Do you ever fear if anything will happen 30-40 years later?

[AchieveGoals 46]

I'm about to get the surgery and there is one thing I am always fearing about. And that is the safety of the procedure for the extreme long term. I'm kind of young (just turned 26). I use to be a lap band patient and I remember the whole healthcare team promising me how effective the lap band was, and now 10 years later it's something that is leaving the US markets due to failures. What if it happens with the sleeve procedure too? Sometimes it makes me think that these Doctors will just do the procedure for you to keep patients and stay in business, but what will happen 30-40 years later is something that we will have to deal with.

The thought of its permanency alone is really scaring me, and I know we should have a tool that permanently helps us with weight loss, but I'm just scared with possible complications that can come at old age or years later. Will those staples always be strong and intact? What if we get a leak in the long term? etc etc Can someone please chime in and maybe calm my nerves? I'd really appreciate it

[UK Cathy 977]

I didn't worry about it because non of us know even what is going to happen tomorrow! What I did concentrate on was the quality of my life today. I wasn't enjoying my life before the sleeve and the op made such a big difference. You will find many testimonies on her where people feel that they have been given a new lease after WLS. As we get older we naturally have to deal with different health issues (part of life) but having our weight down I feel will help the situation and keep some of the issues at bay.

Have faith in your decision and good luck with the surgery and a speedy recovery.

[AchieveGoals 46]

@@UK Cathy Hello! Yes I do understand that as we age we will accumulate possible health issues, but I meant health issues that are directly caused from the Gastric Sleeve procedure itself, I'm kinda scared about those..however I appreciate your response! Thank you!

[madadams 130]

I can't see any issues that would be caused by the sleeve as long as regular bloods are checked to ensure there are no vitamin/ mineral deficiencies. The band is different...there's a foreign body inside the patient so that causes a potential problem. Once the stomach is removed and the incision line is healed, I can't see any further problems that may occur.

Sent from my SM-G935F using the BariatricPal App

[missblonde20 72]

I get what you mean! However, I just remind myself that to live a long, fulfilled and healthy life, you really can't be overweight - if you are, you can get diabetes, heart issues, cardiovascular problems etc etc.....so I suppose if you weighed it up, being healthy and in a good weight range will outweigh any issues that a sleeve may cause. I totally have the same fears, but what would happen to us in the end if we were obese and starting to get bad knees, live on insulin etc.....all the best for your surgery!!

[kmorri 1,689]

My fear was more around continuing to be obese and not making it another 10 or 20 years. I do understand your fears but weighing the risks is all you can really do.....for me the benefits totally out weigh any risks.

[BCs 1000 364]

My husband was worried about this in terms of what if I had so much restriction that I couldn't maintain a healthy weight. There was no need to worry, ten months out I have to work at maintaining this weight everyday. There is no risk of me becoming underweight because I can't eat enough, none whatsoever.

Agree with PP, regular blood tests will ensure there is no Vitamin deficiency.

The health implications and reduced life expectancy if I had remained morbidly obese were a certainty.

[Bufflehead 6,358]

No, sleeve gastrectomy has been done for well over a hundred years on stomach cancer and ulcer patients and it is very safe.

And if something bad does happen in 30-40 years, at least I will be alive and able to try to deal with it (unless I get hit by a truck tomorrow or something). If I were still over 350 lbs, I probably wouldn't make it 10-20 years, let alone 30-40.

[Inner Surfer Girl 12,015]

I'm about to get the surgery and there is one thing I am always fearing about. And that is the safety of the procedure for the extreme long term. I'm kind of young (just turned 26). I use to be a lap band patient and I remember the whole healthcare team promising me how effective the lap band was, and now 10 years later it's something that is leaving the US markets due to failures. What if it happens with the sleeve procedure too? Sometimes it makes me think that these Doctors will just do the procedure for you to keep patients and stay in business, but what will happen 30-40 years later is something that we will have to deal with.

The thought of its permanency alone is really scaring me, and I know we should have a tool that permanently helps us with weight loss, but I'm just scared with possible complications that can come at old age or years later. Will those staples always be strong and intact? What if we get a leak in the long term? etc etc Can someone please chime in and maybe calm my nerves? I'd really appreciate it

If I didn't have surgery, chances were pretty darn good I wouldn't be alive in 10 years, let alone 30-40 years.

[AvaFern 3,516]

@Bufflehead is right. The sleeve is new for weight loss, but people have had part or all of their stomach removed for decades as part of the treatment for cancer. While we don't have long term studies based on VSG as a bariatric surgery there are tons of studies about the efficacy of removing the stomach for other purposes. I was also really worried about the fact that this was a forever kind of surgery, and it did concern me that in the future maybe something would go wrong, but the more I researched the more I felt better about it. I was 29 when I had the surgery, so I can also appreciate that you feel like you're a little earlier in life and you need your body to last for six more decades or so. You will be fine...but the nerves are just part of the process. A year from now you will very likely look back on this and think, whew, best decision ever!

[OutsideMatchInside 10,166]

Like @@Bufflehead said, gastrectomy is a very old surgery, research it. The only thing new is specifically just applying it to weight loss. Lots of people live without parts of their stomach for a very long time, and you can even live entirely without a stomach. What you can't live without are intestines, well, not well, which is why I chose this surgery in the first place, it was safer with more data.

In 30 to 40 years I will old and I will have other organs failing that I will have to worry about. At least I won't have got to that point carrying a whole entire person on my back in excess weight like I have been.

At first all the changes for surgery seem huge and forever, but seriously one year out and I am basically a normal person, I just eat well. My food choices and diet isn't any different from any of my other health conscious friends.