Can anyone help?

[Guest guest]

Im only 10 weeks out and so far post op life sucks, but thats suppose to get

better.

I did talk to a woman who had it done 20 years ago. She told me that it was

the best thing she had ever done for herself and that everything had gone

fine. She was around 55 or so, so she would have been in her 30s when she had

it

done.

Hope that helps some!

~ami~

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 7/18/2003 3:40:24 PM Central Standard Time,

toibox_success@... writes:

> Just be sure to keep your mind open and do what your heart tells

> you. I don't believe there is a person on this site that would tell

> you to jump on in and get it. Most people would advise you to do

> your research, ask lots of questions, pray, and soul search and in

> the end do what YOU alone feel is right for YOU.

>

> Toi

> -99 lbs

> Lap RNY 12/31/02

>

ya know those very people knew going in the risk and now they want to lay

back and bellyache about it and discourage the rest of us. The way I look at it

God gave us all a brain to make decisions for ourselves. I would never go by

what someone else would say. I have to do what it right for me.

WOLFIE

[Guest guest]

I have been on just about every group asking if there is anyone who

can share an experience on a negative note. Either no one has had a

bad experience with this surgery or they are not around to talk about

it. Some may think I am crazy for even asking but....If i am going to

make this life changeing decision i want to know the goods and the

bads of it. I want to know what to expect in 5, 10, 15, years from

now. What will be going on in my body. I am getting a little

discouraged that there is no one out there who can help me. Starting

to think well maybe no one who gets this surgery lives that long.

SO I am asking if you know of anyone or are someone who i am looking

to chat with please write me, or have them write me.

I am currently on the waiting list to see the surgeon, which i was

told is a 6 month wait. In that waiting time i would like to find out

as much information as possible.

Thanks!

[Guest guest]

If you want an ear full of negative experiences, visit the ossg-gone

wrong Yahoo! group. I have lurked at that site and heard a lot of

negative things. There are a lot of angry people in that group that

refer to those of us that have had great success and not so terrible

experiences as " WLS Cheerleaders. " But if we have had a great

journey, why shouldn't we share with others.

I understand the need to vent and garner support from others that

have not had great success or have had terrible medical problems

because of this surgery and I think you are wise to open your mind up

to the pros and cons of WLS.

Just be sure to keep your mind open and do what your heart tells

you. I don't believe there is a person on this site that would tell

you to jump on in and get it. Most people would advise you to do

your research, ask lots of questions, pray, and soul search and in

the end do what YOU alone feel is right for YOU.

Toi

-99 lbs

Lap RNY 12/31/02

[Guest guest]

yes, we tried, yesterday 3 members replied to your post, message #

23585. the replies are message 23586, 23610 & 23635.

the longest post-op i've met is 6 years out. there's one member

here who's 16 years out.

lori h.

> I have been on just about every group asking if there is anyone

who

> can share an experience on a negative note. Either no one has had

a

> bad experience with this surgery or they are not around to talk

about

> it. Some may think I am crazy for even asking but....If i am going

to

> make this life changeing decision i want to know the goods and the

> bads of it. I want to know what to expect in 5, 10, 15, years from

> now. What will be going on in my body. I am getting a little

> discouraged that there is no one out there who can help me.

Starting

> to think well maybe no one who gets this surgery lives that long.

> SO I am asking if you know of anyone or are someone who i am

looking

> to chat with please write me, or have them write me.

> I am currently on the waiting list to see the surgeon, which i was

> told is a 6 month wait. In that waiting time i would like to find

out

> as much information as possible.

> Thanks!

[Guest guest]

Oh Thank you, Thank you, Thank you, I am so glad someone finally

spoke up.

I will tell you a little about myself, and what made me think this is

what i need to do.

As of now i have a BMI of 53. I am 31 yrs old 5'2 " and weigh as of

today 288lbs. I have been over weight all my life. Especially after

the birth of my 2nd child. I am not looking to be skinny, i just want

to be able to bend over and tie my shoes easily. I have been on every

diet know to man. Lates being Atkins. Which i seem to have the best

success with. No Doctor had ever recommended this for me until

recently. I had to switch Doc's, I was feeling misunderstood, and

neglected. My OB recommended i try it and then my new Doctor. He said

right now i am pre hyper tension, and have a high chance of getting

diabeties. I am also deppressed, and taking anti-depressants. I have

started Deep water areobics in hopes to help lose some weight, have

not seen any come off as of yet, however i do have a ton more energy.

