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Hi everyone! I had my band to sleeve revision on July 9th - feel great! Just a little sore and walking helps. I did gain 7 lbs from surgery but lost that plus 2 more. I am trying to figure out what to eat on the puréed foods portion for 2 weeks. Any ideas?

I was denied by UHC PPO - I am a band to sleeve revision. I was approved for my Lapband to be removed but not for the sleeve since they said I didn't have the 6 months pre-op supervised diet. That is such a crock because living with a Band for 5+ years restricted my calories and I went through the whole process way back then for WLS. In any case, I just sent in my Appeal Letter on Tuesday and should hear in a couple of weeks so I appreciate prayers and positive thoughts from those who have gone through this before. Just wondering if those of you with UHC were denied through Optum Health - seems they use them for their Medical Reviews. The people there were nice and understanding on the phone and really encouraged me to Appeal so I hope that's what it takes. Silly me I really went into this thinking that if they approved the Lapband removal there was no way they wouldn't approve the revision to the Sleeve. I started the pre-Op diet after being denied right away as a back up plan so worst case I hope to be fully approved by mid February. 2bfit - Congrats! So happy you were approved. Raquel - I hope you hear the same news on Friday - keep us posted. Thanks. Susie

can i ask why you’re getting a revision? I felt no restriction with the sleeve, only lost about 20 pounds and then gained it back. I also developed GERD

On Monday I had my lap band removed, my hiatal hernia repaired and gastric bypass done. One night in the hospital and back home at 7:45 the next evening. Not a ton of pain but managing with gabapentin and Tylenol with oxycodone available. Right after, I felt I had eaten 3 Thanksgiving dinners, that is slowly going away. I’ve stuck to water and decaf iced tea with one Muscle Milk shake. I’ll do more shakes but preferably not those horrid BA meal replacement shakes. Staff at Fair Oaks Hospital were the most awesome group of people I’ve been with and I’m very grateful for them and my doctors. Now I need to learn how to properly feed my new postage-stamp-sized stomach. Thanks for reading!

Congratulations on your revision. Glad you're recovering well.

Happy to hear that your revision is going so well! Keep it up!

I live in Jackson Co on the MO side but I work in KCK. I had the sleeve in 2011 and I'm having a revision to mini bypass in March. I feel like I'm starting all over but I could probably answer any questions you might have. Dr. Hoehn was going to do my revision but my insurance denied it so I'm going back to Mexico.

Hey! I'm new to the sight but not new to lapband, I was banded in 2004. Dr. Robert Powell was my surgeon and Dr. fred maese did my fills. My 1st year I was pretty happy with my procedure. I had pain in my port site but was continually told that was normal. In 2008 I went to get a fill and port had flipped, no ins.. could not find surgeon to help me. Finally last wednesday my port was revised and even though I had surgery the pain is nothing compared to what I had been having. Dr. wade Barker took me as a patient and I'm very optimistic. This past year while trying to find a surgeon I have put back half of my weight. But now know I'm in good hands and will be back on my way to getting my weight off again.

