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The more horror stories I read here, the more I'm beginning to regret getting RNY a couple of weeks ago. All I seem to read is how people throw up constantly, start dumping and have a myriad of health complications. I'm just hoping that that vast majority of people who live happy and healthy lives after RNY just aren't posting as much. I've been very fortunate to not have had any complications so far. I'm still on the liquid stage but I really have not had problems downing liquids all day (as long as I remember to bring them with me). I'm praying that when I can start eating food, they go down without a fight. Does vomiting feel the same with gastric bypass as it did prior? I hate throwing up!

My personal experience with Smart Shape wasn't the greatest. This was my first foray into private health care and I wasn't super impressed. Pre-op everything went ok; however, on the day of my surgery, the surgeon came in to see me just prior and said, "So we have you booked for a gastric sleeve..." I was for a mini gastric bypass, so this was a little unnerving that he had me down for the wrong surgery in his notes, but I guess it's good he checked! The surgery itself went alright which I guess is the main thing. However, post-op care was not spectacular. I found pain management to be an issue as they prescribed dilaudid IV push every 4 hours for the first 24 hours. Push drugs work for immediate relief, but they also wear off really fast, so it didn't hold me for 4 hours. They never offered pain relief on a regular basis, so I felt like I was badgering them for it. Nobody wears an ID tag, so I wasn't sure if they were actually RN's or LPN's and I found it strange that when I mentioned I was experiencing a some urinary retention/hesitation (ie. "a sleepy bladder") post op, the nurse didn't seem to know what I was talking about. This is a very common complication after a general anesthetic (up to 70% of patients). I didn't have a proper call bell and I had to let them know that my oxygen tank and IV bags were empty (these should be monitored). Months later, I began to experience significant reactive hypoglycemia and sought guidance from Smart Shape nurses and nutritionists. However, they really didn't know much about this and weren't very helpful. I requested a consult with my surgeon to discuss it and was told by the nurse that I needed to follow up with my own GP (who knows little about bariatric surgery). Eventually, I was referred to an endochrinologist who tells me that this is a well known and potentially serious complication of gastric bypass. I'm disappointed that this possibility was not part of the "informed consent" that I gave for the procedure. I'm a health care professional, so perhaps my standards are high, but I think we all should have high standards when considering our health and safety. And for many of us, it's a hell of a lot of money. So, if I had to do it all again, I'd go with a different organization. Best, Kerri

My mom had gastric bypass many years ago and due to an inept surgeon she nearly died and spent weeks in ICU. To make matters worse, my mom didn't tell her mom which of course ended badly since she had serious complications. So imagine how nervous I was to tell my parents I was going to put myself through a similar surgery. Not telling her wasn't an option because I learned from her experience. I went in armed with all the reasons my surgery (sleeve) was less invasive than hers, how technology had advanced since hers, and how much research I've done on the surgery and the surgeons I was considering. To my surprise both my parents were incredibly supportive. They are obviously concerned as they would be with any surgery, but recognize the benefits I'll get from this procedure. I would recommend just pulling off the band-aid and telling them to get it over with. They will probably need time to get comfortable with it so providing time prior to your surgery means they would be better prepared to support you afterwards.

I'm in the process of having a revision from band to sleeve. Anyone else have it done? Did you do better with the sleeve? Is the weight loss slower or about the same as those who have the sleeve for the first time? I did well with the band for a few years, but years of complications, food getting stuck all the time, I've gained all my weight back and then some. Just curious how others are doing that have gone through a similar situation.

For me it was all about GERD. The lapband caused me all kinds of problems with acid reflux, etc... My doctor said that the sleeve was not a good choice for me because it was more likely to cause GERD issues than the RnY. For the record, I have had no complications and the acid reflux and GERD are gone. The RnY has been a total success for me. That being said, there may be very valid reasons why your doctor is recommending the sleeve over the RnY. Every patient is different. Best of luck to you on your upcoming surgery!

