More from James Bennett

James Bennett recently sent me more information and postoperative pictures to add the story he recently shared on the blog. Here are his additional comments:


My total weight loss I measure from the night I went to your seminar. I weighed in that night at 406 lbs. I now weigh between 182 and 185! From size 56 jeans to 34 slims! From big and tall to the young mens dept! Instead of being parked on the couch I now re-enjoy camping, hiking, lifting weights, fishing, golfing, and so on! personal physician doesn't think my idea of skydiving is safe because of my artificial hip and spinal fusion, but he may okay zip lining, which I am looking forward to! Jen and I would still be more than willing to speak for you wherever you move your practice to!

Sincerely, James Bennett

James Bennett Tells His Story

Having developed degenerative arthrits approximately fifteen years ago, I noticed severe pain and damage in my lower back and both hips. The more pain I was in, the less active I was, and kept gaining weight. In march of 2005, I had emergency abdominal surgery because of severe diverticulitis. I was off my feet for three months, and began gaining weight at a rapid pace.

In April of 2006, I had a full left hip replacement, followed by three months of physical therapy. Off my feet and work for another three months, gaining even more weight, but the pain was no better.

In March of 2007, I had a lumar spinal fusion because I had a disc basically disintegrate and had vertebrae grinding together. When the surgeon opened me up, he discovered one of the affected vertebrae was cracked, and also repaired that. This time, off my feet and work for four months, gaining even more weight. The pain was still severe

Then in January of 2008, I had read about Dr. Myers and bariatric surgery. After going to the seminar in Mansfield, I went home and weighed in at 406 pounds and knew this was the right decision for me. By this time, I was in so much pain I could not walk without a cane or walker, (That is me with the orage shirt sporting a cane in the third picture), and my wife had to push me in a wheelchair when we would go shopping. September 25, 2009 I had a gastric bypass procedure done by Dr. Myers. That day I weighed in at 376, having lost some weight by following the Fresh Start nutrionist diet and changing my eating habits.

The first three months were a little tough, going through the different stages of liquids and soft foods before getting back to a normal diet. The rapid weight loss kept me motivated, losing 80 pounds in the first 90 days. Slowly the pain FINALLY began to wane. Now I was really motivated.

Some things were difficult to adjust to, physically and psychologically, but the fresh start team was right beside me through it all. To date I have gone from a whopping 406 pounds (54 on the BMI chart) to 185 pounds (26 on the BMI chart)! Now instead of buying my clothes at big and tall, I shop in the young mens dept! Instead of laying on the couch in agonizing pain, I am golfing, hiking, camping, canoeing and all the other funs things I used to enjoy doing.My pain and stress level are way down and my attitude and self esteem are way up!

For me, sacrificing 3-4 helpings at dinner, bags of chips and cookies was a miniscule price to pay for the health and happiness I am enjoying everyday. Dr. Myers and the entire Freash Start team are definately the most caring and professional group I have ever met! I owe him my life.

James Bennett

8 Tips for Fuller, Thicker Appearing Hair

Often my patients ask how they can avoid hair loss and improve the appearance of their hair.

You can read further about my recommendations regarding preserving as much hair as possible during the time of temorary hair loss between the fourth and sixth months after bariatric surgery by choosing the subject "Hair" in the index of this blog. However here are important cosmetic tips from Jake Miller, an experienced hair stylist at Rafeal's studio in Clintinville, Ohio. Jake has been my personal hair stylist for the last several years and I recently asked him to share some tips for making our patient's hair look as thick as possible even during the "thin" times.

Here are Jakes 8 tips to make hair look thicker:

Talk to your hair stylist about working with your fine hair.

1. Create blunt lines to make your hair style look and feel thicker keeping tapering to a minimum.

2. Cut bangs deep toward the top of the head for an even thicker look in front bringing more hair forward.

3. Shorten fine hair to create fullness.

4. Expand the hair shaft with thickening shampoos, conditioners and volumizing tonics.

5. Blow dry hair forward and against the usual direction your hair is combed with a flat paddle brush.

6. Part hair on the opposite side you usually part to create fullness. This will lift the hair up further from the scalp giving the apearance of more hair.

7. Curl with hot rollers or a round brush and blow dryer to create more lift and the apearance of volume.

8. Color hair lighter shades to blend with your natural scalp color so the scalp is not so obvious.

Jake is even willing to do free consultations for our patients.

Jake Miller, Hair Stylist
Rafiel's Studio
Aveda Lifestyle Salon

2927 N. High St.
Columbus, Ohio 43202
(614) 784-1177
www.rafielsstudio.com

Gastric Sleeve Success Story - Jaime Manley

Bowel Issues Following Bariatric Surgery

Diarrhea, or loose stools, is rarely an issue after patients have a standard gastric bypass, a gastric sleeve or a gastric band. Occasionally they will experience a few days of loose stools while they recover from surgery but this improves without any therapy.

