Help, Just had the DS

I have a 4 oz sleeve (not sure what that is in bougie size) with a 175 cm common channel...did just fine at getting to goal.

I am 5'4", weigh 137 this week (up cause of steroids). Started at 208. And am just over 2 years out now. I lost to normal BMI by the 8th month.

On the other side, my labs are great (except for D & K) and all I take now is several multi's (from Costco), a proferrin, K & D.

I had my labs done in Dec and checked with two lab gurus (vitalady & majormom).

Liz

Hi Kim,

I wouldn't stress out too much. I had the DS done by Aceves in August 2012. I remember freaking out when I looked at my surgical report and saw that I had a 150cm common channel when lots of people around here have as little as 75cm. I emailed Dr. Aceves and he explained that he bases the length of the common channel on the original length of your intestines (sort of like the Hess method). He also doesn't make it any shorter than he needs to because research has shown that longer CCs avoid some of the long-term issues related to malnutrition found among people with shorter CCs. I wish I had his email that explained it all. It made a lot of sense. And by the way, Ungson and Aceves did my DS together so I'm not sure if you would have gotten any different results from Ungson. There are some people on this board who think that not going to Ungson in Mexico is terrible because Aceves is not on the vetted list, but DSfacts is a website, not gospel. Aceves is a great surgeon, he even proctors American surgeons. He know's his stuff. Maybe it will take you a bit longer to get to goal (or maybe not) but 10 years down the road you are more likely to be healthy. 

I am just shy of 6 months out and down 110 pounds. 96 of them are post-op. Although there are others that are losing faster, I am quite happy with how things are going (although I have been on a bit of a stall for 1 1/2 weeks, my first stall, ARGH). Up until then I was losing between 2 and 4 pounds a week. Usually about 3.5 pounds. I have felt great. Good energy, my 3 month labs were great and I'm confident my 6 month labs will be great too. I am not a carb Nazi. I make sure I get all my protein in and avoid anything with flour because it makes me really gassy, but other than that I just try to eat healthy. I think my only problem is that I find it hard to get a lot of fat in. I think I am going to try to up my fat and see how that goes.

Don't get discouraged. You've just been through a lot and the possibility that it might not work is terrifying. I still have those days when the scale doesn't move and I think that it it for me, that I have stopped losing. But then I come to the board and read all about stalls and reassure myself that it will turn out. This board is great for getting tips and advice, but it can be discouraging when we start comparing ourselves to one another. We are all so different...different weights, different weight-loss histories, different body types, you name it.

Hang tough.

Thank you all for your replies. One of my favorite quotes is "comparison is the thief of contentment". If I compare what I have to everyone else, discontentment is sure to come.

I'm just going to have to trust Dr. Aceves and his decisions based on my body. I will keep you all updated on how I am doing.

So far, I haven't been in too much pain and am able to walk around some. Now I am just ready for the weight loss. :-) I forgot to mention that my diabetes has already improved. :-) I am very grateful for that.

Thanks again everyone....

Kim :-)