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Hi everyone, I really need some advice from people with similar situations. I had my surgery on Nov. 17. At first I was doing well, and I went home. Then I could barely keep anything down, not even water. I went back to ER for dehydration and then was again sent home. I still was feeling extreme nausea. Then a few days later I went right back. The doctors kept telling me I was not tolerating the VSG surgery and that I should consider a Bypass. I do not want a bypass and that got me depressed. They told me not everyone can tolerate a VSG. Which makes no sense because there are complications with the Bypass as well. Anyways then ended up doing a endoscopy and found a stricture. I was operated on again and this was resolved. Afterwards I still wasn't tolerating food, so they put me on picc line because I was malnourished. Then they told me if I don't start eating they would have to put a food tube in. I finally began eating (poorly, but I am managing). I was sent home. The problem now is that I can't tolerate protein shakes or any medication. I am going to ask my family doctor for patches. I am eating and its staying down but I feel like crap. I am so nauseous in the morning that I gag when I take my ppi. I also sleeep 12 hours a day. I love sleeping because its my only escape. I don't know what to do, should I go back to the ER? They told me if I feel nausea that I can go back. I have had nausea for the last 3 days in the morning. Please help. Does it get better?

You definitely will gain back 10-15% at the 18 mark, thats stated as a fact by all Dr's but from bypass it happens after 3 or 4 years and with bypass, from what I've researched, many lose much more with bypass and then when they gain back the 10-15% it's not over their goal weight, as opposed to sleeve, most lose less than 80% excess weight and then gain back 15% after 18 months and I just didn't wanna risk it. I know 3 people personally who had the sleeve, no GERD, and got resleeved or went to get a bypass all because they all gained 4o, 50 even 70 lbs back after 3, 4, 5 years and they dieted and did everything accordingly. I rather just get bypass the first time as it does have a more effective and higher rate of success. It's still the gold standard. But a part of me considered the sleeve mainly due to less complications, however I dont want the weight to creep back in so fast at 18 months that I didn't have enough time to lose all the weight. Again, every body is different. Sent from my SM-N986U using BariatricPal mobile app

Well I never had GERD, and really thats the primary reason for a revision. I may develop it later on, but only 30% of sleevers have this issue.My sleeve was done right, so it definitely isnt an inferior surgery. Actually, the weight loss between GB and GS is very very similar at 5 years post op. Because it is so similar and the rate of complications with a sleeve is lower than with a bypass, this is why my doc recommended it. Weight regain is not a side effect of the surgery (either one...regains happen with bypass just as often), but rather choices made by the patient. I am still losing. I'm confident in myself and my choices. I will check back in July 😊

there are more potential complications with bypass than with sleeve, but then, major complications with either surgery are pretty uncommon. I do hear about ulcers occasionally here on BP, but not that often. Not sure what other complications he was referring to...I know there's a risk of bowel obstruction, but that's pretty rare. Dumping? That's a minor one that happens to about 30% of us, but it can be controlled by avoiding or limiting sugar (and for some, fat). Did he bring up anything else?

Hey guys ive had the sleeve done roughly 10 years ago when i was 21 years of age, did well lost all of my weight was in the best shape of my life and in the last 3 years now at 32 years of age I have suffered from extreme gerd 2 hital hernias repaies and now on my 3rd hital hernia and have gained 35 lbs back . Intermittent shoulder and left under armpit/rib pain I have seen a new bariatric doctor who seems very understanding and knowledgeable and has offered me to options. 1 revise to gastric bypass Or 2 repair the hital hernia and put in a linx magnet system to help with gerd. I really don't know what to do here. I have regained some of my weight and in the last 3 years have been in pain with shoulder and chest due to what I belive is my hital hernias and Gerd. I wanted to get with the community and ask you guys/gals first hand what you recommend and why. One topic that came up was ulcers with the bypass and medications that i take such as meloxicam. Which i can switch to something else. I currently take omeperazole, temazpam,meloxicam and duloxetine. A big part of me wants to get the bypass just becuase I have regained the weight but he kind of scared me with complications that some people can have with bypass. I dont see much talk her about the linx system for sleevers is this something new that most people just don't know about or doctors just performing for bariatric patients? Please give me your thoughts

I had an ESG in Oct 2018, I had a VSG revision in March 2020. I do regret having an ESG, in Australia its not covered by medicare thus not covered by health insurance, I self funded. It was a waste of my money and. The sutures did not anchor properly and/or loosened. Looks like Dr Blosser has been around for awhile and hopefully well experienced with ESG. Questions I would ask are how many ESG procedures has he done? Success / failure rate after a year? Complication rate? What can you expect for recovery? What medication prior to and post procedure? What was the heaviest an ESG patient has weighed (his patient that is) and how much did they lose? How many of his ESG patients that he knows of have had a surgical revision? What is the average excess weight loss (EWL) % (it used to be about 20% it may have changed) vs EWL % for his patients. What is the post op program? How much on top of the procedure expenses will this cost? if you have to attend dietician and/or behavioural coach appointments)? One of the selling points of ESG is less complications and quicker recovery, however, this is generally offset by lower weight loss. If you have a lot of weight to lose (BMI 40 and over) you may be better off going with a surgical option. Typically a ESG leaves a stomach with more volume than the surgical option, hence, weight loss will not be as significant as for surgery. LIke the surgical options, many people have had success with ESG and many people haven't.