I was originally supposed to get my surgery about 4 months ago and ended up canceling it because I did not know if I could deal with this major life style change. I have made an app and rescheduled about three times already, when I was only days away I would chicken out and postpone it once again. My dr told me the most recent time that I saw him that I could no longer reschedule my surgery and that if I did he would not be able to perform it on me. My surgery us once again days away! an here I am wanting to postpone/ cancel it, why? because I have yet to fully get my over eating hobbits under control. I am very much addicted to food an been craving it like crazy. Any opinions of wat I should do? Also I am supposed to be on my two week post op diet of two shakes a day and a sensible dinner. I have completely wasted the first week of this diet because I did not follow it at all, I actually over ate. I have one week left to do this diet and so far I have been sticking to it, do u think because I am following the diet for one week instead of two it can cause complications? My surgeon is very direct and harsh and just has a dominating/ intimidating personality, not willing to hear about my struggles. That's why I do not feel comfortable speaking to him unfortunately. I'm 21 years old and am very stressed any help please

Yepper. There are a lot of variables that can crunch the odds in different directions. But it's a widely known syndrome. It has a name.... "Divorce Surgery" LOL Lot of factors can play in. Self esteem improving for the heavy partner can change the dynamics of a relationship. Jealousy issues occur. Lifestyle incompatibilities (if one partner wants to remain heavy and eat unrestricted), Infidelity, long fought over issues can come to a head when a more passive spouse becomes more assertive. Sometimes a more sheltered partner wants more freedom and less introversion as they lose weight, and the other partner isn't on board. It can get complicated. The changes can be a stressful endeavor for even really solid couples. So far, so good at my house....but I've got an incredibly supportive guy and a pretty old beat up marriage (25 years) that has been forged and strengthened in the fires of hell. LOL. Have really enjoyed being more active with hubby, and he's been enthusiastic to join me for swimming, hikes, etc....which has been incredibly fun. Even so....I can't say the process hasn't been without some stressy days!

Now I don’t want to make anyone else jealous, but I just finished my psychiatric evaluation over the phone and it took all of 15 minutes. That’s it. No paperwork. No questionnaires. Done over the phone. No sweat. Granted, this did cost me $400 and it is not covered by my PPO. There was also the option of doing it via skype but since I'd have to do it during work hours and i can't use my company laptop for personal use, so I opted for phone. We arranged for a time for me to call her last week so I called her right on time as planned. She first asked why I was pursuing the surgery. I explained that while my eating has not gotten out of control, my various ailments including a bad back that may require surgery, arthritis in my shoulders and bone spurs in both big toes have made it difficult if not impossible to exercise without pain. I have not been increasing my portion sizes over the last few years as my weight climbed, but without the ability to burn off the excess calories I just kept getting bigger. Next, she asked some medical history questions (I never drink to excess because I’m allergic to alcohol and I’ve never smoked or taken illegal drugs) then asked if I was an emotional eater, a binge eater, a habitual eater or a miscellaneous eater, i.e. problems like portion control, which we’d already covered and I’d already identified myself as being. We went into a little detail about my current eating habits and previous weight loss attempts, which had mostly been successful when I could exercise freely. She asked about the kind of support I’ll have for the surgery and during my recovery at home. I explained that my daughter (who graduates from college this Friday with a BS in psych and a 3.7 GPA, thank you very much) will be taking me to and from the surgery. That’s because when I have it in late May/early June, my wife will still be recovering from knee replacement surgery. So, my kids (my freshman son was nominated by a professor for membership in an honors society that only admits 15 kids from each graduating class at his school, again, thank you very much) will be taking care of both of us. We consider it only a tiny portion of the payback they owe us for putting them through a private college. Finally, she went into a little detail about the required post-surgical changes in habits, such as measuring and logging food and sticking to the prescribed post-surgical plans, and asked if I thought I’d be able to handle. Having read through this board, some FB groups and all the literature I got from the surgeon’s office at my initial consult, I repeated everything back to her chapter and verse to confirm I know exactly what’s expected of me. I also told her that I’m far too cheap to spend all the money on the surgery only to throw it all away with bad habits. She asked if I knew about the types of complications that could arise, so again I referenced this board and the FB groups, explaining I’ve learned a lot about the types of problems that come up most frequently. She asked if I had any fear of the surgery and I said I’ve had many surgeries in my life, so I’m not afraid of it, plus I know that for each person who complains about a post-surgical ailment, there are probably fifty who do not have that problem so the odds are clearly in favor of not having complications. That was pretty much it. She said the approval will be on its way to my surgeon by the end of the day. I gave her my email address so she could send me some literature she likes to send all of her patients and her contact information in case I had any further questions. I am not kidding when I say it took me twice as long to write this as the phone call itself. With this and my endoscopy both out of the way, all I’ve got left before submitting for approval is my final visit with the nutritionist and the pre-op visit with my PCP who’ll also take care of my chest x-ray and EKG. The only real problem between now and the surgery is avoiding the temptation of pigging out at my daughter's graduation party...

