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Are you revising to the Sleeve or Bypass?

Hello lb family, Had the lapband for nearly 4yrs. Guess what I gained half bk I just came out of surgery the day b4 to hv my doc revise it cause I lost liquid! Bk on track. Forgot what the restrictions felt like.

I was approved for an emergency band removal by insurance and was going to pay cash for a revision during the removal. My doctor saw me Tuesday and wanted me scheduled for surgery this coming Monday, specifically because my husband is gone all summer and I had my parents here for 2 weeks to help me. Today, they were supposed to call with surgery day instructions. Instead, they didn't return my call until 4:00 and said they hadn't put me on te schedule because "they didn't know what the doctor was thinking, scheduling me so quickly." I explained his reasoning (he KNOWS my husband and the circumstances and he was very sincere in wanting to accommodate our circumstances.). They said they'd call back by 6:00. Never heard back and now it's 8:00???? I don't suppose there's any hope they will call over the weekend, so I guess I'm not having my revision. I'm so, so devastated. The earliest I can see having it done now at this point is late November. ????

Hi everyone, I haven't been on here in sooooo very long but recently I found out that my band has slipped and i have to go back in to have it corrected on 1/28. I'm wondering if anyone can tell me what to expect. My Dr says it's basically the same procedure all over again, same surgery minus the port scar, same diet but she couldn't tell me about continued weight loss. I'm just wondering if anyone has continued to loose after revision surgery. I was banded on 12/21/06 and at my best had lost 80lbs but have since gained back about 15 due to poor eating habits due to the slippage. Any insight as to what I could expect would be greatly appreciated. I am alittle apprehensive about this surgery but I know it needs to be done. Thanks in advance

Well hello to the story of my life. I was banded Oct 2006. I lost 40lbs and got preggo. Continued to lose during pregnancy. Ended up with healthy baby and down almost 100lbs! Woohoo. Then baby #2 had a slight unfill and bam hallo healthy baby and all 100lbs! Lmao. I just had the sleeve revision and hernia repair May 25,2016. I had mucho swelling after procedure so the first couple of days were probably worse than normal. I am now on my 5th day post surgery. Drinking all liquids with no problem whatsoever. I'm excited and am so ready for soft foods...lol Sent from my XT1565 using the BariatricPal App

I’m Week 4 after my band to sleeve revision and am on soft foods. I can eat a whole egg and one toast. I don’t feel full afterward but stop myself from eating as I don’t want to eat too much. Should I feel full when eating an egg and one toast? Is this normal?

That is a load of horse puckey, he's full of crap. They should know to expect weight regain. I had a slipped band that was removed. I went from about 280 (at removal, up from a low of about 215) to just under 350 in 7 months. It is not realistic to expect no weightloss to occur when you're waiting on a revision. For one, your body is wired to want to gain weight, especially if your complication resulted in extreme restriction. For two, no matter how hard you try, it's going to be really easy to slip back into bad behaviors eventually -- just because you can. I started eating a Breakfast sandwich every morning even though I wasn't hungry, because the novelty of being able to eat breakfast was just so awesome... and then it became a behavior. Here's my take. Maybe you can use some of these points to reason with your surgeon. regardless of weight, being banded has given you some tools that should help with success with the sleeve: core behavioral changes, and understanding of what the whole WLS process is like; an idea of the mental road coming; an ability to find balance rather than short-term deprivation, etc. with nothing in place to restrict intake, how are you supposed to maintain weight? It is proven that when you stop losing, your body makes it much harder than normal not to gain. So you're in a more volatile gain period, and have nothing to help you (mechanically speaking). You lost weight because you had a band, so what's his rationale for it not being OK to gain when the band is gone? When my band came out, I gained almost 20 lbs in a week. But I still felt restriction, and I was not eating much more than before surgery. What I gained was not fat. It was weight. I'd been so fricking dehydrated that the Water weight just packed on. Most people who have their bands removed are fairly dehydrated because of it. You're going to gain some weight, and it's a healthy gain (not fat gain, weight gain - hydration in this case) Instead of seeing it "if you can't do it on your own, you can't do it with the sleeve" (which, if that ws true, no one here would be anywhere near goal because I can pretty much guarantee that everyone here tried to do it on their own, yet here we are...) he should be seeing it as "you're that much ahead of someone doing this for the first time, so let's get you some help and get you healthy."

I got a sleeve to mini gastric bypass revision in Tijuana on July 28.

