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I had sleeve the RNY revision October 2020 due to severe GERD, Gastritis and Esophagitis. Insurance covered it after I completed the diagnostic test: barium swallow test, esophagus motility test and endoscopy with BRAVO. After submitting the results (all the testing was done in a couple weeks), I received approval from Aetna within 2 weeks. Even though I had gained back some of the weight lost from the sleeve, I was overweight but not obese, so my weight had no bearing on insurance approval. My 1st surgeon visit was in mid August and my surgery was October 29th.

I had my revision DS surgery last June 3 20201. Had a blockage from surgery on June 4th stayed in the hospital for 3 weeks. Just had another blockage 2 months ago and had surgery again. This time he removed the blockage and a ton of scar tissue. Well, my big problem is I have lost 215lbs. I started at 565lbs and am down to 350lbs. I am going nuts, I can't loose another pound to save my life. I tried the whole Krispy Kreme thing it was a no go. I am doing premier protein shakes. They told me to do 80mg of protein a day, but I cut back. I don't feel like I have lost a thing. I had plans by now. Skin removal, boob job, and neck fixed. Now I am a failure. I feel like my family looks at me as if I wasted my chance, like I did with the gastric bypass 10 years ago. I haven't. I take my vitamins and do everything right. Is there a diet pill or something someone recommends? The only weight I lost was a month ago when I got direaha for 4 days straight. 😪 thanks Jamie

Do I understand this correctly? So this would be your second revision? I’m 3 weeks out from revision bypass surgery 4/18/21 so far so good so much easier then sleeve

I’m 3 1/2 weeks out from my revision. I’m jealous that you cannot eat chicken for nine months. I hate chicken and that’s all I’ve been eating. 🙂

I had the revision surgery on May 19 and I have had no issues. With a sleeve I had issues swallowing and had to stay in the hospital another night. Basically I had no pain except a headache a couple days later. I’ve tolerated everything just fine. Frankly it was just much easier than the sleeve.

My wife was a twenty year diabetic, just short of being insulin dependent on about the strongest drug cocktail of the day when she had her DS, and it took her the better part of a year to be fully off of all meds for it, and 16 years later is still in solid remission. The doc told us that this is fairly typical, that the longer one has been diagnosed/under treatment, the longer it takes to fully go into remission. This is just a gross generalization, as we see many in these forums who walk out of the hospital free of meds and insulin with only a VSG or an RNY, so there can be a wide variety of responses. Your DS, particularly the "traditional" BPD/DS, is indeed the strongest tool against diabetes - our doc's experience is in the 98-99% remission rate area, which should not be too surprising as it started as a surgical treatment specifically for diabetes, to which the sleeve was added to make it a weight loss procedure. It also seems to be the most enduring procedure for it, as it seems to usually stay in remission even with a fair bit of regain, which happens sometimes, though less with the DS than with other WLS. A few years ago we had a gal come through our support group who had been a successful RNY patient for 20+ years, (the practice was not yet doing the DS at her time of surgery) but whose diabetes had come out of remission with only some moderate weight gain, so she was back to get her RNY revised to the DS to knock it out for good. So, it is an excellent first choice for a diabetic WLS patient. Good luck in your adventure!

So I know people can have reflux problems after a sleeve, but I apparently am one of the rare cases of having severe issues after bypass. I currently have 2 large ulcers. They are talking revision surgery. Has anyone had this issue? I am only 5.5 months post bypass.

I’m so sorry you are going through this. I would talk to the doctor. This week I will be at three weeks post op. I stopped the omperazole less than a week after because I found I didn’t need it. I only had two bouts vomiting and I think one was because I hated what I was eating and the other one was because I wasn’t paying attention and probably did not chew well enough. My biggest issue is that I am picky and don’t like ground chicken or ground turkey and I miss vegetables more than I could ever imagine. My experience could be a bit different because I had a revision for my sleeve because I screwed it up and gained on my weight back. Good luck and I hope things get better for you soon

by revision, I bet she met gastric bypass (RNY). About 30% of sleevers develop GERD, and a minority of those get it bad enough that they revise to bypass (bypass often improves if not cures GERD). Although if it's mostly due to the hiatal hernia, she may be able to fix that when she gets in there.

