Recovering from Weight Loss Surgery
Every aspect of weight loss surgery is crucial to your success — including recovery. Keep reading to learn more about what to expect during the recovery period after you've had a weight loss procedure.
What’s Included in Weight-Loss Surgery Aftercare?
You can expect to lose a significant amount of weight over a period of 18-24 months with weight-loss surgery. In addition to causing dramatic physical changes, your weight loss affects all aspects of your life. While you welcome the effects of your procedure, these changes can also cause a range of challenges that can threaten your weight-loss success.
You have the best chance of enjoying long-term results if you take advantage of the support and guidance available in weight-loss surgery aftercare. Bariatric surgeon Robert Snow, DO, of Snow Bariatric Center in Fort Worth, Hurst, and Flower Mound, Texas, provides individualized a weight-loss surgery aftercare program tailored to your specific needs. The program includes monthly office visits with a staff member of the Snow Bariatric Center who guides you in staying healthy while maintaining your postsurgical weight-loss results.
The weight-loss surgery aftercare program at Snow Bariatric Center accepts patients from bariatric surgical practices across the United States. Depending on the type of surgery performed and your individual needs, you may benefit from the following types of support in our aftercare program:
The physical changes to your digestive system that occur with weight-loss surgery make it necessary for you to eat in a different way. Nutrition counseling helps ensure that you get the right amount of daily food and fluid in your new diet. Maintaining proper fluid intake helps avoid dehydration, kidney stones, and constipation that can occur after surgery.
Since you’ll be consuming less food, it’s unlikely that you’ll get the daily recommended doses of vitamins and minerals by simply following a healthy diet. Nutrition counseling can guide you in making the most of smaller meals and supplementing your food with the nutrients you need. Your weight-loss surgery aftercare program includes a plan for taking daily supplements that’s likely to include:
For many patients, the sudden loss of excess weight may affect how others interact with you and how you see yourself. Psychologists trained in bariatric surgery aftercare can help you identify and address the challenges that accompany dramatic weight loss. Feelings of anxiety, depression, and even disappointment may emerge as you come to terms with your surgical outcome and the impact it has on your life.
If your obesity resulted from an eating disorder, such as binge eating or night eating, aftercare can play a critical role in preventing a return to dangerous old habits. Psychological counseling can guide you in identifying triggers and working to establish alternative reactions that won’t threaten your weight-loss success.
Significant weight loss can have a substantial impact on your overall health and well-being. Generally, you can expect to have improved health and a lower risk of life-threatening conditions after weight-loss surgery. However, if you had a medical disease or condition associated with obesity, you’ll have to monitor how your anatomical changes affect your illness.
If you were taking medication for conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, or high cholesterol, you may need new dosages to align with your lower weight. In many cases, weight-loss surgery causes improvement of these conditions, with possible discontinuation of prescriptions under medical guidance.
Coming to see Dr. Snow for regular aftercare assessments can also allow for early identification of unlikely, but dangerous, postsurgical complications. These issues can include:
If you’ve had weight-loss surgery, find out how our aftercare program can help you enjoy long-term weight-loss success. Schedule an appointment online or call our office for a personal consultation.
