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The lap band prevents me from eating healthy foods like fruits, veggies, and lean proteins. It does NOTHING to stop me from eating slider foods, though, so I've actually gained weight with the lap band. I regret not doing bypass in the first place but I thought the lap band would be a safer choice since nothing was cut or removed. I was wrong. People have complications/issues with the band WAY more than with any other WLS, and far less success. I know some folks on here have had success with it but they're in the minority. Most doctors aren't even doing lap bands anymore. My doctor said he takes out way more bands now than ever before because they were popular 10 years ago but are failing. I'm converting to bypass soon... can't wait to get my surgery date!

P.S. complications aren't that common - and a leak most likely would have shown up by now. And no, you won't be eating like this for the rest of your life, either. I know the first few weeks can be rough, but then life will start to feel normal again. The buyer's remorse you have is also common during the early weeks. I had it as well.

Hi All, Just wanted to know what others have experienced. For some reason I am having daily anxiety. I absolutely can't stand it as it hits out of nowhere at all. I am only 17 days Post-Op, take my vitamins daily, and still taking my Metformin until I am blood tested again. I do not want to go on an anti anxiety medication. I had been on Lexapro for 4 years at which point I put on a lot of weight going from a size 4 to 1-2X. I lost all motivation on working out as well. I went off the Lexapro completely 2 months before surgery and started actually caring about myself which is why I decided to do this surgery so I could get my health back on track. Following my weight gain, I developed diabetes, Apnea (now using a C-Pap for a year) and NASH of the liver. I notice exercise helps with the anxiety for sure but I cant seem to get a decent response from the medical community to help me feel better about this. I asked my surgeon why this sudden onset of anxiety that hits for what seems like no reason at all and his response was if I am eating right and exercising that this could be the cause because of sudden change and that maybe people are treating me differently and all of this is causing anxiety. I then told him no - people are not treating me differently. My family is amazing with all of this and I am working out of the house so have not been around others for them to treat me differently. In my case this is absolutely not the case at all. I pressed on asking if chemical changes in the body could be happening due to the surgery that may be causing this and he said yes. Wondering why I had to keep poking to get that response at all and yet because that was not the first response I am even doubting that. Why not just tell me that since I made it clear I am having these spikes out of nowhere and can't figure out why. I am finding myself overthinking everything right now honestly. Wondering how I will tolerate eating anything at this point or will I ever be able to. My doctor keeps his patients on a 5 week post-op liquid diet before you go on to a pureed / soft food diet for another 3 weeks. So unsure of myself right now and considered I made a huge mistake and so very much want to get passed this feeling more than anything in the world. Part of me is happy I did the surgery for my health and the results of weight loss I have seen thus far but another part wonders why I could not get back on track on my own and worried about long term complications. Like once I start eating will I have a sudden stomach leak, will I have no ability to hold down food or end up on liquids for the rest of my life? Will I ever be able to enjoy a glass of wine again and comfortably get on with life in a better more healthy way. Will I end up with Gallstones that cause another surgery or will I have stomach blockage in the future and how will I know if I do? I want to celebrate my choice to have done this and enjoy the weight loss but instead I am having so much self doubt and it's making me miserable. My liver health alone was cause to do this along with the diabetes so what is my damn problem? It is really hard to deal with this and I'm frankly pissed at myself for letting the anxiety get to me. I am considering going back on a lower dose of Lexapro again at least until this simmers down as I am hoping this is a chemical change in my body due to part of the stomach being removed and all the dietary changes just concerned it will make me not give a crap again and go lazy. IDK, if I knew factually this was all going to be a temporary reality then I would do it until the body goes back to normal.

Thank you for sharing such a thoughtful response. I was sleeved a little over a week ago. The surgery went well, No pain from the surgery but the post-op gas and meds have been rough. I'm still on liquids, though I'll be transitioning to thicker liquids today. But, I keep very little down. Right now, I can't drink a glass of water without the water hitting a couple of air bubbles, ricocheting all over, and then getting burped back up. It's been awful. I'm not hungry but my energy is low. I'm ready for this phase to be over. I'd give almost anything to be able to drink a glass of ice-cold water with no complications. Any ideas for relieving this would be appreciated. I've sipped slowly. I've walked. I've chewed on the ice. I've used a heating pad. I've slept sitting up in a chair. I've still got random gas pockets lying in wait! My body is most comfortable when it senses nothing there. No liquids or anything to process. Then it's at peace. If I can cross this hurdle, I think I'll be okay. I randomly burp, belch, and spit up like a baby.

