regrets??

I've mentioned here before that both my Mom and Sister had vertical banded gastroplasty. Mom had hers when I was 5 (25 years ago), and my sister had hers when I was about 14 (16 years ago).

So, Mom has never gotten bigger than a larger 12 (and that is only because of hypothyroidism) but started out on the smaller side...about 220, size 20 at 5'8. Now she regrets it..and would love to have the band and staples out. She said now that she is 59 that she would love to just eat like normal and who cares if she is fat at this age. She was about 34-35 when she got it. She said back then she loved the weight loss but it has been a long hard road and she just wants to "be normal" now.

My sister has not done quite as well...she started out a little bigger....maybe my size (about a 24) Not sure of her weight because is shorter than me by 4 inches. Anyway..she has fluctuated from a size 8 to a 22 since surgery. Now she is a 16 or so....but she leads a very sedentary life. Like she literally spends 80% of her life on a couch.  She also regrests her surgery..and wishes she never had it. Hers I can blame on the fact that she had much les success.....

I also know that their surgery is no fun at all. You get the pukies just like the bandsters...Mom still "turns green" almost daily and throws up at least a couple times a week. She eats a lot of junk because that is what she can hold down...and still has to avoid most red meats (esp steaks) Both of them tolerate sweets very well, and eat a lot of them.

So...has surgery truly made them healtier when they eat so much junk? I dont know...I know getting the weight off helps...but after spending so many year puking, I know that does not do a body good either......



Both know better than to try and stop my but are very sad that I am going to spend a life like they do. I try and tell them that I do not think the sleeve will be like theirs, but how can I tell them this for a fact?? I have not had the surgery and do not know what I will deal with.


THOUGHTS?? Do you REGRET your sleeve? Do you have these symptoms? Do you just want to go back to eating "normally"?

Ive never heard of those complications with the sleeve.

I wish I could go back to eating the way I did all my life. I kind of miss it.  I do not wish to put the weight back on. So unfortunately for me, I had to choose one or the other, and I made my choice. I'm still hoping that one day it will be worth it - i'm not at that point yet where I can say for sure that it was, but I think obesity (and in my case, super morbidly obese) is harder to live with for the rest of my life than smaller portions.

I am 5 weeks out and I have had no puking, no sickness unless I eat to fast.  And I don't get sick tummy just hurts.  I eat regularly and regular food, just not as much as I use to.  I didn't care for my sleeve at first either because my mind wanted to eat junk... it's a lifestyle change.  You don't just have surgery to lose and then eat crap.  But I love my sleeve now and I have no regrets and no problems.

I'm still early out- but sadly, those reasons plus lack of success with that surgery is why it's just not done anymore.. 

No, I never puked (well, once after taking a multi on an empty stomach) and I have not read of anyone doing so past the early learning stage where a couple bites too many can cause it.. I do eat normally now, I'm making the choice to restrict carbs.. but am positive if I wanted to eat them, I could with no issue.. steak, overcooked chicken (haha).. all go down fine.

With the "banded" part of their stomach- they have a pouch, and an artificial stoma (the opening to the lower half of the stomach.. so yes, they will have all the typical downsides of the band.. stuck food & puking.. They could revise to a sleeve if they wanted and live a much more normal life, or even have the band removed and deal with a slightly larger stomach with the staple line left intact.. just rest assured, this is not what you will have to deal with in the future.

Edit: I should say, they MAY be able to revise.. 

Mom had always been told it could be removed. She is in the early stages of looking into a revision, but at her size I doubt it would be covered.

With puking all the time, even if it weren't, it'd be worth paying out of pocket. That would truly be a crappy way to live.. I'm sorry she's going through that.

My sister also had VBG at about age 25 (now 54) and weighed about 315, got down to maybe 140, (too thin on her!) but now weighs right at 200. She has all the issues you describe including the inability to hold down much food that isn't pure junk. Still, she knows she would probably weigh 400 or more had she not had the surgery, and that she would still have high blood pressure and with our family history maybe even diabetes by now.  I  have often heard her say it beats being so huge she couldn't walk 50 feet w/o huffing and puffing.
Anyway, all the bad parts of this surgery were evident from day one. I am really glad the options have improved, or I would have been very hesitant to have surgery.
I'm actually not sure VGB can be revised, at least the kind my sis had,because the shape of the pouch is so weird and not lined up the way my sleeve is--in fact my sister's is more like a donut, sort of--hard to explain.

Anyway, so far--NO, I would not even think about undoing my sleeve surgery.

Yeah, the pics of VBG look spooky.. and I read there generally is a lot of scar tissue from that band, moreso than the current adjustable band on the market. Here's a pic from online:

 I have not had any problems with any foods making me throw up. At first i had issues with meat being dry not that it made me sick it just felt heavy and my stomach didnt like the feeling of it so i started choosing better quality meats... problem solved

I think its important to note that for most of us obesity is something that we will have to fight for ever and that means eating on plan at least 90 percent of the time...

If we give in and were to eat a ton of junk foods then i know i could and probably would probably gain all my weight back..

regain with the sleeve for me is not hard to do so... it is something that im going to have to monitor for the rest of my life or i know ill gain a ton of weight..

will i ever get to the point i dont think its worth fighting the fight? i cant answer that.. but i know if i do give up eating on plan.. then ill also have to give up my mobility i regained and gain back alot of pain i lost since losing the weight...

this procedure is far superior to the VBG.

There is no puking (unless you overeat but do that once or twice and you wont do it again). Life is normal, or maybe better than normal because my normal before SUCKED and now I have my life back.

You eat tiny portions. No big deal. I do eat normally. I eat mostly what I want. Just smaller amounts of it. And once you get over the urge to eat in volume ( i would have killed for a pound of fresh pasta post op, not because i was hungry, because mentally i needed volume) you will be satisfied with what you can eat. You get full. With less food. Nothing beats that.

But you have to commit to the change. It seems easier to eat healthy but you can still eat the wrong things so just know your plan, stick to your plan, and everything will fall into place.
You have to be willing to fill your sleeve with good food instead of junk 24/7. Junk sometimes, fine. In moderation. Here and there.

NO regrets, this gave me my life back.