Weight loss surgery and fibromyalgia?
 

Hi folks, I posted on one of the other forums, but wanted to post here, too. I have fibromyalgia, and I am working on having the roux-en-y gastric bypass surgery. Does anyone know of info on having this kind of surgery in terms of how it impacts fibromyalgia? I had heard a concern that the mood swings, for example, may be more severe than in other patients, but that was just speculation. Anyone know where I might find more info?

Thanks in advance!

Hi, just wanted to say welcome to you. I don't have any information on wls and fibromyalgia, but a great place to start looking for information would be obesity help. The web address is obesityhelp.com. IF you have not been to that web site, it is packed-jammed full of information.

Have you seen a surgeon yet? Where are you in the process?

Stick around and get to know us, we're a friendly bunch.

Debbie

I don't have fibro, but I do have SLE (lupus), so we're kind of in the same boat. I know how stressful situations, or sickness, can send our bodies into a downward spiral. I talked to my doctor about this, and we're hopeful about the situation. My surgery is scheduled for 3/12, so I'll let you know what happens.

The positive spin I am putting on this is that by losing lots of weight, my joint and muscle aches will be less severe, as there's going to be much less pressure on those parts of my body. I kind of figure I'm gonna feel crappy for a while, but in the long run the weight loss will make me feel great.

Good Luck...............Lorrie

Thanks for the reply! I will be completing all of my testing for the RNY on Monday, and then I have to wait until the end of the month for the last test to come back. When I met with the psychologist for that part of the screening after my first labwork and exam with the doctor, I asked her if she had any feedback after we finished talking. She said that everything looked fine, that my mood was good and I had good support and I was very intelligent and had a basic understanding of the surgery and that I would have to change a lot of things after. She recommended that I order Barbara Thompson's book on WLS, which I did, and I received it last night. I am almost halfway through it already. The psych said the only thing she needed to look into was what impact, if any, the FMS would have on my ability to manage mood swings after the surgery. I have to tell you that I have been hanging on a thread ever since I started learning that this was something that could help me get my life back, and I am kind of scared that there will be something to happen and I will be disqualified. They have already told me that I have been accepted as a candidate for the surgery, my doctors are strongly backing me (it was my rheumatologist that has been urging me to get it done for a year), and my insurance pays for this surgery. When my docs first referred me for it and asked me to seriously consider it, I was floored, and was horrified at the suggestion, even though I knew I'd tried everything I could and so did my docs. Now that I've been researching it and understanding all sides of it and know that this is what I need and want (and my family supports me), I am terrified that I will be disqualified after the testing. Have other people gone through this? I find myself worrying about it and afraid to hope that I could have a fighting chance and afraid that I will wake up and find out that it was another dead end. Most of the time I try to push my feelings out and focus on other things, but when I just stop to think about how I feel about it, then the floodgates just come open on my tears. I was very calm and composed at my first exam (good training, I guess), right up to the point where she asked me how I felt about it, and I managed to get four words out, "I've tried so hard..", and then I was sitting there sobbing so much I couldn't keep talking. I'm really lucky that my family are *very* supportive, and I know a lot of my friends aren't so lucky. I know that this is what gets me through the days, and there is always a shoulder for me, and most important, nonjudgmental support. At first my SO was very frightened about it, but open-minded and he's been by my side every minute of the way.

breathe, darlin. it'll be ok. i promise. you have everything going in your favor, and frankly, i'm not sure about the FM at all. it might actually become easier as your body chemistry adjusts. this is simply uncharted territory for the docs and for you.

i didn't have any mood swings, after the surgery. well, maybe i've become more assertive [read *****Y!!!!] and i had FM years ago. no longer, though.

It sounds as if all your docs have the right experience in getting people through this process, and the fact that they've required a psych clearance means that they know what they're doing.

so, keep on plugging, and start looking at protein shakes!!!

Did you have a chance to check out obesity help? If not, spend some time reading there........warning, once you start you could be reading for hours!!

Sounds like you are on the right track. When I first started looking into wls, I wanted it NOW!! It takes a little while to get everything in order and in the long run it's a good thing.......it's like having a child, your life will change........and it's for the better.

Glad you have support, that means a lot.

Do you have a support group in your area that you could join? Check with your surgeon, if he does not have a support group perhaps he knows of one in your area.

Keep posting
Debbie

Thanks a lot for the words of encouragement. I finally got a chance to sit in on a discussion with the surgeons this afternoon, and that helped a lot. It was not the one that I'll have after my tests are completed, but rather more of a general thing where they were there and told us a lot about it and answered questions. I feel much better now that I got to talk to them, because they told me that the psychologist doesn't disqualify people, but rather anticipates needs that we might have. She did refer me to a biofeedback clinic that I will be attending in a couple of weeks. I did biofeedback years ago when I was having headaches really badly during pregnancy, and that did help. She suggested that I treat it as a *refresher* course, and felt that it would help me to cope with the recovery, and also will get some additional training in pacing myself (something I don't do too well).

The surgeons also said that it would have to be something really exceptional for them to disqualify me from having the surgery, such as a serious pulmonary or heart problem, and even then most of the time they could work with that in other ways. But I don't have any unusual life-threatening problems that would make the surgery unsafe for me. I felt reassured by that, so now it is just a matter of waiting. I plan to fax my rheumatologist to ask him if I needed to be concerned about the FM in terms of the surgery. I am hoping that the FM will mostly resolve itself once I can get some of the weight off that aggravates my symptoms so much.

When it comes to the weight, I am just shy of BMI of 40, but I have a number of comorbidities, including the FM. I'm told that much of my FM symptoms will resolve with weight loss, along with much of the other comorbidities as well. I am less nervous now that I know that it is rare for them to disqualify someone, and now it is just a matter of waiting.

Thanks again for the welcome!