IrishGermanRN

I was sleeved in Tijuana last May. I stayed at the Grand Hotel. It was great. As others have pointed out, it's just like being in the U.S. There are so many fast food restaurants that it does make you chuckle. The only difference I noticed was that a Dominoes pizza restaurant had it's drivers ride bikes. Going to Tijuana for the sleeve is perfectly okay. You will be fine.

I believe what he meant was since I have not had a slip, or something medically go wrong with my lapband he doesn't want others to feel they can come in and get revised. I personally have had a hard time with finding a sweet spot and it's always toot tight or too open. I believe after having my babies everything got moved around. I have been successful with the lapband, but am so ready for it to be gone!

Bariatric Eating Facebook group seems to have great ideas regarding the weight gain 2 years post surgery.

I didnt even think I could go this route. I was planning on using my limited vacation pay that was left. Thank you for this thread. Going to look into this tomorrow with my HR. I was going to go back to work after 6 days.

Rapper Paul Wall had gastric sleeve

Getting through day 5 of this liquid diet. Last time I did liquids for 2 weeks was post op when I got my band back in 09
Then I didnt care. I didnt want anything anyway. This is getting tough but I want less visceral fat and a good liver so they can do both procedures at once.
How is everyone doing?

Keep us updated how youre doing.

Seems that there are many threads about January sleevers, but now we have a place to call home.
My surgery is January 20th. I'm having my band removed and sleeve at the same time. Currently talking my way through day 2 of this preop all liquid diet... help!

My family has been saying the last few years why dont I have my band removed. I talked to my husband about finally doing this and he said., "sure it didnt work anyway" I didnt discuss gastric sleeve. That is next. I think he was tired of me PB and slime and not being able to eat a regular meal like the rest. Being out at a restaruant and needing to leave to the restroom got old. Having to pull over because my food wouldnt go down to slime.
I'm hoping the sleeve is not the same way and he is supportive.

No regrets at all....I wish I had the sleeve earlier. The band was horrible....had to get readjustment all the time and constantly had food stuck. The sleeve is so much more "user friendly". I can eat pretty much anything I want, but of course in smaller portions of 6oz total meals! Losing approximately 8-10lbs/month....5 months out. Lost 85 total with band after 5 years! You do the math!!!!

I wanted to give an update on here about my personal experience with band to sleeve revision.
I have been absent from the site because I have been taken ill by a complication related to the revision surgery. First 2 weeks, I was fine. Not long after I started to develop serious stomach aches, especially at nights. My situation only became worse from then. I found myself very averse to eating food and I would have gagging and wretching spells during the day but mostly early morning and late night.
Obviously I became very concerned and went to see my surgeon. I had a gastography done which came back clear. I was treated for h.pylori and my symptoms did not get better. At a certain point I was so dehydrated and malnourished that I was given IV at the hospital. My bp was 80/60. So my doctor decided to do endoscopy. The endoscopy revealed as did the gastography that my sleeve was completely healed and in great condition. No ulcers, no stricture or stenosis, no leaks. The sleeve part of the surgery was a success
So what has been the cause of all my woes? It turns out as the endoscopy showed that I have GERD as a result of the gastric band removal. Somehow the band created a wider opening at the end of my esophagus causing acid to make its way up and down. Added to that it spasms and contracts causing my stomach upsets. I am now taking Nexium and Zofran to control these problems. According to my doctor, I should be back to normal in 3 months but all these problems are caused by the left overs of the band.
P.S. sorry if some of the details seem vague, my surgeon and surgery were done in the Middle East so a lot of the terminology I had to translate from Arabic.
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I had the band for 10 years and didn't do too well. Sleeved for 4 years and maintaining 150# weight loss! No regrets, I am thankful I finally found the courage to try WLS again after my epic fail with the band.

No regrets! Wish i would have done it sooner!!

I am glad to be rid of the band after suffering with it for over a decade. I would have removed even if I had not had the sleeve. Glad I had the sleeve though. Four weeks out today and not really hungry. I have been able to stick to my limited diet without issues and have lost 18 pounds in 4 weeks.

My family has been saying the last few years why dont I have my band removed. I talked to my husband about finally doing this and he said., "sure it didnt work anyway" I didnt discuss gastric sleeve. That is next. I think he was tired of me PB and slime and not being able to eat a regular meal like the rest. Being out at a restaruant and needing to leave to the restroom got old. Having to pull over because my food wouldnt go down to slime.
I'm hoping the sleeve is not the same way and he is supportive.