Stalls happens to nearly everyone. Personally I suspect that the people who do not hit stalls also find valuable antiques at garage sales, win free cruises and never get traffic tickets. I stalled from week 3-7 (but did not know because I did not weigh myself except at the doctor), then I suspect I stalled multiple times after that too. I still made it to where I needed to be. Bariatric teams usually stress the importance of hydration over food at this point post surgery. There is usually more concern from the complications of dehydration vs low calorie intake - we are trying to use the excess stored fat after all. Ask your team if it is okay to only eat the amount you are comfortable with and at the frequency that works for you. The extended eating time frame is usually for when we start solids. Most of the time If we hold up our end of the bargain (mentally), our bodies will do the same. It will all come together eventually and life after WLS will not always feel like a chore. Good Luck!

I have body dysmorphia disorder too. It caused complications with my psych evaluation. I hope the process goes smoothly for you, wish you well.

If I eat fast (which is a problem for me), I feel it immediately!! I have to sit at the table no distractions and literally time myself and wait at least 30 sec. to 1 min. Between bites... it’s a pain, but otherwise I inhale food. I was struggling so much with the recommended diet, constipation, nausea and sick from too much animal protein. I got permission on Friday to switch to a Whole Foods plant based diet. I am so much happier, and able to meet the protein requirements easier. I’ve never been a big meat eater and I had dairy intolerance pre-surgery. It didn’t improve. So for me, this is a life saver. I’m sharing so that you can do what you need to make this lifestyle your own. If you are having a hard time meeting it in anyway, over time it will wear you out, at least it would me. I’ve tried to remove as many obstacles and complications so I can have the best chance at success. I’ve read a lot of people feeling like they don’t get the full and they can easily eat whatever, they aren’t hungry. what I’ve seen the response is, it will change over time and stick to the plan so you don’t accidentally stretch your stomach, or become malnutritioned. There are days I don’t feel hungry, but if I wait too long I feel nauseous. Best of luck!!

I am 2 years post op. I am 6 months pregnant! No complications. Everything is going well [emoji3059] I did start gaining weight due to COVID stress but I think everyone has been. I was in the process of loosing weight again when we found out I was pregnant. So weight loss is on hold for now. SD: 09/2018 Height: 5'5 HW: 313lb SW: 273lb LW:172LB Before Pregnany: 184LB CW:194LB Sent from my SM-G965U using BariatricPal mobile app

I would plan for some good walking shoes. You need to keep moving to avoid blood clots and to start into a healthy lifestyle plan. My doc wanted 10,000 steps a day, and I worked up to that in the first week. Naps and massage are great, but keep yourself moving inbetween or you could have complications.

most people sail through with no or only very minor issues. I think it seems like complications are more widespread than they actually are because people post about those, looking for support or advice. People who don't have any issues don't usually post about that..

Congratulations on surgery tomorrow! I bet ur stoked!!! Prayers for peace during ur stay, no complications during ur procedures and that u will be in the least amount of pain as possible during ur recovery! I look forward to ur updates[emoji847] Sent from my SM-N960U using BariatricPal mobile app

hey hey! Sorry I missed you! I don't get on the computer often to check this site and for some reason I do not get notifications on my app of people responding to me. I am officially 175.8 lbs today and it is day 168 since surgery:) I see you still have not had surgery yet. I just wanted to encourage you. The fears of loose skin, complications, failing to reach goal, and wondering if bariatric is best for you are all very common emotions and concerns preop. There are truly no words though to explain how amazing this journey of self love is! I am not only losing physical weight at an incredible pace but I swear I am being healed from emotional baggage that has weighed me down for years at that same incredible rate as well. There's no way to fathom exactly what I am talking about until you experience it, but I hope you give yourself this opportunity because you deserve it! No more back pain, no more hip pain, no more sweating profusely, no more FUPA stickin out like an awning over my vag, no more getting creative about how the hell I'm gonna reach my hand to my butthole to wipe... LOLOL...seriously, I could go on but I may be a little too transparent for some folks lol. I have been the happiest that I have ever been in my life since surgery though so please update us when you have it and I hope to see the update at that time! I am cheering for you and am excited for you to experience this journey!

