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I am 5 months post sleeve. Was doing great, felt great, no complications, was working out at gym, hitting protein/ fluid goals, almost seemed easy. Had a gall bladder attack and had to have it removed last week even with that no regrets. Just continuing one day at a time, one pound at a time.

I also meant to say that I also put off WLS for years because I had taken care of patients in the ICU that died due to complications (mostly leaks) after gastric bypass surgery and it scared me badly. Fortunately techniques have changed and improved over the years and surgical complication rates are MUCH lower so after much research and consultation with friends and coworkers who had WLS I decided the time was NOW. Plus the fact my insurance now covered WLS without requiring $3000+ up front any more convinced me it was time to go for it. Still early days but I’m convinced it was the best decision I could have made to improve my health and take back my life!

I couldn’t lose a single kg of my menopausal weight gain which had put me 16kg over the highest I’d ever been in my life. (15kg in less than 6 months to my highest weight & then another 16kg the following year & I hadn’t changed a single thing in my diet or activity.) My feet ached at times, my fitness wasn’t great & I knew there were a lot of health complications in front of me if I didn’t do something. Woke up one morning, said enough & made an appointment with my GP. About a month later I had my surgery. So glad I did it. Good luck with your surgery.

I am about 3 weeks out from the surgery, and I don't have any regrets so far. It is an emotionally trying time, because I'm having to learn how to control myself in ways I've never controlled myself. I'm not a disciplined person, so it can be a struggle. But I know that this is something that I have to learn how to do or I will not be able to keep up with my children. I haven't had any complications thankfully. I was feeling good by day four and pretty much able to do most of my daily life by seven days out with the exception of lifting. I was also worried about chugging water, but I can get a whole cup of water down pretty quickly now. The only time I have problems is if I let my acid reflux flare up (sometimes I forget my omeprazole because the surgery had helped decrease my GERD so far). If I start to have a problem getting down water, I make sure to get some antacids and that fixes it up the next day. My thought is that if you've come this far in the process, it is most likely the best thing for you and something that you really want in your heart. Otherwise you never would have put in the effort and time to get this far. A life lived in fear is a life half-lived... When I got a little nervous before surgery, I started looking back through all of the monthly threads. I think I looked at the March, April, May, and June threads. It was a relief to see that all of the surgeries were safe, and the complications were fairly limited and of short duration. Maybe if you go through those threads, too, that will help give you a good feel for the risks vs. the benefits.

I received the sleeve and that’s what I wanted, but you better believe it insurance had only covered bypass that’s what I would have gotten. For me it wasn’t the original cost that stopped me from getting surgery (I had to wait years to get on a plan that covered it at all) it was the unknown of potential complications increasing the cost. I could have afforded the out of pocket but if I’d had a leak or needed additional days in the hospital this could have been a huge issue. I work in the medical industry and the out of pocket cost for uninsured medical complications is no joke. I would always recommend to someone if they can get insurance for it then go that route. It’s just safer from a financial perspective.

Ugh, I am sorry that you are dealing with this problem. Rick's advice is solid. I suspect that he is correct that this nasty reflux is probably happening because you ended up developing a hiatal hernia. Hiatal hernias seem to be a VERY common complication of the sleeve long-term sadly, and reflux is the number one symptom they cause. You will very likely be offered a revision to bypass, since that is the "tried and true" way of fixing this kind of problem. However, some people have had good results just repairing the hernia and not doing a whole revision. If it does turn out you have a hernia, check out these recent discussions we have had about the issue:

It could be a number of things, most common this far out would be a hiatal hernia that could cause these problems. Is your protonix once a day, or split into two doses, morning and evening? If it is consistent with the labelling, try taking it in the evening, as that is where your biggest problem seems to be, or splitting it morning and evening (if it is two 40mg pills.) Short term to help with the overnight problem, try elevating the head of your bed 3-6", or elevate your head and torso with a wedge pillow, or sleep in a recliner if you have one - anything to get your upper body (not just your head) angled down toward your stomach. Avoid eating anything 2-3 hours before bedtime. These are classic DIY reflux mitigations that the gastro will probably also suggest. You can consider going to the ER and hopefully they can get some of the tests done necessary to diagnose your problem (likely an endoscopy and/or barium swallow imaging. The may also just send you home with a larger dose of protonix or maybe a switch to dexilant and possibly carafate. An urgent care clinic may be able to help, particularly if you have one affiliated with your hospital - they may be able to short cut getting the tests done that you can then take to the bariatric surgeon (who would likely order the tests anyway. Many hospitals run these clinics for just this purpose - not really an emergency, but too urgent to wait a week or two for an appointment. This may save you a couple of weeks. Don't worry about insurance coverage as if a revision is needed, it would not be considered a second WLS (which some insurance limits) but as corrective surgery for you complication. Good luck in getting some resolution soon (er, rather than later)

