Baratric Surgery. Which Type Did You Have and Do You Think It Was Worth It

I had a friend that had great results and is now as fit as a fiddle. But, I don't think those sugary cereals are part of a healthy eating plan, and will play havoc with early stage diabetes.

I have a good friend who had gastric bypass surgery last summer. She had also been obese her entire life and unable to lose weight. She had diabetes and a host of other health problems, and essentially, her doctor told her that if she wanted to be around to see her daughters grow up, she needed to do something about it. After weighing her options, she went with the surgery. She is now, a little over a year later, at her ideal body weight. She looks and feels great. She no longer has problems with diabetes or any of the other weight-related problems. For her, the only lingering side effect has been that she can't eat all of the same types of foods that she used to eat. It was a real trial and error effort to find out what her stomach could handle after her surgery. The wrong thing or a little too much of something sends her running to throw up. She spent a lot of time throwing up for the first several months. It was embarrassing for her, especially when in social situations, and I imagine if she had been working, it could have posed a real problem for her. Oh, and she had trouble taking her vitamin supplements for awhile (they also made her throw up--which is a real problem since people who undergo that surgery rely heavily on vitamin supplementation to prevent nutritional deficiencies), but she is fine with it now. You should also know that there are a lot of basic lifestyle changes that come along with the surgery. For instance, she is limited on the types of medication she can take. Also, the surgery alone didn't cause her to lose weight. She works out an hour a day (but is thrilled because this is the first time in her adult life that exercising has been possible outside of water aerobics).

On the other side, a woman my friend knows had the surgery a few months after my friend and didn't fair so well. I'm not sure what the final outcome was, but I know that following the surgery, the other woman ended up in the emergency room with life threatening complications. While those are the exception, I'd guess most people's opposition to the surgery is the risk of dying from it (or having other severe medical issues as a result of having the surgery).

But remember, you are the one who has to live your life, and only you know whether the inconveniences and risks are worthwhile to you and your family, especially compared to the known risks and current problems your weight poses for you.

I know several people who have done it and most have gained the weight back b/c... like being an alcoholic is not about the booze; being a food addict is not about the food. SO... it's good that you're getting psych. services b/c it's the only way you can overcome your addiction w/ food..... not surgery. Are you aware that a good portion of people who have this surgery go on to another addiction (just shifted from food to another source to numb out).

Also - there was a doctor on the Dr. OZ show who had invented a new surgical instrument that goes back in via the throat and RE-STAPLES a stretched out stomach back to the original post op size.

Ask yourself the very serious question... how big is the failure rate of this procedure if a Dr. has invented, patented, manufactured AND passed FDA approval (a very hard process) for a tool to re-do the process b/c so many people have stretched back out their stomach pouch. Horrifying if you really think about it.

You also have to think about the skin issue... if you loose weight via this or the lap band you are going to have a ton of extra skin b/c you're loosing weight so fast, and insurance does not cover it so you'll want to find out what out of pocket cost will be for you and your family to have the skin removed.

My friend is a nurse and a lot of her co-workers have had the lap band done; one had her stomach flip over the band and almost died and another lost weight so quickly that she has so much extra skin that when she sits it 'farts'!! She can't afford to have it removed though.

I've looked into it too, sat through the 2 hr. class and have decided that given my experience ( watching others long term) it just doesn't answer the problem. If you do choose this route, I just read about a type of procedure that leaves more of your stomach and therefore it allows you to absorb more vit. and minerals - you may want to look into that. Best of luck w/ your decision.

I considered having the surgery and I attended the 2 hour meeting you are planning to go to. From what you said, you and I are about the same size. At the meeting, I was the smallest person there. The other attendees were significantly more overweight. A couple of them were told they were too big for surgery. They would have to lose weight before it would be possible for the doctor to preform the surgery on them. I felt really bad for them. I could not imagine having that much weight to lose!

The reason I am telling you all of this... After that meeting I decided NOT to have the surgery. I don't think all of the risks are worth it for someone that needs to lose less than 100 pounds.

I also know several people who have had the surgery. They went through training and counseling before the surgery and lost ALOT of weight. Then at 2+ years post surgery, they started pushing the limits of their bodies. They started eating things they are not supposed to. They started drinking, etc. GUESS WHAT?!?!?! They gained the majority of the weight back.

From all of this, I decided that I can do this on my own. I can lose the weight a healthier way. It is very slow going and I have setbacks. But I refuse to give up.

