Ohio newbie seeking direction/surgeon/opinions

Hello all,

My name is Jen and I live in Ohio.  I'd like to ask anyone from Ohio who has had WLS if they would share their experience and who they had their surgery with.

I'm so confused on what to do...what surgery to have...where to go.  I live closest to Dayton but am going to a seminar in Columbus.  Has anyone had Dr. Myers in Columbus do their surgery?

I would love feedback and opinions.  Has everyone had the band?  Anyone had the gastric sleeve?  I got one comment of don't get the band...too many after surgery complications.  So that kind of scares me. 

Thank you to anyone who takes the time to offer their advice!

Sincerely,
Jen

Hi Jen, welcome!  As far as which surgery to have, I wouldn't feel comfortable suggesting a surgery.  I think it is such a personal option, you need to research all of your surgery options and choose the one that is best for you.  Research, research, research.  This is something you will have to live with the rest of your life, so make sure you make the right decision for you.  As for surgeons, i used Dr. Rita Anderson.  I have nothing but good to say about her.  My surgery went great and I had little to no complications.  If you want to know about my journey, check out my blog here at OH.  I have tried to keep a good account of what I went thru. 

But good luck.  I hope you have a successful surgery and everything goes smoothly.

Take care,
Brad

Hi Jen,

I just had RNY May 4 2010. I originally thought of the band but after research I choose the RNY. I am not a month out yet but so far things are going good. It is really something you will need to reasearch and decide because it is such a life changing event. My surgeon is Dr. David Schumacher and I really like his office staff and him. I love Sycomore Hospital and thought my care there was awesome! The program they have is very educational. I also have a nurse that follows up with me and if I have questions or concerns I can call her (which I have several times already LOL).I do work with three ladys that have had the lapband and are doing great with it! Just use the power of the internet and do research. When I was thinking of doing this late last year I found alot of info on YouTube....lots of people with great suscess stories and actual surgery on video. Good luck to you!

Debbie

Hi Jen, I had a sleeve by Dr Myers on March 10 and am very happy with his program. He does a great job of explaining the options during his presentation. The option you choose is up to you and what would work best for you. He will list the good and bad of all of the options.
When are you going to his seminar? I might be at the facility that evening working out. You get 3 months of full access to a world quality health club and 5 personal trainer sessions.

Hi!

Thanks for the response.  I'm going to the seminar on June 12 from 10-12.  It's a Saturday.  I wish I lived closer and could make use of the facility but Columbus is close to 2 hours from us.  So...I'm kind of leaning toward the sleeve but just don't know.  One of my best friends just stopped by and has lost 40 pounds on her own and told me she doesn't think I should do the surgery at all.  I don't know why.  But that kind of brings me down.  I'm so confused on what to do.  I'm glad you responded since you had it done where I'm thinking of going and you had done what I'm now thinking of doing.  Could you elaborate a little more on what they did...and maybe your mental state and what you had to do before the surgery??  Like how long did it take from the time you decided to have the surgery to the surgery date.  How long were you off work?  I would really appreciate it.  And maybe the cost?  Cuz my insurance is a JOKE!  So who knows if it'll be covered or not.  Probably not.  And I see in your picture you have a horse????  That has soooooooooooo been a DREAM of mine since I was four years old.  To have one.  I think they are so majestic and beautiful.  I doubt I'll ever own one but I can hold on to my dream.  Thanks again.  Take care and hope to hear from you soon!
Jen

Jen, I did a lot of hemming and hawing, and trying to find out what my eligibility was without going to a seminar. Did that off and on for a year or two (what a waste). Finally decided to go to the seminar and am I glad I did. You will come out of there feeling very understood, and with the knowledge to make your decision. Also armed with the knowledge that at some point your body took over and you lost the ability to control your weight. Yep, part of this is genetic, hormonal, emotional. Dr Myers has a unique understanding of obesity as he has family members that he really wants to talk into having surgery.
Your first appointment is with his insurance specialist who will do all of the legwork for you and will present to you exactly what your costs will be to the penny.
Next, is an all day appointment where you will have all of your testing done, blood, physical, dietetic, psych, and any other tests they think are necessary will be ordered. Through it all you will be treated with kindness and respect at all times.
I had to go through a six month supervised diet program which entailed monthly appts. with the dietitian. This was required by my insurance company, not Dr Myers.
My first appointment was at the beginning of October and surgery was March 10. Pain was well controlled. I was off work 2 weeks, could have gone back in 1, but what the heck, you know? I had the time, no point in rushing.
My mindset before surgery? Pretty deep depression, lost interest in the horses (we breed and show miniature horses), basically went to work and then to my chair, then bed. I finally went to my primary doc and she started me on anti-depressants and I started coming out of it. Decided to live rather than continue to kill myself slowly. I have a long way to go, but I am going.
Here is a link to Dr Myers' blog, watch the videos and read the blogs. It will give you an idea of what he and his practice are like.
http://bariatricsurgeryblog.blogspot.com/
Down towards the bottom on the left is a place where you can sign up to get notified when Dr Myers posts a new blog.

