Band to Sleeve People

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

In another thread someone was talking about band problems. It got me to thinking that this might be a good place to discuss the problems of banding we had.

When I was banded I'd get stuck on Water some days. Thankfully I live in the desert as walking/heat helped me when I was stuck. I'd have to go outside in 110F temps and walk around the block a few times to get unstuck. I did it so often that I had a routine. I'd go out walking and call a friend of mine and we would chat while I walked.

I was thinking recently about those days. Walking, hot temps, IV supplies in my house and calling my RN friend to come and start an IV on me, the drugs I tried to stop stoma spasms, inflammation, stashing plastic bags everywhere so I always had something to barf in, in a pinch... I'm shocked at how it all became so normal. It became a way of life. I just got used to it. I had such a hard time deciding between revision (and the fear I was making my problems permanent) or getting fat again. I knew I couldn't do the band forever.

I didn't realize how severely the band impacted my life until I was sleeved and my life returned to normal. It was gradual and in my mind if I wanted thin I could either figure out a way to work the band or become MO again. Being MO was not an option and I didn't want Bypass.

Now that I have my life back in looking back some of it is kinda funny but a lot of it was not funny at all. It just makes me realize... the things we do for weight loss. (Slowly shaking head.)

A band gone bad affects every single aspect of your life as I wrote previously. It affects your employment, personal relationships, private life, health, everything. Absolutely every part of your life.

[serious 2]

I used to eat Tomato Soup everyday at work for lunch. I remember once the hospital paid for our lunch during Nurses Week. Everybody was going downstairs to get there free meal and bringing it back to the breakroom.

Several of my coworkers offered to watch my patients so I could go down. But I said, "no thanks, I brought my lunch." They wondered why I just didn't leave it in the refrigerator and eat it tommorrow, since this was a free lunch.

I just sat during my break and sipped my Tomato Soup, the one thing I knew would not cause me problems.

I look back at those days and I think, how sad. I might as well have had a freaking feeding tube, since it seemed I could not, most days, tolerate solids. My band was totally unpredictable and it had nothing to do with fills. I only had one fill the whole time, and I knew, this is not for me.

The night before my VSG surgery, Dr Campos took the 0.5mls out of my band, and said now, go have a nice meal.

I went to the italian restaurant back at the hotel. I have never enjoyed a meal so much in my life. No sliming, no choking, no pbing, no tomato soup!

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

I used to eat Tomato Soup everyday at work for lunch. I remember once the hospital paid for our lunch during Nurses Week. Everybody was going downstairs to get there free meal and bringing it back to the breakroom.

Several of my coworkers offered to watch my patients so I could go down. But I said, "no thanks, I brought my lunch." They wondered why I just didn't leave it in the refrigerator and eat it tommorrow, since this was a free lunch.

I just sat during my break and sipped my Tomato Soup, the one thing I knew would not cause me problems.

I look back at those days and I think, how sad. I might as well have had a freaking feeding tube, since it seemed I could not, most days, tolerate solids. My band was totally unpredictable and it had nothing to do with fills. I only had one fill the whole time, and I knew, this is not for me.

The night before my VSG surgery, Dr Campos took the 0.5mls out of my band, and said now, go have a nice meal.

I went to the italian restaurant back at the hotel. I have never enjoyed a meal so much in my life. No sliming, no choking, no pbing, no tomato soup!

The whole time I was banded I was either able to eat anything and everything or not even Water would go down. I would be drinking Water with no problem and all the sudden my stoma clamped shut, right in the middle of drinking. There was no logic to it. It did not matter if there was a fill or not, it was always the same. It wasn't that I was overfilled, the same thing would happen with or without a fill.

It was just miserable and I'm so glad that freak thing is out of me now.

[Elisabethsew 50]

Unlike most people, I just never got the restriction I was supposed to. I followed ALL the rules and, with each fill, kept hoping that it would be "the one" that would allow me to FEEL restriction. Well, that never happened. What did happen was increasing heart burn, acid reflux, and not knowing if I would be able to sleep through the night or wake up choking. I now have heart burn after every meal despite taking Nexium and Tagamet.

Before deciding to get this band out of me, I went back to my surgeon's office and they did another fill. Surprisingly, the fill did not cause an increase in heart burn. It also did not provide any noticable difference in the faint restriction that I have. I can eat anything and everything and always could. I lost 70 pounds because I dieted.

