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Has anyone kept their surgery a secret?



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On 01/17/2019 at 19:36, GradyCat said:



No, I'm keeping it a secret from family and friends. Only my husband knows.


Same here. I almost feel like I am doing something wrong by keeping it private.

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Not me. I don’t feel bad. In fact, An encounter yesterday at my 1 wk post op appt confirmed my decision to stay private. After meeting with my dr, I met with the dietician on staff. While waiting, the receptionist said, “you shouldn’t have had surgery. You’re too small”. I got angry and felt so judged. For fear of what would come out of my mouth I gave her a nasty look and walked away. Bottom line: it’s a personal and private decision. No one has the right to comment or make a judgement about something that has absolutely NO effect on their life.

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I wish you could have said " And you are too critical to be the working in a Bariatric Office!"

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On 12/31/2018 at 11:48 AM, Embee123 said:

I am new to this forum, but am keeping my surgery a secret. I had my procedure done on 12/19. I made it through a Christmas Eve dinner without telling my in-laws (who I dislike), just attributing not eating to a stomach bug.

It can be done! I think you will know if keeping it a secret is right for you!

I had my surgery the same day as you 🙂 and I told absolutely no one. I even got a registered nurse to go with me because I was required to go with someone to drive me home.

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My surgery is set for the 23rd. I do not plan on keeping it a secret. I am super honest about everything but that does not mean I am going to volunteer all kinds of information. I have really thought about this concerning my coworkers. We will see how my plan goes.

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I’m not planning to tell anyone besides my husband right away. He agreed to keep it between us. I’m an open book most of the time, so we’ll see how it goes.

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18 months post op and over 80lbs lost. Only my husband knows to this day. My body, my choice. I don't discuss my dental surgery, hysterectomy, or any other illness with anybody. I had been obese for most of my adult life and having one more meaningless, hurtful or back-handed advice/opinion ( if I had disclosed my surgery) was the last thing I wanted. When people ask how I did it, I tell them "...lifestyle changes" which is true. I am a private person so I shut the conversation right there. I don't regret keeping it to myself. I know and understand that sharing might help de-stigmatize weight loss surgery. I chose not to bear that burden (for lack of a better word).

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Only my hairdresser knows for sure... ;)

And Mr. F, my family, all the bazillions of people they've told despite me telling them not to, and the entire world now--since I told my family. But who's counting? I'm STILL not the poster child for bariatric surgery awareness. :) )

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who did what? Why How When?.... nuff said

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I'm having surgery in February. Of course my husband knows. So far, he's the only one I'm sharing with. I don't like to say it's a "secret" because for some reason that feels like it's something to be ashamed or embarrassed about. However, like many others who's comments I've read, there is a lot of judgement out there and misinformation. I don't know if I feel like educating everyone or dealing with negative comments. For now, I am not planning to share with certain people because I already know what their opinions will be and I'm not up for dealing with it. I may not share with anyone else. IDK yet. My husband reminded me that there's no reason to share unless I really want to and feel comfortable doing so. Just like any other elective medical procedure, this is a personal choice. We all have our reasons for having surgery and likely as many variations of why people are or are not sharing.

I'm going to just go with my instinct on a person by person basis. My lifestyle will change so much with the food I'm eating, I would think most would just assume that's why I'm losing and not be so nosey to ask.

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My family knows. Our closest friends know. Friends that have also had WLS know because of my million questions to them. My office knows.

If people ask during my journey, I will not lie about it. I will tell them, but I am not going to be documenting this on social media.

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Good luck to you!!

I will be having the sleeve by April. At 48 yrs old I already know who will be supportive and who will not. My kids are happy with my decision, best friend was a little judgmental. I haven't told my boyfriend yet but I will once it's scheduled since we go out to eat. Not telling my coworkers as they can be very intrusive. Those who know me know that I've joined every gym since I was 20 yrs old so whatever choice I make it's personal.

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Some friends know and one family member. I didn't want to tell folks because I didn't want anyone to be negative. Now, after the surgery, I still feel the same way. At the same time, we are the ones who do the work post op and I feel like it's not just the surgery, it's what we do to make it work after. Just my two cents.

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