16 yrs Banded, Now May have to revise to sleeve! HELP!

[annie93 23]

Maygoddess and others,

I'm really glad I stumbled upon this thread. I had the lap band done in 2010 and it was a disaster. I did lose about 40 pounds and got down to 204 but then I started to throw up. I puked several times a day. I always had excess mucus and it would basically keep food from going down. It was terrible. I finally had my surgeon let out the band and I finally stopped throwing up, but I also gained all my weight back and then some.

I'm scheduled to have a sleeve done on June 11, 2018, and I'm nervous but excited. I mostly nervous about what to do and not wanting to mess this up.

I'm glad I'm not alone with the lap band failure. They don't even do those anymore where I live. I should have gotten the sleeve back then but I was too afraid. Stupid on my part. I want to lose weight, be able to go shopping with my daughter and be able to have fun with my kids. I can't wait for this journey to start!

Please keep posting your updates. I'd love to know what kinds of liquids you used right after surgery.

[Franklin5280 5]

I’m about four weeks out from Tube Leak Repair. Find out if I’m ready for a first fill. Upper GI still feels inflamed. Really have to chew everything throughly. Slow going.

[sparkplug 106]

I am quite concerned about all the new people going to such drastic measures to have their insides reconstructed to again lose weight that they claimed they lost originally with the band and they have gained. I will not do more surgery and if it comes to the point of a drastic problem to remove the band, I will have to learn new eating habits and WILL NOT have my insides cut and reorganized thinking that that is the answer. I am going back to my basics when I first got the band and I will get back down to my goal weight. This has been my life of up and down weight and I believe that most of the people having surgery are all cut from the same cloth as me. I am optimistic that we all can change and it just might take a few tries and lots of faith in ourselves.

[maygoddess 53]

On 5/3/2018 at 12:58 PM, sparkplug said:

I am quite concerned about all the new people going to such drastic measures to have their insides reconstructed to again lose weight that they claimed they lost originally with the band and they have gained. I will not do more surgery and if it comes to the point of a drastic problem to remove the band, I will have to learn new eating habits and WILL NOT have my insides cut and reorganized thinking that that is the answer. I am going back to my basics when I first got the band and I will get back down to my goal weight. This has been my life of up and down weight and I believe that most of the people having surgery are all cut from the same cloth as me. I am optimistic that we all can change and it just might take a few tries and lots of faith in ourselves.

You make this sound so simplistic and totally negates why most of us got the surgery in the first place. If you were able to learn new eating habits, why did you get the band in the first place??? You obviously failed at that..like the rest of us..over and over and over. You do know that only 5% of people who lose weight are able to keep it off for more than 5 years..so THAT is exactly why I got banded 16 years ago. I was tired of pushing the rock up the hill, only to have it come back down on me again..and again. If it was that easy to learn new habits NONE OF US would have had surgery in the first place. The band was not only a tool to help me lose weight, but more importantly to keep it off. My band was doing that until i had issues with it 4 years ago.

When my band was unfilled in 2014 due to the esophogeal dilation found, I gained 30lbs in less than a month. I was practically eating a napkin and glass of Water and gained weight. There was no learning new habits..I was gaining weight on eating nothing...so your "new habits" would not have helped with the gain..well.perhaps I would have gained more if I didn't starve myself to prevent the gain.

Chances are if your band was removed with no new surgery, you would gain back most of the weight too..it is a quick scary free fall that I hope you never have to experience and make that decision to have a new surgery. My body was stuck with the extra 50lbs I gained after the unfill. No matter what I did..the weight would not come off. Now 45 days post sleeve surgery, I have lost 15lbs. I have 35-40 more lbs to lose to get back to where I was before all the problems started.

So do your best to keep that band inside you so you don't have to make the decision that many of us have had to do. Not an easy decision..but we are all here because the traditional way to lose weight failed. Surprised you are so judgemental, but I guess you can be if your band is fine.

[maygoddess 53]

I wanted to come back with an update. I am 45 days post surgery and now down 15lbs from pre-surgery weight. As much as I was upset to lose my band, I am now glad it is gone. I didn't realize how much **** I was putting up with being banded..

1. I can now drink before bed if I need to without worrying that it is going to come back up and I aspirate into my lungs or down my nose. This is important when I want to take pills before bed and need to drink something with it.

2. I have not had to run to a bathroom and throw up food AT ALL. The band was a constant fight of what might get stuck or not.

Those are the big issues. Now that I am on solid food, I can see how small my new stomach is. I don't have much of an appetite now. I am told that most of the hormone grehlin is removed with the majority of your stomach gone. WHo knows, this may change. Some sleevers say they are always hungry..for me..I can really go all day without eating. I DO eat..making sure I get plenty of protein..but it is a struggle to really be hungry enough to eat.

I have no idea what the future will hold with the sleeve. I am sure I will not easily lose this last 35-40lbs..but doing my best to get as much off as quickly as possible. Ironically I just started dating someone who does not want me to lose any more weight! He said he didn't sign up for skinny! So after all this time not being happy with my body, I find someone who is fine with my body as it is now and has made me more confident where I am now..BUT for me..I need to be where I want to be..we shall see what happens there.

Attaching a recent picture of me.

[Franklin5280 5]

Good to hear things went well in Surgery. The good thing while there is still going to be an adjustment period, there is no more filling or un-filling required. I'm in the middle of stuff right now, so I can't talk too much about my first fill appointment other than it did not as expected.

[LeaLea70 3]

I had my band removed in January after

[Julie norton 2,850]

I wanted to come back with an update. I am 45 days post surgery and now down 15lbs from pre-surgery weight. As much as I was upset to lose my band, I am now glad it is gone. I didn't realize how much **** I was putting up with being banded..
1. I can now drink before bed if I need to without worrying that it is going to come back up and I aspirate into my lungs or down my nose. This is important when I want to take pills before bed and need to drink something with it.
2. I have not had to run to a bathroom and throw up food AT ALL. The band was a constant fight of what might get stuck or not.
Those are the big issues. Now that I am on solid food, I can see how small my new stomach is. I don't have much of an appetite now. I am told that most of the hormone grehlin is removed with the majority of your stomach gone. WHo knows, this may change. Some sleevers say they are always hungry..for me..I can really go all day without eating. I DO eat..making sure I get plenty of protein..but it is a struggle to really be hungry enough to eat.
I have no idea what the future will hold with the sleeve. I am sure I will not easily lose this last 35-40lbs..but doing my best to get as much off as quickly as possible. Ironically I just started dating someone who does not want me to lose any more weight! He said he didn't sign up for skinny! So after all this time not being happy with my body, I find someone who is fine with my body as it is now and has made me more confident where I am now..BUT for me..I need to be where I want to be..we shall see what happens there.

Attaching a recent picture of me.

Rooting for you May! The never ending weight loss dance.... you’ll be in your leathers and riding soon!