Search the Community

I think the same thing when I read some peoples posts. Many are OBSESSED with every calorie, every carb, every gm of Protein they put in their mouths. I was so tired off dieting, its why I had wls in the 1st place. If I have to diet for the rest of my life then ur right, why bother taking out 85% of my stomach? I started with the lapband almost 4 yrs ago. Lost 104 lbs and was 9 lbs from goal. Loved my band. Until my frequent vomiting caused it to slip. Then I hated my band. Everything I ate either hurt or made me vomit. Even after having it totally unfilled and gaining 30 lbs in 18 mths, I still vomited often. It was my choice. To either have it out and do it myself or have it out with another wls. I already proved I can't be trusted with keeping the weignt off myself. I decided against RNY because of the side effects (knew Id never be able to stick with the diet 100% of the time to avoid dumping). That left the sleeve. I was worried that taking 85% of my stomach was crazy. God put it in there for a reason. But the risk was worth it to me. 12 wks ago I got my revision, all at the same time. It took my dr an exgra 30 minutes to dig my band outa my stomach. Post op recovery wasn't easy. Very painful. Weightloss has been slow, really slow. I knew it would be cuz I started at 174. But its ridiculously slow. Could I speed up the loss by watching every bite I put into my mouth? Probly. But that's the reason I got wls in the 1st place. I'm never dieting again. I eat whatever I want (in very tiny portions, however) except ice cream (major tummy troubles)). I eat bread, rice, Pasta, and potatoes. While I can only eat 4-6 fries, if u told me I could never have them again Id be really sad. As I said I'm losing really slowly, but I'm happy. Happy to not count everything that goes into my mouth. So, should u get the sleeve or not? Can't tell u that. I can say that there r some of us that don't diet and still manage to lose. How can u not? Losing 85% of ur stomach, ur bound to lose. While yes, u can regain eating sliders (things that go right thru, don't stick), the probability is lower than regaining without the sleeve. So, is it worth it to me to long for a full Thanksgiving dinner but only be able to eat 8 bites of dinner? Absolutely. I do occasioanlly mourn the AMOUNT of food I can eat, I. Don't mlurn WHAT I eat. In fact, its quit empowering. Its amazing how little it takes to keep u alive. Good luck with ur decision.

Thanks UnderTheCaliSun for your answer. So what do you usually have for your breakfasts? No, I never drink with any of my meals. I wait at least 1/2 hour after a drink before I eat. I then wait at least 1/2 hour after eating before I have a coffee or any other drink at all. I am seeing both my Dietician and my Bariatric GP this coming Tuesday. So I'm looking forward to having a talk with both of them to see if maybe I need to have my new tummy revised.

I'm also struggling. I guess boredom is a little bit of an issue, but I'm a happy introvert so staying home for long periods of time is not a big problem. But because I live in a small apartment, the kitchen is always a few steps away. It's hard to keep track of time since I don't have a regular schedule and I've stopped tracking. I just had a revision 7 weeks ago but I feel no restriction - I can eat whatever I want. To be clear, I don't (but I could). It's really hard to stick to tiny portions when they are so unsatisfying to eat. I've realised that I just enjoy the act of eating/chewing. It doesn't matter what. So I need to be careful about that. But I'm sticking to protein and veggies (mostly) and the weight is still slowly coming off. I usually get my 10,000 steps daily (a two-hour, 7-8 km walk at night, usually after 9 p.m.) which is keeping me sane. I find the most important thing for me is to keep busy and not in front of the computer! I start teaching online in 2 weeks so that will give me a bit of a schedule, but I need to work out how I can get my work done, but still do other things as well, including going outside for some fresh air and sun. Not sure how it'll work out. I live alone, have already been self-isolating for 6 weeks and will have about 4 months more to look forward to (unless things dramatically get better). The struggle really hit me this week. I've decided that I also need to start doing some weight training and core exercises, to help keep my body conditioned.

Good luck! I go in for my band to bypass revision on October 4.

Hey there, I had my revision from band to bypass May 7th. I bought the gasx chewable cause it had more of the ingredient/medicine to help than the strips.

My surgery is June 4 and I went in asking for sleeve and ended up at RNY mostly because I was having BAD acid reflux that day and she said with the sleeve that reflux can get much worse. I wasn't willing to do RNY in the beginning but 4 months later, I think I am finally ok with it. 1) Acid reflux / GERD elimination; 2) Type 2 Diabetic and RNY will resolve (mostly); 3) Longer track record; 4) My surgeon does A LOT Of sleeve to RNY revisions. She just said that many sleevers end up revising. I don't want to do this twice...

