with grace - that's what I'll taking away from this mess of a thread.

I don't know why everyone is wasting their time with this. Gina obviously just wants to be very clear that this was a mistake. She doesn't want to believe that one day, she could feel different. Therefore, you're all wasting your words. If someone can't even believe that there is a tiny possibility that they don't know how they're going to feel in a few months or a year, there's literally no hope of helping her through this. I think the only thing that will help is to say, Gina, this was absolutely a poor choice for you and we understand you regret it the end.

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@@GinaCampbell I've read all the posts on here and am impressed with how masterfully and swiftly you managed to dilute the goodwill that has always been extended to you on these boards. Bravo.

People showed up to support you yet again on this thread and one by one you slapped them away, picking on words that were never meant to attack, harm or 'bully' you. Perhaps you should have prefaced in your original note that you were not looking for compassion or support and that might've effectively kept any love coming to you, at bay.

What's been phenomenal to see however, is the continued decency and patience showed by most of the responders on here, even in the face of serious vitriol spat out by the person you were doing your best to support. I thank these people for showing that nastiness can be responded to with grace - that's what I'll taking away from this mess of a thread.

Thank you!

I am here to continue to help the people who feel as I do.

For everyone who stops by to be insulting, it highlights my objective.

Education

Please feel free to unsubscribe and ignore if you have no fear of or experience with post op regrets or issues.

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I don't know why everyone is wasting their time with this. Gina obviously just wants to be very clear that this was a mistake. She doesn't want to believe that one day, she could feel different. Therefore, you're all wasting your words. If someone can't even believe that there is a tiny possibility that they don't know how they're going to feel in a few months or a year, there's literally no hope of helping her through this. I think the only thing that will help is to say, Gina, this was absolutely a poor choice for you and we understand you regret it the end.

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The reason people comment is complex. Some just want an argument. Some dislike my refusal to be driven away. Some simply find it confusing that I am willing to say clearly that this surgery is not for everyone.

Your post is a common one. I don't need "help" to "get through" something that is impossible to change. The stomach is gone. I could have lost weight myself. This surgery proved it.

The reason I have lost the majority of my excess weight is because I am starving. I am only able to ingest 300 to 400 cals most days and due to constant diarrhea, lose as much liquid as I take in.

Some of us stuck to our pre op 800 cal diet because we had to to get what we wanted, surgery.

What we don't like to admit is that some of us could have tried harder without altering our body permanently.

And some of us just won't like the changes we are forced to make post op.

I am brave enough to say that regardless of how unpopular this topic is.

Again, I ask, how would you want me to feel?

My actual opinion doesn't suit you, so what feeling do you want me to have?

I could lie to the world here and say, I love my sleeve, this is great! I eat loads of Protein, don't mind the constant runs, food revulsion, etc

But then someone like me, who was looking for advice, might just think we all love our sleeves.

Thank you for highlighting this problem with your contribution!

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