I'm just looking for feedback possibly from people who've had gastric bypass that are taller than 6'1". The reason why I am looking for info is because my surgeon said in my consultation that being 6'3" might have a higher chance of a complication when trying to attach the small intestine and stretching it to the stomach as per gastric bypass surgery. He suggested I think about this procedure or the gastric sleeve. The sleeve being better for my height as it usually results in less complications because they really dont do anything with small intestine. so im leaning towards the sleeve though gastric bypass has faster results... i would greatly appreciate any feedback from tall men who've had either the gastric bypass or sleeve. results would be greatly appreciated as well. i have to make a decision in a couple of months and i want to get as much info before then. thank you much in advance for all your help. April 13- 6'3" 453lbs

Yes there's also worse things than delaying or canceling a surgery. Like getting hit by an Asteroid. The fact is if you have a documented record of your a1c on paper and anything bad happens it's a clear cut case of negligent behavior by the surgical team, and opens the door to liability and lawsuits by the hospital and surgical team as well as them eating the cost of any complications. Why they would proceed without during their due diligence is beyond me. And you've made it blatantly clear that you haven't cleaned up your diet at all so that your BMI still qualifies. You can eat lots of calories without eating garbage allowing your blood sugar to go all over the place. Complex carbohydrates, nuts fats less lean meats coconut/dairy cream are all high in calories allowing you to maintain your weight without spiking your blood sugar up and down. But it sounds like that's not the answer you want to hear. Why your surgical team hasn't addressed it is beyond me. It's possible they don't give a ****, it's possible they're unorganized, it's possible they didn't look at it because your PCP did the lab work, or it's possible that it's something they won't address until the last minute. You have two choices. Address the issue, or continue to try to convince people on the internet that it's not a big deal and roll the dice with whatever happens

Here is a copy and paste of my policy stating the three month requirements: Multi-disciplinary surgical preparatory regimen: Proximate to the time of surgery (within 6 months prior to surgery), member must participate in organized multi-disciplinary surgical preparatory regimen of at least 3 months (90 days) duration meeting all of the following criteria, in order to improve surgical outcomes, reduce the potential for surgical complications, and establish the member’s ability to comply with post-operative medical care and dietary restrictions: Behavior modification program supervised by qualified professional; and Consultation with a dietitian or nutritionist; and Documentation in the medical record of the member’s participation in the multi-disciplinary surgical preparatory regimen at each visit. (A physician’s summary letter, without evidence of contemporaneous oversight, is not sufficient documentation. Documentation should include medical records of the physician’s initial assessment of the member, and the physician’s assessment of the member’s progress at the completion of the multi-disciplinary surgical preparatory regimen.); and Exercise regimen (unless contraindicated) to improve pulmonary reserve prior to surgery, supervised by exercise therapist or other qualified professional; and Program must have a substantial face-to-face component (must not be entirely delivered remotely); and Reduced-calorie diet program supervised by dietitian or nutritionist

Please just go ahead and call your surgeon's office and ask for their guidelines and what they would be willing to do to work with you if they have an A1c threshold for surgery. When I had my consult back in September, my A1c was over 11. My surgeon told me to work with my endocrinologist to get it under 8 (his threshold) in order to avoid complications, but that if I wasn't able to do that, he would speak with my endocrinologist, and we would find a way to do the surgery if possible, knowing that I may have difficulty with infections and wound healing. I have been fortunate to be able to get my A1c down to 6.0 and feel much better about having limited my risk for complications. It makes most sense to speak with your surgeon and determine the best course of action for you.

High A1c means your diabetes is not controlled, which means there's a higher chance of complications related to healing. You can't argue with statistics or handwave them with "well, there are risks no matter what." There are risks to crossing the street, but it's riskier if you've been huffing paint before you do it. Personally speaking, my checklist of items that needed to be completed before my surgeon would attempt to obtain authorization from my insurance company included "get your A1c below 7." It was right there, in big bold letters. Since mine was a little over 6 at the time, it was a moot point. Frankly, I'm not sure why you've spent 3 days freaking out on here when you could've called your surgeon and had your answer by now.

It's not about perfect patients, it's about keeping the chances of short-term and long-term complications low. My dad's A1c hovered around 10 for years, and that was with numerous medications and insulin injections several times a day. When he had to have knee surgery, he had all kinds of issues with the wound healing properly. He had to see a wound specialist and go on several different kinds of antibiotics before the situation resolved itself (and it took months). Why a surgeon would want to risk that, I can't say.

