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How big are you now? I revised from band to RNY 19 months ago and wasn't very big at the time of the revision. I had similar issues with the band, reflux, heartburn and for me leading to eating disorder. Since my revision, I haven't experienced any of that and eat healthy meals. I hit my goal weight, feel fantastic and don't regret it at all! At my revision I was 215. I am 112 now but had skin removal surgery in November. Prior to that I had bottomed out at 123 and was maintaining. The last ten lbs was from the lower body lift. Good luck on your decision!

Hello, all! I feel like I've been through the ringer. This has been 8 years of misery. This is a long post, so I apologize in advance! I was originally banded in 2007, and had a great success with the band, losing all my excess weight. Unfortunately, I did it by having severe restriction, causing major acid reflux. My surgeon at the time was apparently clueless, since she just prescriped protonix instead of encouraging me to have some fill removed. I eventually got so sick of the reflux that I got a huge unfill. Four years later, and living on the opposite side of the country, I started seeing another surgeon because I regained 40 pounds. Turns out, I'd had a severe slip for several years and didn't know about it. I wanted to revise to VSG at that point, but insurance basically said, "Sorry, you're fat again, but not fat enough! Sucks to be you!" It would only cover a removal/rebanding procedure or just removal, and that wasn't an option (as much as I dislike the band, it's still my security blanket), so band #2 was the only option. Of course, I've not been able to get to the "sweet spot" with #2. I stopped getting fills because I was at the point where I was often too restricted in the morning and not restricted at all in the evening. I feel like the band has just given me an eating disorder. I'm so scared to eat in groups in public, because the band seems to have a mind of its own. Sometimes, I can eat some foods easily, sometimes I can't. Last week, I had a severe sliming/PB episode when I ate a carrot. Of course, I've continues gaining, since the stuff that I can actually eat easily is usually stuff that's not great for me. (If I had awesome self control and was able to control my eating and lose weight with just diet and exercise, I wouldn't have needed WLS in the first place!) So now, I've changed insurance companies, and this one covers revisions (and I've gained enough weight that I'm a candidate). I'm ready to get this damned thing out of me, finally! I just don't know which procedure to go with. One surgeon I've consulted with suggested a VSG, since I'm still considered a relative light-weight, but I'm hesitant to have it. I mean, even though the projected long-term results are supposed to be basically comparable to RNY, there aren't any real long-term results available for it. I fell into that mistake once already. When I got the band, it was supposed to replace the RNY, and the projected long-term results were supposed to be comparable, with lower major side effects. Well, we all know how that turned out! Plus, the band has really screwed up my metabolism, especially combined with my PCOS. I'm worried that if I get the VSG, I'm going to be disappointed in the results, since the band has given me a lot of bad habits when it comes to foods. On the other hand, the RNY scares me a little. I'm not sure about having a surgery where I'd no longer be able to take NSAIDS like advil and aleve, since tylenol really does very little for me. I'm not sure about having mandatory supplements. But, the prospective dumping and the metabolic "kick in the pants" would help keep me honest. Ugh, I don't know what to do. Of course, this is all in theory, since I still have to choose a surgeon and try to have insurance approve a revision. I'm just so sick of this band. I'm about at the point where I just want it gone, even if I'm not able to get a revision.

Cherish wow your wt loss is amazing. Good for you! Donna try to not get too nervous I did, but honestly it was such an easy experience. Nothing compared to carrying around excess wt. I am 60 and had lapband surgery in 2012 big mistake! It slipped resulting in another surgery to remove the band and then a year later the VSG 11/10/2014. Total of 3 surgeries but the sleeve was the easiest! Only sick day one after that I could hardly tell I had surgery. My wt loss has been slow but I hear this is common when you are a revision from band to sleeve combined with my age. Anyway I am losing not gaining which would be happening if I didn't have the surgery. We can't compare ourselves with people who are much younger they seem to lose much faster. This website is great because we surround ourselves with friends who have the same goals and many of the same issues with food. It's helpful to see you are not alone. It's encourage me to get out and walk, make better choices etc. best wishes to you you will do great. I lost 11 lbs on preop and 15 lbs post op but lots of inches. I haven't weight this weight in many, many years! I have 30-35 lbs to goal????. It only going to get better for you. It's hard work and takes being organized and dedicated but it's so worth it. Take time now while you are waiting for surgery to read all you can. Make meal plans, read labels. I started using egg whites, 1 egg and add some egg whites rather then 2 eggs, chicken sausage that's low in fat. Eating low carbs seems to be the trick at our age. I can't have a lot of carbs if I want to lose. Start making changes now. No grazing. Eat 3 meals and 2 Snacks. Cut the sugar. cheese sticks are good for snacks and easy to throw in your purse if you are heading out the door. You will Rock this!