Yes, I am flying home today (day 5 after surgery). I booked a bunch of extra days (my bariatric team recommended just 2 nights after surgery) because I was scared of flying while unwell. But honestly I could have comfortably flown on day 3 or even 2. Right after surgery and on the first day after surgery I was freaking out about how terrible I felt and I couldn't imagine I would recover well enough to travel within a week, but it really does improve exponentially everyday. Having said that, I had a pretty textbook surgery, no complications, and water + babyfood was going down without issue for me on the very next day after surgery. My biggest struggle was the gas pain and shoulder pain (from the gas) and overwhelming tiredness. It is good to let your surgeon know you are traveling so soon so they could provide you with compression stockings, anticoagulant injections, or stronger pain killers just in case.

I had my sleeve 8 years ago and have been battling severe GERD for two years and serious weight gain since my hysterectomy just last December. Now, I am miserable and weak. 10-20 tums a day, unable to properly take my medications because I throw them up. Cannot eat because I throw it all up too. Just ordered some syntax iced tea and protein soups. I’m taking 80mg protonix daily and wake up choking on my bile bile at night. My PCP dismissed me. Saw her PA and at no time did she even look down my throat. Got a referral to a GI and they called to have a consult in a month! A consult! Only! Called my old bariatric surgeon and he’s not in my insurance network and I can’t afford him. Called one in town and have an appointment on the 9th. But if it requires a revision, I don’t know if it’s covered on my insurance. I’m losing hope. I feel like everyone else has since I’ve been dismissed at every turn. My brain is fuzzy, my eyes are sunken. Work is hard. I pretend I’m fine and eat at company meetings then go quietly to the bathroom to throw everything up. I’m miserable. I need an answer but no medical professionals seem to be in a hurry.

How did everything go? Did you end up postponing or did you have the surgery? Just for any future reference, I read that this type of surgery is less dangerous than a C-section as far as mortality and complication rates.

Had my surgery in October 2020. Ilost 73 lbs in the first 7 months and now my weight loss is starting to taper off. I only lost 11 lbs in the last 3 lbs and I am wearinga size 12 but I would like to settle in at wearing a size 10. Have a complicated surgey coming up on August 16 so this might be the reason I feel stuck. I'll see howq it goes after my upcoming surgery/

I've gotten freaked out before every surgery I've ever had, and I've always sailed through just fine. Don't get fixiated on the horror stories, as those are rare. They seem more common than they really are because people are more likely to post when they have problems than when they don't because they're looking for support or advice. Of course, those things do happen and it's good to be aware of the possibility, but again, they're pretty rare. the mortality rate on RNY is 0.3%, and it's even lower for sleeve. So you have a 99.7% chance of not dying - which are excellent odds. Major complications are also rare. Many of us don't have complications with these surgeries - and for those who do, most are minor and "fixable". I also contemplated surgery for 10 years (maybe longer), and I came to the conclusion that I had a much greater risk of complications from staying at over 300 lbs than I did with having the surgery. you always have the option to cancel or postpone if you're not ready - but I did go through with it (obviously) and am so glad that I did.

I understand the nerves - I have also put off the surgery for about 10 years. I think the best thing you can do is remember how low the level of complications are, and think about how you're doing this because the risk of death/illness from obesity is much higher than from surgery. But anxiety before surgery is totally normal!

This whole practice of being billed for an out-of-network provider during an in-network procedure is starting to be banned in a variety of areas, with a federal law coming into effect in 2022. If anyone's interested, you can find more info here. I'm so glad it worked out for you in the end! I hate that we have to go through medical bills so carefully, but I understand that medical billing in general is super complicated and I wouldn't want that job!

