Postop

@Riva_G.I do know other DSers who do it. From what I understand it’s low carb. As long as you get tons of Protein and fats it seems to be DS friendly.

Some people revise from the sleeve to the DS. Some revise from the sleeve to the gastric bypass. Some are perfectly happy with the sleeve alone as it does the job for them.
It's hard to say whether or not you should have a DS. You need to know yourself. Can you keep a good count on your calories, etc. and watch what you eat? Because while your stomach is definitely smaller after the sleeve it does stretch somewhat as time goes by (never to its original size, though). If so, the sleeve should work well. If you're like me (a binge eater) & want to eat every 1-2 hours (Protein pretty much in the main) and worry about keeping the most weight off possible, then a DS might be right for you. However, the DS has cons along with the pros. It takes a lot of work: many, many vits/minerals per day for life, yearly or twice yearly blood work, there can be malodorous gas and/or stool (most of us watch our eating in public carefully and/or take a probiotic to keep this under control), etc.
After a lot of research and decision making I felt it was the WLS for me. But it's a very personal decision and all WLS have positives and negatives.

Sending you a DM.

Thanks for the suggestion I'll do that! Best of luck to you in everything, too.

Hi, my name is Krislynn, Kris, or just K., I'm new to this forum. I found it researching more about the duodenal switch. I turned 42 in July this year, and my highest weight before my first surgery was 536. I had the gastric sleeve in June 2017. The first year was a great learning experience in learning about healthy foods, changing my mindset, and what I needed to do to get healthy. That first year, I lost 221 lbs. But, then when I went back for the 2-year check-up, the surgeon that took care of me, had left the hospital and program and they informed me they had no one for me to see. But, then Covid hit shortly after that-- then I lost my job and ended up sitting home 2 years and gained close to 200 lbs back of what I lost and that was crippling to me because all my old health problems came right back.
during all this happening, my mom and I chose to move from California to Indiana to be closer to my sister, I decided I couldn't take care of my mom who has declining health because of her weight too, has been type 2 diabetic for more than 20+ years at this rate with my health starting to decline again too. So I reached out to the weight loss doctors here, I spent 6 months Feb-Aug '24 taking off 70+ lbs by following their 1200 calorie diet, getting back into a healthy mindset. It's a struggle at times, and sometimes I take two big steps forward, and then I end up taking a big step backward, it's a daily walk. once I completed the mandatory 6-month medical weigh-ins, things moved quickly, I got approved by the psychologist, and then the insurance approved me to have the Duodenal Switch or SADIS surgery quickly, within a week I heard back. My new surgeon who's great, got me scheduled quickly after I finished all the required testing, and preop classes, this Monday, the 11th at 7 AM. I am feeling nervous because even though every test they've made me do has come back normal and negative, I am 7 years older and worry that something might possibly happen.
I keep reminding myself, that I've already had the sleeve, so I won't be under that long, just long enough for him to do the switch. so basically, I'm going to go to sleep and then wake up on the other side of it.
Can anyone who has had this surgery, give some advice or maybe just let me what to expect after this kind of surgery?
The last time I woke up the only thing I remember is the immense pressure I felt on my chest from them feeling my stomach with gas to do the surgery. And The surgeon told me unfortunately I would be dealing with that again because it's something unavoidable. So, I'm prepared for that.
Love to everyone,
Krislynn☺️💜

@AshAsh1Yes. There is definitely an uncomfortableness if I eat too much but it takes a while to get there and by this time I know about where it is so I rarely hit it.
Nope. Not much exercise at all. Just some walking and weight lifting (when I'm able). Because of the malabsorption there isn't a calorie count involved. As long as most of what I eat is Protein, I'm good.
No gain. Most DSers put back maybe 10 -15 lbs. after a few years. This is bc many get down a bit too low. I didn't have that. If I put on a few, I just eat more protein and drink more liquids.

