LilMissDiva Irene

Is that the only reason the surgeon wants to do the bypass? There has to be better reasons such as having diabetes or reflux problems. Otherwise the decision should be your nieces.

@@KimGainey awesome losses so far! Most people do about 30g net carbs per day. I did about 40g or around 60g total carbs. 400 calories is a bit low but then again you just had surgery. Good luck to you!

Hi Pam, I'm 3.5 years post op. What's your question? I'm happy to help.

@@Kelly Ruff God bless! I'm praying for your well being.

@@proudgrammy Darlin I ain't going no where. I'm glad I'm back and seeing so much success!!! You've done outstanding. (((hugs)))

Wow... that really sucks, I'm sorry you're dealing with this. Pre-op is so stressful already! My advice is, well I doubt you will be approved if that is what was provided to the insurance company. Stay diligent and maybe lighten up a little bit with the Nut. If she's all you got then she's your best friend right now. Make her an advocate, not your enemy. Kiss butt? Yeah, maybe a tiny bit. Once you get what you want from her then you can kindly put in a compaint about her services. Take care and well wishes on the rest of your pre-op journey!

@@jellybean04 Yes, I am going to have my 3rd WLS. I first had the lap band and had a huge host of problems with it and was the beginning of my GERD problems. When I revised to the VSG in 2010 it wasn't as known as it is today that if you already had GERD pre-surgery you really aren't a good candidate for VSG. I have extremely awful GERD, worse than ever. I wake up in the middle of the night choking and I sound like I have a sore throat all the time. Believe it or not there are medical reasons for someone to have revised 3 times, and I am one of them. I am currently working with my Bariatric Surgeon to revise to the Rny Gastric Bypass. All that said, I was incredibly successful with my Sleeve. I love my Sleeve still, I am 3.5 years out and in spite of my issues it still works for me. We will just have to part ways and I will get a new tool. Take care, and good question.

Thanks so much Kathryn it does help a lot!

The post op section won't load and I can't wait to ask these questions so bear with me. And before I ask them, please note I absolutely WILL follow the post op rules. I have every other time, and I will this time for sure. So now let me ask the questions: How difficult has it been for you to lose the weight during the first year or so? How long did your honeymoon phase last for you? I need to lose 80 Lbs to get to a 21 BMI. How long would you guess that might take? Don't worry I know you're not psychic. Just your best guess will work. Thanks so much in advance lovely bariatric pals.

Sorry you are experiencing this. I'm looking to be revised to rny so I will be looking for responses to your question.

Thanks for the support yall. Yes its true that when I had my revision the reflux wasnt as well known as it is now. It just happens to turn out I was not a good candidate for the sleeve. Its likely that my revision will happen fast like maybe around early May.

Awesome sauce! I'm a little late for the @@Alex Brecher party apparently.

Good morning good people. I am here because my sleeve is broken. I just don't want to get into too much detail to protect the innocent or anyone else, but lets just say in a Dr's Appt I had yesterday with my Bariatric Surgeon provided by my insurance and as we were going over slides of an upper GI I had a week prior... it seems my sleeve is way too big still and it is shaped like an hourglass. Also I have extremely bad reflux and it is causing me a whole lot of misery. My surgeon is referring me to have an upper scope done now, which will be photographic images of exactly what my stomach looks like from the inside, as well as to see if I might have a hernia to tend to. His precursory recommendation though is to revise to a gastric bypass since my reflux is so bad, and do any corrections and hernia repairs as necessary. So, I don't know if any of you know my story but I was banded in 2008. That's when the reflux started and my lapband caused me so much pain that I wanted it removed. My band surgeon was not helpful at all. I will just leave it as that so I was left to make my own decisions. I paid to have my lap band removed and revise to a gastric sleeve in 2010. I didn't know at the time that the gastric sleeve would just make my reflux worse, and believe me, had I known this I would've just gotten the bypass then. Anyhow, I just thought I'd start sharing my story here because it seems as though this is where I'll start to get my support now. Note that I am not upset or angry at anything that has happened or what will happen. It's just a part of my progression in my life. I will get through it, that's for darn sure. Thanks for listening. Irene

This is an extremely common issue with food addicts. The "treating yourself" person inside you, sitting on your shoulder, whispering in your ear that "hey, it's okay... you've been so good. Look how much you've lost!! A little treat won't hurt" and then the cycle keeps snowballing. You just have to stop. There's really no other way. When those "voices" start their baloney just ask them "what will REALLY happen once I do this??" I think you know the answer. WLS support is great, but battling eating addiction is another. There are too many ways to cheat, no matter which surgery you've had or how tiny your stomach is. Good luck!

