Many questions for you all - ThinnerTimes

mydarling · 09-02-2005, 10:52 AM

Hi - I'm a 38 year old female who currently weighs 320lbs at 5'9" tall. I'm married and have 2 kids. I've been browsing this site for a the last couple weeks and am quite impressed with everyone here. You've all done a great job!

I am sure these questions have been asked before, I hope you don't mind me asking. I've been overweight my whole life. I dieted as a small child, I was hungry all the time. My mom had me in every diet program known. I even resorted to taking speed at one time in my life to help me lose. I've done Nutrisystem (lost 50lbs and was only 20lbs from goal weight but gained it all back plus!

) In the past few years I've gone the LC route, lost 48lbs and haven't been able to shed another pound. No efforts work. I am currently having my thyroid function re-evaluated hoping to get that straightened out.

So that's my history (condensed version).

Can I ask, how do you find a good doctor that isn't going to "mess you up" so to speak? (worried about problems or even death!)

I've heard so many horror stories of folks losing their hair and becoming very ill, does that happen anymore?

In the long term does it all boil down to following the same type of healthy diet that everyone should follow anyway? What I mean is that I see some folks here saying what they eat, it seems healthy and that is what we're all supposed to do anyway. The surgery is mostly just for portion control?

Does the fast weight loss come from calorie reduction due to portion control? Do they tell you how many calories per day you should eat?

I like to drink at least a gallon of water per day...if I were to have surgery, how do you quench your thirst? My sister who was looking into it said you can't drink a glass of water all at once otherwise you'll get sick.

I read a disclaimer on the band procedure that some people don't even lose weight and that it has to be retightened often. Is that true? Seems like the lap band is less invasive.

What surgery did you have and would any of you say that one is better than the other?

I'm sorry I have so many questions. I've been contemplating this for a while and I don't know what to do. I feel like a failure at everything I try and feel like I'm not trying hard enough. Wondering if this would be a help or not.

Thank you all for listening and I hope to get some responses

Mavisavis · 09-02-2005, 11:05 AM

Welcome to the board!

You've come to the right place for information and support. I have not had my surgery yet, but have done a lot of research and have stuck around the board the last few months gaining insight. My surgery is now only a few days away......HOORAH! I'll just answer a few that come to mind as I type. Others will chime in with their knowledge and experience. First off......YES, you can drink your water. The thing with water is that you can no longer drink with food. The time frame to stop before a meal and wait after the meal will differ slightly. Mine say stop 30 min before and wait 60 min after. This is to keep the food from turning to liquid and emptying fast......leaving you ready to eat again. In between meals they want you to drink lots of water. The people I know are not sick and unhealthy. They are happy and healthy.......one of the reasons I decided to go for it. Yes, the band is less intrusive. I decided on the bypass over the band because I didn't want to worry about adjustments later......especially if you ever switched insurance companies and they wouldn't pay. Also, I felt the fact that the food processes the same, but just makes you full quicker would make me eat less healthy and keep more weight. I also felt the research was still a little too unsure for me. It's major good points are that you absorb all your vitamins the same, and you can loosen it if you become ill or pregnant and require more food. I'll leave the rest for others.......good luck in your search. Stick around!

