Leading the field in weight loss surgery
Weight Loss Surgery
Serving the San Francisco Bay Area with offices in Marin County and Napa.
Does your weight prevent you from enjoying exercise, intimacy, or just daily life? Now you can take back your body and your life with the help of weight loss surgery from Whole Health Weight Loss.
If you’ve been overweight for a significant period, you know your own body makes it incredibly difficult to lose weight through diet and exercise alone. For those with a BMI of 30 or more, we offer a range of medical weight loss options designed to help you lose weight as well as make the long-term lifestyle changes necessary to maintain your new, healthier weight.
About our weight loss surgery
Our advanced weight loss procedures enable us to help our patients lose a significant amount of weight more safely and effectively than ever before! We offer surgical, non-surgical and minimally invasive weight loss procedure options to help you achieve impressive weight loss, with minimal inconvenience or downtime.
Dr. Scott Perryman is committed to helping every patient create a weight loss program that fits his or her lifestyle and will yield long-lasting results.
If you are obese and struggle to reduce your weight with diet and exercise, there are many health benefits that come with weight loss surgery. Obesity is far more than a cosmetic issue: people with a BMI over 30 are at increased risk of health conditions like diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, sleep apnea, or arthritis. Obese individuals are more likely to experience back pain and unfortunately have a higher chance of stroke and other life-threatening events like heart attack.
Weight loss surgery is a one-time procedure to achieve a lifetime of healthy, quality living.
If you are ready to start your weight loss journey, the Whole Health Weight Loss Team is ready to be with you every step of the way!
Our weight loss surgeries are partnered with nutritional counseling and support services including group therapies to enable you to live a healthy, mindful life moving forward.
Have questions? Schedule an appointment with one of our weight loss doctors here.
Benefits of weight loss surgery
- Safe, medically-approved method of weight loss
- Reduce the chance of developing serious health issues like diabetes, sleep apnea, and heart disease
- Improve your mobility
- Improve your confidence
- Improve comfort with intimacy
- Look great in clothes
- Minimal downtime required after surgery
- Little interruption to daily schedule
Weight loss surgery options
We offer four weight loss surgery options to help you lose weight and get back to a happy, healthy you! These procedures include:
1) Gastric sleeve
A gastric sleeve procedure (also called a vertical sleeve gastrectomy or VSG) achieves significant weight loss by reducing the size of the stomach. This reduction not only helps you feel full faster, but removes the part of the stomach that produces ghrelin, our strongest hunger hormone. As a result, you eat less and lose weight. We find that patients undergo hormonal changes within a few weeks and can lose up to 75% of their excess body weight within a year of surgery.
2) Gastric balloon (Orbera)
A gastric balloon is a silicone balloon (sometimes known by its brand name, Orbera) that is placed inside the stomach to slow down digestion and help you control portion intake. The balloon is first placed uninflated through the esophagus and guided into the stomach using a flexible camera known as an endoscope. Once in the desired position, the balloon is filled with sterile saline solution. The balloon helps patients reduce the amount of calories they consume and lead to 25%-30% excess weight loss within a year of intragastric balloon placement.
Patients are able to return to work within three days of receiving the intragastric balloon. The balloon will be deflated via endoscope and removed at the 6-month point, after which proper diet and exercise are required to maintain weight loss.
The intragastric balloon is effective for patients with BMIs from 30 to 40.
No surgery is required to place an intragastric balloon!
3) Gastric band (lap band)
The gastric band (sometimes called a lap band) is a hollow ring made of biocompatible material. The ring is placed around the stomach and filled with saline. This effectively constricts the stomach cavity to help with portion control.
Patients feel full faster with the adjustable gastric band. As a result, patients lose a significant amount of weight.
A gastric band is placed during a minimally-invasive procedure. A small incision will be made in the pelvis or abdomen. Dr. Perryman will then use a slim laparoscopic camera to carefully place the hollow band around the stomach before inflating it. The ring will be placed in such a way that the size of the ring can be easily adjusted if necessary. You will be able to walk the same day as your procedure! A liquid diet will be necessary for the first week following band placement.
If you have a BMI of 30-50, you may be an excellent candidate for the adjustable gastric band. Patients who receive the adjustable gastric band lose between 40% and 65% of their excess body weight within the first year!