I've always said, you will never be able to change anyone else. All you can do is change how you react to them. Sometimes you do have to stand up for yourself, no one deserves to be treated like they are lesser than. I've had to fight for myself many times when someone who was supposed to care for me would say awful things to me and try to break me down. I learned to fight back though, and even though the taunting never really stopped, at least that person knew that I never backed down, and I would never be what they claimed I was. That was the best feeling. I have forgiven that person, because even though when I was going through it, it was hurtful, but the end result this person helped to shape an incredibly strong woman who will never back down and never give up. Not only that it has taught me to step away when necessary too. It's ok to let others drown in their own sesspool, because it's usually their own tears they're choking on. Best wishes to you all.

I'm so sorry that happened to you. *hugs* People can be so darn mean sometimes!

Wish I had better news but mine did not lose a lot of fat there. This will be on the PS list or asking the surgeon about it. I have heard previously though that some ladies have this corrected only to end up with too much *** exposed... so you know that can be painful. :-( Sorry trying to keep this as clean as I can, but it is the honest truth.

I am going on my 4th year post op. The headaches are probably low carbs/sugars and/or dehydration. Are you getting all your Water in? Even if you have to ration your fluids you must get them all in during this time. You're still healing and not eating very much at all, so you really aren't getting enough water for your body to function properly. 8 Oz every hour, for 8 hours per day.

Curvy malapsorption and the Sleeve is an issue. You will need to be mindful of your supplements just like the Rny. Especially those that can cause anemia, such as Iron and B-12. They cut out the part of the stomach that absorbs it, so you will have to take in an extremely high dose daily (as I do) or take them sublingually. I just wanted to clear that up because if you're going to have the sleeve you will want to know this going in. All the best. I too will concede that stats do change and numbers were different when I was researching this over a year ago. However, despite what others might feel or agree with, the sleeve is not a malabsorption issue. http://gastricsleevenow.com/advantages-of-gastric-sleeve-surgery I talked to death about this with my doctor because I am horrible at taking vitamins/ pills/ medications/ etc. I too will concede that stats do change and numbers were different when I was researching this over a year ago. However, despite what others might feel or agree with, the sleeve is not a malabsorption issue. http://gastricsleevenow.com/advantages-of-gastric-sleeve-surgery I talked to death about this with my doctor because I am horrible at taking vitamins/ pills/ medications/ etc.

I have had both the lap band and the sleeve and I can difinitively say that I love my sleeve far far more. I also don't miss the other 85% of my stomach. C'est l'vie. The other 85% helped me fit in way too much food and got me to over 300 Lbs and on my way to 400. I am going on my 4th year post op and my Sleeve still saves me all the time. Good luck with your decision!

I encourage you to do your research on both. Neither are perfect and neither will be perfect for everyone. If you have things like GERD, diabetes, or if you prefer sugary or carby foods or if you need to lose a lot of weight really fast then likely you'd do a lot better with Bypass. If you do not have GERD, if you do not have an addiction to carbs or sugar or if you'd like to be able to eat just about anything but have wonderful restriction then get the Sleeve. Make a list of pros and cons of both and which surgery works best with each scenario and see which one ends up the better choice then by all means choose the better one for you. You've already had 2 surgeries on your stomach, let this last one truly be the last by making the best one. I won't say judge upon "invasiveness" because all surgeries run some kind of risk as you found out with the lap band.

Here's what I did: Got a personal loan from Wells Fargo, opened an account with Care Credit (used this the least because the APR is super high) and I even sold one of our extra cars. Worked for me! If you have decent credit find out about your bank and if they'll give you a personal loan. Try to also look for credit cards with low APR's or that offer 0% for so many months. Have a yard sale or sale things around your house that you're not using. It may only come up to a few hundred but it's better to pay that than have those hundreds on credit and continuously paying interest on it. If you want surgery bad enough sometimes you have to do things for it you wouldn't otherwise do. I can tell you this, every penny I paid was worth it's weight in gold. Good luck!

Whatever it is I understand it is a scary feeling. I did not experience this situation myself, but wanted to chime in to let you know I'm praying everything turns out to be ok. Please let us know what you find out.

Yes Ms g, I did go through the same feelings physically and emotionally. For the first 4 months I doubted I made the right decision. It took awhile for me to start feeling better but eventually I did, then I realized I absolutely did do the right thing for my health. I don't regret one second of my VSG journey, it has made the person I am today. Stay the course, it will get better and you will look back proud at what you have accomplished. This is why WLS patients always say that WLS is NOT the easy way out. It is really REALLY difficult... BUT WORTH IT!

I don't believe in "slow losers". We are all going to lose at the rate we are designed to. The main thing is that you are losing. Try not to think of it as "only" 18 Lbs. Those 18 Lbs are no more or no less important than the next 18 Lbs you will lose. Also try not to compare your journey with anyone else's. Just like all the cars on the freeway, there will always be someone driving faster than you. Stay strong!