Google "medicare requirements for bariatric surgery" you can find lots of info. It paid for mine, and it was a revision from a lap band to RNY. The first office I visited told me incorrectly that Medicare WOULDN'T pay for a revision, so I actually dropped my plan to do it until the lap band slipped and had to come out anyway. I went to a different surgeon whose office said they WOULD pay for it, and long as I met the criteria, and between the Medicare and my supplemental insurance, all I had to pay for was the psych consult and the dietician! I was sweating bullets until all the bills came that I would be stuck since Medicare doesn't do preapprovals-they either pay it or they don't...but they came through.

Hello All 😊 I was sleeved 10 years ago. I will admit I did not get to my goal weight and have regained. Now due to GERD my surgeon is recommending a revision to bypass. As far as weight loss my surgeon states I should expect to possibly lose 20-30 pounds. Has anyone had a revision to bypass after a long period of time(7+ years) and lost more than 30 pounds. I feel like I should lose more than that. I also have concerns of hair loss. I didn’t really experience hair loss with my sleeve. Has anyone found a way to combat this issue? Thanks so much !😁

I am so glad to hear this, I wated too ong and ended up having a slipped band, and getting revision! Good luck, Karen

Thank you so much for your concern! At this point, my mom is just talking about it. She has already said she wants to see how I do with everything before she even considers it. Right now, she's very pro-band because the only person she knows who has had any WLS had the band, and she's been really fortunate and had lots of success with it. But I know once my mom makes the decision to start this path, she'll inform herself as much as possible, and I've become like a freakin' encyclopedia of WLS because I've been studying it like crazy for months! I wouldn't let her have surgery without having a serious conversation about it with her first, that's for sure! I didn't think about referring her to this site, though. Maybe I can find some good posts and send them to her, re: band revisions. I haven't heard any stories about people being unsuccessful with the sleeve - they may have complications or stalls, but they do lose the weight. I can't imagine going through all this and not losing weight!

I was banded in 2005. I now weight 20 pounds MORE. I was unfilled totally in 2009 due to ALL of the problems my fellow bandsters here have mentioned. I drank the koolaid - I believed the band was going to make me feel like I ate Thanksgiving dinner after 1/2 cup of food. LIES all LIES. The band does NOTHING for hunger!! The amount of Ghrelin that your stomach produces does not change because the full stomach is in tact. I was choking on top and starving on the bottom... it is a nightmare for me. Some folks are ok - but only about 30%. I am trying to revise now, but BCBS has denied me. My appeal was submitted last week. I am praying for revision!! The band is my plastic demon and it needs to come out!!!!

BB it sounds like you band is too tight, I had a complete defill and waited 6 months to fill it again. I only gained back some but I lost only 30 pounds on a band anyways. I am saving up money to have a revision to sleeve. Nothing gets stuck with a sleeve unless you force it.

Your story sounded exactly like mine. Had surgery in 2009, lost 90 lbs, was considered a lap band success story because I was chronically overfilled too. I spent so much money on fills .I didn't care so much for my lap band surgeon and his staff as well. After unfilling my band, I asked to revise to sleeve and he told me to go home and come back after 3 months. I had already gained 15 lbs back at this point. I said " you know what ? forget you. I came to this forum and started my research on going to Mexico. I was going to be self pay anyway. I ended up deciding on Dr Aceves . Tomorrow is my 5 months surgivasary. I am happier, skinnier and look absolutely fabulous. I can eat anything I want in moderation. I have a new found love for pear. I eat them like crazy. I eat grapes, watermelon, things I couldn't eat while I was banded. I have never had to rush to bathroom to throw up like I used to do on every outing while I was banded. I could go on and on and on why lap band is a bad decision. Your quality of life is so much better with sleeve.

I am almost in tears as I read this thread. I am having my band out on Wednesday because of the same issues a lot of you list here. I decided not to revise to a sleeve because my surgeon gave me such a hard time about having the band out that I was just done with it for now. I am totally unfilled at the moment and he suggested just leaving it in. I am so done with it I can't wait to have it on Wednesday. I will go to a different surgeon in the future if I decide to have the sleeve done. Thank you all for making me feel like I am not a failure and it is not all in my head. Can't wait to start eating healthy again and feeling well enough to exercise.

Wondering how you ladies are doing with your revision? Scheduled for a Revision Sleeve to RNY on Aug 22nd. Super nervous. I regained the weight I lost form my sleeve. Endoscopy revealed that my sleeve was cut too big and in the wrong shape (hour glass), so I have a Stricture, Haital Hernia, GERD etc. I'm glad I have answers now. That plus regain makes me a prime candidate for revision to RNY. I have so many questions. I've had the Band, Sleeve and now going in again...gosh, even though I know my surgery was not done right, it's so hard not to feel like a failure and worry that the RNY will not work for me. Not much out there on such revisions. And some doctors were saying at most you will loose 10 - 25lbs revising from Sleeve to Bypass. WOA? Anyhow, could really really REALLY use a buddy in the same boat right about now...