like you first of all my surgeon wanted me to have the sleeve so I was booked for one...then last week I had to have an Endoscopy due to me having heartburn and on "Omeprozole" to help it. Once the camera went down..the surgeon said I do have reflux and a Hiatus Hernia and the sleeve is no more of an option for the exact reasons you had..so Im now for a bypass which I wanted in tje first place. We know the bypass is permenant...no going back once its done...but i wanted this...a new education of food control. The band was a big no no and like you..the surgeon said...he dudnt like them as hes had to take them out..either to them slipping..not working...the thought of having a "port" that had to be revised all the time wuth extraction and re inserting of saline for the control band. And its a foreign body...a lump of plastic that the body might want to reject. The surgeon said..with the bypass and the sleeve...you still end up with what you had at the beginning but re plumbed into a different position and rare chances of rejection as its your own body. It made alot of sense for me. So next week..I be the same when they start to put me "under" ...excited but nervous...I mean...who wouldnt be!

I'm in the final month of my 6 month supervised program. I have just a couple of quick questions for you, if you would weigh in that would be great!! This whole time I've been working towards the sleeve. Yesterday in a meeting with the Director of the Bariatric Program-the BIG WIG of the program from my state, he explained that he really recommends the full bypass for me. He said he's seen far too many people who struggle to lose weight in the six month program (me-I go up and down and up and down) that there has been a lot of his patients who go from the sleeve to the bypass. Are there any others who thought they were going to have the sleeve but then switched to the full bypass? Has anyone here HAD the sleeve and was revised to bypass? Are you happy with the bypass choice? Anything I should know? THANK YOU!!!!!

@@GoCubbies79 I'm sorry that you have had to go through so much. The band just like any other surgical device needs to be constantly monitored by both the Dr. and the patient. Your health has you be your number 1 top priority at all times. This is your life my friend, so if you are having pain or not feeling right don't just take the answer of the receptionist or even the Dr.if you know it's not enough, no matter if it's your band, your hip or your head. Only you are living in your body and know how you are feeling. Many of us are shy of our Dr.'s thinking we are failures if we gain a pound or eat the wrong things but we are NOT. The only time we fail is when we fail to care for ourselves and seek help when we need it. The band could have eroded for many many reasons, NSAIDS, reflux, so many reasons. Best to not dwell on it now, but to get well and get strong and healthy again. Once you are well and healthy consult with a few Bariatric Dr.'s to find out if you are eligible or able to revise to the sleeve or bypass. If you are willing I would suggest seeking a therapist about your ordeal and your re-gain and the way you are feeling about it. Your weight big or small should not define who you are or how you treat yourself or allow others to treat you my friend. You are worthy of being healthy and happy and that is a goal to strive for. I wish you all the best and please keep in touch with us and let us know how you are doing!!

