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I was nervous as well I just had my gastric bypass done May 1st. The pre op diet was rough Bc u know u can eat it without issues but u have to not eat it Bc of the surgery. What made it even harder for me was my husband ate whatever he wanted and I couldn't. But also once my surgery was done once I came home and started feeling better as surprised as I was I still was hungry just yet my body didn't want or need food it was all in my head! But as the time goes on u will feel better and it becomes a little easier each day. You can do this stay strong. Keep coming on here a reading ppl stories that helps a lot also. Hope I helped some. Good luck

So were you 5 ft 2 in and started off at around 200 pounds? Then you lost a final total of 88 pounds and are now sitting at roughly 112 pounds (when your goal weight was 132)??? That's actually amazing weight loss!!! For me, my ideal weight is between 145-155. I'm honestly not getting anywhere near that, and I'm ok with it. My goal is 200 pounds, but secretly I actually want to get to 185 if possible. My surgeon went over the stats and averages and explained that the sleeve usually produces less weight loss that the bypass, but I wasn't willing to do the bypass because I have pills I HAVE to take and I knew that wasn't allowed with the bypass.

Hi, I'm waiting on my insurance to approve my band to RNY revision. They have approved my port revision (three months ago - which I had to wait on pre-existing condition clause) until now to have. I was banded April 11, 2008 by Dr. John Bagnato, Albany GA. Assessment day I was at 271, with a pre-op diet I went into Surgery at 259 pounds. By my first fill I was down about twenty pounds - or perhaps I should say attempt at a first fill - my port had flipped. So I had to schedule revision surgery, which I had in July. I think lost an average of 15 pounds a month. I found out right after my revision surgery my husband was having an affair - emotionally I was a wreck but I think it gave me a push. By November I was down to 214 (my lowest weight). I worked out, followed all the rules - strictly and even ran in a 5k. My marriage continued to deteriorate and by December I asked for a divorce. We separated in February. I ended up moving to my hometown in Florida (four hours away) in March. It never dawned on me the impact of moving to another state would have on my health due to my band. I ended up getting sick and had to get an unfill a few months after moving to Florida. I went back to Georgia for one fill which I had to have removed due to esophagous spasms. When my divorce was final in October 2009 I lost my benefits. I quit my job when I left and it took me four months to find a job (and it didn't offer benefits). But with two small children to feed I didn't feel I had much choice. So no doctor, no follow-up. I tried to find a doctor in Florida to see me, closer than four hours away. No one would take me. I tried everything. I finally found a doctor in Pensacola that would see me. He was able to put in 1cc (I have a 10cc band) in November 2010. I went back in March for my second fill and he couldn't access my port. By the way my port is in my chest, stitched to my left breast muscle). He said it has to be moved. We filed the insurance and they denied me due to pre-existing condition (June 2010 is when my insurance took effect, so I had to wait until June 2011 for anything related to my band). In May I started having port pains and reflux issued - I had an upper GI done. I have mobility issues in my esophogus and some erosion...so I'm told that the band has to come out. I had an appointment Wednesday of this week with him. He confirmed it and we discussed alternatives. I had been reseraching the RNY for a few weeks (once he told me bye bye band)...so now I'm waiting on insurance approval. I'm curious how many of us are out there? and if it is specific to the doctor or type of band? Is there a specific timeline when the failures/complications begins. For the longest time I blamed myself - thought I'd done something wrong. It appears after getting back on LBT (after a two year departure), I'm not the only one. I really hope this RNY site takes off...looking forward to talking to everyone...

Thank you for the update. I just had mine done at NWWLS in Everett. I'm 11 days out. I was discharged within 18 hours of surgery, no complications, very little discomfort, no nausea or vomiting. It's been super easy. I ended up paying out of pocket because my primary covers everything BUT sleeve and I was told that Tricare wouldn't cover it. I probably should have taken more time to research, but oh well. I didn't have to do the supervised diet and wait. Plus, I really didn't want to go to Madigan. About 8 years ago or so, I started the process of getting bypass done and I was really uncomfortable with the surgeon (treated me like I was looking for a magic pill) and I really haven't had good experiences at MTFs in general (Navy Hospital Bremerton and Branch Bangor), so I don't have a lot of trust in MTFs in general. (It's literally gotten to the point that I burst into tears during appointments if I'm in an MTF.) My primary insurance is covering some things that are related, we're just not sure yet of everything they will cover, billing is still in process. I took a loan to front the costs and I have a Health Reimbursement Arrangement through work that I had over $20k in, so I expect all my out of pocket costs will be reimbursed. I hope that you have recovered nicely, and I wish you success! Looks like you are well on your way! Congratulations!

