Newbie

Hello....I have been discussing WLS with the dr since about a year and a half ago, but have recently found that things are getting worse so now it is not a discussion, but a decision we are beginning the path to. I have done quite a bit of research and have a few friends that have had WLS so have been picking their brains. I live in NE Oregon and from searching around it's not looking like we have support groups nearby. I have my consultation and seminar Feb 4th. I am interested in learning more and talking to others as well. 

We are excited for you!! Congratulations.  Here are some links to information you may find helpful including a link from a search we did for support groups and your state forum also:

Oregon Weight Loss Forum

http://www.obesityhelp.com/group/action/search/?q=Oregon

http://www.obesityhelp.com/articles/photographing-your-weigh t-loss-surgery-journey/

http://www.obesityhelp.com/articles/weight-loss-surgery-hosp tial-stay-what-to-pack/

http://www.obesityhelp.com/articles/four-on-the-floor-self-c are-after-weight-loss-surgery/

We can't wait to hear from you post-op!

Wow!  I posted a list of peer-reviewed studies from the NIH site and the entire post was taken away.  Are we not allowed to do that? Post peer-reviewed studies?

I think it was a coding issue. I reposted. Thank you!

Thank you for all the info! I did find the Oregon forum too :)

You should visit each of the forums for the types of WLS you are considering and spend some time researching and asking questions. Support doesn't have to be right next door (relatively speaking).

Pete

Meeting a group of people in person once a month isn't nearly as beneficial as the support you get here 24/7.

Not sure I necessarily agree with this assertion- I appreciate very very much my long term support group, as well as all the workshops, retreats, and the one OH conference I've attended. The variety of people, including many professionals and good training and information, has been so helpful.  Plus I've made some good friends that I keep in touch with.

Here on OH is great and useful, but I do like the face time. I like getting to know the real person, not someone I can't know over the internet.

I did the face time thing at an OH event and found the encounter very off-putting especially since the personae that many were keeping online was not the real person.  So I garner my support from the OH message board where I don't have to figure out someone's motivation, it is typically obvious.

My surgeon told a story in his informational meeting, to be leery of those old-timers seeking support, typically they are not wls successes if they still need support years down the road.  That told me all I had to know about him also.  Hence the reason I let him do my surgery and then dropped him like a rock within the first 6 months.  He probably regrets that comment since I am the glowing picture of success yet I refuse to let any or my profile be associated with him. 

Please make sure you consult a Bariatric surgeon and attend info sessions as the main part of your research.   

You're going to find all sorts of passionate positions here as to the best type of surgery to get. But all you can get here is personal opinion and experience, strangers on the internet responding to you, another stranger on the internet. What we can be useful but are not sufficient. We are none of us Bariatric surgeons and you should take that into consideration, and use your surgical consult as the basis on which to make your choice.  

All of the types of surgery have their benefits and disadvantages- there is no perfect weight loss surgery. They also have differing levels of extensiveness and risk. They have differing levels of possibility of complications. Also, everyone is built differently and has different needs one from the other, so the type of surgery you choose will depend on that.  

You have to live with whatever your choice is. There is no right answer, no magic surgery that is going to handle things forever. The body changes are permanent and irreversible with the sleeve, the RNY, and the DS. Some of the surgeries can be reversed or revised, but the damage and scarring will always be there. There is the risk of complications, both short and long term.  

Any weight loss surgery is only good if you work it- it requires tremendous changes of habit and daily attention with managing it- diet, exercise, daily vitamins. It takes the weight off; maintaining the weight loss will be up to you. Habits simply have to change in order for any weight loss surgery to be effective over the long haul.   

The gift of WLS is the weight loss. It takes work, but it happens. The small stomach will still be available, but it will only be a tool and can be worked around so easily.  

After the losing part comes maintenance, which I assure you is no walk in the park- for me it is as hard as dealing pre-op was. That is forever. Plus all of the surgeries can be and often are sabotaged with subsequent regain.  

Am I grateful for my RNY now 3 ½ years ago? You better believe it! I was ready to make the changes needed. I lost and have kept off half my former body weight. My health is so much better. I manage myself well, eat right and I exercise regularly. I am entirely happy living in my shoes these days, and I am not about to blow the gift my surgery gave me.  

So again, please make sure you consult a Bariatric surgeon and attend info sessions as the main part of your research. I would also suggest looking into as many different sources of information as you find including books, internet, and support groups, as well as reading the different forums here. You can also keep posting with your questions.  

Have a rewarding, life changing journey! I don't think you will regret it.