Who fails with a DS?

Hi, everyone!
I hope you don't mind me poking my nose in your neck of the woods. 

So I was reading through the DS boards and was just blown away by the success of so many here.  It's amazing.  It almost seems as if EVERYONE with the DS is successful, although I can't imagine that is true.  But... WOW.  As a newbie just wandering around the various boards here, and there are inspiring success stories on every board for every surgery.  BUT the success stories here are just like miracles.  I know you all work very hard for your success, so I don't mean to belittle your efforts in anyway by using the word "miracle"...  but wowzers. It's hard to deny that the DS is a powerful surgery that can help even those of us starting at the highest weights. 

This may seem like an odd question, but for those of you that have been posting here for a long time and have perhaps witnessed DS failures (however you want to define failure - lack of weight loss, noncompliant complications, etc.) -  who are those failures?   Are there certain characteristics in an unsuccessful DS patient? Personality traits? Habits?  Anyone that you just shake your head and say "I saw that coming!"  when they don't lose the weight or regain?    Who are these people?   (And where are they? I can't find them! LOL!)

Thanks in advance for your responses.

I can think of a couple people-- not naming names, of course. Maybe I should say kinds of people:

1) people who are truly addicted to carbs and don't change their eating habits. I know of one person who actually had her DS revised because she "out ate" it and regained. There are also people who cause themselves great gastrointestinal distress because of this. If you don't want to have bathroom troubles, most people have to be willing to follow some dietary rules (or at least to time things well).

2) people who don't take their supplements and cause themselves damage because of it. At times I put myself in this category, although I haven't had any damage YET. But I'm not always perfectly compliant because my supplements still make me nauseous. Its something I'm working on.

3) some people would probably call themselves failures because they haven't reached some arbitrary weight goal they set for themselves. I think we put way too much importance on numbers so I would disagree. But if a specific "goal weight" is really important to you know that some people's bodies just don't reach the point that they would like to reach....or at least not without a lot of work.

That being said, I think the DS gives people the best chance of being successful. It is a wonderful opportunity for people who are willing to do the work that has to be done.

Thank you - great response! 

And, yes, I should have worded my question better to indicated that I was looking for "kinds of people" not actual specific people or names. ;)  I'd never want to single someone out specifically!!!

Thanks!

 You can fail with ANY surgery. I think it's harder to fail with the DS than the others, but it can be done. 

It also depends on your definition of failure. When I dieted prior to surgery, I would gain back any weight I'd lost, plus more. I don't know any DSer who has done that. 

That said, I'd like to be a size 2. I wear an 8, and seem solidly at this size now. Would I like to lose a few more? Sure, but I don't consider myself a WLS failure. I lost weight, just maybe not to my arbitrary goal (I hit my surgeons goal, though, of normal BMI). I have had small fluctuations, but have maintained the majority of the loss, and have still lost a crapload of co-morbs, so that is really what matters more than anything to me. I'm healthy enough to do whatever I want. And I do.

So, if losing weight to get to a healthier place is the goal, it's almost a certainty. If you have a very specific number in mind, you may or may not consider yourself a success. Looking like Barbie afterwards- that goal likely won't be met. 

Looking like Barbie afterwards- that goal likely won't be met.

But but but---I WANNA get a foot taller and have really, REALLY perky boobs! I thought for SURE that part would happen this year...

 LOL

I don't remember my barbies having so much extra skin either

As Shann pointed out in #1, above all else, carb intake is probably *the* most powerful factor in the degree of success or failure. Those people who choose to indulge, especially during the early months, slow progress and continue to profoundly stimulate carb cravings.

By virtue of our anatomical "rearrangement", we have what I suppose you could call an inbuilt armor that can only really be pierced at the persistently thrust sword point of Carbo Man, and the slicing knife ruthlessly wielded by Sugar ****

I have observed over the last 7 years here on OH, that there are folks who have been blessed with an excellent weight loss, but one which, due to a persistently elevated carb intake, will forever hold in the high end of "overweight" status. For many in this population their weight loss has been enough of an improvement to just say, "OK, done deal."

However, I don't think that they could be called failures. Failures would be those at the extreme end of that spectrum and I think that these people have other very, very serious psychological issues.

 Holy Cats, Roz!   It's good to see you here.  Hope all is still well in your garden!

 I thought you were mythical! I don't recall seeing you here for YEARS!

You were here so much when I was a noob, and then you traveled for plastics, which was the first time I realized that such a thing was even possible, lol.

I'm happy you ventured out of the garden for a bit to visit!

I haven't been on OH for a while, so I haven't witnessed any of the latest. But I think we see less of the 'failures' on OH than the stats show BECAUSE they're on OH. One of the biggest downfalls of the DS is the post-op nutritional advice given by NUTS and surgeon - that is corrected if people listen to what they're told here. Those who think their docs are someone to worship and refuse to listen, are likely to be 'less successful' than people who do.

It's easier to be successful by staying away from carbs, for the most part, in the weight-loss phase, but not impossible to succeed by not doing so - might take longer though.

I personally think supplementing aggressively plays a pretty big part, too, maybe even especially during the weightloss phase, to get where you want to be.