You’re right, I took the question re: bathroom issues with the sleeve only.
In the beginning, the urge to go is generally stronger and the need for a bathroom is quick. As time goes on, most of us can hold it quite a bit longer.
On a road trip, rest stops are usually every hour or so, so as time goes on you will most likely be able to wait unless you ate something very fatty or with sugar/simple carbs. Then all bets are off, which is why I pretty much only eat that at home.

You are definitely going to need to deal with “going” in a public bathroom. I use this (see below). I spray upwards in my stall as I begin to “go” and then spray a couple of more times as I’m finishing.

orange only

Oh good. That helps make me feel better. I read a couple of things where people said they had issues with like bladder infections that wouldn’t go away and blamed it on the absorbtion of the meds. It scared me a little.

I had the TDS in 2005. Some medication amounts do have to be determined by trial and error.
When possible, I do intravenous or injection (eg osteoporosis meds). When it’s thing like antibiotics, I haven’t seen much of a change. But it’s something I discuss with each prescribing doctor.

With the sleeve, the need to go and gas isn’t nearly as much as with the TDS bc your insides haven’t been changed like that. It is only a large reduction in the size of your stomach.

I can't take any oral iron, so I'm not sure, really. I can't imagine a reputable company like them would put a fatal amount of iron in their product, as it would be very bad for business. 🤣 I just get iron infusions when my iron gets low, but it is ideal to take it in pill form if you can absorb it... You could try a few days a week and then have your levels checked to see if they are responding to the dosage. It is not usually a bad thing to start slow and ramp up if you aren't getting your levels up. And be sure to talk to your surgeon about it, as they can help guide you to what is a safe dose and do labwork regularly to be sure you aren't getting too much. ❤️

Sorry. I’m unfamiliar with that brand. I’ve always had to take Iron in a separate form no matter what was contained in the multi as that wasn’t enough
For TDSers there is a guide used for newbies. It’s here.

https://cdn.imagearchive.com/bariatricfacts/internal_data/attachments/2/2830-2d1eb8740d577546031b580cd1186ab3.data?response-expires=Sun%2C%2007%20Jul%202024%2017%3A47%3A50%20GMT&response-content-disposition=attachment%3B%20filename%3D%22VL2_Starting%20Vite%20Recommendations.xlsx%22&X-Amz-Content-Sha256=UNSIGNED-PAYLOAD&X-Amz-Algorithm=AWS4-HMAC-SHA256&X-Amz-Credential=I3UPHPWOPY63ZMOGLZFM%2F20240630%2Fnyc3%2Fs3%2Faws4_request&X-Amz-Date=20240630T174750Z&X-Amz-SignedHeaders=host&X-Amz-Expires=604800&X-Amz-Signature=2de663aa30a2c0e6734053a4aca5b822ab9718a9e3c4822186c03df54f6eee4b

I’m19 years post TDS. At one point I was taking 300mg./day of Ferrex. Nowadays, it’s 150mg./every other day.

Good Evening All!
I am almost 3 years postop from my Duodenal Switch w/ Biliopancreatic Diversion. It has been a long 3 years but it has been worth all of the effort I have put into this. I recently had to have emergency surgery to fix a wall hernia/bowel obstruction and something with my mesentery. I am scheduled for my Excess skin removal on July 8th 2024. I am excited and I am proud of myself for all of this hard work. Its not easy with this surgery and anyone who has gone through it or is about to, remember one day at a time and YOU CAN DO THIS!!

I kind of agree. My nut. helped in the beginning, but then it was vets who pointed the way.

@SAsurgery
Hi. I'm 15 1/2 years out from a traditional DS.
- What foods do you avoid? (Fatty foods? Carbs? Can you tolerate small amounts?) I eat fatty foods. It helps to "grease the wheels" so to speak. For instance, I buy 80% chopped ground beef as I need the fat. It does generally takes me 2 sittings to finish a meal.
- Do you have diarrhea? Sometimes. My doctors classify diarrhea as going too much and/or going liquid. I'm more in the too much area. This will occur if I eat junk and/or too many simple carbs. That's why I eat them pretty much only at home. If you have diarrhea and you're not sure why, it can signify it's time for a dose of Flagyl. Many DSers I know take it yearly and I probably should, too. Just to keep things even.

