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Hi Roni, First, congratulation on making the choice to improve your health! This is NOT an easy journey, but it is one that is SO worth taking. I had RNY on 6/25/2013. I was 48 years old, 5’2” tall and weighed 331 pounds when I first met with the doctors at my Bariatric Clinic. I am now 51 year old and this morning I weighed in at 127 pounds! Now I am working to maintain a loss of over 200 Pounds! This can be done! When I met with my Bariatric team back in January of 2013, I was told that I needed to weigh under 300 pounds in order for my surgeon to perform a laparoscopic procedure – and I REALLY didn’t want to have an open procedure. It was a MAJOR incentive for change. I mapped out changes that I knew I needed to make – and decided that I would make one change every week. This way I wouldn’t feel like I had to change EVERYTHING at once. I think my first change was replacing orange juice at Breakfast with a Protein shake. I am a member of the YMCA and I found a recumbent elliptical machine that I could use for exercise – for 20 minutes 3 times a week! I had SO MUCH knee pain that it was hard for me to walk. Eventually, I gave up my Diet Coke, began using MyFitnessPal.com to document what I eat and drink, stopped drinking with my meals, and increased my Water intake. All of these things (and more) were done slowly, over several months. Did it work? YOU BET!! By time I had surgery I was down 45 pounds. I had a VERY success laparoscopic procedure with no complications. Because I was exercising daily by the time I had surgery, my recovery was quicker and easier than many. I set myself up for success before I ever entered the operating room. YOU CAN TOO! Take it one small step at a time. Those steps really add up. This journey is a marathon, not a sprint! Remember that. As long as you keep moving forward, you are moving! That will get you to your goal. Feel free to write to me if you would like a friend/mentor. Best wishes! Carol

Long story short I was having such bad gas pain that I couldnt breath. Went to the er and bought myself an overnight. So frustrated I dont know what I did wrong. I was told that they see a spot on my catscan that they want to look at. So antibiotics and a dye test in the morning. Kinda nervous because I never have a fever and today I did. I keep thinking I made a mistake and what if this is some kind of infection and itt doesn't end well? Anyone else have a similar complication?

OK, so life was great pre-band..with the exception of being fat...and having bad health because of it..but now...oh now..i've got many other things that i need to add to the list: i was a self pay. financially we determined that we could afford it. we are middle class $70k/or more average a year...so we aren't rolling in it, but we are doing better than we could be. So, yeah, we thought of course we can afford the band, why couldn't we. well, let me tell you a $400 a month payment is rough to adjust to..especially at christmas time. and add to that the fact that i NOW WEIGHT 3 MORE LBS THAN I DID PRE-OP. everytime i make that stupid payment..i think in my head..what in the hell did i do..i just spent $15,000 to be reminded every day that i am a failure and i am fat, and now i am paying for it literally. ok, so that is the financial part. everyone has their problems right, so that is no big deal. well, dh and i are falling on hard times financially and i am blaming myself, and he is trying to work more. we used to have enough money in our "bill" account to cover the bills as they came in and to have a month's worth of reserves in case one of us got sick. that way, we didn't have to do the pay check to pay check thing. we have our own individual savings and spending accounts too. well...we've got zilch right now, and i've resorted to finishing up x-mas on cc's. add to that-yesterday i found out that my brother defaulted on a car loan that i signed for him. i have perfect credit...not bragging..but never been late..and i work in finance so..this is a particularly important thing to me. he didn't even bother to tell me, so i get a letter in the mail yesterday that he is almost 30 days late and a payment has to be made TODAY to keep it from being reported (note: previous mention of us being BROKE). OK..so all of that is i am sure circumstanstial..but it is band related. dh and i both missed a week of work without pay when i had surgery. i then have had some days that i have missed in addition due to pains &/or complications. so..that means even less pay. .......again due to the band...then add sick days for problems i had before the band with migraines and fibro. ok..so you get it..money is a problem and it causes extreme stress. well because of it dh and i are both barely on good speaking terms (we aren't admitting that is what the problem is, but i know it is). i'm sleeping on the couch, and i swear that if one more person yells at me or says something negative I'M GOING TO RUN AWAY!!!!!! so i'm stressed..my son is going through a bratty stage..dh and i are having problems, and i'm getting nothing but bitches and moans and complaints and cynical remarks every single direction that i turn. ok...so that is the family related band problems..now i'm taking it to a more personal level: 1. did i mention that i now weigh 3 more lbs than i did pre-op..and i can't button pants that i wore for 6 months prior to surgery 2. i look 6 months pregnant and i have this huge distended abdomen that will not recede 3. i pass more gass than i would ever care to admit. burps come out mid sentence sometimes, and i have these long grotesque 10 second burps that everyone around me can hear even though i am trying to do it under my breath. then..add to that the constant cloud of methane (is that what it is?) that is hovering behind everywhere that i walk. before the band dh had never ever heard me...you know..pass gass...now he hears it like 20 times a night...gross....and it makes me smell. 4. i have no restriction..i can eat what i want..and the tremendous amount of stress that i am under sends me straight to crap food...cheese dip..candy...cheese ball..you name it 5. everyone keeps asking me if i wasted money on surgery and why am i not losing weight 6. i missed my 2nd fill because i had a bowel obstruction, and they can't seem to find TIME to fit me in. 7. i'm having migraines like crazy..(due to stress i'm sure)..and i can't take anything for it because it doesn't work..or i can't swallow it. 8. my work is threatening to lay me off at the end of the year due to absences even though i filed FMLA. there are other things....but i've gone on enough. all of this is causing me to have serious issues with my band. if i could rip it out myself i would, and then i would beat the hell out of a wall or something with it. I HATE MY BAND.... (i hope this will pass, and i already feel better from venting....i had too...i don't feel like i can tell anyone face to face because i am whining..and besides...i don't know any other overweight people with similar issues that i can talk to). i'm sorry for rambling..thank you for reading...or listening. and if you went through something similar, and found success later..please share. i am in desperate need for inspiration.

