rachele

Everybody is scared right before. Like Jini said, if you don't do something you may not be there in the long run. Having the band placed is pretty low risk, and recovery is pretty quick. You just have pre-surgery jitters. Take a deep breathe and try to relax. You'll do fine!:eek:

I live about 20 minutes from Christiana, thats where I had my baby, and thats where my father had his heart surgery. They are a very fine reputable hospital. They wouldn't let non-reputable doctors use their hospital. I'm sure you will be fine. I had both my surgerys at John Hopkins in Baltimore, but thats where my surgeon operates. Back when I had my band, he was the only one around that did it. (Fabulous doc, I might add). But I never question Christiana. They are a very fine facility. There should be someone you could put a report in to. I would start with her boss and then wherever they are registers with, (ama, etc.) Thats B.S. Trying scare tactics to drum up business is horrible. You should make her a personal visit. I'm sure she wouldn't be so smug if you were standing in front of her. Geez. She must be making a commision off of it.

Not that my opinion matters, Delarla, but I think you are a very intelligent fun loving person. Question authority, I say! But heck, I've also been accused of being aggressive. I hope it works out with your band. You've done a great job even with all the problems you've had. Maybe Santa will bring you a port for Christmas?

Sorry Dody, I was directing the rest of that post to the original poster, who can feel free to get in touch with me or Sue. I'm sure she won't mind either.

I know, I think there was 2 others that went in the same day as Sue that did have it, so thats understandable! Happy Holidays!

Hi Cindy. Sue didn't have erosion of the band. She had esophogus motility issues. But Sue has alot more info than I do so track her down and check out her post (to the op).

It can't be higher than GB because it is GB. Just not RNY GB. The reason the death rate is higher is because it is typically used for patients with a much higher BMI, which would obviously have more medical problems. And yes, the surgery is more invasive.

Dody, I answered you before when you asked this. Your surgeon is incorrect. My DS was done laproscopically. You do not have to have it open. Sue has had this and I have had this. We both had our bands removed. If you click on my profile and search for all my post there is some good information with links and all. If you need anything more, please feel free to PM me. This board is a lapband board, so they know about lapband. If you want to know about the DS, there are a few boards I can direct you to. Both surgerys are wonderful. You just have to choose which is right for you. Good Luck!

That is incorrect. Mine was Laproscopic, and he removed the band through the incision over my port. I had 4 incisions, the same as when my band was done. But, yes, half my stomach is now gone. If I didn't know better than I'd guess all he did was take out the band. Thank God I didn't have any complications, and as long as I take my supplements, I shouldn't have any problems with malnutrition.

And so do I. Tell me where I have been nonsupportive of the band? My band did it's job-my body didn't want it in me. I explained why *I* revised to a DS. I don't think I've ever been called aggressive...and I still recommend the band. Like you said~my choice isn't a personal statement about me or anyone else. So don't take it personal, OK? Why shouldn't I tell my story? Should I not be here because I no longer have a band? You don't have to answer. I can probably guess what your answers are. At any rate, I wish you the best with your surgery.

Well wishes, Roberta.

I could get killed walking to the mail box if He wants me. Like I said...

Here is a post from Sue, also debanded and Switched. She has posted some links in it, I guess the best thing to do is go to a site with all the surgerys listed and with a side by side comparison of the anatomy after. To tell the truth when I was searching for this, I found a post that Sue had made on my surgery day that immediately was turned into a debate about the mortatily rates for DS patients. Can we say "hurt feelings?" I'm sick to death that someone took a supportive post on my behalf and turned it into a freaking debate. Thanks. Oh, yeah, Hope you don't mind Sue. 10-20-2005, 04:45 AM GeezerSue Registered User Join Date: Jul 2003 Posts: 885 Wow! What wonderful support. •The band, as you know, is restrictive only. It can limit the amount of solid food you can eat at one time. •The RnY, (and I'm biased, so ignore me if you're wise) is both restrictive (the stomach is reduced to 20 cc's--4 teaspoons) and temporarily malabsorptive (after about two years the remaining intestine "learns" to absorb much of what the missing intestine used to absorb. That's when the weight regain begins. To me, it works like a kind of non-reversible band. •The DS is also a little restrictive (the stomach is reduced to 4-6 ounces) but it remains malabsorptive forever. So, the DS has the highest percentage of long-term excess weight loss...and the highest number of risks, including long-term metabolic stuff we don't even know about. OTOH...my 60-year-old cardiologist and I were discussing that the promise of long-term ANYTHING, when you are 60-ish and morbidly obese, is not necessarily a bad thing. Here's a link to a site started by a DS patient: http://www.duodenalswitch.com/index.html And here's a mention of some research at Cornell: http://global.med.cornell.edu/news/.../10_14_05.shtml If anything I read made an impact, it was a post by Melanie M (the woman who started the DS board.) Scroll down to read her take about the DS as a tool. http://www.duodenalswitch.com/openbb/read.php?TID=3932 I know I will have to make some changes with the DS. But those will mostly--my friends tell me--be learning not to eat stuff that doesn't agree with my new plumbing. I'm glad that this wasn't received as a the-band-is-bad post. You guys are cool.

