Thru The Rabbit Hole

As of the day of this writing I am sitting 1 week and 1 day post op. I would love to stay it has been nothing but sunshine but that would be a misrepresentation of the truth. I have had both physical and mental issues to deal with during my young MGB life.

Firstly lets take a look at some of the physical issues. When I came out of anesthesia after my surgery I was at a pain level of 10+. Everyone was shocked including me and they really started pumping me full of pain meds. My surgeon really didn't have a good reason why I had that level of pain and in that particular area. It took them close to 2 hours to get the pain under control enough to get me to my room. So by the time I got to my room I was still pretty much out of it. Once the pain med buzz started wearing off then the nausea feeling starting creeping in and making me sick. Which really sucked because if I wanted to go home the next day I needed to be up and walking the hallways. I did manage to get up and walk a few times but for the most part I was out of it either by pain meds or nausea meds I pretty much slept all day and night. The second day the pain was pretty much all gone with the exception of soreness when I would bend over but nothing major. It was the dang sick to my stomach and tiredness. Late in the afternoon of day 2 in the hospital my surgeon came in and didn't feel good about releasing me yet. He did remove a patch they had put behind my ear to prevent nausea and let me tell you it was like a light bulb moment. Within 2 hours of him removing that stupid patch all my sour stomach issues were gone and my energy level was up. They couldn't keep me out of the hallways and I was finally able to eat something as well. I guess to sum it up I would like to quote a Mel Brooks classic Blazing Saddles "Badges, We don't need no stinking badges".  

Now the mental aspects. Keep in mind I am a male species so I don't do a lot of this touchy feelings type stuff but there are a couple things that I wanted to bring up. Now I knew going into this that I would have a couple of weeks of clear liquid diet post op. I didn't know the mental effort required to eat another Jello or have a cup of broth. It freaking sucks and I am tired of it. Luckily my surgeon actually gave me a slight reprieve and said I could move onto soft foods. KFC mashed potatoes have never tasted so good in my life. Secondly, I didn't realize the effect TV commercials have on a person. I have a long list of items I am dying on eating once I am released back to normal food. The guys and gals in the advertising are excellent.

All in all it hasn't been to bad. I went back to my surgeon the other day and had my staples removed and my first weigh in. I had lost 17 lbs in a week so I was extremely happy about that but I am also realistic I know that amount of weight loss in a week will never happen again.  Another NSV (non-scale victory) is I am no longer taking my blood pressure meds. and right now I am feeling pretty good. I still get a little tired in the afternoon but nothing I cannot handle. I had started back to work on 4 days ago from home and then went into the office today.

The Dude on the Other Side of the Screen

I am not going to bore everyone with the same thing I am sure you all have read multiple times. Yes I have struggled with my weight all my life. I have tried multiple diets and different things to try and lose the weight. As you can see from the picture nothing has really worked. Something that is a little different from others is I actually have a lap-band. You couldn't tell from the picture above but yep I have had a lap-band for close to 5 years. 

Let me touch a little on the lap-band. As a weight lose tool it was doing its job. I was down close to 100 lbs but for quality of life not so much. I could not eat at all! Meaning after every meal I would literally end up in the bathroom expelling everything I had just ate. I felt like a mother bird feeding her little ones in the nest. It didn't matter how much I chewed the food or what I was eating it was stuck. The only way I could get any of it to pass was to drink something right after I swallowed. Of course that was against the #1 rule of WLS but I had to do something. I had went back and forth with my surgeon with taking some fluid out but then I would have no restriction. It was a vicious cycle not to mention my surgeon was 2 hours away so every time I would need an adjustment I would have to take off work. I was still willing to put in the effort and make those trips but life got in the way and my job moved to Michigan. Where I was at in Michigan I could not find anybody to adjust the lap band I am just thankful it was at a level where I could actually eat. After 4 months in Michigan I moved back to Kansas but was unable to start back up with my surgeon until this past February. By then I had lived with no restriction for 3+ years and obviously from the picture above that 100+ pound loss was actually about a 20+ gain. So I decided to start the lap band back up and went to see my old surgeon. He gave me a fill but was a little concerned because the amount of fluid he saw in my band was different from what should be in the band. He went ahead and filled me and sent me home. Well on the drive home I had good restriction but the next morning it was all gone. Went back to the surgeon and sure enough most of the fill was gone. Well that tells him I have a leak. Turns out a leak is not all that uncommon. He stated he has repaired many leaks where the tube passes through the abdomen wall. The tube rubs against the wall and eventually rubs a hole in the tube. Of course he would be happy to go in and fix it but insurance will not cover it and it would be close to what I would pay for other procedures. So I weighted the options and decided not to repair but remove and convert to an MGB.

