The Patients Guide to Weight Loss Surgery. Everything You Need To Know About Gastric Bypass and Bariatric Surgery

This book is highly informative, especially on diet drugs. Alternatives for weight loss surgery are given for you. The author talks about the highly researched history of the Metropolitan Insurance height-weight tables, which will be an eye opener to many of the readers. I was also pleasantly surprised to see the quiz on the very back pages of this book. There is sufficient proof to show that whatever said in this book is true.

The author does suggest you go off coffee slowly before you start the plan. This would minimize headaches during detox. I couldnt wait to get started so, of course, did it all at once and had the most horrible awful headache for 4 straight days. I finally broke down and had a 1/2 cup coffee one day instead of taking aspirin and that did the trick...for the moment. Now Im completely caffeine-free and dont miss it at all. My doctor prescribed a wonderful replacement for coffee made from soya beans called

This book focused on the good and the bad aspects of weight loss surgery. I didnt feel like the author was biased one way or the other but wanted the reader to make a decision based on sound research principles.

This book backs up everything it says with authoritative footnotes and scientific evidence. Lots of meat. I had to read the first chapter twice to understand everythings she was saying. It wasall new information to me.

I bought the book because I am considering weight loss surgery and am trying to educate myself about all aspects of the surgery. The author of this book reportedly had the surgery in 1999. For someone who had the experience, she is very negative and only gave negative view points and negative feed-back from people who had bad experiences. I know from talking to many people that this can be a very positive and life-saving adventure. I would not advise wasting money on this book. I have read six books so far, and they were all better than this one and much more upbeat and positive.

am currently considering WLS and wanted to hear about the negative aspects of the surgery. I thought the personal stories, while sometimes disheartening, gave me a lot to think about and discuss with my doctor. I dont think this book is anti-WLS, it just doesnt present it as a fix-all for obesity. The quiz was interesting and maybe should have been at the beginning of the book rather than at the end. Its easy to skip around, rather than reading from start to finish. This will be a book I will share with my loved ones as I continue to research options.

I was looking for something like the quiz that is included in the very back of the book. Its kind of like a second opinion about whether I should consider weight loss surgery. I was surprised by some of the questions. For example. If there were no mirrors in society, could I be happy with myself right now I would have to answer yes and I guess that says a lot about who I would be having the surgery for.

I also liked the story about the subway system experiment. Ive often sat on a subway and wondered about my fellow travelers, but never had the courage to say anything to them. This experiment showed me that most of us feel lonely in a crowd and would welcome the right kind of interest from others.

The tone of the book was very professional and it made me think twice before jumping on the bandwagon for weight loss surgery.

I thought the book was well written and informative. I liked the chapter on diet drugs. I didnt realize there are so many choices. Now I know what the difference is between thermogenic diet aids and anorexiant diet aids.

I also liked the fact that she gave alternatives to weight loss surgery. I didnt know there were alternatives.

I also liked the well researched history of the Metropolitan Insurance height-weight tables. Its obvious that the premise behind the tables is not scientifically based. The lowest mortality rates are among older women who are short and weigh 180 pounds. Ive been beating myself up for years because I dont conform to those tables. Other measures of fitness were explained that are scientifically based.

It dispelled many of the myths of the diet industry, such as. If you could just follow a diet for a long time, you too would be thin. She explained why that is biologically impossible for the 97 percent of the poplulation.

This book made me feel a lot better about myself and my body.

This book was extremely informative and helpful. You need to read it if you are thinking about weight-loss surgery. It laid out the various procedures in a way that anyone could understand. The best part was the section containing testimonials from many individuals who have had both good and bad experiences. You know exactly what to expect and how it might affect you life. personal, work, friends, social, self-image, energy levels, eating enjoyment, and general well-being aspects were all addressed. This is a must read for anyone considering weight-loss surgery.

This book ought to be required reading for anyone who has ever gone on a diet. I didnt know about the different types of weight loss surgery. It was explained in a precise way with very clear illustrations.

The second part of the book is about why dieting will never work. Move over Dr. Phil. This book challenges what I thought I knew about dieting and weight loss. It tells why dieting only adds more fat in the long run. Dieting takes off as much lean body mass as fat and if you dont exercise, you put on a greater proportion of fat than you lost. I wish I had know that 30 years ago. Maybe I wouldnt be interested in weight loss surgery now.

