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I'm not sure that's true. And I'm sure she wasn't talking about things, like complications, that are outside of our control. In fact, it is completely about doing what *IS* in our control. I have had complications (both medical and situational) that I worked with my team to work with and around. They modified my requirements which I worked hard to accomplish. In spite of my issues, it was STILL about working my program and doing MY job. Whining wouldn't help. We have a job to do. We chose to accept it. We need to do it the best we can. Complications make it harder, but it still is up to us to do what we can. I'm sure you're not advocating that complications mean we don't have to still do our best to succeed? Nor is Lelaini.

I like it except it leaves no room for those with complications who cant do things the normal way or due to complication is a negative statistic as if their complication was picked by themself when its more like russian roulette in regards to statistics. Some also lose less than the curve and prob dont need shamed but in a perfect world this would work

Only you can determine if youve made the right choice and if you end up with complications you may regret. I will say that you will be pleasantly surprised with how fast the weight seems to go off initially 😉

Hello My name is Missy and I have been on my journey since 2009. I started with the Lapband procedure which I spent the longest amount of time from 2009 through 2015. After experiencing an erosion of my stomach in 2015 the band had to be removed and in 2016 my surgeon conducted a revision which is the Gastric Bypass. I was extremely happy at one point in my life because I began to lose weight again. Unfortunately 6 years later I am facing a slow weight loss phase in my life and I am trying to fight from getting where I once was. If anyone is experiencing any of these complications, please share and together we can overcome some of these challenges so that we can remain at our weight or improve our health.

"Bariatric Surgery is probably one of the most effective interventions in health care." - Laurie K. Twells, clinical epidemiologist at Memorial University of Newfoundland [2] Are you lurking on these forums debating whether or not you should have surgery? Unsure about making a permanent change to your lifestyle and body, or thinking that since you lost x number of lbs before, you can do it again? Heard about all the horror stories of complications and regain? This was me, one year ago. I want to tell you about the study that changed my mind. This study[1] looked at three groups: 418 patients who sought and underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass (surgery group), 417 patients who sought but did not undergo surgery (primarily for insurance reasons) (nonsurgery group 1), and 321 patients who did not seek surgery (nonsurgery group 2). They performed clinical examinations at baseline and at 2 years, 6 years, and 12 years to ascertain the presence of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, and dyslipidemia. Let me highlight a couple images from their study. These charts graph the amount patients lost as a percentage of total weight (NOT excess weight) at 2, 6, and 12 years relative to their baseline. First, this graph is the individuals who did not seek surgery. This group lost only 0.9% of their total weight 12 years after the study began. Those empty triangles? Those are people who ended up getting bariatric surgery anyways. Lets look at the second group, people tho sought out surgery but couldn't get it. So at least we are aware that this group is invested in losing weight. This group fared slightly better, as patients lost a mean of 2% of their body weight at 12 years out. This excludes patients who got surgery (they lost an average of 10%). Lets look at patients who did get the surgery. Patients lost an average of 26% of their total body weight even after 12 years. I found this difference absolutely remarkable. To reach that average 26% body weight loss without surgery, you would need to be in the top 5-10% of losers. Think about that. I used to see getting the surgery as an admission of my own personal failure at willpower and dieting. But this study makes it clear that the probability of success for non-surgical options is astoundingly low relative to bariatric surgery. Studies [3], [4], [5] reinforce the positive impact on health that bariatric surgery has on patients who choose to go through with it. Reading these helped put my mind at ease. Bariatric surgery is one of the best decisions I could make for my health. I encourage you to skim through the studies to see other benefits I didn't outline here. The NYT[2] article is also a great read for seeing why bariatric surgery is so effective. It distills a lot of the studies into facts that you can use to arm yourself when speaking with family and friends who aren't supportive. Sources: [1] https://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMoa1700459 [2] https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/13/well/why-weight-loss-surgery-works-when-diets-dont.html [3] https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11695-012-0718-9 [4] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/oby.21322 [5] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamasurgery/fullarticle/2546331#Introduction

