Don't get discouraged! While there are other challenges ahead, watching the pounds melt away made the challenges feel fairly minor. Also, you might be feeling a bit of post-op depression; that's very common but should fade quickly.

Getting in enough fluid was a struggle early on -- not because of restriction, but because it took a while to form the habit. Now I'm pretty good; especially since I noticed that I feel a sense of well-being when I drink 2+ liters per day.

Figuring out how much I could eat of different kinds of foods without getting the "foamies" was a bit frustrating. I think this is fairly individual; the foods that bother me may not bother you, and vice versa. You have to experiment, adding new foods slowly. It was a year before I could handle cauliflower and broccoli. Even now I have to be careful with "dry" foods like falafels. I can eat them, but I have to watch the quantity.

As I lost weight, I felt so much better physically. I felt stronger, but I didn't have much endurance for a while. I felt great, so I would often forget that I had surgery recently and would overdo things. I think it was about 9 months before I had all my endurance back.

At the same time, the first year was so wonderful and exciting that none of these things were as bad as they might sound!

As a new post op I am struggling with drinking enough fluids at this time. I am worried about the struggles I will come up against further down the road. What barriers/struggles have you found the hardest after weight loss surgery?

Eleven years post revision, 19 years since my original WLS, over ten years at a normal weight. I have been fortunate that I have had no significan regain. I weigh myself daily and if I see my weight creep up a pound or two I cut back but that really hasn't happened. My weight is freakishly stable. My weight is always the same, + or - a pound or two from day to day but always lands in the same place.

I still can't eat much, especially dense foods. I eat fats freely so I assume I still malabsorb fats. I don't count calories because I cannot figure out how much I am actually eating versus what I serve myself.

A lot has to do with how my eating has changed over the years. I intuitively reach for protein when I am hungry, meat, cheese, eggs, yogurt. It is what I crave and I eat as much as I want, ie very little.

I avoid all sugar since I dump and I don't try and test it. I have a very senstive system and I get very uncomfortable with certain foods or amounts of food and I have learned to avoid those things that cause me problems. Or I don't avoid them and pay the price. Most of the time it's not worth the pain and discomfort so I stick with things I know won't give me problems.

Since I easy upset my stomach I have pretty much lost the desire to eat for comfort. Ironically the things I would want to eat for comfort are the things that cause the most discomfort so I stick with the things I know won't.

Since I have already failed at one WLS I don't have any illusions that WLS is the be all, end all. More it's been a matter of learning what to eat, when and how much to avoid problems, including weight gain, although that is by far not my main motivation.

The worst that can happen is irreversible dementia symptoms from lack of vitamin B12. My mother and I both had gastric bypass in 2007. I am a rule follower but she tends to just do whatever she wants and figure it'll be ok. I was adamant about her taking vitamins and even filled her vitamin container for her in 2009 we got a call she was confused, laughing when no one was talking, unable to remember life events or people. They ran many tests, thinking stroke or something. They came up with vitamin B12 deficiency, though they doubted it. I explained that she'd had gastric bypass and if she wasn't taking her pills that was possible. As soon as they started her on it she snapped out of it. She doesn't remember those 2 days and still occasionally has episodes. Fast forward to 2017 when she had open heart surgery. Even after stressing that she needed her vitamin B12 2 days after surgery she was confused. She thought I was her sister who passed away in 1998. She didn't know anything. The Dr again thought stroke or beginning of dementia. I kept saying that they needed to go e her her vitamins. The nurse and Dr thought I was nuts but gave her b shots and immediately she snapped back. They had never heard of it but looked it up after and confirmed it is a real thing. People who have gastric bypass and alcoholics have to be careful of this. Your body gets depleted because of the surgery and/or alcoholism and when it happens it seems like dementia. Left untreated it isn't reversible. I tell everyone who has sudden dementia symptoms to check into this. I always wondered how many people are left to battle dementia when it could have be treated at beginning IF it was a vitamin deficiency ( not trying to say all dementia is vitamin related). Please look into this because it is real and we are told to take out vitamins for a reason. Even when I don't feel like taking them I take my B12, multivitamin and calcium.

And the irony of it all is they laugh at you for being gullible.... they say we're alcoholics OF Course we lie about EVERYTHING lol . They think you're the idiot for believing them