Finally got MeritCare's surgery price quote for DS

Yes, they say the dumping is a good thing, to keep you away from the sugar. I don't have the dumping, and neither does one of my sisters, the other two do. What is your BMI? Mine was 36, but I had acid reflux, diabetes, high BP, plantar facitis, and just plain old fat! I was miserable. Its so nice being able to tie my shoe, paint my toenails, wear boots that didn't fit over my calves, coats that buttoned, the benefits are endless.

My current BMI is 49, at the time it was 47.  I have plantar fasciitis too, it totally sucks.  Did it go away for you after losing weight?  That's my sincere hope!  I don't have any other comorobidites, but am sure that I'll develop diabetes if I don't lose weight.

Yes, it went totally away for me! I had to wear Merrill shoes all the time, just to get the support in my arches to reduce the pain. Inserts and all the other items just didn't give relief, neither did the constant cortisone shots in my heels. I was ready to have the surgery to cut the tendon and thought the WLS might help, first. And it did! I can't even remember what that foot pain felt like. All my Merrill shoes went to the Dakota Boy's Ranch. I can even wear high heels again.

When it comes to diabetes, research shows that one probably already has it at least seven years before symptoms present themselves. With a 49 BMI, that could easily be the case. I quit my Prilosec immediately after surgery. No more acid reflux. The high BP meds were reduced in half and gone all together in three months.

peggy: just an update for you. MC now only recommends the optisource vitamins for the first month just because it is easier for a newbie. they are recommending a variety of vitamins once folks get the hang of it now.

since I had Dr. Howell I didn't have to do the liquid diet and since I had a bunch of GNC protein powder they let me use that post-op vs. their optisource drinks.

I know you've posted before how much you prefer your surgeon over Meritcare's doctors but they have always been very willing to work with me. I honestly think they are just trying to simplify things since so many folks are overwhelmed at first

Actually, I'm not Peggy, if you were referring to me?

I'm glad to hear that different programs in ND are changing from absolutes to recommendations for vitamins. Since people have to live the rest of their lives with the issues of vitamins, its a good idea to educate themselves on what's available and find the resources that work for them while still meeting the criteria on a daily basis.

I have talked to people from a program that does require the Optifast and are not aware that GNC products are an option. Two people I know have postponed their surgery from a program that requires it only because they couldn't afford the out of pocket costs to be on the Optifast. I'll make them aware that GNC is a much less expensive option that is approved, as I know they did not know this.

I do have a great deal of respect for my surgeon as you do yours, but since I've not had any interaction with your surgeon other than hear one of his presentations, my impressions are limited to this. I know Howell is a strong advocate of open RNY, and he says this is best for him due to this being his skillset over laproscopic methods. Since many patients have a difficult recovery from an open procedure and it involves much more risk, the patient is wise to do research on what is best for them, as was indicated in this thread.

i agree research is important. sorry I got your name wrong. I just told my dietician that I had some protein powder at home, she looked at the calories and protein in it, and worked up a post op plan for me. I believe they would do this for anyone.

Howell is very up front about his reasons for preferring the open RNY. He is so good that I was happy to have it done open. I think experience is vital.

Interestingly, the bariatric nurses on my floor after surgery said they see fewer of Howell's patients back with problems post op because those that had open have to be more careful and lots of the lap surgeries do too much too fast and they run into them more often.

I've heard both good and bad things about Dr. Smith, like with any doctor. Just wanted to clear up any misinformation about Meritcare's program.

Everyone should have confidence in their surgeon, which is why I chose mine after extensive research of the programs available. I also agree that experience is key. I learned my surgeon has had a tremendous outcome for his long roster of patients due to his knowledge and expertise in the lap procedure. I saw a statistical presentation of his patient outcomes that he presented at a national baratric conference, and compared it to other data that was out there for ND. That worked for me. I know some people still acquaint age with experience rather than experience with expertise. I have to do this type of research in my day to day job, and just applied the same logic to researching this surgery before I had it done. I admit I was a bit more picky when it came to something that impacted me, personally, or other family members who were looking into it.

I do believe there are a number of surgeons who might have less experience, which is why you likely heard what you did from the staff at MC about dr's who do to much too fast. I also talked to staff at the hospital where I had it done, and I was suprised to hear how many of them actually had the lap RNY themselves by my same doctor. They had great outcomes and were walking endorsements of good health, which is the reason we all get this done.

Lisey, this is your thread, and now you have two examples of two different procedures, open RNY and Lap RNY, of which we both had great results.