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So I'm having surgery on November 11th and I'm set on the VSG but have been worried that that might not be the best option because I do get heart burn when I eat high fat foods. It's not an everyday occurrence but every couple of months if I splurge I do get heartburn

Has anyone else had the VSG who has heartburn every once in a while?? Any information you have learned through experience or from your doctor would be very much appreciated

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I have the Exact same problem. I'm going with the Sleeve because Bypass scares the crap out of me.

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Just out of curiosity why does bypass scare the crap out of you?

I was going to have the sleeve and then because of reflux we decided the better surgery for me was bypass. I was scared to death to because all of the horror stories.

I spent some time with both my bariatric team, my gastroenterologist as well as many bypass patients.

I was most afraid of the malabsorption component. I then learned very quickly that it actually helps you to lose weight and honestly both bypass and sleeve patients have to have blood work and take Vitamins for life. The biggest thing they warned me about was not going in for yearly nutritional panels and skipping Vitamins.

As long as you do that which you also have to do with the sleeve as well, you should be good.

I am two years post op, have lost all my weight and comorbitities, am very healthy and thank god every day that i went bypass as i have not even had a simple case of heartburn since the day i woke up from surgery.

Spend some time and really research so you make the best choice for your health. I have seen way too many sleeve patients then have to revise to bypass anyway. I decided i was only going through this one time in my life.

Both surgeries are equally as aggressive. The sleeve removes 90% of your stomach, the bypass reroutes.

Just my two cents....take it for what it is worth but don't be afraid, be educated about your choices.

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Just out of curiosity why does bypass scare the crap out of you?

I was going to have the sleeve and then because of reflux we decided the better surgery for me was bypass. I was scared to death to because all of the horror stories.

I spent some time with both my bariatric team, my gastroenterologist as well as many bypass patients.

I was most afraid of the malabsorption component. I then learned very quickly that it actually helps you to lose weight and honestly both bypass and sleeve patients have to have blood work and take Vitamins for life. The biggest thing they warned me about was not going in for yearly nutritional panels and skipping Vitamins.

As long as you do that which you also have to do with the sleeve as well, you should be good.

I am two years post op, have lost all my weight and comorbitities, am very healthy and thank god every day that i went bypass as i have not even had a simple case of heartburn since the day i woke up from surgery.

Spend some time and really research so you make the best choice for your health. I have seen way too many sleeve patients then have to revise to bypass anyway. I decided i was only going through this one time in my life.

Both surgeries are equally as aggressive. The sleeve removes 90% of your stomach, the bypass reroutes.

Just my two cents....take it for what it is worth but don't be afraid, be educated about your choices.

I wasn't afraid, but when making my decision I believed a restrictive procedure would work well for me. I didn't have any of the conditions that indicate RNY is the better option. I wasn't diabetic, sugar was not my "drug" if choice so the threat of dumping held no sway for me. I didn't have GERD. You are right that most surgeons require supplements for life with both VSG and RNY (at least mine does) but the threat of Vitamin deficiency is less with VSG because you absorb all you take in. Those were my concerns and why I chose VSG.

I've now converted to RNY because I developed severe GERD post surgery. Was I happy about it? No, not at the time. Other than the fact it was trying to kill me, I had a perfect sleeve. No food issues, my labs as far as vitamins/minerals were perfect. But the acid was killing me. I converted 3 months ago and for the most part, don't notice a difference. I still take my supplements. I still eat Protein forward. I still avoid sugars. It makes me sad when people who are clearly suffering with reflux dismiss RNY out of hand. If I had it prior to my surgery, there's no way in hell I would have gone forward with VSG and hoped for the best. It would have been RNY from the start

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@@stacyrg2

Well I am glad to hear things are going well for you now.

I do get frustrated when people automatically dismiss one or the other surgery without understanding that both delivery amazing results, both are equally as invasive and bother require Vitamins and blood testing for life.

I think i get frustrated because so many people tried to talk me out of bypass and of course were super uninformed. I honestly think people should not make up their minds until they have all the facts and a surgeon has helped them work through what might be the best option for them given their current health situation.

To your point, I have heard frequently that folks that never had reflux end up with it after the sleeve. It is a chance people take and most of the time it works out fine but those that even have a slight reflux should really consider all of their options.

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

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        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
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