Hi everyone, I have been reading the posts here for a while but today is the first time I am posting. I am having gastric bypass tomorrow and my nerves are setting in. My anxiety is through the roof. I am thinking and over thinking every complication and bad possible out come. I am doing this to be Healthy and be here for my kids for a long time. But I cannot stop thinking what if something goes wrong and I have a worse quality of life after or even worse I die and it is my fault that I willing put myself in this situation and leave my kids without a mother. I have been thinking about this surgery for 10 years and I always chickened out, But not this time. I want to do this. I am just scared. Any suggestions on calming my last minute nerves would be greatly appreciated. Sent from my SM-N986U using BariatricPal mobile app

a DS has a sleeved stomach and an intestinal bypass (not a gastric bypass, like the RNY - but intestinal. It bypasses a big chunk of your small intestine). It's the most powerful surgery out there - but not all surgeons do it. Plus converting RNY to DS is a very complicated surgery that few surgeons do - but there a handful who DO do it - like Dr. Rabin and Dr. Keshishian in California. although since you have bad GERD, I'm not sure if this is your best option, since the DS involves a sleeved stomach. Sleeves can often make that worse. But it might be worth talking to a surgeon about.

I agree with catwoman! Rice is complicated. I tried it when I was about 4-5 month post op and wished I hadn’t. I became very sick, it felt like I had swallowed a bag of rocks. But, now I am 14 months post op and I can eat rice (in moderation) easily and pain free! So it really just depends on the person!

I definitely think complications could be under reported due to patients being lost to followup. What your friend is not mentioning is the statistics for those that go along being 300-600 lb and die of heart attack stroke or lose limbs eyesight etc from diabetes or periphereal vascular disease. The surgery is a real solution for obesity and the word needs to get out there. If you’ve been big 300+ for more than a decade and tried everything and have deadly health conditions only u can decide at what point its worth the risk. I also agree w the response about compliance of protein grams for heart protection. Patient compliance varies and is hard to measure w deaths. Some people are fat and have congestive heart failure prior to surgery and would have keeled over anyway because it already progressed that far

My surgery was on July 22nd as well, funny part is the same happened to me. I was scheduled for 10am and didn’t go back for surgery until 2pm, due to another surgeon having complications with his second patient. It wasn’t my surgeon fault. My surgery went well. I had terrible gas pain and was given morphine and something for nausea, but I never vomit. I didn’t have much of an appetite after surgery, so all I drank was sips of water. I was able to walk to the restroom and sit up in a chair. I was discharged from the hospital the next day. My surgeon said everything went well. I have to get used to my stomach feeling full after sipping water or protein shakes. I’m still on the clear liquid diet but trying to change over to the full liquid diet before trying the purée food. I’ve been able to hold everything down. The first two days at home, I had to take my prescription for oxycodone. The pain is getting better. I’m just feeling thirsty. I’m sipping water, but it feels like it’s not enough. I guess my body is used to having more water. My starting weight on the day of surgery was 206.4 and now I’m 198.2 and I’m 5’6.

🤞 for no complications + a smooth recovery.

I had the lapband conversion to gastric bypass in one surgery and was very thankful to have it done that way. To do this, I had to choose a specific surgeon who is capable/specializes in the conversion. However there is always a chance it might turn into two surgeries anyway if is a complicated removal. My lapband was also in for 15 years and unfilled due to issues w it. It turned out it added an hour and a half to surgery as was very embedded. The con of this was recovery was a bear! Because of all the manipulation on the left side to remove lapband I was in very bad pain for weeks and in hospital for 4 days. I am still very thankful it was one surgery and over! I hope this helps.

Hello everyone. I have had a lap band for about 15 years or so and it hasn't been filled in years because of all of the problems I was having. I have recently decided to have a gastric bypass. Saw the surgeon for an initial consult, but he refuses to remove the band and do the bypass in one surgery. He says I have to first have the band removed, then wait however long and then have the bypass. The reason, he says, is that there is a higher risk of complications if the lap band is removed at the time of the bypass. Is he right? I'm wondering if I should get a second opinion. However, I'm self pay for bypass so I don't want to pay for a surgery that could be aborted due to complications, which makes me want to follow his advice (and the lap band removal is covered by insurance). On the other hand, I really want to have the bypass as soon as possible. I know this is a marathon and not a race, but I'm anxious to start my new journey. Does anyone have any experiences, thoughts, etc. they can share regarding these issues? It would be greatly appreciated!

