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Oh my. I have a clotting disorder as well and I'm on Lovenox for life since I've had clots while taking Coumadin and Xarelto. It sounds like you have developed an allergy to Lovenox itself or one of its components. Unless it could be something else, like the alcohol wipe you're using to clean the skin before you inject? In any case, not to scare you, but that's something you need to get checked out right away. An allergy can progress from giving you a rash to putting you into anaphylaxis. Not saying that's going to happen but it's a possibility. Hope you are able to get that figured out quickly! Lovenox bruises are bad enough, no one needs hives or welts on top of them!

Hi everyone, I'm 11 weeks out (this Wednesday) and still having discomfort when eating or drinking anything. The discomfort ranges from mild to moderate and sometimes, severe. It's never really "painful", just feels like I have to burp REALLY bad, even though I feel like I'm constantly burping the second I put food in my mouth, followed almost always by a stomachache within a half hour or so. My gut is always making a TON of noise too! I also feel like I'm getting conflicting info from my surgeon and his team (PA, nurse, dietician, etc.). I had a telemed visit with my surgeon about two weeks ago. He's the most laidback and easy-going of the bunch. He encouraged me to eat anything and everything I want (within reason & making healthy choices), but to be prepared for unexpected reactions. He basically said I have to "live and learn" what I can now tolerate. Of course, he also stressed small, slow-paced, well-chewed bites & portions. I even mentioned that I had a couple sips of a margarita a few weeks ago and his response was a laugh and "I bet that tasted good!" - not the scolding I expected. (BTW, that is the ONLY alcohol I've had since surgery.) I told him about the severe burping and stomachaches and he said that it will pass, but could take up to a year to totally go away. He wasn't the least bit concerned about it. For whatever reason, his PA followed up with me the next day (not sure why, as I had just talked to him) and she was way more strict, almost condescending, telling me NO pasta, NO bread, NO rice, NO sugar, NO crackers, etc. The surgeon himself said I could have those things in moderation if they agree with me and as long as I'm continuing to lose weight. I'm still eating super healthy, getting my protein and fluids in for the most part (it's hard when I know it will make me uncomfortable) and I'm still losing weight (down 31.5# since DOS, and that includes a 3-week stall). I guess I'm confused as to who to listen to - not to mention surprised that people on the same team have such conflicting guidance. Thoughts?

Hey there WLS family, Back in 2017 I had a sleeve done and then a roux-n-y conversion due to severe acid I was dealing with due to the sleeve. Since then I’ve dealt with ulcers every single year since. No matter the medications I’m on they always come back and they have left me in the hospital from just a couple of weeks to even 3-4 months on feeding tubes, and hydromorphone for the pain. Last year was probably the scariest of all the years as my ulcer began bleeding and left me have to get a transfusion only a week after being discharged and told I didn’t have any more ulcers. Due to these ulcers, I’ve been on long term disability now for two years. I’ve been sober for almost two years, which includes no coffee as well just in case as they said alcohol and foods and drinks that are acidic can make matters worse. Alas nothing has helped. The bariatric doctors I have here in Canada remind me constantly that they are the best in Canada and that there’s not a single thing they can do and I’ll just have to live like this, for the rest of my life. The nurses constantly remind me that this isn't new and the amount of people that have complications is actually pretty high (at least in our area) and that they hate seeing people come in and be dismissed. Being only 27 it scares the **** out of me, the idea of being in pain and on a daily dose of ppis (prevacid), hydromorphone (dilaudid), and sulcralfate. I’ve always wanted to have children and carry one and now I feel like I’ll never be well enough to carry my own child. I’m writing this because something in me says maybe someone has dealt with these issues, maybe your doctors came up with a better plan that allows you to live a more fulfilling life. Maybe you’re on medications that are actually helping. After begging these doctors to send me for a second opinion as they told me there’s nothing they can do to help me, it ended up taking the second opinion doctor four months to get back to me. That phone call he made sure to remind me I already saw the best of the best, and that I shouldn’t expect him to find anything or this situation with him to be the panacea. All his words. I broke down on the phone call not expecting a doctor to tell me that since I already saw those doctors, who have missed things in the past, that he will likely be of no help to me whatsoever. It’s left me depressed and defeated. If you’re someone who has dealt with this in the severe case I have and you’re doing much better or you’ve been given drugs that actually work, had procedures that actually worked, anything, please reply on this or send me a personal message. I can’t live like this anymore. No one deserves to live like this and I won’t take their “‘there’s nothing more we can do for you” as the be all end all. By no means to scare anyone but complications do happen and they should also be considered upon choosing wls.

