bikerchick519

The sleeve was super easy for me, I felt like I didn't even have surgery. The MGB was harder for me the first two days. Lots of gas in my shoulder and my stomach was sore and bruised. But I'm 4 days post op and I feel great today.

I had the sleeve in Nov 2011 and lost 88 pounds. Then I gained about 35. I also had a lot of acid reflux. I just got the revision to mini bypass in Tijuana 4 days ago. I was scheduled with Dr. Illan but he had an emergency appendectomy the day of my surgery so Dr. Zavalza stepped in and did my surgery. I would not hesitate to recommend Mexico for weight loss surgery to any of my family. I've had very positive experiences here. I'm flying home today and I feel great. I would have went with my original surgeon Dr. Kelly for the revision but his price was a lot higher. It sounds like you should go with a different surgeon than your original one if you are having doubts that he did it wrong. good luck

I'm in Tijuana waiting for surgery and find out my surgeon, D. Illan has been taken in to surgery for his appendix so now I have a new surgeon I know nothing about. I'm freaking out. I guess I'm getting Dr. Zavalza. Who has had him that can reassure me?

He said he will be doing surgery on Monday even though he will be sore.so I think you're probably ok.

When I got the sleeve in 2011 I'd never heard of it until I came to this forum. It seemed like a miracle thing that was so much safer and better than the gastric bypass. But as I've mentioned in other posts, my sleeve is stretched, I've regained weight, and I have awful acid reflux. So now the doctor I've chosen is recommending the mini bypass and it sounds great but I'm worried that it's going to be like the sleeve, great at first but problems down the road. There just doesn't seem to be a lot of long term information out there about it. I'm all for this safer, easier version of the gastric bypass but I wish there were more people on here who've had it done. I'm just getting nervous as the date draws nearer.

Thanks Bill, I did talk to Dr. Illan on the phone and he answered my questions. Dove

Hi Dr Illan, I may have asked you this but when you do a sleeve revision to mini bypass, do you re-do the stretched sleeve to make it small again? Or just the bypass part?

I think it's great when you take matters into your own hands and don't let the other person dictate what happens next. I'm all for asking what's wrong and finding out now rather than later if it's not going anywhere. Good for you for taking a chance and putting yourself out there.

Something that helped me through every stage was the website theworldaccordingtoeggface. She had gastric bypass and she has awesome recipes. I never pureed anything. Her ricotta bake is awesome for that stage and she has a ton of Protein shake recipes too. I just printed a lot of her stuff out and put it in a binder like a cookbook.

I've tried a lot of them and I only like Quest and Herbalife (which I'm a distributor and have loved them for years). The Quest ones are good to heat in the microwave for about 15 seconds and they get soft and chewy. You can also but them up and bake them into Cookies but I wasn't a big fan of them that way. I've tried a lot of them and I only like Quest and Herbalife (which I'm a distributor and have loved them for years). The Quest ones are good to heat in the microwave for about 15 seconds and they get soft and chewy. You can also but them up and bake them into cookies but I wasn't a big fan of them that way.

I'm scheduled for a revision from sleeve to mini bypass in Mexico on march 31. As long as it goes as easy as my first surgery I will be thrilled. Just hoping this one works better in the long run.

I had my sleeve done in 2011 and had a job where I walked a lot and then sat at a desk in between. I only took a week off and I was fine. But everyone is different. Good luck.

I'm having revision from sleeve to mini bypass on March 31st and my insurance would not cover it. I have bc/bs of Kansas. They said my bmi wasn't high enough, I never did the 6 month diet (first surgery in Mexico), and no co-morbidities. So I'm just going back to Mexico. Initially I wanted the bypass because they don't do the mini here in my area but after talking to two surgeons in Mexico and researching it, I feel better about the mini bypass for me personally. Good luck with your insurance.

Everyone's different but I only took a week off work with my sleeve. I had a job where I walked a lot but was able to sit at a desk quite a bit too. I had pretty much no pain after surgery though and had a very easy recovery.

I live in Jackson Co on the MO side but I work in KCK. I had the sleeve in 2011 and I'm having a revision to mini bypass in March. I feel like I'm starting all over but I could probably answer any questions you might have. Dr. Hoehn was going to do my revision but my insurance denied it so I'm going back to Mexico.

March 31. I hate that I need a second surgery but it has helped to get back on here and see that I'm not the only one.

@@LipstickLady sleeves absolutely do stretch. I had an egd (scope in my sleeve) and I have a copy of the doctor's report that says my sleeve is dilated. He said it's stretched at the top and the bottom.

My journey is two fold. I had the sleeve in Mexico in 2011. I lost 88 pounds and then nothing. I found out about a year and a half ago that my sleeve had stretched. I had gained about 35 pounds. I lost 10 and then couldn't seem to lose any more. I have had progressively worse acid reflux also. My original surgeon suggested a mini bypass but I wanted the bypass as I really didn't know anything about the mgb. I talked to a surgeon here in the U.S. and he suggested a bypass but my insurance denied it since I have a bmi of 31.8 and no comorbitities, I also never did a 6 month supervised diet since I went to Mexico. I was about to book with my original surgeon but his price went up and they want me to pay the hospital cash, pay for the hotel, and the swallow test. It quickly started adding up so I found a new surgeon and talked to him yesterday. I'm scheduled for the mgb on March 31st in Mexico. I'm excited but nervous.

I have not paid the deposit yet. I was told if I booked a date at Angeles and there were others that day it would be $1400 less but now there's no $1400 discount regardless if someone else books that day or not.

@@May42012 they said my bmi has to be 35 or more with 2 comorbidities, 6 month supervised diet, pshych and all that. My bmi is 31 and only the acid reflux. When I talked to them they said the bmi didn't matter and there was mo mention of the diet but once it went to review they said otherwise. So I'm going to Mexico, hopefully on the 31st of March.

@@lost-in-motion I just booked a revision from sleeve to bypass with Dr. Kelly and i was also told about the cash for the hospital. I don't like going to Mexico with that much cash. Dr. Kelly did my sleeve in 2011 and now it's stretched and I have acid reflux. I don't blame him I think he did a great job the first time so I'm comfortable going back to him but the whole hospital thing is not good. Not to mention I was told one price and now it's $1400 more.

@@heart_RN I've had the same issues and my insurance just denied me for the revision to bypass today. I'm gonna to go back to Mexico to the original surgeon. I'm scheduled for March 31. I'm also nervous about the difference in this surgery from the sleeve. I'm especially worried about dumping syndrome but I'm ready to get it done.

@@May42012 when I talked to the coordinator for my surgeon in Mexico I told him I only have two weeks sick time and he said that should be fine. He said some people only take a week off but due to the nature of my job I would need the two weeks for sure. I think if you have an office job one week would be fine. I didn't ask the surgeon here in the U.S. about it because we're pretty sure my insurance will deny the procedure. If they approve it I'll ask him. I only took a week off with my sleeve and I was fine.

Your story has really helped me feel better. I've been beating myself up about needing a revision from the sleeve to bypass. I've felt like a failure for the weight regain. My sleeve is stretched and I have acid reflux. Thanks again for sharing I really needed to hear something like this.

I'm over 4 years out and I don't have any of those issues but I do have a stretched sleeve and bad acid reflux. An EGD showed the stretch and reflux so I'm waiting for insurance now to decide if they will pay for a revision. If I were you I'd stay on the doctors to find a solution for you. I'm seeing on her a lot more people are having revisions due to not only regain but also complications. Good luck.