Just approved, no date yet but I am obsessing over sleeve vs bypass. My Dr wants me to have the sleeve and I agreed but I’m worried that it won’t be as effective as bypass and because I’m an emotional eater and addicted to sugar, I’m worried about gaining weight back. My husband had bypass 3 years ago and lost 120 and said it made him lose desire for certain foods like sugar. I need to lose 70 or 80, I’m 5’6 and 220 and my Dr thought I don’t need to lose that much so sleeve is best but I disagree on how much I should lose. I do have to take a baby aspirin for risk of stroke along with antidepressants so I know he is worried about ulcers but my husband takes a aspirin every once and awhile and is on Prozac and never had any problems. If anyone can put my mind at ease that the sleeve is best I’d appreciate it!

17 minutes ago, Charisse Jordan said:

Just approved, no date yet but I am obsessing over sleeve vs bypass. My Dr wants me to have the sleeve and I agreed but I’m worried that it won’t be as effective as bypass and because I’m an emotional eater and addicted to sugar, I’m worried about gaining weight back. My husband had bypass 3 years ago and lost 120 and said it made him lose desire for certain foods like sugar. I need to lose 70 or 80, I’m 5’6 and 220 and my Dr thought I don’t need to lose that much so sleeve is best but I disagree on how much I should lose. I do have to take a baby aspirin for risk of stroke along with antidepressants so I know he is worried about ulcers but my husband takes a aspirin every once and awhile and is on Prozac and never had any problems. If anyone can put my mind at ease that the sleeve is best I’d appreciate it! 

Regardless of which procedure you decide on, this is a lifestyle change. If you don't already have one I suggest talking to a mental health professional before scheduling your big day.

I was leaning towards a bypass, but my doctors shared with me that the bypass comes with a lot more risk, and that for the types of medications I take, a sleeve would be best. I am now 3 days post-op and while I used to have a severe sweet tooth, I can honestly say that it's been difficult to choke down some of these protein shakes because they're simply TOO sweet.

This is a big change, and I hope that you can find a comfortable place emotionally/mentally to pick a date.

Good luck!

With the sleeve they remove the hunger hormone as well do you will lose you hunger in general. I’m never hungry.

Regardless of the surgery you choose neither is an easy button you have to listen to and follow the advisement of your medical team even if you disagree with them or you won’t be as successful. It sounds like you are already disagreeing with or not trusting your surgeon do perhaps it’s worth exploring a different surgeon bec if the distrust and disagreement continues it may lead to a less successful results.

Congratulations on your approval.

When it comes to choosing your surgery you are the boss. Get the surgery you want and know why you want it. Your Doc is right that relatively speaking you don't have much weight to lose, but once you cross the hurdle to choose surgery, which surgery would be based on all the same in depth decission making process we all should do.

Before you choose to have GB as your husband did, note that we don't all respond the same ways to any surgery, it's a very individual thing. Medications are also quite individual considerations. Baby aspirin would very likely not be an issue as it's so ridiculously low dose. My Doctor did not declare Aspirin off limits but becasue of liver issues he didn't want me taking Tylenol if I could avoid it. If we are going to take Aspirin then like virutally everyone else that takes Aspirin, heck we should do this for any medication, we need to monitor for negative side effects and report them quickly. Other medications you would have to discuss with your medical team. All of this should be part of deciding to have GB or Sleeve or DS or Band or whatever.

No surgery can be counted to remove cravings. Some people claim that some foods taste differently post-op. Don't count on such idiosyncratic results.

I had GB and fortunately for me I dump on sugars and fats. It takes an amazingly small number of dumping episodes before you simply choose to avoid sugars and fats. Not everyone is as enthusiastic about dumping as I am. It is absolutely no fun and it can be very embarassing if you manage it in public. Since you have relatively little weight to lose I'm not sure why you would want to put yourself through it.

The Sleeve is a perfectly fine surgery. No dumping. Good restriction. Fewer medication concerns. It is a less complicated surgery. Suppmentation, though still necessary, is less critical than with GB. You can get there from here. You can be happy with the Sleeve.

Good luck,

Tek

Edited February 24, 20233 yr by The Greater Fool

2 hours ago, The Greater Fool said:

It takes an amazingly small number of dumping episodes before you simply choose to avoid sugars and fats.

You got this right.