I used to be a big supporter because I had a friend who did it in the early, early days (25 years ago - in those days it was a gastric bypass). It changed his life. I was very happy for him but he was well past morbid obesity at over 500 lbs. If he didn't do the surgery, he would have died. And he never got thin - he just got to manageably heavy.

Now I've grown concerned that people choose the surgery because they've been unsuccessful at dieting and they don't understand that the surgery route not only has huge risks, but it is a bigger, longer commitment to life changing eating patterns (not necessarily healthy) than a diet is. And as someone else pointed out, it eliminates some things from your diet that are good healthy foods so the surgery doesn't magically turn you into a healthy eater at all. I fear that hospitals have found it to be a huge money maker so they aren't doing an adequate job of evaluating people and preparing people for what is to come. So it comes down to an individual decision that should be made very thoughtfully about the commitment you are making, which will be lifelong. It is just great that you are seeing a dietician and getting some counseling. I have a young relative that just had this surgery and she is getting thinner (it takes quite some time after surgery to lose the weight) but basically it is a coerced diet. If she eats too much, she gets physically ill and some types of foods make her physically ill. But she still eats poorly overall, she still eats a lot of unhealthy food. She really hasn't addressed the issues that made her make poor choices before. She is so young, I would say she is still at risk to be one of those people who put all the weight back on. She would always say that she tried everything but those of us observing her knew that she just had no impulse control - as you have said, something psychological. So just make sure that this is the way you want to do it - because it is a bigger commitment than a diet - and make sure that you are addressing the emotional issues behind weight gain because not every one that has the surgery gets and stays slim. It will still depend on what you do with it.

My hubs had the lap band done in August. He's always been a heavy boy, borderline overweight/obese for years, but still fit and active. He's lost weight, without major complication.

I can never truly get inside his head and tell you about his relationship with food, but I can tell you that he was one to always eat healthy food, just a lot more of it and a lot more rapidly than most would. He said that he always ate until he was sated. With the lap band, he's just sated sooner, and content because of it. His portions now are about the same size as mine, versus the 3x that he would once eat.

Side effects for him have included - gassiness after the surgery, and some nausea if he eats too quickly or fails to chew properly. No extra skin, increased energy and vitality, and they also fixed his hernia while they were in there. He can sit cross legged on the floor, comfortably bend down to tie his shoes, his skin chafing is all but resolved, his skin looks great, and its done loads for his confidence.

The lap band does require monthly doctors visits though as they increase the "fill".

It will change your relationship with food forever. He will never again be able to put away two hamburgers and two hotdogs at a BBQ, but then again, no one really should be eating that much to begin with.

According to the doctors, you can undermine even this type of surgery if you choose calorie rich food and eat constantly. Hubs never had that inclination, so its working out o.k.

Good luck to you on your way to a healthier life.

My husband had it done before Christmas and it has changed our lives. He dropped a lot of weight and feels great. He was a perfect patient. No side effects and healed very fast.

We stroked the time off of work because he's on his feet all day and it was cold and flu season. He felt good enought at about two weeks but stayed home the full six weeks. He would do it again in a HEARTBEAT!

No more medications, no more diabetes, no SHOTS!

I could go on and on BUT I have to get out the door ASAP. PM me if you want more info.

I would do as much research as possible, pro and con. Maybe see if there are some message boards with people who have done it, too.

Unfortunately I just saw this article this morning out of the LA Times: http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-lap-band-death-2011... .

Good luck and I hope you make the best decision for you.

I'm getting caught up from the questions over the weekend so I'm late in responding to this. I had gastric bypass dec 03. the one where they cut you from the breast bone to the bellybutton. not the laproscopic one, i was too big for that. I weighed 386 when i got it. i kept telling myself 'if i could only get down to 250'. i'm 5'11 and i did, i hit 250 and didn't lose a pound past it! i have only gained 25 pounds of it back but i'm sort of glad I did. i hated all the hanging skin and knew i could never afford a full body tuck. my mom also had it, she weighed 250, got down to 150 and is now back over 200, probably 220. we didn't have any complications. i'm sure our stomachs have stretched out. we can eat a "normal" amount of food. my friend from high school had it done last year over the holidays and he almost died. the doc that did his hooked his intestine back up wrong and he was basically being poisoned. it was terrible. he was in icu for like 2 months and the hospital for 4 months. he's still off work. i also have a girlfriend who did the lap band and she had lost a bunch of weight and then gained it all back. regardless of what you have done, you have to be committed to still change your eating habits and exercise more. it is "easier" to do that with the surgeries but you have to still change your eating habits or it won't last. just like any diet. its more of healthy eating and exercise. good luck!!!