1 year post op & Disapointed !

[Amy2013]

So today was my 1 year post op appointment & still no weight loss ! I have been at a weight loss stall for the past 6 months and finally the Dr. said " it is a little odd that you have only lost 47 pounds in the year since surgery" . Ya think !! I have been saying this for months now and finally they are going to do a GI test to see if my pouch is leaking, small enough, working right ect.. I just want answers. I still log my food / calorie intake daily. I eat 1,200 calories or less a day. Im doing everything I've been told/asked to do and only down the 47

This journey has been such an emotional rollercoaster for me. When I decided to have the surgery I was at my biggest weight of 347 ! Yikes ! I lost 31 pounds on my own 2 months before surgery & then the 47 with. Yes I know 78 pounds is a big loss but almost everyone I know from all my classes is at there 100 pound mark , & that's just there surgery # not before added in too.

I hope to get some answers soon. I'm so Bummed out. Thanks for letting me vent...............

[Deejaycee76]

You are the only one who truly knows if you're doing everything you are supposed to do. If you are true to yourself, and you just can't lose weight with this procedure, you should look into why you aren't. Is there a possible thyroid problem?
Are you eating too much? Your meals should only be about 4 ounces. It could be possible your doc didn't take enough stomach out if 4 ounces doesn't fill you.
Have you drank carbonated drinks?
Are you getting all of your required protein and water in?
Lots of different scenarios as to why you can't lose.
Best of luck finding out what's wrong.

[Amy2013]

Thanks for the input . I am being true to this life style change & I've worked very hard to not gain. I asked my Dr. today to check for a possible thyroid problem ( she said yes) . Every Dr / surgeon is different. Your saying 4 oz per meal and today she said 10 oz per meal.. 10 oz's sounds like a lot but she reassured us that if the bulk of the meal was protein that 10 oz was fine.. ??? I do not nor cannot drink Any carbonation ( get sick) I drink a min of 8 glasses of water a day.

[Deejaycee76]

Wow. 10 oz? No way in hell can I get that in. I can only have 3 to 4. 2 to 3 oz of a protein and only 1 oz of either a fruit or a veggie. All I can do. Any more and I will vomit or have a cramping pain. It's been the same since I started eating. 1 month out. I'm now going on 5 months post.

[Jeanie]

Wow that is not a lot. And 10 oz does sound like a lot of food. I hope they can figure this out for you. I cannot imagine the frustration you must be feeling. Having major surgery to lose then nothing! Good luck and keep us posted.

[Marvelous329]

Yes dear, something is awfully wrong, there is no way you should hold 10 oz. at all in a day--much less a meal..sounds like stomach not small enough. Hopefully they will get it right. I am losing weight slow as well. I am only down by 25 pounds in 2 months--but Im starting an exercise routine this weekend.

[Marvelous329]

Hope all goes well for you, it can be very disheartening at times, just hang in there,,

[Ann2]

Amy, sorry to hear you've had difficulties. I do hope your doc and you get this sorted out very soon.

The good news, and there is some, is (as you said) you've lost 78 pounds AND (maybe even better news) you have gained some excellent control over your eating behaviors AND surely a lot of knowledge about how to eat healthfully.

Please let us know what you learn through your upcoming medical tests and investigations.

Best,
Ann

[Metread]

I can't imagine 10oz of food. You may want to consider reverting back to a liquid diet for a week or so to kick start your weight loss. Also, are you exercising or walking any?

[Amy2013]

Thanks everyone, I love all the feed back.
@ Mary , I do walk 2 / 3 miles per day & I have done a liquid diet for a week and still nothing. I even did the cabbage soup diet & nothing !

I hate it , it's such an emotional rollercoaster knowing that I put my body through surgery and I'm following all the rules and the weight is not coming off. The good news is that I have not gained either. I have been at the same weight for the past 6 months. I hope that the test will finally give me the answers that I have been asking for. And for the record I thought my eyes were going to bug out of my head when the Dr. said 10 oz's per meal ! I made her repeat herself to make sure I heard her right. That to me sounds like a lot !!

I will keep everyone up to date on the progress. And also I would like to add that besides the SLOW weight loss I have had no complications . My vitamin levels are 100% , no dumping / cramping , mild hair loss , no food reactions at all..

[Sleeveless in Seattle]

I understand where you're coming from. I started at 347 also and am currently 265 (down 34 lbs before surgery). Our stats are surprisingly similar and I, too, would be severely disappointed if this was where it stopped. I agree with others that 10 oz seems huge. I know I can eat more if it's soft like yogurt or cottage cheese, but even then it is 6-7 oz. If it is lean meats I can only do 2 oz plus a few bites of a veggie or fruit. That's great that you are tracking still, I am religious about it also. I have noticed that I can eat the same calories each day but what I eat affects my weight loss, such as high carbs or not enough protein. For your weight, you should definitely still be losing at 1200 calories but I don't think a thyroid problem would stop that either. I've been hypothyroid since I was a child and yes it does make it harder to lose, but definitely not impossible. Walking 2 miles a day is better than nothing but really doesn't burn many calories, so don't rely on that. Maybe try some cardio or strength training to boost your metabolism. Good luck in your efforts, I definitely look forward to seeing you figure it out and succeed. I just noticed we both have the same final goal and hopefully we' ll be in Onederland one day soon!

