Preparing for the Bariatric Surgery and Changing Habits for Post-Surgery Success

by John Steffen

Weight Loss Surgery (WLS) can change your life, but it’s not for everyone. Countless people also approach WLS with unrealistic expectations in their minds. And, this is really not good. So, how do you set realistic expectations? Well, it all starts with measuring your BMI, exact weight, and the weight that you need to lose to save yourself from the associated health issues with obesity, like Diabetes.

For a successful bariatric surgery, you’ll have to start making changes to your lifestyle even before the procedure. In this phase, you’ll be encouraged to learn new eating and drinking habits. The habits will help you cope in the post-surgery period.

Selection of a bariatric surgeon is all the more important in the success of your bariatric surgery in India. So, if you’ve made up your mind for the surgery, take all your time in meeting one surgeon after another, and then, deciding on the surgeon, whom you find the best.

Currently, medical science offers many different surgical choices, which include laparoscopic gastric banding, gastric bypass, and sleeve obesity weight loss surgery. They are all effective, but the point is, your surgeon is going to decide which surgery will benefit you the most. Choice of surgery will largely depend on your general health.

Gastric banding refers to the procedure of placing a band around your stomach to reduce its size, so that you feel fuller with lesser amount of food and drinks. Since you’ll eat and drink less than what you used to eat pre-procedure, you’ll start losing weight. Sleeve gastrectomy is again an obesity weight loss surgery wherein the size of your stomach is reduced significantly. Herein, you feel fuller with lesser amount of food as the size of your stomach has been reduced. However, stomach always has the tendency to stretch, so you’ll have to ensure that you don’t eat beyond your set limits after the procedure.

Remember surgery isn’t always the option; in fact, it is required only in extreme cases when non-surgical treatments don’t help. Successful long term weight loss after WLS requires a willingness on your part to make significant lifestyle changes. So, think about it. Are you ready for a life that you’ll have to lead post obesity weight loss surgery? Are you ready for the follow-up sessions post-procedure? And, are you ready for the costs involved? These are some of the questions that you should ask yourself before you say yes for the weight loss surgery.

-->  About the Author

Dr. Atul N.C. Peters is a leading bariatric surgeon in India. His particular areas of expertise include Laparoscopic gastric bypass, bariatric surgery in India and obesity surgery in India. Make an appointment with him for laparoscopic gastric banding.