sweetheart181

Revising lap band to sleeve on may 16th. So excited to be a part of this group! And to everyone who has had their surgery hope you are doing well 💕

Getting my revision (band to sleeve) in may and I’m so excited!!!

Do you have a standard drain or a wound vac? I would sleep on my side with the wound vac as long as the connection wasn’t squished on the bed (if that makes any sense lol)

Hi!!! I think this is a personal choice and it’s ok not to tell anyone until you’re ready. When I got my first surgery in 2008 I didn’t tell anyone but my mom and 1 friend. I didn’t want to tell anyone due to fear of failure and not really wanting to hear everyone’s opinions (2008 it wasn’t as acceptable and I was only 20). I slowly told other people but I still haven’t completely made it public. I don’t regret my decision as it was the right one for me. Oh and I would also just tell people I’ve been having stomach issues if they were wondering why I hadn’t eaten much.

Finally getting my revision from the band to the sleeve on may 16th and I’m so excited to get back in the saddle!!!

I couldn't tell my dad because I knew he would disapprove and I would never hear the end of it. The whole time growing up he always complained about how much I ate and when I finally told him when I reached goal weight then he was always mad because now I'm too skinny and don't eat enough. You can never win with these people even when it's family and you think they will support you.

My doctor didn't want me to drink soda because the carbonation can cause issues with your restriction. He did say that if we wanted a little that we could leave soda open in the fridge overnight so the carbonation is gone. I just stay away from it all together because it upsets my stomach and I have a hard time loosing weight when I drink it.

I was so scared before surgery! Just keep thinking about all the great successes that you will have because of it. I've always been a science nerd so I calmed myself down by watching videos of the surgery on YouTube. It really helped it sink in that this isn't a complicated surgery and that it will be over quick. Don't worry about the pain or anything because it really isn't too terrible. My doc said I was in more pain than most people and ended up keeping me overnight but it still wasn't that bad. The shoulder pain bothered me the most but the heating pad will make it all better

It took me 2 years and 3 unfills to feel better. I had the same problem with getting an unfill and then it slowly got worse again. In total I had to take out 3ccs but I have a bigger band.

I just found out that there is a hole in my tubing too. Do you mind me asking how much it cost this time? Was it the same cost as your surgery? And if your insurance covered it the first time did they cover it this time too?

I've had a problem with this before but my circumstances started a little differently. I filled my band too tightly about 2 years ago, this made it hard to drink water and i had acid reflux really badly. I waited till the next day to see the doctor because their office was already closed. By the time I got to the doctor i was puking blood because the acid reflux had hurt my stomach lining. I got an unfill and that's when it all started. 2 weeks later I still felt way too tight and it felt like my band was getting tighter. I was going to go to the doctor but I ended up with the stomach flu and kept needing to puke but my band was too tight and nothing would come up. I went to the ER and they unfilled some more (at this point I had taken out 1.5cc). I felt a lot better for the first 2 or 3 months but then it started to snowball again. I felt like my band was slowly getting tighter and tighter even though I wasn't getting any fills. I decided to go to the doctor and get another unfill. We decided to take out another 1.5cc and it was great, although I could eat a ton and I did gain weight I finally felt OK. My doctor explained to me that the reason I had this snowball effect was because we never really let my stomach heal and my stomach lining kept getting more and more irritated and kept swelling over time. Now I feel much better, I just got my first fill in 2 years and after 3 unfills. They kept looking for slippage but that was never the case, my band always looked fine. I know it's hard to get an unfill and gain weight I think in the long run it would have been better if I had just had a large unfill in the beginning but I was too stubborn to do that.