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That approach works for me; it is pro-active instead of being merely reactive. I was proactive, too. I weighed in at 195 and I paid to have the band installed; this has been a largely positive experience. I was able to overcome the gluttony which kept me married to my plate. And to take the time away from this in order to do some research as to what would make for healthy little snacks for someone who despised cooking. lol

I was diagnosed with hypo hashimotos 2 years ago. My synthroid was up to 175. Since surgery it has dropped to 100. My doc told me the thinner you are it is possible you would need less meds, but it won't cure it, your always going to need some. Since my diet has improved, I stay active and don't get as tired. I still have days, mostly around PMS. It is a pain at first to get the meds right. My doc recommended if you have good insurance or can afford the synthroid, you can tell the difference between it and the generic Levothyroroxine.

Hi everyone---once again, thank you more than I know how to say for the continued prayers for my family and my little Kinsey in particular. It seems that is was just an everyday gastro intestinal virus that was especially vicious, and contagious, as it has now taken 4 generations of us (my Mom is now sick) down in less than a week. No one else who was at the anniversary has been ill, so thankfully I did not poison everyone. Most of us have been hit hard, and recovered about as quickly, not so with Kinsey. Her case has left her with issues in the colon. Her colon is inflamed, and non reactive. It is not allowing food to enter, so there is no absorption taking place. She is failing, bit by bit, and they have continued to tell us to wait it out. Today, they finally decided maybe that isn't working---and we had a surgical consult. He sent off yet more specimans for culture....and if it warrants it, we will be flying her to either Albuquerque to the University Hospital, or to Denver to the Children's hospital, depending on what type of issue they think we are dealing with. They have downgraded her condition to critical. She bounces from sleeping, which we found out was caused by her blood sugar being below 40! To being so irritable as to not be recognizable--a screaming raging child....to one sobbing for food. It absolutely has broken my heart into a million, million pieces. She tells us point blank she is hungry, and asks for any and all kind of food she can think of...with giant tears in her big blue eyes....then she just goes limp, with the look of total dejection. She is 2, she does not understand why we keep letting them poke her, why we will not feed her....why we don't help her when she tells us her tummy hurts. She begs, Please Granny. And repeats "no pokes, no needles, please" everytime someone new enters the room. Add to this heartache (and it is TRUE heart ACHE), my DD's ex, Kinsey's father, is there trying as usual to be the funny man---and his mother an OR nurse at the hospital we are in, going behind everyones backs and putting down Dr.s and nurses, and questioning them and ultimately pissing them off--- and causing problems....I do not know which way to turn. The ex, and his Mom were arguing with my DD about whether the Dr. might want to run a blood test that might tell them about a disease that my DD's grandma on her Dads side had called Celiac Disease. The nurse dislikes the former MIL anyway, so ordered everyone except the 2 who have been staying the night with Kinsey out of the ward. Now this being said....the arguement was not loud, it was out of the room, and Kinsey is the ONLY patient in Peds. She saw it as a chance to get rid of Renee (former MIL) and did it. So we all were banished. My DD was there with her bf/fiance....they had not had a chance to eat...well we are fighting to get DD to eat, she refuses until her baby can eat....it is more than I know how to handle. Rick waited until shift change, and took some dinner to the hospital, and they were going to take turns going to the waiting room---I just don't think my DD is eating at all either---I keep telling her Kinsey needs her strong. It is very hard to put anything in your mouth knowing she is begging for the same. There were 3 nurses on the floor today, with Kinsey the only patient. At one point, she had a blow out---we had her in a diaper, due to this happening...but she went through the diaper, all over the bed, all over her Mama, her gown, the whole 9 yards. I sent my DD to change, and I proceeded to clean Kinsey up after telling the nurse. They were each on a computer comparing prices of the new Harry Potter book. I got Kinsey cleaned up, walked her out to the hall, found her a new gown in the shelf, took her in and dressed her. By then her Mama was back, and she sat down and held her, while I stripped the bed. I went walking out into the hall with this wad of smelly sheets and ask what they wanted me to do with them, she POINTED to a soiled linens hamper thing. Then she got up, walked to a closet, and handed me linens for the bed! They did not come in and disinfect the mattress----nor did she make the bed! I did. Our baby needed to lay down. They come in 2 times today and did vitals----nothing else. She is still casted, it was due to come off today, the nurse never mentioned to the Dr, we needed a ortho consult until after office hours---now she is stuck until Monday. They did not offer to help bathe her----NOTHING!!! Changed one bag of IV fluids....took 2 sets of vitals.....and surfed the net all day. Now this is the first day for this set of nurses....all of the other shifts, and sets of nurses we have had, have went out of their way to make us comfy, and help our little one in any way---today they were absolutely worthless. Tomorrow I intend on finding out who the nursing supervisor is, and filing a complaint. I have no way to make our baby better.....and I have emotions pent up that those worthless women know nothing about----but are fixing to find out about! While I am there seeing the supervisor or charge nurse or whoever....I will also mention, that we had Kinsey in a wagon pulling her around and around and around the 3rd floor......anythnig but her room, she was so tired of her room....and on one of our turns we passed the ICU entrance. There was a male nurse there Julian, who teased her every time she passed, he would hand her a new crayon.....then a piece of paper....and finally a stuffed doll (out of one of the claw grabber kind of machines it seems). She was so listless, but she would spark a little knowing we were coming up to where he was....he helped our day immensley....I will commend him, as I do my best to take the others down. Amanda said he even come by to tell her to get well, he was going on his 4 days off, and he hoped she was home and well before he come back to work. Her nurse.....never even walked into the room before she left. Thank you all for listening once again---all these things are boiling inside me. I am scared to death for Kinsey. Latching onto the anger I can control. The plan as it stands now is to begin introducing good bacteria into the system tomorrow...similar to what is found in yogurt. IF the tests do not show a total shut down. If they show a total failure, we are off to a bigger hospital for surgery. She has lost weight, she is under 17 pounds now. She doesn't show it much because she is really swollen from all of the IV fluids. They are also watching her blood sugars every 3 hours (which is just another poke----and was NOT done on schedule today), and adjusting the glucose in her IV. They finally gave her some Pepcid type of stuff in her IV for the acid in her stomach, since nothing is passing normally. She has complained less of her tummy hurting with that. And that is all----we wait now....and wait....and wait....and wait. I have my lap top, and I have connection. I just cannot sit in her room with these tears streaming down my face. You guys are my release in so many ways....thank you so much. I will let you know something as soon as I can. Please continue the prayers. Rick has avoided the vomiting....we got him some Kaitrel or something like that....so he is hanging tough. Being right there holding her like her Papa always does. Hugs to you all! Sounds like the food issues continue---I promise you girls---it gets easier, it becomes normal dare I say? Kat

