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I revised from lapband to sleeve June 7, 2016. Lapband remived and sleeve done in one procedure No issues at all except a lot of scar tissue so the procedure took a little longer than originally anticipated. Sent from my SM-T230NU using the BariatricPal App

Since signing on for BP, I've occasionally mentioned in various places having strayed and wanting to get serious again. Finally, Step #1 for the second time.. Band surgery was October, 2009. My highest weight was 311. From about three weeks before surgery until mid-February, 2011, I lost 115 pounds. At 197, my goal of 145-150 was in sight. "Something," an event with emotional fallout, happened and that February, I stopped losing and soon began to gain. I went as high as 268 and mostly have hovered at 265-270. Twice in between I buckled down, lost about 25, only to regain them. All along I've wanted to get back to business. Just in the last couple of weeks, the feeling really set in. I made appointments for esophagram and to see the NP yesterday, ending a two year absence. Sure that I had great dilation (the band had been loosened twice before for that reason) and that the band was out of position, it was a thrill to find that I was wrong on both counts. I'd prepared myself to discuss revising to sleeve, but decided to give the band another shot. The NP agreed that it's worthwhile. The band had been rearing its head for several months, giving signals that I'd eaten enough. Other band signals and sensations that I vaguely recalled from the past were absent, so I had an adjustment, adding .5 cc for now, and already feel hints of the old effects. My next appointment is in August. We'll see what comes next at that time. How nice it will be if the band becomes a good partner again, "nice" being one hell of an understatement.

Insurance finally approved my band to bypass revision surgery! It happens tomorrow. I am so excited and scared at the same time.

So happy for you. I have my band to sleeve revision next Tuesday. What were your issues with the band? Did they do the revision all in one surgery or did theybremove your band previously? Im hoping it all gets done in one surgery. He said he can but you never know once they get in there. NERVOUS!!!! Glad you arent in pain! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App I had it all in one surgery as well. That was my biggest worry, having to have 2 surgeries, but my surgeon said everything went perfect, no problems and not much scar tissue. I had weight regain with the band, I was also throwing up a lot and having a lot of pain when eating, all this with my band being empty. I'm so glad i made this choice! Sent from my SM-G925T using the BariatricPal App Its like u just wrote my symptoms. You give me hope!!!!!! How long did your surgery last??? Im SOOO HAPPY they did it all at one time! Woowooo Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App The surgery took about 2 hours, when I woke up the first thing I asked was if I was sleeved and the nurse gave me thumbs up. Feeling so much better today, been walking around and eating ice chips. Minimal pain. All in all I'm feeling really good so far! Fingers crossed it will be the same for you Sent from my SM-G925T using the BariatricPal App

So happy for you. I have my band to sleeve revision next Tuesday. What were your issues with the band? Did they do the revision all in one surgery or did theybremove your band previously? Im hoping it all gets done in one surgery. He said he can but you never know once they get in there. NERVOUS!!!! Glad you arent in pain! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App I had it all in one surgery as well. That was my biggest worry, having to have 2 surgeries, but my surgeon said everything went perfect, no problems and not much scar tissue. I had weight regain with the band, I was also throwing up a lot and having a lot of pain when eating, all this with my band being empty. I'm so glad i made this choice! Sent from my SM-G925T using the BariatricPal App Its like u just wrote my symptoms. You give me hope!!!!!! How long did your surgery last??? Im SOOO HAPPY they did it all at one time! Woowooo Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

So happy for you. I have my band to sleeve revision next Tuesday. What were your issues with the band? Did they do the revision all in one surgery or did theybremove your band previously? Im hoping it all gets done in one surgery. He said he can but you never know once they get in there. NERVOUS!!!! Glad you arent in pain! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App I had it all in one surgery as well. That was my biggest worry, having to have 2 surgeries, but my surgeon said everything went perfect, no problems and not much scar tissue. I had weight regain with the band, I was also throwing up a lot and having a lot of pain when eating, all this with my band being empty. I'm so glad i made this choice! Sent from my SM-G925T using the BariatricPal App

So happy for you. I have my band to sleeve revision next Tuesday. What were your issues with the band? Did they do the revision all in one surgery or did theybremove your band previously? Im hoping it all gets done in one surgery. He said he can but you never know once they get in there. NERVOUS!!!! Glad you arent in pain! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Had my band to sleeve revision yesterday, it was successful! I am officially sleeved! Yesterday was pretty rough, only got out of bed once, feeling much better today. Am having my "breakfast" as I type this. One ounce diet cranberry and one ounce berry isopure. So far so good! Getting my catheter out in an hour and then hopefully it will be easier to get around! Sent from my SM-G925T using the BariatricPal App

I had my surgery the same day as you, and I have also lost 6 lbs since that morning. I'm pretty happy about it! This is actually a lap band revision for me, and if I recall properly, the real rapid drop starts in the third week or so. Don't worry! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I wish you luck with the revision. You got this!