Too bad dislexi was a 'drive by poster'. Perhaps if she had had the corage and courtesy to return to read the replies, she might have learned something. The world is full of information. As a mature adult, it is MY respondsibilty to learn all I can from informed sources before making my decisions. I come to this site,,as well as other sites,,to glean from it, using others experiences that might be helpful to me. My surgeon is the one I listen to when it comes to basics. I was given a package of detailed informatin about food, exercise and possible complications. THAT is what I follow. What I get here is moral support,,a place to vent frustratinos and share my experiences in my band journey to date. I believe that everyone who has had the band had it done in a sincere effort to help regain some control over their eating problems. Some people are willing to make changes in their lifestyles,,others are not. I can only 'walk the walk' MY surgeon has shown me is in MY best interest. Like any other support group,,,one tkaes with them what they can use,,and disregards teh rest. I look to the experienced folks who are being sucessful in their weight loss journies for support. I relate to the others who are struggling and try to encourage them and offer suggestions,,usually reminding them to do exactly what their own surgeon advised them to do in order to be sucessful. If one takes everything one reads on the internet as 'gospel',to me, that reflects a misunderstanding of what the information highway is all about. Best wishes to everyone here,, Deb banded 1/29/07 Dr Ken Cleveland-CMMC-Jackson, MS

As a healthy young person you are less likely to have surgery-related complications (other than malabsorption). At least that's what I was told by the doctors who did my clearances. I am 25 and just had roux en y I think I made a great choice. I bounced back really quickly too, only 3 weeks out!

I just got my date: December 1. I'm 61, and very excited about this new "tool" I will have in my life-long weight struggle. But I'm also fearful of the surgery, complications, and my reliance on food for comfort. I think I'll struggle with the "head hunger" part of it. But i am excited!

Hey! I just logged in to ask the exact same thing! Id love to hear how others did with recovery after lap band removal??? I had my band out 9 days ago, no complications just a simple removal.....but Im still do tired! I threw up for about 24 hrs after removal and slept on and off for days! Though I turned the corner a few days ago but I feel horrible again today I saw my doc yesterday for a follow up, he said everything looked great but why do I feel like this? Gosh Id perrish if I had to look after a 2 yr old this week! My bypass will be the first of next year.....no date yet.

Hi, everyone just wondering if there's any revision sleeve to bypass patient of there that have United Healthcare. If so was it extremely hard to get approved for the revision surgery and did it take a long time for the approval. Also I'm only 14 months out from being sleeved and just wondering if I would have to go through the entire process again. I'm having extreme complications with gerd not to mention I've only lost about 30-40lbs with the sleeve. My BMI is still over 40 and my health issues have become more complicated. My diabetes is worse than ever, my blood pressure is staying up and the GERD has me in pain and vomiting a lot. Any advice anyone??