She had sleeve surgery just like me. I understand that some dieticians do allow carbs but I hope chocolate muffins & croissant were not what the dietician meant. The high fat high sugar aspect concerned me more as well as the sheer volume of food she consumed at each meal. She is a good friend, wishmesmaller, & had the surgery because of the success I’ve had. I’m hoping that her seeing what I ate over the weekend might get her thinking. I’ve also suggested she watch Dr Vuong’s maximise your weight loss & the fat brain. You’re so fortunate to have a great dietician (who is also a wonderful friend). As Silkykitty said, gerd (or reflux) said can be a complication of sleeve surgery which was why I think my friend’s ‘hunger pain’ is acid related & she may have developed reflux. Especially when the Nexium relieved the pain. I know she has to find her own path but I just want her to be successful.

I'm not sure where that info is coming from, but there is no link between carbs and reflux, and certainly not to RNY revision. GERD is a complication of the sleeve due to the new stomach anatomy creating a high pressure upper GI system. There are many different post surgical diet programs, all prioritize protein, hydration and calorie deficits. But they are not all strictly low carb. There is more than one path to weight loss success.

I’m thankful for waking up each morning since my surgery, and knowing I have a new lease on life, with possibilities I haven’t dreamed of in over 20 years. For a practically textbook surgery and recovery so far with no major complications, except minor pain around one incision. And, for supportive family, friends, colleagues, and forum pals who’ve helped me along the way. You just never know how much something you write in this forum touches/helps others.

I graduated grad school before even trying. I think its possible to do having done both, but you will probably feel like hell. If you have complications will be even worse. Maybe you will be one of the lucky ones who has no complications pain or il feelings though and then it would b no sweat. If it were me id set the date one week after program finished.

"Gold standard" is a marketing term used in selling a procedure (cynically, it has been said that it applies to the surgeons themselves, as that is where they make the most "gold") and as such is basically meaningless. Here in the States, there are four mainstream procedures that are routinely performed, and approved by the ASMBS and the US insurance industry - lap bands, RNY, VSG and DS. The bands are falling out of favor owing to their high longterm complication rate and low effectiveness, but there is still a lot of marketing push for them by their manufacturers. The RNY has been around for forty years or so, based upon procedures that had been first developed 100 years before to treat gastric cancer and other gastric maladies (Billroth II). It was an improvement over the existing malabsorptive procedures such as the JIB (jejuno ileal bypass) but it still had the longstanding tradeoffs of its basic configuration - bile reflux, marginal ulcers (aka, the "NSAID problem"), dumping syndrome and moderate nutritional deficiencies. Bile reflux has largely been eliminated in the RNY WLS procedure via tailored limb lengths, but the others remain as common side effects and are largely controlled by diet or medication restrictions and supplements. It is overall a very good and mature procedure that works well with tolerable side effects, but it is far from perfect, which is why there is been an ongoing effort in the industry to find a replacement (this is how progress is made.) The duodenal switch (DS) was developed in the mid to late 1980's, which combined a moderate level of malabsorption with a moderate level of restriction (compared to the RNY which is more highly restrictive and minimally malabsorptive) that takes care of the RNY's problems with bile reflux, dumping/reactive hypoglycemia and marginal ulcers. In exchange, it is more technically challenging for the surgeon (which is why most don't offer it) and is a little more fussy on its' supplement regimen. On the plus side, it is more effective in treating diabetes, somewhat more effective on overall average weight loss, and much better at resisting regain. It should certainly be on the radar for anyone in the high BMI ranges and/or with a history of yoyo dieting. The main thing that has held the DS back from being more popular is its complexity, which often doesn't fit in with either surgeon's skill sets or business models (can't do as many procedures in a day.) The VSG came out of the DS as it is the first phase when the DS is done in two steps. Typically the VSG stomach is made smaller, about half the size, than the DS sleeve. It overall yields similar weight loss and regain characteristics to the RNY but without the dumping/reactive hypoglycemia or marginal ulcer predispositions and is also quicker and easier for the surgeon to perform, which is why it has been gaining popularity. The primary downside is the predisposition toward acid reflux owing to the stomach volume being reduced much more than the acid producing potential, to which the body doesn't always adapt. Nothing is perfect, and they all have a place for different circumstances. Getting beyond marketing fluff, hey are all the "gold standard" when used appropriately. The next new thing that is working its way through the industry is the SIPS/SADI (sometimes called the "loop" or simplified DS) that shows some good promise of having effectiveness somewhere between the RNY and the DS, with surgical complexity on the order of the RNY (it is being promoted as being "almost as good as the DS" while being more "accessible" - simpler so more surgeons can do it. It is still usually considered by most insurance to be investigational, and has yet to gain approval by the ASMBS, but there's a good chance that it may become that RNY replacement that the industry has been looking for.

