Hi! I'm new!

Hi :) I am looking at having WLS in the next month or so (I had to do 6 month supervised diet) and when I saw my surgeon for the first time when he asked what surgery I was looking at I said RNY but he mentioned the DS to me and told me to look it up. The more I read about the DS the more I like it BUT when I read what people are able to eat with the DS it makes me very nervous. I am a HUGE eater...big portions and bad decisions (lots of carbs) and the reason I was looking at RNY was because I was hoping I would dump on the wrong foods. So explain to me how the eating works with DS...can I have carbs? fruits? and still lose weight? I want to have only one surgery so I want to make the best decision. Can you tell me why you chose DS over RNY?

Jennifer

Jennifer, your doc is smart!

I chose the DS cause it gave me the best chance of losing all my weight.

I needed to be able to take NSAIDS and I couldn't with the RNY.

And I had insulin pump type 2 diabetes and had the best chance of resolving that as well.

Why I didn't want the RNY...dumping is a form of hypoglycemia. Many who get the RNY develop reactive hypoglycemia 6 months to 2 years out. And there is now research that says that over 40% of those who were diabetic pre-op redevelop diabetes 3-8 years out.

The sleeve portion will keep you from eating big portions.

Lots of carbs have a consequence as well, usually in the form of very bad gas and bloat. And can also be responsible for weight gain.

After you get to goal and are in maintaince, carbs and fruits are very possible but ONLY after you eat all your protein for that meal...you may actually find after you get to that point that they don't call your name as much.

Chose a surgery you can live with and remember, only 30% of RNY'er's dump...do you want to take the chance that you are in the 70% who do not?

Liz

Kudos to your surgeon for suggesting the DS, and also for recommending that you research. Every patient should make an informed decision.

The DS has the best statistics of any bariatric surgery for percentage excess weight loss, for maintainence of that weight loss, and for resolution of almost all comorbidities. Now, if the dumping that some (not all!) patients with RNY experience was such a great thing, you would think RNY would have the best statistics, but it doesn't. In reality, dumping has never been shown to be a weight loss tool. Rather, it is an unpleasant and sometimes dangerous side effect that some but, again, not all, RNY patients experience. No one can predict in advance who will dump and who won't, or even what foods will cause dumping in any one individual and what won't. In my own life, I have met people with RNY who dump yet who still experience either markedly inadequate weight loss or significant weight regain. If you are counting on dumping you are going to be very disappointed.

If the best weight loss statistics aren't enough of a motivator for you, consider also that you would be able to take NSAIDs with DS but not RNY, and that restriction with RNY is for life. You would also be able to drink liquids with meals, and not have to worry about food getting stuck. You would have a much more normal diet with DS as well. Yes, we do have to be careful about carbs, but that is true with any wls. We can, and do, eat all forms of protein, not just lean protein. Since we absorb only about 20% of the fat we consume, we can eat both protein and fat freely. That opens up a lot of food and cooking method options.

The DS does require that you eat lots of protein, and also requires more vitamin and mineral supplementation than RNY, though both operations have important supplement requirements.

I hope you will continue your research with an open mind. You can get lots of good info on the DS at dsfacts.com.

Larra

No matter which form of WLS you choose, you're going to have to be mindful of how many and what kind of carbs you eat. No WLS causes malabsorption of simple carbs, like sugar and white flour. With the DS, we do malabsorb around 40% of the COMPLEX carbs we eat, but generally speaking those aren't the FUN carbs. (*grin*)

With the DS you CAN eat pretty much anything---that's where the 'being mindful' comes in. Yes, you'll be able to eat fruit---but fruit has a LOT of sugar, so it's best to limit it. You'll also only absorb about half of the protein you eat, and only about 20% of the fat you eat. This means we tend to eat a lot of things like bacon, sausage, well-marbled steaks, real butter, heavy cream, rich sauces and gravies, nuts, cheeses---you get the idea. And while I'm sure you've seen posts where we talk about eating 2500-3000 calories a day, that doesn't translate into a large volume of food. (Fat has 9 calories per gram.)

I chose the DS over the RNY for many reasons. Diabetes runs in both sides of my family, and while I was diabetic, I figured it was just a matter of time. The DS has allowed me to dodge that bullet. I also needed to be able to take NSAIDs, sine I've had severe arthritis since age 20. I wanted the surgery with the very BEST long-term results---the thought of regain scared the crap outta me. And---I REALLY like to eat. (*grin*)

There are just so many things about the RNY's pouch/stoma arrangement that scared me. I never wanted the threat of dumping syndrome, or reactive hypoglycemia, getting food 'stuck' in the stoma, food intolerances, or living the rest of my life on a low-fat, low-calories 'diet'. I'd been dieting for 35 of my 45 years, and enough was finally ENOUGH.

I could have had an RNY with almost no out-of-pocket costs. Instead, I chose to pay my surgeon's fee---$7500---out of pocket in order to have the DS instead. (My insurance covered the DS, but my surgeon of choice didn't accept it, it paid so poorly.)

Honestly.. I am 3 yrs post op. I never had to try to loose any weight.. it came off effortlessly with DS. '

I could always eat anything and drink anything I wanted and I sitll lost 150 lbs and I have been at goal for 2 years. I am 149 now. I was 291. 

I have heard the RNY is harder with eating. DS'er perfect diet is high protein, fat. I eat a well rounded diet of carbs, meat, veggies, fruits... 

My typical dinner is 1 or 2 grilled breats of chicken OR steak or pork chops, a veggie, baked potato with butter/cheese or rice. 

I can drink any drink whether it be regular coke or water. Nothing bothers me and I can eat almost the amount of food I use to it. 

It is awesome!!! 

One more thing I should add.... 

That is my life now but in the first year, you can't eat as much because your stomach starts out small. But, it's a lot bigger than RNY'ers. It's about the size of a small bananna rather than an egg. But, it stretches in time but not as big as it is now. And the absorption part is what makes the weight loss stay off. 

So, at first they all suck. You have to eat slowly... that is the biggest thing to remember in the beginning and sip drinks and space out food and drinks. But, after 6 mths, it gets easier. 

Good luck with your decision!