Hi! My name is Rick from Palm Springs, CA

[DesertDaddyPSP]

Hello, and greetings from sunny Palm Springs, CA!

A bit about me:
*I am the father of three grown children and grandfather to one special grandson
*I'm a 57 year old retired elementary school principal
*I'm an openly gay man living in the resort town of Palm Springs
*I work part-time just to keep myself busy and to make some pocket money
*My hometown is San Diego, CA

I had my Lap-Band placed in 2008. The doctor/nurse always had trouble finding the port to fill so I avoided going. I didn't like getting stuck up to 15 times in order for them to find that port! In 2015, after putting up with not being able to eat normally, swallow and feel my food pass the band, and vomiting after meals, it was determined that my band had "slipped" and they removed it in March of 2015. At that time, the surgeon (a different one that did the original surgery) asked if, during the removal procedure, I wanted him to perform a vertical gastrectomy. I said no, thinking I could handle it on my own. I was wrong. Today, I have put on 30 lbs and I'm not stopping.

 

[Larra]

Hi and welcome!
I hope you will explore all the standard of care options before proceeding. First, though, don't feel bad that lap band didn't work out for you. It has the highest failure rate and highest reoperation rate of any bariatric surgery procedure.
It's shameful that the bariatric surgery group at Kaiser doesn't tell patients about the DS. Dr. Belzberg, the surgeon you have listed, does the DS occasionally on patients who know enough to insist on it. From everything I've heard about him he's a very good surgeon, so even though he doesn't do the DS very often his patients speak well of him. The sleeve is definitely superior to lap band, but take a good look at the DS as well. It has the same sleeve for the stomach, but adds significant malabsorption to help greatly with maintenance of weight loss. and unlike gastric bypass, it allows you to take NSAIDs if you need them. With gastric bypass, they are contraindicated for the rest of your life. As we all get older, more and more of us need NSAIDs even if we don't need them right now.
You might want to reach out to @Bagaof4 who, if I remember correctly, had Dr. Belzberg for her DS. Whatever you decide I hope you will find success and an operation you can live with.

 

[newanatomy]

Hello and welcome to the forum.

 

[GirlFriday]

Welcome! Glad you have found us. I wish you the best of luck on your journey.
There is lots of good information and good people here.

 

[Bagaof4]

Welcome neighbor!(I am in Big Bear Lake) Glad you found us. Yes, Dr Belzberg performed my DS in September of 2012. I was a "lightweight" at 245, have lost 120 lbs and have maintained since then with no complications. I have not regretted it for a second, but as you know the DS is a well kept secret at Kaiser. Dr Belzberg is an amazing surgeon, but looks for knowledgeable and informed patients as DS candidates. Aftercare is ZERO so it is doubly important.
Personally, I needed more than restriction and at 60(at the time) I wasn't willing to live the rest of my life 'dieting' in the traditional sense so I chose the DS over the VSG.
Please feel free to PM me for any other information you might like.
Good luck!

 

[aaa]

Welcome.

 

[southernlady]

Welcome @DesertDaddyPSP

 

[brooklyngirl]

Welcome I just replied to your other thread before seeing this one with more info

 

[duh_Mom]

welcome Desert Daddy! glad you found us. I had a crappy band too and just had it out. While you are researching the sleeve, read about all you can related to all the different kinds of WLS so you can make the best informed decision possible. Many of us have discovered we needed the some type of malabsorption - the VSG just provides restriction like the band. I am just 3 weeks out and I don't feel as much restriction as I had with the band. I am also 57 and wondered if I was "too old" but got over that quickly, but sure did not want to make another wrong decision. read, read, read and then ask questions. Good luck!

 

[hilary1617]

Welcome Rick!

 

[JackieOnLine]

Hi Rick! glad you found us.

lots & lots of stuff to read here. I have never had a band but am told the sleeve works the way you think the band is going to: restricts the amount you eat, especially at first.

for people that need more than that, the DS is the best answer.

 

[Will2014]

Hello, and greetings from sunny Palm Springs, CA!

