Gastric bypass / Lap band...has anyone had it done?**update post 106**

[PotterWatch]

My brother had a bypass done about 14yrs ago. He went from 480 to about 240. He has gained some of it back, I imagine he is around 280-300, but nowhere near where he used to be. That said, he has told me that he wouldn't do it again. He had complications with the incision for a long time but the worst thing is that he now experiences something called "dumping" which causes him to have several symptoms including hypoglycemia. He has learned to control the hypoglycemia somewhat, but in the beginning, he suffered fainting spells that looked like seizures and caused him lots of problems with the DMV, his work, and medical insurance.

 

[HHandbasket]

Quote:
Couple of things about your brother's case that may be helpful.

First of all, "dumping" is part and parcel of the gastric bypass procedure. It is there to keep you from eating the foods that made you fat in the first place. If you eat something and it makes you dump, you should eliminate it from your diet. It's really very simple and they tell you up front that is part of the gig. If your brother's surgeon did not provide him with preoperative information sessions, the surgeon could be held liable for any complications your brother has experienced (dumping is not a complication... it's a built-in safety net to keep a person from eating high-sugar or high-fat foods that, well, create obesity). If your brother is dumping, he is eating foods that gastric bypass patients should not consume. That's on him, not the surgeon (though the surgeon should have informed him that foods high in sugar, even natural sugars, and foods high in fat, even natural fats, will cause dumping syndrome).

Also, 14 years ago, they did the procedure with what some people now call the "zipper incision", which was an open abdominal incision that went from the subxiphoid region (just below the sternum, or center chest bone) all the way to the umbilicus (belly button). That procedure has not been used now for about 10 years in most places and in most cases except when there is a complication during the laparoscopic procedure, at which point they will open up a patient and do the "zipper incision". One of the reasons they stopped using the long incision is that many patients developed infectious complications.

I had my Roux-en-Y gastric bypass almost 3 years ago and have had zero complications because I have followed my doctor's orders. I have gone from a size 24/26 to a size 6 and am running in the American Parkway Half Marathon next spring here in Sacramento at the sweet young age of 48!

Oh, and just for the record, "dumping syndrome" is caused when the gastric pouch that is created by the bypass surgery is exposed to high sugar or high fat foods, and what it does is it causes the stomach to "dump" its contents very quickly in the Roux limb part of the surgery (the piece of jejunum that they reanastomose to the gastric pouch to create the bypass). It causes a spike in blood sugar (which is hyperglycemia, not hypoglycemia--hypoglycemia is a decrease in blood sugar, and that is actually the opposite of what happens with dumping). In me, it causes profuse sweating and shaking and I MUST lay down. It doesn't take you long to figure out which foods make you dump.

I would strongly suggest your brother find a gastric bypass surgery support group and speak with other patients so he will know that what he is experiencing is completely normal and is part of what keeps him from gaining all his weight back. Not everybody is fortunate enough to dump, and some people can go back to eating the way they did before and gain most if not all of their original weight back (I personally know four people who have done so, including my ex-husband).

My question is, why would anyone who put themselves through such a drastic procedure even WANT to resume consuming the foods that made them obese and put their health at risk in the first place? If you eat good, wholesome food according to an appropriate post gastric bypass diet, you'll be fine.

 

[PotterWatch]

Thanks for the information. A point of clarification, he does have hypoglycemia, not hyper. According to the Mayo Clinic:

When signs and symptoms develop later, usually one to three hours after eating, they may include:

Sweating
Weakness, fatigue
Dizziness, lightheadedness
Shakiness
Feelings of anxiety, nervousness
Heart palpitations, rapid heart rate
Fainting
Mental confusion
Diarrhea
Low blood sugar (hypoglycemia)
Some people experience both early and late signs and symptoms. Conditions such as dizziness and heart palpitations can occur either early or late — or both. No matter when problems develop, however, they may be worse following a high-sugar meal, especially one that's rich in table sugar (sucrose) or fruit sugar (fructose).

Some people also experience low blood sugar (hypoglycemia), related to excessive levels of insulin delivered to the bloodstream as part of the syndrome. Hypoglycemia is more often related to late signs and symptoms. Insulin influences your tissues to take up the sugar present in your bloodstream.

 

[HHandbasket]

Quote:
It varies, depending on your bariatric team and surgeon. I know people whose surgeons told them to "just go to weight watchers for a couple of months to get your preop weight off" (I personally would never let such a surgeon cut me open with a knife, but I work in the medical industry so I'm kinda picky that way--unfortunately, though, about half of the bariatric surgeons in the U.S. are like that, they're just in it for the cash).

