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I think you have to be 100% ready for change. If you needed to pause and think about it, that’s great. Surgery is scary and change is scary. I had major doubts the morning of surgery but I told myself that was just anxiety and went through with it. Bypass was the BEST thing I’ve ever done for myself. You have the rest of your life to look forward to.

I am a little over a month post-op (sleeve) and I agree with some of the above comments I no longer crave most of the foods I craved before surgery. I am very happy that I decided on the sleeve as it was the best choice for me. About which you should go with I would say it has to be a choice made ultimately by you with input and recommendations by your surgeon. I will say that if you intend on making your decision based solely or partially on which one you can eat "bad" foods easier on, you will be setting yourself up to fail before you even begin. Regardless of the surgery, you need to commit to lifestyle changes that include (perhaps most importantly) making better food choices than what you've done that's led you to where you are. Something as sugary as sweet tea is most likely a no-no regardless of the surgery you choose, especially since it's a liquid. With the sleeve, liquids drain through your new baby stomach very fast and if it's full of sugar, it's going to wreak havoc on your duodenum and blood-sugar levels. You may even experience symptoms equivalent to that of a bypass patients "dumping syndrome". It's difficult to think about giving up things that have been so much a part of our lives for so long, but it's the commitment you have to make in order to be successful long-term. Think of this as a reboot, and try to purge all of that bad stuff from memory. A few weeks or a month without it, and you most likely won't even miss it. The other thing to consider is that your tastes may change after surgery. Mine certainly did. Things that I ate or drank before surgery that never stood out to me as "too salty" or "too sweet" now come across as so salty and/or sweet that I have absolutely no interest in them. Best of luck to you whichever choice you make!

I can tell you from my own experience that the hospital process was incredibly smooth. It was kind of like hanging out. Got a beeper when I checked in. Beeper went off, went to the pre-op room, met with one nurse to go over medical history again. Told her I am a tough person to get an IV going and she called a different IV nurse into the room. Changed into the hospital garb, and then talked to the bariatric coordinator (who had been sleeved herself), until the anesthesiologist came in and put me in happyland. Woke up 3 hours later and it was over. The first week was not a lot of fun...the first full day home was the worst as I now had to get my own fluids in. Only pain I had was at the large incision point, no nausea at all. After a week, pain virtually gone. Averaging about 5 lbs lost per week. You will do fine. Complications are extremely rare in this surgery. My surgeon has done thousands of these operations and has never had a leak. Worst case if you have a leak is they do a bypass...not the end of the world.

It's taken me a little longer than the first time to lose the weight post-revision, but I'm a few years older and also I started out a little lower. It's been about 8 months after my surgery and I'm at about the weight I was about 7 months after the sleeve. I'm approaching the lowest I ever was post-sleeve and hoping to break through and go lower now.

I can't speak on revisions but when I was deciding on sleeve over bypass everything I read told me bypass was more effective and my doctor confirmed it. As far as warning signs there aren't any, you will start to feel full and a "heaviness" and very uncomfortable. If you eat too much too fast you may regurgitate/ throw up. Your pouch will only take what it can take. In the 7 weeks since my bypass surgery I've thrown up 2x and each time I wasn't paying attention and either took too big of a bite or ate too much too fast. I also went from GERD every other night pre-op to none post-op. I'm off my Diabetes meds and IBS meds. I haven't had a single regret.

Nice job and congratulations!! Enjoy the yard work and during it tell yourself you’re burning more calories [emoji23] HW 242, SW 236- (Bypass 12/20/17) GW#1- 199 [emoji736] (2/11/18) GW#2- 180 [emoji736] (4/2/18) GW#3- 160 CW 172 5’6”

There are always other hospitals. However, you have to keep in mind that foreign materials in the body have their own problems and complications. Getting revision is a hard decision to make. I postponed for about a year before I finally had the courage to get MGB.