Not to mention there are soooooo many things i would like to do with

my life, like ride the mind eraser at Six Flags, and go to water

world, riding a horse, going hiking, and lots of other stuff. I would

love to spend more time with my son doing more active things. I Just

cant seem to lose the weight. At first i thought this surgery was not

for me, because i eat because i like the taste of food, sometimes i

will still eat when i am full. I know it is digusting but i do it. My

doctor told me that my genes also play a big role. Everyone in my

family is big, and has a weight problem.

So I have set out to research what my new life will be like if i have

this surgery.

Thanks to all who responded, keep it comin!!

> > I have been on just about every group asking if there is anyone

> who

> > can share an experience on a negative note. Either no one has had

> a

> > bad experience with this surgery or they are not around to talk

> about

> > it. Some may think I am crazy for even asking but....If i am

going

> to

> > make this life changeing decision i want to know the goods and

the

> > bads of it. I want to know what to expect in 5, 10, 15, years

from

> > now. What will be going on in my body. I am getting a little

> > discouraged that there is no one out there who can help me.

> Starting

> > to think well maybe no one who gets this surgery lives that long.

> > SO I am asking if you know of anyone or are someone who i am

> looking

> > to chat with please write me, or have them write me.

> > I am currently on the waiting list to see the surgeon, which i

was

> > told is a 6 month wait. In that waiting time i would like to find

> out

> > as much information as possible.

> > Thanks!

[Guest guest]

Absolutely...

Caroline

www.tinyurl.com/bkld

Just be sure to keep your mind open and do what your heart tells

you. I don't believe there is a person on this site that would tell

you to jump on in and get it. Most people would advise you to do

your research, ask lots of questions, pray, and soul search and in

the end do what YOU alone feel is right for YOU.

[Guest guest]

Pokey (Sorry don't know your real name),

You asked about post op problems and life long term. I am only 5-1/2

months out so I do not have a long term picture for you personally,

but the post-op problems I have had are:

1. 3-4 days of severe diarrhea the 2nd week.

2. Then severe constipation a few weeks later.

3. Had zero problems eating until week 6 when I started throwing up

at least one meal a day. Did this for a number of weeks and then

less often. I found that anything sort of dense did not sit well and

I would have to get it out to feel better.

4. I had 3 small holes in my incision that showed up when the staples

were removed at 1 week. 2 healed up by week 4 with no problems.

However, the 3rd hole would not heal up and kept closing down but

weeping. Since I had to pack it to help it heal I had to have it cut

open in the surgeon's office 3 times. This still did not solve it.

Finally at week 11 he took me into outpatient surgery and cut open an

area of the incision so he could see what was going on. I had 2-3

sutures that would not dissolve and were continually irritating the

surrounding tissues. Once removed it healed up within 5 weeks.

Unfortunately he had to cut a huge hole in order to get down to the

facia, otherwise it would have healed up sooner. At the same time he

scoped me to see if there was an explanation for the throwing up.

There wasn't. In hindsight I think the problem was that I was eating

too fast. Over time I have learned to listen to my body much better,

which has helped. I've thrown up once in the past 2-1/2 months and

that was because I ate some fish that did not sit well and I forced

myself to throw up so I could feel better. Real solid fish like

haddock, halibut, salmon etc. do not sit well with me. Fish like

orange roughy, or shrimp, crab I do fine with. Go figure.

That is the extent of post-op problems I have had so far. My 3 month

labs looked great. I have not had too much difficulty getting in the

food I need to and staying away from the crap or at least drastically

limiting it. I also went cold turkey on Diet Coke and have no desire

to go back. Even with the throwing up and incision problems I had I

consider those very minor in the scheme of things. Totally

manageable and something that would eventually get resolved.

The longest post-op that I know personally is close to 3 years. She

is in our support group. She does fine with no problems, but she

follows the plan very religiously. She makes sure she takes her

vitamins, B12, calcium, and gets in her protein.

