I’ve always heard that bariatric surgey restores fertility and I have resorted to bariatric surgery after years of unexplained infertility.. two years post-op and I’m still struggling to get pregnant either naturally or through IVF. Been to consult many doctors and every doctor had his own theory.. the finally doctor I have consulted suggested that my bariatric surgery might have caused more harm than good and it could have damaged the white part of my eggs (mitochondria). There is not test to check for mitochondria damage but fixing it can be a challenge! I don’t know how true is this statement but what I know is that I’ve struggled getting pregnant even before the surgery.. and wheather before or after the surgery I would always manage to get expanding blastocyst and from what I read, embryos with damaged mitochondria don’t usually live past 3 days in the lab!!

What mechanism does your doctor suggest could be causing this alleged damage to your mitochondria?

29 minutes ago, mmy said:

I’ve struggled getting pregnant even before the surgery.. and wheather before or after the surgery I would always manage to get expanding blastocyst

Kinda sounds like the problem you had before the surgery is still giving you issues?

May I ask your age?

Edited February 10, 20188 yr by Creekimp13

1 hour ago, Creekimp13 said:

What mechanism does your doctor suggest could be causing this alleged damage to your mitochondria?

Kinda sounds like the problem you had before the surgery is still giving you issues?

May I ask your age?

The doctors suggests that the damage to the Ooctye is cause by malabsorption and/or metabolic issues.. also not having enough fat (which is not my case since I’m at a healthy BMI of 23)

i too think the prroblem causing my infertility (which is still unknown and not diagnosed) is most probably there even before weight loss surgery. I’ve had multiple IVF failures even before mini gastric bypass but this doctor thinks I might have a damaged mitochondria which could’ve been caused by weight loss surgery.. he suggested some supplements which I don’t mind taking but since there isn’t still a solid test to confirm the damage to the mitochondria then I still won’t have a known diagnoses.. I just need to know if this is true or not because MGB is the only reversible surgery and if it means that I have to reverse my surgery to restore my fertility then I’m more than happy to do so..

Im currently 34 (turning 35 in April). Never had diabetes and no other medical issues.

I have endometriosis. This caused infertility for me as it was damaging my reproductive system. To add insult to injury I was extremely overweight for my height. I had been suffering from it since I was 14 years old and I found out I had it when I was 24. This caused damage to my ovaries, fallopian tubes, and uterus.

After the surgery, I am still having issues with my fertility. (That is a long story on its own)

It sounds like the issue was present before. Have you been checked to see if you have scar tissue on your uterus, blockage in your fallopian tubes or more over, are your ovaries releasing eggs?

Also, it could be that you trying too hard to conceive. I know that sounds silly but my friends who tried really hard for a baby could not get pregnant. However, one drunk night of heated passion and bam! pregnant.

I will pray for you to conceive and wish you the best!!!

Edited February 10, 20188 yr by Sleeve1stFitNext

I'm sorry about your fertility struggles. ((hugs)) Do you have PCOS by any chance? If so, have you had your fasting insulin numbers checked or know your HOMA-IR?

I say this, because I don't know how you're eating post surgery, but many, many, infertile normies get pregnant after eating Atkins/low carb diets. Partly, the weight loss helps, but also because you're eating lots of healthy fats, adequate protein and only low glycemic carbs, so your insulin levels really fall and ovulation begins again.

On 2/10/2018 at 6:42 AM, Sleeve1stFitNext said:

lso, it could be that you trying too hard to conceive. I know that sounds silly but my friends who tried really hard for a baby could not get pregnant.

This is what happened to me. I had multiple miscarriages and I did all kinds of treatments to get pregnant (i was a healthy weight then), never knew the source as to why I couldn't, but anyway, once I just got my mind off and entered in some peace about the lack of pregnancy (very hard to do!!!), I ended up pregnant. Not saying this is the only thing....so, it's only one area that can keep you from getting pregnant. Hope you find answers and rest hon. But more than that, I hope you conceive!!!

I know this is old, but I hope you are still on here and might see this. I've been through the wringer of IVF with 10+yrs of infertility. I can tell you that unfortunately IVF docs do NOT have all the answers, just educated guesses at best. If it is mitochondrial damage (not likely but possible) then consider adding the following supplements - CoQ10, PQQ, Niagen, and Pterostilbene (all can be found on Amazon). Oddly enough mito issues are actually pretty easy to fix if it's just from the stress of the weight loss surgery. If it's an inherited issue then unfortunately no amount of supplements will help.

Curious if anyone has any new tips since this was posted a few years ago....