| Merrill Littleberry, Psychotherapist is a member of the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery. Here he has answered some of the common questions Bizymoms visitors have about Bariatric Surgery.
Q. After the surgery, what support will a patient receive in adjusting to daily habits?
A. I have several bariatric surgeons that referred their patients to our offices. We provide an individualized plan for each patient at my practice. Unfortunately, each doctor, hospital and/or program has varying levels of support after surgery. We provide nutrition counseling, therapy, case management and a Bariatric Bands and Balls exercise program along with bariatric focused group therapy for pre and post-op patients.
Q. How long is the recovery period?
A. Depending on the type of surgery, age, habits, type of work, and health of the patient before surgery will greatly determine the recovery period. Many patients are returning to work two weeks after surgery regardless of the type of surgery. Other individuals may take up to four to six weeks.
Q. What is Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery?
A. The RNY surgery involves creating a small (less than one ounce) vertically oriented stomach pouch, while bypassing most of the stomach and a varying amount of small intestine. Weight loss is accomplished both by restriction of food and by malabsorption of nutrients. Ingestion of concentrated sugar creates a term called dumping. It can be manifested in several unpleasant symptoms that resemble food poisoning (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, flushing, and palpitations) that occurs when simple sugars enter the small intestine. This occurs at about three grams per nutritional opportunity. Oddly enough, there are several patients that never have and aversion to sugar.
Q. What types of bariatric surgeries are there?
A. There were only two procedures acknowledged by the ASMBS, but as of November of 2009 it became three adding the gastric sleeve. The Lapband, Gastric Bypass and the Gastric Sleeve. There are also revisions, this means a patient already had one of the bariatric surgeries and regained their weight.
Q. Does bariatric surgery typically lead to major weight loss?
A. Yes, all the surgeries lead to weight loss, but does not always mean continued or long-term weight loss. The Gastric Bypass and Gastric Sleeve do have more rapid weight loss as opposed to the Lapband.
Q. What is the average level of weight loss for each type of surgery?
A. As far as how much you can lose, it is up to the person. I have seen many people lose so much weight they are in a normal BMI category from having a BMI of 35 before surgery. A patient can lose 69% to 89% of their excess body weight with the gastric bypass. The Lapband has a very large range of weight loss.
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