Question:
Has anyone had to quit smoking to have surgery?

when i started to get serious about the surgery i made it a point to quit smoking..i am still in the process of it all.a few of my friends who have had the rny said you had to be quit smoking for 6 months and was wondering was anyone else struggling with this and has anyone quit,got surgery and started smoking again?i have been quit for 3 months now...i chew alot of gum...lol    — carolyn1970 (posted on March 25, 2009)

March 25, 2009
I don't smoke but I went to a support group tonight and smoking and drinking alcohol was one of the major questions. My surgeon, along with another surgeon said that you should not smoke because if you have the bypass you can get ulcers in your stomach that will not heal because of the smoke, he said you even have to be careful being around people who smoke. Also they said that you cannot even chew gum after surgery because when you chew gum it causes air to go into your stomach which will make it stretch. That blew my mind. Good luck to you.
   — [Deactivated Member]

March 25, 2009
I know you've heard this a hundred times but it won't hurt to quit smoking. If you've been cleam for 3 months you are doing great. This will help you during surgery. I quit many years ago and have never regreted it. Keep up the good work in this area - it can only be a positive thing. I didn't know about the gum issue which has gotten me going because I do chew lightly on gum.
   — Muggs

March 26, 2009
unfortunately i did not quit smoking - passed my blood gasses test. my dr never asked if i quit so i did not tell him. (he knows now that i am still smoking) i had no problems with the surgery. i feel like you are doing great if you are smoke free for 3 months. i quit while in hospital and about a week after i got home but started bAck. i am hoping to quit in the near future so hang in there - it really is the best thing for you.
   — bikermama

March 26, 2009
I researched my surgery and it took me almost 2 years before I got approved (not due to insurance, I got pregnant in the middle of my six month diet). I did quit smoking and have been smoke free for 4 years now. Think of it this way, if you are really serious about getting HEALTHY then do it all the way around. Don't just stop with losing weight, shed the smokes and the alcohol and let your body go ORGANIC....You will feel so much better... RNY 8/28/2008 starting weight 326, present 223...Good luck..
   — Stephanie H.

March 26, 2009
I definitely can relate to your anxiety about quitting. I was a veteran smoker of 23 years. I quit on Sept 30, 2008. I had my first appointment with my surgeon back in January 2009 at which time he informed me that I would need to be off cigarettes at least 1 month before surgery. Not a problem since I'd been quit for a few months....or so I thought. I found out last week that I have been approved for surgery and my date is April 21st. Since I've gotten the news I've really had to fight off some major cravings to light up. I'm not sure why, though. I am really trying to look at this as an opportunity to become healthy in all aspects of my life. Being a pre-surgery patient,it's sometimes very easy to feel like there's going to be some major deprevation going on. Especially when I know that I rely heavily on gum and candy as a cigarette substitute. That's another habit I will have to break. Can't eat....can't smoke....Doesn't sound like much fun, does it? But I keep reminding myself that if I continue to smoke and continue to carry around all this excess weight, I may not live to see 50. Not a pleasant alternative, right? So to sum up my answer, no; you are not alone in your struggles to kick the habit. I will keep you in my thoughts and please do the same for me.
   — prissypoo13

March 27, 2009
My surgeon stated at our seminar, "if you smoke I will not perform any surgery on you". Its for safety/health reasons. I would quit smoking if you do. Just think about how much your body will be going through, but add smoking and it makes it even harder for your body to recover. Not only that but it ups the risks of having surgery (blood clots).
   — clg6n

March 27, 2009
I had a year waiting list for surgery...so I quit smoking almost exactly one year prior to surgery. I was a 1 1/2 -2 packs a day smoker for 24 years...I had lost every reason to want to smoke and was finally mentally ready to do it...I tried over and over again and could never do it long term. I think there comes a time in your life that you are FINALLY ready to change. I did some serious spiritual soul searching and decided to change my entire lifestyle to be healthy...I quit with the gum...I put down my last smoke on New Years Eve, 6 years ago when I popped a piece of Nicorette gum in my mouth....and slowly decreased the 4 mg's of nicotine in half and then weaned myself off the gum in about 2 months...I never picked up a smoke again...Not even a little cheat...I was finally ready...Just like WLS, you can only change when you are mentally ready...No pill or gum can help if your mind is more powerful than the urges from the drug/addiction or you cannot handle stress or anxiety without these habitual cruxes...One year later on 20 Jan the following year I had RNY surgery and again...My mind was ready to be thin...I know myself well and no surgery could have helped me if I had not made up my mind to really commit and do it. Make up your mind to do it and you will...If you have doubts in yourself or the surgery, you will not what you need to do...If there is a part of you that just doesn't want to give up smoking...you won't...You must want it 100%...Getting to that mind set is most of the challenge, in my opinion...It took me 24 years to FINALLY be certain that I hated smoking MUCH more than I ever enjoyed it. Asking your question says to me that you are already looking for a reason to start...like maybe someone else didn't make it and they are fine! They aren't fine if they started smoking again! You can do this! You ARE DOING IT! I am answering your question to let you know that IT CAN BE DONE! And YES...OMIGOD YES...It is hard! The first year is Ridiculously HARD! I had intensely strong urges at 3 mos...and again at 7 mos and again at one year! (Smaller urges in between) Even at times during the 2nd year...and 3rd on occasion...I dreamt that I smoked...I STILL do! But after 3 years...I just had absolutely NO urges to smoke ever again and 6 years now...I am so over it! It is so similar to WLS and it's urges. I cannot distinguish one from the other in terms of how hard it is quitting but WLS is far easier to start with the restriction alone and gets harder later...and harder to stay committed believe it or not...With smoking, you put down the cigarette and you don't have to ever be near it again and the urges fade...Eating, is a part of survival, and you are constantly in and around bad choices of foods...You have to eat at least 3 times day...and later you get back hunger...It can be ridiculously hard.....Like now...I found myself walking the Easter candy aisle, drooling at all that chocolate yesterday! I even bought some SF peeps! LOL They are pretty good! But I really wanted the chocolate...and it took all of my strength to not buy some Hershey's Kisses or Peanut Butter Eggs! Good grief! So...when it comes to addictions like smoking and eating...You can break the habit...but you still have to decide to fight the urges your brain has...and they can be far more powerful than the drug itself! Want it and mean it! Don't look for a reason to start back...Look forward to good health, clean clothes and pretty smelling hair, no phlegm or bronchitis or sinus infections, second and third hand smoke to family and friends...A clean smelling home and car...no yellow and tartar stained teeth...no shortness of breath...clear pink lungs! No restricted blood arteries in your healing stomach after WLS surgery...No fear of smoke related ulcers...slow healing, toxins, infections, cancer, emphysema, etc! Plus you add several years back to your life and AGE! You reverse the aging and stop deep lines in your face...I hope that's some incentive if nothing else because I know how hard it is, being a recovered smoker...I also know how easy it is to give up and give back in...I did it over and over again for years trying to quit...I wish you much luck in staying quit! It's not easy and it takes a LONG time before you stop thinking about smoking...But it can be done! I hope you find the strength deep within yourself because it IS there!!
   — .Anita R.