New question for old WLS grad

Hi; I have a question for any WLS grads; am I in the correct forum?

Yes - you are in the right forum.

Thank you for responding--I was fortunate enough to lose all my excess weight that I wanted to lose within the 1st year after WLS. All the whole time ever since, it really hasn't mattered what I ate; I ate what felt good and stayed away from the stuff that hurt my tummy or made me nauseous, if you know know what I mean, lol. Food was totally a non-issue; in other words, my idea of heaven--Everything went smoothly and I didn't fluctuate more than 2 lbs one way or the other with no trying, no exercise, no nothing, for all this time......until about 6 months ago. All of a sudden, I gained 15 lbs in 3 months!!! OMG!!! I had changed only one thing; I had started taking an antidepressant. When the weight just starting plopping onto my body, of course I panicked! I stopped the antidepressant, started Wellbutrin which is supposed to not make you gain weight. Well, 5 MORE lbs jumped onto my body!! OMG!! So, I have stopped ALL antidepressant medication. It is so totally not worth it! Has anyone else had this experience??? If so, will my system ever go back to "normal" (my normal, anyway)? Do I need to start dieting to drop these hateful 20 lbs??? Have I inadvertently turned off my "switch"???? Am I going to continue to gain?????? HELP PLEASE!!!

The surgeons either don't tell us this or we practice selective listening and don't hear it.

The weight loss surgery effects last for roughly 18 months to two and a half years.  Almost all of the weight is lost during the first year.  Then there is a great period where we can eat and drink whatever we want and the weight magically stays the same or goes a little lower.  We feel like we have been cured of obesity. 

In reality we are experiencing the malabsorption that comes from having the surgery.  What we are putting into our body is not being very well absorbed by our intestines.  There is usually some more weight loss in the second year and the lowest BMI is reached at about 24 months.

The body is smart and begins to figure out how to stop itself from being starved.  So it grows more of the small hairlike structures in the intestines that grab food and hold it against the intestines so that much more of it can be absorbed.  Then with no change in diet or exercise we begin to gain weight again. 

The only thing to do now is to go back to diet and exercise and I find that my body is just like it was before surgery.  This new weight really wants to stick around.  I am going to Weigh****chers, the gym, walking every day, and still gaining.

I so wish I had a better answer for you.  Yes you need to start dieting.  Fifty percent of us gain all of our weight back by the five year mark.  Everyone gains back some weight.  It is a lifelong battle.  We get a reprive and can take the excess weight off, but then the fight is on again. 

Thank you for replying so quickly. Geez, that makes perfect sense, and at the same time, it is the WORST news!! I wish our bodies weren't so stinking "smart"! Huh. Well, you're doing the gym thing, dieting, and walking, and STILL gaining??? What the heck is the point??? I truly believe what you said is the truth; its just so discouraging! Thank you again

The point for me is too minimize the damage as much as possible.  I might not get back down to where I was a year ago, but I don't want to get back up to where I was three years ago.  My surgeon says he wishes people would contact him when they start gaining weight instead of waiting until they have gained back a lot of weight.  I will see him later this month.

My plan now is Weigh****chers, because I don't believe it is possible to keep weight off without hanging around a group like that.  I go to meetings and get weighed even though I might have gained,  I make a plan for what I am going to eat and what exercise I am going to do each day.

We can't undo the past, but we can do the best we can with our future.

Yes, that's true. For me, I think all cracker-type items are going to have to be off-limits (they go down so easily and FAST). May I ask a personal question? Why are you going to see your surgeon? I don't understand why. Also, one more question, but you don't have to answer if you don't want: how much have you gained back? Mine is 20, but I think your surgery is farther out than mine. I like the way you think, tho; we need to do the best with the future as we can.

My three year surgery anniversary is on October 16.  My visit is the regular three year visit.  Last time I was there the surgeon wanted to talk to me about weight gain and I did not want to listen.  Now my attitude has changed.  Six months ago I was still maintaining.  I gained ten pounds since June.

My highest weight was 212.   I reached 128 at two years and was 132 six months ago.  Now I am 142.  My surgeon's goal weight for me is 136.  I was 132 in high school and all through my 20's so set 132 as my Weigh****cher's goal.  The first week at Weigh****chers I gained 0.8 pound.  My next weigh in is Thursday and I did everything wrong over the weekend.  I got up and started fresh this morning.

Crackers are one to the things I cannot have around.  One saltiner square is 12 calories and I can eat 30 of them without thinking about it.  What Weigh****chers is doing for me is making me so aware of how much I am eating through mindless eating.  I was keeping a container of crackers, a container or two of candy, full sugar fruit bars, real ice cream and buying cake, cookies, donuts, and pies.

I was also doing fast food.  One morning I had a sausage biscuit from McDonalds for breakfast.  Then a regular roast beef sandwich from Arby's for lunch.  When I tracked by points I was out of food points for the day.   So I am learning to make correct choices from real food.  I track every bite on line and analyze each day.  I know it is going to take time, but I am going to keep working at it.

In my 20's I could have lost this weight in one or two weeks.  Now my body acts much differently and I will be happy to lose a pound a month.  I just want to quit gaining and feel good again.

Thank you for sharing that. I would be interested to hear what your Dr has to say on your checkup. Fast food is a weakness for me, too. I know what you mean about your twenties...in my twenties, I could lose the weight by fasting, and not even break a sweat. HA! No more of that! Well, looks like tracking is going to have to be my priority from now on....I've been on WW for years, on and off. I thought it was finally in my past...guess not, sigh. Big. Sigh.

I think everyone is different in this area. I know a lot of people who gain a bit, but then jus****ch themselves for a while and it drops off. It's easy for them.

If you gained primarily because the anti-depressant was making you hungrier than before, it should drop off now that you are off them. If it's a combo of that and your malabsorption going away, it might be harder, but you still have the restriction of your pouch and the hunger control that brings.

In my case, I never had malabsorption so it going away is not an issue. But if all the VSGers can maintain their weight loss without malabsorption, then I think you guys can too. It's just a matter of finding the right formula -- how many calories you can eat without gaining and how to get that many calories in without being hungry.

The way I look at it is: I can eat 1600 calories or 3000 calories with the exact same volume. It's up to me to make the choices to keep my calories down to 1600 by picking the right combination of healthy foods and not eating too much low volume, high calorie food and too many slider foods.

But you aren't going to find your formula if you just eat and don't track. If you don't track your food, you have no idea how much you are really eating. It's all just guesswork. I have been tracking my food since 7 months before I even got surgery and it makes such a difference.