I don't understand getting the revision when you're at goal weight. I understand your concerns. My Dr. Does the Linx Procedure for GERD, have you looked into that yet? Sent from my Pixel 3 XL using BariatricPal mobile app

hi there. i have been on hypothyroid meds for like at least 7 years. i too have struggled with weight and my primary recommended i look into vsg. i know some people develop GERD but as sleeve is the less invasive, that is the best option for many people, myself included. you can always revise if you have to, but many people seem to thrive after vsg though each case is unique in its own way. i've been back and forth but i think this is the best option for me and im sticking to my july 20 vsg date. good luck to you!

Fortunately I've got great ins. No yearly deductables etc. If I'm in an in-network facility with in-network doc, my surgery will cost me nothing. I say all that to ask, now....if they submit a pre-cert for me to have the sleeve and I get denied, do I have to pay for the consult and all the tests that were done? My doc requires a 3 month diet to lose at least 5% of body weight before he will operate. So if the ins won't approve me will I be doing all this for nothing? So sad to say that gastric bypass may be in my future....:svengo:....I know for sure BC/BS WILL pay for that. I do have a few coworkers that have had it and are doing good, as long as they eat right....but I don't want it :lol0:

I was sent the 2 week liver shrinking protocol but I’m ignoring it. They send it to all patients. My liver was fine at my highest weight before sleeve and this is just GERD bypass. I’m just eating as usual.

Had my first appointment with the surgeon and it went well. I chose gastric bypass over the sleeve but I can change my mind. I have orders to get labs done, chest X-ray, psych evaluation, and EKG. They will schedule the endoscopy. The place I'm meeting the surgeon at is 2 hours away and where I'll have the surgery is about 3 hours away so I'm on my own finding local services. Luckily I figured out where I can get the labs, X-ray, and ekg done. Now I have to locate a psychologist. I may have found one but have to make an appointment. I still have to lose 5% but we are hoping my dr has records of me with my higher weight. If we can use that then I've already met the 5%. No matter what August is still the earliest I can have the surgery.

My sleeve to bypass is set for Tuesday March 19th and I too have my doubts about the procedure. I have reached goal weight and regained almost 40 lbs with a hiatal hernia present. My doctor recommended this procedure. Good luck with your decision. It is ultimately ours to make. If I could live comfortably with the hiatal hernia, I would opt out. Sent from my LM-Q710(FGN) using BariatricPal mobile app

I have quite a bit of medication I take daily. At what point after surgery could you take medication? Did they need to be crushed or chewed? I don't get to talk to the pharmacist until final approval. Cross-posted. I meant to write this in the bypass forum. Oops.

Hi! So I received the RNY gastric bypass on September 23, and just got home out the the hospital yesterday. 11 days in the hospital. I'm in a crazy amount of pain and it's really hard to do simple things like getting out of bed and going to the bathroom. My surgery journey isn't at all what I had planned. What happened was after the first surgery, on the 23, I was throwing up, weak, and other gross things. The doctors checked on me every few minutes because they were worried they were going to lose me. So they rushed me to a different hospital for surgery number 2 to fix the problem found in the c t scan. They said I was born with an abnormally shapened stomach and it has always been larger, and that the weight gain my entire life hasn't been my fault and it was a medical issue! If I hadn't of gotten the surgery they said my stomach would have crushed my spleen. So the second surgery gave me a Omega Loop to help alter routing of my insides. So many things are horrible and went wrong, and I'm really starting to think this was the wrong thing for me. I'm eighteen, and this has been an abnormally amount of anxiety in my life. I have to drop out of classes this semester and quit my job to focus complete on healing. I just needed to share my story so far and look for some encouragement. Also, I'm hungry, is that normal? I'm worried that this didn't work. I eat my puréed food plan me always feel hunger after and like I can eat more. Advice?

