why you decided not to have ds?!?!
(deactivated member)
on 7/5/11 1:04 pm, edited 7/5/11 3:42 am - CA
on 7/5/11 1:04 pm, edited 7/5/11 3:42 am - CA
Now this makes perfect sense to me. I totally agree with you there- Barrett's is def BIG reason not to get a DS or even an RNY, and also past history of cancers cuz some are treated with pills not just chemo.
I know when I was in the hospital for a kidney stone the month after my surgery I also had low potassium and my PCP prescribed pills, until I let her know and showed that they weren't being absorbed because the blue tablets were floating in the toilet. Then I got the wonderful burning infusions.
edited to add the next paragraph.
I know when I was in the hospital for a kidney stone the month after my surgery I also had low potassium and my PCP prescribed pills, until I let her know and showed that they weren't being absorbed because the blue tablets were floating in the toilet. Then I got the wonderful burning infusions.
edited to add the next paragraph.
I choose the RNY over DS because I felt it would work best for me. I didn't like the idea of any more bathroom issues nor of having to be so diligent with the supplements. I needed to control my eating and get my cholestrol, triglicerides and type 2 diabetes under control.
To me it is a personal choice. You have to research each surgery and find what suits you best not what suits other people.
Good luck in what ever you choose. I have no regrets in my decision.
To me it is a personal choice. You have to research each surgery and find what suits you best not what suits other people.
Good luck in what ever you choose. I have no regrets in my decision.
I would have had to both self pay and go out of country for DS, and that did weigh in to the decision, but mostly I chose RNY vs DS because:
1.) I considered the DS to be a higher risk surgerery even though I was superobese.
2.) My surgeon strongly and vociferously agreed with that.
3.) Through thorough self examination I came to believe that success in any surgery lay in how well I could transition behaviour modification and dedicated myself to that pursuit.
Best of luck in your decision,
Mo
1.) I considered the DS to be a higher risk surgerery even though I was superobese.
2.) My surgeon strongly and vociferously agreed with that.
3.) Through thorough self examination I came to believe that success in any surgery lay in how well I could transition behaviour modification and dedicated myself to that pursuit.
Best of luck in your decision,
Mo
I chose the RNY because other than the lap band that was the only WLS that my insurance covered. I am pleased with my results. I am 2 years out and struggling to loose atleast 30 more pounds. I can eat almost anything except sweets which is really good.
The RNY cured my diabetes and high blood pressure almost immediately.
If you went in for a DS consult, why has it been changed to RNY. Does your surgeon think the RNY would be better for you? I would suggest go with your surgeon's advice. Good luck to you and I'm making room for you on the loser's bench.
The RNY cured my diabetes and high blood pressure almost immediately.
If you went in for a DS consult, why has it been changed to RNY. Does your surgeon think the RNY would be better for you? I would suggest go with your surgeon's advice. Good luck to you and I'm making room for you on the loser's bench.
I did have a DS and I revised from it because I had bad side effects. I won't go into detail because I have hashed it out many times and you could check my previous posts if you wish but lets just say me and malabsorption didn't get along. I wasn't compliant and ate a lot of carbs and had a lot of diarrhea and gas. I also didn't follow the vitamin regiment as I should have and had deficiencies as a result.
I will say this, at the risk of being flamed, which I have been numerous times for stating my experiences, but there is a reason that not a lot of doctors do the DS and it isn't because they are lazy, money grubbing people who don't want to learn a surgery that won't make them a butt load of money. I think it has more to do with not wanting to be liable for the dangerous results when a patient isn't compliant and sadly that stats show that is a lot of patients. That is also why the insurance companies aren't covering it. The savings just aren't there. My surgeon and the hospital I had the surgery in won't do it any more because there have been a high percentage of complications. The surgery has been performed for many years so it's not like it is experimental like I heard nearly 9 years ago when I had the surgery.
It is a great surgery, especially for those who are SMO but it is also a dangerous surgery for those who can't be 100% compliant. If you lose your insurance, which has happened to many, how are you going to pay for the expensive labs that need to be run? If you lose your job how are you going to pay for the supplements you need, which can get very costly? Unfortunately, most WLS patients aren't as diligent as some on OH and don't have the ability for whatever reason to be able to be as compliant as they need to be. I was one of them. I had the surgery and lost a lot of weight and then, because of my bad eating habits and maybe because the surgery wasn't done correctly, I don't know, but I regained most of the weight I lost and mistakenly thought that if I was gaining weight I must be absorbing vitamins.
By this time last year I was so sick I couldn't function. I am still getting my health back slowly. I regret that I didn't know more about what I was doing to myself.
In hindsight I realize I would have been better served with a longer common channel and a smaller stomach. My surgeon left my stomach to big and I never felt restriction. I was always hungry. I also would have been better served with a lot more education and follow up. The hospital I went to has a miserable bariatric program. They don't mind doing the surgery but they do little, if anything to prepare you for post op life.
Since my revision, which reduced the amount of malabsorption I have and also gave me a RNY pouch, I have completely changed the way I eat. I totally avoid all refined carbs. My side effects are gone. I still take a ton of vitamins because I don't trust malabsorption and I never want to go back to how sick I was. I am careful with my labs to make sure my levels aren't declining and if they are I increase my supplements.
Not trying to talk anyone out of it. Like I said, it is the best surgery there is for weight loss, maintenance and resolution of comorbidities, but it comes at a cost. If you think you are up to the responsibilities and are informed about all the risks, and have an excellent surgeon with an excellent program, then you will be very happy like many DS post ops are.
