new girl

not to be gross, but dumping syndrome is something that i deal with now and i haven't had surgery. denise, best wishes on your surgery. it's encouraging to hear how well y'all surgeries have gone after readind so many of the scary stories. why did y'all choose RNY over lapband?

I personally would go RNY. I have my own reasons. I know some people have the band and do great, but I also know others that cheat with it. But there are some RNY patients that cheat too. Both have their pros and cons. It is up to you and your doctor and you must research each and she what is best for you. Every person and every surgery is different. When I had mine in 2001 my Dr refused to do any lap bands and sent all patients who wanted them to Mass General (boston mass). My dr went and studied with Alan Whittgrove who was Carnie Wilsons dr. I do believe that my dr now does the lap band, but prefers the RNY. Just research both and discuss all options and pros and cons with your dr. Remember weight loss surgery is a tool not a cure for obesity. it can be abused and you can end up where you are now if you do not follow the life changing rules. Good Luck, Tammy

tammy ok, you hit on one of my conclusions. so much information is coming out about the truth. it's a tool, not a cure for obesity. you still have to diet and not eat the things you shouldn't eat. people still go thru a hard time cutting out the foods they are addicted to. i'm so addicted to sugar. my husband and i battled over that a long time. he thinks that's crap. well alcohol is nothing but sugar. alcoholism runs in my family. i eat sugar to calm myself. or if i'm tired. i can and will sit down and eat a tub of icing and use to not bat an eye. not it gives me severe headaches. i have migraine headaches anyway, but now large amounts of sugar trigger them. whine, whine, whine. but i'm going to have to give it up. so how does the surgery help that. i knew 2 sisters that had stomach surgery about 15 years ago, one got down to about a size 4, the other stopped at about a 16-18. the both lost well over 100 lbs, but the larger sister didn't give up her treats. i think i'd fail at this too. my problem is not eating per say, it's why i eat and what i eat. i'm thinking about visitng and OA meeting. i've never been, but i wonder if it'd help. my mother went several years ago, but she didn't keep going becuz they were more focused on eating disorders such as anerixa and bulemia. which i guess i can see that being overeating. i'm just scared to go there too. i'm obvisiously a big chicken.

I would go RNY, i dont even like the smell of sweet things and sometime pictures of cakes and so on make me sick. The band is not permanent or as drastic. If you feel you may have issues with cheating or being tempted ask your doc. It was my understanding that cheating is easy with the band as you dont get as sick. Dont get me wrong, it has its advantages. The band is like a belt...it can slip and there for you may consume more. if i eat too much my stomache hurts very bad and i feel very ill. thats my signal to stop. yes you can abuse RNY and stretch the pouch as well. i know a lady in memphis that has almost died 2 times because of obstructions with her band. and she is also abusing having it by asking the dr to loosen it so she can indulge when she goes on a cruise this summer. she makes me sick. we are all trying to use these methods as tools and become healthy and she basically does not give a ****! please remember both have complications and what is right for you may not be right for me. I just know what I have experienced and would suggest it to anyone and everyone. There are also brilliant success stories with the band as well. have I given up all of my treats....honeslty no. one bite is all i take on birthdays of cake. i still crave chocolate once a month. instead of eating 4 reeses pnut butter cups a day I eat maybe one a month. everything changes. your sense of smell and tastes. at least mine did. you just need to sit with your doc and go over everything and all your options.

thanks tammy for all your comments. i really appreciate them. i bite of birthday cake is a huge difference from the whole cake. i could easily eat 4 reeses in a day. i didn't think about tast and smell changing. i will definitely lay it all on the line for the doctor. no need to lie. i'm still very in the milddle of the road about all of this. i'm very impressed with all of you ladies who had the courage to do this and have succeeded. that is awesome.

Hi Trish, welcome.. l am new to the board too..and just had surgery last friday..l even had members call me at home when l got there.. this is a great group, small but great..and remember...this is an ADDICTION like anything else..dont beat yourself up over it...where do live in AR...geri

hi geri how are you feeling? i had read some of your post. i hope you have a SUPER WONDERFUL recovery. i live in hot springs. everyone has been really nice with lots of info. best wishes to you!!!

Trish, Hey, welcome to the small but wonderful group. I am awaiting a surgery date. Ill be having RNY w/Dr. Baker. I cant wait, but this is a great group of folks who will be there for you all the way. We all have our addictions, mine is not to sweets, but to red meat, and salty stuff. Id rather have a handful of salty nuts than sweets, but the bad part is I have high blood pressure and extreme edema, so my addiction to salt is no better than being addicted to sugar. But like everyone else says, research researc research and know that we are here for you, good days or bad. We are ALL in this TOGETHER!!! Rhonda

Hey Trish, I can't really add too much information, but I will suggest that you research your options. I had the rny because I needed to lose weight as rapidly as possible. I am super morbidly obese and was getting where I could no longer walk, so all of my research supported the bypass. I had the surgery and never took one thing for pain. IN fact, the doctor gave me a script for a bottle of vicodan and I never even opened it. I had the surgery on a Wed. went back to work/school the following Wed. My biggest complaint was being tired that first week, but as soon as I started taking the vitamins and drinking the protein, I was pumped up. The good news is that both surgeries can be done via laproscopic surgery and the prognosis is equally good. I am looking forward to getting to know you and hopefully the next time we all get together you can join us.

Welcome Trish! I had RNY surgery on February 20, 2006 and I've lost 133 lbs. so far. I still have some to go to get to my goal! You have do research and come to the conclusion for which ever surgery is right for you. Best of luck in the process! Margie