So, I am scheduled to have gastric bypass surgery and everyone wants to tell me their horror stories about people they know who had it done and all of the terrible problems they suffered as a result. Do any of you know someone who had this done with no problems? I really need to hear some encouragement and some positivity right now. Thanks!

She was pre-diabetic and he had really bad heart problems. Both have lost a LOT of weight and seem healthy and active and very happy. My aunt is no longer pre-diabetic and my uncle's cardiologist told him he hardly needed to see him anymore. :)

I know 3 people who had gastic bypass surgery.

All of them lost a great deal of weight, and none of them had complications.

Each reported 2 issues though. 1. Skin didn't tighten up enough post weight loss. 2. sometimes they vomit after eating certain types of food, even in small portions.

One of the best ways to learn about the positive versus negative result of any type of surgery is to hear from those who have had it, years later, to see if they are satisfied with the long-term result (including any possible side effects) as well as the short-term result. Yet this is difficult when it comes to bariatric surgery, because the process of coming up with the best techniques is ongoing, i.e. still being refined. Therefore, what is offered in the way of bariatric surgery today is not what previous patients received 10 years ago. Consequently, whatever results those patients had, cannot tell you much about the result that YOU might have.

At the same time, those who have had bariatric surgery within, say, the last few months, are not in a position to know whether they will be happy several years from now about their results.

My suggestion would be for you to use the Internet and thoroughly research bariatric surgery.

With any surgery, is important to feel optimistic about the immediate and long-term results. Glean whatever information you need from the Internet, which importantly, will also help you discover what sorts of questions you may want to ask your doctor before proceeding. The information you gain will help you to reach the point where you either feel comfortable going forward with the surgery or you conclude that such surgery is not for you.

Good luck, Anon! Let us know what you eventually decide.

Thank you all for your great comments and advice.

My mom had the gastric sleeve, which does not bypass the stomach but instead they remove part of the stomach and leave a small pouch for her stomach. She has been pleased with the result, nearly four years later.

She lost quite a bit of weight, but still has to remain active and will have to watch what she eats still for the rest of her life. They did not cure her problem with excessive snacking all day long. lol it is possible to gain weight back after surgery if you try to revert to the same old bad habits.

Have you spoken to your doctor about this? I am sure he will be able explain the pros and cons of undergoing gastric bypass surgery. The center for bariatric surgery New Jersey helped me to understand the advantages of this type of surgery and the risks involved. It is important to be fully prepared for this procedure. The success of such an operation would depend on keeping a positive attitude. Contrary to what most people think, diet and exercise still play a role in successful weight loss, even after surgery has been performed. You still need to exercise self-control and discipline. The major reason for undergoing this procedure is to avoid disability and the medical complications that may result from chronic obesity.

My observation would be more of a warning. Everyone I know who has had it done did indeed lose a lot of weight, but then some years later, they'd gained much of it back again.

That's why I've never bothered looking into that option. I know it would help me to lose fast, but it will still take a lifetime of dedication and commmitment to keep that weight off.

Losing weight is not the hardest part, as difficult as that is. The most difficult thing we overeaters ever face, is making it a lifetime commitment, and keeping off that weight.

The surgery won't magically take away the desire to eat. That's something you need to be prepared for and work towards healing the emotional you, as well as the physical you.

I know several people who have had one of the different kinds of bariatric surgeries. Most of them have been very pleased with the results. One woman had weighed over 300 pounds, lost about 100 on her own, then had the surgery because she couldn't lose the last of it on her own. Her weight loss was dramatic; she is indeed 1/3 of the woman she used to be. She now wears a size 10, but needs plastic surgery to deal with all the extra skin. She is still thrilled with the results. Her life has changed.

If you are getting scared about bariatric surgery (and I've heard the horror stories too), have you considered changing the way you eat? I'm talking about drastically, as in 90% veggies, 10% protein and a little whole grains every once in a while? I've just got done with Dr. Fuhrman's Eat to Live and am doing that program. It has resulted in me losing 5 lbs. in a week so far. I wasn't even able to lose that much using Weight Watchers points system in the first week previously. Most of it may be water weight, but I'm so satisfied with my eating (and I eat 1 lb. of raw veggies a day, 1 lb. of cooked veggies, at least 1 cup of beans, and 1 cup of rice or quinoa, or a slice of whole grain bread a day and at least 4 fruits.

At least check the book out form the library and see if you like it.

There's a hypnotic alternative. Google might have the answer.