I wanted to share this story of inspiration with you. I am sure it will lift your spirit as much as it does mine! Fabiola Apollon is familiar with the setbacks and success of weight loss. She was not a first time winner, nor a second or third, for that matter. However, she is a woman of great spirit, and her determination finally won the battle with a gastric sleeve revision, spirituality, and dedication. Please read Fabiola's story of faith, patience, and perseverance over obesity here: http://www.mybariatriclife.org/gastric-sleeve-revision-patient-story/

It's wondering if anybody has gotten a band-to-sleeve revision by dr. Fernando Garcia?? I'm getting my surgery on June 15!

I have an appointment Wednesday to see if I can get a revision to the sleeve. I am paying cash since insurance won't cover it. I was wondering if I will have to go through all the testing again if I am paying cash. I really don't want to wait another 6 months to have surgery. Also, did anyone have any complications from the revision? Any regrets? Were you finally able to lose the weight?

I had a band done 10 years ago and just got sleeved (10 days ago). My doctor informed me there was a lot of fybrosis (I think that's what it is called) but he successfully removed the band and got the sleeve done. He did the leak test during the operation So far, there hasn't been any problem at all. My doctor gave me a week and 3 days of clear or almost clear liquid diet. I just started eating Beans, egg, yogurt, etc. So far it's been great. I do take esoprax every morning to avoid reflux, etc. My best advice to you would be: this is something you are doing to yourself, it's not a favor the doctor is doing for you, it's your life, plus it's not free. So talk to other people your doctor has "revised" or get a doctor that makes you feel better. In the end, it is your precious life that's at stake. Hope it helps, Maraki

I am so excited for you. I have not scheduled revision surgery yet. But would love to follow your journey. I was sleeved in 2010.

Wow, I guess I'm having a hard time envisioning a band AND a plication. I have not had a band, the VSG was my first WLS, but (this is totally just my opinion) if it were up to me I would just do the VSG. I know some people have a hard time with the idea that it is permanent, but honestly isn't that what EVERYONE who has WLS is looking for? Permanent weight loss? Good luck with your revision, I think there is a plication board on here too, that you might want to check out.

So, while I was in one of my final appointments, a nutritional/behavioral seminar, a woman attending the session was getting a lap-band to sleeve revision. Her reasoning was because "her lap-band had failed her". Every time she was make a negative comment about the band, she would look at me and say "no offense". I was also looking for lap-band instagram accounts and stumbled across an account where most of the hastags were #failedlapband and how their lap-band had failed them. Now, I don't know these peoples' situations, and coming from someone who is 2 weeks pre-op, I'm by no means a pro. But isn't there a time where you need to take responsibility for your current situation? It doesn't make me regret choosing the lap-band, but, sometimes it makes me nervous that will I be one of those people where the lap-band didn't 'work'. I have all the motivation in the world and want to fully commit myself to this band and this lifestyle, but seeing these stop and make me think. I feel like the band has such a negative appeal in the bariatric world.. or maybe its just me. I see plenty of people who are very successful with the band, so having that makes me feel better.

Hello there Irish, I completely understand your concerns and wanting to get the best surgeon you possibly can, we don't want to go through this surgery without having a really good restriction. On Nov. 20th of this year I had my gastric sleeve surgery done by Dr Illan Fraijo and it was absolutely the best decision I've ever made in my life. Dr Illan is a very skilled surgeon, as he does not only do bariatrics but is also first an emergency room trauma surgeon. I had special concerns about scar tissue due to a bad gallbladder surgery I had several years ago that resulted in exploratory surgery. Dr Illan's coordinator Omar Acosta was the only surgical coordinator out of several other companies that offered to set up a Skype call with Dr Illan, and let me just tell you after talking to him face to face and discussing my fears and concerns, I felt so at ease and confident that he was in fact the surgeon for me. It turned out I did indeed have a good bit of internal scar tissue that he had to work through but it was never a problem for him. He has had a great deal of experience with this and also with revisions. I will tell you this, if perhaps you wake up from surgery and you are not sleeved, it will only be because Dr Illan decided it was in your best interest to allow some healing to take place before proceeding with the sleeve. He is a very caring, compassionate, soft spoken person who has your best interest at heart. For the surgery he uses a gun that lays down a triple row of titanium staples and then he over stitches the entire staple line, making the chance of a leak slim to none. I remember him coming to my bed side and talking to me about my surgery and telling me that I was going to love my new stomach, that he had made it really small for me and that I would have really good restriction, which I most definitely do have. So far its been 6 weeks and I've lost 31 lbs, this is so amazing to me. I just cannot speak highly enough of his team at Baja Bariatrics and to top it all off, he has the BEST, I mean the ABSOLUTE BEST patient care coordinator with Omar Acosta. He will be there for you through the entire process and will make sure you are well taken care of from the beginning to the end. You have obviously given a lot of thought to this and the decision is one that only you can make but I can tell you from my own experience that choosing Dr Illan was the very best choice I could have ever made. If you have any more questions or just want to chat, send me a private message and I will be so glad to help you in any way I can. This surgery has truly been a gift for me and if I can help anybody by sharing my experience that is exactly what I'm going to do!

