Controversial - Ghrelin is actually a GOOD thing!

The issue isn't ghrelin. The issue is that whenever anyone changes their body, something is effected. I had my gall bladder removed which slightly effected how my body stores fat (slightly being the key word). I had a hysterectomy which caused me to have to replace hormones lost. I have hypothyroidism and it causes me to take meds daily. I am pre-diabetic which means I have to take daily meds for it. I have joint pain which causes me to see a chiropractor regularly,

All of these problems are directly related to HOW FAT I AM.

If I get a Sleeve and lose weight and my body changes to thin and luscious how many problems go away along with the reduced amount of ghrelin?

Hmmm...seems like it's a fair trade off to me.

hmmm very interesting.  I am over 2 years out.  I am just getting through a long depression.

The Coles Version:
-  15 years ago I had major stress and change in my life.  I got depressed for the first time.  Type A personality, would not go off wor****il I was forced to, also would not take meds until I was forced to.  Long story short, I crashed, went on Zoloft was off work for 3 months.  Met hubby and with time got better.

-  Fast forward 15 years.  No depression between then and now.  But had bad PMDD (PMS) and went on Fluoxetine to try and alleviate the mood swings.  It worked, I was a new person, my moods were so much more stable and I could control my mood swings.  I was a bit daft, but hey it was worth it to have peace at home :).  But I have always hated taking pills and especially perscription pills and always wished I could control my moods on my own.

-  Got my VSG and lost my weight, felt amazing, eating right, exercising, slim and trim and happy...

-  Then in January several things happended:
-  we were crazy busy in our Real Estate business.  Stress and lots of it.
-  I saw a documentary on Prozac and other perscription drugs and decided I wanted to get off of it and try something more natural.
-  I am Canadain but live in Belize, so on my own, with hubbies help, we did reasearch and weaned me off of it VERY VERY slowly.
-  I did exstensive research and chose to follow the program with WomenToWomen.com, I take all of my vitamins and supplements from them, including their Herbal Equilibrium, which proports to help with your hormones.
-  It worked!!!!  For awhile..., I was feeling great, and all natural!!!

-  However, a few months ago I realized I was not only still stressed, not exercisesing, crazy mood swings, I was also melancoly and lazy.

After consideralbe discussion hubby and I decided I needed to get back on the Fluoxetine... for the PMDD but also now for Depression.

-  Finally just this week, I have had 3 good days in a row.  I am starting to walk again, but very short distances, I am now able to greet people that come to the door, I don't need to lie down during the day, I don't get as many headaches, chest pains, stomach tightness or panic attacks (never had panic attacks in my life...)  I am starting to feel better.

I went from being happy-go-lucky, and energetic, keeping everything up around here, both home and business wise, and walking 3-4 miles a day.... to barely being able to function.  It scared the heck out of me.

Now I have even more to go on, thank you.  I am getting better and plan to work my way back and beyond where I was, but perhpas for 'me' I was affected in a greater way with the reduced production of Ghrelin...thank you so much for posting this.  It helps me to understand what may be going on.

Would I still choose the VSG, you bet!!  I love my new health and body, I would just have done things a bit different when it came to my meds...  

Thanks again for posting this, all the best in your journey.

Cindy

thanks for thhe links and the discussion is verv valuable

the long term success and potential comlications of vsg or other wls surgerys is still not fully known. Virtually all WLS patients have chosen WLS as a last resort after multiple years of trying everything else.

What most longer term VSG patients have said ( on this site and in person) is the only regret they have had is not doing this sooner. Unfortnately, there are few patients on this site with greater then 5 years experience.

With that said, on balance, i feel VSG is the best option.

When everything works as it should, the sum of our bodies natural functions are all good things.  When something (or many things) in our bodies are out of whack... and as obese people, we ARE out of whack... it becomes a trade-off.

While there are no long-term studies on VSG, I have an aunt who had her entire stomach removed in her 40's due to a rare syndrome.  She had a small pouch made from a portion of intestine, and lived a long, fairly healthy life, up to age 81. 

I'll take her example over that of my dad, who had his first heart attack at age 43 with numerous cardiac surgeries since (including a pacemaker/defibrillator), or his mother, who died unexpectedly of a massive coronary at age 56.

Sometimes it's d-mn-d if you do, and d-mn--d if you don't.

Thanks you for this post - it's an interesting perspective, and I honestly haven't given ghlerin enough thought in my decision process.

I would like to add, though, that DSers have been living with the sleeve for years.  They should have a similar reduction in ghlerin hormones.  :D

You might've already found this but I thought I'd share just in case.

To paraphrase, this article explains that ghrelin not only is directly related to obesity, but it also is directly related to the worst kind of fat - lipids that congregate in the abdominal section and specifically like to hang out on the liver and other organs.

Just fyi.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/05/090520055519.ht m
 

I have always had an issue with depression and anxiety/social phobias...will probably always need a pill to help me see straight....wouldn't mind taking that pill in a lighter, healthier body. I can see the very possibility that in ME, I will need other meds/change in diet, etc to help me stay health than other VSG'rs. NTs are very funny/particular things and something you don't want to screw around with very much unless necessary!

I do see the facts and agree that one thing is not all bad or good in it's self, it's in the relationship with others that will decide that. With that said, with the varying (?) sizes/shapes of sleeves out there, I dont' think it's a concrete 60% drop in hormone level per se.  Although that hormone is made in other parts of the body - time will only tell if that balance will be regained in year 6+.  I won't argue over the medical observations...but I also won't argue that NOT having the surgery is a better thing than keeping the intact stomach in a SM or M obese person. In the long run, we're all guinea pigs...but the point in having the surgery is to almost guarantee that the NOW and very near future will be lived to it's healthier fullest.

Brandilynn girl, you're looking marvelous - almost 2 years out and still "doin it"!  Kick our asses into gear!

I really appreciate the quality of all the responses to my post -- they have helped me with my own decision (RNY vs VSG), though I am still not quite there.  I do agree that there are some perks to reducing ghrelin and most importantly of all, getting the weight off any way we can. 

But I hope very much that the next time someone acts like slashing a major hormone is some no-brainer, great thing for us, one of you will chime in, "Not so fast -- it is not actually that simple!"

 Out of curiosity, since you do seem quite educated, why would you not consider the DS over the RNY? 

I think your theory that depression post-wls could have to do with ghrelin reduction is interesting. You are correct that in normal bodies, ghrelin is generally a force for good, I think. I'm not sure that's true for us (obese folks). Another question I have is whether ghrelin acts on obese bodies the same as non-obese bodies for issues like depression, mental health, etc.

I'm debating VSG vs DS, and I have to admit I'm pretty worried about the impact on mental function for either of them. 

The DS does seem to be by far the most under appreciated WLS, for a number of reasons.  I am toward the lower 40's of the BMI scale for RNY, and they told me no one would do DS on me.  There was a time when the same would have been true for VSG and lower BMI, though I realize the DS is a harder surgery. 

I wish more surgeons across the country had tons of experience with DS, because apart from the supplements (who cares, is my view), you get to live a relatively normal life with respect to food choices and quantity -- and that in itself could only help with mental health.

As to the mental function and biological changes in NPY (neuropeptide Y), ghrelin, et al, I am very worried too.  I wish more people on this site would give a sober account of what the journey is like from a mental perspective, but I understand that people in general want to be supportive and upbeat to help others.

I should ask as to my own decision, does anyone have a sense as to whether those with RNY vs VSG fair any differently with respect to depression, anxiety, ability to relax, etc, esp over the mid to long term (6 months and on)?