I was scared of the same thing. I was on 4 different antidepressants and see a Phychiatrist once every 2-3 mths. They just want to know that you'll be able to handle all of the challenges that come with weight loss surgery. Mine only lasted about 60 mins and there was no test involved. I'm happy to report that 4 yrs and almost 100 lbs later (I was banded 3 1/2 yrs ago, moving to revision soon cuz of a slip), I only take 1/2 dose of 1 antidepressant now. No more depression for me! I agree. Don't lie on the test (if there is one). They can immediately tell. Marci

I have blue cross blue shield AL and I am W-A-I-T-I-N-G not so patiently for a phone call!!! I hope I get approved but mine is a revision, getting rid of the lap band and doing the gastric bypass, Atnea covered my lap band without any problems just had to do a 6month program and some tests ect...

let's stop dealing in generalities and put some numbers to this, backed by research. 25% of RNY patients will ever experience dumping syndrome. and of those 25%, most actually LIKE the symptom because it helps them avoid bad food. whereas 40% of sleeve patients will develop mild to severe GERD that they did not have before surgery. of those, 0% enjoy this symptom and leads to this message board being flooded with posts of sleevers going back to revise to RNY.

OK. So I finally got the results of my Upper GI from my (potentially) new LapBand surgeon. (As some of you may remember, my LapBand surgeon of 5 years has 'fired' me saying that despite my protests, he will perform no further fills on me. Ever. Why?...Because my fill level is approximately 2.8 in a 4cc band. Now he's always been conservative and he's very very stingy with fills - which is why I call him "Dr. No" but him refusing to fill me when I know I need more restriction has been an absolute death warrant for my weight loss. I'm struggling to fight to lose the same 3 pounds over and over and this has gone on for months. Oh, "Dr. No" also went on to say that the band has done all it will ever do and that I've probably lost as much weight as I'll ever lose with the band. Um, problem is, I'm STILL fat! Technically by BMI standards I'm still obese at a BMI of 30 but Dr. No says "Oh you look great." This has been a real issue lately, as we don't agree on that at all. Now keep in mind, I'm hungry more lately and I've absolutely stopped losing weight for eons...so this is a real problem and in the Battle of The Bands, of course, my surgeon won. He refused to fill me further and sent me a certified letter to that effect. Meanwhile I've been struggling to keep from gaining any weight, and trying desperately to lose a few pounds. Nothing has worked.) But for months, I've been begging for more restriction as I really was fighting major hunger pains. Serious ones, not just head hunger - which is difficult enough to deal with even with good restriction. Anyway, after months of desperation about thinking either I was the world's biggest LapBand failure (I've been banded 5 frustrating years) or that my band was either eroded, slipped or in some other type of jeopardy - I finally started looking to find other bariatric surgeons. I figured if the band was screwed up and if my original surgeon wouldn't help me, I'd just get revised to the RnY. I've really been through enough in 5 years of banding, so if I need an RnY bypass, I'd get one somehow. So I picked an experienced bariatric surgeon who had been doing RnY bypass and is just recently beginning to get more Lap Band experience. In fact, in his study of LapBanding, he actually worked under my original surgeon who is considered a veteran in the field. Well guess what. The Upper GI/radiology tests came back and my (if he'll really take me on) new surgeon pronounced that my band is fine. His quote: "It's perfect. It's absolutely textbook." Huh? Me? The world's biggest LapBand failure (BMI of 30 and still holding, dang it) has a 'perfect' band? No (evidence of) erosion, slippage, or other types of band problems? Well, so then the question is - why don't I feel enough restriction? Good question. Many surgeons find that the longer a patient has been banded, the more restriction they sometimes need. OK, fair enough, it's been 5 years for me. Then, the new surgeon checked out my current level of fill - turns out, I had not 2.8, not enough even 1.8 - but approximately 1.75 in my band. (I hadn't actually been filled since late summer/early fall but I was at 2.9 late last year and had been told I had at least 2.8 back in late January while I went in for flouro. ) So the mystery is: What happened to my 2.8 or 2.9 fill level that I still supposedly had? When I went in for my fill in January with Dr.No - when he decided not to fill me - did he not accurately check my fill level? (Unlikely - he is absolutely on point on this things, usually) OK, then did he slightly unfill me without saying anything? (Hmmm, he's been definitely on a tear lately about not liking patients to have a higher amount of fill, but 2.8 is not that much for someone banded for 5 years) Would he just take a little bit back out? Or did my band simply 'sweat out' more than 1.0 cc of fill in less than 3 months? We know that bands do lose fill level sometimes. Excessive exercise (errr, not very frequent, but I have been known to exert myself now and then), dehydration and simple osmosis sometimes makes the amount of fill decrease over time. The new surgeon checked again, found that I really did have only 1.75 and since my test results looked good, decided to give me a tiny fill to get me back to 2.0 Then, he'll see how I do with that and then in 2+ weeks or so, he'll nudge me back up to 2.5 or so. That's a bigger jump but it's still less restriction than I thought I was walking around with. Then he wants another series of tests to make sure all is well. My concern is whether I have some sort of slow leak or something like that. (*sigh*) Few years back, I had a leak in my tubing and NONE of my fill would stay in, so I'm on guard to see if anything like that happens again. I've had the unfilled band and it absolutely does NOT work for me long term. I need restriction, or else I will gain. So let's see how this will go. I hope everything's OK. I'd like to get back to a real fill level again or else I'll never win the Battle of the Bulge. Wish me luck. Happy Band Journeys To All...

