hi I am new here , to this site my Dr. gave it to me yesterday . he wants me to have the sleeve an i want Gastric bypass but he says my BMI is too much an he al;so wants me to lose 100lbs before he does the sleeve , I have already lost from 545 to 503 , but he still wants me to lose 100 more lbs . I'm doing the protine drink , ( NASTY ) but still trying , i want this so bad i want to be able to watch my 2 sons grow up an see my grandkids with out surgery it wont happen I will eat my self to death so i could really use some postive feedback about the sleeve ,I know you dont lose as much weight as with the bypass . My Dr. also said it coul,d be turned into the bypass later but i really dont want to go threw 2 surgeries . My BMI is 77.5 i think .

Thanks

Crystal Brayfield

My surgeon told me that the weight loss is almost identical for the bypass and the sleeve. I think "statistically" there is a couple percentage points difference, so he calculated it out and it was something like a 17 lb difference which is a drop in the bucket for me. He told me that the sleeve was a MUCH safer surgery for me due to my weight, and the weight loss will be almost identical. That added to the fact that you will be hard pressed to stretch out the sleeve certainly made it the best option for me.

Good luck with whatever decision you make!

Hi, I agree with what others said above.

Re my own decision. Like you I was initially interested in bypass surgery. I knew I had a lot of weight to lose (although my PCP's scales went to 350, the past two years, I weighed more than 350 so I didn't know exactly how much I needed to lose).

When I went to the orientation session, I learned about the sleeve and that it had fewer complications than the bypass, which interested me because I knew my weight and age (62) put me at greater risk for complications.

When I had my surgeon consultation a few weeks later in May, I learned I weighed 385.5, which shocked me. I told the surgeon I was conflicted about the bypass vs. sleeve. On the one hand concerned about complications, on the other concerned about less weight loss. He told me recent research showed success rates about the same after two years and that he didn't really see any advantage for me with the bypass. If I had diabetes, he said he would have recommended the bypass because he thought it worked better for diabetes (but several people on this board have diabetes and they have done really well!!). He said if I were a member of his family, he'd recommend the sleeve. So I chose the sleeve because of fear of complications and a belief that the outcome would be about the same as the bypass.

Results so far: Starting weight 385.5; goal weight: 150. Preop diet began 6/14 - lost 19 pounds; surgery 6/29. By December 29 I had lost 105 pounds total. Won't weigh again until January 29. My mini-goal was to lose half of my excess weight (117.75 pounds) by end of December but that didn't happen. As you can see I got really close though. I have severe arthritis so I can't execise as vigorously as some others on this board, but I do execise.

My doctor's goal for me is to lose 70% of my excess weight or down to about 200 pounds. However, I firmly believe I can make MY goal of 100% loss of excess weight or down to 150. I figure it will take 18-20 months total, but I am sure I can do it with the sleeve. My doctor says if we use our weapons, we can lose weight indefinitely -- no stopping point until we want to stop. WEPNs = Water, execise, Protein, nutrients.

Btw, our guest speaker this week at surgeon's support group was a woman who had lost well over 200 pounds through bypass (she was in such bad shape she was in assisted living and was in her early 50s I think) and had kept it fof for a number of years. She was talking briefly to me before the meeting began and when I said I had the sleeve, she said that she would have had it had it been available at the time she had surgery.

The sleeve was the right decision for me. Best wishes in deciding which is best for you! Hang around on the board and you'll learn a lot more. People here are so inspiring to me.

Hi, I agree with what others said above.

Re my own decision. Like you I was initially interested in bypass surgery. I knew I had a lot of weight to lose (although my PCP's scales went to 350, the past two years, I weighed more than 350 so I didn't know exactly how much I needed to lose).

When I went to the orientation session, I learned about the sleeve and that it had fewer complications than the bypass, which interested me because I knew my weight and age (62) put me at greater risk for complications.

When I had my surgeon consultation a few weeks later in May, I learned I weighed 385.5, which shocked me. I told the surgeon I was conflicted about the bypass vs. sleeve. On the one hand concerned about complications, on the other concerned about less weight loss. He told me recent research showed success rates about the same after two years and that he didn't really see any advantage for me with the bypass. If I had diabetes, he said he would have recommended the bypass because he thought it worked better for diabetes (but several people on this board have diabetes and they have done really well!!). He said if I were a member of his family, he'd recommend the sleeve. So I chose the sleeve because of fear of complications and a belief that the outcome would be about the same as the bypass.

Results so far: Starting weight 385.5; goal weight: 150. Preop diet began 6/14 - lost 19 pounds; surgery 6/29. By December 29 I had lost 105 pounds total. Won't weigh again until January 29. My mini-goal was to lose half of my excess weight (117.75 pounds) by end of December but that didn't happen. As you can see I got really close though.

