CowgirlJane

@@Bndtoslv I forgot to address your other question - the fear about not as good of results as a "revisionista" i asked my NUT about this and we talked at some depth about the "bad habits" I learned with the band. This is personal to me, I do not intend this as band bashing but this is what I learned from having a band and had to "guard against" post revision. 1. Sliders. Lets be honest, when I had a decent fill - all I could really eat were sliders. I couldn't eat dense Protein without pain so I learned quickly to like crackers, popcorn, chips, etc etc. 2. Sweets - pre band, I was more of a volume eater not so much into sweets. That changed overtime and I definately developed a sweet tooth. I suspect because sweets are basically sliders. 3. Snacking/grazing - seriously bad news for sleevers. enuf said. So my conclusion is that band to sleeve revisions have to be very diligent because you might have gotten used to that feeling... pouch packing, esophogus stuffing .. whatever you call it. Bottom line, you CANNOT eat until "full" (stuffed or whatever your former criteria was) - the goal is to eat until absence of hunger. Say what? A whole new concept for me but it works! I am 3.5 years post revision and i openly admit I am struggling WAY more than I have previously. Go figure... but it is never easy.

I wasn't as successful with the band as i hoped I would be. I started at 272 in March 2001. It took me a YEAR to lose about 70# (30 of those was during the first 30 days as my surgeon had me do a liquid diet for 30 days!) I exercised, i really tried the best I could but I was hungry still, just in pain when I ate. My band and I did not get along well. i vomited alot. By late 2002 I was having serious problems. Who am I kidding, I was already sleeping in a sitting up position and other things to try to control the reflux. anyway, i had to have all fill removed and i regained big time. By 2004, I was well over 300#. my highest recorded was 332, but I think I weighed closer to 350 at one point. I battled it out for many years, bouncing between about 240 - 300 ish range. In 2011 I finally had the courage to revise and began the sleeve journey at 308. My lowest weight post sleeve was 140, but I am currently in the upper 150s... 3.5 years post revision.

You will be strong enough they just don't want you to risk complications.

@@AvaFern it breaks my heart you were so mean to yourself. That is just awful. This whole topic is fllled with venom. I cannot begin to fathom why someone has a rant over obese people getting trimmer and fitter and "finding their way" fashionwise in the process. I think it is joyeous to see someone who has been wearing plus sizes for a long time experiment with cute clothes. I used to post pictures of myself in different outfits to try to even figure out my own sense of fashion and style. I have sort of " matured" out of that phase now but it was part of the process....and yes egos are very delicate during the weight loss journey. Be gentle.

So nice to hear from you! I want to ask you a serious question. .. can you see how awesome it is to weigh in the 200# weight class vs 300 range????

@@CanyonBaby how is your hubby? I want to follow your story and not sure this is the right thread.

I was depressed after my band removal. Makes no sense as I had long since admitted defeat. My port site hurt , I felt feverish and had headaches. .but it really was nothing. Sleeve is hard because at first you can't hydrate well but I was armed with knowledge and positive energy so it was fine! I expected much suffering but really it was not as bad as you might think. Important part is 3.5 years down the road and I am so happy with my body that I never experienced with band!

I had the band for 10 long miserable years. It left me with trauma too. Even so, raise your concerns with your surgeon. ..just in case. It's funny that I thought the band was "no biggie" - not really bariatric surgery (i know I was queen of DeNile) while sleeve was scary life changing dangerous stuff. Hmmm. .. I might have gotten both slightly wrong. .a bit exaggerated!

I did not experience this bit that port site was weird and unpleasant for quite some time after band removal. First there was a "gap" where it used to sit and then it filled with Fluid. Luckily it is.now j us t a distant bad memory. As unpleasant as it sounds. ..guessing it is not serious

@@amytug remember me? I am 3.5 years post sleeve...1.5 years post reconstructive plastics. I lost over 150. ..so also went to the kind and talented Dr Sauceda! Welcome back!

There is a maintenance forum now but I see the vets forum as a maintenance forum! I am 3.5 YEAR'S post op and finding maintaining harder now...more than ever! I think we still need to support each other!

FYI - my surgeon gave me these following, very rough guidelines. I was able to lose 100% of my excess but it took me more than a year! 3 months: 20-30% of EWL (I had lost 57# at 3 months) 6 months: 40-60% of EWL (I had lost 95# at 6 months) 12 months 60-80% of EWL (I lost 133# at 12 months) It took me 14 months to lose 150 - and another year to lose about 165 total. I kinda bounce around there now.

100# is alot to lose and more importantly keep off.

I wasn't afraid of that in advance I was more focused on "survival" since my obesity was slowly killing me... however, i have experienced a big change in this area too. After a bit of an adjustment i have to say i really really really like the new "me" and my new life. Perhaps you will too... think of it like the upheavals of your teen years turning you into a more settled adult. You might go through some upheavals after losing weight, most likely to settle into a healthier, more active, happier person when all is said and done.

