Ronnie~my very deepest sympathies ~ it sounds like you have really been through the wringer! Over the past 21 years ago, I had periods of roller coaster regain/reloss/etc....Currently I am pretty much staying 10~15 pounds BELOW goal. Who ever would have thunk it?? I credit it to God and Weigh****cher~ and White Dove, here on the board. She is wise, indeed!

Best of luck to you, and please let us know how it goes!

I know that you have been through some terrible emotional pain. But the truth about weight gain after surgery is that at the five year mark, approximately 50% of weight loss surgery patients have regained half of the lost weight.

Your regain is normal and expected. When regain happened to me, I found Weigh****chers to be the only thing that helped. I follow the 2023 plan, which means I can eat any food in any quantity as long as I count the points. During the pandemic I attended online meetings. I attended at least one meeting a day and sometimes two.

When I consulted my weight loss center nutritionist about the regain, the first thing she told me was to stop drinking protein shakes. It is an easy way to get in calories when you are not able to eat solid foods after surgery. But once you can eat solid foods, you don't need to drink more calories.

Worrying about following the post surgery diet is silly. It is like trying to feed your teenage son formula and baby food. You know longer have the stomach size of a new born baby and need to eat real foods.

I highly recommend the Weigh****chers book, The Shift, by Gary Foster. It took more than a year but I lost all of the 30 poundsof regained weight and no longer have any problem with regain. It was expensive, but for me money well spent.

You are so strong. With everything that you're going through physically, you have a fighters mentality. And a backbone of steel.

When I had my surgery back in 2009. the surgeon wanted us to lose at least 10 lbs before surgery. I did go to WW but used the plan they had back in 1972-1973. There wasn't as much leeway as there is now but it gave me better guidence as far as nutrition. I had to do a liquid diet three days before my gastric bypass. I can't remember all the dietary requirements after surgery because I had some stiches break and a fungal infection in my lungs complications. I do remember doing from clear liquids, to thicker liquids like soups to soft foods like cottage cheese and scrambled eggs to very moist meats like chicken.

I just went back to WW though. I find I need the accountablity of getting on the scale and tracking what I eat. I doing the 1973 version. The biggest change I make to it is sometimes the portion size is a little to high. For example, the dinner portion for chicken is 6 ounzes and I'll cut it down to 4 ounzes. If I go out to eat, I either get the kids meal or senior menu.

I wish you had a pool that you could use. Water arobics is a lot easier on the joints. The bouyentce(sorry for the spelling) of the water helps.

I wish I could help you more.

Revising to the bypass might be a good idea

Let me know how you make out.

I'm sorry for the loss of your husband. It is really difficult to deal with. My husband died 9/11/2022 from Lewy Body Demention (basiclly Demention with Parkinson's symptoms like shaking), I gained thirty pounds back. You and I are in the same boat. I understand completely.

It may not seem like it but there are two blessings:we're doing something about now instead of gaining even more and we've been this way before. Experience is a great tool.

Please don't come down hard on yourself. The fact that dealing with it speakes volumes on how you want to succeed.

What did you do before surgery and did your surgeon want you to lose weight before the surgery. What did you do to lose pre-surgery? What kind of diet did you do after surgery? Does the center where you had bariatric surgery have a dietician/nutrionist on staff. An option would be to talk to them. Are you journaling what you eat? Getting enough water? Where are you going for extra support?

This is a process not a destination.

Updated information:

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Ozempic and Mounjaro Could Cause Stomach Paralysis. What to Know

Share on Pinterest Although rare, weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro could cause gastroparesis, also known as stomach paralysis. myskin/Shutterstock

• A lawsuit has been filed against Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly, the drug manufacturers of blockbuster weight loss drugs Ozempic and Mounjaro.
• A woman from Louisiana claims she was prescribed the drugs by her doctor and experienced severe gastrointestinal side effects, including gastroparesis.
• Also known as stomach paralysis, gastroparesis is a rare side effect of GLP-1 and similar drugs.
• Other cases of severe outcomes from Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro have been recently reported.
• Experts say that patients and clinicians must be aware of severe side effects like gastroparesis and its consequences.

The rise of popular GLP-1 drugs such as Ozempic and Wegovy and similar drugs like Mounjaro, which are used to treat type 2 diabetes and, in some cases, obesity, has led to some people reporting severe side effects.

The active ingredient in these injectable medications is semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) or tirzepatide (Mounjaro), which slows digestion in the stomach. In rare cases, the stomach can take too long to empty out, leading to "stomach paralysis" or gastroparesis.

One such case led to a lawsuit that was filed on August 2 by Jaclyn Bjorklund, a 44-year-old woman from Louisiana who lost 150 pounds from taking the drugs as prescribed by her doctor.

Bjorklund's attorneys say she suffered severe injuries from the drugs, including stomach paralysis, claiming the injuries could be permanent. She is suing the manufacturers of both drugs, Novo Nordisk (Ozempic and Wegovy) and Eli Lilly (Mounjaro), for failing to warn of the risk of severe gastrointestinal events.