People have asked why I would want to put myself through all this again? What happens if this one doesn't work? I have to be honest here and say I really do not care what anyone else thinks or feels about my decision. I know this is not a magic bullet and I know I will have to work within the tool but it gives me a leg up. Hell I cannot even really exercise to much because my knees and back start screaming at me so the MGB will help at first to simply allow me to get up and exercising. The picture below is all you really need know why I am putting myself though this and that is for my family. I am convinced I have the best 13 year old son on the planet and I am still amazed how I was able to attract my wife but I did. It is time they get the husband and father they both deserve. 

So July 1st a new chapter will begin.That is the day my surgeon will perform the MGB. As I mentioned in an earlier post I plan on giving you the good and bad along the way. I am excited and nervous but so ready to get started. Wish me luck!

What the Heck is MGB? (Cliff Notes Version)

Some of you may already know what MGB stands for and some may not have a clue. For those that do please do not hesitate to add comments of anything I might not cover. Also some of what I am going to state is fact and some is opinion.

MGB stands for Mini Gastric Bypass and some refer to it as the Omega Loop. I want to address one thing right off the bat. No just because the word "Mini" is in the title it is in no way an indication of how much you will lose. In fact the results are impressive but I will touch on that in a little while.

In laymen's terms and my words (remember the opinion statement) the MGB takes the best of a couple surgeries and tweaks them just a little and makes them better (again opinion). Really when you look at the MGB procedure you will see the surgeon performs part of a Gastric Sleeve and part of the RNY gastric bypass.

The real beauty of the MGB is that it is 100% reversible and revisable. Unlike the Gastric Sleeve nothing is removed. The portion of the stomach that is separated stays in place and continues to live and create digestive fluid to aid in the break down of food.  Secondly similar to the RNY the surgeon bypass anywhere from 3 to 8 feet of the small intestine. It is my understanding this is a much longer bypass than the RNY but to be totally honest I cannot say because I never fully researched the RNY. This longer bypass allows for greater malabsorption which sounds like a bad thing but basically the food passes through your system faster so you do not absorb as much as you normally would without the bypass.

Now before all you Gastric Sleeve and RNY vets fill up the comment section. I have nothing against either procedure and think both are wonderful options. I just chose a different route but I promise it will not be all milk and honey for me and the MGB. I was simply pointing out how the MGB "stole" from the Gastric Sleeve and RNY.

What really sold me on the MGB is these few short "benefits" and a few others:

1. Short procedure - Usually less then 1 hour
2. Short recovery time - Usually back to work within a few days.
3. Short hospital stay - Typically overnight
4. Effective weight loss - I have heard as high as 85% of excess weight.
5. No foreign material left inside - aka Lap-Band
6. 100% reversible or revisable - I hope I don't need either but its nice to know its an option.

Now to be completely forthcoming the MGB is not a walk in the park either. Here are just a few issues with the MGB:

1. It is not a widely performed procedure in the US and finding a doctor is not easy. I got lucky and had a doctor a short 1.5 hour drive from where I live.
2. The longer bypass can lead to vitamin deficiencies. So I will be required to take a vitamin daily for the rest of my life.
3. Dumping syndrome - As you RNY vets can attest to this will not be a fun experience.
4. Bile Reflux - Yummy! Can lead to serious health problems so guess what else I get to take for a while? Yep Prilosec and Pepto for at least 3 months.

So there you have it. MGB in a short and sweet answer. I will include a link that has a lot more information as well as a link to my surgeon.

Mini Gastric Bypass Resource

My doc - David Hargroder

Hello and Welcome Aboard

Good day everyone and welcome to my blog. My intention for this blog is to not only track my progress through my pre and post op life of an MGB patient but I would like for people to be able to use this as a resource to determine if the MGB is the correct path for them. I plan on giving you the good along with the bad. I have read so many sites that mention only praise and never give you a true male perspective. Along with this I will give you a peak into diet and exercise and success or possible failure.

Some of the things I talk about might not be good dinner table discussion but it will be an honest look into a WLS patient life.

Programming Note: I am a newbie when it comes to blogging so be patient with me as I learn the ropes to becoming a blogger.