2Bhealthy · 09-02-2005, 05:34 PM

mydarling! Hi and welcome. I am pre-op as well but here is my shot at answering some of your questions. Most of the people on this board have had or are going to have the RNY bypass. Thats because Dr. Callery and Dr. Potts only do RNY and this is the support site they have for their patients. Of course, everyone is welcome.
They only do RNY because they have had consistantly good results and they are experienced at it. They feel it is the "gold standard", a term that is hotly debated but generally understood.
Loing hair: yes it happens at around 4 months post-op people will have thinning hair. They don't go bald, and it does come back in. hair is protein and when you lose weight rapidly your body needs that protein.
Becomming very ill: all surgeries have their complications, this is no exception. Some bad things can and do happen. Study up and weigh your pros and cons. I think dietary advise post-op is very important. I've noticed that when people know what to do, like tiny bites chew, chew, chew. following Drs. guidelines etc.. they do well
Some people insist on "testing their pouch" eating suger, large bites, THEN they are very sick! most people only improve their health after surgery.
Finding a Dr. that wont mess you up; VERY IMPORTANT, you need a surgeon who specializes in weight loss surgery. One with sparkling reputation, a great aftercare system and fantastic statistics! Find out what the rate of complication is of the Dr compared to the national average, etc...
Drinking water: yes drink, at first you cant gulp, later you can , but like Marty said, no drinking with meals! People who do gain back weight.
Why not just eat right? Kellie at Dr. Callerys office said "look at a golf ball, or a walnut, if you can eat just that much only three times a day, you dont need this surgery" The surgery is a tool which makes it possile to be satisfied with little food.
later, you can eat more, but never as much as you once did.
I personally have decided to have this surgery because I have seen so many successes by people who were just as out of control with food as I am. I know its possible to be healthy and thin with this sugery. The other reason is a negative one. I have learned that only approx. 2 percent of morbidly obese people are able to lose it and keep it of with diet and exercize! YIKES! I dont want to play those odds.
Sorry for the epic novel, best of luck on your journey, and welcome to the board.

veroniquetalk · 09-02-2005, 06:20 PM

You lose weight because you can no longer have large portions and are not very hungry (at least not during the first months) because when you have the RNY the levels of a hormone called Ghrelin are changed. Ghrelin regulates your appetite.

During the first months when you can't eat a lot and you are not hungry you have the chance to learn to re- eat, to break those bad eating habits, to have your obsession with food freed from your mind so that you can think about WHY you overate to begin with rather than obessing about eating, not eating, how much you ate, etc. I wasn't told anything about calories - just to eat 4 oz of food at this stage.

As far as finding a good dr, ask around. Go to the seminars for a few dr's. Ask how many surgeries they have done if they don't volunteer that information. Ask how many patients they have lost. Ask how they deal with keeping you from developing blood clots in your legs after surgery. You might start by asking your primary care physican to recommend one.

You can't drink a whole glass of water by chugging it but you can by sipping on it. MY dr recommends having 64 oz a day but I have a hard time getting to that amount.

I decide against the band because I know of 2 people who have had it done and you can't tell that they have lost much weight. Also, I heard that you can feel the device they leave under your skin (the device is used to adjust the band).

Good luck on your decision.

LizardQueen · 09-03-2005, 05:46 AM

First of all, Welcome! It is always great to have a a new member! I'll answer the best I can but you have to remember this is how things have worked out for me.
To find a good doc, look around and then research, research, research, if you don't like that one move on and research the next one.
There are lots of health risks involved with wls. I felt pretty rough for a couple of weeks and now I'm doing great! Some of us lose some hair-I happen to be one of those. I am not completely bald but my hair has thinned. This is a pretty commmon occurence and the good news is that I have been assured by several wonderful people here that it will come back and usually it is thicker and healthier than before. I just got a cute short cut and try not to focus on it.
I had the open RNY procedure. I don't know if it is better than anyone elses procedure. I'm happy with it and that is all that matters. It works in two ways which I'll explain the best I can (not a science major)-your smaller stomach can only hold a small amount of food and your food digests in your intestines and goes through a shorter distance of intestine so you don't absorb as many calories. You also don't absorb all the nutrients so that is why you must take vitamin and calcium supplements for life. So you get all the nutrients you need because you can't get them through eating. The doc you chose will explain this a whole lot better than I can but that is the "cliff notes" version.
You won't want to drink a gallon of water a day. I still struggle somedays with getting in my 64 oz. You have to sip, sip, sip. Not chug,chug chug. If I chug it hurts and/or comes right back up. I'm never feel like I'm being denied anything or can't get enough to drink. I have learned to take my time and I'm happy with things as they are.
I hope this helped you out a little. I'm not so good at explaining the facts plus we all have a different experience with things and a lot of it has to do with how far you are out. I got a little depressed early out but that has passed and I feel great. I'll go ahead and answer the big question that I get all the time from everybody-Would you do it again? Absolutely!

mydarling · 09-05-2005, 08:59 AM

Does everyone hair thin?

I only have a moment now, so I'll take time to re-read all the replies. Thank you in advance for your thoughts