Hi ladies, I think I'm getting CLOSE to getting my date!!! I had my ultrasound, surgery class, meeting with the Director of the Hospital Bariatric program, and a metabolic breathing test yesterday. According to my checklist I have to do my psych clearance-which is next Tues, one more lab test (stool sample...ugh) and my last appt which is now scheduled for Feb 11th! So, they will submit to insurance after that appt! I'm excited but I have to admit the nerves are REALLY kicking in. I'm praying for favor with the insurance company. I have struggled with the losing weight during the program, I go down, then up, down then up. I hope they don't deny me for that reason, I've done everything they require. So, also-can I ask for some advice? I was sort of thrown a little curve ball yesterday. This whole process I have been trying to work towards having the sleeve. I met with the BIG WIG of the Bariatric Program of my hospital yesterday. He told me that after reviewing my charts, progress, etc. that he recommends that I have the full bypass. He said that he has personally seen quite a few patients who don't succeed with the sleeve and eventually go on to have it revised to the bypass. I think I looked like a dear in headlights!!! Thankfully the surgery class was right afterwards so I got some questions answered about things I was worried about. FOR EXAMPLE-the malabsorption thing. It was explained to me like this. The malabsorption component means that my body would absorb less of the fats and sugars out of the foods I eat, thus resulting in better weight loss. It's not like it's going to cause HARM, it's a good thing...an extra bit of help. If I would eat, let's say, an oreo-full of sugar. I would have the dumping syndrome and probably bring it back up. It's an extra level of feedback that my body would have stating NOPE YOU CANT EAT THAT! Trust me, it won't take me long to not try to eat sugars and bad things if I'm throwing them up!! So even though it's a more complicated surgery, because of what the doctor reccomends, do I try for the sleeve or go-ahead with the full bypass? (Cross-posted)

Hi ladies, I think I'm getting CLOSE to getting my date!!! I had my ultrasound, surgery class, meeting with the Director of the Hospital Bariatric program, and a metabolic breathing test yesterday. According to my checklist I have to do my psych clearance-which is next Tues, one more lab test (stool sample...ugh) and my last appt which is now scheduled for Feb 11th! So, they will submit to insurance after that appt! I'm excited but I have to admit the nerves are REALLY kicking in. I'm praying for favor with the insurance company. I have struggled with the losing weight during the program, I go down, then up, down then up. I hope they don't deny me for that reason, I've done everything they require. So, also-can I ask for some advice? I was sort of thrown a little curve ball yesterday. This whole process I have been trying to work towards having the sleeve. I met with the BIG WIG of the Bariatric Program of my hospital yesterday. He told me that after reviewing my charts, progress, etc. that he recommends that I have the full bypass. He said that he has personally seen quite a few patients who don't succeed with the sleeve and eventually go on to have it revised to the bypass. I think I looked like a dear in headlights!!! Thankfully the surgery class was right afterwards so I got some questions answered about things I was worried about. FOR EXAMPLE-the malabsorption thing. It was explained to me like this. The malabsorption component means that my body would absorb less of the fats and sugars out of the foods I eat, thus resulting in better weight loss. It's not like it's going to cause HARM, it's a good thing...an extra bit of help. If I would eat, let's say, an oreo-full of sugar. I would have the dumping syndrome and probably bring it back up. It's an extra level of feedback that my body would have stating NOPE YOU CANT EAT THAT! Trust me, it won't take me long to not try to eat sugars and bad things if I'm throwing them up!! So even though it's a more complicated surgery, because of what the doctor reccomends, do I try for the sleeve or go-ahead with the full bypass?