Ok so my sister is having a few of us over for a Halloween party since she’s not taking the kids out trick or treating. She’s making the usual sugar filled party punch. naturally this isn’t something us bariatric patients can have, so I want to make a bariatric friendly punch to take. Any ideas?

I am 11 days post op and I had bruising as well it’s all gone now. About the red around the injection, I did a lot of fertility treatments and one thing I learn is let the alcohol completely dry. Do not rub with the cotton that has the alcohol. Hope that helps!

Behavioral change is always tough and it will take time. My approach is to face the temptation instead of keeping my head in the sand. We recently lived in Italy and took many a cooking class while there.Cooking class is the thing we do together so we are both very comfortable in the kitchen. When my lovely and supportive wife whipped up a batch of pasta with blistered tomatoes, garlic, and shrimp last night for her and the kids, I was salivating. It smelled delicious, but I know in time I will be able to enjoy a bite or two. For now, I only had my broth (homemade chicken stock as the other stuff taste so processed and it’s super easy to make so let me know if you want the recipe). I got myself into this, I have to get myself out. I don’t want to punish them and I know I will eventually be around all the food again and now is the time to build the resistance. Have you heard the one about the alcoholic who walks into a bar....well, no difference than a bariatric patient walking into a bakery. I’m not really sure if I am hungry or not as there is a big mental aspect. I equate it to a recent amputee still feeling their appendage. Going from a 3500-5000 calorie a day diet to a 300 calorie a day diet is a shock to the body and mind. My stomach gurgles all the time, but I think it’s healing vs hunger. I think it’s time to eat as I am watching TV as that is what I did in the past hungry or not. Adjustment takes time so give yourself a break and keep focusing on your weight loss goal, ideal dress size, exercise goal, or whatever gives you strength. You can do this!

I rarely have the alcohol in the house. I started grabbing a few shot bottles at the gas station here and there. I also started drinking where alcohol was served wherever I went . I have not had anything to drink in 2 days now and am doing okay.

Perhaps some of it may have to do with Pandemic? My alcohol consumption increased dramatically since March. I’ve been trying (albeit not very hard) to deal with it by keeping it out of the house. I find if there’s none around, then I can go without just fine. Problem is I eventually go out to get some. Boredom, I think.

Does alcohol give you a different feeling now than it did before? What is a typical situation in which you'd consume a drink?

Its hard to believe it has been 5 months since my revision. I weighed in at 159.6 this morning and seem to be holding steady. I dont feel like my weight bounces around as much. I am getting use to the RNY but am struggling in other areas now { alcohol}. I have never been much of a drinker but have noticed an increase and am trying to nip it in the butt now. I do not understand why this didnt happen with VSG . Any thoughts ? I see the team first part of November and am going to talk to them about this

I gained 6 lbs January to end of March (stopped exercising regularly, tracking my food, weighing myself daily, and probably ate more, but I don't know since I wasn't tracking!!). I went back to my routine and lost those 6 lbs in 3-4 weeks in April, while we were in lock down. But then 4-5 of those effing lbs came back again between May to August (dessert & alcohol consumption increase) and it took me almost 2 months to lose them again. Which was a wake up call about how my super weight-loss powers have diminished. Moral of the story is if your aim is to maintain a certain weight, do something about it now when it's only a few pounds vs later when its much, much more. There is no mystery on how to do this: exist in a calorie deficit until you reach your goal. I dropped down to about 1300-1500 cals a day...if I went lower, the weight would have come off faster, but I didn't, so it didn't.

