Ten Year Anniversary and Still Happy with the DS

Wow...Time flies when you are having fun....Ten years ago today I had my DS surgery and received my new life. For the 10 years prior to surgery I had basically quit living. I had no energy; I would not go to movies or restaraunts because of the fear of not being able to fit in the seats; Walking from my car to my office was an ordeal; How my wife and family stuck beside me during that dark time was nothing but true sacrifice on their part.

Today I am able to walk and run after my grandchildren; travel all over the country with my wife and just plain live again. I have a fishing trip with my wife to Alaska planned for this summer and would have never considered flying before surgery. Without the DS I probably would not be on this earth today. I weighed right at 500 lbs and was 6'-5" when I began the journey. Today my weight will fluctute between 265 to 285 and I am still 6'-5". I lost over 20" in my pant size and even my shoe size decreased from a 16 to a 15. I look forward to each day of life this surgery has given me.  I still take lots and lots of vitamins; no longer take any blood pressure meds; my sleep apnea is a distant memory;  but I do take Prilosec daily for persistent . The one side effect I do have that I don't like is I am constantly cold. I don't leave home without a jacket or a sweater ever. I even carried a jacket to Disney World in June and was glad I had it with me. I don't pay as much attention as I should to the meals I eat and there are times I pay for not paying attention. My labs are all within normal range except for my iron is a little low and my total cholesterol is too low at 91.

One of the hardest things I found is not going up to people that you know surgery could cure their disease and encouraging them to consider this option. Just yesterday I spoke with a young man who is exhibiting the same difficulties I did.  I was extremely tempted to bring the subject up to him but I know I would not have been receptive if someone had spoken with me. I do let people know I had surgery and I have had several call me later to discuss the subject with me. But I let them bring it up first.

If you are considering this surgery I encourage you to do your research not only about the surgery but I think even more importantly research about your surgeon. Make sure it is the right decision for you. Personally if I had to go back and have the surgery again I would be there in the morning. It was the best thing I have ever done for myself!!

If you should have any questions, feel free to contact me. I know I talked to a lot of people before I went forward and am happy to share my experience with others.

wow  so nice to hear that 10 years later you are still happy with your decision . Way to go

Wow! Good for you, thank you for sharing and letting us know that the DS is still great long-term!

Thank you so much for taking the time to pay it forward. Enjoy that fishing trip! 

So glad to hear from you at 10 years out!  What a great post.  Thank you.

I LOVE progress posts from DS vets!!  Congratulations and thank you for sharing.

Congratulations! Enjoy your trip!

Nice to hear you are doing so well. Glad you are loving life and able to experience it to the fullest. Thanks for posting. 

Thank you for sharing this story.  This is exactly why I am having a DS in 9 more weeks.  I have yet to meet anyone with regrets from the surgery.  I had RNY back in 2001 and I deal with the cold issues as well.  But you can always put on a sweater.  At least I deal with the heat much better than when I was 380.