Weight Loss Surgery - life after surgery

Hi everyone,

I wanted to get a feed back from someone who has had weight loss surgery,

my main question is... What happens once you reach your goal weight? does teh weight continue to drop down?

I had only a small experience with WLS patients ( im a nursing student and only had 1 pt, who was malnourished and had adhesions in the stomach causing her great pain )

I know you can't reverse bypass ( or can you? ) so what happens for the rest of your life?

and also, if you could tell me what is the caloric intake for you after bypass and after you reach/ close to your goal.


thank you in advance for your time and answers.

I haven't had WLS so I apologize :)

I do have just a general interest in life of those with weight loss surgery and in the past I was in a weight loss program that included weight loss surgery candidates as well as non candidates.

I was watching a recent PBS documentary that said 5% of weight loss surgery patients get to a "normal" weight. Now I'm not sure how they define normal but that was the statistic given. I've also heard the success rate is 40% for weight loss surgery and again, I'm not sure how success is defined with that statistic. The last thing I've heard is that gastric bypass can help you lose 50%-60% of the total weight needed to lose but after that it is really up to you to maintain that weight loss and to continue on with the weight loss. (Girls feel free to correct me!)

Quite a few of the girls here have looked at incorporating other weight loss plans such as weight watchers and south beach diet so that they can maintain and reach their goal if they haven't already.

I would think caloric intake would depend on the individual so your caloric intake would be different than someone else just based on your metabolism.

Again, I'm not an expert on weight loss surgery but as far as I know it isn't an easy ride to your goal weight but weight loss surgery can help you get there.

whew! this is a big question. it's really tough to say that a person loses 50-60% of their excess weight. some of us lose quite a bit more than that, and others lose next to nothing. so that 50-60% figure is an average over all types of people, all ages, all stages of readiness to change, all levels of compliance.

having said that, however, the definition of 'normal' is the killer term. i've accepted that i'll never be at a 'normal' weight. but i can be at a much much lower weight, one that i can maintain, and that i can be healthy and active.

I would love to be in the overweight category myself but I think I recently crossed into the obese category from morbidly obese :)

Jiffy, I agree it is very individual. I think the 50-60% figure was talking about life immediately after the surgery before the transition to regular foods. Although I heard that statistic a few years ago and all statistics need to be taken with a grain of salt :) I guess many years ago, I mistakenly had the impression that those with WLS lost all their excess weight within the first year and maintained it with ease. Thanks to you ladies and others, I know that isn't necessarily true :)

Hi, I had an RNY bypass 2 years and 3 months ago. I am still losing weight and have lost 98% of my excess weight. I have a friend who had the same procedure after correction of an under-active thyroid. Her thyroid level is now normal without medication and she has lost about 115% of her excess. For the past couple of months, she has had to consume a larger than recommended number of calories to avoid becoming under-weight. I am more concerned with losing too much than with not losing enough, lol. I recently had a vertical abdominoplasty and cholisystectomy and immediately lost 17 lbs of my own body weight. All my blood work is normal, so everything is ok. I guess my body just freaked out and started eating itself, lol. Gross, I know. Statistics are typically given on the conservative side. I think with better support and more resources, each case has the potential to be different than the stats given.

I'm in the 5% who got to a "normal" weight, and I have maintained it for 10 years. However, I wouldn't say I was "lucky to get down to my goal weight with no problems", as Pookie put it. It took a good ten years, a few very serious health scares and a lot of hard work. I continue to exercise daily and to count calories carefully.

I had gastric stapling back in 1986. They weren't commonly doing the bypass at that time.

I could easily overeat now; I still get sick occasionally -- a few times a month -- but I generally can eat most food as long as I chew it well. I try to take in about 1500 calories a day. Fortunately, I love to exercise, and I work out about an hour every morning.

Maintenance is not easy, but my WLS still helps me feel full faster, so I'm still able to use the tool. However, it's work. I consider it a labor of love. I have a whole new and healthy life, and sometimes I still feel that I need to pinch myself!

I'm 6 months out almost 7 and My weight loss has slowed so I started incorporating a defined plan SB and WW. Its funny My MIL said to me the other night "But you had the surgery why do you have to diet" I answered that I was trying to incorporate the good habits. I can't go off eating whatever happens to be in front of me or i'll be 225 again (that was my highest) Having gastric bypass gave me the edge I needed but It's up to me to keep it going.
I'm not sure calorie wise but points wise I get between 15-20 per day but everyones different My sis is 5 years postop and she can eat different things than I can

KO, don't you just want to SMACK people when they say stupid things like that?! Hehehe, sorry, my mean streak is coming out here......