Children of alcoholic parents often get stuck in a care giving role of responsibility for the parent. They end up being thrust into a parental like role, which is enabling and unhealthy. You are NOT responsible for your mom, for her decisions, for her lies to the doctor, for her weight loss or lack there of, or for her long term success or failure. You are only responsible for YOU. For heavens sake, go to your OWN follow up appointments and let her go to hers. You are each on your own journeys in this. She is not going to stop drinking or smoking because of this surgery, and she may well develop complications because of that. You are not responsible for that - SHE is. She has you wrapped around her little finger. You can love your mom and wish the best for her, but you cannot live her life for her. You have one big job right now and that is to take care of YOU! Get yourself out of the house and back to college. You are putting your own success at risk by trying so hard to ensure your mom's success - but that is HER journey, not yours. I strongly suggest you get to some Alanon meetings and learn how to be supportive without enabling, and how to take care of yourself. Please do this, or get some kind of counselling. Alcoholism is not a benign disorder. It deeply affects all members of a family in profound and damaging ways, You are on a whole new path now - a path to a healthy, long, happy life. You will be making many dietary and lifestyle changes, and I can tell you are determined to do this well and be successful. I truly believe you will achieve your goals in this. Be warned that your mom is probably going to try to undermine you, as her own progress slows down because of her compromises. You need to be as far away as possible so you can disconnect yourself from her issues. Your own life is complicated enough, and a responsible young lady like you does not need to be looking out for Mom. She is a grown up and can look out for herself and make her own choices. Please use this time to get healthy in every way - including mentally and psychologically. Some counselling regarding the alcoholic influence will be very helpful. Very best wishes to you.

