Interesting NYT article on WLS

[DeletedMember 715]

http://mobile.nytimes.com/2016/12/27/health/bariatric-surgery.html?smprod=nytcore-iphone&smid=nytcore-iphone-share&referer=&pagewanted=all

Pretty good article that describes what a lot of us have gone through. I do think they are a little light on some of the downsides (weight regain, cross addiction, etc) but one of the more comprehensive mainstream articles I've seen.

[Djmohr 6,965]

Thanks for sharing. I thought it was a good article and very interesting.

[gowalking 10,790]

As comprehensive as it was, it still only scratched the surface. Not that I'd expect anything more...it was just an article and not a book. But to give it it's due, the reporter actually touched on so many experiences we've faced such as not reaching goal, and interestingly, not seeing the changes we're going through to the point of not recognizing that we are not fat anymore.

What differs for me is that these folks in the article said they didn't crave certain foods anymore. Well I can tell you, I know I have them...and have always had them. I had them within a few months of being banded and nearly four years later, I have them as much as I did before the band. The only difference now is that the band helps me to make better choices and eat less, but I've never stopped wanting the cake and carbs. I just know that they're not going to do anything but make me put weight back on.

[LittleBill 2,231]

It is an interesting article. Thank you for posting it, as I would never have found it myself. I found some similarities and some huge differences in the article compared to my own experiences.

I was born fat. I was a fat baby, a fat kid, etc. The other kids used to tease me mercilessly, until I started handing out beatings. It bought me a lot of trouble, but they learned it wasn't worth the teasing. Fast forward to high school, I slimmed down for a short time, mainly because I was athletically inclined. But once college started, I started putting the weight back on. Even the Army couldn't cure that.

Probably the biggest difference with me is that since I have been an adult, I have derived my self worth from my abilities to do what I do, my education, and personality. In other words, I do not - did not - see myself as a fat person who was not accepted by others. I have many acquaintances across the spectrum, from fat as me to rail thin. We have good relationships because I have chosen people in my circle who can and will look past the surface of others, including myself. People who are shallow are not worth the time or effort as far as I am concerned.

I will never be thin. I did not expect that coming into this. If I hit my goal, I will be ecstatic. At that weight, I will still be classified as just about morbidly obese, but knowing my body and looking at the other numbers beyond BMI, I know better, and that is all that matters to me.

[Djmohr 6,965]

@@gowalking

I am with you on the cravings thing. I still crave some things that I did before surgery, that has never gone away. I would say in the first 10 months post op, i did not crave the bad stuff and there were instances where I tasted the Peanut Butter cup and it was gross.

Now 28 months post op, I do crave some of the sweet stuff and even some of the breads. But honestly if I eat them, they just are not that good. I would much rather have some pepperoni or cheese. That being said, i tried enough of it over the holidays that I gained 7lbs.....and now I need to take control again. Ugh.....

I do not like the idea of snapping back to a higher set point even though my body is leading me there. My goal was 165, I made it down to 158 and I was not comfortable there. To me, I felt almost boney in parts of my body but I loved being 165, now I am keep moving between 167 and 169. I DO NOT want to even see 170 or I might lose it. LOL.

[OKCPirate 5,323]

@ - thanks for sharing. I have been trying to find a way to let people know that WLS is not the same as wiring your jaw shut. Too many think it succeeds by being a restrictive mechanism. This fact was new to me:

Dr. Kaplan reports that (weight loss) surgery immediately alters the activity of more than 5,000 of the 22,000 genes in the human body.

[LittleBill 2,231]

@ - thanks for sharing. I have been trying to find a way to let people know that WLS is not the same as wiring your jaw shut. Too many think it succeeds by being a restrictive mechanism. This fact was new to me:

Dr. Kaplan reports that (weight loss) surgery immediately alters the activity of more than 5,000 of the 22,000 genes in the human body.

Or the easy way out, or the magic bullet. But try to get people like that to actually read an article like this. I can see the response now. "It's tooo looong!"

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

I love this article.

I'm also feeling pretty smug about the lackluster results they got with the "gold standard" gastric bypass.

The girl realizing that she was screwing up at life because of her own choices and not being able to use being fat as a crutch stood out to me.

They both seemed to have not the best food choices or diet.

Edited to add. I have a similar feeling about foods. I have wrote about it here before. There is a complete disconnect between my head and my stomach. I can think and crave whatever food I want, my stomach doesn't react. I only get physically hungry if I have not eaten in 16 to 24 hours. I never get physical hunger. I crave things but one bite is usually enough for me if that. I very rarely crave anything off plan. My sleeve is golden and is working perfectly for me.