Copied and pasted from a prior post rachele Registered User Join Date: Aug 2003 Age: 32 Posts: 14 I always thought I'd have my band or nothing, until faced with the reality of a non working band (blocked by scar tissue). I lost from 350 to 235, got pregnant and lost my fill. After the pregnancy, my band was no longer functioning. 7 months after the baby I stepped on the scale to see 330. I had gained back up to 300 during the pregnancy and an additional 30 in the 7 months after. My point is, being at 235 and having a touch of "normal-ness" in my life, then gaining it back was enough. 3 years of fighting for what I did acheive was lost in 16 months. And I was back 20 pounds from where I started. I'm not going to get into head hunger/ food control issues. To the people that can overcome it, I wish I were more like them. But I'm not. So I choose to have the DS/BPD (11/17/05) I figured while the band was coming out, which was not an option, I was ready for something more permenant. I don't want to go through that again. And I refuse to "live" my life as a fat woman. Period. I will not do it, and if I had to get diced and sliced, so be it. It was worth the risk of dying to me to acheive the quality of life I wanted for myself and my family. Without that quality of life, I just sit and watch life pass me by. Yes, I was torn, and terrified. But I am a child of God and I know when it's my time, it's my time. I could get killed walking to the mail box if He wants me. I NEED a tool. I CANNOT do this on my own. So I went for the smartest thing I could. I tried with the band and it did its job while it could. My body just doesn't want it in me.

Dumping is a process that RNY patients go through, they also have a pouch. My bypass was a DS and I do not dump, and I do not have a pouch. Dumping is a reaction to sugar dumping strait into the small intestine and not going through the pyloric valve. Since my pyloric valve is still intact I don't dump, I don't have a pouch, and I can eat more than bandsters and RNY patients.. I have tried several times to explain, I think noone else but Paula can see my post? All GB is not the same. I can see myself in every one of these post, but when you lose the band after 3 years, and start gaining back to the fat person you once were, you start considering things you wouldn't have before. I'll supplement and be thin and healthy before I will sit on my arse and be fat. That's why I chose my DS after my band. The reasons I chose it are listed above and also it has the best success rate of all wls, with a very low instance of regain. Of course my opinion will not be popular, but people need to know there is another viable and wildly successful choice out there besides Lapband and RNY.

Sue is having her one week check up today, so by now she may be making the trek home. I was unbanded and switched on Nov. 17, I was very influenced by Sue in my decision. She is a very intelligent woman. The surgery actually isn't any safer, it's still considered a bypass also, and our intestines are rerouted. Maybe with the original DS, I'm not sure, but what I have, and I think Sue has as well is a DS/BPD. I'm not sure if I can put a link here or I could show you a comparison between Rny and DS. Ds'ers don't have a pouch. Instead of a small pouch (as Sue would say "a pouch smaller than your mouth") we have a banana shaped tummy. Normally it is kidney bean shaped but the outer side is cut away. This side is also responsible for alot of stomach acid and the hunger hormone Grenlin (sp?). Our pyloric valve is left intact, so there is no dumping. When healed, we will be able to eat more than a bandster or a RNY patient. The intestine is disected, and a portion is rerouted to the pancreas. food goes one way, digestive juices go another and they meet in the usually 100 cm common channel which is where we absorb (the only place we absorb). So instead of absorbing fat all the way through our small intestine, we only absorb in the common channel. This empties into the Large Intestine. The DS has the best record of excess weight lost, and a low instance of regain. Thats because we malabsorb 80% of fat, and 30% of Protein. DS'ers intestines don't learn to reabsorb fat near as much as RNY. This is why we have to supplement Vitamins and nutrients forever. I take Iron, Calcium, a Multivitamin, and a special Water soluble pill for vitamins A, D, E, and K. Usually those would only be absorbed in fat, but since we don't absorb much fat, we have to use vitamins that absorb in water. Any excess fat we eat we pay for in the bathroom, not the scale. We are still directed to eat lower fat, lower sugar and lower carbs. We still absorb carbs. So it does have its drawbacks. But it was worth it for me. I would rather live my life this way than fat. Now if Sue would check in, I'd be happy!

I frequent another board that Sue does and they had updated that Sue did very well in surgery, it was only 2.5 hours, and she was walking shortly after surgery. She hadn't used her pain pump, either, but that was not today. I haven't seen an update for her today. Here's wishing them all well! Rachele

Thank You, Paula. It's pretty tough to eat your words, which is what I've had to do, but as soon as I'm off puree's, serve it up, I'm ready to eat them. (Because I swore anytype of bypass was the DEBIL!)

