Have you ever considered gaining weight to get G-B surgery?

kdouglas11

THE ONLY REASON I write this is because I read threads here where I hear a lot of second hand stories about the experiences of friends, relatives, co-workers, etc. I even know people who bash their friends' surgeries when the friends are happy with the results. There are a lot of people checking out this thread because surgery is at the back of their minds and they are coming here for information. I just want to provide information for those people. So, if any of you are considering surgery, go to an informational seminar and talk to actual patients and doctors where you can also find out other good sources of information prior to making any decision. Get your information first hand from patients.

I can give you first hand info on the band. I know plenty of bypass patients if you would ever like to talk to people. I am not trying to hype my doctor, but he has some good success stories on his site and he probably also has info on the procedures. You can google him, Dr. Arif Ahmad, Port Jefferson, NY at John T. Mather Hospital. It is a Bariatric Center of Excellence.

Surgery is NOT for the uncommitted. You have to really want to make changes or you will not be successful and most doctors will not perform the surgery. You have to go through a LOT just to be approved. Good luck to all of you!

Well said, Nancy.

And to the OP, no, I would never consider ~gaining~ weight to have surgery. I did not have to...here is my story. I had RnY in 2006.

About 8 years ago, one of my close friends had surgery. At the time, I told her, "you are so brave, I could never do this". Why did I say this? Well, where do you think the minority of the patients that DO have complications come for treatment??? Why, the ER of course. And as an ER nurse all I ever saw were the complications, not the successes. The successes are by far the larger number of patients.

About 5 years ago, however, I saw how my friend had had such a success with her surgery, and I had continued to struggle with my weight (which I have been doing since childhood- when I was 8, I weighed 167 pounds, a memory crystallized in my head, getting on the scale at the doctor's office and when I was 12, I lost 18 pounds down to 182 and my parents got me contacts--was supposed to lose 20 but they caved, and after I got the contacts the weight came right back on). I have been on almost every diet out there and could loose weight, but even after losing some weight I would still technically be considered overweight, but then I would gain it back and tack on 20+ more pounds. I also was having a harder time just doing activities of daily living without expending a great amount of energy, becoming short of breath with simple activities such as taking a flight of stairs, and noticing little things like ankle swelling, which at 35 WAS NOT NORMAL. I also had a picture taken at that time for a photo ID (see my profile if you want to see the pic~ it is in my pictures) and could not believe that that person was me. My weight was so OUT.OF.CONTROL. I knew that I had to make a change, and nothing in the past had worked long term for me. So, I went to a information session offered by my friend's surgical group.

I learned a lot about the surgery, the statistics, the complication rate, which by the way, is not higher than other abdominal surgeries for most people. I also learned that for those people who are classified as morbidly obese, having a Body Mass Index of between 30% and 49%, the success rate for long term success has been shown to be as high at 93%. I liked my odds with that one. I also was fairly healthy despite my weight at the time, but I knew that if I continued that there were many co-morbidities (diabetes, high blood pressure, etc). that could be coming my way with age.

The process prior to surgery and then therapy after surgery was as important to my success as the surgery was, IMO. There are a lot of "head" issues that need to be dealt with as well. The surgery was just a tool to get me started and now that I am 5 years out I have to "buckle down" and do the hard work to maintain. One of the wonderful things that I have noticed after surgery is that I know when to stop. Physically now, I feel full. I had lost this ability to feel satiety prior to my surgery. Also, since surgery, probably due to the decrease in my grehlin, I do not feel physical hunger. Yep, that's 5 years without physical hunger. Now head hunger is another issue. It is the devil, and I really have to watch out for this still. However, as I said before, therapy post-op is so important to success, IMO. I have learned in therapy strategies to help with the head hunger. Most all of my meals are planned now. I eat every 3-4 hours. I am maintaining 5 years out , actually I am losing...I want to lose a few more just because

My life is so much better since the surgery. There are so many simple things in life that I now enjoy that I could not before...crossing my legs, sitting comfortably in a booth, running, wearing a 2 piece bathing suit, having men pause to open doors for me, having salespeople help me when I shop for clothes...the list goes on...

You will find many people on this site saying surgery is the easy-way out. Well, it is not. Yes, the weight comes off, but there are certain rules that you have to follow to be successful. Protein first, no drinking with meals, planning your meals, eating every 3-4 hours, exercising... However, I weighed the risks vs. the benefits and decided that it was right for me.

Surgery was the best decision I have ever made. However, that being said, I tell people that it is a very personal decision, and it may not be right for them. I encourage anyone who may be interested to do your research...and then decide!

Very well said! People just don't get it sometimes! I've also had surgery, and while I"m not at a 2 piece suit yet, I'm hoping next summer! Congratulations.

dckim

My wife had the surgery 6 yrs. ago, lost 100 lbs. right away and slooooowly gained it back.

Here is the problems with Gastric Bypass surgeries (no matter what kind it is: band, roux-n-y, or other)

You lose fat, but you LOSE MORE MUSCLE!!!!!
You have to take multiple (about a dozen) different pills every day, for life!
Your lack of food intake slows your metabolism.
You are treating some of the physiological things, but not the psychological reasons for the weight gain.