I had a gastric sleeve in 2004, and have been very happy with the results. Initially, I lost about 70 pounds and maintained it for about 5 years with little effort. Recently I have gained some, but that is because I pretty much eat what I want--I have not been as careful as I could be. It is much more difficult to gain than before the surgery. Before surgery, I could quickly gain 10 pounds if I was not careful. Now, maybe 1 pound, and it comes off much easier.

I had the procedure done in the Bariatric Center at the world-famous Cleveland Clinic. I had gained 100 lbs. due to the side effects of a medication I was on, plus had put on some weight with pregnancies.

The extra weight started causing serious health problems: Diabetes, High Blood Pressure, shortness of breath, problems walking, decreased mobility. So I had the full Gastric Bypass surgery and follow-up with the experts.

In less than a year, I lost 150 pounds. The weight just literally melted off of me. No more problems with blood sugar or blood pressure! I felt as active as my athletic high school self. It was an amazing feeling!!!

And guys started noticing me, too - even teenagers wolf whistled at me while I was out shopping. :) What a boost to the ego!

It's normal to gain some of the weight back after a while. I did. But, seven years out from the surgery, I'm still more than 100 pounds down from my original weight and I feel great physically.

The greatest thing about the surgery is the strange side-effect that I never feel hunger - really!! My stomach doesn't growl or spasm when I don't eat. I might get shaky, weak or get a headache . . . and REMEMBER that I need to eat. But I don't feel actual hunger anymore (amazing!).

So if I ever start creeping up the scale again, it's really easy to go back to using my "tool" (that's what docs call the new, smaller stomach pouch) and the eating program - pure protein - that I was taught at the clinic. When I do that, the pounds easily fall off again.

The pouch does tend to stretch some after time, so it's fairly easy to start eating larger portions and putting the weight back on. My original stomach was the size of a football, and the surgery made it the size of an egg. It's pretty hard to eat a LOT of food - if I overdo it, I vomit. (So it's like having built-in bulimia? hee hee).

The ONLY downside for me has been the loose skin that results in drastic weight loss. Tummy tucks are almost a given if you want to look "normal" again. But the skin hangs in other, unattractive places like under your upper arms. I camoflauge things with clothes. I wish I had $50K to get everything tightened up, head to toe! :( But I don't, and that's OK. Because I feel soooo good physically these days). I'll take the loose skin in exchange for being healthy and active again.

My husband had the surgery in about 2006/2007 by a different doctor and clinic. Totally opposite experience all the way around! He's gained almost all of the weight back. So do your homework when choosing a surgeon. Bariatric surgeons usually hold informational meetings with former patients available to answer questions. Find out about a particular doc's success rate before you commit.

Hope this helps. Good luck!

I know someone who had this done like 5 yrs. ago. She did need to get rid of some of that weight. She was married a yr. ago. She is now pregnant for the first time. I didn't ever hear of her having any problems. She is Mormon by the way and a friend of my daughter. She is a real sweet girl....one Mormon I must say who never pressured my daughter to convert. Too bad so many others did.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/06/2011 11:10AM by honestone.

All of them had no surgical complications and dropped a great deal of weight very quickly. Two of them had a tough adjustment to the new eating lifestyle, and gradually gained back a good deal of the weight. But, they didn't gain it all back, and none of them has regretted the surgery.

My husband had a gastric bypass in 1999. He did have some complications immediately after surgery while he was in the hospital, but once at home he recovered well with no further complications.

There are side effects to the surgery because that's the point OF this surgery - to change how you digest food. Some people may categorize those as "horror stories" without considering that really, this sugery intentionally changes how your body approaches digestion.

DH has to be exceptionally careful with sugary foods, including fruits and other foods that generally have high levels of glucose in them. He isn't diabetic, but he approaches much of his diet as if he were, especially toward glucose heavy foods, to lessen the side effects.

The most important thing from my observing point of view is this - the surgery is NOT a cure-all as I think a lot of people view it. You will still need to work constantly with exercise and your diet for the rest of your life. My husband emphasizes that he feels just as hungry as he did before surgery, and the mental game is the hardest of all.

He *has* regained a lot of the weight. The stomach does stretch back out if you're not super careful. He lost a total of 180 lbs with the surgery. More than half has returned, but he's still down considerably from his top weight and is struggling to maintain where he is.