I always thought I'd have my band or nothing, until faced with the reality of a non working band (blocked by scar tissue). I lost from 350 to 235, got pregnant and lost my fill. After the pregnancy, my band was no longer functioning. 7 months after the baby I stepped on the scale to see 330. I had gained back up to 300 during the pregnancy and an additional 30 in the 7 months after. My point is, being at 235 and having a touch of "normal-ness" in my life, then gaining it back was enough. 3 years of fighting for what I did acheive was lost in 16 months. And I was back 20 pounds from where I started. I'm not going to get into head hunger/ food control issues. To the people that can overcome it, I wish I were more like them. But I'm not. So I choose to have the DS/BPD (11/17/05) I figured while the band was coming out, which was not an option, I was ready for something more permenant. I don't want to go through that again. And I refuse to "live" my life as a fat woman. Period. I will not do it, and if I had to get diced and sliced, so be it. It was worth the risk of dying to me to acheive the quality of life I wanted for myself and my family. Without that quality of life, I just sit and watch life pass me by. Yes, I was torn, and terrified. But I am a child of God and I know when it's my time, it's my time. I could get killed walking to the mail box if He wants me. I NEED a tool. I CANNOT do this on my own. So I went for the smartest thing I could. I tried with the band and it did its job while it could. My body just doesn't want it in me.

If this continues, I would recommend you speak to Nicci (Nicci6) on wlsforum.org, which is where most of the people went when spotlighthealth went down. She suffered with this for a long time, I believe her surgeon ~thought~ her Vegus (sp?) nerve had been nicked during surgery. That's an extreme, I know, and it may just be something simple. But, if it continues, catch up with her and she may have some info for you. Rachele 8/2002 -135 Revision to DS 11/17/05

My surgeon was Michael Schweitzer at John Hopkins in Baltimore. 100% covered by insurance.

Michael Schweitzer John Hopkins, Baltimore $110 ($50 paid by insurance leaves me responsible for $60)

I'm having my band replaced by the DS because of Sue. Sue and I have very different opinions on alot of things, but the woman is on top of it, and very respected by me. (Thanks again, Sue, and no, I'm not stalking you!) Well, I mean, I figured if Sue was considering the DS, there had to be something to it. Sue is a very intelligent woman, who is very capable of providing you with all the reasons she choose the DS. I research, but read and go on. So, I don't have any links but the reason I have decided is because of all the surgerys, the DS has the highest long term success rate and the highest EWL. There is no dumping because the pyloric valve is intact. There is no pouch stretching because there is no pouch. The stomach is reduced into a long banana shape meaning the outside portion is cut away, reducing stomach acid and the chemical "hunger hormone" grenlin?? Is that what it is called, Sue? DS relies highly on malabsorption. With RNY, their body learns to reabsorb fat and nutrients eventually, thus causing some to regain more easily. This is probably true about the DS also, but not nearly as much. That's why supplementation, Dexascans and blood levels are so important. There is less chance of ulceration also. One disadvantage is some people experience the trots and very offensive gas. Most people I have talked to about that said the trots can be avoiding by avoiding high fat foods and sugar. Which most high sugar foods ARE high fat. The dietician said it's not the sugar but the fat that is the problem. I would assume it would be an individual thing. Also, a more "normal diet" can be eaten than with the RNY or the Band. I am looking forward to a nice peice of steak again....and I figure it really is no more maintenance than the band was. I am actually quite excited, a little scared, since I now have a 6 month old daughter, but ready to be done with it. I had scar tissue choking the tubing to my band. I am 3 years out. I lost 135 in about 12 or 14 months, then started having problems. I also have issues with spasms and dialation. I have gained quite a bit back from being unfilled throughout the pregnancy and then not being able to get a fill in or out after the scar tissue closed off the tube. I think the DS is for sure the right surgery for me. I will not get the RNY, so it's this or nothing.

I had morning, noon and night sickness for about 5 months. Had to be completely unfilled. My port didn't stick out at all.

I have been banded for over 3 years. The first year I lost from 350 to 230. Then I started having difficulties. Had a port replacement, couldn't get to a proper level for weight loss. Got pregnant, had a complete unfill due to hyperemesis, gained a boatload of weight and found out I have esoph. spasms, dialation and scar tissue choking my tubing which means no fill in, no fill out. I am now actively seeking approval for a DS/BPD. This is a Duodenal Switch. Sue, also on this board is also getting a revision to DS. In no means was this MY fault nor could I not "cut it" with the band. Stuff happens. DS is different than the RNY, as there is no pouch, no dumping, very slight chance of regain, and it has the best rate of success for long term weight loss. It will require extensive supplementation. I always thought I had the superior surgery, the "thinking persons surgery", and apparantly these people are thinking like I use to. Now I am eating some of my own words. My point is this, everyone is different. Each surgery is awesome in its own way. What would you do if your body started rejecting your band? Gain back the weight and say "oh, well?" Circumstances do change, and I had to change with them. And to tell the truth, I'm really tired of feeling filled to the gills and my stomach still growling. I have friends who have had surgery 2 years later than me and are at goal while I am still groveling along. After 3 years, I'm tired of fighting. In order to lose, I have to starve. In order to live comfortably, I gain. And now if doesn't even matter because the fill that is in there will stay in there until I have surgery to remove it.