I definitely had my share of complications (nothing life threatening) over the years and had more than one revision because of this but I don't regret it. The only thing I regret is that I postponed revision from lap band for so long. I don't know if hesitating bought me some complications that could've been avoided but in the end it's speculative so no reason to mull it over in my head. When it comes to "regret": I don't think you will get many "I regret it" answers for several reasons. 1) Most people on here are relatively early out. They're still in the weight loss phase when rewards are rolling in big or in early maintenance phase. That's too soon for e. g. long-term nutritional deficiencies or transfer addiction to roar their ugly heads. It's also too early for regain struggles. 2) There is high selection bias on internet boards. Here you either see "surgery newbies" or very successful people who want to celebrate their success and maybe make sure to stay on track by posting here or simply continue hanging around because they want to stay in contact with certain users. 3) People having serious ongoing complications or insufficient weight loss or major regain and therefore feeling regret don't tend to hang around here. Maybe they meet elsewhere or suffer in silence, I don't know. Once in a while you see a new user posting about regain and "wanting help". They make a thread, get several answers and seem to vanish into thin air again but they don't hang around so you can e. g. follow their journey for some months to come.

I had a gastric sleeve surgery almost two years ago. No complications, no regrets.

you're right - the sleeve is phase 1 of the DS, and the DS used to be commonly done in two stages (now it's often done as one surgery). A lot of people did fine with just the first stage (sleeve), so it's become a stand-alone surgery. I don't think the DS is very common, even among high BMI patients. And a lot of surgeons don't do it. I think it's a pretty complicated surgery, and there are more risks involved than there are with VSG and RNY. another issue is that although most physicians are very familiar with sleeve and RNY these days, not so many are familiar with the ins and outs of DS. Some of the DS patients on other sites have said they often have to "educate" their PCPs on what their needs, issues, and requirements are.

I told almost nobody about my surgery, so events with food were (and still are) a bit complicated and unnerving for me. However, buffet style is definitely the easiest to deal with, as you can pick and choose foods that will work with your diet. (I would frequently go with cheese and cold cuts. No, cheese is not the best choice, but it has protein--and a little won't kill you.). If it's a sit-down dinner, I usually say that I'm feeling unwell and will only be eating small portions of a few things. People don't usually push back. One word of warning, since this is the first time with family since surgery. If any of them are quite overweight, they might come across as a bit hostile or dismissive about your surgery. I have one obese family member who has never approved of my surgery and is always quite nasty about it. I believe that such people feel threatened by the fact that we are taking control of our health and may be a bit envious. (I hope this isn't the case with your family, but if it does happen, you're not alone.)

July 2019 I had a sleeve surgery lots of complications had a revision to bypass done February 2020. Been recovering and healing at home but obviously with the pandemic not a whole lot of socializing happening. Now my family (large extended) has figured out a location and way to have a get together and still be able to ensure safety as much as possible. This is taking place tomorrow afternoon. I am a little nervous about when it’s time to eat. My family shows love with food and lots of it. (And based on the fact that I started this journey at 350+lbs you can probably guess they don’t always prepare the most healthy food choices). I plan to make sure that I avoid the food area as much as possible and to drink my water and will have my nausea medicine in case there is anything that sets my stomach off. I don’t want to hurt people’s feelings by not eating their food but I have absolutely no interest in making myself sick or binging on bad for me food. I am sure I will be okay and am just having a case of nerves since the is my first “party” situation since I started the process of having wls and even though it’s all family I am worried someone is going to be watching every bite I put in my mouth. Someone, anyone please tell me I’m not crazy and it’s normal to be worried how it’s going to go.