Hi all! My surgery date will either be the 20th or the 27th. I am hoping for the 27th since it will tie nicely into my paid holidays at work! I am so very excited. My only regret is that I didn't do this earlier. Until this past summer, I didn't know that my insurance had made the approval process so much easier. You have to have a certain BMI or a slightly lower BMI and 2 health issues like diabetes, pre-diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol etc. No pre-surgery dietician or nutritionist, although my surgeon required 2 appointments and I am glad he did! Another big shock was that my insurance now considers the skin removal as an included surgery since it was the result of the treatment for a disease (obesity). 18 months post op, as long as the weight loss has slowed and can show a steady weight for 3 months, the removal is covered. I have the required cardiologist and pulmonologist appointments for final surgical clearance next week and I do not expect to have an issue. I'm excited and so motivated. I look like my mom, who looks like my great grandmother. Hearty stock I say. My mother had bypass 14 years ago and is still keeping it off and super healthy. She was pre-diabetic, hypertensive, etc at the time and now at 70 she only lakes a multi-vitamin. Ok, well, nice to meet the rest of the December Sleevers!!!

BarryW, Christinamo7, 2GoldenGirl, all your reccomendations and suggestions are much appreciated. The complications from the hip revision surgery have left my range of mobility diminishing rather than improving and advancing. Thank you for the information, I will discuss this matter further with my Physical Therapist and my Doctor. As far as the protein mentioned by 2Goldengirl, I have a whey liquid protein(42g) in the am and my whey protein shake at night. The Optimum Nutrition Salted Caramel flavor is my favorite and it acts as a "sweet treat" at night. May I congratulate all of you are your weight losses!

Hello there!! I will be having my 3rd wls on Nov 1. I started with the gastric band, but because of "band slippage" I had to have it removed, and converted to a gastric sleeve. After 5 years, I am now having problems with severe GERD. I will now have to have my sleeve converted to a gastric bypass because of it........So my opinion would be go straight to a gastric bypass...

Hi, I'm curious what your iron level was? I've always been iron deficient but not too bad. Just had my Levels checked and my iron is super low. At what point is infusion an option? Band to Vsg revision: 5/23/17 HW: 315+ Starting weight: 294 Surgery Day: 281 Current: 226 Goal 170

So happy for both of you! I hope I get to meet my goals also pray everything goes well. Still debating on sleeve or bypass. Now did you get any loose skin? How many weeks did it take you to heal before exercising??

One thing most of these replies had in common was that everybody was afraid of becoming a stereotype. I am a CST and for sure, I always felt like I didn't fit up at the table. Like some of you, I have seen what biscuits can do to a belly, back, bones, feet, and oh the hernias that I have seen in larger patients! The ulcers, the hardend vessels and plaque removals, oh and the bypasses.....Like you, I just didn't want to be one. Knowing all about general surgery, staples and roux en y surgeries (which aren't just done for weight reduction) I was terrified of the risks. Lap Band, while rather new to me is the best choice I have made. No regrets, no depression and no struggles with food. No cravings and little hunger. I feel blessed! Congrats to you who feel the same. I was back at work within 5 business days. My only issue is trying to get in the H20 while being scrubbed most of the day. Any suggestions?

You know what it sounds to me like you have done a great job of doing what you set out to do on the surgery, so my suggestions to you is that maybe it's time to let the cat out of the bag and let the people that your close to know. You shouldn't have to stress about going to dinner with friends or meeting with family and worried if they will find out. You have done this for yourself and who cares if they don't approve after it's already done, they have seen the results obviously. I think now you can just be like here I am and this is what I had to do to get my health in order, and if you don't approve well it's not your life and I am sure everyone will accept the fact that you did it, cause they love you, and they want to support you, but man I give you big props for doing it all on your own. That's insane, I had the lapband surgery prior to me now going in to have the bypass, and I remember how that was and I can only imagine how much worse this one will be and so I think your pretty amazing and I don't even know you!!! You do you, no worries about what others think!!!!

