Weight loss surgery changed my life - food compulsions

[Anonymous]

I have "issues" with food. Food has been my refuge and companion and a bright light during dark days. I realized that even though I wasn't super morbidly obese (female, 210 pounds at 5'3") I was 45 and exhausted and giving up hope that I could ever lose significant weight and keep it off.

I had the gastric sleeve about 3 years ago. No complications, I was very compliant with the stupid liquid-only diet. While it doesn't address the mental game, it certainly provided a huge physical restriction to eating. I dropped to 145 within a year. One thing I didn't expect: I almost never feel hungry anymore so it's a lot easier to keep from *starting* eating (once I start it gets very hard to stop).

Three years later, I think I'm handling the mental game pretty well. I'm mostly plant-based, focusing on nutrition, walking 2-3 miles a day, mostly maintaining the weight (up and down 10 pounds at a time, but that's a far cry from where I used to be). I still aim to be around 130 but I feel, and look, drastically different than I used to.

One thing that helped was seeing my health start to tank. I'm an EMT and acutely aware of the effects of weight on health, but once it started happening to *me* it was like my whole brain changed. I was pre-diabetic, my cholesterol was high, my knees hurt, I was exhausted, and couldn't bear the thought of another year living in my body.

For anyone that has issues like mine, I just don't think diet and exercise is ever going to be enough. It was my drug of choice, and a drug I could never completely quit (unlike alcohol or cigarettes, not that quitting those is easy but it's possible). If your insurance covers it, I say start the process and see how you feel as you go along - it takes 6 months to a year to be approved usually. For my insurance, I had to start with an appointment with my GP just to discuss my weight, that had to be the focal point of the meeting.

I'll try to check back and answer questions I guess, but the internet is full of answers and I doubt I have anything brilliant to say on the topic. I just wanted to encourage people to consider WLS. I don't care if it was an easy way out, it saved me. And that's what matters.

[Anonymous]

Congrats OP!

[Anonymous]

congrats OP!

[Anonymous]

Op, I had the surgery too, and it was one of the best decisions I could have made. I lost 80 lbs. in 2.5 years. I look and feel amazing, and got extra years added to my life by reversing the long-term impacts of obesity on my health.

I can't stress how much people should quit dieting and try the surgery instead. There is enough data to support the health benefits and safety. Op, at your weight and size, I assume you went out of the US to have your procedure done?

Congrats to you for taking back control of your life, op!

[Anonymous]

My DH had the sleeve over ten years ago, and it is still the best decision he has ever made for his happiness and health. He has gained and lost over the years since, like any middle aged man, but it is terrifying to think of where he would be now if he hadn’t had the surgery - he was slowly losing mobility and joy in life before the surgery.

Your story should help affirm for people that weight loss isn’t all in our conscious control. Your hunger dropped after the surgery because the stomach itself produces hunger hormones, and obesity creates this hormonal cycle of producing more hunger hormone, and gaining more weight, and producing more hunger hormone…and on and on. The key bit of the surgery may not be shrinking the stomach (or else the band would work as well) but it removing all that mis-firing hormone producing tissue.

The surgery and recovery is no joke - it can be a really hard 2-4 months post surgery. But man, being able to play with your kid and take a long walk with your spouse is worth it all.

[Anonymous]

People need to accept that except for statistically irrelevant outliers (all of whom coincidentally seem to post frequently here at DCUM), surgery is currently the only proven method of long-term weight loss. Diets do not work for long-term loss, except for that statistically irrelevant group.

It is possible that the new GLP-1 medications will be as effective as surgery long-term, but we don’t have the data yet.

Congratulations, OP, on making a positive decision for your health.

[Anonymous]

Well done.
Did you need a second surgery for excess skin removal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Well done.
Did you need a second surgery for excess skin removal?

I did get a tummy tuck but it was mostly for the pregnancy muscle blowout (my first son was over 10 pounds, a sign of diabetes to come I believe) and to help with overall appearance. There wasn’t much skin, I just looked 5 months pregnant!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op, I had the surgery too…Op, at your weight and size, I assume you went out of the US to have your procedure done?

Congrats to you for taking back control of your life, op!

Thanks so much and congrats to you also!!! If I ever hit my real goal it’ll be 80 pounds for me too! Because of my co-morbidities insurance covered it. Slight sleep apnea, Pre-diabetes, etc. I was very lucky.

[Anonymous]

I loved reading this OP. Very happy for you and thanks for sharing!

[Anonymous]

I am the pp who lost 80 lbs. To those who are on the fence, just do it. If you have the surgery on Nov. 1, by the Memorial day kick off to summer, you could easily strut in a two piece, and you will look and feel so much better.

The sleeve is a no-brainer option at this point for those with significant weight to lose. It works and antiquated dieting does not. If you do manage to lose weight via diet, you will gain all of it back plus some-- stop fooling yourself. Get the sleeve so you can finally take "losing weight" off your to-do list!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Well done.
Did you need a second surgery for excess skin removal?

I did get a tummy tuck but it was mostly for the pregnancy muscle blowout (my first son was over 10 pounds, a sign of diabetes to come I believe) and to help with overall appearance. There wasn’t much skin, I just looked 5 months pregnant!!

That's great. I could do with a tummy muscle repair (2 kids over 15 months) myself.

[Anonymous]

I was convinced by the study done on “the biggest loser “ contestants that we need to start looking at bariatric surgery as the primary solution. I think ever underestimated how hard wired human bodies are to regain weight.

[Anonymous]

I agree with you, although my body after sleeve stopped losing around 160 pounds. I maintain that on around 1200 calories a day--no wonder I had an eating disorder in my teens and 20s, being thin was mathematically impossible for me. So much happier post-sleeve.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was convinced by the study done on “the biggest loser “ contestants that we need to start looking at bariatric surgery as the primary solution. I think ever underestimated how hard wired human bodies are to regain weight.

Where “we” means the multi-billion dollar diet industry and junk food industry, whose lobbyists have effectively prevented forward progress on the science of obesity.