How did you choose what procedure to get???
So I am at the beginning stages of WLS. Today was suppose to be my 3rd appointment but it was rescheduled for Friday the 9th. Anyway, I recently have been going back and forth with which procedure I should have IF I do get approved for surgery. At first I was sure I was going to choose Lap-Band because I know someone who got it done and so far she has no complains, But then again I've heard more stories even on Obesity Help how many had to go back after getting the lap-band and get gastric bypass or the sleeve which made me rule lap-band surgery out. So NOW its between Gastric Bypass & Gastric Sleeve... My cousin got gastric bypass and she looks great, she does have excess skin in her arms and a little in her belly.. but then again she hardly works out. I just like the fact that she lost weight fast, so I had made up my mind and was sure I was going to go through with Gastric Bypass, but THEN.. I seen on this website a lot of people who've had the sleeve and Look Great as well not a lot of excess skin which I like cause I have big arms.. and I've been told by some of my friends on here that getting Gastric sleeve allows yourself to exercise and shape/tone your body which it a + IDK please give me ya opinions I would really appreciate it.
Thanks.. I am only 22 so I just want the surgery that is best for me especially at this age. I don't have any kids but of course I will love to in the future. Its not so much about how I am going to look and the excess skin but its just something I am looking at as well. Thanks again and good luck and congrats on your journey
I wouldn't worry too much about loose skin in relation to the surgery you choose. The loose skin happens more just from the weight loss, not how fast you lose it. You might just have a little bit less if you lose slower. You can exercise and tone with any surgery.
The speed at which you lose the weight affects the momentum of your weight loss as well. It's relatively easy to lose weight the first year or so after surgery. Then the "honeymoon" phase ends and you're stuck fighting off 1-2 lbs/wk with exercise and diet. The main benefit of any of these surgeries is that you get a free pass of sorts for the first year or so in which you can get your mental game together to push yourself once you stop losing weight automatically. There's some benefit to getting as much weight off as possible during this honeymoon phase.
Not trying to push you toward any surgery, but the loose skin factor shouldn't play into your decision too much.
As for picking the surgery - when I had my surgery - you could appeal as much as you want but many insurance companies would only pay for a gastric bypass or a lap-band. I knew the lap-band wasn't for me, so that left one surgery. It's gotten better and insurance companies are sometimes allowing other surgeries after appeal. I've written more extensively on this before, but going into WLS without the backing of your health insurance can be a very, very bad idea.
The speed at which you lose the weight affects the momentum of your weight loss as well. It's relatively easy to lose weight the first year or so after surgery. Then the "honeymoon" phase ends and you're stuck fighting off 1-2 lbs/wk with exercise and diet. The main benefit of any of these surgeries is that you get a free pass of sorts for the first year or so in which you can get your mental game together to push yourself once you stop losing weight automatically. There's some benefit to getting as much weight off as possible during this honeymoon phase.
Not trying to push you toward any surgery, but the loose skin factor shouldn't play into your decision too much.
As for picking the surgery - when I had my surgery - you could appeal as much as you want but many insurance companies would only pay for a gastric bypass or a lap-band. I knew the lap-band wasn't for me, so that left one surgery. It's gotten better and insurance companies are sometimes allowing other surgeries after appeal. I've written more extensively on this before, but going into WLS without the backing of your health insurance can be a very, very bad idea.
Thanks for the feedback, the loose skin isn't the only reason but it is one but not the main reason.. I just want to be healthy I've always been overweight and I have tried many time to lose weight and went at it the right way and I didn't lose much. Which was frustrating. But I really do appreciate the feedback
Well your going into this all wrong picking vanity over health.
There are multiple things to take into count.
#1- gentics. If you have always been heavy a purely restrictive procedure (VSG or lap-band
) more than likely will not keep the weight off any better than a restrictive diet. We all know 98% of all diets fail.
#2- Amount of weight to lose. The malabsorption of restrictive and malaborptive procedures (DS & RNY), give a much better long term result for keeping weight off. The VSG is too new and isnt looking promising in the long term for thoes that started with a over 40 BMI. The lap-band...UGH, too many issues and too little weightloss to justify it if you ask me. RNY about a 24 month window of malabsorption then its all on you too keep the weight off. The DS allows for a smaller but fully functioning stomach and permament malabsorption (more normal way of life). With the RNY & DS it is vitamins for life but worth it.