The band is not for me. I am very happy for the people who have had success but know I will never be one of them. So, on 4/1, the band is leaving my body and I'm revising to a VSG. I can't wait!

[dianne rice 0]

i have been banded for 2 years only lost 32 lbs sick to my stomach all the time my appt this thursday to discuss with the surgeon to remove the band and do the sleeve i am so afraid of the part of stomach removal any good advise on this part

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

i have been banded for 2 years only lost 32 lbs sick to my stomach all the time my appt this thursday to discuss with the surgeon to remove the band and do the sleeve i am so afraid of the part of stomach removal any good advise on this part

I don't really worry about part of my stomach being removed anymore than a diseased appendix. Both are harming me and neither are doing me any favors.

It's a big deal until after it's done. After it is done it's no big deal, you don't really think about it. It's just like before surgery only you get full faster. ;o)

[MacMadame 81]

My aunt lost most of her stomach to stomach cancer in the 60s and lived a full life. Your stomach feels just like it did before. You really can't tell you did anything to it.

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

I can't wait. I went out to pizza with my dad daughter and SIL last night I am banded and I was able to eat an entire salad, 3 pieces of pizza and one slice of sour dough bread. That is just wrong. How can they call this restriction? The band is pretty worthless until it's so tight you can's swallow your own spit. If I were to get a fill, I would go back to throwing up in my sleep. No thanks.

Sleeve here I come!

[Nevergoback 0]

I alway had some restriction after every fill, but always seemed to be able to eat a lot. About my 4 or 5th fill, the doctor had bought his own flouroscope and did fills with an immediate barium swallow to see restriction. Well at this point the surgeon no longer did the fills himself. The person filling me added fill, did barium swallow, didn't see good restriction then hit me again then did it all again. That night I threw up Water which was a first for me. My previous experience was that I would loosen up by the next day. I didn't go back immediately for them to unfill me, because I wanted to lose more weight faster. Sometimes I could eat things, but could barely drink water, how is that possible? Got to where I was eating ice cream every night for dinner. Then I started getting reflux and doing the regurgitate stomach acid in the middle of the night waking up just in time to make it to the bathroom. A staph infection forced my band removal, but I was relieved to have it taken out even though I knew I would start gaining the weight back. That is when I met my fabulous surgeon who removed my band and eventually did my VSG procedure. So that's it.

[Vampyrvet 1]

i have been banded for 2 years only lost 32 lbs sick to my stomach all the time my appt this thursday to discuss with the surgeon to remove the band and do the sleeve i am so afraid of the part of stomach removal any good advise on this part

Hi Dianne

Your story sounds exactly like mine and so many others. My advice is that you need a sleeve and you will never regret it. Here is my story (sorry it's so long, but I've been through hell this last year)

I was banded in June 08. I liked the idea of the band because it seemed less invasive, less drastic, and I was in favor of something that was adjustable and removable. I "only" had about 60 pounds to lose, so I didn't want anything that would permanently alter my insides and I didn't want anything malabsorptive.

Almost immediately after receiving my first fill (3 cc's), I began vomiting. I thought I was just overeating, or maybe not chewing well enough, so I tried to modify my eating habits. The vomiting escalated. I began to reflux in my sleep, with the result that I would wake up choking on my own stomach acid, terrified that I would aspirate and die (this has happened!) I would stop eating 3 hours before bed, but it didn't help. I bought a foam wedge to elevate my torso while I slept, but even this didn't entirely solve the problem. I never felt a feeling of fullness no matter how slowly & carefully I ate. I just went from hungry to pain with no warning, then the vomiting. I had to sleep with a bucket on my nightstand, and I also kept a bucket in my car because I could be overcome with the urge to vomit at any time with no warning.

I should also mention that the port never stopped hurting since the day it was implanted. Every time I coughed, sneezed, or god-forbid tried to exercise... I could feel it ripping through my abdominal muscles. I walked around for months feeling like I had a knife sticking out of my gut. I couldn't wear jeans or anything with a firm waistband, because it felt like I was being poked with a broomstick.

By September, things had gotten so bad that I couldn't even hold down liquids. I ran my own upper GI study (I work at a vet's office) and e-mailed my films to my doctor, who told me I was obstructed and to get my butt to the hospital first thing in the morning for emergency surgery. By this time, I'd lost about 25 pounds, most of which was because I was obstructed.