I found pork skin have satisfaction with salsa have same effect and taste of potatoe chips when hunger is running also a boiled egg will help u get over the hunger hump! I’m 4 weeks out and am losing 2 lbs a week no complications any body got ideals about a pizza replacement???

Hi I haven't been on one of these forums in a looong time. I had a sleeve done in 11/2010. It has gone well and MOST of the time I hovered between 185-210 (which was fine with me as I was nowhere near my high of 300). about 1.5 yrs ago I started having trouble keeping some foods down...I figured I was just eating too fast or too much. I was losing weight but not too fast. I had post-menopausal bleeding in 12/2019 so we did the whole cancer check thing (esp with the vomiting becoming more of an issue). Everything came out fine so I was referred to a GI who found a hernia. Had this repaired in 6/2020. Since then I have done well to keep anything but liquids down. I had an upper GI done and my stomach is the shape of a barbell. (1/3 normal sleeve, middle 1/3 severely narrowed, last 1/3 normal sleeve). Referred to another GI who did another EGD and colonoscopy and found I had almost a complete blockage in my stomach (11/2020) (he also got a good view of how I look like skin and bones without clothes which I think REALLY concerned him). He sent me straight to the ER to be admitted and I had surgery 2 days later which ended up being them taking the scar tissue that was wrapped around my stomach out. Still no improvement. My new GI had his nurse call me because he wanted to have an appointment (12/28) and see how I was doing post surgery (5 weeks out). He immediately ordered ANOTHER upper GI (12/30) which looked exactly like the one from October. We discussed going to a different surgeon and I picked a new bariatric surgeon (I tried a few but they wouldn't take me since they didn't do my original surgery in 2010 and the one who did is no longer in network). Once the surgeon saw my upper gi results he had his nurse move my appointment up a week. (1/5). My GI sent a message to the surgeon prior to my appointment so he had a heads up about me. First he wasn't happy I hadn't been referred earlier to him by my first GI. He said there is no fixing the middle part of my stomach and the only thing to do is revise to an RNY. He wants to do it as soon as ins approves. (Today I spoke with them and it is marked high priority and I should have an answer by tomorrow). I made sure they knew I could only keep liquids down and it had been thing way since June. I also mentioned I have gone from a size 14/16 in Dec 2019 to 4/6 now. (I just bought a size 4 straight skirt and it fits perfectly). I have a TON of loose skin but clothes hide it. In July I just bought a new bra 36 B now I am a 32A. The guy on the phone at Aetna took these notes to add to my file in addition to the ones my surgeon sent (the upper gi series, etc). Originally my file wasn't marked high priority until someone on the clinical team looked at it. SO, now you have my LOOONG backstory. I am kind of scared about the RNY. How is the recovery? This will be my 3rd surgery in 7 months. My body has not been getting the calories it needs for quite a while now (even protein shakes take a long time to get through). It's actually probably a miracle that I am still able to function as well as I have been at work. All of the covid changes have been kicking my rear but it has been a very productive year for me despite this whole mess. Thankfully I have an amazing admin assistant and colleagues who have been pitching in here and there to help when I absolutely needed it...but I am a workaholic so I have taken very little time off for recoveries. What can I expect of an RNY rather than the sleeve? Has anyone had any complications like this so far out from the original surgery? Obviously I am not doing this to lose weight...I am actually doing it to gain weight. This has really been crazy mentally after all those years worried about losing weight. sorry for the book. I would love input from anyone :)

Having just completed my 3rd week post op I wanted to post an update in case it helps anyone with a late December surgery date still in that first week. I guess having read so many people saying minimal pain after Gastric Bypass, and felt recovered "pretty quickly"...left me with exaggerated expectations of my healing. I should have really asked a bit more of what is minimal pain mean, and what are the typical expectations days after surgery, a week after surgery...when do I not feel any pain? The first week was definitely rough, pain was moderate (to me), meaning I felt every movement I made and was uncomfortable in all but a few positions. Day 8 for me was finally a point where I felt I could get up and down without much discomfort, and walk around for longer period of times with pain being too much. I declared I finally started feeling human. Each day after that it gets....better. Not dramatically...just a longer slower upward trend than my patience and pain threshold was ready for. I had no obligations to be anywhere for 2 weeks - and WAS SO THANKFUL I did that. I am back at work week 3 but definitely not at 100%. And I just sit behind a desk. I would say for just doing computer work for 8-10 hours I am at 75% of where I was pre surgery. And very worn and more hurting at the end of the day. From a physical standpoint of any type of real movement ie Hiking, or long walks...I'd say I am 40-50% of where I was... So for anyone in those first 2 weeks wondering like I did why I am not up and feeling great....maybe this will be some type of encouragement. The key takeaway for me is...each day is an improvement...and taking time to heal is ok...it's not a race...a journey. Each body is different. I am thankful for no real complications, and am very pleased at the initial weight loss I have experienced since prepping for surgery, and over the past several weeks. That is also helping to motivate...and know each day is a healthier me as well. November 26th - 290 December 15 - 270 (Surgery) January 6th - 245 I would have NEVER believed that was possible. So thankful there is a tool that can help me get my health under control. Hope this helps someone out there struggling through pain...just rest, do the best you can each day to stay hydrated..and time WILL PASS..and you WILL feel better. Just takes time...

