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Just out of curiosity, what was the result of the 2nd opinion?
| Duodenal Switch (Lap) 08-13-2018 | Surgeon: Dr. Sashidhar V Ganta | High weight: 305 in Jan. 2018 | Surgery weight: 255 | Current weight: 123.2 | BMI 18.5 |
I don't think this person asked for the negative comments. Maybe diet and exercise are not working as well but, honestly things happen and their are people willing to help. Just keep trying.
Good Morning!
My patient Laura had surgery 6 weeks ago and came back to Endohospital, we had a chance to sit down and talk about what it's like the first few weeks after the Gastric Sleeve Surgery.
If you would like to know more about her story, check it out here: https://youtu.be/ItpNvH9YG34
Regards
Dr. Alvarez
Congratulations! I am very happy for you because the baby is a great happiness in the life of every woman! You're wearing a little miracle, a little bundle that you care about more than anything else in the world. I think that you should not worry about the health of the baby yet, as the problems should be solved as they arrive. I gave birth to a baby a couple of months ago and I remember these moments with trepidation. However, the beginning of the second trimester was very difficult in the body. My back was hurting, but I found a great solution in the form of very good quality maternity leggings on https://www.preggoleggings.com/collections/maternity-jeans. They supported my tummy and reduced the load on my back. But I'm still happy to survive this moment and I hope that your baby will please you with good health!
Thank you for your thoughts and experiences. I do have a second opinion scheduled for tomorrow, so I'll see if things align to the first surgeon, or if it will give me other food for thought. Either way, it would be nice to improve all of the angst with my stomach the past year. Additional weight loss as a result would be a bonus right now. :)
The past year has been difficult, as I've grown into some sort of aversion to most proteins and have become mostly vegetarian. Eggs and bacon seem fine, but any other meats or seafood feel like rocks in my stomach. This is how we eventually learned about my ulcers and then hiatal hernia. I have been able to maintain my weight though the past year.
Before that, my meals consisted of lean meats/eggs/seafood, veggies and minimal fruits or carbs (ie, breads, rice, etc). Lattes and favored waters or teas. Pretty much my overall lifestyle. Calorie intake would vary 1100-1600 a day. Still have a sweet tooth, but would keep it in check by saving up for special occasions or compensating exercise or reduced calories elsewhere. Tried going up and down at times when I seemed to be stuck with my weight, tried replacement shake meals and other tricks here or there to try and lose sudden weight gain that started a couple of years ago. Exercise habits before the hiatal hernia was 4-6 times a week, varied activities. Have heavily been forced to adjust the last couple of months.
I have seen a number of people on these forums who have gone through Dr. Zare and he seems to be well regarded, though I have no personal experience with him; I am not aware of him doing the DS, though he may now be doing the newer SIPS/SADI/Loop DS which is a somewhat different animal. My above comments still apply regarding possible RNY revision vs. sleeve repair or DS.
As above, I wouldn't want to go into something like this without an alternate opinion or two. You often get into the situation where Dr. 1 says that Plan A surgery is tricky in your case so I would go with Plan B; Dr. 2 may say that Plan A is no problem, we do that all the time, or he may say the same as Dr. 1, that Plan B is the better choice in your case, which makes things easier and more comfortable for you on a decision (or he may advocate Plan C - which gives you more options to consider, etc.) But it all gives us a better idea of what can really be done in our specific case and not just reading what has been done for others in similar, or not so similar cir****tances.
There are several guys that I could suggest for a second opinion, all of whom come out of the DS world. Drs. John Rabkin, Greg Jossert or Paul Cirangle are in different practices, but all up in SF proper, and could give a good view on the viability of repairing your sleeve and/or revising it to a DS; Rabkin I am most familiar with as he did my VSG and I know that he does quite a few complex surgeries such as the RNY to DS revision and liver transplants, so he wouldn't be intimidated by a sleeve repair that might be a bit more complicated than usual. While they are all primarily DS/VSG docs, I don't think any of them would hesitate to tell you that the RNY is the best approach if that were the case - they are all perfectly capable of doing that even if it isn't their preferred procedure.
On the regain side of your problem, I have seen many over the years in our support groups who have overcome upwards of 30 lb with little problem - it takes a few months but is "do-able" much like a normal person. 40-50+ lb is more dicey, with some being able to recover that while others need some revision. If only the sleeve is redone, or is revised to an RNY, you can probably figure on losing 20 lb from the surgery itself (basically what one would expect from having to go through all the pre/post op diet restrictions again) with the rest being more individual effort. The DS is somewhat more powerful than that, but may still take some work on your side, but its regain resistance is better, which is really its strong suit.
1st support group/seminar - 8/03 (has it been that long?)
Wife's DS - 5/05 w Dr. Robert Rabkin VSG on 5/9/11 by Dr. John Rabkin
Hello,
Yes, the sleeve helped me lose roughly 90 lbs, bringing me within 10 lbs of a good and healthy weight, but my regain - even though I am still careful of what I eat - has been about 40 lbs in the last couple of years. I'm back in an unhealthy weight range, and now with added complications. This is why I said the sleeve failed me.
:)
may I ask what a days menu looks like for you?
Hello,
Yes, the sleeve helped me lose roughly 90 lbs, bringing me within 10 lbs of a good and healthy weight, but my regain - even though I am still careful of what I eat - has been about 40 lbs in the last couple of years. I'm back in an unhealthy weight range, and now with added complications. This is why I said the sleeve failed me.
:)
