Gerd with weight loss Plateau

[Wonderwoman14 14]

I am a Gerd patient and got the sleeve Sept 5, 2023. My HW 210, SW 206, CW 180. I hit the plateau in November 2023 and havent lost any weight since. I did have GERD previously before the surgery with a hiatal hernia 2cm; but, my stomach was literally stuck in my chest since 2008. I was told by my surgeon that GERD patients have a harder time losing weight. I workout 4 days hard since 3 weeks after surgery, I still watch what i eat as a GERD patient not weight loss. I want to know if anyone is going through this stall as well. I've seen videos of people around 240lbs weighing 120 6m after surgery.To me that is crazy, I do eat carbs but its limited and I still keep my Protein intake above 90g daily. I do track my meals and i'll have days ill eat 1000 cal or below and sometimes as high as 1200 cals. I do drink about 48 oz of Water sometimes less or more. When will my plateau stop or is it cause i am building my muscle fast; I was never obese just in my belly that is my issue. the left pic is 1 yr before surgery and the pic on the right is 4 months after surgery

[SleeveToBypass2023 2,680]

I'm shocked you were offered the sleeve with GERD. That shouldn't happen because the sleeve is known to cause GERD, even in those who didn't have it before. GERD in and of itself doesn't make it harder to lose weight, but the effects of having GERD flare ups can. Mostly because it's so painful and uncomfortable and hard to move around.

[Wonderwoman14 14]

Oh I know all about as a GERD patient I’m supposed to have bypass. But this surgeon wanted to test if it would go away after hiatal surgery. But so far it hasn’t. Plus going through perimenopause makes it hard as well with my GERD. We do deal with a lot of issues and she stated as a GERD patient it’s harder for us to lose weight so I was wondering if it was true. My surgeon said i have until 2025 to get bypass if my gerd doesnt stop. I may push for it done sooner my GI dr thought i had barretts already.

Edited January 18, 2024 by Wonderwoman14

[Arabesque 7,594]

Yes, pre existing gerd is a hard no for sleeve in almost all cases. Sleeve won’t fix it & will likely make it worse necessitating a 2nd surgery to convert to bypass. I had reflux/gerd before my sleeve. The only reason my surgeon decided to proceed with a sleeve was because my reflux was mild & I managed it for years with dietary choices. I only took meds a couple or so times a year. If it was more severe, & I needed regular medication, he wouldn’t have done it. My reflux is worse & I take meds every day which manages it but the symptoms are different.

We have similar stats in regards height & I had a similar starting weight (200lbs). Having reflux didn’t hinder my weight loss. Plus I’m menopausal (perimenopause & menopause was when I put on the bulk of my weight & pushed me to obesity). I lost all my weight plus more & have kept it off. And I wasn’t active at all Lol!

Avoid comparing your rate of weight loss with anyone else. We all lose at our own rate & what is best for us & our body. Comparing usually leads to frustration & worry. Have you met with your dietician recently & gone through your meal tracking? There may be something you’re missing or need or don’t need. A stall of more than a month isn’t common. Try to increase your Fluid consumption. You should aim for 64oz or likely more as you say you are very active. And yes, while muscle weighs more than fat it’s not that much more. Say a container of fat weighs 1kg. The same container of muscle weighs 1.2kg so we only talking ounces of difference. Have you been taking body measurements to better understand where you might be in regards to muscle growth?

[Wonderwoman14 14]

As I stated I’m not in this for weight loss. My issues are belly fat and working hard to get rid of it since I couldn’t workout for 15 yrs because of regurgitation, vomiting and pain with my hiatal hernia. My question was only asking about GERD patients losing weight slower than regular obese patients. I don’t have any food issues and my dietitian has no worries about me. I’ve always carried good muscles in my skinny legs. I don’t compare myself to no one I just can’t believe these bariatric weight loss videos people have actually lost that much weight in 6 months as they claimed especially how huge they were.

My reflux has always been horrible and I’ve been on medication for 15 years daily. Now I can only stay off for 4 days but I’ll have bad silent reflux. My GERD is unmanageable even with a strict diet. My surgeon thought since I never had GERD with my 2 older kids maybe it would subside now. This all went downhill after I had my 3rd child.

[catwoman7 11,278]

I agree with others have said. But about people starting at 240 lbs and weighing 120 after six months, that would be VERY unusual. People starting off at 400+ lbs might be able to lose that much in six months, but 240 isn't all that high of a BMI when compared to other WLS patients. That's on the lower end of the range. Starting BMI is a big factor in how quickly the weight drops off, at least in the early months...so I would be very surprised to see anyone starting at that weight lose 100 lbs that quickly.

