EMMC surgeons and procedures

 Hello-

After years of researching bariatric surgery and finally getting up the nerve, I have asked my doc for a referral to EMMC for weight loss surgery.

I do not yet know which surgery I will have.   If I choose the lap band, I will have to lose 30 lbs to qualify.   I do not yet know if my insurance company will approve the vertical sleeve.

I have been lurking here for some time and I thank you all so much for sharing your stories--struggles and successes.

I have a few questons before I attend the informational in two weeks that I am hoping you can help me with.   Thank you in advance!

1.   EMMC surgeons:   Who did you have?   Were you pleased with her/him?   Any concerns?

2.  If you could have had any of the procedures, which did you choose and why?     Are you glad you did?

3.  I realize the doc will need to answer this but just wondering if any of you know of this occuring:   I have an abdominal incisional hernia (radical hysterectomy for endometrial cancer 2 years ago), can the surgeon repair this during the same surgery?   

4.   Has anyone had robotic surgery?

5.  From referral/first informational to date of surgery--how long did it take for you?

Thank you all so much for your help    I admire you all!

1. EMMC surgeons: Who did you have? Were you pleased with her/him? Any concerns?

I had Dr. Huang - he did an excellent job, great with the followup, no concerns at all.  Most people have Dr. Toder or Dr. Dayhim though.

2. If you could have had any of the procedures, which did you choose and why? Are you glad you did?

Dr. Huang and I both agreed Gastric Bypass would be the best procedure due to my weight of 385lbs pre-op.  So that is what I ended up having on March 21 2010.  Very happy with the results.

3. I realize the doc will need to answer this but just wondering if any of you know of this occuring: I have an abdominal incisional hernia (radical hysterectomy for endometrial cancer 2 years ago), can the surgeon repair this during the same surgery?

I would think it could be very possible for them to look at that as well but it will depend upon the doctor. 

4. Has anyone had robotic surgery?

Dr. Huang used the robot to do mine :)

5. From referral/first informational to date of surgery--how long did it take for you?

Roughly 6 months, well worth the wait, and the time seemed to fly by.  I would encourage attending as many meetings as possible, and to not let other people discourage you from getting it.  From my own personal experience I went from 385 to 180, and am approching my two year mark and have kept it all off.  I actually just had a panniculectomy a few days ago with Dr. Dayhim from the same EMMC dept (Northeast Surgery of Maine) she does weight loss surgeries for the Surgical Weight Loss Program too, and so now I am recovering from that.  They were persistant with my insurance and got it approved, so I didn't have to pay.  Could I have lived with the amount of skin I had? sure I could have...but why not if they were able to get it covered, and they did :)

On a side note I hope to be recovered enough to attend the weight loss meeting on April 6th, if you attend it as well say howdy :)  happy to answer any questions I can.

Take care,

Nathan

 Nathan,

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply so throughly to all of my questions.  I have been referred to Dr. Dayhim.    I am going to the informational on the 6th.   Is this the meeting that you are referring to?

I will admit that I am more nervous than excited at this point but I do have a huge sense of relief that I have finally made this decision.

I will introduce myself if it is the same meeting.    I am Kate and look forward to meeting you.

Yup there's the Educational Meeting first for all those like youself that are interested in having the surgery from 2pm-4pm, and then directly after that one there is the a second meeting from 4:30pm-6:30pm where post-ops meet and talk about how they are doing, recieve support, etc..and pre-ops are encouraged to sit in and listen to the experiences, etc and ask any questions they may have at the end.  A lot of times there will be a visit from one of the surgeons too in which you can ask questions and stuff.  So I attend the one from 4:30pm to 6:30pm when I can,  haven't been in a while so I'm excited :)

Dr. Dayhim is great, you will be in great hands with her.  I truely believe EMMC has the best surgeons for this, and they truely care and advocate for their patients.


Look forward to meeting you, and seeing some familure post-op faces I haven't been able to see in a while :)

EMMC SWLP Informational Meeting

Location:Call 973-6383 to register

Start:2:00 PM

End:4:00 PM

EMMC: Surgical Weight Loss Support Group

Location:Mason Auditorium

Start:4:30 PM

End:6:30 PM

Good Morning!

Congratulations on your exciting decision!  I can tell you, I have no regrets!

You asked:

1.   EMMC surgeons:   Who did you have?   Were you pleased with her/him?   Any concerns?

I had Dr. Michelle Toder.  No disrespect to Dr. Dayhim, but Michelle has been doing this for some time now, is known to be detail-oriented, and she guided me through another complex medical issue which was preventing the gastric bypass procedure (ie, she offered me advice and guidance when I was diagnosed (incorrectly) with liver cancer just months before I should have been having the gastric bypass.  I knew if SHE wasn't comfortable going ahead, then I wasn't comfortable.  And I wanted us to be on the same page.  I was, and am, excited to know that I was in excellent care.  There's no doubt in my mind, she took care of me.  I wasn't just another patient.  I mean, I am/was, but, she never let me feel unimportant to her. And her skills speak for themselves.

2.  If you could have had any of the procedures, which did you choose and why?     Are you glad you did?

I could have had any of the procedures.  I chose the full robotic, laproscopic bypass.  Because I want this to be a permanent lifestyle change, because I want the greatest chance of success.  Because I want to do this knowing that when I was on the other side of surgery, I did -everything- I could to be successful...I'm absolutely glad.

3.  I realize the doc will need to answer this but just wondering if any of you know of this occuring:   I have an abdominal incisional hernia (radical hysterectomy for endometrial cancer 2 years ago), can the surgeon repair this during the same surgery?   

