I have undergone three weight loss surgery procedures. In 1978, I underwent the intestinal bypass procedure. The side effects nearly killed me. I developed kidney stones, Crohn's diseases and an anal fissure from the stomach acids going through my remaining guts. Oh, and wicked, nasty flatus as well. I lost 110 pounds and looked like everybody else -- my life worked well when I was slender.

I had the intestinal bypass taken down in 1981, but because I was so fat phobic, I would not submit to the re-anastomosis until I found a surgeon who would staple my stomach at the same time. I was hospitalized for 11 days for that surgery, and quickly "blew out" my stomach staples because I had a relationship with food that I could not overcome. Eighty pounds gradually crept back in spite of my bulimia and anorexia.

I underwent a Roux-en-Y stomach bypass in 1991 and lost 40 pounds during the first six months after the surgery. Then, over the next five years, I slowly gained 150 lbs. Three years ago, I developed Type II diabetes. The Actos made me gain another 30 lbs. I have been taking Avandia for five months, and I expect the swelling to kick in any day now. When that happens, I must give up the Avandia and begin insulin injections. I now weigh 330 pounds.

I am the poster child for failed weight loss surgery. I must take megadoses of calcium, magnesium, and Vitamin D to keep my bones from crumbling, and I still struggle with anemia.

Nineteen years ago, I had this awful surgery. I've been SICK since! I have so many health problems, I would like to tell you about, but I would take up this whole site telling you about it! The neurological damage is the worst! I lost 89 pounds in less than two months and almost died. I was a CNA early on and later got into and owned my own beauty business. I lost it, was too sick to continue. I was never told by surgery doctors that I needed to have any type of follow up care or special diets for the first ten years! Therefore, I had basically starved my brain and body of vital nutrients, lost almost all my hair, vision, taste, smell, hearing and touch. All my senses have been damaged because of lack of knowledge about this surgery. Not to mention about 20 other problems I had.

I was in my new doctors office ten years later for severe anemia and told her of the surgery. (Other doctors wouldn't see me because I was too complicated a case). She said all the problems I had were a direct complication from the WLS. I have four children and eight grand children. I will not get to see them grow up.

I wish I could have had the internet as a tool back then. I don't think we had any way to research this WLS. It was too new a procedure. I was one of the guinea pigs then! Only now are people like me popping up here and there! If they live long enough! Most like me live only 10 or 12 years after the WLS. I've done a lot of research on this surgery in the past few years. I've heard some awful stories.

I'm still one of the lucky ones! I have a real wonderful husband that has stood by me through this for all these years. We've just bought burial plots and we have picked out our pre-need plans for me. It's that SERIOUS, people!!! I'm only 47 years old!

It takes me an hour or so to type these out. I'm so sloooow. I want everyone to know how devestating it could be for you to have this surgery! Please don't do it! If I could only save one person from this BARBARIC ACT, it WILL BE worth all the time I have left.

People are all created in the "Image of God". We don't know how He looks, so why should we judge ourselves to be fat? Each one of are in "His image." We are unique to Him! Maybe that is His perfection? We won't know till we met our Creator, but until then, I hope you will accept yourselves as YOU are, try to eat healthy and go for walks with people you love. They'll love you anyway as God does.

Don't try to "cheat nature" like I did! You won't last long. Educate yourselves and live life to the best your able to!

If I had to think about doing it over, I would NOT! I had a banded gastroplasty done 5 years ago and only lost 70 pounds the first year. I did throw up most of that. Into the first year, I had a hernia and it was huge. Then two years later, another one. By this time, my stomach did not have much muscle to be able to hold the contents of my gut in and they had used a netting to hold it in from the last surgery. I developed a new hernia and this time, it was more dangerous as I was having trouble moving my bowels and there was pain involved.

The surgery was crazy. The three-hour surgery turned into six hours. The netting they used before was so imbedded in me that it was hard to get past (it) to do the surgery. Then, while up the next day, my lungs collapsed. The new netting that was pushing so nice and tight on my gut to hold everything in burst. Yes, it broke and I went under the knife again for the second time in two days.

I am 54. I was in intensive care and I can remember watching myself. I was looking down at myself from over my body and I was watching myself flailing with three nurses on the gurney. (Days later I repeated this story to everyone trying to get them to answer but no one really listened to me.) But I wondered If I was dead. I felt I was dead. The three-day hospital stay turned into three weeks.

I know am a proud owner of a deformed-looking midsection with this alien-looking lifeform sticking out the right side of my body...it is called the gut...it is the way it wanted to go and the way the netting wanted to hold it in. I have lost more weight, mostly due to the mood stabilizer I was put on to keep me sane through all this and the B-12 deficiency that I found out (about) after the doctor did an MRI, thinking I might have MS since I was also losing my memory and stumbling and weak. I have shots every other week for the B-12 and I now receive surgical cortisone shots for my back pain (something else my ortopedic surgeon tells me can be an aggravator of bariatric surgery) Believe me, it was my last hope and I am lucky I am alive.