[catwoman7 11,278]

also, I've never heard that people with GERD lose weight slower than people who don't. You're probably losing it slower because you didn't start off at a very high BMI to begin with.

Edited January 18, 2024 by catwoman7

[Wonderwoman14 14]

That’s what my surgeon said and I’ve been looking for research information about it. So I thought I’d ask here with other GERD patients.

Edited January 18, 2024 by Wonderwoman14

[ms.sss 15,816]

28 minutes ago, Wonderwoman14 said:

I just can’t believe these bariatric weight loss videos people have actually lost that much weight in 6 months as they claimed especially how huge they were.

I am short 5'2" so my starting weight of 235 put me at 43.0 BMI, which is classified as Morbidly Obese.

I did not have GERD/acid reflux prior to my sleeve surgery, but I developed it after. I take/took the lowest dose PPI to control it, as well as adhere to a couple self-imposed rules to manage symptoms (sleep on empty stomach, etc). Having it did not seem to affect my weight loss:

• By 6 months later I was 130 lbs...(lost 105 lbs)
• Weight levelled out at at 10 months post up and I clocked in at 115 lbs (lost 120 lbs total).

5+ yrs later I am 116.7 lbs this morning...and i still have GERD/acid reflux.

[ms.sss 15,816]

3 minutes ago, Wonderwoman14 said:

As I stated I’m not in this for weight loss. My issues are belly fat and working hard to get rid of it since I couldn’t workout for 15 yrs because of regurgitation, vomiting and pain with my hiatal hernia

The tough truth is that you can't "spot lose" weight. Losing belly weight will come with losing weight in other parts of your body as well. Only sure fire way to get rid of your belly fat without affecting other parts of you is via plastic surgery/liposuction.

[catwoman7 11,278]

4 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

By 6 months later I was 130 lbs...(lost 105 lbs)

^^ I stand corrected. But that's a well above average rate of loss - you usually just see that in people who start off at 300+ lbs (I didn't even lose 100 lbs in six months, and I started at almost 400 lbs!. It was closer to a year for me)

[Wonderwoman14 14]

My bmi wa 37 but I only carried my weight in my belly. I was on 20 mg of protonix then after I was bleeding internally they bumped me up to 40 mg. I’m daily and now dr wants me on 40 mg of protonix and 40 mg if Pepcid which to me is stupid this is my bariatric surgeon. I’ve been arguing with her that none of this is working and my burping has increased back again. That’s a lot of weight loss in 6 months, I’m still at 180 and it’s been 4 months. Idk if I could drop that fast in 2 months……… I already lived through the dos and donts as a GERD patient.

[catwoman7 11,278]

9 minutes ago, Wonderwoman14 said:

That’s what my surgeon said and I’ve been looking for research information about it. So I thought I’d ask here with other GERD patients.

I had GERD before surgery (which is why I went with bypass). I was a slow loser, but I never attributed that to GERD. Plus my GERD disappeared after my surgery, so it wouldn't have been a factor in my rate of weight loss regardless. How fast or slow you use usually depends on age, gender, starting weight, how muscular you are, whether or not you lost a lot of weight prior to surgery, how active you are, how closely you stick to your plan, and your metabolism rate (I may be leaving a couple of things out).

[Wonderwoman14 14]

5 minutes ago, ms.sss said:

The tough truth is that you can't "spot lose" weight. Losing belly weight will come with losing weight in other parts of your body as well. Only sure fire way to get rid of your belly fat without affecting other parts of you is via plastic surgery/liposuction.

I can lose belly weight it’ll just be my loose skin from having my kids that’ll need to be removed. Actually that pouch isn’t really big nor hanging a lot.

[Wonderwoman14 14]

4 minutes ago, catwoman7 said:

I had GERD before surgery (which is why I went with bypass). I was a slow loser, but I never attributed that to GERD. Plus my GERD disappeared after my surgery, so it wouldn't have been a factor in my rate of weight loss regardless. How fast or slow you use usually depends on age, gender, starting weight, how muscular you are, whether or not you lost a lot of weight prior to surgery, how active you are, how closely you stick to your plan, and your metabolism rate (I may be leaving a couple of things out).

I was supposed to have gotten bypass but she wanted sleeve to see if it’ll work since bypass is more major. I already knew my reflux wasn’t going to stop but it’s a chance I take. I’ve already researched bypass is best for GERD patients. But I’m just happy my hiatal hernia is repaired and my stomach is no longer in my chest causing severe pain.