Sorry if this is hard to understand, I am in actual tears and I just don’t know what to do. I desperately need advice or comfort or just something from people who may understand what I am going through and maybe know why I am feeling this way. My mom and I had the bariatric sleeve surgery done 2 weeks ago and the experience with her that I have had has been mostly miserable and upsetting. I am extremely obese and have always had a very difficult time keeping the weight off. Long story short I went for a doctors visit and my doctor recommended that I get the bariatric sleeve to help me, since with certain medical issues such as PCOS it can be hard to lose the weight without help. My mother begged me to do it and said that she wanted me to be able to live past her and my dad, and then she went and said that she would do it with me. Now, to some this would seem like a thing of encouragement, and while I do believe that may be part of it, I truly do not believe that that is the true underlying reason. You see, my mom is an alcoholic (she is viciously mean when she is drunk), and I believe that she is very self-absorbed. Not in the way that she thinks she is the greatest thing to walk the planet, but in the way that she always needs to be the center of attention. We haven’t always had the best relationship, as she has said and done many things that have really hurt me, and every time that we have tried to talk about these issues (when she wasn’t drunk) she always has some excuse, or blames everything on her past trauma, or how she just wants to let loose and have fun. A spitting example is how she once told me when she was drunk that she was just wanting to let loose, since she lost some of her twenties -aka the party years- due to having me. Almost every hurtful thing and word that she has said has stuck with me for a long time, and when my family tried to go to family therapy, my mom decided to stop since the therapist “kept saying that everything was her fault.” Another key thing is that she is also overweight, but not nearly as big as me, and she has tried hundreds of diets and pills and has never stuck to any of them for very long. Anyway, I tell you all of this so that maybe you understand why I think she mostly wanted me to do the surgery since I am clearly at more of a health risk and part of her wouldn’t feel right doing it without me. This of course could all be in my head. So no, on to the real problem at hand. Ever since we have been released from the hospital she has not been doing well -I am a college student and came home for the recovery process but plan to move back to campus as soon as possible. At first it was just minor things that bugged me a little bit, such as every time a food commercial came on the television, she would moan about how the food looks so good and yadda yadda. This was minor, but it still bugged me since I too had gone through the surgery and did not need to hear her constant moaning about how good something looked on the tv. This coupled with the constants complaining about how much she was hurt, and how much she hates the blood thinner shots that we must give ourselves, slowly started to drive me up the walls. I HATE needles, but just recently I have been able to give blood and receive shots without crying, while she has literally been fine and delt with needles for years, but all the sudden she claims that she hates needles (which I mean who doesn’t, but come on). After I got annoyed enough, I watched her do the shot and saw that she had been doing it in a way other than the nurses had showed us, and when I tried to point it out to her, she waved me off and said that she was doing it the way that she was showed. Another thing with her complaining about her constant pain. The first night we got home, - 2 days post op- we both slept on the recliner couch. The next night she tried to sleep in bed, even though I had warned her against it. She tried for a few days, each day complaining about pain, while I suggested that she try sleeping on the couch again. I sleep on our recliner couch for nearly the two whole weeks that we have been home. I have finally been able to sleep in bed for the past two nights, and my pain is almost gone, while she claims to still have pretty bad pain. And guess where she has been sleeping the past few days. The couch. Now comes the parts that have really been getting to me. She has not been following the diet plan that our Doctor gave us. First it was her not drinking enough fluid, which I constantly had to tell her to do. Then, it was the incident that occurred a few days ago. Our doctor has us on full liquids right now, which consists of things like sugar free pudding, low-fat yogurt, chicken broth, and instant mashed potatoes. Well, a few days ago she went to the store with my brother, I cannot remember why I did not go, but I did not. When she came home, I went into the kitchen and saw a bag of open potato wedges and I instantly knew that she had some. So, I went and asked her, and she said that she did and that she made sure to chew them up well and that her stomach tolerated them just fine. Then I found the little foil covering of sour cream and knew that she had some of that as well. And while sure, potatoes mashed in your mouth is similar to mashed potatoes, the things that get me are: 1. They’re fried, which is an absolute no no as of right now, and 2. They aren’t on our list of approved foods so why even chance it. Anyway, I tried to move past that one and dropped it. Then tonight came. My mom made my dad and brother biscuits and gravy and eggs for dinner. I had some of the scrambled eggs because those have been approved by our doctor, and apparently, she had more than just eggs. Then, just a few moments ago, she came into the living room with a small bowl of chili. We are not supposed to be having chili for another day. And again, I understand that its only one day, but that fact that she cannot follow simple doctors’ orders has driven me mad. Now here’s the real kicker. Not only did she have the chili before she was technically allowed to; she put Fritos Scoops chips in it. Now I know for sure that we are NOT supposed to be having those. And then the smell of it and the anger drove me crazy, and I excused myself from the room, claiming that I had to go charge my phone. Well, after I did not return for a few minutes she came looking for me and knew I was upset. I told her I didn’t want to talk about it and that it didn’t matter -I said this because my opinions and feelings have never ever felt like they mattered to her, especially when we are in conflict. She came and sat down and kept pushing asking me why I was mad and said things like “so you’re mad because I had chili one day early?” and then she used the, “I have already lost weight” which I replied I wasn’t talking about her weight and that didn’t matter. She also said that it should not matter since she didn’t make me eat it. I then told her I didn’t want to talk about it now and she finally left. I know that I shouldn’t worry about it, and that I should just focus on myself, but it kind of feels undermining to me. She did not need this surgery as much as I did, but even still I feel like she doesn’t really care or understand how much effort this is. I honestly believe that she thinks she just going to get skinny and not have to do anything. She doesn’t exercise and clearly, she doesn’t have the willpower to not eat something if it looks or smells good, not to mention that fact that she never watched the hour long lecture the doctor wanted us to watch and just asked me what it was about and told me that she would watch it that night at work. Heck, she didn’t even know what the bariatric sleeve surgery really even was until a few days before the surgery when I mentioned that part of our stomach was going to be removed. I am just getting really upset at this point and I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to have to lie to the doctor or listen to her lie to the doctor again -she has lied about her alcoholism, tobacco usage, and what she has been eating before the surgery- when we have our first post-op appointment. And I don’t even want to bring these things up to her, because she gets very combative when she gets defensive and is never able to see things past her own perspective. My dad says that it wasn’t me who needed her support in this, but that he thinks she needed mine, but at this point I don’t even know what to do. How am I supposed to support her when she cant even follow simple rules and restrain herself from eating things that she is not supposed to be eating? How am I supposed to look at that and make my own progress when she is making it seem like its fine to just go back to eating whatever I want whenever -which I know is not true. I know I have more willpower and restraint than she does; that fact has been made abundantly clear to me. I am just at a loss. I know her surgery is going to be pointless and she is going to complain when she plateaus or even gains the weight back. How do I keep myself from getting so upset over this? Am I just crazy? Am I acting selfishly? Please help. I am sure I did not include some of the information or things that have happened, but I know this has already been a lot to read.

