Regain post-op

 I like to keep myself out of denial by reading about post-op regain.  Thought I would share some links about it if anyone is interested.....

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1856611/

http://www.bariatric-surgery-source.com/weight-gain-after-gastric-bypass.html

The first article states  65- 80% do not gain back depending on where they started. The second mentions facts like support for helping and say that 50% will gain back about 8%. That is not a lot. although i do not want to gain, I think staying with support groups and making the changes tyhat triggered poor habits in the past should help.
I guess I want to look at the bright side

 I don't think the stats are bad at all, but they do point to the need for long term (as in FOREVER) lifestyle change.  I'm almost 8 months out and so far its been easy, but I never want to forget that I need to be accountable for making good lifestyle choices every single day or else I am at risk for regain.  And I do hear that some people regain even when they do everything right.

 Regain does happen even though we follow every rule.   Our body for the first year and a half malabsorbs.  After that it thinks "hey, something is wrong, we have to fix it".  And we absorb more than we did before.   Also old habits are hard to quit, I'm serious.  Things that took us to our top weight, will come in just like before.   Like said above, attend meetings, keep on here, and try to change your direction in life and coping skills now. 

Bonnie

I have a theory that maybe our intestines reorganize, to reduce malabsorbtion, and it takes them a year or two to do it.

Absolutely, I agree.

After the first year, when we lose so much (which Karen M once called the Honeymoon period) our intestines recognize that there is now a New Normal.
Where previously our bodies were in crisis/survival mode, now they realize, "Okay, I can still absorb nutrients - I just have to find them differently" and they therefore start using the ingested food more efficiently.

The downside? Yeah, you guessed it - we retain more of the absorbed nutrients.
Darn.

I have regained three pounds in the last two months. I don't intend to lose them again - I was getting a little too scrawny for my body size.
But I do intend to *TRY* to stay at this weight now.
Of course, that would mean working harder in the exercise department ... sigh.

Your intestines don't reorganize, they grow new villi to re enable absorption (except for vitamins).

As someone who ate well and exercised and was obese pre-op, this is very disheartening.

 I ate 1500 cals a day, worked out and was 260lbs for years. When malabsorption stops (didn't know it did), I'm F***ed. :(