In todays mediacentric world, social platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube can quickly become the first source for all of our information. I can say with 100% certainty that that was true when I started my research on bariatric surgery.
I mean, did I do the general google search to find articles? Yes, of course. But I primarily started looking on YouTube. I wanted to listen to what people who actually had the surgery thought of the process. I wanted to see their results. I wanted to experience their pain, joy, accomplishments, and setbacks with them, so that I could mentally prepare myself for what I was going to be potentially putting myself through. You would be surprised though, for something that is currently the most popular surgery in America, I struggled to find what I was looking for.
Was I asking for too much? Probably. I was looking for content that followed one person from beginning to end. I wanted to see what types of appointments they had and what to expect during them. I wanted to see what their preparation looked like as they were actually preparing-not reviewing what they did months prior. I wanted to hear how they were feeling before they went in for surgery, and when they got out. And then I wanted to follow them for an extended period of time afterwards.
YouTube
I scoured YouTube for videos of people who have gotten VSG surgery. Mostly, I found 30 second to 5 minute videos from doctors and/or hospitals doing a quick overview of the bariatric process, or videos portraying a virtual surgery. I also found a lot of “what I eat in a day” videos, and 1,2,3 year post surgery updates. Occasionally I would find someone with the best of intentions regarding updating regularly, but then will only see a few videos after their surgery video.
Then I found Kaki. I am so grateful that I found her channel. Was it exactly what I was looking for? No. Kaki had had Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass surgery, and I am planning a Sleeve Gastrectomy. She also only had 2 videos pre-surgery. One was her pre-op video (which was also her first video) and the second was the night before surgery. Everything else was after the fact. That all being said, Kaki is relatable and straightforward. I really appreciate how consistently she posts (every week). You can follow her at Kaki’s RNY Journey.
The second person I really like is Jen Bailey of VSG Athlete. She has about 60 videos in a mix of pre-recorded, lives, etc. What I like about her is that even though she is not posting weekly updates about her journey, she is staying true to the VSG theme. I know that when I go to her page, I can find information about sleeve gastrectomy surgery from somebody who has been through it. I also appreciate that she is an athlete. I am by no means an athlete, and I don’t think I will ever want to be considered an athlete. However, I would like to exercise more and try new activities, and watching her videos encourages me to do that.
Lastly, I want to talk about Erin Branscom of My Level Ten Life. Not only am I secretly obsessed with the fact that she has a few books that she has written, but I love that she had the surgery a number of years ago and has successfully kept the weight off. While not all of her videos are about VSG, a huge majority of them are. I also like that she has a TON of videos, so if there is anything that I want to know, I can go right there and be pretty sure I can find it.
Being honest, Facebook is not the first place I went for bariatric support. I find there to be too many people, many of whom are asking the same questions over and over again. Can I do this? Can I do that? How much weight did you lose in x amount of time? Like, talk to your doctor about what you can and can not do, and a person who is starting 500lbs will lose a lot more weight than someone starting at 300 lbs. I am part of 2 or 3 bariatric ‘support groups’ but I don’t find them all that supportive to be honest. I think that in my head, support groups are a group of people in a room talking about their struggles, and on Facebook it just isn’t that. I also struggle with the before and after photos, because I find them a bit triggering. I don’t want to compare myself to others. I’m on my own journey.
I’m in a weird relationship with Instagram. I love Instagram as a platform. I use it pretty regularly. I even have one that goes along with this site. But, I also spent a good amount of time unfollowing so many people on Instagram just yesterday. I’m still working on unfollowing people who are not on the same page as me. I find it really easy to get distracted on Instagram because it is very easy to just follow people based off of one post. I do think that I prefer Instagram for food suggestions.
Final Thoughts
It’s not like I’m going to stop using social media…
Vanishing Velez 
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