Lisa_wanna_b_quilter

The one lady I know who had bypass lost a ton of weight and had the loose skin issue. When she had kept the weight off 5 years, she went in and had plastic surgery to tighten up the skin. She has maintained the weight loss for 15 years now. I'm sure it's not always easy, but she has done it.

Personally, I'm not a big fan of drastic surgeries, but if you can't get the weight off any other way, it's probably worth it. Of course there are risk factors, but there are major risk factors to being overweight, too.

Good luck in getting the weight off no matter how you decide to do it.

Honey

I was all set to have the gastric bypass, but backed out. I know 10 people who had it done and 7 of them had major problems. The very least was horrible hanging skin the worst was not being able to eat anything and living on ensure. It scared the snot out of me. I am going to look into the lapband and see what my Doc says. Part of my problem is some of the meds that I take. They suppress the metabolism. Whatever you do, I hope and pray that you get the results that you want and that everything goes well.

QBeth

My sister had the gastric bypass a little over a year ago and has lost a lot of weight. She opted for bypass vs. lapband because her doctor told her that the band can sometimes slip.

Also, be aware, she was told (by someone at the hospital) that insurance would cover the plastic surgery she would need afterwards. She found out later that that was not true.

As for the skin readjusting, as we get older, our skin elasticity diminishes and is not as able to shrink as when we're younger.

The upside is her diabetes basically went away along with the high blood pressure. Unfortunately, the pain in her joints did not go away; she's been diagnosed with arthritis in her back, something we share.

Best of luck on whatever you decide!

jljquilter

My sister-in-law had this done in January. She has lost 65#. She had other health issues that require wieght loss first. Listen to the Doctors and go to support groups. Nothing is perfect. There was more than 6 months of pre-surgical counciling for her. There were a number of professionals that had to ok her having the procedure. They really wanted to make sure that she knew the risks.

Quilter7x

Jerrie, a gal at work had it done about two years ago and she's lost more than 150 lbs. She looks great. She did was she was told afterward and had very little problems.

Like Charlee, I would like to discourage you from having surgery and re-train your brain to think differently. There are so many complications that can come from surgery. There are tons of programs out there that can help with the thinking process.

I wish you luck in what ever you decide. {{{{{hugs}}}}}

amma

The committment to following orders after the surgery is a life long one. Here, they have you go through a program first. It explains everything, so you know exactly what to expect. I went to these with a gal I was caring for and they were a real eye opener. Many drop out of the program, and other's are removed from the surgical list if the opinion is they won't be able to follow through with the after care program. If you don't follow them, there are complications, some life threatening. I am sure that your doctor/surgeon will explain all of this with you.

Learn all you can about both surgeries, and then make an informed decision. The "apron" that usually remains, as well as other major folds of skin, can be removed and be covered by insurance, but usually there has to be a medical reason behind it. My friend had it done and it was covered but she had medical issues with them (recurrent yeast type of infections.)

martha jo

I have a friend who had the lapband. It was totally unsuccessful and she has never regained her health. Her body rejected the band and she had it removed on the fourth surgery but was left with massive infection. Dr said had never had it happen before but it is her reality. Please try to change your diet for awhile. Don't diet but just change to eating healthy and reduce sugar and fat and then you can gradually reduce portion. Good luck.

Gramof6

In 2006 & part of 2007 I worked for a Surgery Center that did the Weight Loss Surgeries. My job was to get the people that were interested, signed up for the Seminars "before" they could even see the Drs. They had to go through these to get their questions answers and to become educated on the procedures. If they later had questions, they would call me and I had to find the answers for them. When they had their surgeries, I followed them through it and afterward as well with calls regarding questions or just their success or failure. Before surgery they had to go through quite a bit of testing. Otherwise no surgery would even be considered. Even a Psyche evaluation & sleep study had to be done.

I had coworkers that had the Gastric Bypass done. My DD had it done. All in this time frame. NO serious issues occurred. You DO HAVE TO DO what you are told to do. There is a very slim chance like with any type of surgery, that a problem might occur. Strictures can happen. Some Drs patiens have more strictures than other Drs patients. IF you start out on the liquids, graduate to like a pureed food, then go to a soft food, all in a certain amt of time & give your new pouch time to heal well, rarely do bad things happen. And yes, exercise is very important.

Insurance sometimes helps with these surgeries and sometimes not. Rarely do they help with plastics afterward. Unless like Amma said, a health risks could be cured by plastics like a consistent yeast infection. My DD was nearly dead before she had GB in Oct. '06. Serious! She was a walking, ticking time bomb about to go off. Could barely walk. Now she is a sz 10 and off of all meds but a Sinus pill once a day, never sick at all, has more energy than most teens & she followed her Drs orders to a T & still adheres to the diet which is basically No pasta, potatoes, rice or bread or sugar. At all!!!

So do your homework. Talk, talk, talk to your Dr & it would not hurt to talk to more than one Dr. Ask for their success rate. Weigh out your risks. Only you can decide what to do.

With the Lap Band, as you lose weight, you will have to go in and have the band injected or tightened from time to time in order for that to work. From now on you will have that to deal with if you gain a few pounds here or there. That is a cost to eat. Ins. will only cover a few visits the 1st year.

As for being a Diabetic, after Gastric Bypass, you no longer will be Diabetic. Usually by the time you are released from the hospital. High Blood Pressure is almost always cured after GB as the weight comes off. I know this as a fact from my DD & a few close friends that had it. I am not trying to persuade anyone to have this surgery!!! Just telling you what I know about it & how it has worked for my DD and ex-coworkers and sev close friends. And after anyone loses a great deal of weight, any way shape or form, they may have gall bladder issues. With ANY surgery, there is always a risk. Do take that into consideration. Living as a morbid obese person has risks also, so it is your choice. We love you here & just want you healthy.

God Bless you in whatever you decide. Your health is what is important. I wish you well & pray for much success.

ToucanSam

Of the people that I know who have had weight loss surgery, very few have not regained a good bit of weight and thus are still considered overweight. Having said that, although I personally would not do either, I would, if I had to choose, go for the band.

Best wishes.

Gramof6

While working there, it scared me so bad that I really went on a smart eating plan. Eating good, healthy foods. I was wearing sz 20-22 clothes & am 5'4. I have fluctuated down and back but mostly stay around a sz 18. I am now counting calories and staying under 1800 a day and eating less sugars & fat. I struggle daily with my weight & always have. If I had not gone to work for these Drs, I would have ended up needing a surgery myself. I did not see me as being obese or morbidly obese. I would give a lot to be down to a sz 14 but may never make it. As long as I can remain off of insulin meds and keep my BP normal & my cholesterol normal, I should just be happy. And I pretty much am. Round is how I have always been. At 56 yrs old & mother of 4, I will never look 25 or 30 again. LOL I just want to be healthy. And I wish all of you to be healthy, regardless of what it takes to get there.