Hi all,

I am seriously considering weight loss surgery as I have recently been diagnosed with PCOS and I have been bitterly unhappy with my weight for many years.

I am 34 years old, I have a BMI of 40.8 and am a size 20-22, I am 5ft 6.

I have had a referral to my Dr's from my gynaecologist suggesting some type of bariatric surgery so hopefully my Dr will refer me.

I am unsure the Pros and Cons of the different types from my research I have read the Gastric Sleeve or Bypass are the main two is this correct?

Also can I please have as many replies as possible to what surgery you have had, the pros but mainly the cons.

How long ago you had surgery, which type, how long ago, the healing process, how much weight you have lost ect anything to help I would be really grateful!

I've seen alot about only being able to eat a very small amount after surgery too is this the case with both surgeries?

TIA xx

I am almost twice your age, have been struggling with my weight for 44 years. I had PCOS too, eventually developed hypertension and type II diabetes. I had to take fertility drugs to get pregnant with my second child and never was able to get pregnant again. I've yo-yo dieted for years. Now I am waiting to get insurance approval for the gastric sleeve. I say GO FOR IT!!! Don't waste years of your life hoping that this time this diet or that diet will work. Get healthy while you are young and enjoy your life. Good luck to you!

14 hours ago, janeabelle said:

Thank you soo much for your reply, for being very open and sharing some of your journey with me I appreciate it! I hope the issues you have now resolve quickly! One last question can I ask about excess skin if you don't mind and also are you happy you made the decision you did xx

I would love it if my health issues would be resolved, but I've been stuck with them for over six months now and they are still being figured out and because of Covid it's taking FOREVER! I just did a test to check if it's one of the two things my doctor is most suspicious of it being (the two mimic each other) and am waiting for results, but I'll probably have to wait MONTHS for the other test as I was already told they are scheduled several months out and they haven't even called me about scheduling for that particular test...

As for excess skin, yep I have it. A LOT. It's not noticeable with clothes on though. I have bat wings on my upper arms lol. Also lots of excess skin on my... chest area. I was a DDD and now am a C so it happens. I have loose skin on my belly, where my bra rests on my sides, my legs, arms, my neck, etc. Honestly though, like I said it's easy to hide under clothes and I'd much rather have the loose skin then the extra 167 pounds that I used to carry around. And yes, I'm happy with my surgery and don't regret it at all.

I first looked into weight loss surgery about 15 years ago. Things were different back then; the sleeve was not a common procedure (and not covered by some insurance companies), and the place where I attended an information session was mainly doing gastric bypass as an open procedure. They would only do laparoscopic surgery on patients with lower BMIs, and I wouldn't have qualified. I didn't go through with it because my family talked me out of it. The risks of complications were higher then.

I have been lucky enough to have good health for most of my life. I'm in my late 30s and until the past year, I never went to the doctor or took any prescriptions during my adult lifetime. For all those years, I thought it would be crazy to take the risk of having weight loss surgery when I was perfectly healthy. I was afraid I would lose my good health to complications of weight loss surgery. I looked into it every so often, and when I remembered all the restrictions, I couldn't stand the thought of giving up my diet sodas and pizza and ice cream, letting my pouch rule my life, getting sick if I eat the wrong things, and having to take pills every day for the rest of my life.

But aging takes a toll and my good health was starting to slip away. I found out from my work physical that I had high blood pressure, and they urged me to see a doctor. When I went to a doctor, I was diagnosed with hypertension and type 2 diabetes. It's gotten increasingly difficult for me to get around, which became a vicious cycle as I became more sedentary and gained even more weight, and the weight gain continued to decrease my mobility. I had a BMI over 60 at my highest weight.

I came to the realization that I had a choice: I could keep going the way I was, keep gaining weight and losing mobility, see my health continue to decline, and probably die of a heart attack or stroke before I turned 50. Or I could have weight loss surgery, because I sure as hell wasn't going to be able to lose that kind of weight on my own. All that stuff I couldn't bear to give up for a chance at losing weight started to look a lot smaller compared to the life I was already giving up more and more every day at that weight, not just health-wise, but in my social life and my career as well.