I have IBS-D and I went with gastric bypass. It is true they cant predict if it will get rid or lessen the effects of IBS but with my gallbladder removal at the same time I am now only going to the bathroom once a day instead of 3-4x’s a day and my stomach feels much better. You will still need to stay away from the foods that trigger the IBS but I feel much better since surgery.

You can definitely change surgeons and I think you're wise to. Unfortunately a lot of surgeons try to steer patients away from the Lap Band because it isn't the money maker that Gastric Bypass or the Sleeve is. You need to be comfortable with your surgeon because you're going to have a long relationship with them. As far as switching, all you have to do is sign the medical release forms to transfer your records to the new surgeon. They can't deny you this, by the way. It is your legal right to do so. As far as weight loss with the band, how much you lose is entirely up to you. I've lost 196 pounds in 14 months and I'm still losing. That is 75% of my excess body weight. I have no doubt I'll lose the rest, too. Don't let anyone tell you can't lose all the weight you need with the band because you most certainly can. Best wishes.

Just Fluffy, I love your "nickname"! Anyway, is RNY gastric bypass or gastric sleeve? Sorry, but I'm not too familiar with the lingo yet... I'm starting to get the picture that this is a truly personal decision. If gastric sleeve is no good for those of us wanting to get pregnant, I guess my choice is made for me. I wish there were an easy answer. I'm self-employed, and my insurance, unfortunately, won't pay for surgery. There seems to be a natural progression of surgeries (lap band to sleeve to gastric bypass), but I don't think I can afford a second surgery... so, I'm really trying to "get it right" the first time! Thanks for everyone's advice!!!

Sorry, I've been in Weight Loss Surgery Lingo for too long ...RNY is Roux-en-y and involves reducting the size of your stomache and rerouting to a shorter section of the intestines, in shour gastric bypass. I wish there were an easy answer too...My advice it to find a good baratric surgeon and go to a couple seminars maybe even schedule an appointment. Then, go to another surgeon and get another opinion. Get on the boards, read all you can, and attend a local support group....don't be scared to ask questions and be ready to get your feelings hurt. The uneducated world truly can be cruel...please let me know if you have any questions as well as those on this site. It is a great place to start.

Thank you all. I work at the same hospital that my PCP works at so I emailed her personally on Friday demanding answers. I think up to that point her nurse was interceding my messages. I also got the Upper GI disc just in case. I tried calling the bariatric team where I work and none of them would take me on because "they don't fix other surgeon's messes." A friend of mine who was bypassed let me vent last week and then sent me a list of about 5 surgeons in my area who may be able to help. I am going to start calling their offices tomorrow to see if other people can take me on. My other problem though at this point I'm disregarding is because I work for a hospital my insurance is geared for that hospital so if I go to any other hospital in my area they will only pay a small portion of what I need. I'm hoping tomorrow I can get some answers tomorrow.

My surgeon was using a 48 f and his patients were regaining their weight at 2-3 years out. He uses a 32 f now and this is less of a problem. The regain stats are more in line with the DS and better than bypass and the initial weight loss is similar to bypass. (He's done over 1000 of the things and has been doing them for over 7 years.) Because of that, I wouldn't use a surgeon who was using a boughie over 30 something.

I need a revision and was just denied by insurance does anyone have any suggestions for appeal

Have u considered the sleeve. It is less invasive. I am having very good success. To me the biggest advantage the sleeve has over the bypass is malabsorption ..having the bypass will make u have malabsorption of nutrients...for the rest of your life Investigate the advantages and disadvantages of both surgeries..talk to a board certified dr as to what is best for u..then u can make an informative decision. Btw..I did have a revision from band to sleeve.