Almost forgot, we will be showing our mini horses in Springfield, OH on the 5th and 6th of June, if you are interested let me know and I'll give you my cell phone number. This will be my first time showing in two years. The show is at the Clark County Fairgrounds.

Thanks so much for such honesty and in depth answers.  I really appreciate it.  By the way what is your name??  If you don't mind me asking? 

I am so there with the depression and pretty much hate myself.  I have spent my life on and off diets and I've lost and then put it all back on and then some.  It's so frustrating and just makes me feel like why even bother.  I'm just going to fail AGAIN!  I'm also kind of frustrated as no one around me seems to support me in this indecision (don't wanna call it my decision as I'm not sure I'm going to go through with it.)  But two of my good friends who are both overweight and have been all their lives are freaking out that I want to do this.  Telling me not to... that what if I gain it all back and pay all that money.  And why don't I just do it on my own?  Make up my mind and I can do it.  It just really depresses me that they can't be supportive.  When I say but I've been there done that and gained it all plus some they come back with well they have to.  And you just have to make up your mind.  I can't figure out why they are so against it??  It's like they KNOW I'm going to do it and fail.  Just really bums me out.  Cuz if they were thinking of doing it I'd be so supportive of whatever their decision is.  The one really good thing tho is that they've both got me out walking every night...well we just started this week.  And I know it's only Tuesday...but we've walked FOUR miles so far.  And I'm going again tomorrow and the rest of the week!  So...

Thanks again for the note...and I'd LOVE to come to the show...just have to figure out what's going on that weekend and where the heck Springfield is from us!  If I come...can I pet one of your horses???  :) 

Take care and hope to hear from you soon!!!
Jen

Hi Jen,
I have had the vsg with Dr Shumaker(spelling) in Miamisburg, Sycamore Hospital.  If you would like to talk with me about my journey I will be very happy to answer any questions you might have.  Either  PM me or I can give you my email and can give you a phone number  if you like, any question is not stupid or crazy, trust me.... You need to feel comfortable with your decision, and this is a decision only you can make about yourself, the decision I made to travel this journey was the right one for me, both physically and mentally, and there again, lots of mental things go along with this, mostly good  =).  Good Luck and do your research!!  

Hi Jen,

Welcome! I am from around the Dayton area, and had my surgery done at Miami Valley Hospital by Dr Teel. I would highly recommend him, and was very happy with the program at MVH.

As to which surgery to have, it is a very personal decision. I choose the sleeve for several reasons.
-Though it hasn't been around for long term results, appears to have weight loss close to that of RNY.
-Any surgery has risks, but after the immediate post op period, those are essentially behind you with the sleeve. No rearranged intestines, no gastric remnant which could bleed, perforate, etc. No risks associated with malabsorption.
-I wanted a low maintenance surgery. I don't have time to be going in for fills and adjustments, so the band wouldn't be good for me. I also didn't like long term band problems such as slippage or erosion, or the fact that some people do not lose weight with the band.

I have been very happy with my decision so far, and would encourage anyone to look into this life changing operation. I wish I would have done it sooner!

Best of luck!

Katie

I would suggest going to the information of several surgeons that you are considering using.  See how you "connect" with them and talk with them about what surgery might be best for you based on your medical history, your insurance, your weight, and your own personal issues with food.  Most people who attend more than one information seminar seem to come away with pretty strong thoughts/feelings about which surgeon they would like to use.

The most common procedure is the RNY but that doesn't make it the right choice for everyone.

Personally, I debated between the RNY and the DS (I toyed with the idea of just doing the band until I found out how slow the weight loss would be) and decided on the RNY.  I had a great experience with Dr Anderson here in Dayton (Kettering Hospital) and don't regret my choice of surgeries at all.  Dr Maguire and Dr Teel (Miami Valley Hospital) are excellent surgeons and Dr Schumaker's patients (Sycamore) also seem pleased with the care they receive, so there are many excellent choices in Dayton.  Dr Anderson only does the band, RNY, and the sleeve (she no longer offers the DS because too many patients were being non-compliant about the vitamin regimen).  I don't know about the other surgeons, but they all have websites you can go to.


Lora