August 29 here in Texas. Being revised from lapband to RNY. Have been unfilled for 5 years now and regained all the weight I lost. Ready for a new start!

I have just the opposite issue, and do not miss the junk, but my food world has opened up. Because of the VBG I had, I could not handle eggs, and many meats & other quality foods for years. My revision to RNY, has reversed that, and I replaced the junk food (I scream shakes, chocolate and others that would go down easy) with eggs and meats again, in moderation.

Try that again. What did you mean to ask? "...if the risk is higher for lapband revision to gastric sleeve" than what?

Does anyone have any idea or stats on if the risk is higher for Lap-band Revision to Gastric Sleeve?

Thats good to hear. Because the way i feel, i want as much restraint as possible. How far out are you? Sent From Galaxy Note 5 using the BariatricPal App I'm only a month and 10 days out. I revised from the band to the sleeve on June 7th.

Long time bander here. I didn't have a hard time with it and lost a significant amount of weight. I did PB a lot and my esophagus had issues off and on. I stalled at 100 lb weight loss and am now going to have the revision. I was told the sleeve will help me continue my journey till I hit goal weight with far less side effects. Hope this helps.

My doctor said 1 surgery, and it'll be outpatient. I will be the first surgery that morning since it's a revision from band to sleeve (instead of just a sleeve). The more complicated the surgery, they are usually the first surgery scheduled. I'll be able to go home the same day in the early evening if all goes well. I think it may be about money too. In the USA, there are so many hoops. The sleep test alone they charged the insurance $6K. CRAZY!

The first few weeks after surgery your body will be in a major heal mode. So if you are unable to meet the Protein and Fluid requirement from the start, just keep working towards those daily goals and you should be able to get there. Good luck on your revision. One of the individuals in our Bariatric Surgery Support Group had a band to RNY gastric bypass revision. He had to have it done because the band was eroding into his stomach and it was about to burst. He was pleased with he results of his revision. Because of his scar tissue, his pouch was made a little smaller than most. So his volume of food intake was a little more restricted. But he was happy. I am 3 years post-op RNY and this short article describes my experiences. http://www.breadandbutterscience.com/Surgery.pdf

Issue isn't the insurance carrier it's what is in the specific contract. I have BcBS of KS I'm a state employee office said not have issues with BcBS plans told the they would mine as our group doesn't like to approve anything. It took them 3 tries over a 9 month period before I was approved even with a BMI over 50. Thank god I work in medical industry so I knew what to expect and how to head them off. Some insurance companies will try to get out of paying for anything but they sure want your premium. I had sleeve June 2015 have lost 180 lbs as of beginning of this month but need revision to bypass as stomach has pulled up into esophagus causing pain and nausea even when drinking plain Water. We have started the fight with BcBS as they are saying not medically necessary since I have lost over 50% of needed weight loss within 2 year period per contract. Need surgery to fix medical issue not for weight loss. Daaaa. Fight is on Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I have had the band for 9 years and suffered with it as well... I revised to bypass (my personal choice) 2 months ago and even though I had complication, I love it. I ate chicken today and didn't have horrible "stuck" episode! It was amazing! I wish I have done his so many years ago!

Good job on the weight loss. I will be having the revision on 7/26/16 because my band slipped but did loose 88lbs in 1 year. I will post my new journey with my sleeve. And I do agree lost weight is lost weight. Stay on track and you will get to your goal. Focus good luck.