Kat - thanks for the info. I think I will try and switch the training session to either the morning or to Friday. I am not concerned with on the tummy exercises, don't do those, I am concerned with being able to hydrate enough to workout hard. After this first fill then I will see how I react. You sound like it is great fun. I like the whole diversion thing you do. Good luck with your hubby. Tekymom - sorry about the port incision. That ususally happens to me, but I was fortunate that I wasn't allergic or reactive to the glue the doc used. In fact many other surgeries I have had to have wound care nursing. Good luck with the healing. Have a great night all you beautiful violets! Michelle

Good morning! I am a happy girl that it is Saturday...no particular reason other than i only have 2 kids here instead of 4, lol....but that is reason enough, right? Yesterday our neighbor across the street got robbed. SO...that answered the question we had burning in our heads...should we reactivate the alarm system that was installed here. Now we know the answer is yes, we should. I called them last night and they are going to reconnect/test it with us over the phone today or Monday. I hope I can get them to do it today because Frank is on nights and it would make me feel more secure. I will only turn on the motion detector when we are gone because i dont want to have it set while we are sleeping then have one us get up when nature calls and set off the alarm, lol. I am chatty this morning...if you are bored by now just skip the rest...lol. I just had a full size bed given to me and I am giving it to Macy....well another friend just gave me a queen size memory foam mattress that is only a year old :glare: I will put that in dss/guest room. How cool is that?! Gotta love free stuff. Now if I can find a free couch, I will be in business :wub: If felt so good going to pay some bills off yesterday. I didn't get to pay off all that I wanted, but it sure is a step in the right direction! Jenn I haven't gotten as good as you. An eliptical would KILL me but I wish I had a treadmill. I think I will start looking on craigslist for one. Suzanne I hope you have a great time at the ranch! Bundle up! Kat-after all this time you old office manager is still a thorn in your side...ugh! Well, this is the last poke she could get in on you, so that is good, right?! I know you are glad Rick is home and his boss saying he is not paying him for down time is BS. What do you have planned this weekend? So much more I could write about but I need to do some other things on the computer and I know macy is wanting my attention so I better bolt Have a great weekend everyone! :biggrin:

