Is WLS still necessary after thyroid removal?

A little over 1 year ago I was at my heaviest of 307 lbs at only 5'0" tall and am 38 years old.  In April, 2015 I had surgery to have my thyroid removed.  In the last 3 months I have lost 35 pounds bring me down to 272 lbs with a bmi of 53.1.

I am starting to lose the huge fat rolls around my belly and I have more energy than I've had in years. 

How much weight can one expect to  lose after thyroid surgery?

and is WLS still necessary?  

I had my thyroid removed March of 2014. Prior to removal I was severely hyperthyroid and lost weight down to 297#. (About 25#'s down).

Day of my thyroidectomy I was back up to 320#. Thyroid removal makes you hypothyroid, which traditionally causes folks to gain, though if you are dosed correctly on the replacement hormone gaining doesn't always happen. Wasn't the case for me... I gained up to 335. My levels have always been near impossible to control. I'm finally normal. 

I chose bypass because I already struggled with my weight and I was tired of the games my thyroid, or lack thereof, played on my weight too.

Necessary, no... A choice I made to make this battle with weight a 'fair' fight.

I have an appt with a surgeon on Sept 1 for WLS.  I have heard that if you don't have a thyroid to not have the surgery bc it doesn't help.  I had my thyroid removed march of last year and have since gained 100 pounds and can't lose an ounce...it's my last resort.  So I'm curious as to how much weight you have lost and did you have any complications.  I am debating between the sleeve and the bypass.  Any info would be great.  Thank you! !

I've lost 61 pounds so far, pre and post op. No complications at all. I do think my rate of lost is slow, but have been losing. 

I haven't heard what you did about not having WLS because it didn't help. 

Wow!  Congratulations on your loss!!  I am so ready to get my life back. Hopefully I can get the wls soon!!

Thanks. It took  while for me to accept my rate of loss, it's not what I imagined when the surgeons office said weight will be "melting" off initially... Bus it's definitely working!

I had my thyroid removed and gained almost 100 pounds!! It took a long time to regulate my medication and as I have started losing now they have lowered my medication a bit here and there.  It depends on what you have for weight loss goals.  If you feel like you are successful on your own, and your weight is going down each month consistently...why do surgery? But if you hit a plateau and then no matter what you do you aren't moving much and you need a tool to help you on your way, then you may consider weight loss surgery. 

But neither a thyroid removal or surgery is going to be a fix all, no matter what its all still about diet, and exercise and taking the best care of ourselves that we can. Best wishes in all you do and CONGRATS on the weight loss!!! :)  I am assuming you are also cancer free which is another blessing. :)  I am 7 years out from mine and still feeling blessed!! :)

What's giving you the energy is the thyroid replacement hormone, not the loss of the thyroid, necessarily.  Generally, people don't lose huge amounts of weight after thyroid surgery.  Any weight loss or gain is correlational, and dependent on your ha*****anges.  It could be a placebo effect partially, too.  

You can absolutely lose weight without WLS.  It depends what you want to do and how you wish to go about it.   For me WLS has made it 100x easier, but that is not the case for everyone.  Even just shy of 2 months out I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

Obviously everyone is different, it is hard to say.  I have been on Thyroid medicine for years (did not have it removed) in the long run it didn't help me lose significant weight. Maybe I would have been even heavier if I wasn't on it, I don't know.

If you are losing weight quickly after having your thyroid removed, the amount of thyroid hormone you are taking is likely much too high (because, as already mentioned, taking the thyroid out eliminates your natural thyroid hormones which makes you hypothyroid and will result in weight gain if not provided via medication).  It can sometimes take a year or more to find the "sweet spot" for thyroid supplements since most doctors want you to be on a particular dose for at least a month before being re-tested.

While taking too high a dose might seem great from a weight loss standpoint, being hyperthyroid can cause a number of undesirable physical issues (these include increased heartrate (which can be dangerous if you have an undiagnosed heart condition), nervousness or tremors, anxiety/irritability, hairloss, and cognitive impairment), and your doctor should be adjusting your medication to avoid these issues.

Lora