A bit about me:
*I am the father of three grown children and grandfather to one special grandson
*I'm a 57 year old retired elementary school principal
*I'm an openly gay man living in the resort town of Palm Springs
*I work part-time just to keep myself busy and to make some pocket money
*My hometown is San Diego, CA

I had my Lap-Band placed in 2008. The doctor/nurse always had trouble finding the port to fill so I avoided going. I didn't like getting stuck up to 15 times in order for them to find that port! In 2015, after putting up with not being able to eat normally, swallow and feel my food pass the band, and vomiting after meals, it was determined that my band had "slipped" and they removed it in March of 2015. At that time, the surgeon (a different one that did the original surgery) asked if, during the removal procedure, I wanted him to perform a vertical gastrectomy. I said no, thinking I could handle it on my own. I was wrong. Today, I have put on 30 lbs and I'm not stopping.

Hiya DesertDaddy! Welcome aboard. Best of luck going forward. Please ask any and all questions and don't be shy with your specifics regarding body weight/height, comorbidities if any, and desired final weight. I am a HUGE fan of the VSG and think the crapband should be banned as a barbaric practice reserved for really, really, bad people only. Think Hitler, Pol Pot, etc. The failure rate is shockingly high...I personally had 7 friends at my hospital who had it...all failed. Four required emergency removal for erosion. It's bad news indeed. The sleeve is a fantastic option with a MUCH easier lifestyle afterwards. No $200 "fills" that just make you sick and unable to eat, no 70% failure rate requiring surgical repair. Just a great option for obese lighter weights not requiring a stronger procedure like the DS that adds a malabsorbtive component. Anyhoo, great having you hombre!

 

[DBmom23]

Rick, when i initially researched WLS, i thought the VSG was the perfect fit for me--i am considered a "lightweight" with only 70 lbs to lose. It seemed like the 1-2 year results were amazing and would get me where i wanted to be. However, i was lucky enough to meet with a surgeon who is equally comfortable performing the VSG and the DS. He urged me to consider my options due to the comparatively high rate of regain with VSG with longer term follow up. He gave me an oversimplification that i think was very helpful (since the VSG is part of the DS): "The VSG takes the weight off; the DS keeps the weight off."
I started to read the medical literature on both procedures and found that the VSG data is very sketchy. There are multiple reports where they "censor" patients who need revision surgery (a substantial proportion of patients) and don't count them as failures. Even so, the 5-year results are not so great. In contrast, the long term results with the DS are the strongest of any WLS.

I thought long and hard about this because of the lifelong committment DS requires regarding vitamins and also potential dietary restriction. I recognized 2 key facts that led me to ultimately choose the DS: 1) It would be a lifelong committment with the VSG to not regain the weight--requiring strict caloric restriction in perpetuity, particularly given my crappy metabolism, 2) i have tried every diet on the planet and succeeded at losing weight multiple times only to regain it which is why i considered WLS in the first place--the only thing worse than being in this predicament in my mind would be to undergo WLS and then be right back where i started 5 years down the line. So, i went with what i consider the "definitive" procedure.

I am now 3 weeks out and am doing well. I have lost 15 pounds which sounds small but is 25% of my excess weight (lost 10 pounds pre-op). I am carefully advancing my diet and increasing my vitamin intake. I have no regrets whatsoever. My surgeon gave me a relatively large gastric pouch (4oz) and long common channel (140 cm) because i don't have so far to go. I haven't had any vomiting or diarrhea since the surgery.

Good luck with your journey.

 

[Munchkin]

Welcome to the forum. Read, learn, and ask questions. Most importantly, be honest with yourself about your needs.

Don't feel bad about the band. I only know one person who was successful. Most of the rest moved on to other surgeries.

 

[southernlady]

My surgeon gave me a relatively large gastric pouch (4oz) and long common channel (140 cm) because i don't have so far to go. I haven't had any vomiting or diarrhea since the surgery.

I only had 68 lbs to lose...and my sleeve is a 32 bougie. Was told it was 4 oz...but my experience is that most of the days it is very tiny.

You mean a sleeve? Only the RNY and the now defunct PBD has a pouch.

 

[DBmom23]

to clarify, yes, i mean sleeve. The op report states that the sleeve was filled to 120cc (4oz) to confirm the size so that is what i am going with.