Houston I'm waiting for approval for revision from lapband

What kind of revision can you have after Gastric bypass...I had in 2004 with no followup and regained all weight. Karen

I'm a sweet craver, partially due to my medications (anti-depressants) and partially due to my diabetes II and basically "ME". I have had the band over nine months and due to gaining back most of the weight I lost on the pre-op liquid diet (25 big ones!) I decided to get a partial unfill to stop or help control the urge I have to "eat around the band" with sweets. It has not been an easy journey for me but I see my doctor tomorrow and may get a partial fill to tighten my band a bit again. I was afraid to get gastric bypass so changed at the last minute probably because I knew I was a sweet eater and was afraid I'd get dumping syndrome in a place it wasn't appropriate, meaning anywhere besides my own home. I guess either I was misinformed or not informed enough to know that most sweets (except donuts as they're doughy) will go right through the band because of the right amount of fat and sugar ease through. Also chips do too as one poster stated but not an issue for me. My daughter had gastric bypass because she researched and found it to be right for her even though she is not a sweet eater like her mom. She is only post-op one week + one day so I really can't speak to you about her success but has in the past 7 weeks taken off more than 40 pounds. I myself am still wavering and won't change my marker until I get weighed at the surgeon's office. Hopefully it will go down. that's not an angry face but a down emphasizer. Anyway it's probably one of the toughest decisions of your life, as there usually are many but I wish you luck with it. I'm still trying and don't know what will happen to me in the future if I'll live as I am or if I'll revise or what. It's all up in the air but I have recently changed my anti-depressants to see if this new one will affect me in a more positive way when it comes to sugar cravings. Good luck to you and learn as much as you can from the people here as they know more than most books will tell you and they're a great group of nice people!!!brandyII:smile:

I had my sleeve done four days ago and I'm amazed at how very little pain was involved. My biggest complaint was headache. I never considered anything but the sleeve and you will notice there are a lot of bands that revise to sleeve. I don't think you'll be sorry. Good luck!

Hi there so I'm finally ready to reach out for help. My 24 year old son was killed by a drunk driver on April 29th 2012, and only 11 months before losing my son I lost my father. I had wls (band) in 2009. Needless to say my weight loss journey fell way off the wagon. I have since gained most of my weight back and I have no idea how to start over again. When I went to the doctors they had made a suggestion that maybe I might want to have a revision... no I don't want any more surgery I want to try to work with my band but I need much more support than what I'm getting from them! I am very scared that I stretched out my pouch but the odd thing is is that I still do feel restriction so maybe I didn't and I just got used to eating slider foods. I think I'm going to try the 5 day pouch test, has anyone done this before and been successful? Has anyone else fallen so far off the wagon and been able to pick themselves up and start over??? Oh and did I mention I also got divorced and had to buy a house by myself? Yep you can say I'm depressed and feel helpless and trying how to figure out how to start over again and again... I could sure use some help, support and ideas. Anyone?

I am assuming you want advice. Skip the band and go straight to sleeve. Just go peek at the thread of "band to sleeve revision". I personally dont know anyone 5 years out that still have their band. I lost great in the beginning too with my band. But only for one year then nothing. Well slowly, very slowly started to gain. Maybe 1-2 lbs a month. Then maybe 3 or 4 lbs on vacation. With band you are constantly chasing the "sweet spot" where you aren't too tight or too loose. The sleeve eliminates all that. Just food for thought. If I had to do it over again, I would have skipped all the band drama, sliming and fills. Best of Luck, in your decision and process. Keep us posted <3