I don't know?  Maybe Dr. Dayhim?

4.   Has anyone had robotic surgery?

I did.  :-)  Seriously, I can't even see any marks from my surgery, with the minor exception of what look like two very small "flea-bites" where the incision was made.  The other four entry points I can't see AT ALL.

5.  From referral/first informational to date of surgery--how long did it take for you? 

It took longer than it normally would have for me, because a few months in, when I went for my intial bloodwork, it started a cancer-scare when my LFT (Liver Function Tests) came back abnormal.  That lead to an ultrasound (negative), which lead to a CT scan (positive), to another CT scan (positive), to a consult and being told I had liver cancer (scary, you know...), to having a colonoscopy (looking for the primary source), and on and on and on...this went on for MONTHS, the whole time being told I probably had liver cancer.  I eventually got additional opinions from Dr. David Lewis, head of the Lahey Clinic Liver Transplant Program in Boston.  More CT scans, etc, and he was confident I did not have liver cancer.  We had to wait a few more months for follow-ups to more-or-less confirm that what I had was a hemangioma, a collection of blood vessels I'd probably had since birth, and that that wasn't causing a problem.  Dr. Toder personally sent me to Mass General for follow-ups there too, with another expert, who confirmed what Dr. Lewis had said.  This all took about 7-8 months to sort-out before Dr. Toder agreed to go ahead, feeling comfortable that I was okay.  Then when she did the surgery, she did also go looking for that mass, and found nothing to be concerned about.

So it took me some time.  But I hit the one-year post-surgery mark on March 3rd.  Before surgery, I lost 75lbs (I went from 450-375 on the day of surgery), and from March 3rd to my one-year follow-up with Dr. Toder, I lost 73% of my excess body weight (50%+ is considered a success.)  

So I'm VERY pleased.  I used to wear a Size 66 jean, now I wear a Size 38 or 40 (depending on how it is cut.)  I used to have a 5X (XXXXXL) leather jacket that was to small for me anymore.  I sold it on eBay a few weeks ago, and bought an Large.  

I won't lie.  There's still a lot of work.  It's very easy to slide back into those bad eating habits.  The emotional eating.  So far, I've done pretty well with it.  I think it helps me because my wife had the same surgery I did (also with Dr. Toder), six months earlier, and I've had a closer look at what to expect when than others who are the only one in their home having the surgery (my wife is MY hero...)   

Today, I am at my all-time low of 236, down from 450 when I started.  I'd like to lose about 15-20 pounds more, and will keep working for that.  

I believe full success is possible with this tool.  Like any tool, you have to use it right.  Keep eating properly, keep exericising, do NOT start drinking soda again.  Do NOT drink when you're not supposed to.  Stay away from alcohol (empty sugar calories).  I know Nathan, he had his surgery about a year ahead of me.  We chatted last week, in fact.  I think he'd say the same things.  It's SO worth it, if you're ready for it. 

Good luck!  Hope to hear how you are doing!!!

-David Reed
Belfast, Maine

 Thank you so much for sharing your story and congratulatons on your success.   I am leaning toward the vsg because I am concerned long term about the malnutrition that apparently is often realized with the full gastric bypass but I am keeping an open mind.    I am seeing Dr Dayhim for a pre-program consult on the 16th.    I will learn more about the pros and cons and what she recommends for me in my situation then.    I will be at the informational meeting on Friday and may be able to stay for part of the support group after.   Is it OK to attend just an hour of the support group?

Again, thank you so much for the information.   I am very glad that you had such a good experience despite the complicating (and scary!) complication of the liver cancer.

Kate

Hello Kate,

I can tell you that my experience with malnutrition is that I haven't had any.  I do take vitamins daily.  I take a Flintstones chewable multivitamin twice a day (morning and night), and I take a calcium +D twice a day.  Both are over-the-counter.  I myself do take an additional Vitamin D prescription strength once per week (Saturday, for me.), though I have to say, I forgot to take it for a couple months, and nothing bad happened.  I really think I probably get all the nutrtion I need from my food, but, I take them anyway because they highly recommend it.

Yes, it's absolutely okay to attend the meeting for an hour.  

I didn't get into this earlier, I dont' think, but my sister had the VSG procedure (done in NH, not at EMMC, but she lives in NH), about eighteen months ago, and my wife's cousin also had it done about that same time.  Both have been very successful.  I believe that requires "regular" visits to the doctor to adjust the fills, for as long as the sleeve is in place, as well as a subcutaneous port to be installed.  That was one other reason why I went with the full bypass.  But, of the two people I know who have had it (my sister and my wife's cousin) both have been successful.  My wife's cousin had his done at EMMC, btw.

I wish you the best of luck, and will be eager to hear how it goes!

-David

Hi Kate!

It was nice to meet you tonight at the SWL support group meeting!

Hope to see you again, and that your upcoming appointments go well!!!

 It was nice meeting both you and Nathan too.    A bit of an insurance glitch (hopefully just a glitch) so things are on hold hopefully just for  a week or so......

Sorry I had to rush off....I was only going to stay for an hour because I was supposed to meet some folks but when I got the information at the orientation meeting, it said we had to stay for the full meeting so I had to book it out of there but wanted to say hi to you and Nathan first.

Thank you for your support!

Kate

I see this is a bit old, but just wanted to drop in and say hi. I'm having the Sleeve surgery performed by Dr.Toder on May 10. The entire process for me has only taken 4 months (Information meeting January 6 - Surgery May 10). Dr. Toder would not let me have the Lap Band (nor was it even one of my choices) but said I could have either the RnY or Sleeve.