Our team put us on a high-protein, low-carb healthy eating program. After your gastric bypass, your stomach pouch will be very small, and there will not be room in there for a lot of food. Immediately postop, the average stomach pouch is about the size of a large store-bought eggs (to some of us chicken folk, a "large egg" is larger than what most people think of LOL). At any rate, it holds about 2 ounces of food postop. You REALLY want that food to be packed with nutrients, so you drink protein drinks (you get used to them... they're not pleasant at first, but some are pretty tasty), and you eat mostly proteins. You also eat a lot of protein preop because you are preparing your body for surgery, and protein is essential for postoperative healing and rebuilding of tissues. So, there are 3 nutrients to worry about postop: Protein, protein, and then of course, there's protein.

Also, I was not able to eat eggs (no matter HOW you cooked them) for the first year postop. That being said, I was able to restart eating eggs when I started buying farm-fresh eggs (before I got my own chooks). They taste different and do not give me that urpy/sulfury burpy taste when I eat them like store bought eggs do. I still don't tolerate store bought eggs well since my surgery & I'm almost 3 years out.

 

[HHandbasket]

Quote:
I stand corrected. And actually, in further reading my "bariatric binder" (the one they gave me to help me through the process), you are correct but so was I in that what causes the dumping is the sudden spike-and-trough of the blood sugar. You do get hypoglycemic, REALLY fast... and all those symptoms you listed are part of it. I have only had diarrhea with dumping twice, but usually I get the anxiety, heart palpitations, profuse sweats, and then I MUST lay down and sleep. I wake up an hour later like nothing happened.

Now that I know what makes me dump, though, I do try to avoid those foods. I still have to be careful with foods high in natural sugars such as bananas and cherries (which are the 2 fruits highest in sugar, BTW). If I eat more than 1/4 of a banana, I'll dump. Dumping's not fun.

 

[LaSombra]

Hello,

Just wondering what you've decided on. I just had a lap-band put in a week ago today. So far, I'm very happy with it. I think that I would recommend the lap-band over bypass any day. It's a lot less invasive and, from what I've heard, works better in the long-run. My mom got a lap-band in June and has already lost 60 lbs. She looks great and feels even better. I am just imagining myself in 6 months...I might actually be THIN again, like I was before having kids! It will take some hard work, of course, but I'm ready!

Good luck in whatever you decide or have decided!

 

[gavinandallison]

I do not agree with the lap band being better than the by pass ( Of course I am a bypasser LOL ) ... it is much easier to fool that band , and drinking with meals allow for more food --- when you have your stomach cut down to a walnut size and your intestines shorten , there is no foolin ---

However you can lose it - do it

 

[Dar]

Quote:
If I want it covered by the provincial health care plan I dont have a choice really... I can ask but if that procedure is not the best suit for me the govment wont cover it... really I am open to options right now

 

[Judy]

Have three friends who had this done. One puked for two months then had it reversed. The other two are thin, or much thinner, and delighted. One of these is about 10 years post op and still doing great. I suspect the one who had it reversed (1) actually prefers to be fat and (2) didn't follow the post op instructions.

Just get educated about it, be sure you understand what you're getting into, then go for it, if it is what appeals.

 

[HHandbasket]

There is not enough money on the planet to pay me to get a lap band! I had gastric bypass instead of lap band, and this is why. I go to support groups (HIGHLY recommended for anyone considering any kind of bariatric surgery). I know a LOT of people who have lap band. I don't know ANY who have lost any significant weight with it. Everyone I know who has had it in the last 4 years is still heavy, is still at least 30-40 pounds over a healthy BMI/weight. I have one friend who had her lap band 6 months after I had my gastric bypass surgery (her surgery was 2 years ago in October), and to date has lost a total of 45 pounds since her lap band. Seriously. 45 pounds in 2 years. That's about average.

They will tell you that with Roux-en-Y gastric bypass or vertical sleeve gastrectomy (known as VSG procedure), you can expect to lose 70% or more of your excess weight and if you follow the postbypass healthy eating program, you can keep your weight off permanently. With the lap band, the MOST you can hope for is to lose 40%-50% of your excess weight (the surgeons tell you this, but people get it in their head that they WANT that lap band and the data goes right over their heads, and then they act all mad and confused 2 years later when they're still heavy).

I know at least a dozen people who've had it and only one who has had any long-term success with it. It is a misconception that it is less invasive than gastric bypass. There is less CUTTING, but it is equally invasive. Don't let anyone lie to you about that. The hospital stay and recovery time are exactly the same for both procedures.

Unless you are 400+ pounds and have a health concern that prevents you from having a Roux-en-Y or vertical sleeve, I would not recommend a lap band to even my worst enemy's ugliest dog. It's such a colossal waste, and anyone I've ever met that DID manage to lose some weight with their lap band gained it all back within a year. Two people I know ended up going back to the OR and having the regular gastric bypass 2-3 years after they realized what a waste the lap band is.

Everyone has to do what they want, though, and you have to do what your doctor says is right for you. For me personally, though, if they had told me I had to have the lap band instead of the gastric bypass, I wouldn't have had it. That's an awful lot to put your body through to still be a size 18 three years later.