Thanks for the congrats guys. I'll probably be going up and down for the next week before the new weight settles in. Thats what usually happens. Jessica, as a Christian who went to Christian schools and sent my kids there and as one who teaches in a Christian school, I gotta say your SIL is nuts. She'd rather do the most unChristian thing I've heard of than get the child the help he needs from a public school? He's probably ADHD with a learning disability and now the hormones are kicking in. And she's too busy and tired trying to raise and homeschool the rest of them to give him the extra help and attention he needs. So she'd rather get rid of him than send him where he can get the help he needs and admit that she's failing him. What misplaced pride. The most generous interpretation I have is that she's having pregnancy psychosis. What a message she's sending to the other children. Screw up, don't measure up to our "Christian" standards and we will get rid of you. Where is her DH in all this? Why isn't he getting her the help she needs? Including psychiatric. I would have the boy thoroughly evaluated before fostering or adopting him. He may be very damaged already from his first home life as well as the second. He may need special placement in a therapeutic setting, particularly if he has bonding issues and PTSD as well as academic and behavioral issues. Reactive Attachment Disorder can make adopting an absolute nightmare. Some of these children are too damaged to be placed in a regular family. If that is the case with your nephew, then we may be judging your sister too harshly. Sometimes these children are actually a danger to their parents and siblings. But like most sociopaths they can present really well to outsiders who don't see them on a daily basis. They can be very charming but never actually bond and feel no remorse over doing wrong or hurting others, only over getting caught. They can be highly manipulative and you end up feeling crazy and not knowing why. I think what you are offering is tremendous and I truly hope it works out. Make sure you have state funding and medical care for this child and payment for any therapy and extra tutoring he might need. I would initially go foster care with him because once adopted you might not have access to funding to provide for his needs. My brother and his wife had to give a young child back to the province because the local social services refused to diagnose the child as having rad and provide them with the support services they needed. They had the child privately evaluated and found out she not only had RAD and PTSD, she was ADHD and had Fetal Alcohol Sysndrome. It killed them to do it but they did not have the training or the access to funds to provide the child with the care she needed and this was the only way they could force the province and social services to provide for her. The two or three years they went through all that were some of the worst times of their life and they felt like total failures. Cheri

Dumping is really rare with the sleeve even though some report it. Considering only 30% of RNY'ers dump, the % is even lower for VSG'ers. However, I developed lactose intolerance and your symptoms sound more like lactose issue rather than dumping. I was able to eat cheese and yogurt, but milk would do me in every time. Reactive hypoglycemia can also be common with the sleeve especially further out, when you have heavy fat or sugar foods after months of not consuming those foods. The lactose intolerance lasted for about a year for me post-op, and I still couldn't drink a lot of milk, but at least I could have some. Around the 3rd month of my pregnancy, it's back in full swing.

Also anyone else have hypo or is anemic ? Does it affect anything ?

Hello! Any gardeners out there? Trying to reactivate this thread.

I have hypo-thyroidism, too, and have lost about 26 lbs since surgery 8 weeks go. I can't complain a bit. I haven't started truly working out yet either, so I don't even think about my thyroid slowing things down at all. My surgery group explained that this surgery would help rev everything up!

following this as I'm hypo too. I unfortunately still am in the "normal" range for TSH but luckily have found a dr willing to test levels regularly and treat my symptoms (total lack of energy). I've gained the 80lbs I need to lose all in the last 5-7 years and havent even had kids yet so I'm desperate to lose weight (thus why looking into WLS) I understand the frustration b/c I do eat healthy (just finished yeast-free (gluten/sugar/dairy) diet of 2 months with ZERO weight loss) and work out. SO hopeful WLS will be able to help me too!

I'm three plus years post surgery & still my longest lasting complication is acid. Here's how I manage it: I take an Omeprazole in the morning & a Tums just before bed. Together that allows me to produce less acid & combat the acid my body does produce. Proactive & reactive, if you will. Good luck. You are not alone.

