Marla,
Yes, I had a form of gastric bypass surgery back on August 14th. What I had is called biliopancreatic diversion with a duodenal switch (bpd/ds). In essence, they remove your appendix, your gall bladder, make your stomach 4 ounces big, and reroute your intestines to where your body will only absorb 30% of all food intake (100% of sugars though).
This will enable your body to lose the weight at a rapid pace, and once the weight is off you will be able to eat anything you want without gaining much or any. The only catch is that you have to eat proteins first, then you can eat what you want aftewards. Your stomach will stretch out to where you will be able to eat a normal meal. Most people concentrate on meats and cheese products, similiar to the Atkins diet but you can also eat carbs without worry of weight gain.
Matt