I'm BACK - Remember Me?

Bridget, just sent you a PM.

You haven't had calorie malabsorption with your RnY since at least 2012. That wears off in about 2-3 years as your villi in your remaining intestines grow back.

This is actually a pet peeve of mine that people are sold a bill of goods with RnY -- told that they should get it because they "need the malabsorption". But it GOES AWAY. So if you actually really do need it. Really need it forever, then you NEED a DS! Because even if the malabsorption does lesson with DS (which it would have to), there is so much more to start with, that it shouldn't go away 100% like it does with RnY.

Anyway, to stop RH, you need your pylorus valve back. Which means your RnY has to be reversed. That's a serious operation and a lot of surgeons won't do it unless you are dying. So make sure your surgeon really is going to put your pylorus valve back.

Then, it has to start working again -- it might have atrophied from lack of use. I don't know how they can tell if has or how common that is. A few DSers used to talk about that when they would try to scare people into getting the DS to start with and it does happen but hopefully it's rare.

And even then you might still have RH. Some VSGer and DSer do have it because our stomachs empty about 2x as fast as they used to. (They've recently done some studies on this.) I get some episodes myself sometimes. I haven't passed out but I have to go lay down and sometimes it happens at work and that's embarrassing.

It is possible to control RH with diet and, no matter what you do with surgery, I think you should start trying to do that because it might take a while to get the revision going and in the meantime you don't want to be passing out or having seizures. Also, have they checked you for epilepsy? Some people develop it after RnY and other WLS. That requires a completely different treatment plan.

Hi again!  I have always appreciated your detailed knowledge and advice!  I think my weight gain started at the end of 2012.  I returned from Israel in early 2013 and was able to eat pretty much anything except sugar.  I dump when I eat a lot of sugar or my blood sugar drops perilously low.  I really want something with malabsorption and if it means keeping the RNY but having it "redone: I guess I could live with that but obviously I think my issue is that my bod wants to hang onto every calorie it can (explained by a malnourished childhood) and malabsorption IS my best alternative.  Now...the question as southernlady has adroitly pointed out is not something every surgeon can perform.  I trust my surgeon and believe she is top of her field but I definitely have a lot of questions such as what other malabsorptive procedure revisions are available...but I agree that reconnection of the pylorus valve will alleviate if not stop my RH issues and that is really my goal as well as continued and sustainable weight loss.  I have come too far NOT to want that.

Do I have epilepsy?  They say after 2 seizures you do so I do consider myself epileptic but they cannot verify this through either MRI or EEG although they did find white matter disease - which could be brain damage from my falls since I have hit my head when I drop (probably seizure related.)   I work closely with a neurologist to deal with this and plan to start with an endocrinologist so I can prove the hypo since all my records are in Israel...and my neuro has the failed GTT but there is NO doubt I have severe hypoglycemia.

The funny thing is I never know what to put on my medic alert bracelet and have never gotten one because of it!

Bridget

Hi and welcome back!

I also have developed RH.  I control mine with diet.  Also, I found, that if I drink liquids with a meal that involves any kind of processed white (bread, dough, etc) I can have an "episode".  I have to severely limit anything that isn't wheat or whole grain.  I also don't eat sugar.  Also, if you drink alcohol with any of those, watch out!  (like pizza and beer).  Heck, went to Burger King, ate a small fry and my sugar started dropping.  I can tell in the very early stages and carry glucose tablets I get at the drug store in my purse.  Pop 1 or 2 of them and I'm good.  They each have only 4g of sugar, so it's not a lot, but enough.  I have only passed out once that was in the early days of RH, before I really knew what was going on.  I paired a margarita and tortilla chips.... won't do that again.  Heck, just talking about going out to eat at a Mexican restaurant makes my sugar funky! Processed carbs are NOT my friend.  At this point, I KNOW having RH is the main reason I haven't gained back even more weight than I have because I do concentrate on a low carb diet/lifestyle. 

You may want to get tested for epilepsy, I've also heard it can happen after RNY.  I can't answer for RNY to DS conversion.  I did talk to Gina about it a few years ago when my RH was not as controlled.... but I didn't end up looking into it.  Once I realized what my triggers were I was able to do it that way. 

Your life sounds a lot like mine...but I don't have anything I specifically react to.  In fact, I can eat oatmeal with stevia on it and in 2-3 hours I am seizing.  I had two clonic-tonic (grand mal) seizures in Israel, fortunately people there are so helpful and kind they took excellent care of me until paramedics could be there.  I have had a few since returning last year and I have simple partial seizures and myoclonic seizures almost daily.  Acarbose helps but I want to get it to stop without pharmacological intervention because it is THAT bad.  I carry peanut butter crackers and glucose tabs.  I have gained a lot of weight because I eat when it happens and never know when it WILL happen.  I have become anxious, depressed, panic stricken and have agoraphobia to a degree partly because of it (there are other reasons).  So I am able to deal with it but it's not what I consider to be a lifetime solution since my sugars can drop to