I went into it thinking that I wanted the gastric sleeve. It seemed less extreme, less risky than gastric bypass, My surgeon recommended gastric bypass because my BMI was so high. He said that for lower BMI patients, there's not a big difference in outcomes between sleeve and bypass, but for high BMI patients, the difference can be significant. Both are very safe procedures with low complication rates nowadays. So I ended up getting gastric bypass. I've since read a lot more information that has confirmed in my mind that gastric bypass was the right choice for me. I've seen a lot of people get their sleeves revised to bypass because of GERD and/or unsuccessful weight loss, and I don't want to have to get a revision.

I had my surgery on July 16, and it went well. I was discharged from the hospital the next afternoon, and I had surprisingly little pain. I didn't need any pain medication, even Tylenol. The first few days were miserable (mainly due to gas pain from the gas pumped into my abdomen during the surgery), but I healed quickly and went back to work in a week and a half. I've stuck to the post-op progression plan very closely, and not gonna lie, the liquid phase is hell, but it went by quickly and it was much easier once I got to purees and soft foods. I haven't had any issues with anything I've eaten so far other than a feeling of food getting stuck sometimes (which isn't pleasant, but it works its way through after a few minutes).

I lost 70 pounds before surgery and 40 pounds so far after surgery, for a total of 110 pounds. And now my BMI is about the same as yours, which is kind of depressing. But I have had great improvements in my health, like my blood pressure in the normal range and my latest A1C was 5.2 (down from 8.1 in February). My mobility is improving. I started out wearing size 26-28 and now I'm wearing 20-22. I still have a long way to go, but I'm getting there.

I'm not far enough out yet to know how this is going to work out for me in the long run. Obviously, I'm pleased with my results so far, but from what I've read here, the first year is easy. Here are some of the cons that are not so obvious:

• I haven't told anybody other than medical professionals about my surgery because people can be very judgmental about it. How many people you tell is a very personal choice that can be difficult. It is really stressful to keep this secret and try to hide this surgery that affects my life so very much! (But also stressful to endure judgment from people who are clueless about WLS.)
• The fear of regain keeps me up at night. I'm doing well now, but I've seen soooo many people lose a ton of weight and gain most or all of it back. I've yo-yo dieted all my life and I would be absolutely devastated if I went through all of this only to gain the weight back.
• Food is everywhere. I feel like I'm constantly being bombarded with ads for food and restaurants, seeing decadent recipes on social media, and watching other people eat foods I love but can no longer eat. It's rough going to the grocery store and seeing a great sale on something I love only to remember I can't have it. Maybe you get used to it after a while, but right now, I have these sad moments every day where I miss the food I used to eat.
• Even if you reach your goal weight, you're still not going to have a great body... unless you go through the pain and expense of plastic surgery. It will still be a heck of a lot better than where you started, but not the same as someone the same height and weight who was never obese.

I think it's important to go into this with your eyes wide open, understand what the tradeoffs are, and accept the things you will have to give up or deal with for this shot at changing your life. Most people say it's worth it.

16 minutes ago, BigSue said:

I first looked into weight loss surgery about 15 years ago. Things were different back then; the sleeve was not a common procedure (and not covered by some insurance companies), and the place where I attended an information session was mainly doing gastric bypass as an open procedure. They would only do laparoscopic surgery on patients with lower BMIs, and I wouldn't have qualified. I didn't go through with it because my family talked me out of it. The risks of complications were higher then.

I have been lucky enough to have good health for most of my life. I'm in my late 30s and until the past year, I never went to the doctor or took any prescriptions during my adult lifetime. For all those years, I thought it would be crazy to take the risk of having weight loss surgery when I was perfectly healthy. I was afraid I would lose my good health to complications of weight loss surgery. I looked into it every so often, and when I remembered all the restrictions, I couldn't stand the thought of giving up my diet sodas and pizza and ice cream, letting my pouch rule my life, getting sick if I eat the wrong things, and having to take pills every day for the rest of my life.

But aging takes a toll and my good health was starting to slip away. I found out from my work physical that I had high blood pressure, and they urged me to see a doctor. When I went to a doctor, I was diagnosed with hypertension and type 2 diabetes. It's gotten increasingly difficult for me to get around, which became a vicious cycle as I became more sedentary and gained even more weight, and the weight gain continued to decrease my mobility. I had a BMI over 60 at my highest weight.