66 lbs so far. No complications and super happy [emoji2] HW 242, SW 236- (Bypass 12/20/17) GW#1- 199 [emoji736] (2/11/18) GW#2- 180 [emoji736] (4/2/18) GW#3- 160 CW 175 5’6”

’ve just been for my consultation (with the NHS, in the UK) and been told they no longer do bands because they don’t work in terms of weight loss and almost inevitably end in complications which require the removal of the band. A cynical part of me wonders if this is actually about cost, given the frequency of follow up appointments for filling and defilling You’re all experts, what are your experiences and thoughts please? [NB have also posted this in the band forum]

I’ve just been for my consultation (with the NHS, in the UK) and been told they no longer do bands because they don’t work in terms of weight loss and almost inevitably end in complications which require the removal of the band. A cynical part of me wonders if this is actually about cost, given the frequency of follow up appointments for filling and defilling You’re all experts, what are your experiences and thoughts please?

Hey everyone, I have the band, but due to a ton of complications, am looking into a revision to the sleeve. I'm just wondering how my life will change. Is what you are able to eat the same for the band as it is for the sleeve? Do you still throw up if you overdo it? How is the surgery recovery different? How many days in the hospital? Which recovery is harder? How is the post-op surgery for the sleeve different for the band? Is there anything else that really changes? Thanks!

SD: 1/21/12 Dr. Sosa Hialeah, FL SW: 367 LBS CW : 185 LBS Complications : 1 time food got stuck and stayed for 1 week , had to remove Gall Ballader 3 yrs aftwr surgery ... Pregnancy 1 MC and 5 months now .... Sent from my LG-TP450 using BariatricPal mobile app

I had rny and was originally given 6 weeks off. I had complications at week 4 and was extended an additional 4 weeks, so 10 weeks total Heaviest 280 Surgery 1/31 270 Current weight 225

Its a 1 hour surgery, no biggie. There are rarely any complications. I take a lot of insulin and still have a high A1c. I assume they know that. I have been told to eat as I want because I am right on the edge of qualifying for the surgery.

They don't expect to cure your diabetes with the preop diet . They want you optimized for surgery to reduce complications and improve your outcome and recovery. Again nobody knows how your health care team will respond. We're just letting you know it's a legitimate concern that you'd be better off addressing sooner rather than later

Where I work all bariatric patients have an A1c done with their preoperative blood work. An A1c of 10 would absolutely have you canceled with the group I work with. As this means your diabetes is extremely poorly controlled putting you at high risk for complications, infection, and poor recovery times and outcomes. Hell I've seen patients with an A1C in the 8s get canceled HOWEVER there is an exception to this. If your diabetes is truly complicated and uncontrollable (and it's not just a matter of you being non compliant with your diet exercise and medication) they would send you to get a preoperative endocrinologist consultation/workup and have the endocrinologist say how they've tried everything your case is complicated blah blah blah and that an A1C of 10 is the best they will be able to do prior to you having surgery. I would be shocked if a surgeon and anesthesia (hell and a hospital) allowed a patient to have elective surgery with extremely poorly controlled diabetes without proper documentation (an endocrinologist consultation etc) covering their ass. Because not only does it put you the patients health at risk, it also puts the surgeon anesthesia and hospital at a financial risk (eating the cost of complications, lawsuits etc) as well as possibly even legal risk.

A year ago, I went in for a Lap band to SIPS revision, but there were complications with the removal of lap band, so the surgeon cut things short and only did the sleeve portion of the procedure. I was massively disappointed (especially since I was self pay), but wasn't much I could do about it. I had good results initially. I lost 50 lbs during the first 'honey moon' 4-5 months, then things just stagnated. I dieted really really hard, went to gym every other day, and even tried Intermittent Fasting, but my weight would just bump around the same 3-4 lb range. I just was stuck. This went for 2-3 months, until I finally gave up, at which point the weight starting coming back pretty fast. Kinda crazy (and very $$$$) but I decided to go back in and have the SIPS procedure completed. My surgery was a few days ago. I now have a ton of questions post-op, but for starters, I'm wondering if anyone else out there is Sleeve to SIPS revision. I figure there can't be too many of us... My #1 question would be: Will there be another weight loss 'honey moon'? Or - since my sleeve wasn't touched - will my eating habits remain pretty much were they were pre-op? I ask because I've heard that the Sleeve is responsible for losing the weight, and the bypass part is responsible for keeping it off. Just curious.

That's really a question for the surgeon as there are so many variables. Meds, size of incision, pain, range of motion and any complications. Most likely at least 2 weeks. Good luck, hope all goes smoothly!