One, the gate guard at the factory where I worked had the procedure done and lost a lot of weight over the next year. Two years after that, he was as big as he ever was. The point is, you have to change your lifestyle.
Two, my x had tha procedure done in 95, I believe. She went from 290 lbs to 130 lbs in six months. She then had to have plastic surgery to remove the excess skin. Her hairdresser told her that she may have some trouble with her relationships with our daughters, because the teenage daughters would look at her as competition. Sounded silly to me at the time. Turns out that she had problems with our relationship. She ended up having an affair with a young missionary that we were feeding at the time. Nothing happened, but it destroyed our marriage. I actually liked the kid, but my wife loved him. That realization is what ended the marriage for me. The point here is, when you change something fundamental about the way you look at yourself, it can change how you relate to different people. Proceed with caution.

Bariatric or gastric bypass surgery is pretty major stuff, no different than any other abdominal surgery. My son's MIL and SIL had it done a short time ago. His MIL was a huge success, going from a good-looking woman of about 250 lbs. down to a hot-looking 140 or something. I mean, she not only lost a lot of weight, but re-invented herself and now is becoming a man-magnet. HOWEVER, I recently saw her in a swimming suit. I'm not giving details here, only to say that it's one thing for an ex-obese woman to wear jeans and tops, and quite another thing for the same woman who has lost over 100 lbs to wear a swim suit. She may have lost the weight, but not the skin.

Her daughter, also a quite obese, took heart from her mother's experience and had the same surgery with much more modest results. She only lost some 50 lbs. or so and seems to have stalled.

Then the grandmother took hope from the experience of the other two and decided to have the surgery. She was in her mid-60s or so and had been obese for a number of years. But while under the anesthetic she went into shock and the doctors were unable to save her. My son and his wife just returned from her funeral this last week. You can imagine the family's shock when someone goes in for what is now viewed as routine--almost minor--surgery and then dies on the table. So you can't lose sight of the fact that they are giving you general anesthesia and opening up your abdomen. It is no different than getting any other kind of abdominal surgery and is not to be taken lightly.

cludgie Wrote:
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> It is no different than getting any other kind of abdominal surgery and is not to be taken lightly.

Cludgie, I think this is a really good point. My dad once went into shock on the operating table as well. He reacted to the anesthesia. Fortunately, the surgeons were able to save him.

Major surgery should never be taken lightly. An informed decision should include risks along with potential benefits.

I also knew someone who died during this surgery,

A relative came very close to dying and took over a year to recover. She also gained back some of the weight although she is much thinner than she was before. I had a co worker who had it done with no problems. I would talk with your doctor about your health risks. They vary depending on your condition.

I had a gastric bypass in early 2004 and have had no issues. My weight has gone up from my lowest point, but only by about ten pounds. It's just where my body likes to be, and I've maintained it for the last five years. I exercise several times a week though, so I'm not sure if that number would be higher if I wasn't. Yes, you'll likely have some loose skin but I'd rather have some loose spots than the extra 120 pounds I was carrying around.

You'll need to make sure you stay up on vitamin supplements, especially iron and B vitamins. I've never had any issues with food making me throw up, except if I don't chew something enough, then it'll come back up, but it's not like illness vomiting (once the piece is up you're good to go -- sorry if TMI :) I am one of the people who experience something called "dumping," which is where if you eat something high in sugar (and sometimes fat), it hits your intestine too quickly and it can make you feel sick. It's not harmful but it's not pleasant, and it's different for everyone (I get airheaded and overheated, but it lasts for all of 15 minutes). This alone helps keep me away from sweets.

Like Skinny Minnie, I really don't crave food anymore, much less sweets. If anything, I'll occasionally crave something salty, so popcorn or baked chips work well, and even then I only need a little bit before the craving's gone.

As kestrafinn said, it's a lifestyle change. It's not a magic bullet, it's a tool. I tried nearly every diet under the sun before finally looking into surgery, and it gave me the jump I needed to get my body healthy.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/06/2011 12:47PM by themosthappy.

In all cases where I have seen it successful it has worked only when the recipients carefully watch what they eat and limit their intake of food; those who overeat are not successful with this procedure. (Ironically the same can be said, of course, of those who do NOT have the procedure.)

It is merely an AID; not a magic bullet. I think it's efficacy is primarily a psycholigical one. (Which may be a reason for careful pause prior to its use to begin with.)

out

I have the Lap Band, I got it in 2004. I know many other Bandsters. My daughter got the Band in 2005.