[Grace]

Hi Amy,
Oh, how frustrating! You do all they say will mean easier weight loss, and you get a body that is so stinking efficient it knows when to fight back and biologically keep your weight on, even if you don't want it to.
Once they've checked your thyroid and hopefully your glucose tolerance...
There are a couple of options if the med tests don't show something that can be fixed.

One would be something I considered and was not allowed to do by the docs because of my health - go for the 2nd part of the operation - the R-N-Y. You probably already know the sleeve was originally the first part of a two part surgery, first the sleeve to get down as far as possible and then the R-N-Y. Since you are so healthy on the sleeve, you can most likely handle the slight loss of nutrients from the bypass. It may get you the rest of the way.

I'm going to say something that may sound bizarre. I don't think you are eating enough. Especially if you are walking 2 miles a day. Some folks bodies shut down weight loss and metabolism at about 6 mo out because the body is pretty smart. Starve it long enough and it's going to sloooowww things down to avoid losing more fat. We are biologically programmed to hold onto fat. It's a survival thing. I wonder how many carbs a day you are eating?
I ask because if you've been low carb this whole time, the most significant thing you can do now is to try high carb for a month to reset your system. Stick with about 1400-1500 calories but make most of them complex carbs (no simple sugars)... say 100 carbs a day.... it will rev up your metabolism. A quick easy way to see where your metabolism is at is to check your resting pulse. If it's pretty slow, say, under 60, your metabolism is slow. (while it's very true that athletes also have slow heart rates I'm going to presume you are not in super athletic shape).
Once you get past your month, try carb cycling.
Very simplistically put, you eat low carb M-W-F, higher carb T-T-Sat, then you have a day on Sunday to do whatever feels right. Eat 5 meals a day, 3 hrs apart, stop by 7 pm and nothing but water afterward.
What this does is fire up the furnace on the high carb days and then you drop your carbs the next day to lose weight.
You may have to try this a few times to get it to work. I ended up having to eat high carb for 3 solid months to get my body to believe it was ok to not store fat. I gained 8 lbs but in the past month have dropped that plus 4 more. It's slowed down to about a lb a week but I don't really expect more than that from my body, I can't exercise much. You may do better. I exercise on my low carb days, riding the wave of energy from the high carb days and using the low carb advantage.
I am nearly 3 yrs out. I can eat just about 8 oz of most foods, but only about 5 oz of protein. Currently, at just about 18 lbs less than you and 5'5" with a slow metabolism I eat 1300 calories, my low carb days are (approx) 110 pro, 75 fat, 35 carb, my high carb are 90 pro, 45 fat, 80 carbs. This is the balance I have found after an entire year of working on it that proves I can start dropping weight again. After a whole year prior to that of eating 750 calories I can't tell you how great it is to eat 1300 calories!

Earlier I mentioned glucose tolerance. If you had any amount of glucose intolerance, or insulin resistance prior to surgery it may be really fighting you now. There are some meds that you can take to help that if that is the case... so it's worth checking out. They'll do a 6 hr test with blood sugar at fasting then a glucose drink and several more blood tests. (apologies if you already know that, not trying to seem like a teacher here, just being thorough).

You don't have to be done. Many sleevers lose weight in fits and starts. If I can start dropping lbs again at 32 months out it's certainly not over for you either.
Hang in there. Some of us aren't typical, and we just need a slightly different way of doing things.

[Dave1324]

Wow. 10 oz? No way in hell can I get that in. I can only have 3 to 4. 2 to 3 oz of a protein and only 1 oz of either a fruit or a veggie. All I can do. Any more and I will vomit or have a cramping pain. It's been the same since I started eating. 1 month out. I'm now going on 5 months post.

Pretty much what he said.

I have a huge issue with my thyroid, was looking at getting it removed at one point. I haven't had my meds for it since surgery and am down 90lbs in the first 4 months.

Only to get down 4oz unless i'm eating rice.

They may have not made your pouch small enough.

[half of me]

I am not sleeved yet but it sounds a little strange to me from everything I read and looked at you should not be more that 6oz. by one year. I would first go back to my Dr. then if he says there's nothing wrong I would get a second opinion.

[Ann2]

Even with a too-large sleeve, 1200 calories/day at your weight and no weight loss for months makes no sense.

Seems significant testing is now in order.