My doctor was really stingy with narcotics, which I found irritating as a practitioner who was trained that God gave us drugs for a reason, and nobody should suffer when we have the medication to help them. That said, that was only immediately post-op and the day or so after. After that, I was able to control my pain with Tylenol and ketoralac (Aleve would be a similar, over-the-counter option), and was quite happy to do so to avoid the side-effects and the risks around narcotics. Make sure drugs like aleve, ketoralac and ibuprofen (NSAIDs) are okay with your doctor before you take them, though. If you don't have any liver problems, taking 650 mg of Tylenol every 4 hours whether you need it or not is recommended by some doctors, to keep an even amount of pain control. And "splinting", i.e. pushing a small pillow or a folded towel against your abdomen when you sit up or stand up is also very helpful in preventing that pain. Like I said, I am very pro-drug, but you've worked very hard to get clean and stay clean, and you're going to have enough challenges in the months coming up, you don't need to reactivate your addiction. In fact, if you haven't told your doctor about it, think about telling them now, so that there's no risk of them prescribing to you. If it only hurts when you sit up, splinting WILL help, and the pain will get better remarkably fast as your body heals itself. Congratulations on your recovery, and for looking for alternative ways to treat your pain. 4 years is no small feat. I'm impressed! If you can do that, you'll do great with the sleeve.

Is there a list of questions for your first surgeon consult anywhere on here (I'm anal, I know-have another list for the insurance lady)? I realize that some of these may get answered at the initial seminars (been to mine already), but I still have lots of details to ask. I'm hoping the Dr. will cover most of this when I get there. Here's what I have so far, PLEASE help me add to this (going in a few weeks, thanks!): PRE-OP - Pre-Op Diet- how long, what/when? Night before-what/when? - Bowel Prep- or not, what/when? - My Meds.- continue reg. meds, Vitamins, up until when? WHICH BAND (I have a choice) - Realize- Want to see this one filled/crease concern, and the bend back lock - Lap-Band APS or APL- How much fill is in it immediately, and is this all in the port/tube (zero band fill)? See it filled. - Low profile port- Which has? option for me now or later? SURGERY/IN HOSPITAL - When does surgery get scheduled/criteria? Tentative date or wait for insurance approval? - Allergies- Mine-soaps/sheets, adhesive tape (fine with the hypo-allergenic kind), all environmental (asthma) - Anesthesia-preventatives for nausea possible (I get easily nauseated, was given 2 things for nausea by anesthesiologist last surgery)? - Catheter- used? out when? - Oxygen/IV- confirm yes- also? - Clot Preventatives- leg sleeves? meds, other? - Band- Attachment-How-lower stomach folds up and sutured (2-5) on one side? How long until it is secure/fused How can slippage occur? Is it tested during surgery, blue dye or how? - Port (I can chose where) Determine best position, attached how? How long until it is secure/fused? How can flips occur? - CO2- What do you do to minimize gas pains? Remove excess? Is it heated/humidified? Meds after? - Incisions- Confirm 5/locations? Use staples, stitches, glue? Protected with what/coverings? - Complications- should I expect any with my history? - Timing- (Mainly for DH)What is approx. timing/process of surgery (arival, prep, surgery, recovery, etc.) - Pain Meds- after, what, how often, side effects/nausea? - My Meds- Can I take my reg. meds in hospital, when? - Nausea- Meds available immediately after if needed? - Coughing- (some wake up and cough, I have asthma and easily cough) are meds available for this immediately? Can I also take inhaler immediately? - Length of stay- 1 night? What is the criteria for release? - Tests- Barium swallow? X-ray? Urine test? Other? - Expectations- Up and walking when? Shower? etc. HOME/POST-OP - Incisions- What to expect, treat them, buy anything, timing? - Expectations/Instructions- sleeping (propped up?), lifting, work, pain-when to call, etc. - Pain Meds- What, how often? Can I pre-fill Rx? - Other Meds- Nausea/Vomiting (get Rx for Phenergan), Diarrhea/Constipation, Coughing, Gas pains? Get Rx or OK list for OTC, and when it's OK. Call at what point? - My Meds.- If not started in hospital, when is it OK to start regular meds., vitamins? - Card- LB card to carry in wallet available, info. on limitations, loc. of port, surgeon info? - Diet- Phases what/when? Vitamin supplements? What to buy? - Exercise- What, when? LONG TERM - Dr. Visits- What is normal schedule for post-op visits, for what, testing, or only see at fills? - Fills- What is normal schedule/Normal amounts? Criteria? Who does? How are they done- xray, fluroscope, barium swallow, local anesthetic? Unfills the same? - Complications- Fill/restriction issues, Port/Band Pain, When to call? - Support Group- Schedule

Hello all! I am new to this site, but so far i love it! Everyone has such great advice and are so supportive! I am 27 years old, 2 kids and am a nurse at a local hospital. I have been overweight my whole life and been looking into wls for about 5 years. My insurance just changed at work and by the grace of God, WLS is covered!!!!! I am 5'3 and currently 247....Yikes! I am not only having wls to lose weight, but i am doing it because I am way to yound to have the health issues that I do! Just in the past year I have been put on BP meds, and an anti-depressant. My labs showed high LDL and high C-reactive protein. I am too young for this!!! Can't wait until the fall so I can get my surgery date scheduled and get my life back!!