The easiest way to find out what DS surgery your surgeon is offering/performing is to simply ask how many Anastomosis you will have? ONE (1) Anastomosis is the "Loop DS" and TWO (2) anastomosis is the True DS. Here's some info I pulled from another forum regarding SADI-LOOP: There is only one cut, no alimentary track/common channel - just a straight bypass of the first half of the small intestine; concerns include food backing up into the bypassed limb; bile reflux; the fact that you have in essence a 250 cm common channel with no alimentary limb - the downstream portion of the intestine after the pylorus is all fully absorbing everything (except of course the Vitamin and mineral absorption that normally occurs in the distal duodenum and jejunum). IT IS NOT A DS. It has no selective fat malabsorption. It has 250 cm of fat ABSORPTION. Nothing like the "fat is essentially free" diet of a proper DS. And it has ONLY 250 cm of Protein absorption. This is an EXPERIMENTAL procedure. It is not covered by insurance. It should only - in my opinion - be offered as part of a proper clinical trial, and NOT NOT NOT as a "cheaper, but just/almost as good" surgery offered to self-pays only. I have serious concerns about the ethics of doing that. Note that there is another so-called "variant" of the DS being offered by a few surgeons, which is even further from a proper DS, and which in my opinion should not even be referred to using the term "DS" - the biliopancreatic diversion with bipartition" - it has a STOMA! ........ Seems to me SADI is a setup for: 1. Persistent bile reflux into the stomach (one of the joys of DS) 2. Hypoproteinemia (and subsequent third-spacing of fluids (edema)) 3. Pooling of food in the proximal small intestine in patients with intestinal motility disorders (and maybe everyone to a degree) 4. Less fat malabsorption compared to DS with common channel less than 250cm (most DSers) 5. Less complex carb malabsorption (more contact time with pancreatic enzymes) 6. Suboptimal weight loss 7. Lesser resolution of diabetes type 2 compared to DS. The only potential benefits I can see are less risk of fat-soluble vitamin deficiency and possibly less GI side effects. And I cannot for the life of me understand the bipartition. Does the stoma act as a large sinkhole (dumping syndrome?)? Does the pressure of stomach peristalsis preferentially cause food to exit the stoma versus a competent pylorus? So much for ever taking NSAIDs again due to the risk of marginal ulcers. It is scary to even begin comparing these surgeries. They will end up giving DS a bad reputation if a distinction is not made due to poor outcomes. ▪▪▪▪

I remember taking a PFT back in 2001 before my original surgery. My surgeon at the time said it was to make sure I could handle the anesthesia without being intubated because intubation makes things more complicated. The revision I just had didn't require much pre-op tests just the barium swallow, endoscopy, CBC work up & an EKG. Best of luck on your journey it's so worth it and it works if you work it Sent from my iPhone using BariatricPal

Does anyone out there have type 1 diabetes and had gastric bypass surgery. I am excited to be starting this process but would love some feedback from anyone who has done it. Thank you

They also told me that it was due to the elections that my employer choose while setting up our new insurance. So my employer opted out of the lap band, but opted in for full bypass.

Currently that procedure is still very new , within past 2 yrs and there isn't enough data for long term sucess rates yet. I actually posted a similar thread over the weekend about this. My surgeon recently started performing this procedure and currently he has a patient that is 3 months out. This procedure only provides better restriction from stretching of pouch, however as always... diet and exercise will make it successful. Here is an a great link for a neat animation video. If accessing via mobile, animation will be on bottom of page. If by desktop or laptop top right. I also asked if this was covered under insurance and my surgeon said yes but depends on insurance. In addition, he also said this is a cheaper and less invasive versus revision surgery http://apolloendo.com/procedures/outlet-pouch-reduction/

I have to disagree, the amount of weight lost has nothing to do with how much you weigh. Everybody is different. For instance, my mother was 270 before her gastric bypass, at 5'7" her goal weight is 170. So that's 100 pounds. The fact that you are only 5' your suggested goal weight would be 115 to 130. So technically you need to lose the same amount as her. I don't see how that would make you any different than her. She had gastric bypass in March and she has already lost 80". On the other hand, I have friends who have had gastric sleeve that have lost as much weight and at the same rate. Whatever surgery you choose, it's gonna be hard, but there's no way of knowing how much or how fast you will lose weight. That all depends on how much effort you put in, but you could be just as successful as anyone else. Most people do lose the majority of their weight the first year, but honestly you would have less saggy skin if you did only lose 10 pounds a month. So it's a win either way, lol!