Just to add, I really didn't want to get a pouch because of all the horror stories I had heard but I was scared to death that I was going to really regain out of control without help. I figured I had gained 100lbs with malabsorption, what would happen without it. It has not been nearly as bad as I expected or maybe I am just lucky. No food intolerance's (except sugar, I dump so I stay away, which is good). I eat whatever I want except refined carbs, which should probably be avoided after a DS, too, since simple carbs are always absorbed 100% and can cause miserable side effects. I have lost all my excess weight and don't really feel that different. Of course I worry about reactive hypoglycemia. Given the choice I would rather have kept my pyloric valve but I found out after the fact that my surgeon removed my remnant stomach so there is nothing I can do about it except be glad that right now I don't have any bad effects because of it.
I will say this, at the risk of being flamed, which I have been numerous times for stating my experiences, but there is a reason that not a lot of doctors do the DS and it isn't because they are lazy, money grubbing people who don't want to learn a surgery that won't make them a butt load of money. I think it has more to do with not wanting to be liable for the dangerous results when a patient isn't compliant and sadly that stats show that is a lot of patients. That is also why the insurance companies aren't covering it. The savings just aren't there. My surgeon and the hospital I had the surgery in won't do it any more because there have been a high percentage of complications. The surgery has been performed for many years so it's not like it is experimental like I heard nearly 9 years ago when I had the surgery.
It is a great surgery, especially for those who are SMO but it is also a dangerous surgery for those who can't be 100% compliant. If you lose your insurance, which has happened to many, how are you going to pay for the expensive labs that need to be run? If you lose your job how are you going to pay for the supplements you need, which can get very costly? Unfortunately, most WLS patients aren't as diligent as some on OH and don't have the ability for whatever reason to be able to be as compliant as they need to be. I was one of them. I had the surgery and lost a lot of weight and then, because of my bad eating habits and maybe because the surgery wasn't done correctly, I don't know, but I regained most of the weight I lost and mistakenly thought that if I was gaining weight I must be absorbing vitamins.
By this time last year I was so sick I couldn't function. I am still getting my health back slowly. I regret that I didn't know more about what I was doing to myself.
In hindsight I realize I would have been better served with a longer common channel and a smaller stomach. My surgeon left my stomach to big and I never felt restriction. I was always hungry. I also would have been better served with a lot more education and follow up. The hospital I went to has a miserable bariatric program. They don't mind doing the surgery but they do little, if anything to prepare you for post op life.
Since my revision, which reduced the amount of malabsorption I have and also gave me a RNY pouch, I have completely changed the way I eat. I totally avoid all refined carbs. My side effects are gone. I still take a ton of vitamins because I don't trust malabsorption and I never want to go back to how sick I was. I am careful with my labs to make sure my levels aren't declining and if they are I increase my supplements.
Not trying to talk anyone out of it. Like I said, it is the best surgery there is for weight loss, maintenance and resolution of comorbidities, but it comes at a cost. If you think you are up to the responsibilities and are informed about all the risks, and have an excellent surgeon with an excellent program, then you will be very happy like many DS post ops are.
Just to add, I really didn't want to get a pouch because of all the horror stories I had heard but I was scared to death that I was going to really regain out of control without help. I figured I had gained 100lbs with malabsorption, what would happen without it. It has not been nearly as bad as I expected or maybe I am just lucky. No food intolerance's (except sugar, I dump so I stay away, which is good). I eat whatever I want except refined carbs, which should probably be avoided after a DS, too, since simple carbs are always absorbed 100% and can cause miserable side effects. I have lost all my excess weight and don't really feel that different. Of course I worry about reactive hypoglycemia. Given the choice I would rather have kept my pyloric valve but I found out after the fact that my surgeon removed my remnant stomach so there is nothing I can do about it except be glad that right now I don't have any bad effects because of it.
WLS 10/28/2002 Revision 7/23/2010
High Weight (2002) 240 Revision Weight (2010) 220 Current Weight 115.
Hmmmm... my reply was that I chose RNY over DS because of concern about some of the very same things posted by LadyTazz and you called me clueless based on my reply (and couldn't be bothered to explain your rude comment) but she gets applause...?
Lora
Lora
14 years out; 190 pounds lost, 165 pound loss maintained
You don't drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.
I originally went for the rny I went through everything needed for surgery and while waiting for approval I started researching the ds surgery and changed my mind now I am stuck at square one and don't know what to do!!! The only reason I don't want rny is Bc I am scared Of regain! I still and thinking but don't have much time Bc I have to call and cancel the rny soon an start all over with the ds if I decide to switch. When I told the center that I was going to rny that I want to switch to ds she said its very risky so risky that that hospital doesn't cover it! So I dunno what to do!
My honest opinion? It's worth starting the whole process over again if you feel you would be more successful with the DS. It's a major life choice and you should go with the option that affords YOU the greatest chance of success, not what insurance or the hospital says.
Best of luck with whatever you choose!
Best of luck with whatever you choose!
My concern was with the food requirements after seeing many posts from DSers and the number of calories they need daily. I had little control over quantity or calories pre-surgery and it truely frightened me that in the long term, I wouldn't be able to comply correctly and would go back to old eating habits simply because of a DS long term malapsorption. Plus I was afraid my blood pressure issues wouldn't resolve with weight loss and was concerned with malapsorption of meds when I'm 60, 70, 80+.
Could going back to old eating habits happen with the RNY? Of course, I don't lie to myself and say that might not happen. We'll have to see how that pans out!
I think the DS is a great surgery and it's fantastic how successful patients are, it just wasn't a good fit for me.
Could going back to old eating habits happen with the RNY? Of course, I don't lie to myself and say that might not happen. We'll have to see how that pans out!
I think the DS is a great surgery and it's fantastic how successful patients are, it just wasn't a good fit for me.
Most Active
Recent Topics