Hello family! please help clear this up for me???

ok so i went to my first optoions class for kaiser(its required) and the doctor was pretty much saying that its not our stomakcs that got us here its our minds which i agree with. but what is bothhering me is she said that theres no research for this RNY surgery beyond like 3 years so they dont know what is going to happen to us in the future ! she sais there was a new study that showed after 3+ years the pancreas starts to produce massive amounts of insulin to try to "undo" what the surgery has done! and that our stomacks can stretch itself out to normal capacity again that,also our stomack will not absorb vitamins, minerals,and stuff that is crucial to our health. please any one with some insight on this would be greatly appriciated!!! I thought i had my mind set on this surgery now im not sure again??? Jeanette

(((((((((((((((((Jeanette)))))))))))))) Honey, do what you feel is best for YOU and what's in your heart. You should have peace with whatever decision you make, I firmly believe that. Just make sure you research the pro's and con's of this surgery before anything. My only regret was to not research the mental aspects. I suffer more severly now from depression, but I've lost 106# in 7months and I'm off a CPAP machine, nebulizer machine, about 4-5 asthma meds and inhalers, steroids, shots, pills, blood pressure meds, etc... I'm getting better and better each day. I know it's a hormone imbalance, from my family, I inherited it, and the Wellbutrin helps, but somedays not enough. That is just ME now, not everybody. I think I am pro-surgery, no, I know I'm pro-surgery, because it saves lives. There is much more research than just 3yrs, LOL, that's hilarious... unfortuantely some people are ignorant, and they try to educate people when they have no idea what they're talking about. Regarding malabsorption, my surgeon told me that we don't absorb as normal, but we absorb enough with the added vitamins we are supposed to take daily. There are a few times where everyone hits rough spots, as in hair loss, brittle nails, dehydration, but that can be managed with adequate protein intake, that is vital. Yes, it is a drastic surgery, but honey it saves lives. Just be sure you research everything ok honey? Don't go into this with doubts at all... I'm positive you'll make the right decision, one that is best for you... I'm here for you if you need me ok? I will keep you in my heart and thoughts...

I don't know about the pancreas problems. Vitamins supplements are very important to take after surgery. The stomach is normally 48 oz. After surgery it's 1-6 oz depending on your surgeon. IT can stretch, but I doubt that it will ever get back to 48 again. It's important to do mental work with a counselor. and develop physical lifestyle changes. I'm no expert. My advice is ditto to Blondi's...Go online and read everything you can about it. Knowing the facts will help.

Dear Jeanette, It's the doctor's responsibility to fully disclose all pros and cons of this surgery. So I don't think it was his intention to scare the bigeezers out of you... It's only been in the past 3 or so years that the surgery has really been modified to work as it should. I've done hours and hours of research, and let me tell you, the RNY, of all the surgeries, is the one that is most permanent and produces the most weight loss. I'd never heard the issues of the pancreas secreting excess amounts of insulin: that is a problem that can be rectified if it occurs. There are meds on the market that, should this ever become an issue, you can take with little or no other effect on your life. As far as the stomach re-stretching, it will restretch if we force it to. It would definitely take work: increasing your food to the point that your stomach has to strech to accomodate the food. Hopefully, all of us that are able to have the surgery will do the work on our minds, as well as our bodies. We all know that we have inner food addicts that sabotage most all of our efforts; when we spend as much time working through our food issues as we do learning to eat within the limits of the plan we're given after WLS---success follows. My suggestion to you would be to find an Overeaters Anonymous meeting near your home. Those meetings are a little too religious based for me, but I learned so much about my inner food addict, and how to begin to conquer it. It would be time well spent, I promise. It's helped me to be successful with Adkins, and it's helped my partner with her Adkins plan. There are many post-ops that are out from surgery more than three years. Why don't you take some time and talk to them. You can look them up under "find peers" or look them up by surgery date. My wish for you is that you can do enough surgery research, and speak to enough people, that you can go to surgery with the knowledge that it's the right choice for you. For many, the surgery is life saving. It would be worth it to do the homework, and educate yourself. If there is anything I can do to support you, please email me. Jessica

Jeanette, This gastric bypass surgery has been performed for 35+ years, originally to "cure" ulcers. Even "Weight Loss Surgery for Dummies" has better information than what you received in the kaiser class. Make your decision on good information, I can understand being scared after this kaiser experience, but you'd be best served by talking to a real professional in the field. Maureen