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Hello world! I am a current lapbander in the process of getting a revision to the sleeve as of july 8th! I have been doing quite extensive research and i am quite curious if there is much of a difference in the restriction feeling between the band and sleeve? It seems what i have read, most virgin sleevers experience a "tightness in chest" feeling which lets them know their full (or over full) Anybody care to share what they have gathered the true difference between the two are? Wether it be from personal experience or personal opinion? As a lapbander, the tightness in chest is all too painful in my experience and was not exactly what i want to look forward to the 2nd time around. Any opinions or factual statements would be most of help! Thanks!

Ok guys, I'm pretty much a newbie to the website, only joined a few weeks ago. I got my surgery date last week. It's September 6th, three weeks from today. I gotta admit, I'm getting nervous. I had Lap Band surgery four years ago (it failed, miserably) so this is a revision. It's the fact that they'll be cutting out 90% of my stomach that's freaking me out. Yeah, I know that's what I signed up for, it's just the procedure itself that's making me nervous. I had a client who had bypass surgery a few years back and when they went to make the connections her stomach/intestinal tissue was so fragile they could barely reconnect. She had tons of problems with leaks and almost died. So while my logical mind tells me that was a very freak event, my emotions are playing hell with me. I could really use some encouraging words from some of you guys who have been through this. Thanks!

Hi and welcome to VST. The sleeve will only keep you from eating large portions in one sitting. You can still suck down a 3000 calorie milkshake if you really want to do so. They operate on our stomachs, not our brains. None of the weight loss surgeries will fix our emotional or mental tie with food. All of them can be eaten around, or cheated. The bypass scared me too, and the pure fact that only 30% of RNY patients dump on sugary/carby food is not much of a guarantee to me to keep my hand out of the cookie jar. Plus, all the Vitamin and nutrient deficiencies were definitely a concern. Blind stomach portion left behind that can get cancer and ulcers, yet isn't easily scoped. The malabsorption only lasts a max of about 2 years and then your body adjusts and starts absorbing carbs/calories/fat, but not the vitamins/supplements. The regain stats, and how many people seek a revision with RNY, and the people I know in real life that struggle with their RNY that are out 4-8 years, kept me away from RNY. The sleeve definitely helps you make better food choices. Protein is priority 1, so eat that first, and you won't have room for other junk. But, the choice is yours to make when it comes to what you put in your body. It's not always easy, but it's worth it. You'll have to find a coping mechanism/tool to work on your emotional eating. We all had to battle some sort of issue during our journey. Best wishes with your approaching appointment, and keep us posted on what you decide.

To revise a sleeve into a bypass, at that point it's more of a duodenal switch which is a much more malabsorbtive procedure than the RNY, and from what my surgeon said, is almost never done unless in very special circumstances. I was concerned with absorption too, which is why I initially went with the sleeve, but after deciding to switch to RNY, I found that the sleeve also causes malabsorption and there is no difference in the amount of vitamin supplements you have to take between the sleeve and RNY. They key is to take them they way they're advised, if you do that, you should be fine.

I am revising from a band to sleeve. Although I did lose weight initially, I never got to a sweet spot and things went totally awry after a year. I am happy for those people for whom the band works, but I can hardly wait to get it out of me!

Since signing on for BP, I've occasionally mentioned in various places having strayed and wanting to get serious again. Finally, Step #1 for the second time.. Band surgery was October, 2009. My highest weight was 311. From about three weeks before surgery until mid-February, 2011, I lost 115 pounds. At 197, my goal of 145-150 was in sight. "Something," an event with emotional fallout, happened and that February, I stopped losing and soon began to gain. I went as high as 268 and mostly have hovered at 265-270. Twice in between I buckled down, lost about 25, only to regain them. All along I've wanted to get back to business. Just in the last couple of weeks, the feeling really set in. I made appointments for esophagram and to see the NP yesterday, ending a two year absence. Sure that I had great dilation (the band had been loosened twice before for that reason) and that the band was out of position, it was a thrill to find that I was wrong on both counts. I'd prepared myself to discuss revising to sleeve, but decided to give the band another shot. The NP agreed that it's worthwhile. The band had been rearing its head for several months, giving signals that I'd eaten enough. Other band signals and sensations that I vaguely recalled from the past were absent, so I had an adjustment, adding .5 cc for now, and already feel hints of the old effects. My next appointment is in August. We'll see what comes next at that time. How nice it will be if the band becomes a good partner again, "nice" being one hell of an understatement.

good luck!! I thought you and the band were done so this is nice to find out you still might be able to lose without having to get a revision.