Yea true, I was basically wanting to know if anyone else had a small glass a month out of surgery. I haven’t had any complications and I don’t want to start now, I can wait lol. Thanks for the feedback!

I haven’t heard of any eye issues being a complication or even anyone with temporary vision changes. I think it’s probably unrelated. The eye Dr should know though.

I have struggled with weight my entire adult life. I’ve yo yo dieted...lost and gained over 100 pounds 3 times. Just before turning 50 I decided to give it another go in trying to lose the weight once and for all the traditional way with a naturopath and a personal trainer. But if that didn’t work I made a promise to myself that, I would go for the gastric bypass. It took about 2 years but I was successful with the weight loss, and once again lost 100 lbs. Unfortunately a few years later, slowly but surely the weight came back. A number of reasons precipitated that including the fact I wax dealing with a lot of stress and depression associated with getting a breast lumpectomy because of a suspicious biopsy. It was not cancer, but because of it I’m considered high risk. By then I also experienced a lot pain due to osteoarthritis of my knees. So much so that I now require a knee replacement. Unfortunately my weight would make, not only the surgery, but the recovery difficult and complicated. Not only that, I have high BP. At 54 with retirement fast approaching i felt I was running out of time before other health problems came so I decided to keep my promise of going for the surgery to give myself a chance to have a long active, healthy and adventurous retirement. Had my surgery March 29th and not looking back! I should have done it sooner but so grateful now!

It gets better. I had an extremely rough recovery too. Constantly being put back on liquid or soft foods because my tummy would suddenly say “nope! Not doing the solid thing any more!”. I had multiple strictures as well so that was fun. Don’t worry, just keep doing what you’re doing and don’t rush it. Some of us take longer. And the regret is normal. I regret the surgery. Not because I miss food (I don’t. In fact having to stop and eat depresses me now). I just get depressed from the complications

This has nothing to do with weight loss, I'm one week out tomorrow babysitting my two-year-old granddaughter because her mother is having complications with a pregnancy, I cannot tell you how hard it is to tell a two year old that she cannot put her mr. Potato Head pieces in my incisions, I love my life and everybody in it. Sent from my SM-G930VL using BariatricPal mobile app

I had bypass surgery October 2020, almost 6 years after I had the sleeve surgery. My revision was to resolve severe GERD, Esophagitis and Gastritis. I was overweight, but not in the obese range at the time of my bypass surgery. The recuperation for a revision appears to be very different from a "virgin" bypass and my original VSG. The biggest differences that I noted: 1.) no sense of restriction like I felt with the VSG 2.) I was hungry, unlike my total lack of hunger following VSG and 3.) I had very little pain after the revision compared to the pain I experienced after VSG. But everyone has different experiences and pain thresholds, so I can only speak for my post op experience. On a positive note, I've lost 47 lbs. since October and I feel great. But I could very, very easily "eat around" the bypass if I didn't make a conscience decision to eat healthy and exercise. Since weight loss is considered a ""complication" of my surgery, I am beyond thankful that I've been given this "do over".

Just curious, why are you doing this? Did you have a complication with the sleeve?

It's true that any weight loss surgery has the potential to work, but that doesn't mean that they are all equally good options. There's a reason most bariatric surgeons no longer offer the Lap Band. Although gastric banding was a promising treatment for obesity, its high long-term complications and significant failure rate have caused a significant decrease in LAGB insertions.7 This trend is also seen at our institution, where LAGB has been essentially abandoned. With this decline in band insertion comes a steep increase in LAGB removals. At our institution, the rate of band removals increased from 1 per year to more than 50 per year within a 7-year period (Fig. 1). The literature supports this trend.1 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7006354/

I almost said the same thing about regretting my decision. Week 2 and 3 were very difficult. I had complications I did not expect. To make things worse, I did everything I was told to do and I STILL had complications. I too ended up in the ER after surgery. In general I think preparing us more for the potential complications and even the likelihood of needing continued IVF and oxygen would have been appropriate. I have very few comorbidities which is why I was so surprised when I needed to go home on oxygen from the hospital. Despite the complications and a terrible recovery I am glad I went through with it. I know the lifelong benefits of losing this weight will add quality to my life. I hope you are feeling better. Hang in there. I'm so sorry you are going through this.