#3- look into ALL 4 major procedures. And talk to surgeons that do thoes procedures. All in all WLS is an elective surgery and a money maker for the mills (they push as many surgeries a day as they can). Do not let a surgeon who doesnt do a certain procedure that the one he doesnt do isnt right for you. ONLY YOU CAN MAKE THAT CHOICE. You hire the doctor not the other way around. A Toyota dealer isnt going to talk you into a Cadillac are they?
THINK TWICE CUT ONCE!
You can tone/shape your body with any procedure not just the VSG. Not sure why folks were feeding you that its only possible with the VSG.
I'm 6 and a half years post DS. I regret nothing. Ive been at goal since late 2006. I eat like a normal person. Which was a big thing to me as I was a single person and to me my decision to have surgery was personal and anyone I date didnt need to know. I dont feel the need to tell them I got my tonsils out if I had, so I dont bring up WLS. Ive gone from a 30/32W pant to a 10. A 30/32W top to a L-XL (Ive still got Ta-ta's and a huge rib cage). I went this route because I knew just dieting did not work, so that ixnayed the lap-band (VSG wasnt a stand alone procedure when I had surgery) and I didnt want a forgien object in my body. I knew I needed restrictive and malabsorption, that left RNY & DS. I disliked the RNY for a multitude of reasons... I dislike the remnant stomach being left in, ulcer factory waiting to happen. I could no be scoped if needed. Having to do artificial sweeteners = bad news severely allergic to them. And dumping & reactive hypoglycemia doesnt sound fun either. The whole food getting stuck issue if too dry. And having a friend that to this day nearly 8 years post RNY can not eat beef... Id loose my mind. I wanted to live a normal life leaving my body functioning as close as possible but enough to override my overly effecient body. The DS did that and more for me. I've got some loose skin but if your worried about what a guy thinks, HA they really dont care. A good guy is just happy to get you in bed, lol.
Im living my life as I always expected to. I am who I always knew I was (I hated my fat suit I knew it wasnt me, so I never identified with the BBW crowd. Unhealthy is not beautiful).
But its YOUR DECISION, NOT YOUR DRs, NOT YOUR PARENTS, NOT YOUR FRIENDS, etc.... YOURS ALONE!
There are multiple things to take into count.
#1- gentics. If you have always been heavy a purely restrictive procedure (VSG or lap-band
) more than likely will not keep the weight off any better than a restrictive diet. We all know 98% of all diets fail.
#2- Amount of weight to lose. The malabsorption of restrictive and malaborptive procedures (DS & RNY), give a much better long term result for keeping weight off. The VSG is too new and isnt looking promising in the long term for thoes that started with a over 40 BMI. The lap-band...UGH, too many issues and too little weightloss to justify it if you ask me. RNY about a 24 month window of malabsorption then its all on you too keep the weight off. The DS allows for a smaller but fully functioning stomach and permament malabsorption (more normal way of life). With the RNY & DS it is vitamins for life but worth it.
#3- look into ALL 4 major procedures. And talk to surgeons that do thoes procedures. All in all WLS is an elective surgery and a money maker for the mills (they push as many surgeries a day as they can). Do not let a surgeon who doesnt do a certain procedure that the one he doesnt do isnt right for you. ONLY YOU CAN MAKE THAT CHOICE. You hire the doctor not the other way around. A Toyota dealer isnt going to talk you into a Cadillac are they?
THINK TWICE CUT ONCE!
You can tone/shape your body with any procedure not just the VSG. Not sure why folks were feeding you that its only possible with the VSG.
I'm 6 and a half years post DS. I regret nothing. Ive been at goal since late 2006. I eat like a normal person. Which was a big thing to me as I was a single person and to me my decision to have surgery was personal and anyone I date didnt need to know. I dont feel the need to tell them I got my tonsils out if I had, so I dont bring up WLS. Ive gone from a 30/32W pant to a 10. A 30/32W top to a L-XL (Ive still got Ta-ta's and a huge rib cage). I went this route because I knew just dieting did not work, so that ixnayed the lap-band (VSG wasnt a stand alone procedure when I had surgery) and I didnt want a forgien object in my body. I knew I needed restrictive and malabsorption, that left RNY & DS. I disliked the RNY for a multitude of reasons... I dislike the remnant stomach being left in, ulcer factory waiting to happen. I could no be scoped if needed. Having to do artificial sweeteners = bad news severely allergic to them. And dumping & reactive hypoglycemia doesnt sound fun either. The whole food getting stuck issue if too dry. And having a friend that to this day nearly 8 years post RNY can not eat beef... Id loose my mind. I wanted to live a normal life leaving my body functioning as close as possible but enough to override my overly effecient body. The DS did that and more for me. I've got some loose skin but if your worried about what a guy thinks, HA they really dont care. A good guy is just happy to get you in bed, lol.
