Calling all DSers! Your input is needed. Please reply ASAP!

If AARP could, I'm convinced they's start sending out solicitations on people's 12th birthdays. The day I turned 50 I started getting besieged by their offers, just when I was trying to forget I was turning 50.

Thanks for your post and congratulations of your weight loss.  Overall, you sound like a satisfied customer. 

Mark- Heavens knows what AARP is going to send to me when I turn 60, but that is coming up soon... I had the DS 10 years ago this September and I do not regret it at all. I had a little bit of a rough road in the beginning with getting my food to settle but now I can eat most anything with the exception of perhaps fried foods (which I don't really like anyway!) I have had several iron infusions over the years for low iron, but feel that it is a small price to pay and I always feel terrific after the course of treatments and usually do not need to repeat for at least 2 1/2-3 years. So at the risk of causing myself anxiety by calling myself a Senior, I can say this "aging Ds'r " is one happy camper. I'd be glad to answer any other specific questions you may have as I too was a low BMI by comparison to most. (36). My supplementation is minimal, but I do see a metabolic doctor and nutritionist about every two months, and do lab tests twice per year.  I drink milk constantly as I prefer it over water. 

Susan Starting Weight 236 Lowest 129 Current 146

I also forgot to mention that my surgery was with Jacques Himpens and was done at Edith Cavell Hospital in Brussels in 2005.

I had the DS with Dr Casteneda in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico at the end of January, this year.  I am due to have another set of labs next week.  I take a Flintstone Chewable with iron once a day, Liquid Calcium Citrate with D twice a day, Bariatric Advantage Chewable Complete twice a day and Bariatric Advantage A, D,E,K.  I have had no complications.  I have lost 80 pounds and feel great. There was a recent scientific article published this year which supports the superiority of the DS over other surgeries.  I am faithful about getting in my protein every day and my fluids.  I have a period of time in the morning when I need to be near the bathroom.  The smell is not that bad, so I keep freshener spray handy.  I find that as long as I stay away from foods with sugar and refined starch, no problem.  I have to tell you that my taste buds have changed post surgery, and so far I seem to crave naturally healthy foods only.  Sugar is repugnant to me.  I was definitely addicted to it before surgery.  I make all my own food now as a matter of choice.  I do eat out on occasion, but really seem to crave healthy foods.  I don't know if that is a result of the surgery, or my mind set.  I can only tell you how pleased I am.   Good luck to you.  

Mark, you're just a kid! I had my DS almost 8 years ago at the age of 59. Had to self-pay about $25K as it was very hard at that time to find insurance coverage for the DS although both of my insurance carriers would have covered the RNY. My research convinced me that the DS was the best for me, so I went with self-pay. (I am a research scientist and data analyst, so my spouse went through extreme information overload while I was evaluating my options.) 

Now at the age of 67 I have NEVER regretted my decision, nor the investment in the rest of my life. I climbed Mt St Helens on my 61st birthday, and hiked the Great Wall in China for my 67th. Life is good. I am convinced that my DS gave me back at least 20+ years of active life.

Here are some quick answers to your questions, although as usual Val has done a great job providing info. You have to stay on top of your nutrition with regular monitoring. I get labs twice a year. Malnutrition is a risk of malabsorption but should not happen if you pay attention. My stools are usually formed although not hard. For me, always in the morning and some smaller amounts during the day. I take all of my supplements once or (for calcium) twice a day. No big deal, but YMMV.

Just remember that each of us will have differences in our bodies and how they react, along with all of the differences "between our ears". Good luck on your decision -- I think that you are wise to have reached out here. 

