My First Posting
I am considering surgery and am currently going
through all the steps that Kaiser (HMO in California)
requires in order to have them cover it. Right now I am
going from a positive position that they will.I ask as
many questions as I can, but no one seems to have any
post surgery information to give me.I am 53 years old.
Is there any member of this group that has had
surgery several years ago, or know anyone that had
surgerymore than two years ago.One of the hand outs the
counsellor I saw Friday gave me comparing losing weight on
your own as opposed to surgery was very slanted
against the surgery. One of the things it said was that
once life after surgery stabilizes, you can only eat
800-1000 (or less) calories a day or you will gain all the
weight back…..That seems really extreme..they also
implied that your appetite naturally remains the
same.What has it been like for those of you that have been
successful over an extended period of time?I don’t want to
make this posting too long, I have a lot of questions.
Any input would be appreciated
March 16th, 2004 at 7:30 pm
Hello–I am sorry but I have nothing good to say
about this..I had this done in 1979 and I weigh more
today than I did then. And yes it is true you must
still count everything you eat…I would never
encourage any one to have this done but we all must do what
is best for us…Have a great day.. Dee
March 17th, 2004 at 12:51 am
Hi Dee,<br>Please tell us more about your
experience. What exact kind of surgery did you have? Have you
had endoscopy to see if your staples have disrupted?
Have you considered having your surgery revised to one
of the more modern versions of WLS? Many, many of
the people who had surgery fifteen or more years ago
gained all thier weight back, but it was a failure of
their surgery, not of themselves. Good Luck to you, and
please stay with us.
March 17th, 2004 at 7:19 am
There is an alternative surgical solution that is
done in many countries except the USA where it is
undergoing approval from FDA. It is called Adjustable
Gastric Banding. You can find information in
www.surgicalteam.com/obesity. Hundreds of Americans have travelled abroad for
this procedure. Good luck.
March 17th, 2004 at 12:40 pm
I understand your problem. I suggest you visit
www.surgicalteam.com/obesity. They perform Adjustable Gastric Banding that is
still undergoing approval for FDA in the USA, but is
being performed since many years in many countries.
Also, they’ll give you complete information on preop
and postop procedures. Check it out.
March 17th, 2004 at 4:53 pm
Hi again—I had intestional bypass in 79.<br>I
don’t know what happened but I weigh more<br>today than
I did back then..and I suffered a lot too. As I
said we all have to do what is best for us. Good luck
to each one of you..<br>Dee
March 18th, 2004 at 7:37 pm
Hi,<br><br>I would like to respond to your
posting with positive information. There are several
sites you can go to for information. One is
www.asbs.org which will give you doctors names and information
on the surgery also you can go to
www.surgeryforobesity.com. <br><br>I had a RNY gastric bypass 1 year ago and
my best friend had the surgery 3 1/2 years ago. I
don’t know who gave you your information, I can tell
you that if you eat low carb after surgery and stick
to a healthy exercise program you should not gain
back the weight. <br><br>Do keep in mind this surgery
is a tool to help you lose weight you still have to
make the right choices in food. High carbs and high
surgar will slow down or stop the weight loss. <br><br>I
have lost 135 lbs. I went from a size 24/26 to a
10/12. I cannot tell you how this surgery has changed my
life for the better. I would do it again tomorrow and
I had complications 8 months after surgery which
have been fixed. <br><br>For Dee yes with the old
stapling there were many severe side affects and people
did gain back their weight. My doctor has done
several revisions. <br><br>When looking for a surgeon
please ask the following questions about their after
care. Is there a support group, does the surgeon have a
nutritionist and pscylogist on staff. How often do you get
your blood checked and visit the doctor. My doctor has
all of these on a monthly basis for the first year or
until goal is reached. Then it goes to every 3 months
then 6 months then once a year for life. He has been
doing these types of surgeries for over 15
years.<br><br>I wish you good luck in your research. If I can be
of further help please e mail me
directly.<br><br>Phyliss