Hiya all, I'm new to here and just was wanting to make contact. I am insulin dependant diabetic with sever insulin resistance, I am 1 week away from rny surgery and on day 3 of the pre surgical prep. From what I have seen I don't really have much to moan about, as I am still able to eat actual food, but wondered..did anyone else have extreme cravings, headaches, insomnia, low mood, and agitation when doing the prep? Also did anyone feel just generally really unwell? It's only day 3 but it's kicking the hell out of me. I am able to have the following each day (which I know is more than most), but am worried that I am maybe eating a bit too much to shrink my liver, or that I am just getting it all wrong. The hospital have me the following diet: Breakfast - 1 weetabix Lunch- small portion of lean meat or fish, salad (no dressing), 2 crisp breads or a slice of bread Dinner- small portion of lean meat or fish, 3 small potatoes or 3 spoons of rice, vegetables 1/2 pint of skimmed milk per day (to be used in tea or coffee and my breakfast) A sugar free & fat free yoghurt No sauces no alcohol no fizzy drinks I had a hypo today I am currently 106kg, I weighed 122kg at the start of my journey 2 years ago. I have gone from a 44 inch trouser to a 34/36 inch. Am having the surgery for diabetes reasons not so much for weight loss. Thank you in advance for any replies xx Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

@@Inner Surfer Girl Great article. Many factors on diabetics and surgery that are still in the research phase. The surgery does amazing things with diabetics. People off medication. Getting their health back. This is what I have experienced as a type 1 Diabetic...In perspective of complications with surgery, This is not a big thing to manage. (only two concerns driving and sleeping) I had no pancreas function before surgery. After surgery at 6 months out. My pancreas started working by releasing large amounts of insulin. The Insulin release drops your blood sugar. (reactive hypoglycemia) Normal range of blood sugar is 120 - 70. The low blood sugar can happen at any time..No pattern to them. I'm not sure how to explain this so bare with me...Here is how I manage what is going on. 6:35pm Test..BS 70..I don't want it to go lower. I eat a meal. 6:40pm test BS 66 - Drink orange juice 6:50pm test BS 105..I'm Normal 7:41pm I'm shaky dizzy..test BS 62 orange juice and a Protein & vegetable snack 8:12pm test BS 168..I feel safe enough to sleep. My lowest was 24 in the middle of the night. So with that..If I have sugar in large amounts..I will still have high blood sugar and use Insulin. I hardly use my insulin because I eat healthy and exercise. I am a well controlled type 1.

It is called reactive hypoglycemia and I have had several episodes over the last 22 months. It usually happens if you eat too much sugar in a day and can be difficult to stop the vicious cycle. Your body starts to get used to that higher sugar level and when you don't get it, reactive hypoglycemia kicks in. I have gotten it when I start my day with cream of wheat and don't follow it with a high Protein snack. I eat a lot of fruit so that is where my usual sugar comes from and that will cause it. You have to find your happy spot where you can have some sugar in your life but not enough that your body wants more. I have talked with my Bariatric doctor about it and he suggested if I am going to have something sweet or carby like Cereal, I need to follow it with high protein snack within an hour or so. That has worked for me as I am not willing to give up the fruit I eat. I have since refrained from eating cream of wheat on a regular basis. I do have it once in a while though

Hi Maryjo, I'm glad to hear from you. I had lap-band in 2006, did fairly well with it, but it got too tight and I had it removed last year. I tried life without it, but unfortunately gained a good portion of my weight back, so had a mini gastric bypass in September. I have PCOS and have had gestational diabetes 3 times. I'd been on metformin (long acting 1000mg) for several years to manage symptoms and as a preventative to DMII. All was going well and I was losing weight fairly steadily. However, about a month ago I started getting low readings (3.0) and was symptomatic. I went off the metformin about 3 weeks ago, but continue to have reactive lows (fasting is fine) about 2 hours after eating. I've cut out all simple sugars and am really trying hard with the protein, but still struggling. My GP thinks the metformin is still in my system. I'm trying to figure out if this is just big sensitivity to carbs and late dumping or something more significant. My GP isn't too concerned and the surgeon is across the country. I called the nurse and dietician at the surgeon's office, but they didn't seem to know much about the phenomenon. I'm thinking I'd like to discuss this with an endocrinologist. I'm pretty worried about this. Kerri MGB Sep 28/17

