Wednesday April 27th 2011 - Bariatric options

Today was the first real appointment. I actually had this type of appointment before in June 2009 when I started this blog so I didn't have to go through the whole one hour introduction to the types of bariatric surgery. My consult was only 1/2 hour. The options are stomach reduction and gastric bypass. Both of these are invasive surgeries and extremely difficult to reverse. I'm not even sure that you can. It would definitively be difficult. These two surgeries are the fastest weight reduction procedures. They are recommended for the super obese like me, but I have declined these two options in favor of the realize band.

Gastric bypass

The Realize Band was my choice because it is done larthoscopically (three 1/2 inch cuts and one 1 inch cut to insert hardware. The "hardware" consists of a plastic band that they put around the upper end of the stomach. It contains small saline pouches that can be inflated/deflated as needed. The inflation point is a disk implanted just below the skin to the lower right of your ribs. You can't see or feel it. Well, maybe if you try you could feel pressure, but it wouldn't hurt or make you feel uncomfortable. http://www.realize.com/dtcf/

I chose this option even though weight reduction to target (200) could take two to three years because I am concerned with cancer and the digestion of my bipolar meds. The downside is that the band can trap food and require medical treatment, but you should be able to manage that. The other weird thing is that you can't have water for 15 mins before a meal and 30 minutes after the meal. It keeps you from getting hungry. You should be eating a strict diet low in gluten (it gets stuck and swells in the belly) and rich in ground protein. 

The Realize Band is a tool not the solution. I think the real solution is in your fat head. I recommend therapy before during and after to solve the root issues that made you fat. I believe that the lack of therapy is why some people fail to take full advantage of the surgery. It is possible to mess this up by over-eating. The trick here is that your stomach thinks it full much much much faster. 

NEXT: blow by blow on the appointment