Question:
ARE YOU EVER FREE &CLEAR
OF HEALTH PROBLEMS AND COMPLICATIONS OR WILL IT LAST A LIFE TIME — karen45 (posted on April 13, 2008)
April 13, 2008
Gee, that's kind of an open-ended question. It depends on the medical
condition(s) a person has, I guess. Me personally, I would think that
whatever you end up stuck with is definitely going to be a better situation
than what you had. Obesity kills, right? That's one that a lot of us have
a hard time accepting. But it's the truth.
— Shirley D.
April 13, 2008
Karen,
You got to tell us more about what problems yu have o are having. 4 Months
ago I had High Bood pressure, igh Colestroal, Diabites for 25 years (Type
II) and a shot thyroid. Today I have a A1C of 5.6, no dibaties signs, just
th old damage that was done before my surgery, Blood pressure of 100/50 and
a total colestroal of 95. I still take syntroid for the Thyroid, but all
of the 15 other drugs are a thing of the past. I hd issues following
surgery, but I would call them issues rather than complications.
Complication are things that cause you to have to go back to surgery. We
all have something that happens but all of us are diferent and things are
different that happens following surgery. I would do it all over again in
a heart beat. Yes, Ikne tht my diet would be life changing going forward
for the rest of my life and that I would have to excersize to reach my goal
and maintain it. At leat I can do that, where before nothing worked. Bst
of success to you. Let us know more of what problems you are facng so we
can better address you with a reply.
— William (Bill) wmil
April 13, 2008
Let me preface this by saying that I am not a medical expert. I am just a
weight loss patient. I was taking 70 to 80 units of insulin daily and 4
pills of glucovance 5/500 prior to having the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy
performed on me on the first of March. In only 3 WEEKS I had to DROP all
of my diabetes medications! It didn't happen all at once. I kept
gradually reducing my dosage as needed until I was down to only ONE pill of
glucovance. Finally at the end of 3 weeks my blood sugar had dropped down
to 53 points on day! I HAD to stop taking ALL of my diabetes medications!
My blood sugars after a meal are now running about 113/114 points which are
a little high for NORMAL but are still in NORMAL range. With the advent of
MORE weight loss, I should get closer to normal blood sugar levels. I also
suffer from Fibro Myalgia, Arthritis, Migraines. Chronic Fatigue, Spastic
Colon and Chronic Diarrhea. The Spastic Colon and Chronic Diarrhea have
been resolved by the surgery. the Fibro Myalgia, Arthritis, Migraines and
chronic Fatigue have all been improved to one degree or another by the
surgery and the resultant weight loss.
The Arthritis was relieved almost completely almost immediately. The
Fibro Myalgia has not been fully resolved but has improved significantly.
The same can be said for the Migraines. My Chronic Fatigue has GREATLY
improved. I have MUCH more energy now than I did before. I have lost
nearly 50 pounds in a month and a half (47-49 depending on which scale I
use). My surgeon is looking forward to watching the improvements in health
as I lose the weight.
The Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy that I had is one of the safest weight loss
procedures available with the least amount of complications post op.
Basically all they do is take about 80-85% of your stomach away. They take
the rest and turn it into a tube. Your tiny stomach allows you to loose
the weight you need to lose without dealing with the complications of a
foreign object causing an immune system response or slipping and causing
damage as the LapBand could or causing you to be forced to take special
supplements like the folks who have the Gastric Bypass and the Duodenal
Switch often have to do. Many of these folks have to get their supplements
from their doctors. If they run out or lose them on vacation or they are
caught short on cash when they run out, they are STUCK. This is not an
issue with the Vertical Sleeve Gastrectomy.
The biggest PROBLEM with the VSG is that many insurance companies won't PAY
for it because they consider it to be an "Experimental"
procedure. They forget that it has been done for YEARS in the US
SUCCESSFULLY for OTHER reasons than weight loss. It has been used as a
treatment for stomach Cancer and Ulcers and has been used as the first part
of the Duodenal Switch here in the US for YEARS. There have also been many
doctors in Europe and South and Central America that have been using the
procedure successfully for quite some time. The weight loss and
maintenance is comparable to that of the Gastric Bypass. It does not have
the issues of Malabsorbtion of certain Vitamins, Minerals and Nutrients
that the Gastric Bypass does though. Your intestinal tract remains intact
except for the part of the stomach that has been removed. If you want to
find out more about your options, I have done some research and posted it
on my Profile page. You can find it at
http://www.obesityhelp.com/member/hubarlow/ .
As you can tell, I am somewhat of a prolific writer. There is a segment of
my blog that I have written that deals with the major weight loss surgery
options. It should be about halfway down the page. If not, you may need
to look for it in the archives. Look in March. It may be the first or
second article that you come across. It will give you an idea of what each
surgical option is about with links giving more in dept explanations and
some videos of the procedures. I will warn you in advance though, the
procedures are done on living people. You get to watch them do an actual
real live operation. If you do not have a strong stomach, DO NOT WATCH!
Instead, minimize and LISTEN! The doctors talk about what they are doing
and explain what is good and sometimes what is bad about each procedure.
I hope this helps,
Hugh
— hubarlow
April 13, 2008
18 months and never had a complication -- i have some medical problems but
they are not related to weight -- can you be more specific with your
question
roberta
— RCassety
April 13, 2008
So as not to repeat all of my problems, I suggest reading my profile... I
am 8 1/2 months out from open RNY and still suffering with blood clots and
anemia/dizziness. I just had an emergency lap cholecystectomy on March 6
and Bell's palsy on March 17. I am beginning to wonder the same thing
myself. I had NO, count them, NO health problems, other than obesity,
before surgery and now I have had more problems in the last 8 1/2 months
than I have had in my entire life and I'm 36 1/2 years old!!!!!! I have
been told by people that it can take up to one full year until you feel
completely normal again. I sure hope I am on the road to good health now
because I've had my share. I've had blood clots, anemia, dehydration,
cholecystitis, Bell's palsy... Like I said, for more details, read my
profile.
— ALafferty
April 13, 2008
Hi Karen, if we have problems prior to surgery, and had them a long time,
why would you assume that they all disappear? We do damage to our bodies
by being obese, and then we get older. My goal was to be medication free,
and other than vitamins and calcium, I am mostly medication free (I take a
few things occasionally), but as I age, I get more "stuff", and
then I just deal with the "stuff" as it comes up. There are no
guarantees in life, but one thing is for sure, we did damage to our bodies
by being obese, so the consequences of those choices are also ours.
Patricia P.
— Patricia P
April 14, 2008
Completely depends on the problem. Weight loss surgery can help or cure
some things. I was diet control Diabetic before surgery. My Diabetes is in
remission. I have an A1C of 5.3 (low normal). I no longer have sleep apnea.
I have cut my antidepressant by 2/3's. I take almost no PRN pain medicine
for my arthritis but still take my maintenance med. I still need my Lasix
for peripheral edema.
— Donna O.
April 15, 2008
Having WLS doesn't make you superhuman... so you'll always have the same
health risks as non-WLS people. Depending on the surgery you have, you may
or may not have an increased risk of certain complications.... if you
could be more specific, you'll get more specific answers.
best wishes
— mrsidknee
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