Weight gain

Hi all

I had duodenal switch in June of 2004.  I did great with the surgery I had lost 237lbs. Recently within the last year to year and half I have regained approximately 100lbs.  My surgeon retired years ago.  I am clueless as to what I should do or where to start. I have tried changing my diet with little to no result.  Some one stated I should contact my surgeon, but with him being retired now I'm not certain what I should do.   Any advice would greatly be appreciated.   Thank you

Did your surgeon have partners or an affiliated clinic? If so I would call them and see if he was recommending his patients to someone in particular.

He did have a partner that transferred to San Diego CA, which is on the opposite side of the US from where I live and had the surgery. 

Okay, so the good news is that you're still at 58% excess weight loss after 11 years, but I know that isn't going to make you has happy as shedding some of that regain.  15-25% regain is normal - but you've gone over that for sure.  

High protein/high fat/low carb is how you want to eat now.  Some have done very well adding intermittent fasting to the mix, as well.  I recommend with first keeping a diary to get a good honest view of your daily intake and assess how many carbs have crept back into your life.  It's going to suck making the change, I won't lie, but it comes down to how badly you want this change.  As you've experienced, even the DS isn't bulletproof.  The human factor makes the difference in the long-term.

What Val said. (*grin*)

Journal your food for several days, and write down EVERY SINGLE BITE that goes into your mouth. Don't try to make any changes while you're doing this---just eat as you have been. The idea is to get a clear picture of WHY you've regained, and I'll bet dollars to donuts it's due to too many carbs.

Once you have a few days' menus written down, post it here (or on the DS board) and we'll try to help you. Wouldn't hurt to post your daily vitamin intake as well. There are also several DS-specific Facebook groups you might want to join for good nutritional advice.

I'll second this. Weighing your food and recording every bite is the best way to see where you've drifted. I also guarantee it's the carbs. No one ever got obese from protein and fats.

You should also get your PCP to do a full set of labs. If you've steayed from your eating plan, you've probably strayed from your vitamin regimen too. A full set of labs for all vitamins, minerals, etc, will be about 15 vials of blood. Get everything checked.

You should be able to find any other bariatric surgeon in your area, s/he should be able to pick you up. Your medical records may be in storage somewhere, hopefully the new doctor can help track them down.

Hi Melissa,

What everyone said is great advice.  Here is a list of basics I returned to when I started putting weight on.  I had RNY, but I feel the basic rules are the same for us all.  Also I have included a link to the DS forum.  You can reach out to others that had the same surgery as you did.

Duodenal Switch Forum (DS)

Planning/Preparing


Remember when we were preparing for surgery?  How many meetings, classes and such did we attend?  We were told the more prepared we were the better our chances were for success.  And they were right. Go through the house, car and work place and get rid of trigger foods.  Stock up on foods that will keep you on track. I removed every bad carb/sugar temptation and replaced it with lots of protein, veggies, grains and fruits.  

Journaling

Get back to journaling.  This will help you identify when you feel like eating, stress factors and any triggers in your life.  Once you identify these factors, this will help you put tools in place to keep you from eating.  It became clear I was not taking time for me anymore. I worked my day job and then spent the rest of my time caring for my husband.  It was easy to reach for fast, prepackaged food.  Since I purged my home I have to eat clean as there are no other options LOL

Use a tool to track you're eating and exercise like Getting Started with Health  Tracker.  Once I started to track ever bite and drink it became clear why I had gained.

Goals/Rewards

Make a list of goals for yourself.  Make them realistic and small.  Some of mine were move more, purge all junk from my home, eat more protein.

Food

In general, a long term post-weight loss surgery eating plan includes foods that are high in protein, and low in fat​, calories, and sugar. Important, vitamins and minerals are provided as supplements. (if you had a different surgery adjust this to your food plan).

Water

Water is our Best Friend. I have to say I never went back to pop or any bad drinks, however I was drinking tea like crazy. What is wrong with drinking tea?  I was either using sugar or 3 equals and 3 sweet n lows per 32 ounce glass.  So I was either pushing to be diabetic or get cancer.  I found once I started carrying a bottle of water around 24/7 (yes had one at my bedside) I lost the cravings for the sugar and I KNOW those artificial sweeteners are not good for me. Look I am old and if you add up all the artificial sweeteners I have consumed I am sure I am at the rat in the lab getting cancer threshold.

MOVE!

I can't say enough about how key this was for me. The reason I kept my weight off for almost 10 years was no matter what, I kept moving.  If I could not go to the gym I would walk. I loved Zumba, bootcamp workouts, lifting weights. When I stopped, the weight started coming back.  So for me I am starting slow to avoid injury by walking and using some of the workouts on my Demand TV.  Find something you love to do and it won't feel like a pain in the *** to do daily.

Support

If it's an option "run" don't walk to a support group.

Keep me posted on how you are doing

Regards,

Kathy

Member Services

It seems that you need help - find a specialist in your area - you can use the search feature on this site or ask someone in your area.  Check your insurance company's website or your Prim Care Physician for a recommendation.  Get checked out and then get back on the track  I have never been able to lose or keep wt off unless I was in a program.  I don;t know if that is true for you, if it is, get a few recommendations and pick one that will work for you.  Do not wait any longer (you've already waited a year and a half), none of us are getting any younger.