You WILL lose weight. But you must understand, with your head and your heart, that ANY bariatric surgery is merely a tool. You WORK with it. It doesn't do the job all by itself. And long term success is ENTIRELY up to you.

Weight loss is very, very difficult. But bariatric surgery is finally something that can truly help.

Skin that has been stretched out will never return to a snug fit. Barfing is part of learning how to eat small portions.

And I PERSONALLY will beat the ever lovin' crap out of any jerk who says that bariatric surgery is the "easy" way out. Weight loss is difficult, and the surgery is merely something which helps more than anything else at this time.

I believe in it. I recommend it. And I love it.

~VOW

Had Gastric bypass in 2001, I originally lost 240 lbs (I was a big boy!).. Maintained 210 of the loss.. It's great way to lose a lot of weight quickly....but keeping it off has been hell... I can pretty much eat what everyone else can eat now (but I can't drink liquid at the same time)...so I have to moderate my portions very carefully.. I cannot tolerate sweets or sugar free foods (really bad gastric issues better left unsaid)...and I'm a cheap date--1 drink and I'm under the table....but aside from that, the surgery saved my life. My sleep apnea and asthma disappeared, my cholesterol is in the low of 100's and my blood pressure is almost too low...

If you're eligible, GO FOR IT!

I'm not overweight but I think that alone would be a good incentive to get the surgery! It's every 12 year old boy's dream, to be able drop atom bombs on command! LOL

I am an internist and several of my patients have had gastric bypass. One has had lap band/sleeve surgery. All of them are male, one is LDS but not TBM (but does not drink/smoke, and food I think became an addiction).

#1. 6'3" man about 40 years old. 750 lbs and mobile (held three jobs). Other than back pain, had no obesity-related health issues: cholesterol fine, BP fine, no diabetes, no sleep apnea. Had bypass, dropped into the mid-low 400s, but then began to gain it back (and stopped coming to the office because he didn't want me to note the weight gain). I think he was drinking alcohol (like a quart a day) and this plus immoderate eating resulted in a gain-back of c. 200 lbs. He suffered a fall, leg fracture, and then lost the ability to walk once he was bed confined for a week. This often happens with super-heavyweight patients: they lose the ability to walk after something sidelines them, then they become bed bound and never walk again. He was placed in a rehab center for the immobile (out of town) and I have lost track of him, don't know if he is alive or dead. He became addicted to pain medications once he was bedridden.

I should note that all of the men in this patient's immediate family (even cousins as well as brothers) were 6'3" or taller, and none were under 300 pounds, and none had any weight-related health issues. It was "normal" in his family to be >6'3" and >350 lbs, but not 750 lbs.

#2: former Pac Ten football lineman, 6'4" and peaked at 450 lbs. Had BP issues and back/joint pains. Cholesterol and blood sugar normal. Had horrible sleep apnea. This guy played at c. 300 and was very big boned and muscular (picked up the back of a car in his 40s to help someone change a tire) and 280-300 post-surgery would have been a reasonable goal. He dropped 150 lbs and now is stable at 300, which is fine for him (he's big no matter what). Apnea gone. BP gone. Back pain gone. About the only thing he's still treated for is gout (genetic, but he's much better off being 150 lbs smaller).

#3: (LDS) man in his 60s, 6'4" and close to 400. Diabetes and high blood pressure. Did lap band. Now down to 320. Diabetes and BP still there but much better and easier to control. Is slowly working his way down to <300 (and again, 250-275 would be ideal for this large frame person).

#4: Former high school linebacker, got up to 350 lbs on a 5'11" frame. Dropped to 235 and stable after bypass. BP and apnea gone. Has had severe problems with not absorbing iron and B12, now takes both for life but blood count now normal again because he's absorbing them.

Some of the things to be aware of with a bypass:

1. You can't take NSAIDs (ibuprofen, naproxen etc) if you later develop arthritis

2. You will probably have absorbtion issues with B12 and iron. These can be ameliorated by taking daily sublingual B12 lozenges (or shots) and daily iron supplements.