Do I still need to go on?
I was against her doing it, and believe diet and exercise is the way to go. Wished they had shows like the Biggest Loser THEN.

Please go read my "the Biggest Loser casting call" msg board. Thx for sharing your wife's story, best of luck to both of you. :flowerforyou:

kdouglas11

At the risk of offending some people who have had the surgery, I do have quite a strong opinion on this and as far as I can tell, G-B surgery is in most cases unnecessary.

It also requires just as much if not more willpower than dieting.

Why can't people just pretend they have a gastric band, and stick to the diet that you're meant to when you have one? You would avoid surgery and get exactly the same results.

It basically just forces you to change what you eat, rather than you electing to do it yourself. I can't really understand it. Do people really need to go to such lengths rather than having a little willpower? I am sorry if I offended anyone but this is how I feel about it. I don't mean to spread hate, I'm not that kind of person, I just wanted to make my point. I would really like someone to explain it to me, maybe I just don't see it from their point of view.

It forces you to eat less, it forces you to feel full, in order to let your body consume the fat.... some people say you lose more muscle... No you don't, not if you take your protein like you're supposed. I'm on 3 'pills' a day, which are what I took before my surgery.

It's a tool to help you lose weight, it's not a be all end all to a weight problem.. .it helps you retrain your body to eat less... and yes eventually you stop losing and you still have to work. I exercise for an hour a day... I keep my calories at about 1400 a day... and I work... some days I'm better than others... but it's not like surgery cured me of my eating issues... I am working at it every day, so I can be successful.

I hope that helps... some people don't understand it, but it's a method that does work for SOME people, just like other tools work for some...

calibri

Yeah, be careful what you say since some people like to rage about this topic...

Jeliica

If there was an "easy way" to dieting, we wouldn't be here now...would we?

Oh and with lapband, I take one multivitamin a day and that's all I need. It has all the supplements then when I didn't have the surgery and I was taking 8 different vitamins. Regardless surgery or not you have to take supplements. It's a part of life.

megz4987

Haha, I thought about it before I started losing the weight the first time. I looked up how much, at my height, the insurance would cover for me to get it. I was 20lb off...that was a shock and a kick in the butt. Then I got pregnant and shot up in weight and could easily have gotten the surgery if I wanted bc of how much I weighed. I opted to do it all myself. So far, best choice I've made.

cownancy

My wife had the surgery 6 yrs. ago, lost 100 lbs. right away and slooooowly gained it back.

Here is the problems with Gastric Bypass surgeries (no matter what kind it is: band, roux-n-y, or other)

You lose fat, but you LOSE MORE MUSCLE!!!!!
You have to take multiple (about a dozen) different pills every day, for life!
Your lack of food intake slows your metabolism.
You are treating some of the physiological things, but not the psychological reasons for the weight gain.

Do I still need to go on?
I was against her doing it, and believe diet and exercise is the way to go. Wished they had shows like the Biggest Loser THEN.

You are SO FACTUALLY wrong about so much of the information you have just given. As a lapband patient, I take a multivitamin and a calcium chew every day....something I should do anyway. I no longer have to take my cholesterol medication and my blood pressure medication is cut in half. I am no longer taking Advair for asthma.
I have more muscle than I did when before surgery because I can walk around more.
My metabolism is fine....I eat 1500 calories a day.
Shame on you for passing on INCORRECT information about the facts of WLS!!!! I have several hundred fellow patients to back me up on this!

cownancy

At the risk of offending some people who have had the surgery, I do have quite a strong opinion on this and as far as I can tell, G-B surgery is in most cases unnecessary.

It also requires just as much if not more willpower than dieting.

Why can't people just pretend they have a gastric band, and stick to the diet that you're meant to when you have one? You would avoid surgery and get exactly the same results.

It basically just forces you to change what you eat, rather than you electing to do it yourself. I can't really understand it. Do people really need to go to such lengths rather than having a little willpower? I am sorry if I offended anyone but this is how I feel about it. I don't mean to spread hate, I'm not that kind of person, I just wanted to make my point. I would really like someone to explain it to me, maybe I just don't see it from their point of view.

That's not how it works. The band places the food near the nerves that send messages of fullness to the brain so people can get back in touch with their bodies signals. Maybe you should go to www.lapband.com and educate yourself a bit if you want to have a more informed opinion about the subject? It's very different than your opinion, thank goodness. LOL

cloneme_losehalf

My mom and my sister both had it done. I had considered it at one point. Had even seen two different drs on two different occasions. The first was my mom's dr back in 1990. I did not weigh enough. I was only like 4 lbs away. So dr told me it would be easier to gain than to lose. I think it was only two weeks til I had another appt to check weight gain. I was eating SOOOO much. However, I lost 8 lbs. I did not consider it again until late 90s when my sister was going to have it done in 2000. Everytime I went something stop it from happening. NO WAY will I even consider it again!!!! (Even though my mom and sister both did well and both try to talk me into it and say they would do it again)