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Help - Surgeon says I need Gastric



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Def. get another opinion. My dr performs both surgeries and he recommended the lapband due to less complications, less recovery time, reversible, adjustable, etc.... I weighed 380 to start with. It's slower than bypass, maybe that's why s/he recommended bypass.

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By all means, get a second, third, even a fourth opinion! This is something that is not only life changing it is also expensive (sad to admit that money has to factor into what will make us healthy and help get rid of weight).

As for me, I am not banded. I started the process and after visiting with more than one surgeon it has been concluded that a band was not the right choice for me BUT it was not because of the amount of weight I need to get rid of (I'm 5'4", 295). The doctors I visited with all advised the gastric sleeve. I have a cancer history and am prone to urinary tract infections (5 to 6 times a year) and normally run a high fever with the infections. The surgeons advised that it would not be wise to place a foriegn object in my body with my health history. I made it a point to ask if their recommendation of the gastric sleeve was based at all on the amount of weight I had to lose OR on the dollar amount for the surgery and subsequent hospital stay. The answer was a stern NO, neither factored into their recommendation. One doctor even went so far as to talk candidly with me about his disdain for doctors who would stoop to such considerations.

Good luck on your journey and be informed!!

Kat

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Good luck to you Katandcharlie with your weight loss journey...band or not...we all stick together!

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Good luck to you Katandcharlie with your weight loss journey...band or not...we all stick together!

Thank you amsderb! Your response is exactly why I have stayed with this sight. I know that the band is not for me because of my health history but just like everyone here, I am battling a weight problem that has plagued me for more years than I can count. There is a true sense of caring I have found with this sight and I continue to look to the postings for encouragement and support. And good luck with your journey as well! You are getting closer and closer to the new you!

Kat

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Thanks Kat...I have to admit...I am a bit scared....but that is normal for any surgery....

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Hi Hopeforjoy,

I am at 281 right now (I had lost 30 pounds and then gained back 15 recently due to ankle surgery last month) and also suffer from hypothryoidism (diagnosed after giving birth to 2nd child 5 1/2 yrs ago) and many other ailments. My first Endo never bothered to check my sugar levels so the weight came on somewhat fast as I have a sweet tooth. But over the 3 years that I was seeing that endo, he never cared about my rapid weight gain. Anyway, I changed endos and at each follow up visit she continued to "highly recommend" gastric bypass because I was detected as insulin resistant, cholestrol all wacky and everything else. I have been against gastric bypass since I became obese and decided to change endos again because I was tired of hearing about it at each visit. But I did learn from her that I was insulin resistant, which was causing all of my problems, and followed the insulin resistant diet where I finally lost the 30 pounds. Anyway, I made it clear to the 3rd endo that I did not want gastric bypass. He told me not worry right now and see what the lab results say. He did all kinds of labwork and when we scheduled the follow-up he highly recommended some sort of weightloss surgery because I was headed for a heart attack. I still refuse gastric bypass and I already knew about the Lap-band as a former boss of mine had it done over 4 years ago. I was told by my endo that the gastric bypass really should only be considered if your deathly/morbidly obese and need to lose the weight fast due to health reasons, otherwise, banding would be just as good. Don't get me wrong... When I made the appt with the doctor at the weightloss surgical center he tried to tell me that gastric bypass would be better for me. Again I refuse to have that procedure, and from what I read, most people get good results just with the lap band. Think about it hard though. Gastric bypass is very drastic. I have a cousin who had that done and yes she lost the weight but she had ALOT of loose skin! It looked horrible on her. And then she eventually gained all the weight back and now she is pretty stuck with it unless she changes her eating habits. So just think about it! <warm smile>

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    • LeighaTR

      I am new here today... and only two weeks out from my sleeve surgery on the 23rd. I am amazed I have kept my calories down to 467 today so far... that leaves me almost 750 left for dinner and maybe a snack. This is going to be tough for two weeks... but I have to believe I can do it!
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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.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        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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