Hi welcome. There is a singles forum but nobody posts to it. I am 3.5 years post band to sleeve revision single, enjoying life!

I dont completely understand. Gastric sleeve doesn't have ports, lapband does. I was a band to sleeve revision and had drains too. I don't recall the output but it was not excessive. I hope they figure this out soon. The forum rules ask people to not post the same message multiple places...thanks.

Heck, since most people use mobile devices they don't see the signatures and can't actually tell if they are getting advice from a preop, someone deeply in the honeymoon phase or a vet. The "tone" can often be quite different based on our experience level. I am considerably more jaded and straightforward about what works and what doesn't 3.5 years of wrestling with weight loss and then maintenance does that to you...

The reason i suggest posting details not just a general statement is because the "devil is in the details". At about 8-9 months out my weight loss slowed way down - and I had alot more to lose (I lost 150 in total). The NUT figured out that I was getting alot of carbs in my protien bars and eating too many of them... they had become a snacky slider for me. Point being even something that is "on program" can interfere with losses. As you get closer to goal, it gets tougher and tougher. I had to go low carb and high intensity interval training workouts to get the last 30-40 pounds off.

Are you tracking your food? Mind Sharing a few days worth? It is really hard to lose the last of the weight!

Glad it is improving but don't be afraid to call your surgeon. ..

I had the band for 10 years. I chose 2 separate surgeries to revise because 3.5 years ago there wasn't that much evidence but it seemed safer. I had no complications. What does surgeon say about risks in 1 surgery vs 2? I think revisions have "about" double the complication rare as virgin sleevers but it's still low.

I hope someone has explained that the hunger reduction doesn't happen immediately and for many of us it wasn't permanent.

Just got back from the hip injection - it was xray (floroscopy) guided. I don't feel good at all, but i suspect it is just that I am not coping well with the pain. Over the last 2 weeks I have found myself eating more - I just hurt so damn much I can't get relief. They numb you for the injection, but when they get to the bone... it still smarts. Anyway, right now everything just feels weird. I think I am gonna play hookey from the rest of the day at work and just go take a nap since I am not going to be productive anyway. Keeping fingers crossed that this helps. Denise, everybody has "issues and drawbacks" that is absolutely right. What has happened with Scott is that when we first met he expressed that he was so ready for a relationship but i wondered about a few things - like his divorce was final over a year ago and he hadn't dated anyone yet...hmmm. I called it correctly from the beginning - and he has now told me that I recognized right off the bat some realities that he didn't realize until recently. He is essentially traumatized from his ex wife/divorce - it was off the hook bad deal. On top of that, he had something very negative happen at work about a month ago that continues to plague him (and due to divorce settlement, the financial stress of keeping his big paying job is a big deal). So, what he wants is for me to wait for him to sort some things out, but doesn't want to ask me to do that because it isn't fair to me (his words). I am okay - what i mean is that I am not in a big hurry or anything. The problem I am experiencing is that even though i KNOW why he is pulling back emotionally, I am experiencing it as rejection. I am having a hard time talking my heart into understanding it the way that my mind does. I am very encouraged that he has started back up with frequent counseling and is taking seriously the emotional issues that have been stirred up by our growing relationship. Gotta admire a man who is willing to "deal with his shit" so to speak. We see each other often, we do active and interesting things together (camped together all weekend, I went over for dinner and made beer together Tuesday night, we go fishing on Sunday etc)... for now, it is okay but I know that if I continue to feel rejected in any way I won't fall in love. It is a self discovery for me too... quantity of time together isn't really that important to me, it is more the "feeling" I have when I have interacted with a person and right now it isn't all that loving. His daughter arrives for the summer at the end of May. 3 months ago, I know he was scheming how we could meet without it causing big drama but at this point, I don't think I will meet her at all... things have moved to that level of uncertainty. She is horse crazy and I of course have an extra, very safe horse... so it could have been a pretty fun summer for me and a little girl but I don't think it is going to happen that way unless I really step up and make it so. I am not sure that is the right thing and he is pretty damn confused right now. anyway, all that is second fiddle to how much my damn hip hurts right now.

I am a sleever... and I am following topics on this new procedure with no angst.... I think some are a little over sensitive - just because people ask questions or make statements doesn't mean they aren't adding to the discussion. I think it is productive to express doubts and concerns... When I was sleeved in 2011 - i had some trepidation due to lack of long term success data. I was duped into believing that the lapband was a good solution (in 2001) and i paid a heavy price for that mistake for 10 years so I was gunshy about repeating that "error". However, I also think you need to research and make the best decision with the data you have at the time... and go for it. For me, the revision to DS has always been my "backup plan" should this sleeve deal not work for me. It is great to hear that there is an updated version of the DS that is becoming widespread. I look forward to hearing ongoing success stories!

when was your surgery?