Hi, a New - New Yorker Here!

Just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Linda and this week I started to seriously research wls. It's been something I've thought about in the past, but then I would get on a diet, start losing weight and cross off wls. Well, I have dieted myself right up to my highest weight ever! Something tells me this is not working. And, as I get older, I can't seem to lose as I had in my younger days. I know this is not an easy fix. It looks like you need a lot of courage and determination. I applaud y'all for taking that step! My initial concern is the risk of complications. My second concern is that if you are an emotional eater, (which I believe most of us are), and food is taken out of the equation, how do you deal with the emotions? As someone who has dealt with depression most of her life, this terrifies me. Any enlightenment would be appreciated! Linda

Hi Linda. I am from Staten Island, but had my surgery in Brooklyn with Dr. g. Ferzli. His main office is in St. Is., but he has an office in Brooklyn, and his Bariatric Surgeries are at Lutheran hospitla. Who are you using? I would be happy to chat with you. I had surg. last Aug, and have lost 107 pounds thus far. Drop me an email if you want to chat. Good luck to you. S

I don't have a surgeon at this point. I am researching wls to see if I want to go this root. I have heard and read of complications from this surgery and it frightened me. I was also concerned about how one eats after the surgery, so I thought I could find answers to my questions here. Were you happy with Dr. Ferzli and his staff? 107 lbs is amazing! How are you feeling? It must be making a big difference in your daily life. Congratulations on your success!!! Linda

Hi Linda and welcome. There are lots of here who can answer your questions about our experiences, but any questions about the procedure and complications should be answered by a surgeon. My advice is to see your PCP and ask for a referral to a surgeon. Also call your insurance company and find out what their requirements. If they require a 6 month doctor supervised diet, at least you start documenting it while you do your research. The one thing to remember is that there can be complications with any surgery. Yes some of them are exclusive to WLS, but some are very common with any surgery. For instance, some of us have had problems with infections and blood clots. Those things can happen with heart surgery or a simple appendectomy. The other thing to remember is that there is no right or wrong decision. There is only what you decide is right for you. This is a very personal decision. Only you can make it. Hopefully with the help and support of the people here and, more importantly, with your family and friends. Your doing the best thing right now by asking questions and researching. The other thing I will suggest is that you complete your profile. Others on the board might want to know some things about you too. Good luck whatever you decide to do. Joanne

Hi Linda, I've been a Pennsylvania resident for 14 years now, but I grew up in East New York in Brooklyn on Pennsylvania Ave. and New Lots. I'm usually at the PA board but decided to venture over to NY today. BTW - I still work in NYC, I commute there everyday. I had Lap-RNY (Roux-en-Y performed laparoscopically) 13 months ago at Barix Clinics in Langhorne, PA by Dr. Alan Brader. I've lost 127 lbs. since my discharge and 140 since my highest weight of 358. I'm no longer diabetic or hypertensive. I lost both of these co-morbidities before leaving Barix. I was there 2 1/2 days. I haven't had to take any meds since April 17th of 2005. The other ladies have given you some very good advice. You can never do enough research, the more you do, the less surprised you'll be if you decide on WLS and all that follows. Research the different procedures and how they work, what do they do? How do you lose weight via Roux-en-Y (RNY) gastric-bypass or the lap-band, etc. You also have to know yourself and how you may use food. You must face this because it's part of the key to deciding on the surgery that will work best for you. You can't half-step when deciding on a surgery. The other component is finding the best surgeon and facility you can find and of course getting it covered by your insurance. I say the best because that will ease your fears about complications. A good surgeon and facility will prepare you pre-surgery and give you the post-op care that will help eliminate many complications. After-care is very important, this includes right after surgery, but also, post-op visits, surgeon and nutritionist availability, and a active support group in place, no one can do this alone. You may choose to keep your WLS decision to yourself, it is a very personal decision, but you'll need some kind of network of personal support to get you through this. Family, friends, significant other and of course the folks here on this site. This site can also provide you much research material. I joined in Jan. of last year and I've visited everyday since then. I invite you to check out my profile for my story with photos. And as Joanne mentioned, when you get a chance, work on your profile. It will provide info so others know a little more about you so they can help you. Take care Linda and best of luck with your decision, Dennis 358/345/218/200