So I've never really been a huge eater. Honestly. I do admit to a sweet tooth, but my personal hell is being forced to sit down to chicken wings with ranch dressing and a coke. Genetics is also not on my side an both my brother and I are quite large people. I've got pictures of my great Aunt Fanny in the midst of the depression and if she's not a solid 350lbs... Anyway, with 30 years of fibromyalgia, I had myself banded in 2009 at 311lbs at my doctor's suggestion to see if I could get some of my weight off, and to try to prevent more weight from accumulating. My body did not take to the band well. Either I had zero restriction or I had total restriction and I could barely even drink water. Two solid years of tomato soup and beef broth as I was pushed to suck it up and "quit lying about what I could eat" by my band doctor. (no protein shakes for me as I'm allergic to them) Total weight loss in two years: 5lbs. Finally as half my hair was falling out and I was sick as a dog, I had no choice but to force them to empty out my band completely. 2011 I revised to an RNY by a doctor funded by the province (FYI the province isn't putting in bands anymore because of their dismal failure rate) and his words were "you can't fail to lose weight with an RNY". Well I did lose weight on the stupid pre-op diet. Now, I'm still allergic to the opti-fast so I did this insane version of an all-food diet that induces ketosis. I lost so much hair, I started walking into walls, and I may or may not have promised to foster a pink hippo, but it did the job for the surgery. After surgery though, no real weight loss ensued. Yes I followed the post-op diet, the nutrition plan, etc. I don't get as much exercise as I should, but when you're thinking of shopping for canes and collapsing on the floor when you get out of bed in the morning, it's a touch hard to meet that goal, but I'm doing my best. Again, the surgeon said I must not be telling the truth and I must be chowing down on high calorie foods or something because it's hard to eat around an RNY. They deemed me an RNY failure and I've been put in the provincial database as such (since the government paid for it, the government keeps stats on everybody). A few weeks ago they decided to play with my fibromyalgia medications. They took me off a drug I've been on for the last 15 years. I lost 30lbs in 3 weeks. Yup, it's been the drugs all along. I lost my entire malabsorption window post-op, had to sit through years of disapproving lectures from doctors about my lying and cheating on my eating, and got the stink eye from my other WLS friends because they all agreed with the doctors that I could't get with the program and stick with the rules. Worst thing is that now I really do need canes and it's getting so hard to walk as my joints might as well be welded metal, and while I could have exercised away the weight in 2011, I'm not sure I can now. That makes me cry. The vindication makes me laugh. Sadly it's not continuing to come off that fast, but at least after 4 years, the stall is broken.

My surgery was at 7am. So the rest of the day pretty tired and sore but I made sure I kept up on my pain meds whenever it felt sore. I walked around some cuz they told me I had to. The next day I felt good. I was up walking around a lot. Pain wasn't too bad. Just kept my meds coming pretty regular. Then I went home the next day. I think the revision recovery was easier than when I first had the lap band.

I was banded in 2008 @ 280 lbs, had a revision for a slip in 2009. Got down to 160 with band (the after shot shown). Complications led to a LP to sleeve revision (my weight was yoyo-ing all over the place for a year, gained about 25 lbs) Had a revision to the sleeve in Nov of 2014. My Before and After are all Band Pics.

Yes I am a band to sleeve revision. I highyl recommend the sleeve over the band. With the band, I was onl able to eat unhealthy, such as crunchy and fried foods. Otherwise, I lived on soups and icecream. I couldnt do chicken, turkey, fish meats or vegetables, or they would get "stuck." I was always "sliming" with the band. I threw up constantly. With the sleeve, I have more options, such as meat, vegetables and fruits. I can eat healhy and not constantly throwing up. The band removal was very painful, however the sleeve surgery was easy. I dont regret my desicion to revise at all, I have finally reached my goal weight!

I've had very good luck with the band, having lost 100 pounds. Had a revision 18 months ago. Band slipped. I think the PA over filled it. This band has given more trouble than first, nausea, vomiting. Never heartburn, though. Nevertheless, tests indicate Barretts esophagus. Doctor prescribed a proton pump inhibitor, which helps a lot. Have learned that I have a structure l(auto correct won't let me type s t r I c t u r e, insisting that it is structure) at bottom of esophagus. Won't know more until G I guy returns from vacation in Feb. Fear he'll say band must come out and I'll gain 110 pounds.

I love Premier but when I had the lapband- I bought raspberry & orange extracts to add to the shakes just to change it up. I'm now waiting for revision surgery and plan on doing the same again

From what I hear, the only way to have a revision is if if its medically necessary. If you lab-band is the cause of your hernia, then I don't see why they wouldn't more forward with it.

Keep fingers crossed I go Friday for my consult. I hope it is as easy as it was for me to get the band. I had hardly any trouble with insurance getting it put in now lets hope they'll take it out and revise.

