What is life like after RNY?

I'm going to be having weight loss surgery and I would be interested in hearing what life is like after RNY?

For instance what size meals do you eat and how often? Can you have a variety of foods or are you limited to mostly protein?

Do you like your RNY or are you miserable with it?  I have heard that you are not able to take ansaids with the RNY. Is this true?

Do any of you wish you chose a different surgery? If so, which one? Would love to hear your story and the pros and cons of this surgery.

 

Thank you all1

I try to stick to protein and veggies, if I do to many carbs, I see weight gain.  I love my RNY!  my grocery bill is very low, and eating is simple for me.  (I don't cook)  I normally eat 3 meals and 2 snacks a day.   I had some trouble with RHG but have got that figured out when I keep myself away from cheating on carbs and sugar.  Other issue I have is alcohol.  - See my story about 5 threads down.  I am now a week sober and doing fine, but not happy about it. As time goes by, it will get better.

overall , being thinner has done wonders for my confidence in life, so I get out and enjoy it so much more than I ever did before and to me that has made it all worth while. 

right...no Nsaids....just tylenol products

Best of luck!! 

For instance what size meals do you eat and how often? Can you have a variety of foods or are you limited to mostly protein?  Still try for protein first but get in some veggies and or salad too but don't fill up on them.  Eat sweets but too many and I pay for it the next morning in the bathroom.  Based on symptoms think I might have some reactive hypoglycemia on occasion too if I get too much.  Love seafood, steak, ground beef, fajita meat (beef and chicken) and Mexican food!  

Do you like your RNY or are you miserable with it?  I have heard that you are not able to take ansaids with the RNY. Is this true?  You have got to stay hydrated!  If not you pay for it with a trip to ER for IV's.  Have to keep up with annual labs to keep the numbers down the middle.  At five years out so far so good on the labs.  Had to make a trip to ER in January due to dehydration.  Walk on the treadmill 3-4 times a week.  Risking the wrath of some of my fellow RNY'ers I'll tell you also that if worse comes to worse if no Tylenol is available I'll drop an Advil or two. 

Do any of you wish you chose a different surgery? If so, which one? Would love to hear your story and the pros and cons of this surgery.  I'll stick with what I got.  Biggest con with WLS, regardless of what surgery you have, is the emotional/psychological changes you go through along with the physical ones.  They don't tell you about that in the brochures from the surgeon's office!  That part is one hell of a roller coaster ride!

 

While I was losing, I ate 800 calories per day, 50% of calories from protein.

Now, I'm at about 2000 calories and not specific on macronutrients. I run 5K three times a week and strength training one day a week.

I eat anything but something like a large shake or an entire doughnut might result in some dumping. Small sizes are fine. Something like a 6" Subway Club, Cheetos, and Diet Soda could be supper.

I had RNY and the only regret is not doing it 10 years earlier.

I have not had a MOMENT of regret about my RNY!!!! 

I am 4 + years out and eat a pretty normal array of foods. I choose to eat high protein meals - a shake for breakfast (my choice, not a medical necessity), protein/fruit/veggie for lunch, and protein/salad/veggie for dinner. I do have a couple of snacks a day which might include a low sugar protein bar or some fruit. 

Like others have said, if I indulge in many refined carbs I find my weight creeping up. Similarly if I slack off on exercise I can gain weight. For me, exercise is like a prescription drug - I don't dare go without it!

I would never have imagined that my love affair with food would change. Yes, I enjoy food and I enjoy eating. I can have a slice of pizza if I want. I can have a small dessert if I want (but sometimes it doesn't agree with me, so I know I'm better off to avoid it). I know that I am a compulsive eater and yes, I have had a couple of times I have overeaten and felt physically bad because of it. I know that sometimes I eat when I am overtired and try to sort out my own feelings of fatigue from hunger. I know that sometimes I eat just because there is an opportunity to eat - not because I am hungry. All of this is the psychological work that follows surgery. 

Hopefully this helps! Good luck!

Hi, Sunshine1968!

I had roux-en-y done in July 2001.  I was approximately 367 pounds at the time.  Here I am, 12 years later, and I weigh 163 pounds (I had bottomed out for the past few years between 190 and 200, but I have been so busy with my new career as a middle school teacher, another 30-40 just fell off!).

At this point, so many years postop, I can honestly say that I don't really think about eating the way I did before surgery.  It is almost as if they operate on your brain when you have the surgery. My life is not centered around food.  I do take Tylenol, maybe twice a week...have never had any problems.  I am very happy with the long-term results, and I don't regret having gone through surgery for one minute.  Wait, if I had one regret, I wouldn't have waited until I was almost 34 years old to do it, because I am like a 46-year-old trapped in the body of a 30-year-old. :)))  Good luck!!!  Jeannie

My life after RNY is much like life before, just smaller.  I had surgery 8/2009, was back to work a week later. I went from 237lb to 153lbs. That's a size 22 to a size 8 (a tight 6). Being 4 years out, I can eat about what my little kids can and sometimes not even that much. The recommended serving sizes is a good gauge. The only things I can not eat are roast pork, ham and ice cream. Pork gets stuck and ice cream makes me vomit. That is not enough dietary restrictions to make me miserable!  I did have a hernia repair in 4/2010 which I was told is common after WLS. The surgeons do not sew up the internal holes made by the laproscopic tools and sometimes when the fat melts away it leaves a hernia defect.  So far, that is the only  major complication I have had and I do not regret having the surgery.

Yes, you are not supposed to take NSAID's or not frequently. They increase your risk for stomach ulcers.

Shortly after getting into those lovely 6 jeans I found out I was pregnant. I now have a healthy 1 year old.  I did find that pregnancy brought on a whole new set of dietary struggles, mostly because I was STARVING all the time and was able to eat significantly more than I had been able to post op.  Thankfully I did not gain much weight during the pregnancy, only 13lbs but have not been able to get it off yet. I'm going to do the 5 day pouch test starting tomorrow to see if I can jump start that process!

Good luck on your journey!

I had RNY a little over a year ago and I have lost over 150lbs, so far. I had problems with not being able to eat or drink much for awhile and they ran a tube down my throat and said they didn't find anything, but did the balloon thingy and I was fine after that. I would do the surgery again (would hate the pains of getting up & down and wouldn't have tried to do too much too soon) because it was the BEST decision I ever made for me. I can walk around and breathe and don't feel like people are staring at me and judging me for my size. I eat about 1/2 c to a cup of food at one sitting. I try to always eat my meat or dairy before anything else, so I can get protein in. I cannot tolerate milk products **** cream and milk) but I can do Greek yogurt and cheeses. I don't even try much bread (cause that was one of my big problems pre-surgery) plus, unless it's toasted, it doesn't make me feel too good! YUK. I can eat sweets, but NOT all sweets (plus, I didn't get this surgery and go through the pain to just eat the same crap I did pre-surgery and I don't want to gain my weight back). I wouldn't choose a different surgery because I NEED the restriction and I think I may have cheated with the others. You cannot have aspirin products, true. But I have taken one or two over the year and was fine. I eat whatever food I want, within reason and every NEW food is a test that I need to do (cause it may not set well with my pouch). I don't do sandwiches, EVER.....cause the bread is bad and doesn't set well with my pouch (I did try an egg salad sandwich bite or two). The liquid phases were boring, but I don't feel Hunger and that is still the case; so I didn't freak out about it. I didn't do babyfood. I did creamed soups, sugar-free jello and pudding (surprisingly I liked them) and oatmeal, applesauce....these were ALL my favorites. I hope this helps. If you have any ?'s ask.....everyone is pretty good to answer things.