Then the third part of the book was the most interesting to me. The case histories were not the lala everything is wonderful cases you hear about on TV. These people had real-life problems with their surgeries and some of them ended up happy and some of them ruined their life with their choice. Especially Floyd, the man who died as a result of weight loss surgery. Imagine having to be moved around with a hoist because you were so large. It moved me to tears. Its high time someone wrote a book like this with a realistic view of weight loss surgery.

I genuinely liked the stories of the people who have had the surgery. They were very realistic and graphic in their descriptions of what surgery is truly like.

TV ads have made it seem so simple. You dont just have the surgery and then, magically become thin. There is a lot to think about before committing to weight loss surgery. Do I really want to eat meals the size of my two fingers for the rest of my life

I think I would be like Alice, the lady who couldnt adjust and just drank water with all her meals so she could continue to eat what she wanted.

This book made me think about what life would be like after weight loss surgery. Especially helpful was the sample surgery release form. It truthfully laid out all the pitfalls that COULD happen to you as a result of weight loss surgery.

Theres a lot more to it than just....be fat... have the surgery....become thin. I would suggest that anyone considering weight loss surgery read this book.

knowing someone that is morbidly obese and considering surgery, i purchased this book for them after hearing about it on a local radio show. it contains very extensive knowledge describing all the major operations, diagrams of the procedures available as well their side affects. the author goes into detail about psychological affects of being morbidly obese in todays society, as well as the mental transformation people must make post op.

one part of the book i found touching were the personal stories of morbidly obese people and their journeys through surgery. some of them were very eye opening tells of people that almost died on the operating table.

all in all i found this book a good starter for anyone who is planning on having surgery, or if you know someone that is thinking about. this book is a true guide and does not try to paint weight loss surgery as a rosey image like the many news stories on televison. a great read that covers all the bases and will probably be something handed out in doctors offices.

I have read numerous books on the weight loss surgery beforehand and I have to say this is the worst one. It is scary to read preop. It focuses on the death rate (which if you are considering this surgery you already know it) but the author goes into detail about it.
It makes you feel like a failure that you need this surgery. It repeatedly lists that after time you will basically gain back 50pct. of the weight back.
It devotes a whole chapter to negative aspects of the surgery but not much info on the positive aspects of it.
The only good thing about this book is the weight loss surgery quiz.

I have just finished reading The Patients Guide to Weight Loss Surgery. This is the most incomplete and misleading publication I have every read on weight loss surgery. I am appalled at the minor attention given to certain subjects (A PAGE AND A HALF .) on the Positive Aspects of Weight-Loss Surgery pg. 44)..........and a whole chapter on the NEGATIVE ASPERCTS

In the page-and-a-half devoted to positive aspects, there in not one word of mention about the single biggest and most phenomenal effect of the surgery. cure or major lessening of diabetes and its terrible effects.The focus seems to be on body image (fountain of youth), an attitude every knowledgeable person associated with bariatric surgery discourages. This is a procedure for health and mental well-being, not vanity.

The Personal Stories section is outrageous. The stories here are goulish, and almost all are so negative that most readers would be influenced with a picture of this subject akin to a horror story. I have never seen a collection of first-person accounts on this subject anywhere that is so negatively balanced. Where are the stories of uncomplicated and total success that are included in almost any other publication on the subject and all over the internet

I am, frankly, infuriated that I spent my hard-earned money on this almost useless book and the statement on the back cover that It is the most current and relaible source of information for anyone who wants to make an informed decision about gastric bypass and bariatric surgery is laughable. It worries me this book may be the only one that some poor prospective patient out there will read and the book has done a disservice to any reader.

If you want good information, save your money.

From Al Roker to Carnie Wilson, for some surgery is the only option. Over 65,000 people a year have weight loss surgery and the numbers are growing. After years of yo-yo dieting and years of failing to lose weight, many people turn to surgery to deal with health-threatening weight problems.

The Patients Guide to Weight Loss Surgery tells you everything about this increasingly popular procedure. With an overview of the risks of obesity and some alternative weight-loss methods, the book also contains.

Detailed information on the four different types of weight loss surgery
The risks and negative aspects of the procedures
Coping with the emotions that accompany a change in body image
Case histories, a resource guide to doctors and hospitals, insurance information, and much more.

In short, The Patients Guide to Weight Loss Surgery will help everyone and anyone considering the surgery make a truly informed decision.

About the Author
April Hochstrasser, PhD, is a speech pathologist in a school district near Tacoma. In 1999, she underwent weight loss surgery.