Can someone explain this to me?

I had my surgery almost four years ago in November.  I never reached my goal weight - going from my highest weight (367/346 day of surgery) to lowest (237/243 plateau) and never going down anymore.  Within the last 10 months, I started gaining again and am up to 270.   So I went back to my doctor and he ordered an upper GI for me.   Apparently, my pouch is still quite small, but it empties ridiculously fast.  The radiologist was like - "It's empty already, I can barely get the pictures - keep drinking."  They gave me the crystals and the gas made my pouch hurt horribly, but it passed into my intestines very fast and caused belching that cleared it.  By the time I left after drinking 16+ oz of barium solution and another 10 oz of water afterwards - my little pouch was still empty and I was getting hungry. That being the case - shouldn't I be LOSING weight if nothing is staying in my tummy? If things are basically dropping straight into my intestines and being flushed away, I'd think I'd be losing weight - not gaining. Could this also explain my extreme anemia and exhaustion? Can anyone explain the science?  I know the final report hasn't been given to Dr. Halmi yet, but I don't know what solution he can offer if my pouch is still small.  I also don't know what I'll do if I keep gaining weight / being hungry all the time.

Maybe you're gaining weight because your pouch empties too quickly, so you are hungry all the time and thus, over-eating?    I'm pre-op so I don't have advice to offer.  But I do wish you encouragement!  Have you talked to your nutritionist? Heather

Hello, I had my surgery 6/5/03 and my pouch doesnt stay full very long either. I seem to be a chronic grazer just like before surgery. The reason that you do not lose wieght with your pouch emptying so fast is that the food is absorbed in your intestines and that is where it is sitting for the length of time til its digested and released when you go to the bathroom.  Fluids just run right out of the pouch, there is no valve at the bottom from what I understand to hold food into the pounch. THe old stomach has the valve at the bottom and most pouches are made from the upper portion of the old stomach.  The only thing we can do is fill up on meats first since they are harder to pass through the smaller opening of the pouch and not drink for an hour or more after eating to not rinse food out. This is all hard for me because I would rather eat carbs then meat anyday. I still get full very fast but the pouch doesnt stay full so I think I will need to go back under and have the outlet to the pouch shrunk down with a few stiches. Good luck.  

Yes, honey, you're always hungry because you're emptying so quickly.  That is called Stoma enlargment.  I had both SE and staple line disruption.  (SLD)

I regained all my weight and some friends.  I chose the DS for my revision because there is nothing to mechanically fail with it.  I knew I was compliant and could lose.  I just didn't want another WLS that could and IMO, would fail again.

I couldn't be happier with my DS.  The quality of my life is so much better now than it was with the RNY.  No dumping, no vomiting, no food getting "stuck", nothing is off limits.

Yes, it was harder to find a great DS surgeon but fortunately I have great insurance and was able to travel so it was easier for me than it is on some people but even for those who have to really work at getting their revision to the DS, they say it was so worth it.