Hi LInda, I did a lot of research via internet some before I went to myh PCP and a lot after my referral to the surgeon. I had to wait for 3 months to get my initial consult and boy I was loaded with information from the net by then. The dr I am using was very upfront about the complications, and even risk of death. He even stated how many were death related and how many surgeries that he had performed. These are some of the questions that you should be prepared to ask any physician. Don't let this information scare you. It is a very serious decision you are making and you should have all the facts before you commit yourself. I had to have a psych eval as a requirement from my insurance and the dr. Most insurances will request one. It sure helps to know what they think about your state of mind going in to this. I am scheduled for surgery 6/14/06. I have made all the clearance appointments so far, but I'm waiting for the insurance to approve. I know exactly how you feel about diets and weight gain constantly. We all went through that with the same results. It seems that we gain what we lost and more and there is no stopping. WLS is a complete turnaround in eating habits. You must read, read and read some more in order to be sure this is what is right for you. Good luck with your decision. And yes, check with your PCP for a referral. I would be glad to answer any questions that you might have.

Hey linda, Complications are the risk with any surgery, the thing is you must weigh that risk with the risk of remaining on the diet roller coaster. After being on diets every year since i was 7 years old, at 33 i weighed 492 lbs. Dieting didn't work for me, I was an emotional eatter..and everytime i got stressed the diet went out the window. At almost 500 lbs i made the decission to have surgery because i was gaining about 50 lbs a year, and figured it wouldn't be much longer before i wasn't able to care for myself. As it was i could barely walk, i could barely breath (i had sleep apena), and i was just in general unhappy...which made me eat more (becaue i was an emotional eatter). I had the Duodenal Switch in manhattan with a great surgeon and didn't have any complications. You really want to find the best surgeon possible, one who has done 1000s of surgeries not just 100s, and one that has a good reputation. The hosptial i had the surgery in (lenox hill) was great...i had my own private room. Do research, find a good surgeon, i ended up traveling 2 hours to manhattan to have the surgery because i felt more comfortable with the surgeon and the hosptial,

Hey linda, Complications are the risk with any surgery, the thing is you must weigh that risk with the risk of remaining on the diet roller coaster. After being on diets every year since i was 7 years old, at 33 i weighed 492 lbs. Dieting didn't work for me, I was an emotional eatter..and everytime i got stressed the diet went out the window. At almost 500 lbs i made the decission to have surgery because i was gaining about 50 lbs a year, and figured it wouldn't be much longer before i wasn't able to care for myself. As it was i could barely walk, i could barely breath (i had sleep apena), and i was just in general unhappy...which made me eat more (becaue i was an emotional eatter). I had the Duodenal Switch in manhattan with a great surgeon and didn't have any complications. You really want to find the best surgeon possible, one who has done 1000s of surgeries not just 100s, and one that has a good reputation. The hosptial i had the surgery in (lenox hill) was great...i had my own private room. Do research, find a good surgeon, i ended up traveling 2 hours to manhattan to have the surgery because i felt more comfortable with the surgeon and the hosptial, then i did with the ones that were closer to my house. I'm now 3 months out of surgery, and if you wouldn't know i had any type of surgery unless i told you. I don't eat that differently (the DS gives you a little bit more freedom in eatting then the RNY, in terms of types of food and amounts), and i have more energy now then i have in years. FYI ...i've lost over 100 lbs in the last 3 months since surgery. Scot

Hi Linda, I was an emotional eater. Since I got my lap band filled for the first time, I lost the desire and ability to emotionally eat. For me, the loss of desire to emotional eat gets stronger with each fill. I just got my third fill. I've been doing well and have lost 77 pounds. You're right, no surgery is a quick fix, just a tool. Good luck with your decision. I myself would not change a thing, this surgery has helped change my life. Kristine