weight loss surgery

leanne9876

I am not advertising that this is right but for me it has now come to the point that I have been accepted for weight loss surgery. So my job now is to decide on bypass or sleeve . If anyone has had these done please could you let me know your feelings on it and how did you decide? TIA

I'm considering weight loss surgery as well, good luck.

ironanimal

I implore you to hire a trainer - not some random shmuck at a gym, but a highly certified professional - and to give them full control of your diet and exercise for a couple of months.

leanne9876

I implore you to hire a trainer - not some random shmuck at a gym, but a highly certified professional - and to give them full control of your diet and exercise for a couple of months.

I have done that in the past. I know everything I should be doing but food addiction is hard and no matter how much I try to control it in the end the food wins It's so hard.

seidel1325

(1) If you "eat healthy" why don't you open your diary? I think that statement is subjective and perhaps some feedback from other users might be helpful.

(2) At one time I was obese, I tried to lose weight by eating healthy and exercising but I was always hungry. My doctor prescribed a weight loss suppressant for three months and I dropped 20 lbs. It wasn't a panacea, but I was then able to go from walking to jogging. I got so much "bang for my buck" while jogging (i.e. a lot more calorie burn for the amount of time I invested). Eventually I went from jogging to running. I was also able to keep losing weight without the appetite suppressant. I guess my point is have you tried less drastic measures first?

cfranz7715

I was 333 pounds. I have been FAT all my life. Started weight watchers the FIRST time at 8 years old. I always did well then would loose my way somehow. I had the vertical gastric sleeve and have never looked back. It is a tool to help you loose weight. It is NOT a magic kind of thing. I have to eat right, paying attention to everything I still put in my mouth!! I also exercise. I've lost 129 pounds and have never felt better. It was the best decision I have ever made.

This surgery does NOT fix your brain or your attitude or addictions to foods. Those things are very real and very much still intact. Be sure you are ready in your mind. You will be put to the test!! Trust me!!

It is doable... : ) Good luck!

stateofzen

The advice to really consider all of your options and what they mean, long-term, is a great one. I highly suggest seeing a WLS "friendly"* psychologist for a a couple sessions to explore your strengths and barriers to long-term weight-loss before making a decision. The fact is, this is an incredibly personal decision that really rests on knowing so much more about you and your history than a message board will address. It's good to ask questions on this board and get perspectives, but realize that every response is given through the lens of another person's experience and what worked or didn't work for them might go differently for you given your circumstances.

Everyone is motivated to have the right answer, because so much rides on it. If I had WLS and I gained it all back, then I'm invested in believing it was the fault of the surgery and not my own failures. If I had it and it worked, then I'm invested in saying it's the best. If I lost weight without surgery (or am trying), then I need to believe it's better than surgery because otherwise it's a lot of hunger and unassisted self-denial and work for a result that may not last (same could be said for WLS-you get my drift). If I'm a surgeon, I have financial interests in telling you WLS is the only way. If I'm a trainer, I have interests in telling you it's better or more "moral" to try harder to do it on your own (with my profession's paid help of course). Not to say that these folks all don't 100% believe in what they are saying. We all do because that is OUR experience based on our life circumstances including personality, emotional and physical health, finances, and our weight history. None of which speaks to you specifically.

All this said: I don't have any experience with bypass or sleeve so can't comment on your actual question

*when I say WLS friendly, I don't mean a cheerleader or surgeon-affiliated, but someone who is familiar with WLS and is not biased against it. Could be someone who does bariatric evaluations but doesn't work in the same practice as the surgeon.

kommodevaran

I predict that in fifty years time, weight loss surgery will be regarded as we regard psychosurgery today. :noway:

jchavez0385

Hi,
I had weight loss surgery, I opted for a vertical sleeve gastrectomy or VSG. Mainly because my surgeon did not feel i needed a gastric bypass since i had on weight related health issues (yet). My personal choice came about after my initial approach at weight loss surgery. that was a few years back, and at that time I could not look at myself in the mirror and honestly say that I had tried everything. So for the next 3 years I tried everything i could get my hands on. I lost and gained the same 40 pounds again and again.
After careful consideration and with the approval of my doctors, dietitians, mental health professionals, and with the piece of mind that God would let me make it through this journey I went ahead and had the surgery.