My doctor's goal for me is to lose 70% of my excess weight or down to about 200 pounds. However, I firmly believe I can make MY goal of 100% loss of excess weight or down to 150. I figure it will take 18-20 months total, but I am sure I can do it with the sleeve. My doctor says if we use our weapons, we can lose weight indefinitely -- no stopping point until we want to stop. WEPNs = Water, execise, Protein, nutrients.

Btw, our guest speaker this week at surgeon's support group was a woman who had lost well over 200 pounds through bypass (she was in such bad shape she was in assisted living and was in her early 50s I think) and had kept it fof for a number of years. She was talking briefly to me before the meeting began and when I said I had the sleeve, she said that she would have had it had it been available at the time she had surgery.

The sleeve was the right decision for me. Best wishes in deciding which is best for you! Hang around on the board and you'll learn a lot more that might help you with that decision. People here are so inspiring to me.

sorry about the double posts. Can't figure out how to delete the second one.

Studies have shown that people with the sleeve lose approximately the same amt. of weight as they would with the gastric bypass w/in a 5 year time frame (if not less).

If you sincerely want the gastric bypass, then by all means you should find another doctor that will respect your decision. I'm a firm believer of a second opinion, maybe even a third! I would see if you could get a consult for free with another bariatric surgeon in your area and see what they say. do not let them know what the other doctor mentioned, just hear them out and ask them sincerely which surgery is the best for you and what can you expect 5 years down the road with each surgery. if the outcome is the same for both, i don't see why the sleeve wouldn't be an option for you. like others mentioned, no re-routing of the intestines, no dumping, and no malabsorption, and iirc, less pills to take in your lifetime. you'll lose less weight with the sleeve in the beginning vs. the gastric bypass, but i think that's easier on the mind knowing that you aren't gonna look like a skeletor in 5 months

much luck to you and your decision. get that second opinion!!

I have sleeve surgery coming up, and that is because my insurance started covering it. When I attended a seminar on WLS I knew it was the ideal one. Plus, two friends of mine had gastric bypass ONLY because they couldn't have the sleeve at that time. Insurance changed and I lucked out. I would not hesitate to listen to your doctor and keep reading this website. It's helped me so much with so many questions! I also recall my doctor's telling me, "My sleeve patients are my happiest patients." Good luck to you!

hi I am new here , to this site my Dr. gave it to me yesterday . he wants me to have the sleeve an i want Gastric bypass but he says my BMI is too much an he al;so wants me to lose 100lbs before he does the sleeve , I have already lost from 545 to 503 , but he still wants me to lose 100 more lbs . I'm doing the protine drink , ( NASTY ) but still trying , i want this so bad i want to be able to watch my 2 sons grow up an see my grandkids with out surgery it wont happen I will eat my self to death so i could really use some postive feedback about the sleeve ,I know you dont lose as much weight as with the bypass . My Dr. also said it coul,d be turned into the bypass later but i really dont want to go threw 2 surgeries . My BMI is 77.5 i think .

Thanks

Crystal Brayfield

There really isn't enough long term (over 3 years) data on how the sleeve compares to the bypass. But there is enough data out there that made the decision to go with the sleeve the right one for me.

You don't have malabsorption issues with the sleeve like you do with the bypass. If you're on any medications, that can be a problem. I have read about many people who are not able to take certain medications and the ones they do take don't last as long as they did before the bypass.

With the shortened intestine of the bypass you will absorb less calories initially but for many people, the body tries to mend itself and grows more cilia to enable itself to absorb the calories. The malabsorption of the Vitamins and minerals is forever. As you age, you are likely to need B12 injections. You also face a lifetime of fighting Iron deficiency.

The sleeve removes 85% of the stretchy part of the stomach and with it most of the glands that produce ghrelin, the "hunger" hormone.

There are less complications with the sleeve than the bypass.

As with any wls surgery, you can out eat your surgery. You may want to seek counseling to help you find out why you overeat and support you while you find healthy ways to overcome those urges.

Good luck.

What do you mean by "you can out eat your surgery"?

I can't add much, but I'll say that I'd never have the bypass (RNY) because the regain stats are just scary. My aunt's had two WLSs, the second one being RNY, and has put all her weight back on each time.... she's by far not the only one I know personally who's done that.

At your weight though, I think I'd be leaning more toward going with the DS, and as others have said, the sleeve can also be extended to the full DS later if you don't get where you want to be with the sleeve alone. You'd still have the nutritional issues that you get with the bypass, but NOT the regain. Has your surgeon discussed DS with you, and if so, what's his reasoning for starting with the VSG and not going straight into a DS? I'm just curious.

