Hi
@Angeline, you have already seen the post from Lynn and what she says is a lot of sense, there will be complications for some people but the success stories will outnumber them. The malnutrition etc is a known issue and that is why your GP should monitor you with regular blood tests after you have been discharged from your surgeon/team. Are you having your surgery with the NHS?
I know someone who is about 5 years out from a by-pass now and has had severe iron deficiency so she has had transfusions, but she doesn't take any multivitamins or calcium tablets so I have very little sympathy! I would just take note of these issues and use them as a reminder as to how important it is to follow your teams instructions and take the supplements as well as eating a healthy diet. I am taking the surgery as my reset button - the large weightloss to get me to a healthier weight and then it is down to me to follow a healthy lifestyle and make sure I stay there! The surgery alone wont solve our issues, we still have to work at it.
Ulcers - this is why post surgery it is important to take the lansoprazole or equivalent tablets to help prevent ulcers, also if you have any pain or issues it is important to go and let your GP or team know so that they can investigate early. Nausea and vomiting I cant help on, sometimes there are complications called strictures where the openings get too small and it might be necessary to stretch them with a balloon. Over eating, eating too fast, eating too much fat can cause nausea, I don't think it is common for people to have nausea or pain all the time.
I do have some upper abdominal pain since my surgery and it looks like I will have to have an exploratory op to see if I have adhesions or scar tissue - but again, would I do it all again if I had the chance..... absolutely. For all the benefits for me outweigh the issues.
It is important to make sure that you eat enough protein as soon as possible after the op - I struggle a bit but I am getting better. The level of protein will help reduce the hairloss as well, I also have nuts everyday which have levels of selenium (I believe) as well as protein, which will help to limit the hair loss - you can also take supplements as well. I have been lucky so far, I am losing some but not massive amounts, it will differ from person to person though. However, if you said to me, which would you prefer, to lose some hair and be 5 stone lighter, or have no hair loss and still be 5 stone heavier, I know which one I would choose!!!
The most important thing I would like to say though is please make sure you have some level of counselling/psychological support after surgery, I would never have thought I would find it useful but it is the most important thing for me at the moment - there is so much adjustment that goes on dealing with changes in yourself, changes in clothes, letting go of the old clothes that don't fit anymore, dealing with food issues, missing finishing a plateful of food, dealing with throwing food away, it is all so alien to us that it can be hard to deal with. I highly recommend if you haven't got any support with your package finding some counselling support for at least the next 6 months to a year. There is no point having the surgery if we don't commit to make the effort to use the surgery tool to the best we possibly can.
keeps me going xx
