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Are you on the small side? That may be why the doc chose the small. Most docs choose the regular size because most of us have a thick fat pad over the belly/ribs and they want to make sure they can access the port center. I have lost most of my wt and will have a port revision to the smaller port so it doesn't stick out the way the bigger one does. Best wishes. Mimi

just adding my 2 Cents worth. I do not drink with my meals whatsoever, as one, it is painful when I have tried in the past and two, if you eat some and then add something to drink after getting your pouch partially full of food, you increase the pressure on your pouch which over time could lead to pouch dilation and slippage. So as for me, I don't want to risk that again (I had revision for slippage) and will just opt to not drink even sips with my meals and wait one hour after to drink anything. I usually pop in a breath mint after I eat to get the taste out of my mouth. Hope this helps...

hiya blossom my surgeon says that as long as i can have fills that there is no need for a revision. This is because mine has only gone sideways and not done a complete flip. I think that because it just needs to be massaged back to the right place for the fill it shouldnt be a problem. he did say that another doctor might not want to fill me as it would not be a straightforward procedure but im fine with that as i had planned to have all my fills done by him anyway.. He also said that i would find it near impossible to have it filled with out it being with flouro because of how it was positioned. On a lighter note he also said that as i lose weight it may even flip back so i will keep you posted. I got to keep the xray pics they took from the flouro and its kinda neat to be able to see my band and port and have a look at them from time to time to remind myself what a brilliant tool i have inside me love tracey

Hello Everyone, I know it's been a long time since I posted. But i'm mad. I went for my 1st fill today and it did not go well. It seems that my port has flipped somewhow. So I wasn't able to get a fill. I have to go back in a week or so to have revision done. But, it's going to take longer than that since i have to wait on referarral from insurance. I am just so discussted (excuse spelling). It just seems that if it weren't for bad luck i wouldn't have any. I'm just destined to be fat for the rest of my life. Ok that's one story, I went back to work last week, things were fine, but now i'm off another week already my back went out on me, my doctor says it's a pulled muscle. I really don't think so. I have been sleeping sitting up in my recliner chair for 3 nights now. I can't lye down it I do I get excrutiating pain in my back when i try to get up, and then my back starts throbbing. I am not having a good year so far. And to top this off on jan 1st my brother and I took my sister and her 3 kids back to minnesota and on the way back we were caught in a bad ice and snow storm and my brother's van broke down on the interstate, neither of us had a cell phone. we managed to get the van to a gas station which was open 24hrs. and luckly i had my AAA card we were 77 miles outside of whenre my brother lived in Millwaukee, Wis so they towed us there. I then had to take a greyhound bus back to chicago the next morning, and the ticket agent had a bad attitude. Ok i've blown off enough steam. So as you can see i'm not having a great year so far. But I do that God for another day. I hope all is well with everyone else. Sincerely, Fran banded12- 02 - 04 Dr. Horgan University of Illinois, Chicago

I'm 13 days post op revision to rny and I'm having the same problem. The only shakes I like are Herbalife and they don't have enough protein and are higher in carbs than I'm supposed to have right now. I'm really struggling because I don't like the protein waters either. Nothing tastes right.

This happened to me after revision as well. The premier shakes that I loved before revision no longer taste good and do not stay down for me. The powdered syntrax and the slimfast high protein premade are the only ones that work for me now.