My 5 year surgery date is September 2021. I had an unremarkable recovery from my sleeve surgery. I lost 110 pounds but have put about 15 back on (or had... I have lost 9 of those). The biggest "issue" I had post-surgery was either hiccuping or sneezing when I was full. About a year ago, I started having acid issues. They've progressed to the point of significant GERD. I had been taking a PPI but it stopped working at all... seriously, I wake up at night coughing and gagging because there is stomach acid pretty much in my back teeth! Anyhow, for the last year I've been taking the PPI until it stops working, go off of it for about a month, take it again and it helps a bit but then stops working... wash, rinse, repeat. Four or five months ago I started having horrible pain with eating on occasion and would sometimes throw up. The vomiting has become almost a daily occurrence although not with every meal, and with no predictability. SO I called my surgeon, she listened to my complaints, and sent me for an upper GI swallow. The films show that I have a hiatal hernia and a narrowing of my esophagus. They could tell this because the 12mm barium coated sizing-pill that they had me swallow, to track it through my system, wouldn't go through the esophageal opening into my stomach. There is also narrowing of the pylorus, at the bottom of my pouch, but they can't tell how narrow because the stupid sizing pill was stuck in my esophagus! When I talked to my surgeon after she saw the films, she had me scheduled for an endoscopy (on 6/18) and surgery (on 6/22) to put my pouch back where it belongs, close the enlarged opening in my diaphragm, and to open up my esophagus. She also said- rather offhand- that depending on what she sees in the endoscopy/surgery that I might need a revision. I believe this was in referral to the pyloric narrowing, but I'm not sure. I'm not sure I really know what a revision is. My surgeon is a leader in robotic bariatric surgery, but she's not much for communication and "bedside manner." Anyhow... I don't know what to expect from all of this, what post-op requirements would be, etc. Surgeon scheduled the surgery as she said it clearly needs to be done, just wants the endoscopy done so there are "no surprises" once she gets in there. She also said to expect to be in the hospital for a couple of nights. I really don't know what to expect and have called her office for clarification but so far, no response. I guess I am sharing here to see if anyone has had anything like this happen this far out from surgery, has any advice or guesses, experience with this to share, etc.

Right before my revision surgery, I questioned why I had to adhere so strictly to the preop diet (especially since I was at my goal weight) I was told that not only does the pre-op diet reduce the fat in the abdominal cavity making it easier to navigate during surgery, but it also reduces any fat remaining inside the liver. They took preventative measure for better surgical outcomes. The liver is one of the organs that must be lifted in order to reach the digestive track. If it has too much fat, it is not pliable and becomes prone to injuries like tears, scaring and even breaking. My surgeon asked me to imagine a marbled steak as opposed to a leaner steak. The fat filled areas of the steak will tear easier that the purely muscular areas. After that conversation I (begrudgingly) complied with the pre-op diet.

I am having a revision from sleeve to bypass June 14th. I started my pre-op diet Sunday and it's not too bad. I'm starting to get nervous though. Not looking forward to having to do this all over AGAIN.. I had my sleeve done in Oct 2017, and it hasn't been a fun ride since. I hope this time it turns out better. I am ready to get it over with 🤨😬.. . Wish everyone luck and a speedy recovery..

I’m so sorry. I went through this too but I didn’t have the lap band. but your surgeon should have told you the sleeve only makes the reflux worse. My surgeon did and suggested a revision to bypass instead because of my severe GERD.

I went for a round 150 as the 'main' goal, as I was that weight when I was around 17 and looked and felt great (not that I thought it at the time!!). Now I'm getting closer at 179, and when I look in the mirror there appears to be more than 29 pounds to go! So I may revise goal but will see when I get there or close. It's hard to imagine ourselves so light I think, after many years of being heavier. It's such a personal thing, and like others have said I do sometimes worry that I'll never be happy! I love the 'weirdest none-scale-victory' thread for ideas of what to notice and celebrate, and mentally I find it helpful to shift focus away from the numbers sometimes, particularly when experiencing a stall.

I’ve been hearing different things like: you lose slower or you may not lose at all. I’m 9 days out and I lost 10 so far but I know of some friends who’ve lost 20 within the first week. So question for revisions from sleeve to RNY, How long did it take you to lose the weight you wanted?

That "ideal" calculation is really too simple, isn't it? It doesn't factor in frame width, being "big boned", etc. Two people can be the same height but have vastly different frames/structures. I'm 6'1", which by the above calculation sets my ideal weight at 178 pounds. I would look absolutely emaciated at that weight, given that my frame is fairly wide/broad-shouldered. Depending on your body type, these sorts of formulas can create some really unrealistic (and unhealthy) expectations IMO, especially if people take the concept of "ideal" as a target to strive for... in the vast majority of cases that ideal, i.e., 100% of excess weight lost, is not realistic. I started at 383 and my surgeon and I started with a target of 250. If I hit that weight, I would consider the journey a success. Alternatively, the above formula sets the target at 239.5, which isn't far off the mark... although if you use online obesity calculators, 6'1" and 240 is still considered obese... go figure. As I approached my original goal faster than expected, I revised the goal downward from 250 to 225. I'm now at 10.5 months from date of surgery, and while my rate of loss has slowed drastically (as expected), that revised goal is now too in sight at 230.4.

