Sleeve or Bypass?

[mayasmomma 3]

Hellow I'm new here. I'm in the process of having weight loss surgery . With my insurance I have to do 6 months Dr supervised diet before surgery, which I'll be done with next month. My question is should I have bypass or sleeve? I always thought that sleeve is for "medium" overweight people and gastric bypass is for "large" overweight people. I'm 37 and I weigh 375...I've lost 50 lbs so far. Im afraid to have the sleeve because it's less invasive and then not be as successful as I could have been with bypass...

Any opinions?

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

Each surgery has it's pros and cons beyond just weight loss. I know the weight is the big thing, but please take into consideration other side effects and lifestyle changes. I was sleeved at 412 day of surgery. My highest weight was 414. A year later I have lost 110lbs and am still losing. With the sleeve it will take longer to get to a normal BMI starting at a higher weight but is can be done. With bypass it may take less time.

I chose the sleeve because I was concerned the rewiring of my internal organs might not work for my body chemistry. I also knew that I could work hard with eating and exercise to make this work for me.I went into this knowing I was at a minimum looking at a 2 year commitment to get to maintenance. If it matters I am 52. I was 50 when I had surgery and turned 51 a month later. I was always an "active fat" so exercise wasn't hard for me even with arthritic knees.

Here's me July 2014 and July 2015.

[Dub 9,922]

Congrats on losing the first 50. That is awesome !!!!!

I, too, thought I wanted the bypass so that I would gain the best results.

I told the surgeon that's what I wanted.

He countered with some issues that made the decision to go with a sleeve much more logical. He said at my BMI and my height....it would be challenging to reroute things safely without tension. I also had a large umbilical hernia that he planned on repairing. He said that these type repairs fail with some frequency. Mine had significant amounts of bowel involved. Were it to fail post-op....it could put pressure on the rerouted piping and strain those sutures.

This could be very dangerous. For safety reasons that were unique to me, he felt the sleeve was what I needed.

He also knew of the bone-on-bone situation I have with my knees and the great relief that get from the use of drugs like Advil, Motrin, Aleve and etc.

I also did not have diabetes.

There were a couple other reasonings that went into the decision.

All of this above is simply what was on the table for me. You may very well have different options and different circumstances that weigh into which is best for you.

You'll hear all sorts of reasonings and it can be very confusing. I bought the "Big Book on Gastric Bypass" and the same book on the sleeve and was able to gain some great insight from them. I recommend the reading.

[Sophie74656 1,572]

My surgeon told me that the weight loss with the sleeve and bypass is almost the same.

What I liked about the sleeve is that I could eventually still eat regular food (while maintaining small portion size). I've already been out to a restaurant when some friends invited us out. I didn't want to always turn down social situations because there might be food there. I can go out to a restaurant and eat something small. I've been to a diner and just got a small cup of chili, or something from the appetizer menu that my husband helped me finish

[jane13 2,256]

@@BLERDgirl - WOW! you look great!

@@Dub - I am still thinking about the food you posted on here a couple of days ago....makes my stomach growl!

I think it is awesome that you both shared your doc decision with her, because everyone doesn't have the same medical needs. The bypass is considered the "gold standard" but for some it may cause problems down the road....

@@mayasmomma - Your surgeon will probably provide his recommendation. I had a choice because I didn't have any other issues and could've done band or sleeve. I probably could've done the bypass, but I wasn't too excited about it like @@BLERDgirl. I almost did the band, because my adult daughter didn't want me to do anything permanent. I liked the idea of the sleeve from my surgical seminar I did going into this process. SOOOOO glad I went sleeve - NO REGRETS!!!!

[BLERDgirl 6,417]

@ - Thank you! I'm just happy not to have any sagging skin on my face. I hope my body follows suit.

@@mayasmomma - I am not anti-bypass. In fact the friend who recommended my surgeon had the bypass and has been very successful on it. She is 2 years post op and maintaining well. What I am saying is there really is a choice sleeve or bypass. Do your homework about pros, cons etc.... and take into consideration your own body makeup and needs before you make a decision.

[The Candidate 3,215]

I chose the bypass for many reasons. I was concerned about GERD issues which has been a post op complication for some, definitely not all, who have had the sleeve. I also have a terrible sweet tooth and thought the fear of dumping would help curtail that addiction long term. And I wanted both the restriction and malabsorption components to help me reach goal.