My VSG on 7/20 reportedly went well, but I had to stay in the hospital an extra day as due to pain and not feeling well, was pumped full of fluids (today, I am still eight pounds higher than my surgery weight, and look pregnant), was discharged on Thursday, went back to the ER on Friday and was diagnosed with a superficial blood clot near where my IV was), and ever since I started trying to add back diluted Protein Shakes yesterday, it's been awful. Every time I tried to take a teeny tiny sip of the diluted Protein Shake, I would burp, my stomach would make horrible noises, and I eventually had to stop (I drank about 2/3 of the bottle between afternoon and evening) because I was fighting so hard not to throw up. I haven't tried a Protein shake today, but the burping and nausea (despite the Zofran I was prescribed) are happening constantly after I take tiny sips of clear fluid. I'm trying to drink protein Water, which is a little better, but I'm still struggling with it. I'm really worried that I can't drink even tiny sips without either burping and/or fighting the urge to vomit. Did this happen to anyone else? Did it go away? I hope this isn't a serious complication.

My surgery on the 20th reportedly went well, but I had to stay in the hospital an extra day as due to pain and not feeling well, was pumped full of fluids (today, I am still eight pounds higher than my surgery weight, and look pregnant), was discharged on Thursday, went back to the ER on Friday and was diagnosed with a superficial blood clot near where my IV was), and ever since I started trying to add back diluted protein shakes yesterday, it's been awful. Every time I tried to take a teeny tiny sip of the diluted protein shake, I would burp, my stomach would make horrible noises, and I eventually had to stop (I drank about 2/3 of the bottle between afternoon and evening) because I was fighting so hard not to throw up. I haven't tried a protein shake today, but the burping and nausea are happening constantly after I take tiny sips. I'm trying to drink protein water, which is a little better, but I'm still struggling with it. Did this happen to anyone else? Did it go away? I hope this isn't a serious complication.

I don't post here much, though I do check in quite a bit to see what others are and have experienced during their journey. Lately I have seen a number of people "on the fence" about whether or not to go through with WLS, so I thought I would share my story in hopes it will help make the decision easier and / or more informed. This is a personal decision and the journey is different for everyone. I am a 5'4" 43 year old female and underwent the Gastric Sleeve surgery back in January 2021. I have struggled with my weight all if my life. I was always the "curvy" girl throughout my adolescent years. After having 2 kids, I weighed around 200 pounds. I went on every yo-yo diet you could think up. I had some successes, and lost and gained hundreds of pounds over the past 20 years. Each time I gained it back, I weighed more than when I started. Eventually I kind of gave up and "accepted" that I was never going to be at a healthy weight. I was tired, and sick and tired of the constant battle. I started having numerous health condition and was put on multiple medications. About a year and a half ago, I weighed around 240 pounds and was climbing. My doctors told me I needed to do something. In addition to the health issues, I was so depressed, that I was missing out on everything in life. I didn't want to go anywhere or do anything, partially because I physically felt awful, partially because I didn't want anyone to see me.. Finally someone recommended WLS. I was shocked. I didn't even know it was an option for me. After doing a lot of homework, and meeting with several doctors I decided to do it. It was time to take my life back. Imagine my disappointment when I discovered my insurance would not cover it. Long story short, I was able to work it out so that I could still do the surgery as a "self pay". I knew it would be a small price to pay for a better quality of life. Because I wasn't going through insurance I didn't have all of the hoops to jump through. So I was scheduled fairly quickly. And due to Covid I was cancelled. And then cancelled again. Finally in January I had the procedure done. Other than having to have a hernia repaired, I had zero complications. Six months later I am down to a much healthier 140 pounds. I have never been happier and healthier. Yes, it has been a rough road. This is not an easy or "magic" fix. The recovery was painful. I dont eat sugar, or bread or pasta or a number of other foods I love. I can't "chug" water like I used to. My portion sizes are quite small. I am very uncomfortable if I "over eat" or drink. I had multiple stalls and got discouraged. I don't go out to restaurant's much. My hair fell out for about 3 months. I have to take vitamins every day. I had several "what have I done" moments along the way. But I know now that it was the best decision I have ever made. I don't have to take ANY medications anymore. I have so much energy, and I live a full and happy life. Oh and I got to buy an amazing new size 6 wardrobe! My husband tells me I am a completely different person, physically, and emotionally. My only regret is not doing this years ago. Someone asked me the other day "how long do you have to do this for?" and my answer was "forever". This is not something I am "doing", this is a life long commitment. I am never going back to where I was. If you go into it with a mindset that this is temporary then not only are you going to be disappointed, but you will likely be one of those people that gains it all back in a few years. I am posting a couple of pictures as inspiration of what is possible. I know I scoured the internet for before and after shots every time I felt discouraged or needed some extra motivation. If anyone has questions they want to ask feel free to message me! I don't know it all or have all the answers I can only tell you about my personal experiences. Sent from my SM-N976U using BariatricPal mobile app