- How many Vitamins do you take? Have you experienced Vitamin deficiencies? Have you had to get infusions? I take over 40 a day. It's second nature. As a matter of fact, when I wasn't permitted to take them while going through gb surgery, I went a little nutty. I'm just so used to it after so long.
I've had some issues with my bloods. Sometimes the numbers are too high, other times too low. My surgical group has me do them every 6 mos. so tweaks can be made to what I take.
The only infusion I take is Reclast. But I know a good many DSers who need Iron infusions. That's never been an issue for me.
- Do you struggle to maintain your weight loss? Do you feel like you are constantly on a diet? No and no (and we don't count calories). I kept a food log for the first 6 mos., now I have a Protein ticker in the back of my head that just checks off protein grams. I eat 125-150gr/day so I'm constantly eating protein. Just had my mid-morning snack which was cheese and nuts. I also keep it low on the simple carbs. I don't want the weight gain or the gas/stool issues. I'll probably grab a triple cheeseburger w/catsup from McD later if I'm hungry in the afternoon. I just eat the meat. First, bc the bun is too filling and I always eat protein first. Second, bc I don't want what will come with the carbs.
- Anything else you wish you had known before surgery?
Do a Dexa scan preop. So you can have a baseline.
Keep all your blood work. I have it since preop. It allows me to look for trends (esp. the last 3 draws) and also can help out if there's an issue. Some DSers I know have made a spread sheet for their blood work.
I've never missed a day of supplements. I expect as a Dr. you won't either. 😊

I don’t eat many, but the roughage can make me visit the bathroom more.

Hi All!! Lol I have not been on this page since my surgery date. Want to see how other DSers are doing they had a revision from sleeve last July. It has been an adventure for sure. I am down 75 pounds so far. Lots of hard work, but loving it.

yes! Gastric sleeve for years was phase 1 of the DS, back in the days when a lot of surgeons did the DS in two stages - first, they created a sleeved stomach, and then, several months later, they'd go back in and bypass most of the small intestine. However, enough people lost enough weight on stage 1 alone that they started offering it as a standalone surgery - and the VSG was born!
long way of saying - of couse you can, since the sleeve is the first stage of the DS.

The only things I’ve eaten are yogurt, eggs Protein Shakes and I had 2 string cheese for the first time yesterday. I will definitely buy that spray. Thank you!

No I have never heard of that before. Thanks, I’ll have to look it up.

One of the beauties of the TDS is you can eat anything. Just not as much. And if you eat things like too much sugar or simple carbs, you’ll most likely have foul smelling gas and/or stool.
Of course, you can have caffeine.
You’re also able to take NSAIDs & all other medications - which was important to me, in case I ever needed them.
TDS 2005.

It took me about 2 years postop till I decided it had been the right thing for me.

I had my DS on 3/30/21. Surgery day weight was around 300. This morning I was 228. So that is 3 months +17 days. My initial weight from the first appointment weigh in was 324. I lost about 10lbs during the preop diet. So 95lbs total so far. I have had a steady loss of between 3-5lbs average per week since surgery date.

I had my DS on July 12 but, one of my intestines was being cagey during laparoscopic which forced my surgeon to finish the surgery open. This has caused a three day stay in the hospital and obviously a much much larger scar. I’m stapled from my boobs to my belly button. So it goes.

On the flip side, I can stomach anything so far with no nausea. Ice chips, cold Water, four different Protein Shakes, broth, SF Jello and SF popsicles.

Just waiting to poop. Otherwise, I’m healing well and on schedule.

Definitely talk to your dr. I’m only 3 days out and my nausea is getting better. I hope this doesn’t last too long for you!