HELLO, I have been thinking of having VSG surgery. I would like to know honest opinions from those who have had the surgery. Please give me the goods, bad and anything in between. I have been on so many diets and am really tired of the merry go round. If you have any advice please let me know. I have thought about RNY but don't think that is for me. I have heard many good things about VSG. Thanks, Julie

I am only seven weeks out but so far I don't regret my decision.  I have not had any major issues.  It is a change and it is an adjustment.  You do have to work with your head and old habits.  Advantages are losing weight albiet slowly for me.  I am already off my diabetes medication-Metformin.  I am off of one of my blood pressure medications.  I feel good and on the road to getting healthy.

I do like that VSG does not have the maiabsorption but it does restrict the amount you eat. 

I had looked into surgery ten years ago but then it was an open RNY.  I was not ready to make that commitment.  Laproscopic is the way to go.  I returned to work in two weeks and did not have any issues.  Now, the surgery itself.  It is major surgery and I was nauseous on Day 2.  I was achy for several weeks.

Thanks for your response and congratulations on taking the big step. I have thought about this for years and I want to cover and know all I can before taking the next step. Good luck. Julie

I will give you my experience with the sleeve.
I am over 2 years post op.
I was 52 years old when I had my surgery. I weighed 263 and am 5 ft tall. I was wearing 26/28 clothes.
I lost 135 lbs in 10 mos and now wear size 6 mostly some size 4.
I had no problems with surgery or recovery but many folks do experience pain and fatigue but that was not my experience.
I had my surgery done in MX. I had surgery on Friday morning, got the IV out Sat night night as I was able to take in liquids with no problems.. 2 leak tests done on Satruday, in addition to 2 leak tests done while still in surgery showed no leaks. Drain came out on Sunday and I went to the hotel across from the hospital. Yes it was a hospital and not a clinic. I felt very comfortable leaving the hosptial since there was no medical reason for me to be there. I did not even need or take any pain meds after I left the hospital. Again this was MY experience and others had very different experiences.
I was well enough that I came home on Monday with no issues. I went back to work the following week with no issues of fatigue.
I easily progressed from liquids to mushies to food etc with no issues.
The good news is I can eat any foods with no problems the bad news is I can eat any foods with no problems.
I am respoonsible for the choices I make about what I eat.
I do not eat low fat or low calorie or low carb per se.
I am mindful of carbs but do not restrict them since I am not actively losing any more.
I shoot for around 100 gms of protein and carbs per day and that works well for me.
I have become and avid hiker so I do burn calories while hiiking .
I hope this helps.

Hi Julie. 2 months post op and all is great with me. Very happy with the surgery, recovery and weight loss. Love being able to eat whatever I want though I don't eat junk anymore. Why? Not sure. I don't think it's the lack of hunger or the limit of my stomach volume. For some reason it's easier to get out there and exercise and stay on high protein/low carb diet.

Negatives
The only bad would be WLS still has a little bit of a stigma. It's a little weird eating out and "picking" at normal size portions. The benefits of the surgery outweigh any negatives by a hundred to one. Out of pocket cost. Some people pay 20k w/o insurance. 5k for me so cannot complain.

Positives
Massive weight loss, getting your health back, off meds, feeling fantastic, no longer embarrassed about my physical appearance, old clothing fitting and getting big again. It's pretty much priceless!

GL picking your WLS

Alex

 Julie:

I am almost 8 weeks out and have had almost all positive experiences with VSG.  Thank God my doctor even mentioned VSG.  I had NEVER heard of it   My family and I are in the process of trying to move overseas and I was going to switch from the Lap to Rny, although I was not thrilled about RnY.  My best friend had RnY and looks fan-fricking-tastic now, but she had quite a bit of illness and a hernia surgery along the way.  I wasn't sure I wanted to go that route and mentioned that to my doctor.  She said she would check if the insurance would cover something called a sleeve.  The more I read about it, the more excited I became.  Well, I saw my surgeon on May 17th and my insurance just began covering the sleeve on May 15th.  I figured that was a sign.  I did it and have never regretted it.

Negatives:  I had an allergic reaction to the surgical glue, but that would have happened regardless of the surgery.  I had nausea on day two in the hospital, but I think that was because the orderly took me on a wild ride through the hospital on the way to the x-ray room.  I still battle head hunger, but that is my problem, not caused by my choice of surgery.

Positives:  I am the 7th person at work to have this surgery and the other 6 had RnY.  Every person that has commented on my weight loss has also said how healthy I look during the process, unlike those who had RnY.  I attribute this to the fact that I do not have the malabsorbtion issues that RnYers have.  My surgeon just came back from a huge bariatric seminar a few weeks ago and she said all the talk was about the VSG.  She said that a doctor presented his own case study, using his patients who had RnY and VSG.  She said the findings were phenomenal for the VSG and that after 5 years, there is virtually no difference in results.  She believes that the VSG will become the WLS of choice amongst bariatric surgeons.  She also said that I have been her most successful patient to date, so that made me feel great.

Good luck on your choice.  

~Heather

hmmm...okay, I am 18 months out, I started out at 240-5'3" now 116 pounds....almost 4 months post plastics...I love my sleeve! 