I'm sorry you're going through this. I can certainly help interpret the language (being an attorney and patient advocate who has handled over 10,000 bariatric surgery appeals over the last 25 years or so). Sorry to say I am pretty sure this Rider is an attempt to exclude all bariatric surgery that may have previously been covered. If you'd like to contact our office for an analysis I'd love to sift through what you're dealing with so you know your coverage from the outset. As mentioned by other folks responding to your question, I would want to see the existing coverage booklet (as a PDF) that this rider is attached to so we can piece together for you what's going on. You are correct in being cautious about moving forward and our office is here to help. Call us at 1-877-992-7732 and we can discuss this in detail - - - it's going to be a complicated puzzle to put together, but nothing we haven't been doing for a couple of decades!

Are you sure your insurance will cover it? Just because your insurance covers bariatric surgery doesn’t mean they will approve it for everyone. As Catwoman7 said, you would not qualify for most insurance companies’ criteria for bariatric surgery approval. Even if your insurance company really would pay for it, bariatric surgery is not something to be taken lightly. Gastric sleeve is a major surgery that permanently removes a large portion of your stomach. It requires lifelong changes in eating, taking supplements, and regular follow up monitoring. It can also have complications (the most common one for gastric sleeve is GERD, which can be so severe that it requires medication or even additional surgery). It is also not magic; if you do not fully commit to the lifestyle chances, you could regain some or all of the weight, These risks and drawbacks are true for everyone who gets bariatric surgery, so everyone has to evaluate the pros and cons. For someone who has 100+ pounds to lose and serious health problems related to obesity, it may be worth the trade off. But it would be a lot to go through to lose 20 pounds, especially if you don’t have any other health problems related to your weight. That’s why insurance companies only approve it under certain circumstances — they only want you to do it if there is a very good chance that it will improve your overall health.

Hi, I'm located in NYC. I'm 25 years old and considering lap band surgery at NYU. I am 5'4 and 260 pounds. While about 75% of me is for the surgery i still do have concerns that hopefully some of you can inform me on. I was wondering how many of you have had the surgery and had loose skin afterwards? I've read that the younger you are the less likely you are to have loose skin . I've also read that because the lap band doesn't make you loose weight as fast as the sleeve or bypass, another reason why i many not have loose skin. But i wanted to know how common it is with the lapband. Secondly, how many people have had this surgery within the last 2-3 years and have complications? I've been told that the newer lapbands are causing less complications in comparison to the older ones.

Thank you! I literally just asked another question on this forum to the bypass group if they could get the mini vs the RNY would they and why. I appreciate this. I hate to hear that this is limited in the states though. I really don’t want to travel outside fir my procedure due to my history of prior complications.

I’m a previous lap-band patient gone haywire, thus causing it to be removed several years ago so I’m larger now than when I had it placed. I’m going to have surgery. Researching options and costs right now. How many of you would recommend the mini bypass? If so, why and is there a difference in percentage of weight lost and cost? I know that it has less chance of surgical complications. Thanks in advance.

Welcome! Here's a thread from the revision forum about people who have transitioned from the lap band after having complications. I'm sure one of the lap banders will come along with first hand information but here's a place to start.

I an new to the forum and I have decided to have the gastric sleeve. My concern is that I originally had a lap band placed 14 years ago. I lost 80 pounds then I got pregnant with my third child. After his birth, the band never worked correctly again. I ended up having it surgically removed in 2011. I used Dr Nirmal Jayaseelan to remove my band but he is pretty far away from Nacogdoches, Tx. I am looking for someone closer to home to perform the procedure and am wondering if my failed band surgery will be a problem in regards to having this procedure. Any thoughts?

I'm a professor and my job is virtual now. I did my surgery right before winter break. I had no complications from surgery and an easy recovery. However, I'm glad I had a long break from work. In the first couple weeks of recovery I definitely had a brain fog. I felt fine physically but my brain didn't feel like it was as fast as usual. I think lecturing would have been difficult and if a student asked me a tough question I probably would have flubbed it. I say do it in the summer. Teaching requires so much of your mental focus that even if you physically recover, it's tough if your brain isn't ready yet. Another thing is you will have to eat very small amounts throughout the day and in the first few weeks you might be slowly sipping water or a protein shake for hours. This is tough to do when teaching.