I'm still struggling between having a ds, and a bypass. I'm terrified of surgery, and want to only have to do it once. My doctor has assured me that I have narrowed it down to the correct two surgeries for me, but says it's a personal choice. I have done tons of research, and am leaning more towards the ds, but am scared of the extra risks. Any advice would be great! My insurance mandated diet is over next month. I'll be having surgery hopefully in November.

Very little risk of dumping with a DS.

The DS is a more complex surgery. It takes longer to do. You need to ensure your doctor has done tons of them. You don't want to be in his first 10.

Does he want to do a full DS or a (SIPS, SADI, single loop procedure)?

if you're having the DS you need to commit to a ton of vitamins and supplements for the rest of your life. Every Day. Also a slew of blood tests once or twice a year depending on your surgeon's requirements.

Remember: think twice, cut once. Like you said you don't want to have to do this again.

Edited September 14, 20178 yr by Postop

FWIW, my surgeon won't perform DS because he believes the malabsorption is too great. He is a firm believer in the "gold standard" of bypass.

About regain, I don't know why the DS would keep someone from regaining any more than a bypass. You can snack yourself fat either way!

10 minutes ago, fruitandveggies said:

FWIW, my surgeon won't perform DS because he believes the malabsorption is too great. He is a firm believer in the "gold standard" of bypass.

About regain, I don't know why the DS would keep someone from regaining any more than a bypass. You can snack yourself fat either way!

The lack of regain is from The malabsorption. On average we only absorb about 20% of the Fat we eat, 40% of the Protein we eat and 40-60% of the Carbs we eat. For the DS we don't count calories we only count protein grams and make sure to get plenty of good fat to prevent constipation. The chance of any regain is less than 5% over 10 years. With Bypass it's 30%.

The DS is serious business not to be taken on lightly. You are completely changing how your body processes food. You will Have to take multiple doses of vitamins each day to remain healthy. Dehydration following surgery is nearly guaranteed but treatable.

I recommend the Sleeve to most of the people I talk to just because it is such a drastic lifestyle change. And it's easily converted to the DS if needed in the future.

1 hour ago, sunflower71609 said:

Did you have the ds?

Most people on this site list their surgery under their picture when they post. I would look there first for their information. I too had the DS and have no regrets. I revised from a lap-band and didn't want the risk of regain.

Edited September 14, 20178 yr by Strivingforbetter

39 minutes ago, dsdesigna said:

The lack of regain is from The malabsorption. On average we only absorb about 20% of the Fat we eat, 40% of the Protein we eat and 40-60% of the Carbs we eat. For the DS we don't count calories we only count protein grams and make sure to get plenty of good fat to prevent constipation. The chance of any regain is less than 5% over 10 years. With Bypass it's 30%.

The DS is serious business not to be taken on lightly. You are completely changing how your body processes food. You will Have to take multiple doses of Vitamins each day to remain healthy. Dehydration following surgery is nearly guaranteed but treatable.

I recommend the Sleeve to most of the people I talk to just because it is such a drastic lifestyle change. And it's easily converted to the DS if needed in the future.

Thank you, good info!

I have no regrets on choosing the DS. However, I do count calories, carbs, and protein, and try to stick with low fat foods. That is my surgeons protocol. One of the reasons I chose it is the success it has had with reversing type 2 diabetes and because it keeps the pyloric spinchter intact, lessening the chance of dumping syndrome, though it can still happen.

Research both surgeries, there is a lot of info out there, especially on bariatric surgeons sites. I had a hard time deciding, but the more reading I did, the more my choice became clear. Just make sure you use reliable sources.

Just an FYI, the SADI/SIPS surgeries are not covered by all insurances because they are considered something different from the proven DS. My insurance would cover the DS for me, but not the modified procedures.

4 hours ago, sunflower71609 said:

Did you have the ds?

Yes. My surgery was July 8, 2014.

Surgery weight 371

Current Weight 258

the majority of my weight loss happened by January 2015. I was down to 270 by then.