Hey everyone, just wondering if there are any other sleevers who had to be converted to a bypass due to complications? I've had a pretty bad 8 months with complications from my sleeve and never actually progressed to solid food. My surgeon was concerned that I was dehydrated, malnourished and losing too much weight so she converted me to a gastric bypass. Gastric sleeve surgery was on 16 November 2015. I had it in private with a lovely surgeon and support team. So after my surgery I was pretty much vomiting up after my puree meals. The nurse at the hospital told me it was my own fault for eating too quickly (I ate 2 teaspoons over about 30 minutes), and since then I blamed myself every time I vomited. I rang the surgeon a couple of weeks after going home and said I was still regularly being sick and feeling hungry because nothing stayed down. Her advice was to cut down my intake even more and said I was just having head hunger. So I listened to what she said and things didn't get much better. I was losing about 5-6 pounds a week. At one month from the operation, she sent me for a barium swallow as she was suspicious of a stricture. The swallow showed narrowing in the sleeve, but the surgeon decided to wait and see if it resolved itself after the swelling from surgery went down. This wasn't properly communicated to me so again I thought there was nothing wrong except for how I was eating. Fast forward to March of this year and the vomiting is getting worse - I felt a heavy pain in my chest whenever I ate and then an almost passive regurgitation of food and lots of mucus (Sorry for TMI). I even vomited in my sleep and aspirated, which was awful. I talked to the surgeon again and she did another swallow exam which showed I actually had a very tight stricture. So I had a gastroscopy during which it was dilated. I did it without sedation, just pain relief, but it was a terribly painful experience. One week of relief and almost normal eating after the dilation (normal as in where I was supposed to be for a sleever), then the same symptoms came back. So about 6 weeks after the original dilation, I was having it again as the stricture was back. I am a doctor so it was frustrating missing so much work for these investigations - I had to travel to another city to have it done. Fast forward again to early June, and the symptoms are there again! This is when the surgeon decided to admit me to the public hospital she worked at because I was getting too unwell and dehydrated. The gastroscopy showed I actually had TWO strictures - one at each end of the sleeve - and these were dilated. But the symptoms didn't go away and another barium swallow showed that there was still an obstruction. This led to an oesophageal manometry study, which confirmed that I had a torsion in the sleeve. This meant that when I ate, it was twisting on itself and effectively blocking the food and making it come back up. I was relieved this was found - turned out I had 2 rate complications in one. I was beginning to think that my symptoms were in my head after they kept happening after the dilations! Because of this, there was no option to place a stent (although it had been considered). Surgery was the only way forward. On the 8th of July, I had the sleeve converted to a gastric bypass to basically bypass the torsion and enable me to eat again and get back on track. This was a horrendously painful surgery and I recovered slowly. I then got an obstruction of the distal anastamosis a few days later as it twisted and stuck to itself, resulting in blockage. Had to go back to theatre a week after the conversion to fix it. I am still in hospital as I type this (5 weeks here) but am hopeful to be discharged tomorrow! This whole process has been really tough emotionally. I keep thinking "I never signed up for a bypass" but I didn't have a choice - it was bypass or slowly starve to death. The diet sounds very restrictive and I worry about dumping, although I am not much of a sweet tooth and I have already been living on very little food for months. When I first received the bariatric meals at the hospital, I was shocked as the amount of food for one meal was far more than I had been eating in a whole day!! I think the main fear is being isolated - being unable to eat with my family/friends and being left out of social occasions involving food. I'm a private person so only my close family know about the surgery. I know it will get better eventually, but it's really sad. I have talked through this with the health psychologists at the hospital which has been helpful. I feel a lot of regret for having the original surgery, but there was no way anyone would predict that I would have such a bad run with complications. My surgeon said she's only ever had one other patient she had to convert from sleeve to bypass. I did know the risks of complications and I accepted these before I went in to surgery. Being 24, I didn't think it would happen to me. But it did. Stats wise: I'm a woman, 24 years old. Started at about 250 pounds. I'm 8 months out now and have lost 78 pounds, giving me a weight of 170 pounds and a BMI of 25.5. It obviously slowed down when I was unable to take solids, because I was given total parenteral nutrition (food through an IV which worked out to be about 2000 calories a day). But I'm happy with the loss, not happy with all the complications and having 7 gastroscopies, 5 barium swallows, 3 dilatations and 2 extra surgeries. My goal weight would be about 150-160 pounds - I will see when I get there! Sorry for such a long post, but it would be great to hear from anyone who has had complications with the sleeve - strictures, torsion, leaks, conversion to bypass etc. It would be great to have some support as it's been quite a whirlwind for me. Thanks so much :-)

Ive been taking pics of pksts that have been helpful to me in preoaration for my revision to sleeve surgery on July 26 so i thought I wouldnshare with all. Pack for Hospital: Pillows Heating pad Charger Earbuds Houseshoes Book Chapstick/lip balm Face wipes Book Lotion **biotine (for dry mouth). Heard this is a life saver Helpful suggestions im considering for after surgery: Premiere Protein shakes Ice tray to freeze broth etc since portions so small sugar free popsicles Fill prescriptions Clean sheets on bed Miralax Milk of magnesia Stool softeners Calcium citrate chewables Alive liquid Vitamin Balanced essentials liquid vitamins- tropical and berry flavor- heard very tasty. Heaven sent naturals can find at vitamin world Via tiv chewable calcium Centrum flavor bursts - tropical flavor Nutriwise- can purchase at amazon To help woth acid pain put 3-4 drops of organic lemon juice in Water per 8 oz Protein20- type of water at grocery store tasty- tropical coconut flavor is yummy Centrum vitamints Cup- My hydrate Hope this is helpful. Im soooooo excited!!!!! July 26 cant get here soon enough. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Oh no. I hope ur fever goes away soon. Fever makes u feel so bad and is just awful after all the trauma ur body just went thru. Prayers for a speedy recovery. My surger is revision from band (10 yrs) to sleeve on july 26! Super excited. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

What's the truth about ibuprofen? I'm a band patient hoping to get revised to RNY. When I received my band my surgeon said no ibuprofen/no carbonation. Never ever changed to "Awww go ahead" not long into my journey so Im wondering if the same is true for RNY? I'm not an Advil junkie but a little worried about never ever ever having an effective pain reliever to use occasionally or if God forbid I need an anti inflammatory later in life. Thanks!