For me, the sleeve surgery was MUCH easier than the band. The only issue was the nausea that I had for about 2 days but that was pretty well controlled at the hospital. I was not so much sore as swollen. None of the port pain - it was really a totally different experience. I was back to my regular self in a week - then I threw out my back but that is a different story. The only real "issue" I faced was that I was more tired with this surgery and for longer. I even find eating much easier now.

Hello Everyone! I had my lapband surgery back in April 2010. I am now scheduled for revision surgery to Sleeve on January 25th. I am so excited. I am not nervous about the procedure or anything like that... what I am nervous about, is waking up and being told my doctor was not able to revise me due to scar tissue. His intention is to do it in one surgery. He does not do a second, so I feel like this is my only chance. I feel like I will be mentally defeated if I wake up without a revision. I have spent the last two months getting all my classes, labs, and weight loss in order. I am praying I wake up with a revision.
Any personal stories of others who have dealt with this? Anyone know my chances of having way too much scar tissue? Thanks

I'm getting my sleeve on Monday and I'm so excited/completely freaking out! I'm only 25 and never been hospitalized for anything, never had an IV or catheter, never had anything worse than Vicodin for post wisdom tooth extraction.... And I'm a nurse! I've never been off this long, 3 weeks?! What the hell am I going to do?!!! I guess this will be a lot of firsts for me, but the best first will be my first pair of jeans that I can buy in a store that fit my belly, and my tiny legs! Who else is totally excited for some actual skinny jeans!!!????

The first time that I can remember wanting to have WLS was when I was a teenager. I believe that was when I first saw a commercial for WLS. During my twenties I did not have the financial means to have the surgery. In the spring of 2013 I made the decision to have WLS. 2013 was the first year that certain factors came together that would allow me to have the surgery. At the time I wanted lap band because it was the only bariatric surgery I knew about. With that in mind I went to my new PCP and told her that I wanted to have lap band surgery and asked for a referral. Since I was fairly ignorant of how insurance worked at the time I just found a surgeon online and asked for a referral for him. Well this individual was not part of the medical group, so the referral was denied. One would have thought my PCP would have known that, but no matter. After that she gave me a referral for a surgeon. With my new referral in hand I set up my initial appointment with Dr. Lufti.
During my first appointment with Dr. Lufti he explained why he thought VSG would be a better option for me. At the time I was nervous about the permanent removal of part of my stomach. However, after some research and reflection I decided that perhaps he was right and decided to have VGS instead of lap band. While I was completing the requirements for surgery my PCP moved her office to the suburbs and as a carless human being I realized it would be hard for me to travel to her new location, so I selected another PCP. What I did not know is that I had to select a PCP that was in the same medical group as Dr. Lufti. Anyways, December 2013 rolls around and I am preparing for surgery. I wanted to have surgery the week leading up to winter break to conserve sick days. The day before I am scheduled to have surgery I am told that the surgery was denied because Dr. Lufti was not in the same medical group I was a part of. I cannot fully describe the disappointment I felt. I did everything I was told to do, but still I could not have the surgery.
In January of 2014 I decided to continue the good fight. I switch my PCP again. Not just because she was not in the same medical group as my surgeon, but I did not like the care I received from her. Made an appointment with my new PCP. She was really in support of me having surgery. However, she was also not in the same medical group with my surgeon. The reason I wanted to stay with Dr. Lufti was that I really liked the team in his office and I firmly believed I would receive the care I needed. Now I will say, if I remember correctly I thought I look online to see if PCP number 3 was in the same medical group as my surgeon, but for some reason BCBS said differently than what I found online. At this point, I'm mad as a big dog about things. I called everybody and they mama to get to the bottom of things. I after many attempts I was finally in the right medical group, but BCBSIL at the time had a requirement that anyone wanting WLS had to wait twelve months...
I continued to press on because I sincerely thought that the Lord wanted me to have this surgery and all I need to do was persevere. Twelve months pass. During that time I switch from BCBS HMO to BCBS PPO because I thought it would make things easier for me to have surgery. So I made an appointment with PCP number 4 and got a referral. I went to my appointment at my surgeon's office and learned that my school district, I am a teacher, did not want to cover any bariatric surgery with PPO policies. I left his office thinking, "That is okay you are going to have this surgery." I did make an attempt to change my insurance back, but that was taking a really long time. While waiting for this amendment to be made I seriously contemplated buy my own insurance as a means to have the surgery.
I left my previous school district during the summer of 2015. When I got hired for my new position with a different school district I knew that I selected my new insurance I was going to have BCBSIL HMO and select the same PCP so that I could be in the medical group as my surgeon. Less than a week after my insurance became active I scheduled an appointment with my PCP and Lufti. Shortly there after I started completing the requirements for surgery. On Dec. 16th I two year fight, if not lifelong, had come to an end. I got sleeved. Because what I went through it took sometime for me to believe it was going to happen. Even when I was told I was approved I still had some doubt. Even after I woke up from anesthesia I did not fully believe. In fact, one of the first questions I asked when I woke up was, "Did I have surgery?" When I came home from the hospital the next day it was still hard to believe. It actually took me see my incisions for me to accept that I had surgery.
I am sharing this story with you because I want you to know that if the Lord wants you to have surgery it will come to past. The fight to a better you is going to be a hard and long one, but it is worth fight. This fight is one only you can contend with. No one else can fight it for you. I am three weeks out roughly 40 lbs down and I am fight too. Someone even told me that maybe God did not want me to have the surgery because of the obstacles, but I knew otherwise. To all that read this no matter if you are an expect, recently got sleeved, or thinking about it keep fighting.