Diarrea is a side effect of some bariatric operations such as the duodenal switch, biliopancreatic diversion or a gastric bypass that creates a short common channel for absorption of food.

However, if you have several high volume explosive stools a day associated with fever and crampy abdominal pain you should contact your bariatric surgeon’s office since antibiotic use during your hospitalization can change the bacteria in your stool leaving only the C. Diff bacteria to grow and cause these symptoms. A stool test can determine if C. Diff is the cause and treatment with an antibiotic called Flagyl can solve the problem.

Constipation

Constipation is a more frequent complaint from bariatric surgery patients.

1). During the first week after surgery the use of pain medicines such as Percocet or Vicodin that contain narcotics will slow bowel function causing constipation. The solution is straight forward. Stop the narcotic pain medicine and use Tylenol or Tramadol. In a day or two bowel function will return.

2). After the first week or so following surgery constipation is usually the result of inadequate fiber intake. Very little fiber is consumed early after a bariatric operation. Adding 25 grams of fiber each daywill usually correct the problem in a week or so. Many fiber products are difficult for bariatric surgery patients to consume since they often form into a gel after being swallowed. I recommend Benefiber since it is tasteless and dissolves in liquids. Benefiber should be added to nearly all fluids consumed for a total of 25 grams each day.

3) For more immediate relief as the fiber is doing its work you can use the following three over-the-counter preparations:

A). Miralax - You can repeat this several times as necessary until constipation is relieved.

B). Milk of Magnesia

C). Colase stool softener

As you return to more normal foods three to six months after surgery you will be able to decrease the amount of supplemental fiber as long as your stools stay soft.

Laparoscopic Gastric Sleeve Operation - Questions Answered

In response to a recent posting on laparoscopic gastric sleeve operations I did in June 2011 I received several questions.

Pete S. from Columbus, Ohio asked about outcomes and frequency of the gastric sleeve operation nationally.

Pete, I returned from the American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery in June 2011 and I can tell you that the changes I am seeing in my practice is happening all over the USA and around the world. The frequency of gastric banding has dropped off rapidly and the frequency of the gastric sleeve is increasing rapidly as well. My practice is probably out ahead of the curve somewhat because I have been performing the laparoscopic gastric sleeve longer than many. My first gastric sleeve operation was performed nearly 4 years ago and I have probably performed about 250 of these operations to date.

My practice is now about 50% gastric bypass and 50% gastric sleeve with only one or two gastric bands a month. The gastric sleeve may even be more frequent than the gastric bypass although it may be too early to know for sure. I doubt that this would be the case across the country but the trend is clear.

In regard to outcomes, Across the country there is a range of weight loss from 50% of excess weight lost at 1 year to 80% of excess weight lost at 1 year. As I mentioned in the earlier blog posting I refer to above our average person who has a gastric sleeve loses 78% of their excess weight at 1 year after surgery for those who are at a BMI of 55 or less at the time of surgery. There are several likely reasons for this discrepancy.

1). Technical – Obviously the operation must be performed correctly. The sleeve should be narrow. However, it cannot be so narrow it causes an obstruction along the sleeve. I use a 32 French gastroscope for a sizer and make sure it is not too tight. This allows me to look at the size of the sleeve from the inside of the sleeve before completing the operation to make sure I am happy with the diameter.

One of the most frequent errors that probably contributes to inadequate weight loss is to leave too much room in the top of the stomach called the fundus. When this occurs the fundus is likely to dilate over time making the stomach too large and allowing too much food to be consumed at each meal. This can be corrected but will require an additional operation to remove the excess fundus.

2). Patient must be well prepared – The patient must be ready to make the necessary dietary and behavioral changes to get their best result. This includes being psychologically ready as well. Only participating in a bariatric surgery comprehensive program is likely to do this for most people.

3). Great long term care – It is important to see your bariatric surgeon often after surgery to make sure you are on track. I see my patients at 1, 3, 6 weeks and at 3, 6and 12 months. This allows for mid course corrections if you are not meeting expectations. Ask your surgeon how frequently you will be seen after the operation.

So Pete, hopefully this helps you to understand what is happening on the national scene.

Five More Apps for your Smart Phone

In addition to the free and paid apps introduced on my last blog posting, here are five more paid apps for your smart phone:

1). MyFitnessPal
This is a calorie counter, as well as a diet and exercise.

2). DailyBurn
This is a calorie counter as well as a workout and weight tracker.

3). Ihourglass
Virtual hour glass which allows you to choose multiple time intervals to help you eat slower and clock times between bites.

4). Fooducate
This application allows you to take a photo of a bar code while shopping to help you make better, healthier choices.

5). Meal snap
This app lets you take a picture of your meal and "magically tell you what foods it detects and calculates the estimated calories in each item and meal! How crazy is that?