I had my sleeve on 5/21/12. I've lost 128 pounds to date. I have very bad GERD and the worst part is esophageal spasms. They are taking over my life! They are so painful and they feel like a heart attack. I've been having them daily and usually wake up around 4 am with this terrible pain in my ears, then throat, chest, and right side where my sleeve is. These things will throw you down on your knees they hurt so bad. I'm on Levsin that I put under my tongue when they happen to help relieve them. I've never experience anything like this. My surgeon thinks they could be caused from GERD. I'm not so sure. I was scheduled for a Bravo Capsule endoscope on Monday and a Manometry on Wed and I've decided to back out of both. I've read where the capsule can damage the esophagus and could get lodged in the intestines when it falls off the esophagus in 7 days if you're lucky. Sometimes it doesn't fall off and there it is stuck and causing more problems. I just can't take the chance, I know I have GERD and all this test does is measure how much acid I have in my stomach over a 24 hour period. Nahhh I think I will just not do it. I'm tired . Sick and tired of these test!!! I'm more sick of the spasms that feel like labor pains and then leave me drained and sore. Well, I'm not sure what I'm going to do. The surgeon wants to revise me to RNY but I absolutely do not want to do it. I guess I will take my chances and see if something else can be done. I know that gastroenterologist will use botox to stop the spasms but I'm scared to go to someone who isn't familiar with the sleeve but I'm not trusting my surgeon either right now. He is so busy and he just heards people in and out like cattle. Ok, well if anyone has had experience with these horrid things, please respond! Thank you!

I had the sleeve done at the end of November, 2013. It was a band to sleeve revision. I was what I would have called a "slow loser" but found out some things I was doing wrong. So, I changed some of what I was doing - went to 1000 calories/day, added fruits and vegetables to my diet instead of just Protein and began walking and working out some. Now, I know you're going to say, "If you're working out you're adding muscle which weighs more than fat." Ok, I'm not working out THAT hard. A couple of weeks ago I had an NSV by getting into size 20 clothes from a size 26/28. I hit the 40 pound loss mark in 4 months. I was feeling really good. But things have changed. I'm still in a 20, which I'm happy about. But I'm losing my hair. The one thing that I have ALWAYS prided myself on. Even when I was over 300 pounds, my hair always looked good. It was healthy, bouncy and in really good shape. Then, pieces of it started coming out when I showered. I'd go to soap myself up and have to remove strands of hair from the bar of soap. I thought, "Well, that's the price of bariatric surgery I suppose." I started taking Biotin after reading some messages on here. I also made sure I got at least 60 grams or more of protein a day and have been averaging over 60 grams a day for over a month now. I thought it probably wasn't as bad as I was making it out to be. Then, I went to my hair dresser for a cut yesterday. She started washing my hair and said, "Oh my, you're really getting thin." My daughter is getting married in 2 months and my hairdresser said we may have to get a hair piece to help cover up some of thinness if it doesn't get any better. What?!?!?!?!?!? Are you frickin' kidding me? Oh, and it gets worse. I stepped on the scale this morning and was 3 pounds heavier!! WHAT?!?!?!!?!?!?!? I've been following my diet strictly and haven't gone over 1000 calories. I've looked at the snack cakes in my daughter's snack drawer and walked away. ARE YOU FRICKIN' KIDDING ME?!?!?!? 3 POUNDS?!?!?!!?!?!? And this is after a 2 week plateau. I'm ready to give up. I know this weight didn't come on over night but I really expected more than 40 pounds in 4 months. And, I know that we all have weight fluctuations but mine have only been a pound here and there. 3 pounds? Higher??? That's crazy. If I was cheating, sure, I can see that. But I'm not. I'm a bit fed up. I don't want to hear about losing inches vs. pounds and changing things up. I've done that. I guess I just want to bitch and complain. Has anyone else gone through this mental torture and how did you get your HEAD back in the game? I'm beating myself and my sleeve up right now. I need a mental kick in the ass. Any advice?