Now, my doctor told me he'd never had a band slip twice, so he suggested that we reposition it and try again. I felt that I had come too far to give up, so I agreed. We let things heal for a full 8 weeks before attempting another fill (3 cc's again). That was in November 08. By February 09, I was puking after every meal again. Sometimes even with blood. Nothing would stay down except Protein shakes and ice cream. I RAN to my doc to get an un-fill, bringing another upper GI study with me. Doc told me that my band had indeed slipped AGAIN and I would need a 3rd surgery.

There was no way I was about to spend one more minute with that cursed thing in my body, so I elected to convert to a sleeve. I chose this procedure because it seemed to have everything I wanted: minimally invasive, no re-routing of the intestines, no disruption of the pyloric valve, no messing with my absorption of nutrients. I liked the fact that the part of the stomach that gets removed is the part that secretes the "hunger hormone". I liked the fact that the "full" receptors would actually be allowed to do their thing again. I liked the fact that the sleeve carries the least risk of bleeding or leakage. So I was sleeved 2 weeks ago.

My only regret is that I didn't do the sleeve in the first place. In the last 2 weeks, my life has changed dramatically. No more vomiting. No more pain. I actually feel full like I'm supposed to after a few bites, and it lasts for hours. Wearing jeans doesn't hurt anymore. I can sleep lying down like a normal person. I no longer have a bucket in my car. AND I've lost 13 pounds in these last 2 weeks, compared to ZERO pounds lost in the last 6 months with the band. I finally have my life back. This is the way things were SUPPOSED to work with the band. I only have some residual soreness where my doc had to dig the port out of my muscle wall, but other than that I feel perfectly normal. The sleeve was absolutely the right choice for me, and I wish I'd done it sooner. I'm looking forward to a long and happy relationship with my sleeve!

I do NOT feel like I failed the band. The band failed me. It did not do what it was supposed to, which is make me feel full and stop eating sooner. All it did was slice up my stomach, shred my esophagus, burn the enamel off my teeth, and give me a constant sharp pain in my abs. And since all I could keep down was Protein Shakes, I didn't even lose that much weight. If anyone out there is weighing their options between a band & a sleeve, consider this: despite what the band companies tell you, recent studies have been published documenting that 25-35% of all band patients will experience complications requiring a 2nd surgery. That means that 1/4 to 1/3 of bands will fail. Is this acceptable to you??? And if you are one who thinks it won't happen to you because you are a model patient who follows all the rules, then think of me. I am a doctor. I researched the crap out of the band & thought I could make it work. I followed all the instructions to the letter, and my band slipped anyway. TWICE. So my advice to you is, don't be afraid of cutting your stomach. Think of it as getting a new & improved stomach that actually works the way it's supposed to, like a normal person's.

Good luck to you

Natalie

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

Great Post! People are afraid of the sleeve because they think they might regret it and there is no going back once they remove all that extra stomach.

It does scare me when I think I might not be able to eat the size of portion I want, but then I remember it's the size of portion that I need. Any other size portion makes me break out in big rolls of fat.

[MacMadame 81]

but then I remember it's the size of portion that I need.

My surgeon calls it "right-sizing" the stomach.

[Elisabethsew 50]

My surgeon calls it "right-sizing" the stomach.

Excellent way to look at it.

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

yes, that's a perfect way to say it. I don't want to be able to do an all you can eat buffet like I did yesterday with a band. Too much stomach is what caused my problems in the first place.

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

Hi Dianne

Your story sounds exactly like mine and so many others. My advice is that you need a sleeve and you will never regret it. Here is my story (sorry it's so long, but I've been through hell this last year)

I was banded in June 08. I liked the idea of the band because it seemed less invasive, less drastic, and I was in favor of something that was adjustable and removable. I "only" had about 60 pounds to lose, so I didn't want anything that would permanently alter my insides and I didn't want anything malabsorptive.

Almost immediately after receiving my first fill (3 cc's), I began vomiting. I thought I was just overeating, or maybe not chewing well enough, so I tried to modify my eating habits. The vomiting escalated. I began to reflux in my sleep, with the result that I would wake up choking on my own stomach acid, terrified that I would aspirate and die (this has happened!) I would stop eating 3 hours before bed, but it didn't help. I bought a foam wedge to elevate my torso while I slept, but even this didn't entirely solve the problem. I never felt a feeling of fullness no matter how slowly & carefully I ate. I just went from hungry to pain with no warning, then the vomiting. I had to sleep with a bucket on my nightstand, and I also kept a bucket in my car because I could be overcome with the urge to vomit at any time with no warning.