Hi Fallen Angel:

I had the verticle sleeve done on 14 January. I was in the hospital for 4 days, came home and found out I lost 15 pounds. I was a little nervous, but honestly, it was a piece of cake. A week later, I feel great, no soreness and I even went back to work 4 days after the surgery. It is less invasive than gastric bypass. The hardest part after the surgery is the liquid diet. I am so glad I had it done.

hi I am new here , to this site my Dr. gave it to me yesterday . he wants me to have the sleeve an i want Gastric bypass but he says my BMI is too much an he al;so wants me to lose 100lbs before he does the sleeve , I have already lost from 545 to 503 , but he still wants me to lose 100 more lbs . I'm doing the protine drink , ( NASTY ) but still trying , i want this so bad i want to be able to watch my 2 sons grow up an see my grandkids with out surgery it wont happen I will eat my self to death so i could really use some postive feedback about the sleeve ,I know you dont lose as much weight as with the bypass . My Dr. also said it coul,d be turned into the bypass later but i really dont want to go threw 2 surgeries . My BMI is 77.5 i think .

Thanks

Crystal Brayfield

he said i was too big for the bypass that the sleeve would be better for me , an that after i lost weight on the sleeve if i still wanted the bypass it could be done ,

I can't add much, but I'll say that I'd never have the bypass (RNY) because the regain stats are just scary. My aunt's had two WLSs, the second one being RNY, and has put all her weight back on each time.... she's by far not the only one I know personally who's done that.

At your weight though, I think I'd be leaning more toward going with the DS, and as others have said, the sleeve can also be extended to the full DS later if you don't get where you want to be with the sleeve alone. You'd still have the nutritional issues that you get with the bypass, but NOT the regain. Has your surgeon discussed DS with you, and if so, what's his reasoning for starting with the VSG and not going straight into a DS? I'm just curious.

My surgeon also told me that my sleeve could be modified into a bypass later on if need be.

How can I say this? When we know better, we do better...this is especially true in medicine.. My aunt was heavy, too heavy. Really high BMI. I don't know what she weighed, but very short and very heavy. Eventually couldn't hardly walk at all. The surgery they offered then was state of the art for that time. It was some kind of lap band that she got that got all wrapped around her insides to the point that it had be removed b/c she couldn't get food down at all. But that time has passed, it was the first lap band or stomach stapling and that was gosh, 30 years ago. She died 13 years ago or so, from being overweight. She was in her late 50's, and otherwise she had been healthy - just heart problems from being overweight for so long, loss of muscle tissue, etc. She prayed for that magic pill to lose weight. In time the magic weight loss pill came along and it damaged people's heart valves, not hers I guess bc she was already gone, but it did damage my dad's valve. Then there was the more modern lap band, then the bypass/RNY/DS, etc. and now the sleeve. And actually now the sleeve plication.

You gotta realize your doctor is working with the most up to date information. We get used to hearing about things like lap band and it was great for some, or gastric bypass, which some people did well. But now the sleeve is better than those. Maybe you really do need to look at data. Kinda sounds like you really wanted gastric bypass, but what if this is better?

I weighed 220 and I was paying cash bc my insurance did not cover ANY WLS or complications from WLS.

I asked my doctor which surgery would be best for me long term, most effective, safest, etc. I didn't ask which was cheapest, because I didn't care. He immediately said sleeve. I went to a nutrition meeting with like 6 other people getting WLS. Some lap band and some gastric bypass. All of them were on insurance. They were all getting the lap band or gastric bypass, but all wished they were getting the sleeve. Their insurance did not cover it bc it was too new, That was a year ago so since then a lot are covering it.

At a certain point you gotta pick a doctor and trust him.

I do have one question though. The sleeve plication is even less risky than the sleeve, from the little I've read here, so if you were not able to lose weight to have the surgery (the 100 lbs) then could you get the plication at least temporarily to keep you from being able to overeat? I just wondered if you had spoken with your doctor about that. The plication is where the stomach is not cut but it is rolled up and stiched so that only a small portion of the stomach is available to put food into.

I was wondering though. 100 lbs seems like a lot to lose before surgery, but I know he is trying to help you. I wish you the best.

I agree with pumpkin, you have to trust your doctors and listen to what they have to say, also do your research and ultimately make the most informed and appropriate decision for you.

As far a losing 100 lbs before you can have the surgery...I'm not a doctor but that sounds just a tad excessive to me. I would probably talk to the doctor about that again. Good luck!

Perhaps you should get a second opinion if your doctor is not the only experienced bariatric surgeon in your area

In my aera he is the only one all others are way up north of me an i cant afford the gas to get there an all the trips i will have to make

Perhaps you should get a second opinion if your doctor is not the only experienced bariatric surgeon in your area