It does get better. To this day I still can't eat Campbell's tomato soup though. I am going to copy some soups that I made during my last "too tight" episode. I know you don't want soups, but that is really all you can have right now besides smoothies. For smoothies I would take Low Fat yogurt (I can't do milk since after surgery) so sugar free Hershey's Choc syrup, Peanut Butter, unflavored Protein powder (though can be omitted) and ice and blended it to a thin smoothie. You can do the same thing with fruit and yogurt (or use milk if you tolerate it). As for soups I ate pretty much tomato soup and cheddar cheese soup. Okay for the soup recipies: Soup recipes Roasted Tomato with Roasted Garlic This recipe yielded about 1 cup. Ingredients: ½ container of grape tomatoes 4-6 cloves of garlic (depends on size and strength of garlic desired) 4 oz of silken tofu 2 TBSP of fresh basil (2-3 tsp of dried basil) Salt and pepper to taste Directions: 1. Peal the garlic and wrap in a small piece of aluminum foil. 2. Place the tomatoes on a cookie sheet and spray with PAM, sprinkle with salt and pepper. 3. Put the tomatoes and garlic in a 350 degree oven until done. a. Tomatoes will burst and shrivel a bit b. Garlic will be soft and mash easily with a fork c. Tomatoes will probably finish before the garlic 4. Place the tomatoes and garlic in a food processor (or blender) 5. Add the tofu and blend until almost smooth. 6. Heat through and add the finely chopped basil at the end. 7. Simmer for a few minutes to let the flavors blend. 8. If necessary thin out with FF evaporated milk. Grilled Asparagus Soup Ingredients: ¼ pound or more of asparagus 2-3 cloves of garlic (depends on size and strength of garlic desired) 4 oz of silken tofu ¼ small onion (more or less depending on taste) ¼ -1/3 cup of LF shredded cheese. Salt and pepper to taste Directions: 1. Either boil grill on BBQ (much better!) the asparagus until just undercooked. a. To grill on BBQ spray with PAM and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place in aluminum foil if you do not have a flat grill on BBQ. 2. Sautee garlic, onions and cooked asparagus 3. Place veggies in a food processor (or blender) 4. Add the tofu and blend until smooth. 5. Add FF evaporated milk until correct texture. 6. Heat to desired temperature Sautéed Mushroom and Tuna Soup (This was my way of eating tuna noodle casserole…soup style!) Ingredients: ½ pound or more of mushrooms (any kind will work) 2-3 cloves of garlic (depends on size and strength of garlic desired) 4 oz of silken tofu or white Beans ¼ small onion (more or less depending on taste) 1 can of tuna fish Salt and pepper to taste Directions: 1. Sautee mushrooms, garlic and onions until desired texture. 2. Add to food processor or blender. 3. Add 4oz of silken tofu or ½ can of white beans (depending on your taste!) 4. Add drained tuna fish (or any other canned fish) 5. Puree to desired texture. 6. Heat and add FF evaporated milk to thin if needed So as you can see, the base for these soups is pretty much the same. If you don’t like tofu I would assume that white canned beans would work just as well. Experiment with different spices, add a little parmesan cheese, or different veggies. Right now you shouldn’t be worrying as much about calories, but rather about healing. If you would like add meat to any of these it would work just fine. Ground chicken, hamburger, and ground turkey all pulverize very well. You will most likely just have to thin it out with the FF evaporated milk. That one ingredient has changed my way of cooking. Once you graduate to real foods you can have chicken Alfredo for VERY few calories by using this one ingredient. Another soup that has good flavor is to just take some refried beans and beef stock. It has a lot of flavor and a lot of protein to keep you fuller longer. Also take some spaghetti sauce and add some pulverized veggies to it and it makes it better. Adding some pureed white beans also helps it feel like more food. How much longer do you have on liquids? I am really good at revising recipes so if you send me something via a private message I could probably figure out how to make it into a liquid. This is how I survived! Hope this helped a little!

Welcome.. I am scheduled to have the sleeve on Oct 19. Can't wait..You will find a lot of support here. Many have had the revision from the Band to the sleeve with great success..Good luck to you.. Connie

Facebook can be the Devil sometimes. It is for that reason I have created an alter ego Facebook page. The truth is unless you're in the WLS community they simply won' understand. Then sometimes your WLS friends won't either! Anyway, I at least get far fewer asinine statements from individuals who have no clue what its like to be "me". Just keep doing you, and have your revision. You WON'T regret it. I know, I'm a revision from band to sleeve too!

Just got the okay from Kaiser to have WLS. They want to do the RNY bypass instead of the sleeve because of the success rate with keeping the weight off long term. They also said that because my weakness is sugar, it would be better at keeping me on track... I'm guessing because of the dumping that people experience after eating sugary foods. I was hoping not to mess with my intestines and keep my plumbing intact, but I also don't want to have the sleeve and end up having to get that revised into the RNY because it isn't working for me long term. Has anyone else here had their DR. tell them something like this?? Kaiser said they only do sleeves on a few select patients.

Welcome, I am glad your doctor suggested the sleeve. We have a lot of band to sleeve revision folk here. They will be able to give you a lot of support and I think you will be amazed by their success. I actually was just reading the lap band talk forum, a few friends post over there and I was reading thread after thread of poor results from the lap band along with the many ongoing complications that can pop up at anytime from the band. I have to say I am very glad I did the sleeve instead. Keep us updated!