I have not been advised to give up smoking but have read enough to know that it can cause complications with Ulcers and the obvs none related health issues. I am on day one with a patch, ive never smoked alot but im scared ill find it all to much with quitting sugar, alcohol going low carb etc. Anyone else in similar situation? Sent from my SM-G960F using BariatricPal mobile app

I'm only three months post-op, so I can't speak to the long-term life of a gastric bypass patient, but based on what I've seen of my experiences and what others have said on here, most people live a fairly "normal" life after gastric bypass. As The Greater Fool said, not everybody gets dumping syndrome, and a lot of the people who do see it as a benefit of surgery because it deters them from eating certain foods. I don't even know if I get dumping syndrome because I haven't tried eating anything that would cause it (I was told to stay under 15 grams of sugar and 15 grams of fat in any meal to avoid dumping). If you are someone who gets dumping syndrome, it's not something that happens every day; you can control it by not eating the foods that cause it -- which are often the same types of foods that cause weight gain. Hunger varies a lot from one person to the next. "Head hunger" is a thing for any type of WLS, and you may already know about that from your lapband. Most gastric bypass patients maintain some amount of restriction for life, and most say that if they eat the foods they're supposed to eat (focusing on lean protein and veggies) and follow the rules about not drinking with or right after meals, they get full with a much smaller amount than they used to. There are certain foods that people call "slider foods" because they go down easily in larger quantities, and you have to be careful with those because they can cause weight gain. I don't think "accidents" are all that common. "Accidents" are associated with dumping syndrome, so if you eat the wrong things (foods with too much sugar and/or fat), it can happen, but again, for most people, it's not something that happens all the time. The opposite problem is actually much more common. Drinking can be an issue. Alcohol has a stronger effect on gastric bypass patients, so we can't drink much, and drinking at all is generally not recommended (especially in the first year). After the first year, you probably could have a glass of wine, but you'd need to be really careful not to drink too much. I just had family visit and they don't know about my gastric bypass surgery. I was able to serve "normal" meals all week and eat small amounts, and my family didn't seem to suspect a thing (maybe they did and just didn't say anything, I don't know -- but they raved about the food I served). Omelets and low-fat chicken sausage for breakfast. Grilled chicken salad for lunch. BBQ chicken and ribs (with sugar-free BBQ sauce on mine) for dinner. There are some things a gastric bypass patient probably won't be able to eat, like fried foods or bread, but there's lots of "normal" food that we can eat. All that being said, your weight is relatively low. I don't know your BMI since you didn't enter your height, but my highest weight was 341 pounds and my weight the day of surgery was 270, so I had a lot more weight to lose than you. On the other hand, GERD seems to be a big factor for you that wasn't an issue for me. Only you can decide if it's worth the risks for you based on your own situation. Even at my high weight, it was a hard decision for me that took a long time to make. Maybe you could have the band removed and see how you do on your own before you make that decision?