And thank you for reaching out to me!  I'm still evaluating all of my options, including being just resleeved with Dr. Kesheshian (have a consult with him next week).  I do have an enlarged fundus, as it turn out.  My x-ray makes my sleeve look kind of like a big headed fetus in the womb. I never lost that much weight with the sleeve and that makes me feel like I never had a chance at a real sleeve. Since I'm a lightweight, my latest thought is that the sleeve has a long term EWL of about 55% vs. DS of 75%.  I'm 100 lbs over so for me that only represents 20 pounds difference.  If that's all it is, I'd rather keep it simple and be resleeved, if possible.  I think on a resleeve there is less stretching, too, but correct me if I'm wrong.  I also understand resleeves can be dangerous, that's why I would only do it with an experienced surgeon, like Dr. Keshsishian, if he felt comofrtbale that he could do it safely.  Otherwise, it would be a DS. No way would I consider an RNY. 

As you might have noticed, my pre-surgery BMI was only 42 so I definitely fell into the lightweight class. For me the big DS effect is that I don't really have to think about restricting what I eat -- my DS pretty much takes care of that with the malabsorption. I lost half my body weight and am essentially stable at about 100% EWL. I have also known folks who did well with VSG; just not as well as DS. BUT the malabsorption is the good news AND the bad news, so I can certainly understand why you might be doing a cost-benefit analysis on your options. You might not want to add the risk even for an extra 40-50 pounds. Glad to hear you are going to talk with Dr. K.

Yep, you understand my cost-benefit analyses perfectly!  The VSG didn't really scare me, because I know they have been removing portions of stomachs for 100 years for ulcers, cancer, etc.  It's just a bag, not a critical organ. Good riddance to my old oversized one!

The DS however, is a faith-based proposition!  I've reached out to as many DS vets as I can find, especially the older ones.  While I get that 90% of them are delighted and have only had manageable complications, the idea of messing with mother nature to that extent is still unsettling for me.  If there were 50 years of solid data, I'd feel better, but, realistically, most of the data has come in the last 10-15 years. I have heard that the first person to get a modern DS in 1988 is about 70 and still alive.  That makes me feel good, but it's just one person.  I'm lucky to have been born into a good gene pool.  Most people in my family make it to the late 80s, early 90s.  I'm 51.  I have 40 years to think about.

Feel free to say something that makes me feel better!

Clearly this is your decision, but I can offer a few thoughts. In my case, I was looking at a single procedure rather than a revision, so some of the issues were different. I considered the morbidity and mortality risks of my weight compared to the risks of the various weight loss options factoring in the probability of long-term success. I won't go through the data (I have a feeling you know them well; make sure you have seen Rabkin's latest numbers), but for me the DS was the clear choice. Part of the decision was driven by evidence that I could no longer consider myself "fat and fit" -- my body was breaking down to the extent that I had most of the possible comorbidities already (or was teetering on the edge...). I could keep treating symptoms or just treat the base cause (morbid obesity) with the best, most reliable treatment that I could identify. 

I also come from grandparents who lived well into their 90s, and now I am confident that I am on track for that as well. before I know that I was most likely trading off a decade or more due to my obesity. However, I am aware that I have "medicalized" myself and have made the commitment to the lifelong care and followup that is required for that. DS is NOT for everyone, and even those with the best outcomes go through highs and lows over the years with the continual nutritional management required. And yes, I have to be sure that antibiotics are in a form that can be absorbed, etc. 

But for me, no regrets! The trade-off is worth the health difference. I am very confident in the stability of my body at this point both inside and out. Enough that I have decided to have some body-contouring done later this year. Finally decided that I have too many years ahead to keep living within this excess skin, even at my age. 

So none of this might make you feel any better, but I would suggest that the DS has enough history and data behind it that it has moved beyond "faith-based". Good luck with your evaluation.

1. I have not suffered from any malnutrition or any other complications. These complications could occur if vitamins and minerals were not taken each day.

2. I take vitamins first thing in the morning. I take 500 mg Calcium Citrate 4 times a day, spaced at least two hours apart.

3. No worse than anybody else. I poop once or twice a day. The smell could be bad if sugar or flour carbs were ingested. My stools are usually firm; occasionally, these could have the consistency of thick pudding. I have not had any "accidents" thus far.