I came to the realization that I had a choice: I could keep going the way I was, keep gaining weight and losing mobility, see my health continue to decline, and probably die of a heart attack or stroke before I turned 50. Or I could have weight loss surgery, because I sure as hell wasn't going to be able to lose that kind of weight on my own. All that stuff I couldn't bear to give up for a chance at losing weight started to look a lot smaller compared to the life I was already giving up more and more every day at that weight, not just health-wise, but in my social life and my career as well.

I went into it thinking that I wanted the gastric sleeve. It seemed less extreme, less risky than gastric bypass, My surgeon recommended gastric bypass because my BMI was so high. He said that for lower BMI patients, there's not a big difference in outcomes between sleeve and bypass, but for high BMI patients, the difference can be significant. Both are very safe procedures with low complication rates nowadays. So I ended up getting gastric bypass. I've since read a lot more information that has confirmed in my mind that gastric bypass was the right choice for me. I've seen a lot of people get their sleeves revised to bypass because of GERD and/or unsuccessful weight loss, and I don't want to have to get a revision.

I had my surgery on July 16, and it went well. I was discharged from the hospital the next afternoon, and I had surprisingly little pain. I didn't need any pain medication, even Tylenol. The first few days were miserable (mainly due to gas pain from the gas pumped into my abdomen during the surgery), but I healed quickly and went back to work in a week and a half. I've stuck to the post-op progression plan very closely, and not gonna lie, the liquid phase is hell, but it went by quickly and it was much easier once I got to purees and soft foods. I haven't had any issues with anything I've eaten so far other than a feeling of food getting stuck sometimes (which isn't pleasant, but it works its way through after a few minutes).

I lost 70 pounds before surgery and 40 pounds so far after surgery, for a total of 110 pounds. And now my BMI is about the same as yours, which is kind of depressing. But I have had great improvements in my health, like my blood pressure in the normal range and my latest A1C was 5.2 (down from 8.1 in February). My mobility is improving. I started out wearing size 26-28 and now I'm wearing 20-22. I still have a long way to go, but I'm getting there.

I'm not far enough out yet to know how this is going to work out for me in the long run. Obviously, I'm pleased with my results so far, but from what I've read here, the first year is easy. Here are some of the cons that are not so obvious:

• I haven't told anybody other than medical professionals about my surgery because people can be very judgmental about it. How many people you tell is a very personal choice that can be difficult. It is really stressful to keep this secret and try to hide this surgery that affects my life so very much! (But also stressful to endure judgment from people who are clueless about WLS.)
• The fear of regain keeps me up at night. I'm doing well now, but I've seen soooo many people lose a ton of weight and gain most or all of it back. I've yo-yo dieted all my life and I would be absolutely devastated if I went through all of this only to gain the weight back.
• Food is everywhere. I feel like I'm constantly being bombarded with ads for food and restaurants, seeing decadent recipes on social media, and watching other people eat foods I love but can no longer eat. It's rough going to the grocery store and seeing a great sale on something I love only to remember I can't have it. Maybe you get used to it after a while, but right now, I have these sad moments every day where I miss the food I used to eat.
• Even if you reach your goal weight, you're still not going to have a great body... unless you go through the pain and expense of plastic surgery. It will still be a heck of a lot better than where you started, but not the same as someone the same height and weight who was never obese.

I think it's important to go into this with your eyes wide open, understand what the tradeoffs are, and accept the things you will have to give up or deal with for this shot at changing your life. Most people say it's worth it.

I could have written all that myself! Thanks for sharing!

Hi all,
I am seriously considering weight loss surgery as I have recently been diagnosed with PCOS and I have been bitterly unhappy with my weight for many years.
I am 34 years old, I have a BMI of 40.8 and am a size 20-22, I am 5ft 6.
I have had a referral to my Dr's from my gynaecologist suggesting some type of bariatric surgery so hopefully my Dr will refer me.
I am unsure the Pros and Cons of the different types from my research I have read the Gastric Sleeve or Bypass are the main two is this correct?
Also can I please have as many replies as possible to what surgery you have had, the pros but mainly the cons.
How long ago you had surgery, which type, how long ago, the healing process, how much weight you have lost ect anything to help I would be really grateful!
I've seen alot about only being able to eat a very small amount after surgery too is this the case with both surgeries?
TIA xx