This is really such a personal choice that has to be adapted to fit your particular lifestyle and expectations. When I began this journey I was dead set on the sleeve. But as I progressed towards surgery, I started to have doubts. Probably the biggest factor in my switch to bypass over sleeve was the fact that I *would* be able to eat most anything I wanted, only in smaller portions. I know this is listed as a pro for most, but for me, I felt that would be a gateway back to my old bad food choice ways.

I'm 11 weeks out, and I don't have a single regret. Do as much research as you can in determining which will be best for you. Good luck!

[chuck415 89]

To me the decision to pursue the surgery was a lot easier than deciding which one to have.

[Ashlegal 525]

What is regular food?

My surgeon told me that the weight loss with the sleeve and bypass is almost the same.

What I liked about the sleeve is that I could eventually still eat regular food (while maintaining small portion size). I've already been out to a restaurant when some friends invited us out. I didn't want to always turn down social situations because there might be food there. I can go out to a restaurant and eat something small. I've been to a diner and just got a small cup of chili, or something from the appetizer menu that my husband helped me finish

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

My surgeon told me that the weight loss with the sleeve and bypass is almost the same.

What I liked about the sleeve is that I could eventually still eat regular food (while maintaining small portion size). I've already been out to a restaurant when some friends invited us out. I didn't want to always turn down social situations because there might be food there. I can go out to a restaurant and eat something small. I've been to a diner and just got a small cup of chili, or something from the appetizer menu that my husband helped me finish

As far as I know neither surgery would keep you from eating at restaurants. This post is at the very least somewhat misleading.

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

I was sleeved and I started with a much higher BMI than you. You need to decide which surgery to have based on your surgeon's recommendation not on how much weight you have to lose.

[Djmohr 6,965]

Just want to clear up a few things.

1. Having bypass does not mean you won't be able to eat regular food. I have been eating in restaurants since 4 weeks post op. I can eat whatever I want, that does not mean I should nor do I.

2. Both surgeries will ultimately achieve a high weight loss as long as you follow the plan

3. Both surgeries are invasive - with the sleeve they actually remove 85 percent of your stomach which means it cannot be reversed. With bypass they reroute your intestines so that you have malabsorption which is intended to help with weight loss

4. Both require you to take supplements and have labs checked on a regular basis do life. Adjustments to Vitamins are determined by how you are doing on those labs

Most people choose bypass at the recommendation of their doctors because it cures both Reflux/Gerd and diabetes.

Many times the sleeve and lap and actually make reflux/Gerd worse and in many cases those surgeries can bring it on. If reflux/Gerd gets bad enough it requires a revision to bypass anyway.

Leverage your surgeon to help you decide what is best for your health history. They really are experts and can help guide you.

It is definitely more than a personal decision in my opinion and requires a deep dive by experts in your health history.

If you search this site for revisions to bypass you will see a lot of posts from people that have had to get s second and third surgery because they ended up with erosion and Gerd that had to be dealt with.

My recommendation would be to research until you are comfortable with your choice.

Good luck!

[Sophie74656 1,572]

according to my surgeon the sleeve will also cure diabetes, sleep apnea, and many other weight related issues

[Ashlegal 525]

It isn't "somewhat" misleading, it is totally misleading.

Which sucks for the OP because this kinda of post really makes it hard to catalog through all the information given.

My surgeon told me that the weight loss with the sleeve and bypass is almost the same.

What I liked about the sleeve is that I could eventually still eat regular food (while maintaining small portion size). I've already been out to a restaurant when some friends invited us out. I didn't want to always turn down social situations because there might be food there. I can go out to a restaurant and eat something small. I've been to a diner and just got a small cup of chili, or something from the appetizer menu that my husband helped me finish

As far as I know neither surgery would keep you from eating at restaurants. This post is at the very least somewhat misleading.

[Ashlegal 525]

According to many of our surgeons so does having Gastric Bypass.

Bypass doesn't keep you from eating regular food. What the hell is "regular food" anyway?

I am five weeks post-op and spent the week in Vegas. I went out to eat, went to a birthday party, ordered take-out, had Snacks in my suite and even a small slice of birthday cake last night. No WLS prevents anyone from leading a normal life with "regular food."

But if you think the Sleeve is going to keep you thin AND make it possible to eat the way you have prior to WLS, you're wrong.

Research shows many Sleevers do revisions to Bypass because they were not able to lose all the weight expected to be healthy. There are many reasons for this and chances are it has as much to do with diet after as anything else after surgery.

according to my surgeon the sleeve will also cure diabetes, sleep apnea, and many other weight related issues