TurtleGal
New Member
I have my intake appointment for surgery on November 8th with a clininc here in the Netherlands. From what I can tell they seem to push mostly the lap-band and Gastric Bypass but I think in some situations they will do the sleeve and DS too.
My situation is a bit difficult and time sensitive. I am 36.5 years old, at my highest my weight was 308lbs and I am now approximately 240lbs. I have had a long struggle with my weight, since childhood and also a long struggle with infertility. I had to lose 85lbs in order to have IUI (intra-uterine insemination) here, as they worried about my weight with the drugs etc. I had 6 IUI treatments in the first half of this year, but none were successful
I was told that in order to have IVF (which thankfully is covered by insurance, but not without conditions) I had to get a BMI below 35, which meant getting below 200lbs. Because of the daily hormone injections, stress etc during the course of the treatments and the months since, I have gained 40 of the 85lbs back that I had initially lost.
My doctors have been suggesting weight loss surgery for years, but I have kept saying no, that I could do it myself. I've realized that I need help and all of my doctors are in agreement that this is the best choice for me, to have WLS. I need to get my weight off as soon as possible as I am now at an age where every minute counts. With each year that goes by my chances of success with IVF become less and less, and they won't do it at once you hit 40.
I REALLY don't want the lap-band. I have a friend who had it and it doesn't seem to have been a great success at all. I've heard far too many stories about issues with slippages, follow up surgeries, the constant fills and trying to get it just right ... and most of all, I do NOT wait to wait 6 weeks after surgery to get a fill. I want to start seeing results -ASAP-!!!
I think when this clinic hears I don't want the lap band that they will push for the bypass, but I will be honest... it scares the crap out of me!! I would like to have the sleeve done for a number of reasons but I want to be prepared. I want to learn more about the bypass and the sleeve before I make any firm decisions.
The reasons I am so afraid of the bypass is that the surgery seems so extreme compared to the others. I'm not sure how I feel about having my bowels messed with, I have wheat intolerance and have suffered IBS many years so the idea of dumping and all that comes along with the bypass is very very unappealing.
Another major reason why I worry is because of the hair loss. From what I can tell this is most frequent in bypass patients. The reason I am not able to get pregnant is because I have PCOS. One of my unfortunate symptoms is Androgenic Alopecia. My hair is already quite thin on the crown, and if I had ANY hairloss from the surgery it would become visible very quickly, to the point of looking bald, I think.
I also worry about the things I hear about the bypass and the 'blind stomach'. Cancer runs rampant in my belly and the scare stories I've heard about ulcers, cancer etc going undetected because that portion of the stomach isn't visible worries me.
Another big issue is the malabsorption / malnutrition. Where my end goal is IVF and hopefully a resulting pregnancy, I think that the sleeve is probably the better option. I know many have gotten pregnant after bypass (and I would SO love to hear about your experience if you are one of those people and are reading this!!) but I still worry.
What I worry about with the sleeve is that an entire portion of my stomach is being removed. It's not at all reversible, whereas with other surgeries it's still a possibility.
I'm also wondering if there is hair loss associated with the sleeve as much as there is with the bypass.
So what I want to know is... if you were tasked with telling me about the sleeve or trying to talk me into it, with my situation in mind... what would you say? What would you want to make sure I knew?
Most of all what made you choose the sleeve over bypass or lap band?
I've posted this in the gastric bypass forum as well, I really want to make sure I go to my appointment with all information possible so I know I leave with a fully informed decision that I can live with.
Thank you all so much for your time, I hope to hear from you (and hopefully become part of your community, as I think I'll need all the support I can get when the time comes!)
My situation is a bit difficult and time sensitive. I am 36.5 years old, at my highest my weight was 308lbs and I am now approximately 240lbs. I have had a long struggle with my weight, since childhood and also a long struggle with infertility. I had to lose 85lbs in order to have IUI (intra-uterine insemination) here, as they worried about my weight with the drugs etc. I had 6 IUI treatments in the first half of this year, but none were successful
I was told that in order to have IVF (which thankfully is covered by insurance, but not without conditions) I had to get a BMI below 35, which meant getting below 200lbs. Because of the daily hormone injections, stress etc during the course of the treatments and the months since, I have gained 40 of the 85lbs back that I had initially lost.
My doctors have been suggesting weight loss surgery for years, but I have kept saying no, that I could do it myself. I've realized that I need help and all of my doctors are in agreement that this is the best choice for me, to have WLS. I need to get my weight off as soon as possible as I am now at an age where every minute counts. With each year that goes by my chances of success with IVF become less and less, and they won't do it at once you hit 40.
I REALLY don't want the lap-band. I have a friend who had it and it doesn't seem to have been a great success at all. I've heard far too many stories about issues with slippages, follow up surgeries, the constant fills and trying to get it just right ... and most of all, I do NOT wait to wait 6 weeks after surgery to get a fill. I want to start seeing results -ASAP-!!!
I think when this clinic hears I don't want the lap band that they will push for the bypass, but I will be honest... it scares the crap out of me!! I would like to have the sleeve done for a number of reasons but I want to be prepared. I want to learn more about the bypass and the sleeve before I make any firm decisions.
The reasons I am so afraid of the bypass is that the surgery seems so extreme compared to the others. I'm not sure how I feel about having my bowels messed with, I have wheat intolerance and have suffered IBS many years so the idea of dumping and all that comes along with the bypass is very very unappealing.
Another major reason why I worry is because of the hair loss. From what I can tell this is most frequent in bypass patients. The reason I am not able to get pregnant is because I have PCOS. One of my unfortunate symptoms is Androgenic Alopecia. My hair is already quite thin on the crown, and if I had ANY hairloss from the surgery it would become visible very quickly, to the point of looking bald, I think.
I also worry about the things I hear about the bypass and the 'blind stomach'. Cancer runs rampant in my belly and the scare stories I've heard about ulcers, cancer etc going undetected because that portion of the stomach isn't visible worries me.
Another big issue is the malabsorption / malnutrition. Where my end goal is IVF and hopefully a resulting pregnancy, I think that the sleeve is probably the better option. I know many have gotten pregnant after bypass (and I would SO love to hear about your experience if you are one of those people and are reading this!!) but I still worry.
What I worry about with the sleeve is that an entire portion of my stomach is being removed. It's not at all reversible, whereas with other surgeries it's still a possibility.
I'm also wondering if there is hair loss associated with the sleeve as much as there is with the bypass.
So what I want to know is... if you were tasked with telling me about the sleeve or trying to talk me into it, with my situation in mind... what would you say? What would you want to make sure I knew?
Most of all what made you choose the sleeve over bypass or lap band?
I've posted this in the gastric bypass forum as well, I really want to make sure I go to my appointment with all information possible so I know I leave with a fully informed decision that I can live with.
Thank you all so much for your time, I hope to hear from you (and hopefully become part of your community, as I think I'll need all the support I can get when the time comes!)