"As a result of using Defendants' Ozempic and Mounjaro, Plaintiff was caused to suffer from severe gastrointestinal events, which resulted in, for example, severe vomiting, stomach pain, gastrointestinal burning, being hospitalized for stomach issues on several occasions including visits to the emergency room, teeth falling out due to excessive vomiting, requiring additional medications to alleviate her excessive vomiting, and throwing up whole food hours after eating," the lawsuit claims.

What is gastroparesis?

Stomach paralysis can result from various factors but is a documented side effect of taking GLP-1 and similar drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro.

If food is taking too long to leave the stomach due to a condition called gastroparesis, it can harden into masses called bezoars, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH)Trusted Source. These can lead to blockages in the intestine and other issues.

Stomach paralysis, alongside more common symptoms like vomiting and nausea, is something that Dr. Shilpa Mehra Dang, a gastroenterologist at Medical Offices of Manhattan, said needs to be kept in mind by both patients and clinicians.

"The link between GLP-1 drugs and stomach paralysis isn't fully known yet," Dang told Healthline.

"But it's thought that it has to do with how these drugs affect the autonomic nervous system, which is in control of the digestive tract's bodily functions. It is very important for doctors and nurses to keep an eye on patients who are taking GLP-1 receptor agonist drugs for any signs of stomach problems, such as sickness, vomiting, bloating, and feeling full before they should. These are all symptoms of gastroparesis."

Weight loss specialists like Dr. Mir B. Ali, a bariatric surgeon, want to make it clear that severe stomach paralysis is still a rare side effect.

"I was somewhat surprised to see this as a long-term complication with patients continuing to experience problems even after stopping the medication," Ali said.

"I would caution patients who already have a diagnosis of gastroparesis not to use this medication and make all patients aware of this. However, I would also inform them that the incidence of this side effect is relatively low."

Wegovy, for instance, was approved for weight loss by the FDA and has already been found to treat type 2 diabetes effectively. Research into reported side effects has been ongoingTrusted Source.

The latest reports of stomach paralysis came after the FDA received complaints via their public reporting system, according to CNN.

What to know about GLP-1 side effects

Dr. Andrew Boxer, gastroenterologist at Gastroenterology Associates of New Jersey, is among a number of gastroenterologists who said he's seeing an increased number of patients coming into his practice complaining of side effects from these types of drugs.

"I was seeing a tremendous amount of people coming in just with nausea, vomiting, and feelings of fullness, early satiety, just not feeling well ... Universally these patients were on GLP-1's."

Boxer said there are two main issues when it comes to treating patients with these symptoms. First, they may be unaware that these side effects were even a possibility. Second, he said that many people don't think to mention that they are taking these medications at all, especially if they've started them since their last visit.

"They're seeing a GI doctor for a colonoscopy. They think you [only] need to know about constipation, diarrhea, blood in the stool if someone had colon cancer in their family, and that's it," Boxer said.

Dr. Amy Lee, Chief Medical Officer at the California-based Lindora clinic, prescribes GLP-1s as part of her practice. She said that she hasn't seen any patients who have experienced severe side effects. However, she emphasized that communication about all possible side effects including severe ones is vital to patient health.

"I think some of my patients have this mentality of, 'Just give me this medication, I don't want to hear more about it. I just want to take it like right now, as soon as possible.' But you really, truly, do need to sit down with a provider who's managing your medications, who's following up with you to document all side effects," Lee said.

Lee, whose work involves obesity medicine, also said that clinicians need to be mindful when it comes to possible candidates for these medications who have a previous history of gastrointestinal issues. She wants people to know that it's important for practitioners to be able to differentiate between what might be a drug side effect versus a symptom.

"Understanding your patient population is key. And also, if someone comes in with a lot of gastric issues in the first place, then don't put them on something that you know is going to actually slow down their gut even more. Because you're not doing anyone a favor, you may be causing more harm than good."

What to do if you're experiencing side effects from Ozempic or Mounjaro

If you're having side effects from GLP-1 or similar drugs, whether you're taking Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro, a physician can order tests to identify whether the medication is the problem.

After discussing your symptoms, Boxer said that one of the first steps would be to get a gastric emptying study.

"That's when you give a patient a radio-labeled food, usually an egg sandwich or sometimes oatmeal, and use serial X-rays or different images to look to see how quickly things are [going] through the stomach."

From there, patients may be told to stop their GLP-1 and given medications to counteract these symptoms.

Regardless of possible pathways to treatment, Dang said that symptoms like fluctuating blood sugars, heartburn, bloating, or vomiting should all be reason enough for a patient taking a GLP-1 drug to check in with a medical professional.

"If a patient has any of these signs or is worried about possible side effects, they should talk to their healthcare provider as soon as possible. Early diagnosis and treatment are important for dealing with gastroparesis well and avoiding problems."

Takeaway

A woman filed a lawsuit against the drug makers for Ozempic and Mounjaro after experiencing severe gastrointestinal events, including gastroparesis, also known as stomach paralysis.

Anyone taking GLP-1 or similar drugs to treat diabetes or obesity should talk with their doctor about concerns they have about side effects and report

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Yikes ..