Was up bright and early this morning as I had to travel to Taunton for my Educational Session.  Left nice and early to avoid traffic, but didn’t hit any so we were there early – typical!!!

Well, I walked in and there were a few people there already, all had brought a friend/relative with them so my husband didn’t feel out of place.  I was quite astonished at the range of people there as one of them only looked like a size 16 compared to me and a couple of others she did look out of place there.  The nurse who was running the session greeted us and she seems like a lovely lady.

So, we had approx a 40 minute powerpoint slide show and speech about the various types of surgery available to us, then we took a 5 minute break and then we had another powepoint slide show and speech from the dietician on the team.  My husband had just finished nights this morning so was absolutely tired so only sat through the first slide show – but wish he hadn’t (will come to why in a minute), and then he couldn’t be bothered listening to the dietician part so went out to the car for a snooze.

We were shown the pros and cons of all the surgeries offered and deep down I feel that if I am going for surgery I think that the bypass is the best option for me – and the consultant that I saw at NDDH also felt that that would be the one most suitable for me.  They also explained all the pre-diet stuff we would need to do and also what our diets would be like after the ops – for each one they are slightly different.  We were also given some reading material to help us make the decision, however, at the end of the day, the consultant will say what he thinks is best for us anyway.

So, back to my husband!  He isn’t happy about me going for surgery, but if I have to have a surgery he would be happy about the gastric band but not at all happy about me having a gastric bypass.  How can I make him see that it is my body and it is my life that hangs in the thread of the “morbid obesity” label.  If I stay the way I am at the moment I could get bigger, and already my hips/knees/back hurt and I can’t walk very far without being in pain and could end up in an early grave.  So I really need help, and if that means that – ok I might have to change the way I eat for the rest of my life then surely he should support me and want me to live longer – even if I do nag him lol, but I do love him….

In case you don’t know the difference between the gastric band and gastric bypass I will try to describe briefly the difference.

Gastric Band – With this procedure, the surgeon implants a soft, low-pressure band around the upper part of the stomach, giving it an hourglass shape.  A small passage between the small, upper pouch (approx 30ml) and the rest of the stomach allows food and fluid to pass through.  When you eat, the food quickly accumulates in the small, upper pouch and slowly passes down to the lower part of the stomach.  It only takes a little bit of food to fill the little stomach pouch.  The upper part of the stomach sends a signal to the brain as if the entire stomach were full.  This causes you to feel full more quickly and for a longer period of time while at the same time eating less. 

Your anatomy is not changed by this operation; it is completely reversible.  The band can be removed.  In addition, the digestion and absorption processes in the digestive tract remains unchanged.

The inner part of the band is inflatable and contains a saline fluid.  The size of the passage through the stomach depends on how much fluid is in the band.

Gastric Bypass – With a gastric bypass, the surgeon creates a small stomach pouch (approx 30ml).  The pouch is connected right to the middle portion of the small intestine.  When you eat, the food quickly accumulates in the pouch, but as only a small amount of food is required to fill the pouch, the upper part of the stomach signals the brain early that it is full – as if the entire stomach were full.  Your appetite also decreases since, in contrast to the normal process, the contents of the stomach pouch empty directly into the small intestine.

Since the food bypasses the first part of the small intestine, the body absorbs fewer nutrients and calories.  Because the stage at which the food is mixed with gastric juices, bile and pancreatic juices is delayed, the food is digested at a later stage than during the normal digestion process.  Because your body is not absorbing as many nutrients etc you need to take multivitamins and calcium and vitamin d tablets for the rest of your life.  You also have to have a vitamin b12 injection every 3 months for life.  Also, if you are a menstruating woman, you may need to take iron tablets as well until you no longer have your monthly period.

As you can see, neither of these options is the “easy way out” that many people consider bariatric surgery to be.