There was an interesting article in the New York Times about a young woman who had a Lap-Band weight loss surgery after years of suffering the emotional journey of an overweight kid. The story was very honest about what to expect with this type of surgery, and it also tracked the journey of the young woman. The story is of interest to many as more and more teens and adults are turning toward the option of weight loss surgery. The latest number of weight loss surgeries performed in the United States is 220,000 per year. That is a seven-fold increase over the past 10 years according to the New York Times article. Weight loss surgeries do save lives and also improve quality of lives for sure, but they aren’t for everyone. The surgeons do the surgery and are skilled at centers of excellence, but unless the patients come back, join support groups and stay in contact with dieticians, falling off track is way too easy and, unfortunately, many of them do, including the young woman in the NYT story. I run several food addiction groups in Houston, and was featured as the psychotherapist for TLC’s show “Big Medicine.” On the show, I worked closely with Drs. Robert and Garth Davis. We tried to give the viewer an honest look at what happened with the weight loss surgery and the journey after. My work now is primarily with revisions. Revisions are the surgery done when the first weight loss surgery failed. My office is full, as are my support groups. What happened to the patients that so eagerly came into our offices feeling empowered and ready to give up their morbid obesity forever? They are replaced with patients who hang their head feeling like they failed. Even though they feel defeated, the ones I see are the fortunate ones who were able to step out of their shame cycle, call their insurance company and ask for a second chance. They need a second chance because neither they nor we (the health team) had a full picture of what was underneath their weight. They couldn’t see it prior to surgery, and since they are their own historians telling us their story, we are blinded also. I believe in weight loss surgery, but I believe more in the knowledge we impart to the patient prior to and after the surgery. Performing an alteration, such as a weight loss surgery, is a huge decision, but in the case of a minor I think the whole bariatric medicine team must be on board. There has to be a built-in safety net to handle the transformation of the child as well as their family. Everyone who loves the patient must change when someone they love has weight loss surgery. The counselor, dietician, and surgeon must know all of the family members. We must know who is sabotaging and enabling that patient on an emotional level. Enablers are the people still giving the patient food as a source of love. Our bariatric treatment teams must also understand if simply making better food and lifestyle choices worked, it would have worked 20 diets ago. It did not. Obesity has an addictive component, and addictions are kept in place by denial. Most patients will tell you they are not addicted to food exactly the same as an alcoholic will tell you they aren’t addicted to alcohol. The question is: “Do you use food to comfort yourself?” If the patient says “YES,” then treat them for a food addiction. Do this because they are telling you they have a relationship with food that is emotionally based and most likely they are choosing food with high fat or high carbohydrates (not one of my patients has ever had an addiction/emotional relationship to steamed or raw vegetables). Whenever a patient feels like a failure after going through the process of weight loss surgery and everything it entails, it is heart wrenching not only to them, but to me and anyone working in this field. If insurance companies won’t cover patient care for years to come after the surgery, then we in the field are going to have to put these measures in place and make them affordable to the patients. We cannot tell a patient they need to continue in groups and follow-ups if they can no longer afford the cost. Whoever said, “Weight loss surgery is a quick fix” truly never had weight loss surgery or worked with my patients. There is nothing quick about it. Obesity is a disease and once you have it, losing the weight is the easy part, managing that loss is a life long journey.

I feel for you, I had similar issues. Once the lapband fails, that's it! Believe me, BTDT. I had my band removed and revised to gastric bypass. Big difference and I would do again in a heartbeat. My practice won't even do bands anymore as they have proven to fail more often than not long term. I feared bypass more than I can say, but for me it has been the true key....no more being a slave to hunger! One thing I can say is that weight loss may be slower after having another weight loss surgery. Still, I am 63 years old and unless I'm losing, I'm gaining so this is good! Have no fear, just do it.

I think before we are really able to offer any reasonable input on this, we need more information from you. Are you having problems with the band, difficulty reaching your sweet spot, issues with not being able to eat anything or keep food down, or is it simply, as others have said, you are not following proper protocol for a bandster? If it is a case of you are not losing because you are not following a sensible diet, then no, the sleeve is not the answer to your problems. However, if you are having actual band related issues, then yes, it might be worth looking into revision surgery.

Hello there, Longtime lurker, first time poster here!🖐️ I had my stomach stapled (vbg) in 2003. Went from 320 lbs to 189, I don't remember in how long. But I was never comfortable eating, threw up most of the time(due to in part no education pre-op whatsoever back then, but also as it turns out a stricture). could not tolerate meats of any kind and soon after realizing how easy it was for me to tolerate "sliders", I started gaining weight. So over 15 years I gained back up to 276 lbs. I started being ok with myself, started buying cute clothes( well as much as I could) and stopped dieting. Over the years I developed fibromyalgia, psoriatic arthritis, osteoarthritis and a few other choice chronic conditions, so I decided it's time for me to get serious about my health(without dieting) and my biggest concern at the time was the ridiculous acid reflux, that would sometimes wake me up by rushing into my nose!! And I had started developing more severe symptoms that resembled gastritis . Anyways, a year ago I started seeing a gastroenterologist, who after further exploration discovered the stricture and budding gastritis. He told me right then that the position of my stricture is not going to be helped by dilatation, and my only way is a revision. Of course, 1- I did not think insurance would pay for it, so out of the question. 2- I did not want to have any more "elective" surgeries. 3- I had just started being ok with myself and advocating for big people, remember? So, I chose to do a dilatation and my doctor was willing to try. Did NOT work! Big surprise! My doctor made an appointment with a revision bariatric surgeon, without consulting me. Gotta love how things work out! Anyways, long story short...er😉, here I am jumping through insurance hoops to get approved for a revision to rny bypass. My question is, in people's experience, did the fibro pain get any better after weight loss? Thanks for bearing with me through the long post and thank you, all for the vast wealth of information on this website!