Im living my life as I always expected to. I am who I always knew I was (I hated my fat suit I knew it wasnt me, so I never identified with the BBW crowd. Unhealthy is not beautiful).
But its YOUR DECISION, NOT YOUR DRs, NOT YOUR PARENTS, NOT YOUR FRIENDS, etc.... YOURS ALONE!
DS Aug 15th,2005 @ goal, living life and loving it.
"An Arabian will take care of its owner as no other horse will, for it has not only been raised to physical perfection, but has been instilled with a spirit of loyalty unparalleled by that of any other breed."
Actually my health is more important. And you as a person who use to be obese should understand the situation I am going through. Getting this surgery is not for my looks the most important thing is my health, it is to prevent any health issue I can get in the future. My families medical history is something I DO NOT want pass down to me, and a couple of months ago my father had to under go a emergency surgery for his HEART. He has a heart condition that neither him or his Doctor knew about. Come to find out his biological father side of the family almost everyone who has passed away was due to a heart condition. And that's what scares me only because I do get chest pains. And I AM ONLY 22, As someone young my looks are also important but who's isn't. I just wanted to know how people came to choose the surgery they got...That's all
I did address much of that. I was stating if your choosing vanity reasons over health its all wrong. And I've seen A LOT of young folks do it for vanity, so if I can make a push against vanity I will. Reason I said that is because you seemed to make your whole post about the excess skin (yup it sucks) and I had my WLS at 22 years old. So I know exactly where you are comming from. I want nothing more than to see folks succeed.
Thus the reason I spent the time to write that post. I wrote about what I used to decide and many other things. I've seen people fail its not fun, I've known folks that have died, I just want folks to make the right decision for the right reasons. With so many one WLS per lifetime clauses in heathcare now. I'm of the no butterflies group I just talk straight about what I've seen and been through.
Thus the reason I spent the time to write that post. I wrote about what I used to decide and many other things. I've seen people fail its not fun, I've known folks that have died, I just want folks to make the right decision for the right reasons. With so many one WLS per lifetime clauses in heathcare now. I'm of the no butterflies group I just talk straight about what I've seen and been through.
I'm only 23 and am having RNY done on March 12. I was dead set on Lap-Band initially but then after doing more research realized that it probably wouldn't work for me...the biggest issue being the maintenance of getting fills. I felt like I would never feel completely normal because so many things can affect the band's temperment so-to-speak and some days it may be fine while others it may not be. I also wasn't too crazy about possibly being able to feel the port site as I lost weight..just kind of freaked me out. Another reason was the high-rate of band failures and people needing revisions to RNY. That scared me..I felt like if I was going to go through this I only wanted to do it once. And another main reason was the slower process of losing weight with a less success rate of reaching goal weight. These are just my personal opinions BTW..I do know many people who have had the band and have been successful and love it, but each person is different.
The DS was ruled out for me by my surgeon and I never really even considered it because it was too drastic for my weight.
So like you, that left me to choose between VSG & RNY. VSG isn't covered by my insurance, however, I researched it greatly because I figured if I thought if it was right for me and a better choice than RNY I would self-pay. VSG has some very good advantages to it, such as less chances of ulcers occuring, as well as there not being issues with protein and vitamin deficiences since the stomach isn't bypassed like it is with RNY, however IMO there were more cons than pros with it, so I chose RNY over it. The main reasons were since the stomach isn't bypassed like it is in RNY, there is greater potential to not lose the amount of weight I need to, or I could gain it back more easily. Another reason is that VSG leaves the pylorus intact, which reduces/elimintaes dumping. With RNY, it is removed, which is why dumping can sometimes occur (but it doesn't occur in everyone.) I didn't get to be 260 lbs by eating a high protein, low fat/sugar diet, so for me I like the fact that there could be a severe, negative reaction if I eat foods high in sugar and fats. I don't even want to try them to find out if I will get dumping because that experience sounds so awful it isn't worth it to me. I knew if I got VSG I could still eat whatever I wanted, just in smalller portions, and I would probably not be very successful.