I would like to say that it is a complete lie that any one surgery is less invasive than the other. I have worked in the health care industry for 13 years and I have seen people die from every single weight loss surgery there is available. I have also seen people left with irreparable physical damage due to a complication after weight loss surgery, you name it, I've seen it. Even if its just an elastic band, an inflatable band, a sleeve, or rerouting of the intestines... and so on, If you are messing with your gut you can end up in big trouble. That is why you have to be physically and mentally ready to do everything in your power to follow the guidelines of your weight loss surgery plan. Also you must find the proper surgeon and weight loss surgery TEAM to guide you thorough this hard journey.

In my experience the surgery was a complete success, I am extremely lucky and a rare case. Hours after my gastrectomy I was ready to go and start my new life. I had no pain, no nausea, no complications what so ever. I woke up the next day and completely forgot I had had a major surgery. Not everyone has this great of an experience but it can happen. I lost a tremendous amount of weight within the first 6 months. After that i fell into what my "normal" weight loss trend would be. I am considered a "slow loser" in a sense but in the end I continue to lose more and more weight. I am not at goal yet but now it is easier than ever to see the light at the end of the tunnel.

I would like for people to understand that surgery is not the easy way out. It is actually one of the hardest things you will ever do. You will never be able to eat a full "regular" sized meal from your fave restaurant. Actually you will rarely be able to make a meal out of anything. You just take a few bites and your are done. Also just because you have the surgery it does not mean that you are set and dont have to worry about food all over again. On the contrary, your whole life will revolve around food! getting enough calories in, making sure you drink enough, making sure you eat the right foods, learning what makes your new stomach happy and what makes it unhappy. It never ends, but one has to keep moving forward.

In the end one has to make the decision and you can not worry about what others have to say, especially if you are an adult. you make your own choices and you have to live with them

A final note: Every symptom post surgery, complication, side-effect, is possible with any of the weight loss surgeries available from strictures, failure to thrive, malnourishment , malabsorption, nerve damage, gastric leak etc.. And do not let anyone tell you otherwise, trust me it is well documented.

deenam66

I had Gastric Bypass just over 2 weeks ago. Other than obsessing about drinking water, taking my supplements and walking daily, I really haven't had any problems. Yes you have to measure out food and make sure you get tons of protein (my Dr wants me getting 60-80g after 2 months) and yes there will be foods that you can never eat again, but in my short experience, I am never hungry and cravings are manageable. They are not so horrible that you become depressed, as mine use to make me, and mine resolve themselves within minutes. Smells tend to make me crave something, but then when I stop and think, it's my brain not my stomach. I vote you do the surgery if you feel that you have tried everything you can think of. I believe that weight loss surgery (bypass or sleeve) makes it easier to manage eating and exercising, but it is a huge commitment. If you haven't gone to any informational meetings/classes about weight loss surgery I highly recommend it. My class explained why dieting and exercising prior to surgery is difficult based on hormones and such that one's stomach secretes that make you continually hungry because your body thinks it needs to keep the weight on (starvation mode). I don't know where you live, but Scottsdale Health Care in Arizona has great surgeons all of which got Top Dr last year. As long as you are ready to see food in a completely different way, and keep up your exercise I say go for it! Good luck in whatever you choose!

SkepticalOwl

The advice to really consider all of your options and what they mean, long-term, is a great one. I highly suggest seeing a WLS "friendly"* psychologist for a a couple sessions to explore your strengths and barriers to long-term weight-loss before making a decision. The fact is, this is an incredibly personal decision that really rests on knowing so much more about you and your history than a message board will address. It's good to ask questions on this board and get perspectives, but realize that every response is given through the lens of another person's experience and what worked or didn't work for them might go differently for you given your circumstances.

^^
This

mumof3g

Hi all, well I did it I had surgery at the end of July 2014, I went for the sleeve. I have lost 6 stone 10 pounds already and it hasn't been easy, I am having to learn a whole new way of eating that is different to all the diets I have undertaken. I thank you for all your comments but in the long run I have found this better for me, I could run around after my kids and keep up with them but now I can do it faster and I run even though it is only a little way my friends have seen a difference and are shocked. This is now my way of life, I am committed.