4) Gastric bypass
The gastric bypass is a surgery designed to dramatically reduce the size of the stomach. The stomach will be reduced to one to two ounces using titanium staples. The small intestine will also be shortened and re-attached to the stomach.
The gastric bypass dramatically reduces calorie intake, as well as increases satiation and decreases hunger.
Patients can lose up to 75% of their excess body weight within a year of a Gastric Bypass, and 65% within two years.
Is weight loss surgery covered by insurance?
In some cases, a patient’s insurance will help cover the cost of the gastric sleeve, gastric band, gastric balloon, or gastric bypass. Patients are advised to contact their provider to learn more about their insurance coverage for weight loss surgery.
Is weight loss surgery right for me?
If you are a man or a woman living in the Bay Area who has a BMI ranging from 30 to 50 or above, you are a good candidate for weight loss surgery.
Ideal candidates for weight loss surgery are:
- Over 18
- Clinically obese (BMI 30+)
- Non-smokers
- Open to the outcomes of a weight loss surgery
- Ready to make long-lasting lifestyle changes
Women who are pregnant will need to wait before undergoing weight loss surgery.
If you are unsure of your BMI, use our BMI calculator below.
Whole Health Weight Loss: Our difference
Dr. Perryman is dedicated to a whole-life weight loss approach for their patients. They want to enable you to not only to lose weight, but also to keep the weight off for the long-term!
In addition to weight loss surgery, Whole Health Weight Loss is proud to offer nutritional services, group counseling, and other forms of information and support that enable our patients to live their best, healthiest lives following their weight loss.
Mindfulness and weight loss
Part of our weight loss program focuses on the concept of mindfulness. Mindfulness is a Buddhist concept that emphasizes awareness of what is happening in the present. More and more clinical research shows that mindfulness and eating can make a huge difference for weight loss results.
Mindful eating can be thought of as a specialized attentiveness to the smells, flavors, taste, and texture of the food you’re eating. With this approach, many dieters find that they are empowered to make healthier food choices over the long term.
As a supplement to your weight loss surgery, we provide resources on mindfulness eating techniques to help our patients achieve lifelong success.
Every candidate for weight loss surgery will receive a private consultation with Dr. Perryman. They will be happy to answer any questions that you have so that you are well-informed about the medical weight loss option that makes the most sense for you. Once your treatment plan has been determined, our dietitian will help you create nutritious, easy-to-make menus that will assist and maintain your weight loss results.
What weight loss surgery is like
The course of your weight loss surgery will depend on your chosen procedure. All patients receive personalized preparation and recovery instructions well before their procedure. If you have questions about your weight loss surgery at any point, please do not hesitate to contact our office!
In general, preparation instructions will involve details like when patients should discontinue eating or drinking, or when particular medications should be discontinued.
Patients who receive the gastric balloon will have their balloon placed non-surgically using an endoscope to guide the balloon into the stomach before it is filled with saline.
Weight loss patients who choose the gastric band will receive their silicone band through minimally-invasive surgery. The band requires only a tiny incision in the pelvis or abdomen and a laparoscopic camera to place around the stomach. The band will then be filled with saline.
The gastric sleeve and gastric bypass are both surgical procedures. Dr. Perryman will discuss the steps of your personalized weight loss surgery with you during your private consultation.
Recovery from weight loss surgery
Your doctor and dietician will discuss your recovery timeline with you, including what types of foods you will be able to eat, and when.
Recovery timelines vary based on individual healing times.
The recovery time for the gastric band and intragastric balloon is 3-5 days. Patients may experience postoperative nausea or acid reflux. Medications can be prescribed to counter these effects. For both the gastric bypass and vertical sleep, the recovery time is 1 – 2 weeks for light activity. Those who are required to lift more than 50 lbs at work or will lift heavy objects often will require 4 weeks to recover.
Dr. Perryman make sure to be there for their patients every step of the way following weight loss surgery.
Weight loss is a journey! If you have questions or concerns at any time, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Results
Most patients begin losing weight shortly after weight loss surgery. Within a year of weight loss surgery, patients often see up to 65% reduction in their excess body weight!
Dr. Perryman will meet with you regularly following weight loss surgery to make sure you are healthy and making the progress you want.
In addition to helping you achieve a healthy weight, their goal is to help you find mindful habits that make the most sense for you. Together, the Whole Health Weight Loss team will help you accomplish a new you and a new life, for the long-term.
