Decisions decisions...

[Big Opie 32]

I don't know what to do, I have decided on bariatric surgery. At first I was dead set on bypass, then I decided ummm dumping syndrome doesn't sound pleasant and decided the sleeve, now I'm teetering on the edge again. I eat more then I'm supposed to and frequently, I love sweats when there around, and I want to maximize weight loss after surgery and am willing to do whatever it takes. I need your opinions. what surgery did you do? Why did you do it? Would you do a different surgery of you could? TIA

[Healthy_life2 8,330]

@@Big Opie

I had the sleeve. I had the sleeve because I'm a type one diabetic and still have to eat sugar when my blood sugar levels are low. I wanted to avoid dumping syndrome. I'm happy with my choice. So far no complications.

[Sharpie 3,306]

I had the lapband.. absolutely the best thing I have ever done. I was a type 2 diabetic, high cholesterol,high blood pressure. the surgery itself was a piece of cake and short recuperation. I am off of all medication and feel like a million bucks. None of the surgeries are easy but it depends on what you feel comfortable with.

[Djmohr 6,965]

It also depends on what other health issues you have. If you suffer from reflux or Gerd the best solution is RNY as it cures that problem. If you don't, then the sleeve may be a better option.

I cannot speak for the lapband other that I see a lot of lapband patients who end up getting revised to RNY or sleeve down the road for various reasons.

You should definately spend some time doing research and understanding how your health issues may steer you toward one solution over another.

If your clinic has a seminar you can take I would take it. They will go over how each surgery is performed and the pros and cons of each.

For me personally I had my heart set on the sleeve only to find out my Gerd/ are flux qcould become worse with both the sleeve and lapband. I went for 2 more opinions before deciding what to do. Once I made that decision I knew it was the right one, felt comfortable and never looked back.

I had RNY. All my co morbitiies (diabetes type 2, high blood pressure, reflux/Gerd, high cholesterol, and most recently stage 3 kidney disease) have been resolved.

Also I can eat what I want with no dumping syndrome. I choose to eat very healthy because that is the food that actually tastes best to me now.

I wish you the best of luck. Please make sure you take the time to understand what might work best for you given your current health issues

[beachgurl84 456]

I have (had) GERD and have had no trouble with it since my sleeve. I had some unusual triggers though like Kool-aid or sweet tea. I think it's individual to each person. Also, there is no dumping syndrom with the sleeve. It will not stop you one bit from sampling sweets other than volume. So if sweets are a slider for you to be unhealthy, maybe the bypass would be better. Talk through all your options with your surgeon and in your psych eval and your NUT.

My surgeon said the band would be phased out in the near future so if you're even thinking about that route I would suggest doing some major research on the maintenence and long term requirements.

I absolutely love my sleeve. I have a tough stomach so I haven't gotten sick, I've lost 75 pounds since 5 days preop, and I'm even preparing for an obstacle race in June. Good luck to you. Definitely go with what your gut tells you is right for you. The bypass is reversible, the sleeve is not. Keep that in mind.

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

I don't know what to do, I have decided on bariatric surgery. At first I was dead set on bypass, then I decided ummm dumping syndrome doesn't sound pleasant and decided the sleeve, now I'm teetering on the edge again. I eat more then I'm supposed to and frequently, I love sweats when there around, and I want to maximize weight loss after surgery and am willing to do whatever it takes. I need your opinions. what surgery did you do? Why did you do it? Would you do a different surgery of you could? TIA

I had the sleeve. Sleeve is the popular WLS at the moment. For me the slower weight loss was preferable because I wanted to minimize excess skin. I was also not interested in malabsorption or "re-wiring" my internal plumbing and dumping syndrome was NOT something I wanted risk. I was also not interested in having a foreign body in my body and to be honest, the negative stories I heard about slippage and the like turned me off the lap band. No I would not do a single thing differently. I have had a very pleasant surgical and post-op experience.

My advice to you would be to research the 2 surgeries a bit more. There is some mental work you have to do regardless of which procedure you choose. If you are tempted to eat sweets, deal with that. Otherwise it will always be a temptation no matter what surgery you choose. Remember the old adage; WLS is a tool, not a magic wand. People have found ways to eat and regain with all of these surgeries. You have to be committed to doing the work.

[Elode 8,093]

I have the sleeve. I had full intentions of having GB but on first visit my surgeon said sleeve was the best option for me, I trusted him and his opinion And I'm glad I did. I wouldn't choose anything else. I don't know anything but this and I'm happy with it so why wonder?

[JamieLogical 8,727]

I had sleeve over bypass for several reasons:

• Lower BMI - On the day I scheduled my surgery, my BMI was right at 40
• Rerouted Plumbing - I was kind of "freaked out" about several aspects of bypass. The main thing was that they leave your old stomach inside you still where it could potentially develop ulcers or cancer or other complications and since it is disconnected from your esophagus, it can no longer be checked out with a simple endoscopy. I also was concerned about the loss of use of the pyloric valve. I kept thinking, without the valve, won't the food just go straight through your stomach? And I also had this crazy thought that with my old stomach still inside me, would my brain get signals from my pouch to open and close my pyloric valve even though it didn't actually control the passage of food anymore? Just that whole process and my lack of understanding about it weirded me out.
• Restricted Food- I wanted to be able to eventually eat whatever I wanted again, just in smaller quantities. The truth is now, post-op, there are foods I probably won't ever eat again. Not because I'm physically incapable, but because I'm just not interested. But when I was choosing my surgery, the idea that I wouldn't HAVE to give up all the foods I love forever was somewhat comforting.
• Absorption - I was very worried about the possibility of malabsorption of essential Vitamins and minerals that can be associated with bypass. While it is possible to develop absorption issues with sleeve, it is less common and they are less severe.
• Self-pay - My insurance wouldn't cover WLS for me because I hadn't had a documented BMI over 40 for at least 5 years. I had lost 90+ pounds "on my own" in 2011 and was well under a 40 BMI for a while as I regained the weight. I had just peaked back over 40 this summer. So I would have had to wait 5 more years to be eligible under my insurance. Since I was self-pay, sleeve is a much cheaper procedure than bypass.

[Katie Loesch-Meyer 71]

Vitamin absorption is a big worry of mine, as there is a family history of severe osteoporosis in the women of my family. Like, breaking bones just opening a door or coughing. Also, I would prefer to be able to take NSAIDs if needed. So I'm hoping for the sleeve. But we are doing manometry testing on the 14th to see about reflux issues before deciding for sure.

[ilikecake2much 65]

@@JamieLogical - I completely agree about the stomach staying inside...freaks me out! And you make an excellent point that probably just made my decision for me - That if the old stomach develops ulcers/cancer it cannot be checked out with an endoscopy. Thank you for this post!

[RhiettaP 0]

I waffled back and forth between the sleeve and the RNY...I found myself favoring the sleeve "because I could still have sweets"....I was cheating before I even began which is WHY I went with the RNY. I haven't had too many issues with dumping....once in a blue moon I will eat something that sends me into a sugar overload, but dumping for me just makes me feel sick to my stomach and my heart races (I've never had the "runs" that most people get).

I know what my sugar limits are though and I try (we all have our moments) to keep myself in check.