I also know of a post-op who recently came back to the support group

and she was complaining about everything but mainly because she

couldn't lost any more weight. She is close to 2 years PO. First of

all she doesn't need to lose any more weight, but as the time went on

that night, she was sitting next to me, it all came out. She was

living in the bars drinking, eating only fast food and whole big

hamburgers, living on chocolate and zero exercise. She had started

to make some improvements in the drinking area but nothing else. She

is actually very lucky she didn't gain a ton with all the high calore

and fat things she had been eating for quite a while. I would also

bet she isn't taking her supplements. Consequently she could be

looking at some osteoporosis or other problems in the future.

So a lot has to do with whether a person follows their post-op plan

religiously for the REST of their life. If not, very serious health

problems could arise. There are some nightmare stories out there but

they are few and far between. Most people if they have serious

problems it occurs soon after surgery unless they develop a stricture

(closing or narrowing of the opening from the pouch to the small

intestine (stoma)). Some people develop numerous strictures usually

within the first year. It's a matter of scoping the person and

dilating the opening.

While there can be leaks it is not a common thing. It is also

preferable to be transected because that eliminates the risk of a

staple line disruption between the pouch and old stomach.

There is a Yahoo post op group that you can join and read, but not

post until you are at least 12 months PO. You won't be able to ask

anything but you will get a better feel for what life is like further

out. I used that group as a resource when I was pre-op and trying to

make sure I understood what I was getting into.

Also on obesityhelp.com go to the library and do a search on post-op

problems. I'm sure you will find all kinds of things. Then you can

contact some of those people and see how things are going now.

I truly believe that the really severe cases are rare and usually not

totally related to the WLS but to other medical conditions. I forget

which group it is, but I have corresponded with a gentleman in the

past who had an RNY in 1978 and he is still doing great today, but he

makes sure he follows his plan and takes his supplements.

I hope some of this helps!

D.

5'9 " – Age 42 – BMI 65.3

442/309/Anywhere under 250 lbs

-133 lbs as of July 17th – BMI 45.6

21 before surgery, 112 after

Open RNY-150 cm, 1/2 oz pouch - Feb 3, 2003

Surgeon - n, MD - Neenah, WI

> > > I have been on just about every group asking if there is anyone

> > who

> > > can share an experience on a negative note. Either no one has

had

> > a

> > > bad experience with this surgery or they are not around to talk

> > about

> > > it. Some may think I am crazy for even asking but....If i am

> going

> > to

> > > make this life changeing decision i want to know the goods and

> the

> > > bads of it. I want to know what to expect in 5, 10, 15, years

> from

> > > now. What will be going on in my body. I am getting a little

> > > discouraged that there is no one out there who can help me.

> > Starting

> > > to think well maybe no one who gets this surgery lives that

long.

> > > SO I am asking if you know of anyone or are someone who i am

> > looking

> > > to chat with please write me, or have them write me.

> > > I am currently on the waiting list to see the surgeon, which i

> was

> > > told is a 6 month wait. In that waiting time i would like to

find

> > out

> > > as much information as possible.

> > > Thanks!

[Guest guest]

The down sides for me since my rny surgery is that I have gotten sick more

often, I have lost hair and it isn't growing back like everyone said it would

and I had to have my gall baldder taken out due to sludge. I am also having

trouble getting a good vitamin in me, but that is my own doing...

But those are my points now. I worry about how healhty I will be w hen I am

older, but I also think about how unhealthy I was and I know I am so much more

healthy now!!!

Natasha Gittings

lap rny 11/19/02

3400/236.5

[Guest guest]

Vitamins are a tricky business, At the ASBS (American Society of

Bariartic Surgery) conference in Boston this year,I found a great

vitamin which I personally used. It is called Bariartic Advantage it

is the best bio available vitamin on the market. you can view and

purchase on their website www.bariatricadvantage.com.

> The down sides for me since my rny surgery is that I have gotten

sick more

> often, I have lost hair and it isn't growing back like everyone

said it would

> and I had to have my gall baldder taken out due to sludge. I am

also having

> trouble getting a good vitamin in me, but that is my own doing...

>

> But those are my points now. I worry about how healhty I will be w

hen I am

> older, but I also think about how unhealthy I was and I know I am

so much more

> healthy now!!!

>

> Natasha Gittings

> lap rny 11/19/02

> 3400/236.5