"they" say (whoever "they" are) that weight loss is never as quick or significant with a revision as it is with a virgin surgery, but some people can lose quite a bit of weight with them. I've read the average is about 20 lbs - although that's an average so I would think that includes people who lost most of their excess weight with the sleeve and are doing the revision because of GERD. I don't know what the stats are if you only include people who had the revision when they were still quite a ways from goal. I would think you could make it, but again, it's probably going to be slower and more difficult than with a virgin surgery.

I think there are some people on this site who had success with a sleeve to bypass revision. I think it depends on the person. Also, there's also the option of sleeve to duodenal switch... depending on why you're having the revision of course because if it's for GERD then the DS isn't an option. But the sleeve is literally the first part of the DS procedure. It used to be separated into two parts so it's another revision option if your insurance covers it (and you don't have GERD)

Freaking out!! Just read you barely lose any weight going from Sleeve revision too Bypass

How was you’re recovery process going from the sleeve to bypass? In a few weeks I will be doing a revision of my sleeve to bypass due to a hiatal hernia and acid reflux. I’m curious to know if the recovery after the surgery is worse, the same or easier the second time around. I’m also interested in knowing how your insurance covered the revision. My policy has an exclusion and I’m concerned I will be denied coverage.

Best thing.....NO MORE ACID REFLUX Worst thing.....Dumping Surgery 10/29/2020 @ 187 lbs. Weight loss since surgery..... 52 lbs. That's also a BEST THING! Since my surgery was for the stomach/esophagus issues, the weight loss has been a bonus! After the sleeve, I had a banana sized stomach. Now I have a golf ball sized stomach. The remainder of my stomach and my duodenum (upper most part of my upper intestine) is still inside, the duodenum is just connected further down into my ilium (lowest part of the upper intestine). So in the revision, nothing is taken out like with the sleeve. The digestive track is just rerouted to bypass the stomach and duodenum. I hope that makes sense.

I revised from a band I got in 2008, it slipped in 2017, I got RNY in December 2020. With my band I had several issues, pain with eating, throwing up, not losing weight. my surgeon said she would only do RNY because it was safer due to the scaring from the band, so my choice was an easy one. I’m a female, 5’9” and I have hormonal issues that hinder me from losing weight. But, I started at 255 in December and am 207 today, so it’s still been effective, even if slower than I expected. The best part is, no pain while eating. I actually don’t feel much when eating. So, that old feeling of band “restriction” is totally out the window. You have to relearn your body’s hunger cues, but the essentials of how, what, how much to eat is quite similar to the band.

Hi Julie and you others, I got my band in May 2012. It worked fine, got down from 285 the day of surgery to 240, then stalled. A few years later tried phentermine, which helped me lose more, for one day in August 2019 I crossed from obese to overweight! Currently back up to 235, having lots of reflux. Just had a total unfill and orders to get an upper GI. I want revision to bypass but we’ll see. I miss the “old gang”, B52, gowalking, jfc193, jim1967, carolinagirl, and 2muchfun.

Hi everyone, I had my lap band installed on May 21, 2012. Starting weight was 293, was 285 the day of surgery, got down to around 240, stayed there a while, then started phentermine which helped me lose more. For a single day in August of 2019 I crossed from obese to overweight and am now back up to 235. Recently, whatever I ate got stuck and had to be “ejected” after which I could resume eating. Along with this came an increase in reflux, to the point of having stomach acid in my mouth a few times. Saw the NP, she suggested unfilling the band, getting an upper GI and seeing where to go after that. I am reluctant to refill the band because I fear the reflux will return. I want to get a revision to sleeve or bypass; thinking bypass would have less chance of reflux returning. I wish I’d gotten bypass in the first place but thought the band was safer. I’d be grateful for any advice anyone cares to offer. Thanks!

This is an interesting thread. When I first had surgery, I didn't feel I deserved to have a healthy and slim body, I just wanted to feel a bit better. Now much of my excess weight has come off, I am so sad for the pre surgery me, who was so low and underconfident she couldn't even dream of being a healthy weight. Funny how things change. I have been feeling a bit fed up with my dietician saying it's not likely I'll hit my own personal goal (which would be a BMI in the region of 22-23). I hit 29 with little effort (beyond surgery, not eating much, and the challenges that come with a tiny stomach of course!) and am now enjoying exercising in a variety of ways. I am 9 months out, and while I appreciate weight loss will (and has) slow down, I didn't go through all of this to remain at an unhealthy weight! I may not get to my ultimate goal, but I'm certainly not going to give up before I've tried. We have gone through a lot to get to where we are now, and we deserve to succeed. So I say go for it - set your goal and work towards it. Set smaller goals on the way (the first 25, the next hundred bracket, lower than 5 years ago, that sort of thing) and celebrate each win. As you get closer to goal, you can always revise it if it doesn't feel right.