I have Aetna and after two submissions I was approved. However they are getting very very picky. The denial came because they said I needed 1 more appt with a NUT. So I had to go to the office for them to get my weight and blood pressure and temp. Yes vitals and for my NUT to revise her letter of advocation for me to include 120 days of a guided diet. My bmi was 44 and I have (had) type 2 diabetes. Sometimes it's something as little as one day of nutrition classes. That didn't meet their requirement that will get a denial You can appeal the decision with a letter written by you. I've heard that works really well sometimes. Never give up hope, 3 years ago I had blue shield blue cross of Georgia and they denied me 3 times saying my blood pressure was too good and my diabetes wasn't a good enough reason to approve me. So when's company switched to Aetna I tried again... Good luck and appeal if you need to

I really wanted to be the first patient in the morning with my doctor .....but I ended up being the third patient because he had to do two complicated lap band revisions in front of me .....and when he came in the room to see me before I went into the operating room he said to me "oh good now my easy patient" - I do think the more complex patients are handled first. Shelby

I'm 4 weeks post op today. I've never felt more alone. I'm having regrets. It took me over two years to make my decision to revision from the band to the sleeve. Reasons that I feared would happen with relationships, friendships, things that I enjoy doing started very early on in my two month post op phase and continue. I know that I should be patient. I know things will get easier with time, but when the scale is not moving and I can't even get a friend to say "hey, how's it going? Wanna do something not revolving around food or alcohol?" It's just very discouraging. I'm also struggling to do things that I enjoy alone. Reading, drawing, going for walks. Nothing interests me...

Hello everyone! Haven't ever posted on here so I might be a little shy or nervous! Lol Just getting back on YouTube (where I first documented my journey) and saw all the rough stuff everyone has been through.. I had a slip and they were able to fix it by just removing saline. A couple of months went by and the same thing happened. I ended up having revision Surgery on Dec 2nd. The doctor wanted to do it in 2 steps but my insurance company wouldn't go for it. After he got it approved for me to get a sleeve he ended up doing 3 surgeries in one. I had my band removed, a sleeve, and a huge hiatal hernia fixed/removed. It was the most painful thing I have ever felt in my life!! Today I am 5 days post op and dying for some food that I could chew!! I snuck two saltines and chewed, chewed, chewed... Anyone ever had a problem with this? I'm gonna try to keep posting regularly! Thanks for reading!! Stay strong and healthy!! Cris

I have a question and I'm hoping to get some help on this. I have BCBSNC and I was looking into doing a revision from the Lapband to Gastric Sleeve. My Lapband is leaking fluid...I think. I haven't confirmed it but I have gotten 3 fills in the last 6 months and it is always at 5cc after the fill. So, that was my conclusion. I would like to know if the requirements for the surgery are the same since it is a revision? The requirements for bariatric with BCBSNC is 12 months (Long time). BTW I have gained so much weights its crazy. The band was working fine and it just stopped. Any input is greatly appreciated.

My advice is to figure out why/how you became overweight. You need to know the root cause before you can conjure up a permanent solution. Here's a hint...food is never really the root cause of our weight problems. Some people are emotional overeaters who use food to cope in times of stress, boredom, joy, pain and uncertainty. Others are garden variety eaters whose social lives revolve around overeating. Some people became obese due to hardcore food addictions and others have psychological diagnoses such as binge eating disorder. Finally, some people overeat to soothe past trauma they experienced or witnessed such as sexual abuse or violence. Some people will swear up and down they never eat too much, exercise regularly, and still became obese. Nonetheless, obesity due to medical issues only occurs in less than 5% of cases. In my personal experience, the people in profound denial who lack insight and are unwilling to practice introspection (e.g., "I got up to 300 pounds eating 1200 calories a day!") are often the same ones who seek their third or fourth revision surgery due to each previous procedure "not working." In other words, be honest with yourself. I ate too much for physical reasons because insulin resistance kept me chronically hungry. Also, I experienced childhood traumas such as domestic violence and drug addiction, and food soothed me when those ugly memories resurfaced. So I attended a few counseling sessions as I reached my goal weight. Good luck to you.

