really scared about regain! :(

Hi all,

I haven't even had surgery yet but I was really looking at having the DS til I found out that my insurance only covers RNY, Sleeve, or band.  I feel like the RNY is now my best choice.  I am really scared though by all the 'regain' issues that people have had.  I do NOT want that to happen!!!  Is it simply inevitable?  Is it even POSSIBLE to not regain weight?  I mean.... it just seems like if it's not even humanly possible to maintain, why even have the surgery?   I'm just scared and need some sort of reassurance or something that will let me know that I can make RNY work. 

Thanks so so much :)
Candace

I am only a little over 1.5 years out so I can't speak to regain although there are a number of people on this board who have maintained for a number of years. 

I can say that if you feel that the DS is the surgery that's right for you then you should appeal your insurance cos decision.  And if that fails, consider self-pay.  You may have to save for awhile but in the end it may well be worth it to you.  The 2 surgeries are similiar on one hand and yet very different on the other. 

I am happy with my RNY and feel it was the way I wanted to go.  But there are others who wish they had known about the DS or the VSG before they had their sugery.  They would change it if they could. 

Good luck!

Of course regain is not inevitable.  Why would doctors be performing surgery and insurance companies paying for it if patients always regained?  That wouldn't make sense.

You can regain after any surgery, including the DS.  To prevent regain, you will need to change your eating habits.  You will need to continue eating small portions, which is easier with a small pouch than it is before surgery, of course, but you will still need to watch your portion size.  You will need to make good food choices, at least most of the time.  If you don't make changes in your eating habits, you will almost certainly regain.  The surgery helps you  make those changes, but it doesn't do all the work for you.

i'm not even 5 months out yet, so take what i say with a grain of salt.

however, we are responsible for our choices. i feel if we look at people who have regained (and i've known some in real life), the surgery didn't fail, they stopped doing what they were supposed to be doing.

this is a tool. we can stop using the tool anytime we wish, but regain will happen. that's still our choice though.

 No, of course regain is NOT inevitable.  Your weight will either stay stable or change (up or down) depending on what and how much you eat, and how much physical activity you get.  I am almost 5 years out and maintaining within 7 pounds of my lowest weight (which was a few pounds under my goal weight).  If you choose to exercise less (as I do because of bad knees) you just have to be more diligent about limiting what you eat.  I still eat small treats almost every day -- but that means a spoonful of my favorite ice cream (full fat and sugar) or half a small bag (lunchbag sized bag) of some kind of pretzels or chips rather than a whole bowl (or even cup) of ice cream or half of a large bag of chips -- but I still follow the rules about protein first always, no drinking with meals, limiting carbs, etc.  You really DO have to learn to change your eating habits during that first 9months post-op.

To be honest, I think that dealing with the psychological contributors to obesity is just as big a key as learning how to eat properly.  Many people know what they SHOULD be eating, but if hey don't deal with the fact that they eat because of anxiety/loneliness/sadness/boredom or have unresolved psychological or emotional issues that they soothe with food, sometimes they just cannot seem to follow the plan.  If you don't deal with the food demons, it makes maintaining the weight loss harder (and, for some people, makes it hard to LOSE the weight even after surgery).

Lora

 I miss those big ole chip bags!!

Hi Candace.
We are ALL with you in regards to worrying about possible weight gain. I don't think anyone can be serious about this journey and not have it in the back of the head.
The problem because when (for a lot of people *****gain) complacency and old eating habits come back into play. I know for me, eating dense protein fills me up and isn't as comfortable as slider foods. I sometimes grab stuff I shouldn't because it's "easy"  I have had to have serious talks with myself and give myself a kick in the butt when I do realize I am doing that.
I am up 7 pounds from where I view as my "new normal" from RNY.   I am having a lot of medical problems (not related to RNY) that I am dealing with that are part of the cause. I have my eye on it and will not become complacent about it.
Also, I notice I do much better when I frequent this forum.
 

I am 8 years out and have been up and down a few pounds over those years but am still 100lbs under my surgery weight, which was always my goal and am at a normal BMI .

In my 8 years on here I have known many DS'ers that have either never reached goal or have regained significant amounts (30-50lbs).   It is no more a magic surgery than RNY - ALL WLS types require work to get and stay at goal in the long term.

I am terrified of regain!  I am only 14 months out and I have not had any regain, but I felt myself slipping - snacking too much - eating the wrong foods - not moving enough.  So I kicked myself in the tush.  I am on day 2 of the 5 day pouch test - I don't know if its a great idea -there were a ton of pros and cons that I read- but for me, it was a good choice.  I feel lighter already and my energy level is sky high.  I had this surgery so I could live my life while I don't want to live to eat, I want to be able to enjoy.  So I am learning my limits and moving on!  Also - I come back to these boards and read and learn and hopefully share a little wisdom.

