I have a date!

JenaOnTrack74

May 30, 2014 11:30 AM

Hi everyone!
So I met with my surgeon yesterday, he is wonderful, genuinely nice guy and one of the best bed side manners if not the best I have ever encountered. He spent a good hour with me, pretty much reitereating the information I have learned in my classes. He has left it up to me to decide which procedure I want to have, he is fine with me doing either one. He said "sometimes you just need to go with your gut feeling" this was after I told him that I have really leaned toward RNY since becoming educated on the procedures and the differences between the two, but that once again other peoples opinion (UNeducated opinions) have made me waiver in pulling the trigger and saying YES I want and am going to have RNY. His point of view is you must match the RIGHT procedure to the patient in order for it to be truly successful. I agree and I think based on all the information I have recieved RNY would best suit me.

I will still give it some more thought, I am going to attend a few support groups to hear from people directly of their experiences, and I would love to hear from YOU SLEEVERS, how your experience has been. I have gave up a lot of things over the years such as smoking, alcohol, eating red meats or fried foods, I went from creamer and sweetners in my coffee to black coffee, I CAN give things up but my weakness has always been sweets, cookies, desserts in general, carb/sugary stuff. I don't know that I can trust myself enough to not revert back to "cheating" with the sleeve, and that is why I feel I am more suited for RNY and the negative reinforment that comes with it.

So July 7th, 2014 is my tentative date pending a TD Echo and EKG. I must attend a 3 hour Pre-Op class given by the surgeon and his team on June 19th.

I am planning for 3 weeks off of work, but have more time available to me if needed.

THIS IS REALLY HAPPENING!!
SO MY QUESTION How did YOU make the decision (if it was up to you as well) for which procedure you wanted????
My choices btw are RNY or SLeeve.


Jena

Losing_Sarah

Congratulations on finding a good surgeon! Smart, too, lol. He is 100% right. We all have to make this decision on our own and we all have our reasons we choose a specific procedure. There are people who are VERY passionate about their surgery type. Some can be pushy and unfortunately negative towards others about someone who doesn't make the same choice.

For me, the sleeve was the right choice. I personally don't really have an issue with sweets, so that potential sweet deterrent that goes with RNY wasn't needed. That being said, only about 15-20% of people get dumping syndrome. Something to think about if this is your only reason.

Other reasons I went with the sleeve is that I am allergic to a lot of different kinds pain relievers. The only thing that works for me is NSAIDS. I don't need stuff often, but I do suffer from severe menstrual cramps 1-2 days per month most months, and I need them or cannot function. With the sleeve I am allowed to use NSAIDS.

Another interesting thing. Before I started researching WLS I didn't know anything about it and just thought that they removed most of the stomach. I had no idea that for decades the standard procedure was RNY. I was like, "Whoa, that is some crazy shifting around of the plumbing" When I looked at the procedures in a technical way I was drawn to the sleeve from the beginning even though I went back and forth between the two for the first 4-5 months of my pre-op classes, etc. I also liked the idea of the restriction without having to for sure depend on a large vitamin regimen for the rest of my life.

These were my reasons and I am super happy with my decision. I am 7.5 months out and while I have a bunch more to lose I feel a million times better. Tons of energy and ambition. Like a whole new person and I know it's just going to better as the weight continues to come off.

I had no complications. I love the restriction I have. You really get used to eating so little. I look at my plate some days and it's crazy to think about how much I could eat pre-op. With any WLS it is just a tool and requires a change for life.

Choose the surgery that is best for you! You'll just know. It sounds like you already did maybe Going to a support meeting to hear from others in person is a fantastic idea, too. Hopefully it'll become clear for you after your meeting and you'll be good to go!

See you on the loser bench soon!! Good luck!

Mangopickle

In my experience sugar babies do much better with the RNY procedure. There are 2 sleevers in our group now that like sweets and were disappointed to discover that they actually could eat sweets with the sleeve with no big side effect. There are several RNY pts >5 yrs out that are also sugar babies and have done very well with the RNY. The most I can get away with is a skinny cow bar eaten extremely slowly. I had the sleeve but I am very sensitive to sugar. Rapid rise in my sugar makes me violently nauseous. I chose the sleeve because I have always struggled with anemia and vit d deficiency even on meds. I could care less about sweets. I think you made your choice wisely. I

relentless2121

Congratulations on having your tentative date set, that is so very exciting.
Last week at my 3 month pre-surgery check in, it really became real to me that this is really going to happen. I was so excited. I am leaning towards the sleeve but I haven't seen the surgeon yet and I really value their expertise. It's a big decision to make for someone who is not in the medical field.
I am leaning towards the sleeve as I have the layman's impression that the issues with absorption aren't as severe, but like I said, what do I know.
I have met a few people that have had the sleeve and are very happy in their decision. I have met some in the Bariatric Clinic who had the RNY and are also happy with theirs. I still have a few months to do more research.
I really didn't like the idea of messing with my bowels with the RNY. I had a ruptured appendix and an incisional hernia repair so I've already had 2 abdominal surgeries before. I was wondering if those factors would restrict me to one method over the other. I have been told though that it shouldn't be an issue as my appendix incision is further down.