Hi Julie,
I started at 196 lbs. and am now 104 lbs.  I am 5'1".  It took me 6.5 months to reach goal.  I can not think of a single bad thing to say about the sleeve.  I would do it again in a heartbeat.  I love the way I feel and look.  Oh wait, wait, I just thought of a negative, I spend way to much money on new clothes now and I had to through out all my old shoes as my feet shrank a full size.  That's about the worst of it.  I LOVE MY SLEEVE!!!!!  I am about 14 months out from surgery.

Julie, just spend some time reading posts on this forum - you will find out everything there is to know about our experiences and feelings about Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy. We all had it because we believed it was the best of all the available options in WL surgeries. Quick, relatively easy, permanent, few complications, etc. I had a 27 minutes surgery, 2 more days in hospital then flew home and carried on with my life. Some fatigue, some struggle with liquids only the first month then everything has gotten better.
It's the right choice as far as I was concerned - and I did alot of research. The minute I heard about the VSG - I knew it was for me! No dobts, and no regrets!!
Good luck to you.

I really think it is the best decision I have made, I have lost alot with more to go and feel so much better. Right now Im in a stall but I'm sure it will pass.

THE GOOD -
lots of weight loss
I can eat almost anything I want
weight loss with or without exercise sometimes
new clothes
no more carpal tunnel or neck pain
lower blood pressure
feel great
not tired all the time
sex is MUCH better!

THE BAD-
Constipation and Diarrhea - go figure
I can eat almost anything I want
long stalls and less weight loss as you go
wearing sacks that are your former clothes - I only have one pair of jeans that fit and I refude to but new until I lose another 10lbs


Hope this helps!

I loved reading all the responses to Julie16's post.  I am so excited about getting VSG.  I get mine in October.  Whoooo Hoooooo!!!  I can't wait..............Time to breathe...the here responses got me way to excited!!!!  Gotta calm down.

The sleeve is the best gift I could have given myself!  Good luck with your decision.

Thank all of you for your responses. I hope that I can gain the strength and courage to make a good choice. I love the honest comments and the information you all have given me. I will keep reading and trying to learn all I can about the surgery. THANKS SO MUCH !

                                                                                                             Julie

I am 4 months post-op and have absolutely no regrets.  Most of us have a time of panic before the surgery where we know the surgery will not work for us because we have failed to lose weight so many times before.  Well I still have a little bit of that fear BUT I have lost 55 lbs in 4 months.  The month of July was kind of a bummer because I only lost 2 pounds then again I lost 3 pounds this week.  I have cleaned 5 lawn and leaf bags of clothes out of my closet.  I started this in tight sized 24 pants (even had some elastic waist pants, which I hate) and 3X shirts.  When I started my waist was 50 inches.  As of this morning it is 41 inches.   I had always prided myself on being a "healthy" fat person but that changed this past year.  During my preop physical I was diagnosed with diabetes and high blood pressure.  Those things are gone.  I feel wonderful.  It has been so hot and miserable this summer and normally I would just hide in the house.  This year I get up early and go for a walk before it gets hot.  I try to walk 1- 1.5 miles each morning.  I would never have done this a year ago.  This past week my hubby and I went to a Maryland state park on our way home from Pennyslvania.  It was 85 degrees and we hiked half a mile to see a waterfall.  I enjoyed the walk instead of worrying I was going to die on the trail or obsessing that I still had to walk ALL THE WAY BACK. 
I will tell you that I was pretty miserable for the first week after surgery but I would do it all over again.  I have my life back.  I never felt terribly unhappy as an overweight person until the past year.  Now I am elated and working hard at living the life I have not for a few years.  I still don't love exercise but I once I get started I don't hate it either.  I eat fairly normally now.  Occasionally I find a food that does not sit well for me but that is unusual.  I do not consider any foods off limits but I do weigh my desire for a food vs my need to lose weight.  99% of the time I make the best decisions and yes there is that other 1% where I don't.  I eat in restuarants and always bring home leftovers but seldom eat them.  My friends all know I had the surgery and they have been very supportive.  Good luck making your decision.  For me this has been a wonderful journey so far but I still have a ways to go.

I am 23 months post op, and I have no regrets at all about my decision to have the sleeve.

I went into this having very extensively researched every form of wls that existed.  I wanted the sleeve, but was not certain that I could get it.  When I learned that the VA would pay for a sleeve, i was estatic.

I have had no complications, other than those i caused myself (from eating too much, eating too fast or both).

The rate of weight loss, and the total weight loss with the sleeve is comparable to that with the RnY.  The weight of weight regain is MUCH higher with the RnY than it is with the sleeve.

You also can never again take NSAIDS (such as most arthritis medications, aspirin, etc.) after having the RnY.  This is NOT a problem with the sleeve (that was very important to me, because I do have extensive arthritis).

I was 65 years old and had a BMI over 50 when I had my procedure done.  I reached my goal in 16 months (and I was NOT 100% compliant with my diet).  I do not have a single regret, except that I did not have this done a LOT sooner.

I suspect that in a few more years, there will not be a single insurance company in the USA trhat will even pay for an RnY.  They have way too many short and long term complications, the rate of weight regain is way too high with them and in my opinion, they fail far too many people.