Good afternoon all! First I want to commend the bravery of all you for going through with surgery, openly discussing your journey and being supportive of others. I have been around, lurking mostly, for a few months. I was denied in January and thought for sure, that was the end of that. Low and behold, I was wrong and am scheduled for surgery on Wednesday the 9th of September. Yay! While I feel ultimately thankful for a new chapter in life, I can't help but feel nervous, anxious and am having inner dialogue that suggest I should back-out. Is that normal? Is it a sign that I should wait? I just don't know. I love my Surgeon. He is awesome, super awesome and I know I am in good hands. I don't fear the pain, the potential discomfort or any complications; I fear a piece of me will die. food has always been a central theme in my life. I am the "chef" of the family, everyone turns to me for food advice, recipes or the occasional "I NEED YOUR HELP, I don't know how to make Cookies from scratch!" I also have some of my fondest memories with friends, family, neighbors and colleagues around a table heaping with fabulous food. It is a part of my identity and I'm scared that once I let that go, I'll have nothing. I know that is an unreasonable sentiment as I much more than a fried chicken recipe, a raved about potluck casserole or a delicious holiday treat but I have never been known for anything else. My weight and my food are all most people will ever comment on and I guess that is why having surgery is important. I should be defined by more or have no definition at all. Any suggestions? Thoughts or general advice?

Will be praying for you. Sorry you are having complications.

Proximal or distal refers to how much of the intestines is bypassed in the procedure. Though 150cm, to my understanding is proximal, not distal. I'm not sure what number signifies distal though. My bypass was 250cm, so as greater amount of intestine is bypassed. My doc said I should have great weight loss... I think I'm on the low end of average. I've not had any complications, and haven't experienced dumping, but also haven't tested it. Complications of a distal bypass could be greater malabsorption of nutrients since there is less 'space' and/or time food is spent in the intestines to absorb nutrients.

Hello to everyone (pre/post, band/vsg/rny)! Had my sleeve done in Philadelphia on March 2, 2017. It was done at Temple University Hospital by Dr. Michael Edwards. I've been fortunate enough not to have experienced any problems/complications. It is now 4 months & 4 days after my surgery; I'm happy to say I'm down 50 pounds! I began this journey back in June 2016 and weighed 220 pounds.....today I weigh 170.0 pounds!!! YEA ME!!! (Still have more to lose, but YEA ME!!!!!)[emoji4] [emoji4] Sent from my SM-G935P using BariatricPal mobile app

Wow girl you look GREAT!! Im 5 days post op!!! I haven't had any complications. I go Tuesday for my week follow up. Have you been exerizing any? What have done if so?

Hello all, I am about to go to the hospital to get my band removed and be sleeved..I am so nervous of how this sleeve is going to be compared to the band..I've had my band since November of 2008 and it's been a rough road with complications.. band sucked no doubt! I lost 25 lbs on my optifast diet in tell weeks...I've learnt a lot while on my liquid diet about myself and how society views and uses food over the past 2 weeks while on my diet...well wish me luck! -Ryan

I had surgery on 1/6. I took 6 weeks off for recovery, and was back at work last Monday. Things are going amazingly well. No complications, no dumping, no vomiting, no nothing. I work out 5-6 days per week, and actually look forward to the gym. The hardest thing so far is the head hunger. I had some success last week navigating serious food temptations at work, but I was prepared for them and kept my hands to myself. But I fantasize about bad foods all the time and I occasionally put things in the grocery cart that I know are bad choices. So far, I have always come to my senses and put them back, but the fantasies of bad foods rear their heads every few days. I am mostly satisfied with my weight loss so far - it's certainly more than I've ever lost through other means - but I am so anxious to have it GONE that it's hard to be patient. I see some of my surgery buddies and those after me that have lost more than me, and it's hard not to be envious even though I know we're all on our own journey. One thing I did to help with this is to start using an iPhone app called "Everyday". The idea is to take a selfie of your face every day, and turn it into a timelapse video. I started about a month before surgery, and I don't take one every day by any stretch so I don't know that the movie will ever look like anything interesting. But I look at photos of my face on surgery day vs. today and I am shocked and thrilled to find angles where before there was only roundness. So there's that.

I'm single and I live alone. I chose the sleeve because of the easier recovery and lower complications. It also requires a lower level of life long maintenance. I didn't have GERD so the Sleeve was an was an easy choice. What surgery you want is really a personal choice. A couple things to consider is what surgery does your Surgeon perform the most of? That is the one they are probably skilled with the best. And then your other medical conditions. Long term they are about the same as far as weight loss, how much weight you lose is up to you.

Glad you are here to get support. Keep posting and reading...a lot of great people here willing to listen and empathize and provide a hand. Hon, if I had answers on how to not be hungry dunng the preop diet, I never would have needed VSG surgery. HA HA It is hard, torture really but worth every single moment of misery you may endure. Preop diet is for your own protection so during surgery you do not have any complications. Reduce the fatty liver and all. Continue to be strong...you can do this! Also, I highly recommend you read under General Sleeve Surgery Discussions the thread about what will you need for surgery. I personally like for post op, a heating pad, G2 gatorade to sip on (do not want to get dehydrated), decaf peppermint tea, chicken Soup (strain out chicken/noodles and diluted) and wear loose clothing. Found that if I did not refrigerate my drinks, they were easier to sip on. Good luck on upcoming surgery and keep us posted to your progress.