Good luck with your surgery and please keep us posted on your journey.
As previously stated, whichever procedure we choose, it is only a tool. We have to make a lifelong commitment to be successful and maintain our health, diet and activity.

bikrchk

I went into my consult with the same questions, (R/Y vs Sleeve). My surgeon did pretty much the same thing as yours. He advised me in each procedure but declined to steer me either way. He led me along in some questions until I came to my own decision. It finally came down to weighing the long-term risks and lifestyle of both surgeries. For me, (I had about 100 pounds to lose, perhaps a little less as I re-evaluate getting close to goal), R/Y and its malabsorption component would have been over kill for me. The risk of vitamin deficiency long term was the deal breaker in my mind for R/Y. The sleeve seemed like a simpler procedure with no re-routing, though the short term risk of leak is slightly greater with the sleeve, it was the better choice for me. I hadn't considered that I'd be able to "eat anything" because in my support group some of my fellow sleevers can't. Not as many of my sleever friends have food restrictions as my R/Y friends, but I know folks on both sides. Some can eat anything in small portions, some in both camps don't deal well with meat, fruit skins, bread, sugar, etc. All of my sleeve and R\Y friends tolerate food better and have more permanent, problem-free results than my banded friends. The band was not even on the table for me.

Both R/Y and the sleeve are fantastic tools as far as I'm concerned, but I couldn't be happier with my results! I'm within 10 pounds of my goal now, having re-set it 10 pounds higher than I'd originally thought, (I'm already in a size 6 and a 2 just seems too skinny no matter what the scale says). I really have no food restrictions at this point, (7 months out). Does that scare me, YOU BET IT DOES! Backsliding in maintenance has always been the thing that scares me the most. So I go to my monthly support group, food journal, focus on protein, exercise regularly and take my supplements. I treat myself regularly, working it into my day. I try to live like a thin person these days. All things in moderation, stop before you're full, move more, etc. and its working! I couldn't be more pleased with the freedom my sleeve has given me! Good luck in your decision.

shoerack45

My surgeon was a bit different. It may be insurance related too. shrug. My BMI would not have qualified me for anything alone, but I had other issues related to weight. He felt the band (nope) or sleeve for me only. It was an easy choice between those two - the sleeve. Plus, both (sleeve and gastric) run the risk of regaining and I wanted this to be a clear life change for me. With my sleeve, I can't wait to be cleared to do more than walk. I want exercise to be my norm. The restriction is serious for me. My stomach let's me know in a real way if I do something silly. That was what I needed.

april731

So excited for you, Jena! My surgeon also gave me the option for sleeve or RNY. I chose sleeve for several reasons:

1) I was not comfortable having a residual stomach that could not be easily scoped in the event of an ulcer or cancer;

2) I did not like the thought of having several anastamoses (where they put things back together) that could result in leaks - not to say that VSG doesn't also have risk of leaks;

3) I wanted to keep my pyloric sphincter so that I would always be able to achieve fullness with a small volume of food - the RNY stoma can stretch over time;

4) I did not want lifelong malabsorption of nutrients - my grandmother had gastric bypass years ago and always had issues with medication dosing due to malabsorption;

5) ghrelin reduction - this was one of the biggest perks to me of VSG and has been one of the biggest factors of my post-surgery success so far;

Of note, I was also a carbaholic prior to surgery and contemplated RNY because of that. However, not all RNY-ers dump (I've read only 30% do) and that may go away with time anyway. I have not had any interest in carbs post-op, primarily because I have decided not to test the waters. I have no intention of eating any processed/white carbs until I get to my goal weight at the very least. Once you detox from the carbs your craving really do go away. Also, my tastes have changed post-op and I really don't like things that are overly sweet. However, there is a giant caveat that I'm only 8 weeks out, so still very much "honeymooning". Whichever you choose, I wish you all the best.

JenaOnTrack74

Thank you all so much for your time and great responses you have definitely given me things to think about!
Really, thanks again I do appreciate it! :flowerforyou:

relentless2121

Thank you all for the points you made in how you made your decision. Although I'm 99% sure I want to be sleeved, I still have a few months to research RNY but I don't think I will be changing my mind unless for some reason the surgeon recommends it.