High BMI newbie

[GenJones]

Hi there -

I'm GenJones, 56 years old and finally committing to WLS after thinking about it for 15 years. I just had my first consult with my surgeon yesterday and instead of the GS I thought I'd be getting, I'm getting a DS because my BMI is very high and the surgeon says it will be much better for getting off ALL (or most) of the weight. Scary, but I'm slowly getting used to the idea.

My insurance requires 6 months of medically-supervised weight loss, so I'm waiting to hear from my surgeon's group about that.

Nice to be here and I look forward to meeting you all.

 

[southernlady]

Welcome @GenJones

 

[aaa]

@GenJones Hello.

 

[Larra]

Hi and welcome! Good to see you here. Who is your surgeon, and do you know whether he does the real DS or the experimental not really the DS SADI/aka SIPS/aka loop DS/aka probably a couple other names? There are already a couple good threads here that go over the differences between the two, and why people here feel so strongly about this.

 

[Ray_Of_Fricken_Sunshine]

Hey Girl!! The DS is a lot to take in, so take all the time you have to learn as much as possible!!

 

[GenJones]

Hi and welcome! Good to see you here. Who is your surgeon, and do you know whether he does the real DS or the experimental not really the DS SADI/aka SIPS/aka loop DS/aka probably a couple other names? There are already a couple good threads here that go over the differences between the two, and why people here feel so strongly about this.

Hey Larra - Good to see you here, too. My surgeon is James Kane. What is the "real" DS called, so I can find out about that. I'll be sure to look into archives and see if I can find those other threads.

 

[GenJones]

Hey Girl!! The DS is a lot to take in, so take all the time you have to learn as much as possible!!

Hey back. I LOVE your user name. Just sums everything up so nicely.

 

[Munchkin]

Chicago area, right? I see him doing RNY but no DS. Beware, he may be trying to sell you something experimental that is NOT a standard of care procedure. As in SADI/SIPS/LOOP etc.

Here are the Chicago area DS surgeons. http://www.uchospitals.edu/specialties/obesity/ There may be some others but these folks are experienced. And always make sure you are getting a true, 2 anastomosis, DS. Even with these surgeons.

The DS is your best chance to take off the weight and keep it off. Keep on reading and learning!

 

[galaxygrrl]

There are also people here from Chi-Town. @hilary1617 and there are others too.

I'm not sure how high your BMI is, but mine was 47. DS was the best decision I ever made. Keep researching and asking questions.

Beth

 

[Clematis]

Insist on the traditional two anastomoses Duodenal Switch (with vertical sleeve gastrectomy) with the limb lengths based on the Hess Method. This surgery is the only one with the peer-reviewed research going back decades to show its long term effectiveness.

Read some current threads on advice given to others on how to talk to your doctor to make sure you are getting the PROPER DS.

 

[Settledownnow]

Welcome @GenJones!

 

[Larra]

I've never heard of this surgeon as a DS surgeon. It's possible he's started doing it recently (which would be great as we need more DS surgeons), but it's also possible he's doing the experimental version with all those other names. Another possibility, which someone else here just ran into, is that he's doing a real, 2 anastomosis DS BUT with an excessively long common channel, which has never been shown to be as effective long term as a DS with a proper length common channel of 100 cm or thereabouts. So it's important to ask specific questions and pin down the details. The details really matter. If you don't get the right answers, you don't have the right surgeon.

Now that I think about it, there is someone who hasn't posted here for a long time who may have had a DS with him. But I can't remember her name, and it's been quite awhile since she's been around here. She went back and forth between 2 different surgeons (the other was Dr. Prachand in Chicago) but I think she ended up with Dr. Kane. If she sees this, I hope she'll chime in...but she may not be around anymore.

 

[DianaCox]

@Larra - I was just thinking of her, and found her email, and composed another one to her - came back here to get the link when I saw your response.

 

[writegirl]

Welcome and hello--you are in the right place, here. I would have been lost without this place and everyone here.

 

[hilary1617]

Hi and welcome @GenJones. If you are open to a second opinion or alternative surgeons, I highly recommend surgeon, Dr. Alverdy at U of C. He's brilliant and in addition to being Chair of the Department for the Surgical Treatment on Obesity, he's also an expert on gut microflora. Some cool links on that side of his work are: https://news.uchicago.edu/article/2...ims-predict-behavior-trillions-microorganisms https://microbiome.uchicago.edu/directory/john-alverdy

All the best!