Congrats on your date.:thumbup1: I am working on approval from my insurance for a revision from band to sleeve. With any luck it will be approved and I will have mine done in January too. Good luck!

I am 2 years post Lap Band with 90 lbs weightloss. I am happy with my success, but have suffered with horrible acid reflux and terrible restiction, and lack of sleep many nights due to aspirating. I am trying to get a revision approved with insurance. Dr. thinks lap has slipped. Would really appreciate response about your experience with revisions. My Dr. states that newly improved stitching methods have been developed to prevent slippage. What do you think? Thanks so much! Bullit

My biggest suggestion is don't weigh for a month! Most of the people I have known have stalled about 1 week in and then dropped significantly about 1 month out! Don't focus on losing, focus on healing! Drink lots of liquids and walk as much as you can! I am 3 weeks out and it has been a breeze. I'm back to working out (just walking right now, but running soon!) and getting plenty of fluids. I feel great and my clothes are fitting just wonderfully! My big loss in my signature is from being banded previously. I had my revision on 12/28. Good luck! SW:327 CW:239 GW:155 Heather in Texas

The system showed that you quoted my reply on this thread, but I'm not sure if that was your intent. But, I wanted to clear up any possible misconceptions. Both of my surgeries were covered by insurance. I was referred to the band surgeon, and all was fine until I started complaining about pain and issues with my band. I did seek out my revision surgeon, and since Tricare doesn't cover VSG outside of MTFs, he was my best option with his experience level, and stats I felt confident in surgeon choice. I could have self-paid, but honestly, it wasn't realistic for me to do so with a husband in Afghanistan.

Sorry I can not tell you what you will owe after your insurance pays. That really depends on your plan. But they are really good, and they keep their word to accept what insurance pays for out of network. I have not had any issues with them as far as billing. (But, I have had issues with the band.) Do your research before you jump in. I recommend reading the revision page of obesity help.com and the section here on life after lapband. Be prepared, because even if you don't think it can happen to you... you will more than likely have some issue with the band. From pbing to erosion, there are alot of things that you need to be prepared for. Good luck.

I have had my gallbladder out (lap), been banded (lap), and am now 5 weeks post-op from the VSG (lap). I have to say the VSG was the easiest of them all. I was worried about traveling home alone on a 6 hour flight but the pain was minimal. It feels like you did a ton of sit-ups and the more you move, the better you feel. You're both going to do great. WASA was sick when she had her revision and had a longer recovery but did great as well.

Hi Everyone , I had gastric bypass about 3 months ago as a revision to the gastric sleeve due to horrible GERD, and before that I had the lap band in and had to have it removed due to some of the same symptoms that I am having now and since I left the hospital I have had nothing be chronic nausea and some vomiting, I do get dry heeves almost very day and these " episodes" can last for about 10 minutes at a time, I also have left side abdominal pain that sometimes feels like gallbladder attacks, my surgeon has been trying every thing to figure out what this could be, my EGD came back normal, no structure or leak, currently taking zofran raglan acephex Zantac and care fate, I have tried to stop these and I end up feeling worse and sicker I also had an upper gi done that just showed reflux, he is sending me for a ct scan because of the pain, he does think that there may be a super small hernia, and he wants another pH study to see if the acids are really bad again. He said that he has a whole bunch of docs looking into this but I have stumped them all. He gave several options such has having a j tube or tpn so that I am getting some nutrition, he did ask if I feel better if I don't eat, and I said yes the nausea is not as bad as if I eat. He also said he is going to see if mayo clinic will look into my case due to the complex nature of it all. I just want to know has anyone else had anything like this, or any other suggestions. I a just at my wits end with all of this I am not even 25 and having all these problems, and I just feel that all of this was done in vein, and I don't know what to think or do please help Erica

Hi: My size started at 26/28. I got as low as 12, but I'm at a 14 now. I went from my high to my low in only 15 months, so that was alot of sizes to go through. I shopped at thrift stores. I also bought from clearance racks. What I did was buy things that were in my current size and lots of things in 12's and 14's because I knew that was my goal size. You'll be amazed at what you can find at thrift stores. They usually have some plus sizes too. I think that if you wear clothes that fit on the way down you feel more like you're losing weight because things don't hang off of you. Best wishes to you on your weight loss journey. I'm headed in for a band revision on 7/20 and then I hope to get down to size 12 again by October. We'll see! Sue