Just going into week 3 now too. I’m so sorry to hear this. Although so far I feel relatively fine after the gastric bypass, I’m not unfamiliar to post op complications from major surgery so I can relate. Hope you get some relief and resolution to your situation soon! 🤞

I had mines March 23 on week 3 ended up in er,vomit,anxiety,dizziness, dehydration which I could not even consume 64 oz of water a day now I’m in er on fluids and oxygen I can say I really regret having this surgery guys even though I lost 30 The complications with this is too much to bare with I should of trust my gut feelinG And see what other Option I had before this surgery

Unbelievable answers!!! Can you believe this? I was in the hospital for 8 days in Germany in 2011! Wow. I simply cannot imagine going home after one day. I was in ICU the first night (no complications) and then was on an IV for the next week.I did have a uterus infection which kept me one more night. But I was so weak. I do have to say though that I was very well taken care of. Didn't eat anything except broth and tea while I was there (no wonder I was weak!) but still, what a different situation than now.

Hello, I am looking at scheduling my revision surgery. I will be travelling from Canada to Mexico and wanted to get some feedback from those that have done so recently during the pandemic and really recently with the mandatory 3 day hotel quarantine when you re enter Canada prior to continuing home for the rest of isolation? Any issues, what 'protein' did you bring. Anything hidden surprises or things you wished you had known. I am feeling comfortable with my decision for a revision and the Doctor but I am getting stressed about the added complications of the travel and the costs. Any advice/guidance would be greatly appreciated. I

I paid privately for my op in the uk: there was post op support but no therapist. There was a group but it was weird times and I kept missing it! when I had petersens hernias (potentially life threatening complication) I was past a year post op so couldn’t see surgeon. Went to nhs a&e and told was private so needed to go back to him, he’d sent me there. Attitude to me was really shitty because I’d paid for treatment from a surgeon who actually had been consultant at the nhs place I went to! Like I got into debt and saved the tax payer from comorbidity effects and they’re mad at me?!! point is the aftercare is needed psychologically and it’s hard when it’s not there. Glad you have it though x

Actually, I think it is this sort of simplified picture that spawns the question. A lot of detail is left out that leaves things "hanging in mid abdomen" as it were. To understand the concept of surgery, we don't really need all the complicated detail. However, the more complete and scaled 'before' picture shows how there is a lot more going on around the stomach, so not much room or direction for things to move about willy-nilly.

I also used the Davis Clinic with Dr. Primomo, but I got to meet Dr. Kajese when I had some complications. Both of the doctors are amazing, and I felt really supported by the staff. They'll tell you that they're making a lifetime commitment to you so that if you start struggling with regain or anything down the road, you can contact them for help.