22 minutes ago, ChaosUnlimited said:

I have no regrets on choosing the DS. However, I do count calories, carbs, and Protein, and try to stick with low fat foods. That is my surgeons protocol. One of the reasons I chose it is the success it has had with reversing type 2 diabetes and because it keeps the pyloric spinchter intact, lessening the chance of dumping syndrome, though it can still happen.

Research both surgeries, there is a lot of info out there, especially on bariatric surgeons sites. I had a hard time deciding, but the more reading I did, the more my choice became clear. Just make sure you use reliable sources.

Just an FYI, the SADI/SIPS surgeries are not covered by all insurances because they are considered something different from the proven DS. My insurance would cover the DS for me, but not the modified procedures.

I am part of a support group for DS people and none of us counts calories. Protein for sure and carbs I keep an eye on but as for keeping food logs and the like I haven't done that since January of 2015. I've lost 125 lbs and not a single pound regained.

I hope you find a way to get to this point. I know I didn't have the DS so that I would have to be watching what I eat.

At the beginning it's important so that good habits about food choices and portions are established. I'm three years out and loving my DS.

8 hours ago, sunflower71609 said:

My doctor is very confident in both. He told me my best options were ds or bypass and the choice was up to me. The fact that not many doctors offer it kind of concerns me. I've heard so many stories about gastric bypass not working. People gain all their weight back. Can't imagine going through all this and having that be the outcome.

That can be the outcome for any surgery if you or anyone else doesn't stick to the plan. Its not the surgery that becomes unsuccessful it's the person that has it. So all those people you know who gained the weight back. It was not due to the weight loss tool. So I wouldn't let anyone else's 'failure' be a bearing on your choice. Whatever you decide believe that both options you will rock it and succeed because you have every intention in following your plan so you have no need to worry in that being the outcome. Good luck.

Not all bypass patients dump. I've never dumped. The statistics people throw around on these boards are that 30% dump. I don't know if there's any hardcore research behind that figure, but suffice it to say, most of us don't dump. There are times I wish I *did* dump, to be honest...

Lots of people are successful with all the surgeries. It's easier to keep the weight off with the DS because of the additional malabsorption, but any of them will work great as long as you're compliant. I follow the rules at least 95% of the time - and I know I'll need to continue to do so to keep the weight off.

I just had the sleeve and lost 172 pounds post op, with just the sleeve and good eating habits, not really working out.

I picked the sleeve because I knew I could revise to DS if I didn't lose enough with the sleeve or if as I get older I have serious regain issues.

If i was going to pick I would pick DS just because you get to eat more and you don't have to be quite as diligent. So if someone is a serious food addict with emotional issues, DS is the better option to keep the weight off long term.

The only other reason to not go with DS would just be the skill of the surgeon and the support of the program. I have noticed some programs treat DS like other surgeries and do not provide good nutrition and follow up care. DS is unique and needs unique follow up.

On 9/13/2017 at 7:10 AM, sunflower71609 said:

I'm still struggling between having a ds, and a bypass. I'm terrified of surgery, and want to only have to do it once. My doctor has assured me that I have narrowed it down to the correct two surgeries for me, but says it's a personal choice. I have done tons of research, and am leaning more towards the ds, but am scared of the extra risks. Any advice would be great! My insurance mandated diet is over next month. I'll be having surgery hopefully in November.

I have had the Gastric bypass 16 years ago, I am not going to have the DS, (i am looking into it). I kept my weight off for a few years even after having 2 children back to back, i did not gain to much weight but whatever i gained during the pregnancies came right back off.I have a few hernia surgeries. I did not start to really gain until the 7 to 8 year mark, that is when i started having to really work hard at dieting again. In the past two years, I have continually gained i exercise, eat pretty much on track. I am looking to have the DS. I wish this would have been told to me back then that i had a choice., from what i have read the DS has a greater success rate in the long run. I am worried they will not let me have any of the surgeries. I would go with the DS. I will pay out of pocket again.