I'm 65 and should have been through with that sh*t years ago since I had an early menopause in my early 40's. But I STILL wake up every night with hot flashes, and they aren't JUST hot flashes-they are accompanied with this weird gut squeezing sensation. I wonder what they are going to feel like after my bypass. Maybe go away?🤞

jj..i completely agree with you. Now, I am just beginning the journey to make this decision (I have considered bypass before, but did not go through with it as the recovery time and evasiveness worried me). This year I have already slowly began making changes in my health (more Fiber, less fat, more whole grains, switching from regular to diet sodas, etc). I am now enrolled in a 4 month weight management workshop where they work with you on making small changes in your diet and activity levels. I am committed to losing weight in this program and then I will decide if WLS is for me, because I would never go through it with out knowing I can make the changes. Maybe i feel this way because my insurance requires losing 10% of your highest weight, so i have to do it any way, but I still think it's a good idea to counsel patients pre-op on lifestyle changes.

Well I recently wrote about me having my surgery May 1, 2017 and I thought I was feeling fullness or gas. Well it was not neither, for my two weeks of me being home and doing my liquid diet I was unable to tolerate everything I tried to eat or drink. I could not even take down a 1/2 cup of broth it would take me all day to finish and still at night I would throw it out, jello was not even sticking, popsicles, protein shakes, and a 16.9 oz bottle of water would take me two days to drink. I would experience pain so bad and fullness from anything and me thinking it was fullness I didn't even think about going to the doctor yet knowing my first appt was coming up on May 11th but each day I was getting weaker and light headed, dizzy and just didn't have any energy at all. The past Tuesday I didnt make it out of bed at all. I slept all day and was freezing cold just not one bit of energy but I noticed I was losing weight everyday and of course that was me thinking I'm doing good. I literally lost 18lbs in a week. Finally on Wednesday I was getting worse I felt like I was floating on air when I walk, or even sit in the chair. I was so dry and light headed that when I stood up I fell back down thats when I called the doctor to ask what I could take. He was saying since my appt was the next day at 1:00 just come in that morning at 8 am and get some Gatorade to help me get my electrolytes flowing. I thought ok maybe 5 minutes later he called back and told me to go to the ER cause he knew I was dehydrated and he would see me tomorrow. So I had my husband take me and told him I would call him when I was done thinking I was just getting some fluids and I would be on my way NOT.. I got in there they took my vitals temp 103.1 blood pressure 159/114 heart rate high they immediately put in a IV heart monitor, EKG just rushed to my aid took so much blood work, chest xrays, and finally a cat scan and that's when it showed I had a leak and had fluid sitting outside my stomach on 5/11/17 that's the day I felt like I failed they took me down to radiology and pulled the fluid out which was painful all I could do is cry and think the worse. They didn't want to perform any surgery they felt it would be best to go back to my surgeon and let him take over since he performed the surgery. They took the fluid out 4cc and sent it out for testing then they transported me by EMS back to the facility where I had the surgery where they admitted me again and now I have to be monitred, can't have anything by mouth everything through IV. I'm in so much pain my head hurts, I'm extremely thirsty, and still having the fullness feeling which I know is just coming from the leak I just hate myself for having the surgery when my family was against it and I feel like I failed them and myself. Now I'm antibiotics thru the iv Tylenol for the headaches thru the iv even they feeding me and giving me nutrients thru the iv and this morning I have to have a procedure when the find a vein that's going from my arm to my chest and that's how I will be getting everything I need. Then they will be placing a stint in my stomach and a tube which will hopefully fix what's going on and if not I will have to have another surgery and they will be doing the gastric bypass. I asked the doctor what did I do wrong he said it wasn't me its all technical and it's just something that happens to 1 out of 100 people and I had to be the 1 it happened to. I'm scared to death I cry and pray that I get out of here I just put it all in Gods hands cause I know he will take care of it all. Just asking everyone who reads this to say a prayer for me cause I can sure use it. I'm sorry to have kept going on and on but I just wanted to share my story please don't let my story scare you if anyone is planning on getting the surgery do it everyone is different I know once they fix me back up I will be back on getting myself back healthy and so looking forward to a healthier lifestyle, and being able to move freely without all the aches and pains that I had before due to all the weight on my knees and feet. Well I'm going to end now just want to tell everyone who will be having surgery or has already had the surgery good luck to you all, and to keep up the good work.. God bless you all[emoji4][emoji4][emoji4] Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using BariatricPal mobile app