1 year after gastric sleeve problems...

[Anna N. 16]

hi everyone, im very new here, decided to join because i had the gastric sleeve about a year ago, September 17th, 2019, and since i left the hospital and went back home to Europe, im not from the states, i started losing weight pretty quickly. the constant not feeling a 100 wasn't a problem for me since i had decided before hand to give myself time and dedicate my time to only this, losing the weight and get myself back to normal. i ever quit my job since i have the possibility of being self sustained for a while. so i just went on, eating very little, resting whenever i could.

everything was going fine, since at the time of the surgery i was 310 lbs and now i am 160 lbs, so 150 lbs are down in a year. however a couple of weeks ago i started feeling faint,couldn't concentrate and i was on vacation at the time and had collapsed a couple of times before that, but i didn't think much of it. drove back home barely with no energy at all, did some house work when i got back ( always resting whenever i could always lying down whenever i could, mostly how spent the last year since the surgery, always saving energy but always aware, always conscious ) until i got a call from my ex boss that wanted me back to work 2 weeks ago. i didn't sleep that night because i started panicking about my future and wondering how i was ever gonna be able to work feeling as shitty as i did, and then i went to the meeting with him, had a coffee, declined his offer because i already decided that i needed to find some place new to work at, since that one was too toxic, and after an hour i felt how my brain felt before it wanted to collapse. so i panicked not wanting to faint in a public place and rushed to my car, got home, as soon as i laid down i haven't been the same since.

i have felt absent, any conversation feels difficult to me, like i am floating, but i am conscious , however not totally present. any physical activity is hell, even though i worked out three times a week before this and walked with no problems. so i went and got my blood work done and hormonal work done, i even got an MRI of my head because i had such bad episodes of feeling like i was literally gonna die, i thought i had a brain tumor. but everything turned out great, everything is normal. the doctors keep on insisting i lost too much weight in one year and that i need to find a balance now, a classic case of malnutrition and starvation. however my brain is still not letting me feel like i am healthy because all the time i am feeling like i am not present. the doctors say that now i am in a state of catabolism, where the body has drained all its resources and it will take time to recover, psychically and mentally. i started seeing a nutritionist that claims that she will help me. it remains to be seen. one thing is for sure i cant live and function like this. its hard for me to tell myself you are healthy , nothing is wrong when i can barely get through the day with ease. i wake up feeling like this, there is always a panic in my chest that i may never recover from this. the doctors even say i need psychiatric help, but i know that's not the case since i need to solve mt psychical state first. i need to tart feeling like myself again asap.

has anyone else ever experienced problems like these? sorry for the long post, i am very desperate for any good advise i may get. god bless you all. here is a pic of me exactly a year apart from surgery and this September, just before i started feeling like this.

[It's time. 145]

it sounds like other medical conditions have been ruled out so a nutritionist is a great idea. She can get you on a balanced diet. Don't forgot to drink lots of Water. Dehydration can cause lots of issues. Hope you feel better soon.

[Danny Paul 761]

1 hour ago, It's time. said:

Don't forgot to drink lots of Water. Dehydration can cause lots of issues. Hope you feel better soon.

This was going to be my suggestion as well. I have had others who had WLS that I know concentrate on the food aspect of WLS but neglect the hydration aspect. Lack of hydration knocks the body out of sync. Try drinking more even when not thirsty. I hope all goes well with you and you return to normalcy in your weight loss journey.

[Anna N. 16]

thanks to everyone that answered, i did start drinking a lot more Water these last couple of days, not a lot has changed im afraid. the doctors keep telling me i need to give it time, however as time passes i get more and more desperate and anxious unfortunately. its scary when everyone is telling u that you are healthy but u don't feel it. i really hope that with better nutrition and more water it will go away eventually.

[Deemar007 244]

I'm sure your nutrionist already asked you this, but I'll just ask too. Are you taking your monthly B12 shots?

