WLS and PCOS

I'm currently looking into WLS, and have PCOS w/ insulin resistance.  I'm 5'4 and am at my highest weight of 264.   If you have had WLS, which one did you have and why did you feel it was best for you?  I've read a lot about all of the different surgeries, but I think it's best to get "real" peoples' experience.    Has any of your PCOS symptoms eased up or went away completely?   Any regrets? Thanks  in advance for taking time to reply to this.

Hi!  I also have PCOS and at one point was also IR but developed type II diabetes a year before I had surgery.  I'm 5'3 and at my heighest weight was 254.  I had the lap RNY and am happy with my decision.  I needed (and still do) the added restrictions that the RNY has over the lapband.  I'm quite sugar sensitive and at 3.5 years post op has  helped me maintain at near goal (which I reached at 1 year post op).  My PCOS is much better now with the weight gone.  I've gone from zero cycles a year to regular 36 day cycles when I'm not on birth control (before it was the patch, now it's an IUD).  When I'm not on bc I also now ovulate on my own which is also something I've never done before.  My acanthosis nigricans (dark patches of skin) are pretty much gone, the acne is MUCH better, and although the hair growth will never go away without laser removal...it's not getting worse! I have NO regrets at all about my surgery and am very happy with my results.  Because not only has it given me back my health but it allowed me to FINALLY get pregnant after 8 years of failed fertility treatments.  If you'd like more info...I'd be happy to share. Gotta go...my DD is fussing.

I am PCOS with IR too. I had lap-band in August. I was not heavy enough for RNY, but not sure that I would have done that anyway. I am only down 15 pounds since the surgery and don't think that is enough to change any of my PCOS issues. Start Weight: 191 Current: 175-176

I have PCOS and found that wls was the only way for me to lose the weight. I have struggles with every diet and exercise plan and even went to a nutritionist for a while. It was the nutritionist that caught the pcos and told me that my insulin levels were out of whack and that way I have always struggled with weight loss. I had surgery dec.21 and for the first time I have lost weight almost 40 lbs. I never in my wildest dreams thought I could obtain this. And my pcos symtoms are getting better.

i Am 5 ft 3 and weighed 312.... had lap RNY Dec of 05 now weigh less than 1/2 of my starting weight, wear size 10 slacks and dress ( down from 32)    I NEEDED THE PERMANENT SMALLER STOMACH , and am pleased. Having plastic surg 1/25 to remove extra skin on public, upper and lower abdominal areas. I had GERD and sleep apnea and asthma before surg and they are gone now. I have the polycystic ovaries, but nothing was ever said about anything being connected to weight issues.  ????? Pray hard and be willing and ready to make a serious life change with eating and exercise and you will succeed. Blesings Pam

Thank you all so much for your information. You are all such inspirations.  I know I have to do something, it's just figuring out which way to go. Thank you again, Mary Ann

I also have PCOS and I'm IR.  After surgery I stopped all my meds except vitamins.  Then 3 months after surgery I had some lab ran and my insulin serum was at 106 and it need to be under 20.  So I had to go back on Metformin 2x per day.  I was not happy about that because I thought it would go away.  I do have a period every month now and my face never breaks out anymore.  The facial hair is still there and will not go away.  I don't regret anything.  I love my RNY and how I feel now.  I have so much energy now and I love it. Good luck!

Hi maryann, I had wls  2 years ago and have had pcos w/insulin resisitance for years. I was 5"3 and 262lbs before surgery. I now weigh in at 153lbs. I feel pretty good. I definitely feel better than I used to. I had the roux en y procedure.I chose to go witht hat one simply because you cant do much in the way of sweets which was always a problem for me.You see if you do too much in the way of sugar or fat you will get whats called the dumping syndrome. Believe me you dont want that,its a horrible feeling. Also w/the lap band you can fill it with just about anything(cake ,milkshake etc) and all it knows is that its full.But not necessarily with healthy stuff,just full. Which would have never worked for me. As far as the symptoms of the pcos afterwards,my periods seemed to become a little more regular and obviously the weight loss  problem was much better.You also have to be careful the first 18mos afterwards because you can get pregnant pretty easily. There have been many people who were unable to conceive before and after surgery got pregnant at the drop of a hat. But in the first 18 mos after you cant sustain the proper nutrition for a fetus and thats why they dont want you to get pregnant in that time.I do not have any regrets. It was the best thing I ever did. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I am actually happy withthe way I look and I feel soooo much better.I am actually very proud of myself for once.Not to mention I LOVE to shop now! Take care and best of luck to you in making your decision.God Bless! Lorie

I'm 5'2 and my highest weight was 341. Every time we tried meds to fix my PCOS it made it worse and added more weight to me. It was the same for controlled diets also like weigh****chers...

I am now over 4ms out from my surgery and my current blood tests are amazing. My blood sugars are normal (A1C) etc... the best part is my testerone is in the normal range. It had never been normal! EVER! It was so high one doc thought that I was a guy from the test results... ack!

The dark patches are gone... they were gone by week 3 or something like that... I was also IR borderline type 2... again no signs of it...

Now I am on the BC shot- depo, so I can't tell you a thing about my periods because I haven't had one since before my daughter was born... but over all my doctors are very happy with the way things are going... and is very happy that I was turned down at first for lap-band because I guess a new study is out showing it isn't as helpful for getting rid of PCOS as gastric bypass (he told me this... haven't seen the study so don't yell at me about it hehehehe)...

I am now down to 260 at 4.5 months out... that is 80 pounds down... I am very happy with everything... but I also went to a great place for my surgery also... which is part of the battle in getting your PCOS controlled and whatnot after surgery too...

Wow, that is just awesome!  Thanks for sharing with me.  I'd love to say good bye to PCOS and the weight.