I love my sleeve too!

 I just gotta say, here in the privacy of this group, that I am so glad I did not have surgery that involved malabsorption.   The more I read about it, the scarier it seems.  When I was taking meds for diabetes, I would forget that half the time.  Now, if I forget what vitamins I do take for a day or so, it's likely not going to kill me.  And when I get old and decrepit, my caretakers won't have to worry about getting a bucketful of supplements down my gullet 3 times a day.   

I hear you!!  I would never bash a person's surgery choice but I do often wonder why in the world someone would opt for RNY when they could have the sleeve.  Last summer I met someone who is a lightweight and was on the fence between the two and ultimately chose RNY because he KNOWS she NEEDS malabsorption and he WANTS the accountabitlity of dumping, and the RNY is THE GOLD STANDARD  and on and on.  He didn't even know that the malabsorption only lasts for 2 years...his surgeon never even mentioned that part which is a huge deal breaker for me.  With him being a man and being a lightweight I gurantee he would be at goal in 6 months with VSG and I told him that but still he went with the RNY.  I just feel like if you can lose all your weight with a VSG why chance the health problems that an RNY can bring???  It baffles me really.  All you have to do is read Melting Mama's blog or read on the Weightloss Surgery Regrets forum to see that soooooo many RNYers have major problems down the road. 

boy me too. that was the decison maker. As an older vsg patient, i am conscious of future illnesses of old age and i don't know what medicines i might need some day and wanted no part of malabsorption. I also was a fairly heavy user of advil for back and other pain and did  not want to have to forfeit that as nothing else works. interestingly, with over 100 pounds gone, my back rarely hurts and i don't need the advil any more. but i know i am beginning to get some arthritis in my hands and will need advil for that. plus the sleeve is so beautiful in its simplicity and effectiveness. While i wish i could have had wls years sooner, it probably would not have been the sleeve so i am glad things worked out this way. D

I told my surgeon I wanted the sleeve so that I didn't have to worry about medication etc. when I was older.  He had told me that he usually one did the sleeve for people with severe medical issues that required medication.  My point was - I'm only 39.  I have many years to live -who KNOWS what the future holds for me health wise and what medication I might need?  

WHen I I said - he said "good point!" and agreed that if he had to chose WLS for him or his family, he would pick VSG.

Unfortunately, dr's in Ontario are severly limiting patient choice and most people are forced to have Rny or nothing.  One lady was even told on the operating room table, after she had signed consent for the sleeve, that the rules had changed and she no longer qualified.  She had to chose Rny or get dressed and go home!  Terrible.

Me too!  My doc tried to talk me out of my decision to have VSG....he gave me the "gold standard" speech too.  I was so torn, cuz ya know...he's the doc and knows best!  I had done all my research on the sleeve and began to doubt my choice.I told him I would give him my final answer in 24 hours and I did just that....My choice.....and it was 100%  "my choice" was VSG.  It is still the best decision I have ever made for myself!
Happy holidays and it's so good to see Erica on this board!  Love you all!  Vicky

I love my sleeve too, I think that is the one thing about DS that worried me, was if i got older who would make sure that i had the supplementation i needed to stay healthy. i would never willingly have the rny or band..

I think it would be nice though for surgens across the board to get on the same page about supplementation with the vsg, even the labs that are drawn are different  from surgeon to surgeon...

I really do hope that now more insurance companies are covering the sleeve they will make some "standards"  so that patients are all told the same thing so they do know they do need labs drawn and to keep an eye on things like b12,  iron, calcium..  andd maybe they can come to some kind of agreement on bougie size and where to start cutting so that  we dont see in a year or two alot of patients returning with failed surgeries.
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My PCP says the sleeve is the Gold Standard of WLS now.

I can't seem to keep my iron up so I can't even imagine how bad it would be with RNY. The sleeve is a freakin MIRACLE!! I am so happy whoever started doing sleeves was such a brainiac!

I know, it's ingenius really.  I sure they wish they had thought of it long ago. :D

My surgeon does all four surgeries, but you can tell the sleeve is by far his favorite even though he gets paid a great deal more for the RNY and the DS, he still prefers the sleeve in most cases.  I think he has a great deal on integrity because he really tries to educate all his patients about all four choices.  I can't imagine my life now without the sleeve, besides marrying my husband and having my children this is the best decision I have ever made for myself.  I truly feel blessed and it makes it hard for me not to want to tell every heavy person I know about it.