[Anna N. 16]

1 hour ago, Deemar007 said:

I'm sure your nutrionist already asked you this, but I'll just ask too. Are you taking your monthly B12 shots?

nope , she saw on my blood work that B12 levels were ok and now i am taking it via supplement. everybody just glances over my blood work and hormonal work, sees that they are ok, and just tell me " you are healthy, you just starved yourself for a year and now the body needs to find it's balance " when i feel horrible every single day. i can't focus, no energy, i am not present when i am speaking to someone, it's even hard to go to the kitchen and make something to eat for myself when i loved to cook before this year. i even lost my appetite.

the blood work show some Vitamin D deficiency though. taking supplements for it now. could this be real? did i over do it the first year?

[Deemar007 244]

Ok. Make sure your B12 is sublingual and not oral. When you mentioned brain fog, I was thinking, hmmmmmm? Could it be B12 issue. I wish you the best.

[Alsgal 6]

Hello, I am new to this and also new to the by pass group... my surgery was oct 22, 2020. I have felt this feeling you are talking about, I call it "the twilight zone" it feels disconnected and my bp would be low also. I started feeling it some when I changed my diet, I thought it was Keto brain, but when I did the pre op 500 cal shakes only for 2 weeks it got much worse. Now that I'm (almost) 3 weeks post op I feel it less often but add being extremly exhausted. I worry after reading your post that this could be a long term problem. I lost from 365 to 273 pre op, I wondered if I should put the surgery off and do it on my own but I could only imagine regaining what I had lost, like I always have. Sorry this is so long.

I wonder if your bp is low during the times you feel you could pass out?

[Anna N. 16]

1 hour ago, Alsgal said:

Hello, I am new to this and also new to the by pass group... my surgery was oct 22, 2020. I have felt this feeling you are talking about, I call it "the twilight zone" it feels disconnected and my bp would be low also. I started feeling it some when I changed my diet, I thought it was Keto brain, but when I did the pre op 500 cal shakes only for 2 weeks it got much worse. Now that I'm (almost) 3 weeks post op I feel it less often but add being extremly exhausted. I worry after reading your post that this could be a long term problem. I lost from 365 to 273 pre op, I wondered if I should put the surgery off and do it on my own but I could only imagine regaining what I had lost, like I always have. Sorry this is so long.

I wonder if your bp is low during the times you feel you could pass out?

hey, the times i passed out were different. the first time was beginning of May this year i was at a barbecue, and then suddenly i felt that sensation i had this last Saturday, but on Saturday i controlled it, i didn't faint, i started breathing really hard , but in may i couldn't do that since i had no clue what was going on. maybe i was in the sun for too long, or my blood pressure dropped, but i could barely manage to get inside and pass out. the second and third times were in the shower, and it just make it that much more horrifying. doctors always explain it to me that the steam of the hot Water coming from the shower combined with the fact that my blood sugar was very low and that i wasn't getting enough water , those things combined made me pass out and feel this horribly. however i was always able to come back after those, granted, i always felt tired, always saved energy, never overdid it, but always CONSCIOUS of my surroundings and willing to participate in everything. now it's all changed and it's been 2 weeks and i am freaked out.

whenever i took my BP it was relatively normal. the best advice i could give you, find the rhythm that works for you, dont push yourself to lose weight, our bodies are already conditioned to lose weight after surgery. whats hard and what i think a lot of people don't realize is that the body needs to find it's balance and where is the weight or the calorie intake it needs in order to function properly. so i would advise u consult a nutritionist. eat and drink all the recommended, because the weight will drop sooner rather than later, but feeling this way, the way i have since Saturday, IS NOT WORTH IT. i sincerely hope that i will come back from this, and feel like my old self again, that i need to be patient, but don't let yourself get here. just take your time and eat healthy. i had unhealthy goals, and reaching them in one year cost me this what i am experiencing now.

[Alsgal 6]

Thank you Ana, I see my nutritionist 6 weeks post op and I will follow your advice! I hope you find an answer and a way for you to feel better. Living trapped in 300 pound body is no life. Living constantly in the twilight zone and zero energy is also no kinda life either, not to mention adding loss of consciousness.