My name is Tek and I dump. Even *IF* you dump, I doubt you will be able to drink enough protein initially to cause it. So watch carefully as your volume increases because it can sneak up on you. Dumping syndrome (technically a complication) affects 20-50% of RNY patients. It is not a one size fits all statistic. It varies by surgeon and how much intestine is bypassed. More bypassed = more likely to dump. It also varies by patient because not all of us start with the same or even terribly similar intestine lengths or capacity or other genetic things that can impact... well... just about everything. Sugar alcohols affect non-ops just a bit less severely than post-ops. It's why they are common in actual laxatives. I never did Slim-fast, but recently I was not eating well so my spouse decided to get me premade low calorie breakfast protein drinks. Protein drinks are not on my plan, but I drank a couple and dumped each time (not severely). I accidentally threw the rest away... oops. "Sorry dear, I didn't know!" When I was binge running my Doc had be add a protein drink or two because without them I felt like I was eating all day and still losing too much weight. When I stopped I returned to my original plan. I don't recall particular brands I used but I do know they were chocolate and started as powder. Coulda been Nestle for all I know. A lot of this stuff, drinks, foods, drugs, activities, whatever, are trial and error. We each need to find what works for us with an eye to not developing bad habits that ultimately won't work for us. Good luck, Tek

They call it hell week for a reason. It’s always a challenge to break a habit & at the moment you’re trying to break so many - sugar, carbs, caffeine, fats, sodas, alcohol, etc, etc. & likely suffering withdrawals as well. But you can do this. It will be soooo worth it.

First trip since the pandemic started. Strangely, reflux was better, I am wondering if it's because I forgot to pack the iron supplement. I know the iron irritates my intestines but I didn't know it could influence reflux. I will have to experiment with taking it/not taking it to see if that's the cause. Also, I found out I'm sensitive to some kind of sugar alcohol--I had pancakes for breakfast one day and the syrup in a little pitcher on the tray was thicksomething er and not sugary-sweet like pancake syrup. I used a few tablespoons and was treated to the most amazing amounts of bloating, gas, and liquid poop. I spent the afternoon in the bathroom. I think the waiter just grabbed whatever pitcher was nearest in the kitchen and either it was "diet" syrup or they buy something augmented with sugar alcohols because it's cheap. I won't make that mistake again.

Ah, that's very interesting cat woman, you have such helpful information thank you. I clearly have the problem with the sugar alcohols. I was prescribed them post surgery in the soluble pain killers and a liquid antihistamine (reaction to something causing pain and swelling in my mouth) and I had the most unpleasant shaking, shivers and diarrhoea so managed without painkillers (wasn't in too much pain) and took an antihistamine tablet cut up. Can be tricky keeping away from sweeteners and sugar which is why I haven't had any protein shakes at all, they seem to have one or the other in them. I'm managing protein though with carefully balanced meals and at 8 weeks out all seems well. Good Luck dal101, you'll figure it out.

Aaah, Melbourne has been in extreme shut down for ages so they’re not open for dining. Attica was listed as one of the top 50 restaurants in the world until last year & Vue de Monde’s been best restaurant in Aust a few times. Honestly, I can’t justify paying $250 -$300+ for a meal of which I’ll eat 1/3 now even if it’s fabulous. Though, at least I’d save on the alcohol part of the bill these days - lol. Last time we went to V de M, we left >$500 a head poorer. Was worth it though.

not all RNY'ers dump. The statistic I see thrown around a lot on forums is that about 30% of us do. I don't know if there's any hardcore medical research behind that, but I know there are a lot of us who've never dumped, so I wouldn't doubt it. even if you end up being a dumper, you can manage that by limiting/avoiding sugar. Several dumpers I know can eat *some* sugar - just not a ton of it at one sitting intolerance of certain artificial sweeteners seems to be more of a problem for some of us. I can eat/drink any of them, but some of them give some folks G/I distress - especially sugar alcohols (the ones that end in "-itol", like sorbitol, xylitol, etc) it's hard to predict if you'll dump or be intolerant of certain artificial sweeteners - but you'll figure it out pretty quickly once you've had surgery.

