Hello everyone my name is karla and im from connecticut i have been a member of fellow sister forum rny talk looking for experiences and points of view about wls i started preop process in april and still dont have a date but working on it so far i havent made my mind yet as to what procedure is the right one for me i was settled on bypass but when i met with the surgeon talks to me bout the sleeve and now im confused he said he leaves the descion to the patient he can only reccomend and he thinks in my case i can have good results with the sleeve instead if going all the way with bypass im just scared of making the wrong the desicion since im so insecure when it comes to desicions so im really looking for advice or why did u decide to go for this procedure vs bypass i woul appreciate your input thanks!! K

Hi Karen,

This is Jean. I was sleeved on 5/5/13. I was self-pay and went to Mexico for the procedure. I have a good friend who had the gastric by-pass about 7 years ago. My friend's daughter-in-law also had the by-pass and my friend's son had the sleeve. While my friend is happy with her gastric by-pass, she said she wishes she could have had the sleeve. The sleeve was not well known when she had the by-pass. Both my friend and her daughter-in-law have had absorption problems and vitamin deficiencies. Her son has done very well with his sleeve and has had no problems whatever. That said, I am not trying to sway you toward the sleeve, just telling you what I know about 3 particular cases. I have not had any kind of problems whatever with my sleeve and am very happy with it. I didn't have as much weight to lose as some people. I started at 196 and am now 158 and not done yet. I'm 5'4". My friend, Cathy, who had the by-pass surgery, lost 150+ pounds. Her son with the sleeve lost approximately the same amount. I would be happy to answer any questions regarding my sleeve experience. Feel free to inbox me. my user name is jeanielan. You might want to make a pro and con list for each surgery to help with your decision.

I chose the sleeve and expect my date to be in mid-November after I complete a 12 week program required by my insurance. I chose the sleeve because I did not want my stomach pinched with a port left in my side (lap band) and I did not want my intestines re-routed (gastric bypass). In the process of fashioning the smaller sleeve out of the stomach you do have, the portion that generates the hunger hormone ghrelin is removed too. That's not to say you can't ever overeat and stretch your sleeve, but it makes the whole process of gastric surgery more user-friendly. I expect to have successful results from it. Good luck with whatever decision you make. You won't regret being healthier and having more energy to live a fuller life.

I had the sleeve, but 2 ladies in my office had gastric bypass. We are all losing weight and happy with our decision. I chose the sleeve over the bypass because it creeped me out - thinking about the doc rerouting my intestines. :-P

The other things that pushed me towards the sleeve -

1. I don't have to be as careful about becoming Vitamin deficient. Bypass patients have to watch this more closely - but they tend to lose weight quicker.

2. Sleevers don't experience dumping the way bypass patient can. Sleevers still have the valve at the bottom of the stomach that regulates the passage of food into the intestines. Bypass patients can experience dumping syndrome by eating the wrong things and the food passes too quickly from the stomach to the intestines. From what I've read and seen in Youtube videos, this is not fun!

I thank all of you to take time to reply and and for your great advice i was so settled on bypass but honestly it scares me the malabsorbtion and the rerouting thanks again i have to make a desicion soon so i have to keep researching but your advice and all the stories i have read so far are helping me big time to make up my mind

I did a bucket load of scientific research (I had access to academic research journal articles). On balance and unless you're super-morbidly obese or have serious health considerations (diabetes, critically high blood pressure), the Sleeve is better.. What is your BMI?

I did a bucket load of scientific research (I had access to academic research journal articles). On balance and unless you're super-morbidly obese or have serious health considerations (diabetes' date=' critically high blood pressure), the Sleeve is better.. What is your BMI?[/quote']

Im 5'4 247 lbs around a bmi of 45 no critical health conditions just gerd and apnea my surgeon says even with gerd i can get the sleeve