Edited January 3, 2017 by OutsideMatchInside

[Treadmillwalker 486]

The NYT wrote an article in September about the new FDA approved WLS to drain food from the stomach before the calories are absorbed. It was interesting.

[DeletedMember 715]

I will never be thin. I did not expect that coming into this. If I hit my goal, I will be ecstatic. At that weight, I will still be classified as just about morbidly obese, but knowing my body and looking at the other numbers beyond BMI, I know better, and that is all that matters to me.

Great response, although I would just say that you might surprise yourself about being thin. And I say this from a personal perspective. I, also, said/thought I would never be thin. I was always fat with the exception of a few years where I wrestled/played football as a kid.

When I started out, I was 333 at 5'8" and just the thought of being around 200 seemed impossible. I am 9+ months out from surgery and about 11 months out from starting the weight loss process. I am now 148lbs and thin by any objective measure.

I'm not saying you will be thin, that you even desire to be thin, or that you should aspire to be thin. Just saying that this surgery is really amazing thing that may surprise you in a lot of ways. I'm not special. I got thin just by following my plan and doing what I was supposed to.

[DeletedMember 715]

They both seemed to have not the best food choices or diet.

I was very surprised to read they were swinging by White Castle and eating turkey sandwiches (I assume with the bread) so quickly after surgery. Could be indicative of them not losing as much as they hoped? Not judging them, just curious how close they followed their plans. The article sort of implied you could never get thin from having this surgery, and as a lot of people on this site can attest to, this is not necessarily true.

[DeletedMember 715]

And my favorite part of this thread is that it has drawn comments/discussion from some of my favorite posters on this site!!

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

They both seemed to have not the best food choices or diet.

I was very surprised to read they were swinging by White Castle and eating turkey sandwiches (I assume with the bread) so quickly after surgery. Could be indicative of them not losing as much as they hoped? Not judging them, just curious how close they followed their plans. The article sort of implied you could never get thin from having this surgery, and as a lot of people on this site can attest to, this is not necessarily true.

They are both eating the same as before just in child sized amount which spells FAILURE.

That girl is going to regain almost all her weight in the next 3 to 5 years.

Neither of them made real lifestyle changes.

The comments about people losing everything in the first year then afterward being the same struggle as non surgery stuck out also.

They make it seem like if you don't lose it in a year it's impossible. I was surprised to see the dr even saying that. Which tells me they are relying on surgery and surgery effects and not on lifestyle changes.

Even though I find it annoying. They are typical patients. I'm rare in the fact that I lost 130 at the one year mark and another 45 afterward, and I am still losing at a decent pace at 18 months. I attribute it to lifestyle changes, mainly my way of eating and doing the mental work.

Still it is nice to see more science about being fat instead of just a lack of willpower.

Also the reason we on here think that people do get thin and make it to normal weights is because those people that are successful and want to share stand out. They stick around, they offer advice. They stand out because they are rare. Most people never hit goal or close and leave the weight loss community until they regain all or almost all of their weight. So forums gives us a skewed view of success. If we really think about. There are less than 50 people that post here on a regular basis that are at a normal BMI.

Edited January 3, 2017 by OutsideMatchInside

[LittleBill 2,231]

I will never be thin. I did not expect that coming into this. If I hit my goal, I will be ecstatic. At that weight, I will still be classified as just about morbidly obese, but knowing my body and looking at the other numbers beyond BMI, I know better, and that is all that matters to me.

Great response, although I would just say that you might surprise yourself about being thin. And I say this from a personal perspective. I, also, said/thought I would never be thin. I was always fat with the exception of a few years where I wrestled/played football as a kid.

When I started out, I was 333 at 5'8" and just the thought of being around 200 seemed impossible. I am 9+ months out from surgery and about 11 months out from starting the weight loss process. I am now 148lbs and thin by any objective measure.

I'm not saying you will be thin, that you even desire to be thin, or that you should aspire to be thin. Just saying that this surgery is really amazing thing that may surprise you in a lot of ways. I'm not special. I got thin just by following my plan and doing what I was supposed to.

Thank you. I am open minded. I started out with a goal of 325 after doing the math, based on the information provided by the people at my program - math based on fat, Water, and muscle mass. I revised that down to 300 after I got started. If I go lower than 300 without losing muscle, I am fine with that. But, I will be very surprised.

[Redmaxx 740]

Very nice article. Thank you for sharing.