[Anna N. 16]

1 hour ago, Alsgal said:

Thank you Ana, I see my nutritionist 6 weeks post op and I will follow your advice! I hope you find an answer and a way for you to feel better. Living trapped in 300 pound body is no life. Living constantly in the twilight zone and zero energy is also no kinda life either, not to mention adding loss of consciousness.

exactly, which is why the most important thing is to find the balance that works for you. i need to remain hopeful, that in some time i will start to feel like myself again, do all the things i used to do and that this is not more serious. all the doctors keep telling me just give it time, months even, the body will find it's balance, but in the meantime feed it properly with everything it needs and of course drink a hell a lot of Water. i am actually starting the regimen my nutritionist gave today to me so fingers crossed it all goes well.

[Hcat 32]

1 hour ago, Alsgal said:

Hello, I am new to this and also new to the by pass group... my surgery was oct 22, 2020. I have felt this feeling you are talking about, I call it "the twilight zone" it feels disconnected and my bp would be low also. I started feeling it some when I changed my diet, I thought it was Keto brain, but when I did the pre op 500 cal shakes only for 2 weeks it got much worse. Now that I'm (almost) 3 weeks post op I feel it less often but add being extremly exhausted. I worry after reading your post that this could be a long term problem. I lost from 365 to 273 pre op, I wondered if I should put the surgery off and do it on my own but I could only imagine regaining what I had lost, like I always have. Sorry this is so long.

I wonder if your bp is low during the times you feel you could pass out?

Your post resonated with me. My 10 pre op diet took it's toll on me, before hand I had read where some people would start to feel weak around the 5th day, I tired easily & was in a brain fog.

[Hcat 32]

There's a lot of great advice on this forum, both nutrition for your body & mental well being. I have been a very private person with my weight struggles, but have laid it all on the line in this forum, it's helped me immensely. There has been some really great suggestions so far, so forgive me if I repeat them. I always have a bottle of Water with me & sip it when I look at it. I also take my multi Vitamin, Calcium, B12, Vit D & get my my Protein in & try to eat when I am not hungry. When I go places I pack Protein Shakes & tuna pouches to eat. I have found that weekly chewable Vit D wafers work best for me, but that is def an individual thing. I know how frustrating it is when you are feeling as you do & the doctors tell you that you are fine. Hang in there & remember this forum is always here for you!

Edited October 11, 2020 by Hcat

[Alsgal 6]

Thank you for all and any info you have i definitely appreciate it! I wondered if everyone had to do the pre surgery diet? Not many ppl mention it and it really affected me. I used to go to the rec and do pool workouts 5 days a week until I started that diet and about day 5 I was just too tired to get my housework done much less anything extra.

I'm having pain and swelling on my upper left stomach from surgery that seems to be getting worse. I feel better and less sore EVERYWHERE else but this left side. Was this normal for you? I thought about asking this question but idk, I'm the new girl lol. I do thank you again ☺️

[WishMeSmaller 1,270]

21 minutes ago, Alsgal said:

Thank you for all and any info you have i definitely appreciate it! I wondered if everyone had to do the pre surgery diet? Not many ppl mention it and it really affected me. I used to go to the rec and do pool workouts 5 days a week until I started that diet and about day 5 I was just too tired to get my housework done much less anything extra.

I'm having pain and swelling on my upper left stomach from surgery that seems to be getting worse. I feel better and less sore EVERYWHERE else but this left side. Was this normal for you? I thought about asking this question but idk, I'm the new girl lol. I do thank you again ☺️

First, your pain and swelling worsening at this point is worth a call to your surgeon.

Second, pretty much everyone had some sort of pre-op diet, but there are huge variations from surgeon to surgeon, and even for different bmi’s. I had no energy on my 2 week pre-op diet (shakes and plain, low carb veggies only), but I did lose 15 pounds. I have had loads of energy since surgery and consider myself lucky for this.

I hope everyone here gets some energy back soon. It has literally been my favorite thing about having this surgery 3-ish months ago. I wish it for everyone here!

Good luck!