I should also mention that the port never stopped hurting since the day it was implanted. Every time I coughed, sneezed, or god-forbid tried to exercise... I could feel it ripping through my abdominal muscles. I walked around for months feeling like I had a knife sticking out of my gut. I couldn't wear jeans or anything with a firm waistband, because it felt like I was being poked with a broomstick.

By September, things had gotten so bad that I couldn't even hold down liquids. I ran my own upper GI study (I work at a vet's office) and e-mailed my films to my doctor, who told me I was obstructed and to get my butt to the hospital first thing in the morning for emergency surgery. By this time, I'd lost about 25 pounds, most of which was because I was obstructed.

Now, my doctor told me he'd never had a band slip twice, so he suggested that we reposition it and try again. I felt that I had come too far to give up, so I agreed. We let things heal for a full 8 weeks before attempting another fill (3 cc's again). That was in November 08. By February 09, I was puking after every meal again. Sometimes even with blood. Nothing would stay down except Protein shakes and ice cream. I RAN to my doc to get an un-fill, bringing another upper GI study with me. Doc told me that my band had indeed slipped AGAIN and I would need a 3rd surgery.

There was no way I was about to spend one more minute with that cursed thing in my body, so I elected to convert to a sleeve. I chose this procedure because it seemed to have everything I wanted: minimally invasive, no re-routing of the intestines, no disruption of the pyloric valve, no messing with my absorption of nutrients. I liked the fact that the part of the stomach that gets removed is the part that secretes the "hunger hormone". I liked the fact that the "full" receptors would actually be allowed to do their thing again. I liked the fact that the sleeve carries the least risk of bleeding or leakage. So I was sleeved 2 weeks ago.

My only regret is that I didn't do the sleeve in the first place. In the last 2 weeks, my life has changed dramatically. No more vomiting. No more pain. I actually feel full like I'm supposed to after a few bites, and it lasts for hours. Wearing jeans doesn't hurt anymore. I can sleep lying down like a normal person. I no longer have a bucket in my car. AND I've lost 13 pounds in these last 2 weeks, compared to ZERO pounds lost in the last 6 months with the band. I finally have my life back. This is the way things were SUPPOSED to work with the band. I only have some residual soreness where my doc had to dig the port out of my muscle wall, but other than that I feel perfectly normal. The sleeve was absolutely the right choice for me, and I wish I'd done it sooner. I'm looking forward to a long and happy relationship with my sleeve!

I do NOT feel like I failed the band. The band failed me. It did not do what it was supposed to, which is make me feel full and stop eating sooner. All it did was slice up my stomach, shred my esophagus, burn the enamel off my teeth, and give me a constant sharp pain in my abs. And since all I could keep down was Protein Shakes, I didn't even lose that much weight. If anyone out there is weighing their options between a band & a sleeve, consider this: despite what the band companies tell you, recent studies have been published documenting that 25-35% of all band patients will experience complications requiring a 2nd surgery. That means that 1/4 to 1/3 of bands will fail. Is this acceptable to you??? And if you are one who thinks it won't happen to you because you are a model patient who follows all the rules, then think of me. I am a doctor. I researched the crap out of the band & thought I could make it work. I followed all the instructions to the letter, and my band slipped anyway. TWICE. So my advice to you is, don't be afraid of cutting your stomach. Think of it as getting a new & improved stomach that actually works the way it's supposed to, like a normal person's.

Good luck to you

Natalie

VAMP! It's soooo nice to see you over here! I've been posting with you on OH. GREAT to see you here.

I LOVE your post. It explains it perfectly. You know, I see people so thrilled that they have a date and I just feel sad, I have a hunch I know how most of them will end up. It makes me sad because I see people that are scraping every dime, taking out loans, refinancing their homes, borrowing from family to get a band surgery and for what? So they can save up money again to have it removed?

I didn't fail my band either. I believe I did not lose weight because of the band, I lost it in spite of the band. That's true and it's not. The band taught me I can indeed live without food. I was on liquids for 4 months before I revised. I don't mean that in a sarcastic way, I mean it literally. I was obsessed with food before WLS. Today I've come a very long way in that area.

I didn't realize you are a vet. Very cool! I thought you were a veteran vampire! HAHA You'll find a LOT of animal lovers around here.

Again, I am thrilled you are here.