I was sleeved on 11/9 after nearly 3 years of being banded (my band came out in August). I woke up from surgery and have been starving since. I know it's not head hunger - after nearly 3 years with the band, I know what head hunger is, and I know what it's like to not be hungry. It's not acid. It's not thirst - I'm drinking 100 ounces of Water daily. I'm on mushies/purees and it's still not helping. Today, I had my follow-up with my surgeon. He is not overly shocked I am hungry, but he was a bit surprised. He sent me for a upper GI to check my esophagus. He suspects dilation due to the damage from the band. If it is, it should just take a few more weeks to go back to normal. He said he can't promise, but he's 99.9% sure that within the next three weeks, I will feel satiation as my body adjusts to the band being gone, my hernia being fixed, and the rest of the scar tissue from the band finally removed. The doc that did the test, though, said there was no dilation, however, they also said my band wasn't slipped when it was, so they are not bariatric specialists (I'm not complaining or upset, just stating.) He did say my surgery was picture perfect (sans scar tissue and hernia), that I had a normal size stomach, that he went a bit tighter than normal, and he sees no reason it won't work long term. I also talked to a friend of mine who is a revision, and she said she literally cried the first three weeks she had her sleeve because she was so hungry. Then it got better, and now she loves it! She had it about 6 months ago, so I am hopeful I will be the same. Oh, and he cleared me to eat turkey tomorrow! He also suggested I drink some warm tea after I have a few bites of Protein to help add volume to my food to give me that sensation of fullness. So, I am not 100% convinced, but I feel 90% better about this whole thing. My other non-medical theory is my poor bowels are empty, as I still have diarrhea, and how could I feel full when they are empty?! LOL, I know it's a stupid theory, but I am adding it to my pile. And if I start losing weight again, I'd be even happier! Again, he reassured me this is normal, and according to his scale, I'm down an even 30 lbs. So, after all that, anyone hungry at first? Or still? Has it gone away? Gotten better? Thanks!

if you read enough posts it seems that the rate of loss is a little slower after revision I’m currently 2 yrs post revision from VSG to RNY (for GERD not regain) and for me I have been able to maintain the same weight I was with VSG but I’m now GERD free. Initially I lost a little but since I was already at goal my surgeon wanted me to maintain not lose so I ate whatever I wanted for a short period of time. Then went back to normal (post bari lifestyle of moderation and overall food changes/substitution) Knowing what I now know, I think revisioners should consider asking their surgeons: 1. No GERD but substantial regain- Should I consider VSG to DS/SIPS for greater weightloss? 2. GERD and substantial regain- Should I convert from VSG to RNY with a longer bypass? 3. GERD but no regain- Should I convert from VSG to RNY with a slightly shorter bypass to prevent excess loss? Good Luck ❤️

Hi guys! My name is Jaymie and I have been banded since 2007. I initially lost 70 of the 90 lbs I wanted to lose. I started developing really back heartburn and reflux and the Dr unfillled me and I have since gained 15 lbs. I still have heartburn everyday and the Dr will not refill me (I understand). The Dr suggested that I get the revision to a sleeve. I had never even heard abou the sleeve until then and I have been debating doing it since I am slowly gaining my weight back. Can anyone tell me what they paid for this procedure and how easy was the recovery? Are you seeing better results from the sleeve? NO throwing up? I know you have probably answered this question a million times but if you wouldn't mind patience with me and answering it one more time I would be greatful. Thanks!!

Revision

Hello All, 16 years ago at the tender age of 19, I had the, now disgraced, Vertical Banded Gastroplasty procedure. Although I lost weight, I started throwing up 3-5 days a week for hours on end within two months of the surgery and have been that way ever since. 16 years later, I have all fake teeth (natural teeth can't stand that level of acid), am on huge doses of Nexium, and have serious esophageal problems, which could lead to cancer in the future. Also, it is REALLY terrible to throw up that often, and it really effects my quality of life. I also didn't maintain the weight loss, although I have been on Weight Watchers for a few months now, and have lost 45 pounds the old fashioned way. I got to the point where this started to make me mad! They say that often change doesn't happen until to actually get MAD! My parents and I started doing research and found out that the VBG can be revised into the gastric bypass. Does anyone have experience with this, especially with the insurance end? It took me 16 years to stop blaming myself and be willing to take action. Any help, hope, or encouragement would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Chelsea