Hi forum... I am 13 years out from RNY and I am back into the cycle of insulin resistance and reactive hypo ... anyone else struggling with this? It all started about 7 years ago when I became allergic to wheat and had to switch to a rice based diet cause of my allergy... my body just pushes too much insulin out when I eat carbs... and rice really make a me spike... then crash and burn. Would love to hear from others who have struggled with this due to PCOS... that is what started he whole cycle for me. MaryJo RNY on 8/2/04 290/130/215 current

The three most important elements after RNY gastric bypass surgery are to meet your daily Protein, Fluid and Vitamin requirements. food is secondary because your body is converting your stored fat into the energy that drives your body. Thus you lose weight. Weight loss is achieved after surgery through volume control. You begin at 2 ounces (1/4 cup) per meal and gradually over the next year and a half increase the volume to 1 cup per meal. With this minuscule amount of food, it is next to impossible to meet your protein daily requirements by food alone, so therefore you need to rely on supplements such as Protein shakes. Back to the point of Dizziness. It might be due to several factors. For example if you were taking medication prior to surgery, they may need to be adjusted. This can especially be true for medication to control blood sugar and blood pressure. Also there is a condition called reactive hypoglycemia that some individuals encounter after weight loss surgery. Dizziness or lightheadedness is also caused by dehydration. In order to get a handle on the cause, you might want to evaluate when it occurs. For example, do you experience this first thing in the morning when you get out of bed or when you get up after sitting down. Or do you experience this a few hours after a meal? Do you experience this all the time?

Hi everyone. Just wondering any of you stop taking your diabetes med? Any hypo episodes? I work in a dialysis center and I walk almost 5miles a day in a 12hr shift. I been having problem with being hypo all the time. Anyone else work in a hospital and having problem? I cant eat fast during my break so i just live with a few bites and just candy every hour.

I have a dilemma, help! I have Tufts insurance and am 2 months into the required 6 month I Can Change program. My BMI is 40.3- just over the requirement for surgery approval. In getting myself ready to go I've now discovered that my cholesterol and c-reactive proteins are high. I also have acid reflux/heartburn. While my doctor still feels that lap band surgery is the way to go, she also doesn't want me to wait 4 months to start working out and losing weight. Unfortunately, my co-morbidities are not the ones that count for Tufts in order to go down in BMI. What do I do? Has anyone else had this dilemma and if so, have you found ways to convince Tufts to approve you if you have chosen to go ahead and start dropping the weight? It's so frustrating. Heck, I know I can drop 20 pounds but that's where it all falls apart for me and I need to lose a lot more than that long term. :smile2:

Consultation Thur 5/7/09 permalink I have been lurking forever perhaps years.... Wanting to have the surgery but chicken.... Now.... I am 41 with 2 kids 8 and 11... I am just over 40 BMI Hypo Thyroid Meds... High Cholesterol but the good is high too. I have been seriously battling my weight for about 16 yrs and I am currently heavier than I was 9 months pregnant with my oldest. It has really taken its toll on my health , joints, and mental state. I have Aetna , Managed Choice, I have heard that my coverage is really good. Hoping and praying this will go off without a hitch. I don't want to jump through hoops, but i will if I have too. I have some degernerative disk disease in my lower back so my Chiro wrote me a letter stating that significant weight loss would improve my well being etc. Wish me luck if you have any insight on how all this will play out please let me in on it...... thanks in advance Lor

All the bariatric surgeries have risks of complications, but to me the "rearranging" ones have the worst ones. Not just things like leakage of staple lines (which I think is pretty rare now) but things like reactive hypoglycemia, where after you've lost weight your blood sugar dips really low after you eat, like into the 30s. People lose consciousness, crash their cars, even have seizures. That isn't a very common complication but it is becoming more common as more people have the surgery. It seems like it happens mostly to people who were not diabetic preop, and their pancreas sort of overreacts. And it's just one example of many things that happen when you can't take in adequate nutrition. Good for you for sticking to your gut (lol) instinct on this! Just make sure that this doc is going to give you the support you need after you are banded--willing to give fills when needed, able to tell when you shouldn't have any more fill, and is open and available on a reasonable schedule. Some docs who push the RnY don't like how involved they have to be post op with the band. With RnY, once they do the surgery they are for the most part done having to deal with you. Best of luck and keep us updated on your progress!