For me personally I got the sleeve. I was really not into them rerouting my intestines' lol But that was me....I will be 3 years out in a few weeks. I still have my gallbladder, I have some issues with my GERD, but again I just have to watch what I am eating.

I am very happy with everything. I will be turning 59 in April. Wish I had done it sooner.

Best of luck on your journey

in response to what someone said above, most people lose their hunger for several months with bypass, too. I'm currently taking a graduate-level nutrition course on weight loss and obesity, and ghrelin level was extremely low on RNY patients at one year out in a fairly large research study.

both sleeve and RNY are good surgeries, and both have their pros and cons. There are some conditions that make one surgery more appropriate for you than the other, but if you don't have those conditions (which from what you said, it doesn't sound like you do), it really comes down to personal preference.

lots of people who've had WLS - both RNY and sleeve folks - take antidepressants. Shouldn't be a problem. With some medications they need to adjust your dosage or put you on a different med, but there are workarounds for almost everything.

I wish I dumped. Unfortunately, I'm one of the lucky ones - or UNLUCKY ones, depending on your perspective. Sure would make me think twice about downing a bowl of ice cream...

While the surgery will help with some things, it’s real success depends upon choices you make. Regardless of which surgery you have you will lose your appetite/hunger for a period of time (there are a few people who don’t & it’s with either surgery). You will also temporarily lose your taste for certain foods. It’s often sugar, as foods can become super sweet but it can be any food that smells &/or tastes awful. Neither surgery will do anything about your desire for sweet & your emotional eating. These are things you have to work through yourself. As we often say the surgery only removes some of your tummy/changes your digestive system. It doesn’t remove the part of your brain that drives your head hunger. It’s why many chose to seek therapy to learn the reasons behind their head hunger & develop strategies to help them better manage their emotional eating, cravings, etc.

Both surgeries will reset your body’s set point. This is the weight your body is happiest at & is easiest to maintain. What your set point becomes can’t be predicted. Can you lose more than your set point? Yes, but it is harder to do & maintain. Can you weigh more than your set point? Yes because lifestyle demands or choice, medical conditions & medications, etc. can mean we carry more weight. Remember the average weight loss statistic at the three year mark for both surgeries is about 65% of the weight to be lost to put the person in a healthy weight range. Some will lose more & others less.

I have a sleeve. I felt it would suit my life better & was less drastic than bypass. I made a number of choices to benefit my success that I knew I could sustainably follow for the long term & not feel like I was missing out. I took advantage of the too sweet phase & decided not to introduce sweet back into my diet - or avoid as much as I could - & so rarely eat real or artificially sweet foods or drinks. I chose to rarely eat take away or fast foods. I prep & cook most of what I eat from scratch & rarely eat medium or high processed foods or ingredients. I also chose not to include a lot of exercise in my life - I simply don’t enjoy it. But these are my choices. You’ll make choices that best complement you & your lifestyle. I also lost all my weight & more & have maintained.

All the best with whichever surgery you chose to have.

9 minutes ago, Arabesque said:

While the surgery will help with some things, it’s real success depends upon choices you make. Regardless of which surgery you have you will lose your appetite/hunger for a period of time (there are a few people who don’t & it’s with either surgery). You will also temporarily lose your taste for certain foods. It’s often sugar, as foods can become super sweet but it can be any food that smells &/or tastes awful. Neither surgery will do anything about your desire for sweet & your emotional eating. These are things you have to work through yourself. As we often say the surgery only removes some of your tummy/changes your digestive system. It doesn’t remove the part of your brain that drives your head hunger. It’s why many chose to seek therapy to learn the reasons behind their head hunger & develop strategies to help them better manage their emotional eating, cravings, etc.

Both surgeries will reset your body’s set point. This is the weight your body is happiest at & is easiest to maintain. What your set point becomes can’t be predicted. Can you lose more than your set point? Yes, but it is harder to do & maintain. Can you weigh more than your set point? Yes because lifestyle demands or choice, medical conditions & medications, etc. can mean we carry more weight. Remember the average weight loss statistic at the three year mark for both surgeries is about 65% of the weight to be lost to put the person in a healthy weight range. Some will lose more & others less.