As far as complications go, every WLS surgery has them. Complications from RNY are small enough for me that I feel like it is more than worth the risk to be happier and healthier. My insurance required a Bariatric Center of Excellence to perform the surgery (as many insurances do) so my risks are even more minimized. I believe my surgeon said there's a less than 1% complication rate at the Center I am using. As far as ulcers and hypoglycemia developing, this doesn't happen in everyone or even the majority, so to dismiss a surgery because of the fear of having that happen to you isn't giving it a fair chance. I also think of it as there is a solution to every problem..it may be uncomfortable, frustrating, and painful, however more than likely any complication that comes along can be resolved with medical treatment, so that doesn't worry me. I want to acheive my end goal and it would just be part of the process (although obviously I hope that I have a textbook perfect surgery with no complications..who doesn't right?!)
As far as excess skin goes, it all depends on your age and genetics. Exercising helps to tone but if you are destined to have excess skin, no amount of exercise will take it away...that's why they have Spanx and plastic surgery :) There are some people I've seen who have a ton of it, some people who have none..it is different from person to person. Luckily youth is on our side so while there may be some excess skin hopefully there's still enough elasticity to tighten things up! Again I wouldn't discount a specific surgery because of the possiblitly of having some excess skin....I would much rather carry around 15-20 pounds of that then 130-140 lbs of extra fat anyday! I think with any surgery exercise is key to maintaining a healthy lifestyle and losing weight, so no matter which you choose you should plan on doing that.
Hopefully this was helpful! Again these are only my opinions and thoughts! Good luck on making your choice...just remember that everyone is different and no two results/WL journeys are the same. What works for someone may not work for you, so keep that in mind when making your decision. Choose what will work best with your lifestyle and your WL goals, and once you've decided give it everything you've got! :)
The DS was ruled out for me by my surgeon and I never really even considered it because it was too drastic for my weight.
So like you, that left me to choose between VSG & RNY. VSG isn't covered by my insurance, however, I researched it greatly because I figured if I thought if it was right for me and a better choice than RNY I would self-pay. VSG has some very good advantages to it, such as less chances of ulcers occuring, as well as there not being issues with protein and vitamin deficiences since the stomach isn't bypassed like it is with RNY, however IMO there were more cons than pros with it, so I chose RNY over it. The main reasons were since the stomach isn't bypassed like it is in RNY, there is greater potential to not lose the amount of weight I need to, or I could gain it back more easily. Another reason is that VSG leaves the pylorus intact, which reduces/elimintaes dumping. With RNY, it is removed, which is why dumping can sometimes occur (but it doesn't occur in everyone.) I didn't get to be 260 lbs by eating a high protein, low fat/sugar diet, so for me I like the fact that there could be a severe, negative reaction if I eat foods high in sugar and fats. I don't even want to try them to find out if I will get dumping because that experience sounds so awful it isn't worth it to me. I knew if I got VSG I could still eat whatever I wanted, just in smalller portions, and I would probably not be very successful.
As far as complications go, every WLS surgery has them. Complications from RNY are small enough for me that I feel like it is more than worth the risk to be happier and healthier. My insurance required a Bariatric Center of Excellence to perform the surgery (as many insurances do) so my risks are even more minimized. I believe my surgeon said there's a less than 1% complication rate at the Center I am using. As far as ulcers and hypoglycemia developing, this doesn't happen in everyone or even the majority, so to dismiss a surgery because of the fear of having that happen to you isn't giving it a fair chance. I also think of it as there is a solution to every problem..it may be uncomfortable, frustrating, and painful, however more than likely any complication that comes along can be resolved with medical treatment, so that doesn't worry me. I want to acheive my end goal and it would just be part of the process (although obviously I hope that I have a textbook perfect surgery with no complications..who doesn't right?!)
As far as excess skin goes, it all depends on your age and genetics. Exercising helps to tone but if you are destined to have excess skin, no amount of exercise will take it away...that's why they have Spanx and plastic surgery :) There are some people I've seen who have a ton of it, some people who have none..it is different from person to person. Luckily youth is on our side so while there may be some excess skin hopefully there's still enough elasticity to tighten things up! Again I wouldn't discount a specific surgery because of the possiblitly of having some excess skin....I would much rather carry around 15-20 pounds of that then 130-140 lbs of extra fat anyday! I think with any surgery exercise is key to maintaining a healthy lifestyle and losing weight, so no matter which you choose you should plan on doing that.
Hopefully this was helpful! Again these are only my opinions and thoughts! Good luck on making your choice...just remember that everyone is different and no two results/WL journeys are the same. What works for someone may not work for you, so keep that in mind when making your decision. Choose what will work best with your lifestyle and your WL goals, and once you've decided give it everything you've got! :)
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