I would like to add something to this thread. Almost anyone who is approved for WLS is given one choice because it's rare to have a revision covered. What am I saying? It's rare to have WLS covered these days for everyone who needs it period. It is very important to BELIEVE in your surgery because if you don't, it won't believe in you. If you don't nurture and respect your surgery, it won't nurture and respect you. When someone picks a surgery for whatever reason it may be (even if they are misinformed) it is a done deal. I have communicated with thousands of post-ops over the last ten years and every single kind of surgery has successes and some not so great outcomes. Please support your WLS brothers and sisters with their surgery type because we all need as much support as possible. No one should be treated as if they made a wrong choice regarding surgery type. Instead we need to help them with whatever choice they made because they all absolutely can work. Of course there is a small percentage of complications and various degrees of complications that are unavoidable....I'm speaking about the majority of situations out there. We are all in this together and I want to support everyone on their journey because we all need it.

I had a revision one year ago (January 13 2014) and I have been in a massive plateau. I've only lost about 25lbs in the last year but I've also lost about 18inches. I've hit a major major major plateua. Its been about an 8 month stall. I work out about 3-4 times a week with either running 3miles or doing Zumba. I was keeping my calories to 1200 before exercise but then realized I need to eat back and to up my calorie intake. So I have been netting about 1400-1500 calories a day. And forget about any more inches coming off. I measure myself about once a month and nothing changes!!! GRRR!!!! Its just so frustrating since I am more active than I ever was and now I cant even lose 1 pound or 1 inch! I'm gonna change up my fitness routine a bit and the foods I'm eating and see it that will break this stall. Instead of Zumba, I'm gonna swim laps and do strength training for a while. I'm gonna keep running since I will be doing a half marathon in November and lots of 5ks and 10ks runs during the spring and summer. Wish me luck on getting through the massive stall!

With the band I lost about 65lbs. My starting weight was 233 and got down to 165. My band slipped and my doctor unbuckled it and then i gained about 25-30lbs weighting for the band to be repositioned and rebuckled (about 3 months). I probably used that time as a "WOOHOO! I can eat what i want phase!" Then lost the 25lbs again until i found out my band had slipped again and my doctor said he could reposition it again but more likely the band will slip again. So i opted for the sleeve. I gain about 20lbs before I had my sleeve because I figured out how to eat around the band so food wouldn't get stuck and i wouldn't be in pain from the pressure of the food on the slipped band. To make a long story short in the last year ( I had the revision January 2014) I've only lost about 20lbs (again). I'm waiting for the day to get beyond this massive plateau!!!

Love my sleeve! No regrets here. I just wish I had the sleeve beginning. Two years struggling with the band with slips and food getting and just not feeling great. Last January I had my band revised to the sleeve and i feel great! No worrying about if the bite i just took was too big, if it's gonna get stuck or if its gonna come back out. I just wish my weight loss wouldn't have stalled for the last 8 month. It goes up and down about 3lbs but other than that not one pound or inch of my body. and it's not like i'm not trying. I eat well and exercise about 3-4 times a week. Oh well. at least i know i can maintain the weight once it ever comes off! I have about 45lbs to go!

I had my band out and revised to the sleeve in one proceedure. I just wish i had the sleeve from the very beginning. SO much nicer not worrying about food getting stuck or if my band had slipped! Good Luck!!

Just had a revision band to sleeve Jan 13. It was done in same surgery. It was my preference and also of my surgeon. It took 3 hours. 1.5 to remove band and 1.5 for sleeve. There was a lot of scare tissue around band, the most doc had seen but he got that bugger out. I am also 64 and was concerned. I had a few rough days but at 8 days out now I'm doing oK. Still a little sore and tired but getting around OK. Slept a lot the first 4 days and had a few other issues but so far, so good. Would be happy to answer your questions anytime. Best wishes on your process.

For all you out there that have had the revision surgery, how long were you in the hospital for? Any feedback would be great - I've had my band in since 2008 - with the first surgery, they tried to send me home that day but I was too nauseous to walk so I spent the night. Just wondering what the average stay is for the "revisions"

This was just before my revision

@@ivona0909 I had gotten the band in 2010 and lost 70lbs! But out of no where I just began getting sick. My food kept coming back up on me. They unfilled and filled me back up so many times but I just kept getting sick so I opted for a revision so I could actually sit and enjoy a meal no matter how small with my family again. Lol