@ I was 302 pounds the first day I met with my program director. I am 5'2 and that is 160 pounds of extra (unnecessary) weight I was carrying around, all day, everyday. Two weeks into the program I was moved into "group" meetings and there I met women from different points in the same journey. Until that first meeting, I was going towards Sleeve surgery as it seemed less invasive (it isn't), less restrictive (it is but that isn't necessarily a "good" thing) and didn't seem as drastic (umm, you completely lose part of your stomach, that's pretty drastic). During that meeting I met six ladies who had all had sleeve done and were getting revisions to Bypass. When I asked "why?", they all had a similar story. They never reached goal weight, they were still battling comorbidities and they had horrible acid reflux (worse than prior to surgery). Two of them had actually been LapBand patients prior to getting Sleeved and were now faced with a third WLS. In total, there were out of the thirty people on the program (at the same time I was) 12 of them were Sleeve to Bypass revisions. Those revision stories and the fact that I already had horrible GERD, my surgeon and I decided Bypass was best for me. He also felt that due to my obesity, my obesity related issues and my age, (30's) Bypass was a better fit. I have lost seventy pounds since having surgery on September 9th 2015 and have absolutely no regrets. None. Not a single one and everyday I feel better and better. I am off all my diabetes medicine, my blood pressure medicine and my labs are spot on with taking my Vitamins daily. Which is something I (and many others) should be doing regardless of surgery. Many obese individuals were not getting the right nutrition from the foods they were eating, anyway. I am in no way trying to persuade you in one direction or the other. I am not a medical professional and all I am offering is my story. And the reason I decided to have Bypass over Sleeve. Good luck on your journey!

I was also in the city this past Saturday, doing only a bit of walking. I drank a good 24 oz. of Water before I left my home (on Long Island), took a train to the city, walked 10 blocks to the theater, sat through the entire play, including intermission, walked back to Penn Station and took the train home -- and only then finally went to the bathroom. Actually, no -- right after I walked in, I took the dog out first, changed the cat's litter...and then went. I'm the type of person who can't make it through the night without a trip (or two) to the bathroom, so yes, definitely, water loss through perspiration can really throw one for a loop! By the way, lexy, you really should consider revising your name to SexyLexy -- you are GORGEOUS!

Can I chime in late? I initially wanted a bypass in 2006. My dr told me about the band and suggested it as being safer as I was young and a single mom. I had the band placed July 3 2006 and I lost 124 lbs in 15 months. I was a model bandster even appearing in commercials for my surgeons office and being selected to audition for an Allergan (makers of lap band) commercial. After 3 years, I started to get horrible heartburn, then acid reflux with aspiration. At that time, I had no insurance and couldn't afford to see my surgeon. Quickly I realized what foods would go down easier and I gained 75 lbs back. Finally may of this year, I was diagnosed with a prolapse and slip. I started researching those issues and found that sooooo many people were having issues with their bands after 5 years. I started going back to support groups and participating in online forums and the people that were 5+ years out were almost all having similar issues. I was shocked! I totally thought I was the exception and not the rule. A great deal of my banded buddies were looking into revisions or just having their bands removed. There are still a lot of people out tgere that believe in the band and are successful but I would say most of those people are 1-3 years out and still in their "honeymoon" phase. My advice to anyone who is considering the band would be to consider the sleeve first. But if that's not an option for you, make sure that you will have enough money or good insurance to cover fills and very likely complications down the road. It could be something small like a port flip but nonetheless, the band requires a lifetime of maintaining it. And if you do get the band, don't ignore the signs of a slip. Get in immediately and do a barium swallow. It won't change the outcome but it could decrease the other complications. I loved my band when it worked but in hindsight, I wish I would've chosen another surgery. I am a month out from having my band removed and 2 weeks away from being sleeved. I can't wait to start my life over again.