I am from MN!! I am new to this site too. Any support i can find is awesome! I had my RNY July 30th 2012 and have been doing great. I've lost 22 lbs since surgery and 53 lbs total so far. I am really sticking to the plan and have had no complications. I can't wait to see what the next year has in store for me !!

1 night. I was so happy to go home because I could not rest in the hospital. It felt so good to sleep in my own bed. I had zero complications.

I know that OSU has taken someone from up Findley...but she had complications with her original band. But check them out for fills. I'm sure each group has a different policy.

I had the the band in 2007, had tons of complications and had it removed and got Sleeved in Dec of 2010. I did great, lost all my excess weight (110 pounds) then got pregnant, did great in the pregnancy but since having the baby 18 months ago I have gained back 50 pounds. Can't seem to get it off no matter what. Can't seem to stick to my diet. It's like before I was sleeved..no restriction whatsoever, plus bad acid reflux. So I saw my surgeon today to ask about getting resleeved and he let me know that resleeving is high risk for leakage and he recommends gastric bypass I am freaked out by that. I have to have a swallow upper GI xray coming up to look at my sleeve. Am I reading these posts right? Am I seeing that you DON"T lose weight as well with RNY after sleeve as with the original sleeve? I had always thought RNY was the most drastic WLS and the one you lost the fastest with. I am scared to do RNY, scared to have my intestines jumbled around...lol....and scared of the after effects. I lost hair terribly with the sleeve and with all my pregnancies and I am just now getting a normal amount of hair back. I am worried I will go bald with RNY, for real! Scared of the malabsorbtion, which is why I wanted Sleeve to begin with.... Any advice? Not sure I want to do this again...but I am feeling its the only way.

The sleeve can still give u acid reflux issues and the bypass usually doesnt... i do not think u are selfish at all.. u and only u know what u want and need .. i too wanted bypass as i have diabetes and wantes to ensure eating sweets would make me sick so i would stay away from them more and. I have already made the mistake of having a wls i was unsure about when i had the lapband 9 years back. My reflux worsened and i did lose but couldnt get fills any longer due to the reflux complications.. eneded up having gastric bypass on july 29th and so far 44 lbs. Plus my diabetes is under control and i feel womderful. You do what is best for you!!

I was a train wreak. Took an ambien the night before and still couldn't sleep so got up and cleaned the house in slow-motion. The next morning waiting for the procedure I really wanted to leave. I'd had surgery before in situations when I had no choice. Back surgery and a c-section. This felt so different in that I didn't have to do it. I could continue living - a crappy life - but I could. In the end my sister said the most simple and beautiful thing, "You need your power back." She's right, I've given up so much being overweight and unhealthy. What will you get back? Hang onto that as you prepare for surgery. Keep the biggest possible picture in mind. I had a rough start with a couple of random - not gonna happen to you - complications and even with that it was all okay. I'm only a week post-op so I don't want to come across as a vet when I'm not. Just trying to let you know your feelings are normal and show you have the good sense to be worried. Chances are very very slim that you will have complications - and even if you do you and your medical team will get you through them. Is someone with you to keep you from dwelling? Hope this helps. I'm on pain killers still so I may sound a little nutty. PM me if you need support!

I was the same about complications for the first week after surgery and Co constantly crying and over emotional that somthing would go wrong I'm over it now haha complications are very rare Sent from my A1601 using BariatricPal mobile app

Congrats I had my Surgery Sept. 17th Wed. and I had a complication of severe high blood pressure. I was in the ICU for a night and then transferred to the floor for another night. Doing better now but I had a lot of pain just after surgery. (Not sure morphine agrees with me.) Home now for a couple of days. trying to get my Water intake and starting on Protein shakes.... both are hard. I too have sleep apnea but had no issues in that area. The most unexpected thing after surgery (besides the high BP): was the upper GI before they start you on Clear liquids. I thought it would be a scope... it was not. I stood infront of an xray and drank the worst tasting liquid I have ever had.... Best piece of advice: Walk walk walk... I think that helped me and still helps me as much as anything. I did this from day one in the ICU and still get in several walks.. 5-8 times back and forth in my house per day... today I plan to tackle the front steps when the kids get home from school. (I don't want to tackle 13 uneven stairs with no handrail when I am home alone.)