So if i am approved for band removal, what are my options for revision to sleeve? My dr said bcbs will not approve sleeve because its investigational, but i gotta get this sleeve done....any advice?

Hi ladies. I'm new to the site and today is my first day posting. I was banded in 2008 and that has not worked out (for me). My surgeon mentioned revision to me today. I was actually glad because it is something that I'd been wanting to do but didn't mention to him since I haven't had any erosion or slips. If you are a convert, will you please share your experiences with me? The only person that knows I have a Lap-Band is my husband. I'm kind of glad, because I failed. I have mentioned the sleeve to a friend and a cousin and didn't get great "approval ratings". I'm ok with that...they're both small... ha! Hubs is fully supportive. He's cool with me as I am now, and is always supportive of whatever weightloss endeavor I enter... I'm in the VERY preliminary stages of this whole process. The dr's office is checking out my benefits. I know it is covered, it is just a matter of what all the insurance company will want and how long and drawn out they will make the process. I'm ready!

Hello tee, welcome to VST!! I am a past revision from over a year ago now. I am so blessed to have this second chance!!! You will be as well, I'm very sure of that. To answer your questions, yes - it is very possible you may need to have two surgeries. It is for your best interest and safest to do so if needed. I didn't need to do two seperate surgeries, and I'm very glad for that. However, if i did, I certainly would do it. I don't believe they can see scar tissue during a barium swallow, though I'm not exactly sure. I would imagine that there could be some tell tale signs of it but to actually see it I believe they would need to do a scope, or to simply find it upon surgery. Good luck to you!!! Keep us updated on how you're doing.

I am looking into a lap band revision, but was also given the option of Gastric Sleeve... Was wanting to get opinions on what people think of the sleeve compared to a band revision?

I had a band to sleeve revision and the incision where he took out the band was really sore for a couple of weeks. If you're concerned, call your doc. Trust me, there's no question he/she hasn't heard. They are there to not only do surgery, but also to support you in your journey. No question is "silly". It's your body and you have the right to ask questions. By the way, CONGRATULATIONS!

My family and I are big golfers. I play 3+ days a week from the beginning of the season to the end. I had no problem at all. The one thing that did change was my swing. It took half of the season to revise, but I'm back. Another was the cute outfits I can now wear. If I have a bad day on the course I still look fabulous! lol.

1 year out from revision surgeryWeight loss has been slow I had lapband First them it slipped then had RNY done My Weightloss is slow because I only have A small amount to lose per sergeant He said people who weight a lot will lose their weight fast and people with under 100 to lose Will lose slow so I'm moving like a turtle but I Will cross the finish line on day But I'm Healthy on the inside God bless

LawDiva312 hi there. I was all set to have the lapband. went to my informational conference - and the dr. spoke of they sleeve. that was the first time i had ever heard of the sleeve. - so after talking to the surgeon - i decided that going the route of the sleeve is the best for me. if the lapband was so good - why would they have a whole thread concerning Lapband Revision to VSG. if the lapband was so good why would so many people have them removed and change to the sleeve? i never had a lapband, but there are problems like erosion, band slipping - As far as the gastric bypass - that gives you absorption problems with medication. Sleeve has no problems with absorption. This is one big reason that people are now doing the sleeve. i don't know if the sleeve can experience dumping sydrome problems - my answer will be no.- think that is primarily with the gastric bypass - about the dumping best of luck welcome to the group kathy

My doctor charges an 1100.00 "revision fee" and then charges my regular 20% of my 80/20 split. Do you know if insurance will put that toward my out of pocket max? Or, can someone somewhere tell me what I am looking at total? I have a $2000.00 out of pocket max, deductibles of $500.00 each for inpatient and outpatient, and copays of $100.00 a day for each thing. I am thinking it will cost me: $2000.00 out of pocket $1000.00 for all of the deductables $1100.00 for revision fee Sound right?