3. Some people have trouble making the psychological adjustments. For people who were solitary/closet eaters, they have to do something else with their time when no one is looking. The patient who had the hardest adjustment was #2. He was wealthy, huge restaurant bills were no big deal, and he was single, so that a great deal of his social life consisted of sumptuous restaurant meals with friends, where he always picked up the tab. Rather than being a closet eater, he almost reveled in finishing off oversized multicourse restaurant meals in public with friends. Part of it was so he could be generous (taking friend out to restaurants they normally could not afford) and I think a part of it was his pride in being "the biggest man in the room": I think he prided himself on being able to polish off a huge meal while others' jaws dropped, he prided himself on being the one asked to help with heavy lifting tasks (like picking up the back of a car when a jack could not be located), and even when strangers went up to him to ask how tall/heavy he was, he didn't mind being the object of attention. He was always well tailored and looked sharp in brand-name clothes (albeit in big/tall sizes), like an overgrown lumberjack in a business suit. To go from that to being able to eat only half a container of yogurt at once was a big change for him, and the new lifestyle deprived him of a major social life outlet: going out to dinner with friends. He knew it was healthier this way, but I think he missed the "admiration" of people at the table who marveled at his appetite in the past.

Technical notes: at the office I have an electronic scale with an 18" square footplate and a 500 lb capacity. I do not practice bariatrics, but my old scale had a 350 limit and I don't like telling a patient larger than that "sorry, you're off the scale". I would rather tell them "398" than "sorry, you're too big for the scale". The old scale was a double beam balance type scale with a smaller footplate. Some of the larger patients (the ones who are 6'3" or taller) have pretty large feet---15 EEE not uncommon, and people with size 15 and greater feet had trouble placing all of their feet on the footplate---usually their toes or heels would overhang the plate, which is dangerous and gives false readings. With respect to the 750 lb man, the only way I could measure him was to send him to a nearby garbage dump, where they had a truck scale. He would weigh himself in his truck, then get out of the truck and weigh the truck only. The difference was his weight, but in 0.01 of a ton (20 pounds), so the weight estimate was based on 0.37 tons or 740 pounds, roughly, give or take 10 pounds. When he gained the weight back after the bypass, I could estimate about 200 lbs gained because I remember what he looked like at c. 650 before he gained the final 100 pounds up to 750.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/07/2011 12:09PM by PtLoma.

Very informative. I don't have a stake at all in this post PtLoma but thank you for sharing your expertise and professional experience. Interesting stories. Now, is it true what they say about the gas? :) LOL!

You might want to investigate this procedure over gastric bypass.

The Lap Band is ADJUSTABLE. Gastric bypass is "one size fits all."

Lap Band surgery is usually laparascopic, much less invasive than gastric bypass. NO cutting and rearranging of innards is done. Recuperation is a LOT easier.

Lap Band is 100% reversible. Some doctors say you should have the Band removed after you attain your weight goals. Others say as long as there are no complications, just leave it alone. I'd really hurt someone who tried to remove my Band.

There is no need for massive vitamin intake, no concern over B12 deficiency.

The Lap Band easily accommodates pregnancy. Most women with the Band get a complete unfill while pregnant, and then get a fill and start losing weight after the baby is born. Because there is no problem with vitamin and mineral absorption, as long as you take your prenatal vitamins everything should be fine.

There are far fewer complications recuperating from surgery with the Band than there are with bypass.

Am I biased! You bet yer ass I am!

I have the Band. My daughter has the Band. And my daughter presented me with a gorgeous granddaughter (those are called "Band Babies") who is known as the Center of the Universe, or COTU.

~VOW

I had a gastric bypass 25 years ago. It was when they cut you from stem to stern - I have the scar to prove it. I lost about 90 lbs and 25 years later I have maintained a good 60 lb loss. I fluctuate up and down about 20 pounds (a bit up right now) but I would do it again in a heartbeat. My sister has had it, my aunt has had it and numerous friends have had it. It is a good thing IMO. I suspect if I stopped drinking alcohol, I would lose that 20lbs I want to without much problem. - hhhhhmmmmm perhaps I shall give that a go.

As far as taking nsaids - I take naproxin every day for my hip. I just have to take it with food.

ETA: I got pregnant 4 months after my surgery (it was unplanned and I was using birth control). He was my smallest baby - 6 lbs but he is now 24 and 6'3". I was not supposed to get pregnant for at least a year, but he had other plans.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/07/2011 02:16PM by bigred.

There are many people who has done Bariatric Surgery. I know three of them. Two are my relatives and other is my friend. After Bariatric Surgery all have to take good care of your body. Change eating habits and all. Among three two have follow instruction properly and they do not have any problems regarding this surgery but one have some complication on this surgery. So I prefer more care after surgery will help to stay away from problems and complications.

For more information visit: http://www.ebariatricsurgery.com/