Kaishek

I had sleeve to bypass on 5/9 this was due to major complications, I am recovering slowly as it was performed open surgery. I have no weight problems as I lost it all with band and sleeve, so this is crazy but today I only weigh 96lbs (5ft 1). I just need to get healthy now. I am always searching the boards for someone who has gone through this, people respond negative and say how could your surgeon do that, but there was no choice the sleeve went so wrong due to strictures and scar tissue.

I am 18days out and have taken a dip. At nine days I was feeling fine. Now I am feeling bloated, tired, constipated, I have pale stools (yellow) is this normal am I expecting too much.

I am 14 days out from open surgery. I had to bypass due to complications I only weigh 99lbs so far am keen to start eating as soon as possible. I don't seem to have problems eating. Can anyone advice when it would be good to eat solids.

Ditto - 3 WLS first a band in 2013 lost all the weight but complications set in and could not eat or drink and the band came out in May 2015. Gained 30lbs and different surgeon did sleeve on 21 December 2015. Complications and blockage due to scar tissue from the very start, never moved from clear liquid stage. Weight 46kgs but had revision to bypass on 9th May as could not eat or drink. Think I will make the Guinness book for bypass at the lowest weight ever (lol)

May 5th revision date, from sleeve to bypass.

i revised from sleeve to rny on 9 May. Have you gone right back to the beginning with diet. I find I can eat much more. I revised due to many complications, I am below goal weight.

I only weigh 110lbs because I revised from band to sleeve, but now I have a stricture (3months post op). Last night my surgeon did emergency dialation but said if it doesn't work he will have to do a bypass. When will this nightmare end? Is there anyone out there with the same problem?

Went back to my surgeon, I had a stricture at the bottom of the sleeve. He performed dialation with the ballon. Sore throat but could drink tons better today and no heartburn or vomitting but there is no guarantee it will work permanently so please keep me in your prayers. Happy Easter.

Thanks all for the comments, I know I need a surgeon if this continues. It is not so easy for me we don't get the aftercare you guys get in the USA and my Doctor is a six hour drive away so I thought someone who had the same experience as me might be able to give comfort. Good news was I managed to keep half a tin a chicken Soup down last night and I am working my way through Vitamin drink this morning. Praying it will get better. Thanks again for your kindness in responding.

Can anyone give advice on how to stop the vomiting. I started on Nexious two days ago and I thought it would help me. It has solved the heartburn but now I am not able to eat and drink. Will this pass? Is it caused by the tablets?

I am so glad for this post, I am 3 months out and experiencing the same. For the last two days I could not eat or drink then today I have gone to Soup and Meal Replacement drink and it has stayed down. I have been reading everything about stricture today and I was convinced that is what I have now I am not sure.

I wonder if there would be any necessity to wait the 30mins before and after when you have reached your goal weight.

I am three months out, although I recovered well I have never felt I have mastered the eating. For the last few days I have not been able to keep food down at all. What could be my problem? I am in South Africa and we don't have the same support structure as you good people in USA. I should also mention I was a revision from band to sleeve and I did not have much weight to lose and have already lost all the weight. I would love to hear from people who might have had eating and drinking problems.

Amazing and inspirational, fantastic achievement.

I was sleeved together with gallbladder and gallstones removal on 12/21/2015 had complications and had a stent put in, not a leak but a blockage. Truthfully, it has not been a bad journey, but I am usually quite tough. I kept reading and reading on this forum, and as much as I tried to believe I was getting better and better (and I suppose I was) I just kept asking myself "when will I feel like the old me?" "when can eat without all this going on in my tummy?" Folks, yesterday the stent came out, and today it happened. I am hungry, I feel great, I can drink Water. Thank you Lord, and thank you to this forum for all the support I have received. Hang in there, it will happen for those of you on this journey. I am seven weeks and two days since operation.

What lovely optimistic post. Congratulation on all your success. I wish you well on the second half of your journey. I am seven weeks out still tired, but no turning back now, the operation is over and the end is in site.

Today marks 3 months since I was re-born into this brave new world! And since that day, I cannot even begin to enumerate the exponential feelings of wellness and hopefulness that have begun to saturate my life. My goodness, I knew I needed help, but I had no idea how much of an addict to food I really was, and how every aspect of my life was somehow either tied around food, or mitigated by food, most of the time in negative nonsensical self-harming ways!

Never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined, or even supposed in my defeated mind, that I could come so far in so little time! But here I stand, 3 months later, half way there, 54lb’s lighter, working out north of 1 hour every day (no excuses and I love it, and actually look forward to it!), no longer prediabetic, experiencing wellness, dancing around with my kiddos with giddy abandonment, full of energy, wanting to take pictures again, with a renewed sense of self-worth, with a focused mind, doing a double take at that lady in the mirror, being more in control and feeling so positive about most of my food choices. Friends, there is a brand new energy that I oscillate with these days, and there is an inner joy about me that I forgot I was even capable of experiencing.

I have spent today with a heart full of gratitude to God, I think that is most of what I feel today. Grateful that I have been rescued from what was not only a miserable, but a horribly unhealthy, sunken life. That I came through surgery and could see the faces of my kiddos again! For the amazing friendships I have made along the way on Bariatric Pals, without whom this journey would have been an infinitely lonelier one. You know who you are…thank you!!!