I'm 9 months out from VSG, saw the bariatric clinic follow up staff, and am so GRR now. I never had that "I'm never hungry" feeling once I recovered from the surgery but shrugged it off. I could drink 2 oz. fluids at once literally the day of surgery so I was like... OK, cool. Weight loss was slow despite being diet compliant and exercising, stopped at 25 pounds after 3 months, then gained 10 back after a foot injury (off again since getting back to my daily 5k jog). I've been having reflux for ages despite avoiding trigger foods/drinks and I get hiccups 20+ times a day regardless of how I'm eating, drinking, or not doing either. So they referred me back to the surgeon's office. Last week I had an upper GI study. The radiology report says I have mild decreased lower esophageal motility and mild outpouching at the fundus... um, I shouldn't HAVE a fundus after gastric sleeve. The weakened esophageal muscles explains the fluid that backs up when I drink sometimes, especially if not sitting straight up or standing, and the chest lock I feel when eating dryer foods or meats. I'm confused about the fundus. Is the radiologist mistaken and unfamiliar with VSG anatomy? Did the surgeon leave part of my fundus? The surgeon's office is awful at communicating so I'm in limbo. They didn't even call me before ordering the upper GI, they just had the radiology department call to schedule me without notice. All I can think about is where I go from here. Meds for the reflux and live with the hiccups? Revision surgery for the reflux and basically start over (the big GRR)? Anyone else have anything similar like a retained fundus, outpouching, or GERD with esophageal motility disorders like weakened muscles after VSG surgery?

I had novasure ablation and a tubal. Pre bypass was either extremely light or non existent. Since surgery is like I never had it! My surgeon said that while my pcos symptoms are getting back under control they could be like this

I had RNY gastric bypass and dumped the first year if i ate anything high in sugar. Your body eventually adapts after a year you can eat sweets without dumping. Some people continue to dump but they are usually the ones who have very strict diets so their intestines don't adjust to sugar. If you slowly incorporate sugar back into your diet you will likely not dump after a year. I'm coming up on 2 years and can eat sweets. Actually dumping can be a benefit the first year cause it keeps you on track. I once dumped from having cocktail sauce with shrimp! After the honeymoon period ends around 10 months you can gain weight by eating too many sugars and carbs. Best to keep them out of your diet as long as you can.

3mo post bypass, I had dumping about 10 times when introducing new foods, since then, I'm able to eat everything without issues. Sweets don't bother me, though i also don't crave them as i used to. If i eat fatty and fast, i do have dumping, no pain or gas, just extremely uncomfortable and wanting to crawl into a ball and die for about 15min. I have only positive things to say about the bypass, and agree that negative postings tend to blow the issues pout of proportion in the grand scheme of things. Good luck!

Hi All, I am still in the process of deciding between Bypass and Sleeve. My doctor and nurse tell me that Dumping Syndrome is not as common as the internet makes it out to be. I'd love to hear everyone's experience with this. Has anyone eaten a slice of cake or a cookie and NOT experienced dumping?

so yes i have been debating on posting this topic but i need answers i am an weed smoker prolly about 2-3 times a day i am geting the gastric bypass on sept 21 im not sure if i should quit smoking bc of the possibility of complications during surgery from smoking..i have looked it up online and nothing says weed can cause issues during surgery but nothing definite was wondering if there was anyone else who has quit prior to surgery for that reason

Hiya @ Bypasslady. I see you are in Melbourne, well Mikyy in Adelaide is seeking a bypass himself, perhaps he will get,in touch with you, been looking for other Australians on here.