Hey, where I can find this book? Does it helped you? I would like to read it too 'cause I really cannot stop eating sweets and I really need a detox. You know I think that chocolates are making a real addiction. It is the same as drugs or alcohol. I'm really afraid of my health. I even started to look for some clinics that can provide some sugar detox but the only think that I found is this site https://www.lifeline.org.uk/heroin-addiction/ they are working with drug addictors but I guess that for me, my heroin are sweets lol. Do you think that they can give me some advices?

One of the best things I did before surgery was to give up the addictive substances - sugar, caffeine, soda, alcohol, artificial sweeteners. Recovery is hard enough without having a caffeine headache or sugar cravings. It made things much easier post op and I would suggest it to everyone.

So, I feel funny writing about this, but...has anyone else ever experienced a negative change in their social life post-op? I had my surgery back in January. Although my physical health has made drastic improvements, I'm afraid my mental health has taken a toll. I noticed people have been treating me very differently since having the surgery. I've been getting so many rude comments, I can't keep up. They think I "took the easy way out (not realizing it was actually quite the opposite: the last resort)," and/or are freaked out by all my new eating habits and restrictions or are saying cruel things like "oh, you'll just gain it back like so-and-so did anyway, you watch." A lot of them have also proceeded to claim my changed appearance "weirds them out." Some of my now ex-friends have even gone so far to complain that I "betrayed the body positivity movement by giving into society's expectations of what women should look like." What the actual heck? Even dating, something I thought would get better as I lost weight, is just as bad as it was before. Since I can't drink alcohol anymore or eat a lot of foods, guys have been pretty hostile. Although I've been private about my surgery while dating (simply stating I have a strict diet I need to follow), that hasn't stopped guys from being mean or rude. Bottom line here is I've lost a lot of friends this past year and my love life is no better than it was. I'm extremely lonely and depressed. Has anyone else ever encountered this? What can I do to change it? Why is there so much social stigma towards this surgery?

I had the Loop Duodenal Switch (also called SIPS). I originally was also looking into gastric sleeve, but as you can see when I started my journey I was nearly 400 pounds and my surgeon told me that the statistical average of gastric sleeve would not be enough to lose the amount of weight I wanted to lose and same for the gastric bypass. I was very much on the fence but eventually I chose the surgery anyway due to the surgeons experience and I figured he knew what he was talking about. Vitamin wise you do take more than the average WLS, but not that much more. I process iron REALLY well so I do a switch on my vitamins where 1 day I take 1 multivitamin with iron and 2 multivitamins without iron and then the next day it switches and I take 2 multi's with iron and 1 without. I also take 2 Calcium Citrate a day (because I process Calcium really well as well). In my 6 month labs I showed to have a minor Vitamin A deficiency so I take 1 dropper of liquid Vitamin A a day as well. I'll find out how that worked out in two weeks since I just did my 9 month labs today and my 9 month check up is on the 13th. I was 321 pounds on my surgery day and this morning I weighed in at 221 so I've lost 100 pounds in 8 months (and 1 week). Which, honestly, I'm very proud of. I don't have bad body odor, if that's your concern. It's more your bowel movements... stink. REALLY bad! And avoid anything with excess sugar alcohol because it may give you gas (like it does to me) and it's smells terrible. There are not as many people who've had the DS or Loop DS, but I've noticed it's been gaining slightly more popularity lately so there are quite a few people on this site that you can ask for advice from who've had the surgery. If you have any questions for me feel free to ask and I'll try my best to answer them.