Sugar addict and Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy (VSG) surgery?

[Quest4TheNewMe 225]

I'm really stuck as to whether to get the sleeve or bypass... I went into this process set on bypass, but now I'm considering the sleeve. My biggest concern is that I'm a former sugar addict (have done well the last couple of months), but I feel like I would be better off with bypass because of the risk of dumping.

Is anyone here, who has had the sleeve, been successful in fighting the sugar cravings? Does the sleeve do anything to help you curb the cravings? I'm afraid that if I don't have that extra incentive (dumping) to avoid the sweets, I'll fall back into my sugar loving ways...

[AvaFern 3,516]

I LOVE sugar...my sleeve hates it. I can have a few bites, which is just enough to enjoy a dessert, but if I eat any more I get very sick. Some people never experience dumping with the sleeve, but some of us do. Just the other night I was out to dinner and I had a few bites of hummus, a bite of flatbread, and a few pieces of Tomato and I felt fine. I then literally had two very small spoonfulls of a pecan pie type dessert and I was throwing up and oozing goo from my throat for the next 45 minutes. I chose the sleeve because it cuts out the hunger hormone and because it requires less rearranging of the digestive system, however I guess I have been "lucky" in the sense that if I eat anything too sugary, greasy, fatty, or otherwise unhealthy, I get sick very quickly which really serves as a great deterrent.

[sapMegan 79]

I know I have problems still (10 months post op vsg) with eating many foods. My sleeve just does NOT tolerate many foods. Too much candy, icecream, breads... the list goes on. It also chang the way food tastes so many things just don't appeal because they don't taste right. Unfortunately not everyone is affected in these ways. In your situation where you know you have sugar control issues (I think all of us here do/did) the rny might be smarter be ause you KNOW it will forc the issue vs the vsg where you just hope it does. I preferred the vsg because the et e werent so many Vitamin deficiency issues and I love it.

[Quest4TheNewMe 225]

I also have a support person who ha rny about 9.5 years ago, so she would be able to relate... The nurse practitioner really seemed to be pushing me towards the sleeve though. That's also what the surgeon performs most often. I don't meet with him for the first time until October though (surgery planned for November sometime).

[Quest4TheNewMe 225]

I also have ZERO comorbidities, but a Current BMI of 43... And I've ALWAYS struggled with my weight. Crossed over the 200 lb mark at 17 yrs old and haven't been back since.

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

You may have already done considerable research about RnY. But there are some very significant medical complications and side effects with the RnY that the sleeve doesn't (usually) trigger. For instance,

* significant malabsorption and anemia issues requiring very serious Vitamin, mineral and other supplements for the rest of your life (more than with the sleeve)

* reactive hypoglycemia -- as many as 72% of RnY (bypass) patients have it; it ain't a minor thing at all. "Reactive hypoglycemia is a late complication affecting up to 72% of RYGB patients although it seems to occur also after SG, in about 3% of the cases." See http://clinicaltrials.gov/show/NCT01581801

* more complicated surgery and more surgical complications with RnY than with gastric sleeve

That's not to say that there aren't some diagnoses / patients for whom gastric bypass is the better choice. But IMHO you should choose bypass ONLY if you have those diagnoses. The choice between bypass and sleeve is not a simple 6 of one, half-dozen of the other proposition.

Edited September 19, 2014 by VSGAnn2014

[Quest4TheNewMe 225]

Yep, I understand that there's a lot more to consider and I'm hoping that once I meet with the surgeon I will have a lot more clarity.

I just don't want to put myself through the surgery and then up not being as successful as I could be (I.e. I don't want to fail)...

[BeagleLover 1,020]

Why set yourself up for dumping if you don't have to? You enjoy sugar and might be able to have some with the sleeve. You still have restriction. I really don't see how you'd fail. So many people have lost weight and kept it off with the sleeve.

I have had diabetes for 4 years and still love sweets! Granted, it would be hard, if not impossible, to reproduce pecan pie without corn Syrup. But, there's a whole world out there in sugarless...you can make pies out of Splenda Stevia that you really can't tell the difference! I add about a little lemon juice to whatever fruit I'm using, add an extra third of the amount of sugar in the recipe, then add cinnamon if I want and, 16 star anise seeds, put through a grinder or smushed in a mortar & pestle. If I think there's going to be a fair amount of juice, I put in a little instant tapioca. OMG, it tastes so good!

I'll be sleeved on Sept. 26th. Whenever I can tolerate "pies" again, I would change the above by not making a crust to minimize the carbs, and put a Splenda-sweetened oat and cinnamon topping on it, finished off by a spray of PAM.

There are plenty of other dessert recipes that very closely mimic the real deal. You could also check out the blog, The World According to Eggface.

[playlikeworldchamps 595]

I am 18 months out from sleeve. I have lost 130 lbs and working on maintaining now. I am a sugar addict and one taste would lead to non stop eating. I now get sick if I have too much sugar. I am one of the minority that dump with the sleeve. More than 2 bites of ice cream and I feel ill and get palpitations. Also for other sweet things. Now to satisfy sweet tooth I have fruit or plain yogurt with some fruit added. I am happy that I cannot tolerate too many sweets. My brain wants them sometimes but after much tryin I know that sweet bite is not worth it.

[Quest4TheNewMe 225]

I'm just afraid that tempting a little sugar is going to be slippery slope that will be hard to recover from. Sweets have always been my weakness. I'm trying to decide if the risk of dumping (to help keep me on track) will be better , or if the sleeve will be sufficient for me to stay on track and/or quickly get back on track...

[VSGAnn2014 12,992]

Quest, my bigger point was that dumping is not the only side effect with very negative effects that you might very much wish to avoid.

[erp 2,016]

Dumping with the sleeve is much less common than with RnY but neither is a guarantee. I have a sleeve of steel and now at 19 months out can eat anything. I talked to my NUT today about sugar and she told me I have to quit cold turkey. She said the first 10 days will be the hardest. Not looking forward to it, at all.

They operate on your stomach not your brain. Talk to your doc and fully vet the bypass, set yourself up for success.

[lark60 431]

I too am in the "rare" group that dump post sleeve and a sugar addict. Once I start eating sweets I find the only thing that stops me is the racing heart and nausea/vomiting. I do not want to feel this way and try to remind myself of the bad feelings that come with over eating sweets. That being said, I still find myself slipping up at times.

If you choose your surgery based on "the bad side effects" to keep you on tract to loose weight, you are fooling yourself that the surgery is the "fix" for your addiction. Any weight loss procedure can "fail" if you do not change your current habits. There are numerous stories of patients upset that they are gaining weight and the surgery "failed". The reality is the surgery is a tool for weight loss and each person has to change how they eat (what and how much) and exercise to get down to an ideal body weight. The surgery will not cure you of an addiction (sugar, carbs, overeating ect).

[Camella 209]

I am a self confessed sugar addict (before and after my sleeve). The first six months post op I had trouble eating anything that had too much sugar, however, now I have NO problem! The is still my biggest challenge! If I really overdo things I do get probably mild dumping where I real clammy very nauseous and have to lie down until it passes, unfortunately this has not been enough to deter me from chocolate! Good luck with your decision.

[bluesclues 49]

Honestly, i think i have a stomach of steel b/c im about 2.5 months out and i can have reg ice cream (kids scoop) w/ no problems. Im guessing its a slider for me bc it doesnt bother me. sugar free ice cream bothers my stomach if i have too much but can eat that too. I do crave sugar and sweets so i have sugar free choc instead. its really hard...but i make sure i work out daily and eat better...once in a while i splurge.