Hi sweetie! I have PCOS, too. I was diagnosed in 2002 and I only weighed around 220. I later ballooned up and had a BMI of like 60 I think. I tried tons of different things to lose weight for many years. I am not sure how to breakdown the last really hard 18 years. But I'm on oxygen 24/7. I had severe hypoxia and almost died from respiratory failure one day. All of this was a result from not staying on a cpap machine thinking I was cured from sleep apnea. Anyway, I later got diabetes. I was 404 pounds at my highest. So, in May of this year I made an appt. AGAIN to see another gastric surgeon. But this time I was pretty optimistic because I found out since I was on Medicare, they may cover the surgery. So I found a great surgeon online Dr. Chetan Patel here in Florida. He was so kind. Long story short I started working towards getting the surgery by meeting with the Nutritionist and I did everything she said. I started at 377, but I shed 47 pounds from May 22, 2020 to the day of surgery September 2, 2020. So I just had surgery like almost a month ago. I am so happy to say I had ZERO complications. Now....I've only lost 10 pounds since the surgery, BUT ask anyone on here there is a 3 week stall. It scared the crap out of me. But I am telling you all this because my Endocrinologist told me before the surgery that because I have PCOS I may need to go back on a little bit of Metformin. So, the last week I am back on 500 mg in AM and 500 mg in PM. And I have thyroid issues, too. Which in a month we will redo bloodwork to see if that needs to be adjusted. BUT LET ME TELL YOU. THIS IS THE BESTTTTTT decision I have ever made besides turning my life over to God. I feel amazing. I keep thinking. The mental changes just from having hope has changed my life. Girl. Do it. I have so much to say, but I eat like 600-850 calories a day. I get full easily. I do all the vitamins every day. If I feel hungry pretty soon after eating it reminds me to drink my water. I use the stopwatch on my phone all day long. You can't drink while eating and you need to 30 minutes between. I thought i would miss that, but my digestion problems totally stopped by doing that. And what a tiny trade off for a brand new life. I started college again 1 week out of surgery! Hello!!! Crazy wonderful life.

I was a pretty healthy person up until 2008, when my liver enzymes first became elevated. I had reached my then highest weight of 304, and then managed to get down to 263 through diet and exercise. My enzymes went back to normal. Then I got pregnant in 2010 and after I had my son, my health got worse. I was diagnosed with severe asthma around 2014, and my liver enzymes were elevated again. I started gaining weight steadily until I reached my all time high of 393 with a bmi of 69 (I am 5'3"). Back in January, I had my gallbladder removed.. I mentioned to the surgeon that I would be seeing a liver specialist because my liver enzymes kept getting higher and he did a biopsy while he was in there. The results were not good. I was diagnosed with Non Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH) and hepatic fibrosis. The surgeon said my liver looked really bad, and he didn't see me living past 60. I'm an RN and have seen people die of liver failure and it's awful. I was 48 (just turned 49), and I had wanted wls for a long time but our insurance doesn't cover it. What that surgeon said was a wake up call, and so I made the decision to pay for the surgery myself. I wanted a sleeve, but the first bariatric surgeon recommended RNY because of my weight. I had planned to get that, but then COVID happened and they laid off that surgeon so I went to a different one that my cousin had RNY with 10 years ago. He told me about the Loop DS. He said I was a good candidate for it because of my high bmi and since I was self pay. It's still investigational and not covered by insurance. So I decided to do it. I had surgery on July 23rd. I was 368 on surgery day. The surgery went well but I was very nauseated the first few days and vomited old blood just like NovaLuna described. After that, and a kidney stone 11 days post op, recovery has been pretty smooth. I never really had much pain. As of today, I'm 322 pounds, walking every day, and feeling amazing, even though I'm still significantly obese. I was to the point of barely being able to walk anymore, and personal hygiene was hard. I had just been diagnosed with high BP and put on meds in May. I've been off the meds since surgery. I just had my first labs and everything was normal. My liver enzymes are still elevated, but about half of what they were. It's wonderful to be active again and being able to walk with my husband and son, who is a very active boy! I still have a long way to go but I'm so happy I did the surgery and don't regret it one bit! Good luck to you!

About 3 weeks ago I had an endoscopic gastric sleeve—no incision. It was done as out-patient surgery and things went well. I had nausea and vomiting the next 2 days, but almost no pain. In 3 weeks I’ve lost almost 20 pounds. Also, no pre-op diet other than the day before surgery. I’ve been happy with my decision as I only missed one day of work as my surgery was in a Friday. The cost is considerably lower as there is no overnight stay and my insurance would not pay.