Hey Guys, So I've been having a ton of issues since my surgery 18 days ago on 6/12/2015 m, have been in and out of the ICU/ISCU and am just hoping for some support from other people who have suffered the same complications. Here's a brief overview so far: 6/12 - went in for gastric sleeve. I woke up and they took me out to walk around. Next thing I know someone says I'm bleeding into the floor. I also believe I was taken back into surgery this day. 6/13 - I was told I didn't have a leak in the way I was thinking of it (ie gastric juice in my stomach) but that there was "oozing" from the incision line. They offered surgery again and suggested they could insert drains. Additionally, I was told I had a blood clot (hematoma) at the incision line and that I was losing blood. They had to give me transfusions and it took about 4 pints of blood transfused for my level to stop dropping and then at the 5th it went up slightly. This was an indication to them that the bleeding/clot/hematoma had stopped. I was told it would take several weeks for the clot to be transformed into my body. 6/17 - I was released from the hospital, told to progress normally from week 2 of my diet, etc etc. 6/21 - I had been having some stomach pain all day and thought I just had a lot of backed up stuff that was finally coming out. I was in the bathroom for like an hour and stuff (semi-solid) stool just kept coming. After like an hour of agony, I took a small sip of the liquid hydrocodone and was going to try and take a nap. Within a few seconds of taking a sip my body warmed up and started getting itchy. I looked down and knew something was wrong as I had broken out in hives all over my body in a few minutes. Mind you I had taken this medication for several days prior. I called 911 and ended back up at my surgery hospital. 6/21 - My surgeon took my back in for surgery. I was told my stomach had ruptured again and they tried to seal it but the skin was so thin they couldn't guarantee it would stay together. They also put in 2 drains. 6/22 - They did another sip test and I'm still leaking. I'm on "NPO" which means no liquid at all ever. They put me on TFA or something which is a white liquid hooked up to an IV so I'm not ingesting any food or Water. 6/30 - They did another sip test and confirmed I'm steal leaking. Just to cover a few other things, I didn't cheat and I don't smoke. They want to transfer me out of ICU and to a short term recovery facility. I was pushing to be able to go home and have a nurse come out but I guess there are a few medications I'm on that some of these assistance companies don't want to be responsible for administering. It may be because of the medication itself or having to come to my home very frequently. Not sure. The hospital I'm in said they would probably want to wait 4 more weeks before another swallow test so it sounds like I'm going to be stuck not home somewhere either way. Has anyone gone through these issues with leakage? Could you share your information with how long it took to recover? How will I know when my stomach is no longer at risk of tearing? I'm super worried at this point and don't want to confuse "not currently leaking" with "not currently leading but still not strong enough to resist leaking from 1 extra sip of water." Thanks!

Thanks for all your replies. I was so nervous going into this and was so glad to have found that others had had the revision with hardly any complications. It's been a year so I hope that I'm perfectly healed on the inside. Nina, yeah, mine was a full slip and also a nighmare. Had to be taken to the ER by ambulance where I was questioned as to why I didn't drive down to where my surgeon was. I can't imagine having to make that 1 hour drive, I was in so much pain and couldn't keep my head off the floor. After 7 hours of crying and carrying on in the ER, I was finally given the surgery to remove the band. They admitted that I wouldn't have made it had this gone on much longer, my stomach was hemorrhaging. I met with the nutritionist yesterday and whispered that she liked the sleeve much better than the band. I hate that the dr's aren't up front about the more complications that come from the band. However, at the time I got that, the sleeve wasn't being offered by my surgeon nor was my insurance covering it. Almost 3 years later, and my insurance changing, my surgeon performs the sleeve, yay! I can't wait to be on the other side, again. Best wishes, Mary

I'm having my band to sleeve revision (hopefully simultaneously) at the OCC in Tijuana Mexico with Dr. Ariel Ortiz,

I had the lap band and had revision to a sleeve. Before you make your decision, read the complications section of this board. You can also read the stories of why people got revision to a sleeve on the sleeve section of the board. The band can slip, erode, the port can flip, some people do not have good weight loss with the band, some people get horrible reflux, some people can't seem to get the right fill. that means a lot of fills and unfills. With the sleeve, they make you a smaller stomach and you have restriction right from surgery. It's a big decision so you should know everything there is to know about all weight loss surgeries.

Shell u know nothing about this! ~What WLS does is that it allows you to feel satistifed with that small amount. ~ SOME WLS's do that! The band does NOT do that for many banded ppl! That is one of the reasons that so many ppl revise FROM the band!!!

I tore my port surtures and had to have a revision, and 7/04 my band was removed due to 40% erosion. I LOVED my band, and still think it is the safest, best WLS currently available. http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=933 http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=1318 http://lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?t=2256