Power Crunch bars are great. They have 13 grams of Protein and 10 carbs.
10 carbs is a lot if you're really trying to go low carb. They are made with Stevia so there is no sugar alcohol which gives me terrible gas.
I get mine at vitacost.com because it comes out way cheaper. I also buy them at Walmart.< /p>
vitacost carries so many things, for anyone who has not heard of it.I get my Protein powder there, and many supplements. If you order over $49 the shipping is free. I can get you a coupon for $10 off your first order if you send me a pm. They carry so much stuff, it's unreal. Their prices are also very good.

When I want something tasty, I eat Protein cake in a cup. It is delicious, totally not cheating, and gives you 25 grams or so of Protein. One scoop Protein powder, a 1/4 teaspoon baking powder, a couple tablespoons each of sugar-free Syrup and milk, stir until it is all wet. Microwave in large cup for 45 seconds or so. Delicious tasty warm cake! I have one most days and it feels like a treat, but really is not.

I am a coffee fanatic, always was and always will be....never curved my addiction since WLS one bit.
My primary coffee maker costs well over $300 and worth every penny. Always buy my coffee from specialty stores.
But I'm different than most people I read on this forum...I am not (and never will be) on any particular diet. So I still enjoy the things I always have.
Difference is that now, since WLS, my overall daily consumption of food is a fraction of what it was before WLS...I eat about 1/10th...and what I eat I eat healthy. And enjoy those little things life offers.

Hi everyone. I had my surgery Tuesday January 5th. Very excited to be here and to be on this journey.

I have my surgery Scheduled on the 25th, and all I can think about is if I will wake up sleeved or not... it seriously is draining me that this is all I think about!!! I have two little ones, and preparing for this surgery has been one hell of a process. I feel like if I wake up and they weren't able to Sleeve me, I will feel defeated and just frustrated. Don't get me wrong, I understand the whole idea of two surgeries and of course want what is safe. Just praying one and done is what is in my future!!!!!

I didn't use the Vitamins recommended by my surgeon. I've always preferred whole food based Vitamins rather than chemically synthesized vitamins. Not only do they provide micronutrients and cofactors that you can't duplicate in a lab, mine have digestive enzymes and Probiotics for better absorption and overall GI health. I was using Source of Life Gold chewables before and immediately after surgery. But my tastes changed and I no longer liked the chewables. I switched to Garden of Life because they come in capsules and tablets.
I currently take Vitamin Code for Women multi, Vitamin Code Raw D3, MyKind Organic Plant Calcium and Source Naturals methylcobalamin (B12) sublingual. I also used to take Vitamin Code Healthy Blood, but my labs showed high Iron at 6 months out so I stopped taking them. Labs been good ever since.
The biggest thing is to make sure you follow through with annual bloodwork forever. Studies show that 40%-90% of gastrectomy patients develop deficiencies within 5, 10 and even 20 years postop. Iron, B12, D3, Calcium, folate, zinc and magnesium are the biggest culprits.