I was due to have surgery two days ago but I've found out I can't have WLS. What do I do now?!

sam_c_93

I feel lost. I was due to have my surgery two days ago. They put me under. I woke up with the incisions but I got told nothing was done because they found out I have rotated intestines which meant a bypass couldn't be performed. I'm devastated.

I have acid issues which means a sleeve is risky. If my acid issues got worse with a sleeve I couldn't have it converted into a bypass like a lot of GERD sufferers do.

So after months of looking forward to my new tool and new life, I'm back at square one. I fave dieting...again. Something that led me to surgery in the first place. I simply don't know what to do now. I feel in just going to keep growing until my BMI gets insane, I don't know how to stop.

loveshoe

Sam, I would think this is something they would have discovered prior to your surgery being scheduled. I'm not sure what rotated intestines are but were the doctors able to offer any other solution, perhaps the lap band if the sleeve isn't an option. Don't give up. Ask for a second opinion, go see a different doctor, just don't give up.

WatchitBeginAgain

Ok, that sucks. Take a moment to mourn and then figure out what to do next. There are other doctors and other options, i.e. band. I would go seek another opinion, asap.

clcmfp

I am not a doctor, but a quick googling found a few medical journal articles referencing successful gastric bypasses on patients with intestinal malrotation. So I would not say you can’t have the surgery, but that your surgeons were just not confident in performing it on you given their experience. Disappointing as that is, better safe than sorry. You need to find a new bariatric surgeon who handles tricky situations like yours. It may mean you have to travel and it definitely means you have a lot of research to do to find one of these surgeons, but don’t give up! I’d probably contact places like the Mayo Clinic, Cleveland Clinic or Johns Hopkins - places that excel in out of the ordinary cases. Even if it’s just for recommendations of skilled surgeons in your area.

KarlaYP

This is a horrible situation that should have been found before surgery! My Center does an Upper GI ore op which would have found this our prior to being put under! So sorry for you!

But, if you don’t like dieting you were having surgery for the wrong reason anyway! I sorry to inform you that you cannot eat the same foods post op that you eat pre op and expect to keep the weight off! That sits with doing the same thing and expecting different results! It never works that way!

I don’t know what the answer is for you, but for me I’ve had to commit myself to a forever way of eating that doesn’t include the foods I used to eat, and it’s working for me!

I don’t mean to be harsh! Your situation is amazingly frustrating, I’m sure! I’m terribly sorry for you and hope you can wrap your brain around adjusting your food intake to help you instead of continuing to harm yourself! Hugs hun!!

Bugged53

I have the sleeve. Only minor acid reflux.

jmxxiiii

I had GERD and was sleeved, its gotten so much better with weight loss. Why would you let your BMI continue to grow?

DawnCumm

I agree, get a second/third opinion. I even had to change medical plans to get through my surgery. Long story of lap-band gone wrong, Dr's refused to fix, went to another med team and they were wonderful. Check around. But I agree with the comment, this is all about dieting, so regardless of what surgery you get as a tool you will still have to diet and change your habits over the long run. Start getting used to the diet rhythm as soon as possible (now).

StevenGarrigus

sam_c_93 wrote: »

I feel lost. I was due to have my surgery two days ago. They put me under. I woke up with the incisions but I got told nothing was done because they found out I have rotated intestines which meant a bypass couldn't be performed. I'm devastated.

I have acid issues which means a sleeve is risky. If my acid issues got worse with a sleeve I couldn't have it converted into a bypass like a lot of GERD sufferers do.

So after months of looking forward to my new tool and new life, I'm back at square one. I fave dieting...again. Something that led me to surgery in the first place. I simply don't know what to do now. I feel in just going to keep growing until my BMI gets insane, I don't know how to stop.

As others have said, get a second, third, etc. opinion. There should be a surgeon out there who could do the operation regardless of your particular circumstances.

And now as others have said, you cannot plan on having this surgery and it being a miracle fix. You have to choose healthy foods, exercise and eat right every day. Getting off track for six months while my wife was pregnant, the holidays, etc. put the pounds back on me. I went from 193 to 231! I couldn't eat any more than a cup of food at a time, but I found myself grazing on cookies, chips, donuts and other junk at work and at home. And living on gas station food while I trekked to the city twice a week before the baby was born and for two weeks every day after going to the NICU, I drank soda. Stay away from that crap!

A year & a half post-op for me now (and back on track), and I still watch everything I eat. I avoid pastas, breads, rice, candy and soda and only drink a soda every once in a while. I focus on protein mainly to keep my muscles while losing the weight. I'm hoping to be back to my 193 weight by Memorial Day and down to 173 by the end of summer, finally in my "healthy" weight range.

So just remember, this is a life-long commitment.

loveshoe

StevenGarrigus, were you surprised by how quickly you gained weight?

StevenGarrigus

loveshoe wrote: »

StevenGarrigus, were you surprised by how quickly you gained weight?

Oh yeah, I was pretty much shocked. I knew I was gaining because my shirts weren't fitting so nice and my work uniform was getting tighter. I was afraid to step on the scale. During that timeframe when I was eating junk, I was also not logging my food. I went back and did some calculations adding in what I ate during a typical day. I was eating around 600 calories higher than the max I should eat to maintain, sometimes more like on holiday's or when people at work brought Krispy Kreme donuts in.

It took me around 7 months (give or take) to regain 38lbs. Roughly 5.5lbs regain per month. I attribute a great deal of that to drinking soda while constantly on the road or sitting at the hospital. A QT 44oz. Mountain Dew with ice is still around 3 cans @ 170 calories per can. So there is 510 wasted, extra calories per day.

But what is scary about it all is that I went from an intake of 1500 or so calories a day to about 2600 a day. I'm just glad I have been able to pull my head out of my *kitten* and get back on the wagon eating healthy. And even though soda is a real *kitten* habit to kick and I still drink one every once in a while, I'm doing my best and making the choice to fill my big mug of ice with water rather than a can of Coke or the Dew. I'm currently taking in about 1500-1600 calories per day and logging everything. The first ten pounds dropped off fast, so I am pretty sure it was water weight from all the salty and sugary crap.

I hope others here wavering, skipping logging, cheating, etc. use me as an example of what not to do. Stay on track folks. Keep logging your food, keep exercising and stay away from the evil soda!