Hello, I am new here and don't know where or how to post things to ask the Dietician - but here is my story and I need help please. I had Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy August 6th, 2019. My surgeon and nutritionist said being almost 2 years out of surgery, my stomach should be able to hold 8 ounces in volume or 1 cup of food at a time (but obviously if I get full, don’t eat the whole thing) When I first started this journey, I had the Laparoscopic Sleeve Gastrectomy on August 6th, 2019, they said only eat 4 ounces of food for a meal three times a day. I did that and weighed my food at 4 ounces on my kitchen scale. Then a year and a half out they tell me no, I need to go by VOLUME and not by weight or else I will stretch my stomach! I feel like I am limited in what I can eat now because how do I make a sandwich fit in a measuring cup or a piece of pizza (which I no isn’t nutritious..) but just using those as an example for size. In addition to the whole volume thing, what about foods that expand like breads and crackers and pasta? How do I measure their volume? If I figure out the volume of something like that should I take away some of the food item that will expand, so I do not go over the volume? For example: If I make a sandwich that is a perfect half cup in volume, should I remove some of the bread because if it expands it will be more that that half of cup? I hope that makes sense. I have lost 230lbs since August 2019. Now I have to learn how to reeat again, because I don’t know how to measure volume without putting it into a measuring cup. I find conversion calculators online, but they give me different answers. I thought, well if my kitchen scale says 4oz in weight am I able to find the fl oz of that without smushing it? I don’t know what is accurate? Weighing was so much easier, but now I am told volume and that it has to fit into a measuring cup, but how do you put a meal in a measuring cup? Right now, I eat 3 meals a day at 1/3 cup volume measuring cup per meal and with 1 – 2 protein shakes for the day in between my meals. I eat a meal at around 6am, 12 – 1pm, and around 6 – 6:30pm. I get full on only a few bites of my 1/3 cup food or what I think fullness is so I don’t always finish even that. My hunger signals and fullness signals are all screwed up. And I don't know if it is all in my head? Thank you so much for your time. I truly appreciate it. I try asking my nutritionist and surgeon these things and they say they don’t know how to answer them – just make sure you don’t stretch your sleeve and go over the volume! I try to stay at 1/3cup volume per meal, because I am afraid of stretching my stomach out now. Maybe one day I can go up to 8 ounces in volume I hope because my meal choices have become really restricted because I can’t mush them into a measuring cup and what I can doesn’t seem worth it because If I wanted to enjoy a little something sweet, it barely fits in the 1/3cup – so why bother. Then that makes me sad. I originally weighed 352lbs and now I am 119lbs. I also spoke to someone who said that after I lose all of my weight that it doesn’t matter if I overeat and stretch my stomach back out any more just as long as I stay within 1,200 calories, 120 carbs, and 90g of protein? Is that true? My hunger and fullness signals are really difficult for me to tell apart and I have a severe anxiety over stretching my stomach (that I am trying to seek help for). But if the whole “It doesn’t matter if your stomach stretches back to normal” is fine and I watch my nutrition, is that ok? I feel like that would be giving up and taking the easy way out because I “like food more than blah, blah, blah, and just want to eat..” I am afraid of going back to old habits because I love bread and sweets. It scares me to gain any of my weight back because I don’t want to be one of those where people say, look at her – you can’t even tell she had weight loss surgery because she gained it all back! I made this big decision, this massive life change and accomplished a great weight loss, but now am I giving it all up? All because I miss food and want to eat in between meals. Right now I am so hungry or head hungry, but not physically hungry, but head hungry enough I think I want to eat something. I need help tp get on track and figure some things out please? I don’t know what else to do and I am so utterly lost. My surgeon tells me to ask my dietician these questions because he doesn’t know how to answer them – he just preforms the surgery. My dietician told me to go by weight, then volume and now she’s telling me not to weigh or measure at all just to go by how I am feeling? Well sometimes I feel I can eat a lot. I am not getting the support from them I need and I just need someone to have patience and understanding and who is kind to work with me please. I am sorry if this is a lot of information to take in. I don’t mean to go on a rant. I am just so confused. I am going to see a therapist, but the whole stretching my stomach thing is a real fear. I also had complications after surgery with bleeding that I am told may have given me PTDS..

I did end up having the lap band revision to gastric bypass (again, the choice of my surgeon for safety reasons). The scar tissue wasn’t so bad that I couldn’t get the surgery and I have had no complications at all. I think I’ve been losing more slowly because, with the previous lap band, my body was used to a lower calorie intake. obviously every body is different and you can’t fully predict what kinds of complications, if any, could happen. I’d recommend having a serious convo with your surgeon and trust them/their competency and expertise.

I had lapband in 2007 and did well. Went from a high of 258 to 170. It slipped in 2016 and was removed. Of course, the weight has all come back and I tried Qsymia, Contrave, Saxenda, Noom, WW (again!). I wanted to have a revision to the sleeve, but due to issues with GERD in band to sleeve revisions, and usually less successful weight loss, my surgeone said I should have the bypass instead. Unfortunately, a decent sized hernia was discovered during a pre-op endoscopy, and she says the risk rate for serious complications is now 20% due to scar tissue that will surely be there. And even if I don't initially have issues, they are likely down the road. Surgery is scheduled a week from today, and I just don't know what to do. I don't want serious complications, but I also want to be healthy and cannot lose the weight on my own. Would love to hear from you Katiebal_Lecter, or anyone else who had revision with a hernia. Thanks in advance. Sent from my LM-G820 using BariatricPal mobile app

I had stress & diet related reflux for years before surgery & overproduced acid to complicate it more. I also can’t burp so that added to the fun. I had changed a lot of my diet to avoid stimulating the production & to not aggravate it over the years. I took Nexium only as needed. Post surgery my reflux is different. I take Nexium every day. I get more throat burning than before if I forget my Nexium or eat hard protein before bed. No bad taste in my mouth anymore. No strong cutting pain across my abdomen if I had too much acid in my tummy. (They thought I had stomach ulcers but no.) And my hiccups are way better. (They used to be horrendous. Painful at the time, sometimes causing vomiting & then painfully sore muscles the next day.) So the sleeve surgery has helped a lot & while I still have reflux it’s easily managed.

Anyone experience complications post op?