Surgery fears and decisions

Hey. I'm 22 years old and have recently decided to have bariatric surgery. I'm 330 lbs and have been overweight my whole life. I'm leaning towards the bypass but how did you all decide to get the bypass over the sleeve or any other surgery? Also, i've heard a lot about hair loss. That really scares me. How real is that and will it definitely happen?

Thank you.

HI. I can understand the "being overweight my whole life." I'm almost 50 years old and have literally been overweight since I was 10 years old. I had RNY April 9, 2015. I was 315.4lbs, lost 7lbs on my one week liquid diet, and right now I'm at 221lbs. Pretty amazing. I decided on RNY, the gold standard, after a lot of research and speaking with my surgeon. I basically wanted the least invasive procedure with the best results. Keep in mind, all of these procedures are invasive and major surgery...and major surgery comes with risks. I think it's a very personal decision, so I would recommend that you take the time to read, research, go to meetings and speak to your doctor. This is life changing, but it is NOT easy and has lifelong requirements that you MUST be able to do to be successful AND be healthy.

This website is an amazing tool. You will find a TON of information, so use the little looking glass at the top right to explore and find information.

As far as hair loss goes. Yes, it is real...very real for me. However, I have heard that it does not happen to everyone. I have very thick, coarse hair and for a good 3-4 months it looked like I had a poodle in the sink and tub. It was definitely unnerving, but at my 6 month mark, it has all but returned to just normal hair loss. I can tell the difference for sure, but no one else seems to have noticed.

I think you have to consider that this is a bit of a dance with the devil. You will have to deal with some significant events, but you will gain your health through the weight loss...however, you must be ready to commit for life. Keep in mind that this is just a tool...I know folks who have had WLS and have gained the weight back. I'm not trying to scare you, but because you are so young, you need to make sure that you are fully ready for what is to come.

I chose RNY because I had GERD, which often gets worse with the sleeve. I haven't had any problems with GERD since my surgery.

I'm five months out and so far I've had no hair loss, but I know it can start as late as six months out (although it seems it most commonly starts at 3-4 months out, so hopefully I'll dodge that bullet). It sounds like for most people, even though they notice the hair loss, it's not really enough for others to notice.

I'm 20 years older than you, and just had the RNY. When I first started researching weight loss surgery, I was leaning toward the sleeve, but my primary doctor, and then my surgeon, really thought the RNY would be better, since I HAD type 2 diabetes. I emphasise HAD because at 2.5 months out my blood sugars are completely normal.

I've lost 67 pounds since I started the journey. It is a complete lifestyle change, but I think it's totally worth it.

Good luck to you.

I had RNY at age 30 after looking into it for 3 years. I had RNY because VSG was a bad fit with my GERD. My husband had VSG and has done really well too. I lost a lot of weight pre-op and started losing my hair even before surgery, but it's not like I have bald spots. It just got a LOT thinner, which I honestly don't hate -- I only have to wa**** twice a week now, and it's much sleeker and more manageable than it was. :) And I know it will grow back. My husband, of course, doesn't appear to have lost a single hair, lol.

As far as hair loss, I spoke with my hair stylist about it, she says she think it has something to do with the anesthesia not this surgery exactly because she's seen it happen in other people too, but she did assure me that if there was any hair loss, it would come back and not to make that a big part of the decision making process.

Hope that helps..