Good Luck to you and dont scare yourself out of it by the thought that the weight might come back.  Know that you are making the right choice for your health, learn your boundaries and live!

Regain, up to 100% of what you lost CAN happen. And it can happen if you have the DS or the RNY or any other procedure

A HUGE chunk of success with the RNY or any other surgical procedure is about how you treat the entire process. Some of the "red alert" signs that I personally think are an indicator that a person might be at risk of regan include the following types of posts:

"My surgery doesn't work, because I can eat a whole cup of food even though my surgeon said I should only be eating 1/4 cup"... If you have a plan and you willfullly break it, particularly in the early months, you might be at risk to experience serious regain. Most everyone has a plan, and that plan should include volume constraints for the first three to six months. Some surgeons believe that movng to solids fairly quickly is the best way, some like to keep their pateints on liquid or soft stuff for some time (my plan was three weeks full liquids, 5 weeks mushies). But if you have a plan and won't/don't follow it, likely you'll have issues along the way.

"Is NOT drinking with my meal REALLY that important, because I just can't stop." ... while a certain amount of regain is possible, I really haven't heard of anyone on this site who has regained huge amounts who has followed the "don't drink with meals or half an hour afterward" rule. To me this is RULE #1, those who break it are likely to have issues.

"I've been trying to see if I dump, and so far cake, cookies, candy and ice cream don't make me dump; Is my surgery broken?" When you test the limits -- ostensibly so you can consume up to said limits -- then you're short-circuiting the process. Only 3 out of every ten people who have this surgery dump. (and believe me, from one who dumps, those 7 out of 10 are blessed, because dumpng doesn't stop me eatng sweets but it sure makes me feel like hell). If you're pushing your limits from the word go, you're likely to continue in that fashion and eventually push yourself back nto a larger size.

There are probably about twenty more types of posts that I could think about and use as exammples, but overall the summation of the above is: If you LIVE the plan, CHANGE your habits, FOCUS on a new lifestyle, and don't think about it as deprivaton, but JUST think about it as something that is a PART of your life from now and until forever, you WILL be fine.

does this mean that you'll get to some low point in your weight and never regain?? not in the slightest..

It means that ultimately you'll get to the weight your body likes, perhaps a bit lower, and your body will equalize your weight to what it considers the optimum for it. Likely your body has a totally different perspective on optimum than you do! Once you get there, then you'll find that losing that extra five or ten pounds -- y'know the five pounds those annoying thin people bemoan losing and you want to sock them in the eye for being unfeeling twits? -- those lbs are going to be as hard for YOU to lose as they are for anyone in "thin-normal" american life. Not impossible, but not easy.

The big deal about this surgery is that there's a sort of balance point that we purposely skew. Prior to having the surgery, your body might need a LOT of calories to maintain the mass you've accumulated. I'll use some sample numbers to illustrate. For example, as a morbidly obese person might need 4000 calories just to maintain all bodily functions. So when they consume twice the recommended daily diet of 2000 calories, they don't GAIN weight, but they don't lose it either. Then, that "needs 4000 to breathe" person has surgery, and in the beginnng they need 4000 but consume 400 calories. On day one they might lose an entire pound of stored fat, since that 3600 calorie deficit is equated to a pound of "fuel". But then, y'see, on day two, they don't Quite NEED 4000 calories to function, because they're a pound lighter, so if they eat only 400 calories, they won't burn quite as many calories in functioning.

Now fast forward to when the person is nearing goal. At goa, your body might need only 1500 calories to maintain all bodily functions. So if you're getting in 1200 calories, you'll be losing a few ounces a month. Ultimately, as your food consumption (which will be well up from 400 when you're close to goal) will balance out with your calorie needs, and at some point the balance will move the other way.... if you dont' change your food consumption, and your body needs slightly fewer calories to maintain, then your body will gain until it reaches the balance point of calories in = calories burnt. At this point you can accept that balance point, or if you want to be at a lower weight you can up your exercise or lower your calories (or both). MOST people experience some amount of bounceback as part of the leveling out and balancing and figuring out your "maintenance lifestyle"

For the time being I'm balancing between three to eight pounds over my "optimum balance point" ...which for me is above the weight that is perfect for my body. I don't drink with my meals, but my "moving the body" part just doesn't quite do the trick and a bit too much snacking also has it's impact. Overall though, fluctuating up to 8 pounds ovver my optimum is about a 3 to 6% regain and it has remained fairly stable even if I've been fighting it (like thin-america does) for months now.