well i cant see your stats and your comorbities but it seems like alot of us would be dead in five years anyway from the cardiovascular disease or struggling with diabetes. Yep people do die definitely 1/200 to 1/700 nationally that has surgery dies. Those that dont there are many complications. The dead can't post here and the people with complications probably don't care to comment. However, remember why you started this journey. Is your comorbities at a head (diabetes cardiovascular disease severe sleep apnea)? What was your reason for starting? That's where you get your strength from. Now keep in mind some just breeze through the surgery with no complications but there is pain and struggle through the post op phase. Cuts hurt etc. Ultimately you got to be the one to decide if your situation is such that youve tried n failed to lose weight many times are morbidly obese and your comorbities are coming to a head. It's a personal decision and i hope you make the best one for you and your specific health problems (if any).💛

Sorry to hear you're not feeling well. Yes, it does get better! I felt pretty miserable for the first 4-6 days, then I literally woke up one morning and felt really good. I'm now over 3 weeks out and having a (hopefully) minor complication and have to go for a UGI x-ray this morning. I've hardly been able to drink or eat anything for nearly a week as my sleeve constantly feels full, my abdomen is distended, and other things. Hoping it's nothing major. That said, all surgery-related pain is long gone. Feel better soon!

Hang in there! It does get better! The morning I checked in for surgery, I was 223.2. When I left the next day I was about 9# heavier due to the air & fluids they pump you full of. Within a week, I lost that weight, and now I'm down an additional 15# on top of the 10# from surgery. I had surgery on 8/19, so I'm 3 weeks out. This past weekend I was stuck at 209.5 for about 4-5 days, but I think it was due to a whey protein allergy. I'm also having a minor complication, so I'm having a UGI x-ray tomorrow morning to see if I have a blockage or something else. As long as you're feeling ok, follow the instructions and things will get back on track! 🙂

If you’re having no complications, you and your PCP may be able to monitor your journey. You can order your own labs through www.requestatest.com. I have used them past few years and very simple. Go to their website, order the labs you want, choose the lab nearest you to go for blood draw. My WLS was 3/11/20, Covid took over right then, so my follow up appointments have just been brief and over the phone with surgeon/nurse. As long as I’m not having issues, all that matters to them are the labs. You can also seek out a nutritionist if you feel you need one. So glad all is going well for you!

My x wife did and she had no complications but she put her OB and Primary and had the files sent to him I did it here was only a few thousand more when you take into account the air and spending of two people

I was looking into weight loss surgery a couple years ago and that is when I discovered that at 38-39 BMI I wasn’t fat enough and I didn’t have any co-morbidities. So they set me up on a diet program through my health insurance and told me I had to do that program for 6 months. I can’t remember the name of the program, but it was a diet similar to the food guide pyramid but eating a lot less. I was hungry all the time. Seriously, who do they think we are? We have a quart to gallon sized stomach and they want us to eat as if it is pint sized or even smaller. A set up for failure. I didn’t last but a couple months, barely lost any weight and was even more depressed. Ended up getting divorced and then looking into the surgery again. That’s when I saw an ad for a VGS in Mexico. I was like WHAT!?! I was shocked that people did this but it intrigued me. Then I started doing research, tons of it. YouTube, internet... Found some really good Youtubers who talked about their experience, one of them a nurse. Discovered what to look for in the hospital, what to look for in a doctor. Found out that Medical Tourism is a big thing and it’s not just for VGS. I got paranoid I would send them a $4,500 cashiers check and it would vanish. The whole thing was scary. But..... what an amazing experience. Everything went very smooth. No psychiatrist appointment, no 6 months of dieting, no pre-labs. Made the call and had an appointment a month later. The only requirement was based on BMI and I had to start a diet 1 week before surgery to reduce fat on my liver and then the typical 2 days of clear liquid diet. Flew in to San Diego, they picked me up and took me to the hospital, did some blood work. Next day surgery, stayed two nights and then they dropped me off at the airport. No problems. I did this all alone, no companion. I was very nervous. My only hick up is finding a doctor here in the US who will do follow up. I scheduled an appointment with a internal medicine doctor and went to that and discovered their first appointment is a “get to know you” appointment. What is this? I have never heard of it. Seems like a way just to collect an extra appointments worth of money? So I walked out since no one told me in advance. Sorry, I work and don’t have time for doctors who require multiple appointments so they can collect as much money as possible. Nor do I want to pay a doctor $150 to get to know me. I feel like this was a scam. I’m simple, no health problems only surgery ever was my c-section and this VGS. Other than being Obese I am perfectly healthy. I need to get on this today. I have not done any follow up appointments but feel I am doing just fine. Anyone know which kind of doctor I should do follow up care with? I feel like a bariatric doctor would be annoyed I went to Mexico. I was thinking of going to an internal medicine doctor since I have no complications and just need some labs to make sure things are good? Anyone else go to Mexico and then follow up in the state?

