New here....

Hi! My name is Kristin and I am in the pre-op testing phase.  I go back in two weeks to hopefully get a surgery date for this summer.  I am planning on a gastric by-pass.  I was wondering if anyone has any not-so-good stories to share, so I know the down-side of what I am looking forward to.  Thanks everyone for sharing!

Welcome! There is a lot to learn here. Do a lot of reading to be prepared. The magnifying glass at the top is the search feature and you can find almost any topic that you can think of. And we are always glad to give support. I didn't have RNY so I can't really share specifics but I am sure others will chime in. 

Welcome. Good stories exceed the not-so-good stories but you requested otherwise so here are mine:  I didn't expect the first few months to be so emotionally-charged; adjusting to rapid weight loss was hard to process and adjust to. Following the rules of high protein may have led to a constipation problem which may have led to a hernia which definitely led to a bowel obstruction.  Through it all, there are still no surgery regrets.

I'm 10 weeks post op and have had a few issues.

• Can't keep dense meat down, I throw up about 80% of the time.  To compensate I've been using more protein shakes then I like.
• The vitamins recommendations are not a suggestion, they are a must.  I wasn't paying attention and gave myself a B12 deficiency that will take a few months to fully recover from.
• My brain isn't connecting with the weight loss.  I'm down about 70 pounds since my pre-surgery diet and I don't feel a difference.  I can see it in pictures, but not in the mirror.
• I have little energy and time for other people.  All my extra energy must go into my recovery.  That has been difficult on some of my friendships.

Overall, I'm pleased with my progress and don't regret the surgery.

I put off having the surgery for 8 years because I knew I wasn't ready to make the life style choices.  Waiting was the right choice, but having the surgery was too.

First of all, no regrets. It is much easier to stuggle with life and any medical issues at a lower weight.

I am recovering right now from Hernia surgery at the incision site. That being said it could happen with any laproscopic surgery.

The first three months were hard mentally..it is a whole new world including just figuring it all out and what you can tolerate to eat.

I do struggle with constipation that I never had before

I stongly recommend support groups including OH.

Good Luck!

Hi!

Welcome and congrats on your decision! I'm 10 months out. My only "down" side, (more like unexpected) is how subtly my body reacts to things. I don't dump. And it takes me a while of really "listening" to my body to know if something disagrees with me. I was expecting to be throwing up, slimming, stuck etc. Nope it's all very subtle for me and hard to differentiate. 

It surprised me that the weight loss was slow I'm losing about three and a half pounds a week but when I say that people say well that's pretty good I just thought I'd have a huge drop at first when you're really big even when you get 32 pounds off like me it's hard to even see a difference I've had issues with gas and diarrhea I'm on my 5th week post op it doesn't matter what I eat I feel sick afterwards and then food and smells of food just seem disgusting I was also surprised that I feel hungry I usually wake up every morning thinking about going to different restaurants I don't do it but I definitely am hungry but then after I eat something I feel lousy for a while I also really considered the surgery a minor surgery even though people out here said it is major surgery I'm not sure I will call it major surgery but it's definitely not minor.  I also was surprised that yes it is just a tool I have to count my calories and it's just like being on a strict diet you have to follow pretty much a diet if you want it to work and that surprised me too I also in my mind thought it would be magic but it's not.  It took a friend of mine a full year to lose the weight she wanted and I've already had one stall, ever since surgery I have felt so tired I'm getting blood work done this month with my primary care to check on my blood levels, butt out here I've learned that's cause weight loss fatigue.  Just sharing some of my personal struggles 

Welcome Kristin

I can't think of any downside to my VSG.  It was the best decision I ever made for myself.