I have a sleeve. I felt it would suit my life better & was less drastic than bypass. I made a number of choices to benefit my success that I knew I could sustainably follow for the long term & not feel like I was missing out. I took advantage of the too sweet phase & decided not to introduce sweet back into my diet - or avoid as much as I could - & so rarely eat real or artificially sweet foods or drinks. I chose to rarely eat take away or fast foods. I prep & cook most of what I eat from scratch & rarely eat medium or high processed foods or ingredients. I also chose not to include a lot of exercise in my life - I simply don’t enjoy it. But these are my choices. You’ll make choices that best complement you & your lifestyle. I also lost all my weight & more & have maintained.

All the best with whichever surgery you chose to have.

Thank you for the insight

5 hours ago, The Greater Fool said:

Congratulations on your approval.

When it comes to choosing your surgery you are the boss. Get the surgery you want and know why you want it. Your Doc is right that relatively speaking you don't have much weight to lose, but once you cross the hurdle to choose surgery, which surgery would be based on all the same in depth decission making process we all should do.

Before you choose to have GB as your husband did, note that we don't all respond the same ways to any surgery, it's a very individual thing. Medications are also quite individual considerations. Baby aspirin would very likely not be an issue as it's so ridiculously low dose. My Doctor did not declare Aspirin off limits but becasue of liver issues he didn't want me taking Tylenol if I could avoid it. If we are going to take Aspirin then like virutally everyone else that takes Aspirin, heck we should do this for any medication, we need to monitor for negative side effects and report them quickly. Other medications you would have to discuss with your medical team. All of this should be part of deciding to have GB or Sleeve or DS or Band or whatever.

No surgery can be counted to remove cravings. Some people claim that some foods taste differently post-op. Don't count on such idiosyncratic results.

I had GB and fortunately for me I dump on sugars and fats. It takes an amazingly small number of dumping episodes before you simply choose to avoid sugars and fats. Not everyone is as enthusiastic about dumping as I am. It is absolutely no fun and it can be very embarassing if you manage it in public. Since you have relatively little weight to lose I'm not sure why you would want to put yourself through it.

The Sleeve is a perfectly fine surgery. No dumping. Good restriction. Fewer medication concerns. It is a less complicated surgery. Suppmentation, though still necessary, is less critical than with GB. You can get there from here. You can be happy with the Sleeve.

Good luck,

Tek

Thank you for the insight, I think I may be worrying more than I need to and my surgeon has a good reputation as he also teaches the surgery to new doctors, I’m sure his knowledge of what I need won’t steer me wrong

I heard you say you don’t want to have “two surgeries”, and it reminded me of my mother’s experience. She had gastric bypass and lost more than 100lbs. Within a few years, she had to have surgery to remove her gallbladder. The surgeon told her it’s very common for RNY patients to eventually need this operation. Either way, you may end up having two surgeries after all. I would instead focus on the present risk factors and make your final decision based on your comfort level. Good luck to you!!

I heard you say you don’t want to have “two surgeries”, and it reminded me of my mother’s experience. She had gastric bypass and lost more than 100lbs. Within a few years, she had to have surgery to remove her gallbladder. The surgeon told her it’s very common for RNY patients to eventually need this operation. Either way, you may end up having two surgeries after all. I would instead focus on the present risk factors and make your final decision based on your comfort level. Good luck to you!!

Doesn't matter what type of WLS if you are taking about gallbladder. It has to do with rapid weightloss and bile acid circulation. For example, a recent study "The occurrence of cholecystectomy was 46% after sleeve gastrectomy and 71.1% after gastric band procedures."

Just approved, no date yet but I am obsessing over sleeve vs bypass. My Dr wants me to have the sleeve and I agreed but I’m worried that it won’t be as effective as bypass and because I’m an emotional eater and addicted to sugar, I’m worried about gaining weight back. My husband had bypass 3 years ago and lost 120 and said it made him lose desire for certain foods like sugar. I need to lose 70 or 80, I’m 5’6 and 220 and my Dr thought I don’t need to lose that much so sleeve is best but I disagree on how much I should lose. I do have to take a baby aspirin for risk of stroke along with antidepressants so I know he is worried about ulcers but my husband takes a aspirin every once and awhile and is on Prozac and never had any problems. If anyone can put my mind at ease that the sleeve is best I’d appreciate it!

I would go with the advice of your doctor since he knows your case the best. However, you can always get a second opinion. Many people who have had the sleeve have long term success. I know those who had vsg and they regained, but I know people who had bypass and regained. It's really up to the person to be able to follow life long changes and commitment. I think if one has a history of gerd, then they are the main people that should stay away from the vsg. Good luck and how to hear of your decision soon.