Considering DS

Hi Lisa and definitely welcome to our board.  In regards to everything you are going through, do not give up.  I agree with BT on reading Anne S.' profile and of course she has responded to you as well.  Anne definitely has done a lot of research on the DS and has made it readily available to people via her profile.  I want to through another surgeon out there for you to consider if you are traveling.  I highly recommend Dr. Gary Anthone here in Omaha.  He is one of the leading surgeons for this specific surgery and there are many patients who live else where that travel to Omaha to specifically have him as their doctor.  If you go into my friends list, you will find Denise In AR, who had her surgery back in March 2007.  Her husband as well had his DS in March of 2007 and they were within 24 hours of each other.  I would invite you to make contact with Denise as I am sure she would be happy to infom you about traveling up from AR.  Beyond that, I am just not able to say enough in regards to how great I feel Dr. Anthone is.  When the wife and I started researching WLS and attended Dr. Anthone's new patient orientation, we both knew instantly that he was the right one for both of us.  Here is to you as you start your journey, best of luck and hope that you are able to join us here on the Loser's Bench soon.  If you have any specific questions, please feel free to contact me and ask.  I will be happy to share more with you at any time.

Hi Lisa! You've come to the right place - there are a bunch of very knowledgeable peeps here!

Kudos on doing good research. Whatever wls you ultimately pick will be the right one for you...as long as you have all the data, feedback and information possible at your disposal!

As far as malabsorption, some of us struggle tweaking this or that, many have few or no issues. But ALL DSers MUST be cognizant of our switch FOR LIFE. We MUST take supplements, and we MUST continue to get labwork done. It seemed easy preop...I told myself "Of course! I'll do anything, ANYthing!"

The reality is, now I'm almost at a "normal" weight, but my nutritional needs will never be "normal." Yes, this bums me out on occasion...
but then I shake it off, smack myself, and get over it because I LOVE my DS! The fact that I flirt with normality proves just how powerful a tool it is!

http://www.johnhustedmd.com He's in SF, but will be making trips back to TN, dates are on his calendar, both for seminars and support groups.  I don't know if he's doing any surgery in TN though.   [email protected] for email questions. Chris

Dr. Husted has had a couple of shows on Discovery Health, one of which was a young man who was 700 +/- lbs.

 

Hi Lisa and welcome! My starting BMI was over 63, just shy of 400 pounds. A year later I'm down 180 pounds and still losing an average of a pound a week. (I only weigh every few months at doctor visits, so I don't get bothered with the short term variations in loss.) Far more impressive to me, though, are the gains in health I've made. I go into some detail about these in my profile, if you'd care to take a look.  There are not that many DS surgeons in the world, probably still fewer than 100. So you will indeed probably have to travel to get your procedure done. I'd like to invite you to consider my surgeon, Dr. William Peters, in Scranton, PA. He works with many out of town patients. You can take a look at his website, www.cutweight.org (which is hopelessly out of date, as are his surgery statistics as listed here on OH), or give him a call at 570-969-2527.  His is a one man practice, managed by his wife Robbie. When you call, you're just as likely to get him as you are her. He will give you as much time as you need by phone, and will return your calls as soon as possible, almost always in under 24 hours.  He also deals with just about every insurance that will pay for the DS, *except* Medicare. His self-pay prices are just about the best in the country. When you call, tell him I sent you. He'll get a kick out of that :-).

Hi Lisa!  I'm so glad you made your way over here.  Not many docs require you to lose weight pre-surgery.  The only exception would be if you wanted it done laproscopically.  They like you to shrink the liver so they can maneuver the tools around it.  If your surgery is open, you're home free.  I only had to stop eating at midnight prior to surgery. I think the sleeve is a great restrictive procedure, but many of us NEED that malabsorption to counteract our over-efficient bodies.  One reason those other docs refused you would be if you were to be successful with the surgery (50-70% ewl), you'd still be MO.  The DS will give you the best chances to get down to a lower and more acceptable weight.  Duodenalswitch.com has the most current list of surgeons to choose from, including those in other countries.  Keep browsing, asking questions, and WELCOME!!!

Thank you to everyone. I was going to reply individually, but theres alot lol Im going to check out the profiles..thanks for all the leads.. I have alot of researching to do...alot of thinking to do.....so many questions that i cant even think of at the moment.. so i will be lurking and reading...and trying to decide on what to do..

Hey Lisa,  I just wanted to offer a warm welcome here to the DS Board. Feel free to check out my profile. The others have given you some very good advice. I know you have more than likely read all the information on Annes Profile already. That woman is good at gathering facts! Anyway. I started with I high BMI 55.8. No not as high as you but still high. The reason I chose the DS was because I only wanted to have 1 procedure. I did not want to be on a Diet the rest of my life. I mean good grief, my whole life has been a series of one diet after another and they all failed. And I never wanted to worry about failure again. The more I read about the RNY the more depressed I got. When I found out about the DS I was Elated.  I had to struggle to get it but it was the very best thing I have ever done for myself.  Yeah, that's right, selfish little me went and did something for herself. And I praise God on a daily basis that I did. My whole life has changed for the better.  It does not hurt to move anymore. I can breath without laboring. I can step up onto a curb or off of one without being afraid of twisting my ankle and I can wipe my a$$ without doing some freaky contortionist stile manuevor. I still can't spell with a flip but hey, The DS dosen't fix everything!!! Lisa if you have any questions or concerns we are all here for you.  There is a lot of love and support for one another here. If you want to ask things of individuals PM them. I wish you nothing but the very best on your journey.  OH and I flew to Brazil to have my DS. Having it away from home is not as bad as you would think.