I was originally banded 11-24-09 and everything was fine at first the weight was coming off as long as I got the fills. then I noticed tht I started throwing up so much bc thts what other people were doing tht I thought tht it was normal n I didnt get alarmed...anyways so because of all the throwing up my band slipped 3 times n the pain was soooooo severe tht I had to go into the er. so each time my band slipped they took all the fluid out of my band and sd tht it will correct itself in aout 3 weeks so now I had an empty band with out any limits...I though tht I was in food heaven bc I was now able to eat any and everything.....so here comes the weigh eventually I havd to have surgery to habe my band revised 06-09-11. I have about 13lbs to lose in order to get bk to my 150lb and it is kind of hard to do. its like starting the process all over again and I just need some encouragement....hopefully no one had to go through wht I did if so Im here to let u know tht We can do this and be sucessful Again!!!!!!!

Research both carefully. Some surgeons don't even do the Lapband anymore though, because of the high rate of complications. I had lapband and was happy with it for years until it slipped on me. By the time I had it removed I had massive scar tissue and adhesions that had to be removed before my surgeon could do the revision to Sleeve. Everyone that was in my original Lapband group has had it removed now due to erosion, slippage, or just scar tissue build up. I personally wish I had just done the Sleeve to begin with.

I felt the same way over there. My own mom thinks the LapBand is the most awesome thing in the world. She's had hers for almost 2 years, and she throws up, pb's, slimes, can't eat some days, but she just thinks that is "normal". When she found out I was switching to the sleeve, she was livid. I hope through your research you find the best surgeon, and surgical option that is best for you. My hunger level is completely void, and I'm 3 months out. I had a flipped port that went untreated by my original surgeon and I revised to the sleeve due to pain and my quality of life was deplorable with a different surgeon. The port actually moved, and caused tugging on the band that was attached to my stomach. It was horrific. The sleeve has been great for me. I had complications post-op, and have my own unique struggles every day. But, my successes outweigh the struggles, and every day gets a little better.

Is port revision the same as going in and moving the port? Let me know if that's what your dr decides to do and how it goes. IM LORI - I don't know if you were asking me, but my port is on the left side, right under my ribs and off to the side a little bit. And mine can't be my gallbladder, since I don't have one anymore. I believe it is the port rubbing on my rib...ouch!

I researched it pretty heavy. I went into the the process pretty convinced that I was going to do the lap band because I wanted minimally invasive. I never seriously considered the bypass for the same reason. After research and talking to people I found out that the maintenance on the lap band is much more time consuming with all the "fills" then I found out that the lap band is slower than a sleeve. Then I began to hear horror stories about lap band failures that required a revision to a sleeve. I am now post op 3 weeks. I started at 502 two weeks before surgery. I am down 73#s already with no real pain or strain (except the clear liquid diet which got easier after 3 or 4 days).

The 10 year Swiss study also supports the Dutch results. It hasnt been a success long term. And erosion of the stomach is a real concern.My experience long term confirms this and after 7 years I'm revising to bp. Sent from my GT-I9505 using the BariatricPal App

Dr-Patient, Band2Sleever; Thank you for the help. I will certainly use your ideas/guidelines as I write and revise my letter.

I couldn’t help but reply. A friend of mine had lap band done at 15, and just recently had revision surgery for vsg at 23. The surgery was initially successful but she slowly gained all her weight back. I live in New York and almost all of the surgeons on the team at Mt. Sinai (uptown) don’t perform the lapband due to low success rates

Here's the biggest key; you titled this thread "diet cheating". I'm not dieting. A diet is temporary. I'm in this for the life style change. I want to learn to properly manage my eating and portion control. I didn't go through months of preop testing and surgery for nothing. I want it to be the start of a new leaf on life. I'd be more concerned that it appear that except for the Peanut Butter you are eating junk food. You want mashed potatoes? Boil your own. You then control the sodium and other artificial ingredients in it. You have an opportunity to make it healthy. I have no idea what canned meats are, but you probably could eat that if it's cooked soft enough and you're taking your time to chew it slowly. My advice would be to talk to your nutritionist about your cravings and come up with a plan to address those cravings safely. It is possible to out grow your sleeve. I was in a support group with a woman who did and she was trying to convince the insurance co to do a revision to a bypass. I don't think you want to do that.

I had the lapband in jan 09. I'm a revision surgery patients going to the RNY.

I'm a little over 2 months post-op (VSG to RNY revision) and am averaging 676 calories a day. I am on the fence whether to up it or ride the honeymoon wave. I asked my surgeon on my first post-op appointment, and he said to stay around this calorie range to lose more weight, that's about all the information I got.