All this…and I’m only half way there!!! I’m more motivated and pumped than ever before. So I wanted to share this with you, thank you all for your love, encourage you in your journey (especially if you were like me, so torn about the decision to do or not to do!) and invite you to let me know where you are in your journey, your thoughts and laments around 3 months, or before or after! Just a collective pause to savor the goodness J

Sending you Sunshine!

Ellie

Hi I am also 5ft 2 and went from 220 to 110 with the band, the first year was ok the second year, a year of hell. The band came out in May 2015 and I was sleeved 12/21/2015. I gained 41lbs in those 7months. I has some complications with the sleeve op and spent the first few weeks crying (but for me nothing is as back as being fat). Well I am seven weeks out, struggling a bit with eating and drinking, but I am now down 25lbs, and I get stronger each day. My advice is go for it before the weight piles back on when that band comes out it is very hard to stop the weight going back on.

I am also 7 weeks out, but I still can't eat much. At around 4 weeks, I thought I was doing ok but the last two weeks I can't even stand the smell of some foods. I have a stent in though that is coming out next Monday, I pray I will turn the corner after Monday as my bmi is already in the normal range at 24 and I need to stop losing weight.

I am into my seventh week, and had been tolerating soft boiled eggs well until this morning. I got half way through and then just could not stop heaving. It has made me ill for the entire day and really put me off food. Has this happened to anyone else?

This is really interesting, so many people on the boards claim that it is impossible to stretch a sleeve.

Wow. Its been exactly one year, almost to the hour, that I had the sleeve surgery. Its been a very interesting year with lots of ups and a few downs.

I posted about a week after surgery what the surgical experience was like. I'm not going to rehash that.

Good

Down over 80 pounds, BMI down to 23. Weight seems to have stabilized for last couple months.

Although I never had high blood pressure nor took medication, it was higher than it should have been. I now pop out 115/75.

Energy level is good. Very active.

Knee/back pain is GONE or at least 95% of it

Doesn't feel like I'm dieting. I still focus on Proteins, but my stomach's capacity is still 1/5 or less than what it was. I eat 3 "meals" and 2-3 Snacks per day. Cravings/desire for food greatly reduced. As a gauge of how much I can eat, I was traveling yesterday and ordered a 3 piece chicken strip and small fry from Chik-fil-a. I ate 2 pieces of chicken and 3 french fries. I was very full.

Bad

Definitely lost a lot of muscle. It partly makes sense as it takes less muscle to move less weight. But the last few months I've been working out putting muscle back on.

Initial discomfort from surgery. Very distant memory now.

Certain foods still cause issues - bread/pasta are two prime examples.

My ass definitely hurts when sitting. Planes are terrible.

Loose skin - definitely some saggy skin.

Lightheadedness - Have this pretty regularly when getting up. Have actually passed out 3 times. Mostly when dehydrated or had any alcohol. Hot tub also does it to me. Have to keep a close eye on it and sit back down quickly if necessary.

Social awkwardness - people don't understand why I eat so little and it has offended a few people. It is hard in a social food setting to not stand out.

Ugly

Foamies/vomit - I have had foamies 5 or 6 times and thrown up 3 times. Definitely not pleasant and just have to eat slowly and watch for signals to stop. That overfull feeling is terrible. Again certain foods like bread/pasta cause issues.

Bariatric Vitamins - disgusting. I switched after about a month to a multi-Vitamin that had all the same stuff. These things made me gag.

Sugar/alcohol - has a greatly increased effect. I can eat a kids size ice cream serving, otherwise get terrible sugar rush. Alcohol - same thing. Effect greatly amplified. One glass of wine and I am really tipsy.

Overall I still feel it was a great decision. I had battled weight issues since a kid and had never been successful getting anywhere close to where I am, much less keeping the weight off. I think if I was in the same position today that I was a year ago, I would try the balloon first. I went with Dr Heider in Charlotte and was very pleased. The self-pay through them was very straightforward and covered everything.

I tried the balloon first, lost weight but when it came out all the weight was back within a few months, then I went for the band, that worked very well I lost a lot of weight, but it failed and weight came back fast. At least with the sleeve I have a feeling of permanent restriction. I think you made the right choice.

Thank you so much for your responses, at least you are giving me comfort that this is normal. Some of the posts are about people who feel no restriction and are hungry and this makes me feel there might be something wrong with me, but I guess everyone is different.

I am almost 6 weeks, not really had much trouble. I just can't eat very much, at first I wasn't worried. I saw a couple of posts that said enjoy the honeymoon phase, it won't last too long. So I have been eating 500-600 calories a day. I can eat boiled eggs, yoghurt, stew, mashed potato, fish pie. However, this last few days I just don't want to try and eat the food. It feels like I have so much restriction.

When I had the lap band I was forever looking for the elusive "green zone". Well guess what? I finally found it after having a sleeve. I am posting here though because those peeps from lap band forum would hate me.

I had my surgery on 12/21/2015 and also had my gallstones and gallbladder at VSG survey. I was also a revision from lapband though not at the same time as surgery. I have tracked my progress against others on the site, and I think having the two major ops together, it might take a little while longer for recovery. I am at 5.5 weeks post surgery and although it has been a struggle to get my fitness back I am getting there, and I would definitely not have wanted two surgeries.