Itsmehab, I think many of us weren't sure in the beginning. I'm almost 3 weeks post op and have been doing soft/pureed foods now for just over a week. After reading so many experiences on here, I started SLOW - Like REALLY slow with soft foods. The first thing I had was a scrambled egg - I ate it with a baby spoon (and yup... felt really strange) and took tiny, slow bits at a time. As I was cooking it, I thought - Geez, there's no way this will fill me up. BUT... I was amazed!! I took about 15-20 minutes to eat it and felt full after about 3/4 of it and stopped. So... My "moral" is to take it slow - I KNOW when I've had enough. From eggs, I went to soup (like chicken noodle since I was craving salt) in the blender and sipped on it slowly. Introduce one thing at a time to see if your pouch "likes" it. I've been trying new things every other day or so and knock on wood haven't had a problem. If it's something new, I'll only take a couple of bites and wait an hour or so to make sure all is well. Once you're comfortable with the food settling, make sure you only put as much as you should be eating in the bowl/plate. It's super easy to eat too fast and make yourself miserable (might have learned that the hard way with a cup of soup!) As far as being ready, I also felt like I was ready earlier, but decided to follow my surgeons program to have the best chances of no complications. I read about folks who have problems and they don't sound so pleasant so I just figured it's not worth taking the chance to advance too quickly. A

No I didn't have any complications, I did however have a drain that they needed to be removed before I could be released, other than that I was not nauseous or sick. I am still on a full liquid diet which is proving to be pretty hard i dont know what eles I can eat besided broth for breakfast/lunch & dinner. Sent from my SM-G970U using BariatricPal mobile app

I'll jump in here. First, my husband is the most amazing man for me. I couldn't ask for a better husband or friend. Ultimately he has supported almost every decision I have made including WLS. That being said, when I first brought it up, he did NOT like the idea. He's someone who who generally shows very little emotion outwardly and I have to pry some things out of him. What I discovered is that he was SCARED. SCARED - For him, surgery is an absolute last option for anything. He never once told me "You can't do this." (Pretty sure he knew better!) That being said, once we really started talking about it and I showed him the odds of complications, he started coming around. He still preferred that I not take the risk, but DID support my decision. I'm still very new into this process (only 3 weeks post surgery), but now that he sees I'm fine and we have more or less resumed our normal daily lives he's very involved and supportive in the process. I had my surgery just a few days before his birthday and our new joke is that I gave him a trophy wife for his birthday! It sounds like you have a great guy and a great relationship. A good foundation will hopefully ease him into this decision.

Did they say why you are still there and on clear fluids? I heard that you can be home within two days and on stage 2 of eating. Did you have any complications if you don't mind me asking? Did you get to go home today? I hope you don't think that I am being critical or judging you. I am more concerned and wondering since I am going to have my surgery on the 16th.