I had the revision done 5/4. My wounds are healing really well. Bruising around wounds has diminished to almost zero. Today i get the drain removed from my abdomen. The drain is a bit of a pain because you have to try to hide if you want to go anyplace but it doesn't hurt and it's actually kind of interesting seeing and tracking what comes out through it. I had my first touch of reflux yesterday and today (days 11 and 12). I'm staying at my folks' house because I was told not to drive and I hadn't expected that. So...I don't have all the foods here that I had gotten ahead of time. While here I've been doing 2 costco Protein shakes a day, 1 small can of V-8 (just because it tastes good and feels like real food), 1/2 cup of chicken broth (some days) and Water (sometimes Isopure Protein Water). I haven't felt hungry. I have felt extremely thirsty but my surgeon requires you to pour all intake into a one ounce medical cup and drink it over 15 minutes. I think I have the reflux because I got impatient yesterday and drank too much Soup too quickly. Sorry to be so wordy! I've been cooped up in my parents' house for 11 days and trying not to drive them crazy. As I related in an earlier post, I have a nasty virus or infection giving me earaches, sore throat, sore jaw, sore teeth. Something I got at the hospital and it isn't getting better so it skews my perception of this healing process a bit. There is definitely no comparison between band recovery and band to sleeve revision recovery. By this time after banding I was back at work and I was a firefighter. My surgeon this time around doesn't allow weight lifting until 4-6 weeks out, driving and stuff like vacuuming the floor until 2 weeks out.

I wasn't as successful with the band as i hoped I would be. I started at 272 in March 2001. It took me a YEAR to lose about 70# (30 of those was during the first 30 days as my surgeon had me do a liquid diet for 30 days!) I exercised, i really tried the best I could but I was hungry still, just in pain when I ate. My band and I did not get along well. i vomited alot. By late 2002 I was having serious problems. Who am I kidding, I was already sleeping in a sitting up position and other things to try to control the reflux. anyway, i had to have all fill removed and i regained big time. By 2004, I was well over 300#. my highest recorded was 332, but I think I weighed closer to 350 at one point. I battled it out for many years, bouncing between about 240 - 300 ish range. In 2011 I finally had the courage to revise and began the sleeve journey at 308. My lowest weight post sleeve was 140, but I am currently in the upper 150s... 3.5 years post revision.

I'm a 34yr male. 6'1 and currently weighing 225 pounds. I had succesful lap band surgery in march 2007 and lost 80 pounds. From 265 went down to 185. I had maintained overall weight loss success until sometime last year in january 2014 when i started to notice the GERD getting worse and also some weight gain. For the first time in 5 years when i hit the scale i saw numbers over the 200 range. I started to worry because i knew something was not right. Got an upper GI series done and all it showed was mild pouch dilation. Doctor left band as is and never suggested any course of treatment for the dilation and for the GERD. Fast forward now to 2015 and I seeked a second opinion from another surgeon. Surgeon performed an EGD and it shows that there is band slippage, gastritis and presence of GERD. Surgeon suggested a revision for the lap band and to convert it to either a gastric sleeve or gastric bypass. Insurance has approved the revision but need guidance or help in deciding which one is better for me. I see soo many mix responses from people suggesting or prefering one over the other. I will say that yes the band did work for me and do its job. It improved my health alot but now is the GERD that is just kicking me in the rear end very bad. Like stated before I weight 225 now and for the long term success and achivement I'm undecided as to what procedure is more suited for me at this point of my life. I do need the surgery to aliviate the discomfort plus without any bariatric procedure on me I would go back to how i was prior to the lapband. I tried it all before deciding doing bariatric surgery in 2007. Thank you.

I need some advice and to vent a little. I am scheduled with Dr. Aceves for sleeve revision on May 10th. I have researched the hell out of him and have found nothing bad at all. Part of the prerequisite was for me to get my band unfilled. This past weekend I had my appointment with my American bariatric surgeon (who did not place my lap-band) and he unfilled me. He asked why I was getting unfilled and I told him I was having revision in Mexico with Dr. Aceves. He then proceeded to scare the **** out of me by telling me stories of patients he has known of who have had leaks months afterward from getting surgery in Mexico and/or dying on the OR table. He said getting a virgin sleeve or lap-band is fine in Mexico but begged and pleaded with me not to get a revision. He said that it is incredibly risky and dangerous and that I will be screwed if something happens to me once I get home. I talked to him about it more and he said that since the doc is not looking at my lap band beforehand that ought to give me a clue that I am not in good hands. He said they will just work around any complications and that could make it worse. He also said he could do my revision (here in the US) for the same price as Dr. Aceves is charging me. I completely agreed to all of this and have been talking to his office and scheduler. It has been three days and I am still waiting to hear from them on what hospital he will perform the surgery at and exactly how much. It will be one of three hospitals in the LA area. Anyhow, I am not sure what to do. I am pretty sure Dr. Aceves has more experience with revisions than my doc does but the thought of staying in the US for the same price is tempting as well. I know Dr. Aceves is a truly capable and fantastic doctor. I have read a lot of reviews on my US doc and he is very good as well. I don't think he has the experience that Aceves does though but on the flip side I could stay in the US. HELP!!! ADVICE PLEASE!!! So scared and confused now.