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My port flipped and I had to have surgery to correct it. Sometimes they can just tilt and they might be able to still access it. However, in a case of a full flip, the problem is that you can't get fills, which stalls your progress. I found out 8 weeks after my surgery that my port flipped when they couldn't access my port. I went in for revision surgery and it was a much easier recovery than the 1st surgery.

OMG, the wait is finally over! I have been APPROVED for surgery!! It's been a long journey, but the day has finally arrived and the wait for insurance is over!! My story: I began my journey to get the Band back in Oct'10 when I switched insurances so I could get it covered! I sought out a doctor that was in-network and had a Center of Excellence. At my first appt in Jan, it took literally 4 hours. Seminar, nutritionist, then consultation with the doctor. During this appt they told me I would have to pay $600 out of pocket for a "program fee" as well as $200 for the pysch eval. OMG, WTF? Why? My insurance pays for all diagnostic testing and 100% of the procedure! I was totally pissed!! (I have Fed-BCBS) Well, I stayed with this doctor because I didnt want to start the process all over again and have to wait for an appt. I did my psych eval, and they submitted to insurance for approval. I had a 3 month supervised diet with a "diet doctor" about a year back so I thought that would be sufficient for the 3 month supervised diet. I called everyday to insurance to see if I was approved. By day 3 insurance told me that they have been trying to get in contact with the doctor's office for 2 days w/out a response because the 3 month diet is too old! OMG, I was devistated! I called the doctor's office with no luck either! I called again the next morning and was only put on hold!! OMG, my blood is BOILING now! These people never took my phone call and never called me back!! (I hadnt paid the $600 yet!) Luckily I had a co-worker who actually had the sleeve done and she referred me to her doctor and told me to contact them and see if they could investigate this 3 month diet thing for me... I did and OMG, what a breath of fresh air this office was!! I wasnt even their patient and they are calling all over to see why I wasnt approved!! How awesome! So, she found out the 3 month supervised diet must be 3 months PRIOR to requesting surgery and must be with the surgeon's nutritionist! WTF??? I have to start all over and now have to wait 3 flippin months for the Band??? OMG, this fat is killing me!! Literally!! I took this oppertunity to do some research and discovered this site. I read ALL the posts about the revision from Band to Sleeve and read Tiffykins story, as well as others, and realized that maybe this 3 month postponement was actually a blessing!!! It actually saved me from having the Band installed!!! They say everything happens for a reason?! Well, this was my reason!! To decide on the Sleeve, a surgery that would actually be best for ME! Anyway, to conclude my long a$$ story, I switched doctors (obviously!) and completed all my requirements, submitted to insurance on 11April and waited in agony for 3 days, hoping I wouldnt get another set back from insurance!! Well, I got word yesterday that I have been approved!!! I am so relieved and happy and excited! I am scheduled to transform my life on the 26 of April!!!! Cheers to all...

Hi, I live in Detroit and my surgery is tomorrow morning. I'm having a revision from a band to a sleeve. Sent from my SM-T820 using BariatricPal mobile app

Alex, what made you choose the mini-bypass over regular gastric bypass? But back on topic: I had sleeve surgery in Tijuana with Dr. Garcia of Tijuana Bariatrics. I liked him, and had no complications, but I have not been wildly successful losing weight. I considering a revision surgery.

Yes. I had RNY in Jan 2005. I lost nearly 100 lbs. In Jan 2009 I started gaining weight. After falling into a severe depression after a horrible divorce I turned back to food and stretched my pouch out. I recently had a revision to make the pouch and it's opening smaller.

I am scheduled for MGB surgery with Dr. Cazares at Oasis of Hope Hospital in Tijuana on March 28th. This will be a revision from VSG in 2015. I am extremely nervous to say the least. Has anyone used the physician or facility and can provide some better insight. I don't want my nerves to talk me out of this, but want to know I'll be taken care of!

Before my body lift I was at the 'green zone' at around 7.5cc in my 10cc band. After my unfill, I needed 8.5cc to get back into the green zone (and stayed there for 3 years). After two port revisions, I now feel good restriction at around 9cc but it doesn't last because of the leak, but I expect that my green zone will be around there or slightly more if not for the leak. Who knows what it will be after I have band replacement. tmf is right, it doesn't really matter as long as you get there. It can be frustrating when you need so many more fills than anyone else to get there sometimes, but once you're there, it won't matter, really.

I am so sorry you are going through this. It does seem terribly unfair. I would speak to your doctor, but I still think that you will still succeed. I was lucky not to be a revision but I had a month stall like this so understand a bit what you are going through, minus the family pressure. Just try try try to stay positive and keep staying the course. We will support you as much as possible but the strength comes from you and I believe you have this, otherwise you never could have undertaken another surgery to fix your health. You deserve to be healthy and I know it will work out. I wish I had the answers but since each of us is different and has different issues I would not even try, except for the general accepted guidelines, which I am sure still stand for you as a revision.

I had to re-finance my house in order to pay for this surgery and I am single on one income. I really started out looking at other surgeons as they were more affordable but in the end... I was going alone and wanted to be in the best hands possible. For me... he was the best choice and I felt the best chance I had for having a revision without complications. My band has been in for 9 years and I just can't imagine the mess he might find! There are a lot of skilled surgeons in Mexico... and I am sure you can find one that fits your research and can provide a safe surgical experience. Just be sure to talk to as many people as possible and don't make price the first priority.

I had my revision on September 10, 2012. I went to Dr Fernando Garcia, an amazingly skilled surgeon in my opinion. There are many posts on here about him and he is well liked. I went through ready4achange and I do say that having the surgery was the best thing I could have done for myself.

Welcome Becky! There are more than a few MX band revision patients on here as I'm sure you know if you've been reading a while. I'm typing this from Mexico actually. I had a great experience here, heading home tomorrow morning. Look forward to seeing you on the forums.

I recommend that you talk to Lori Wrights who is a coordinator with Dr. Ortiz's office. Lori was my coordinator and she is a patient as well. She had the band and opted for revision surgery to the sleeve. Her surgery was the same day as mine... April 16th.. She is a wealth of knowledge as well as a good friend and will answer any questions that you may have. All the best!!!! Emily

I know exactly that feeling ! I have decided to go with bypass because of the reflux issues I have and I have Esophagitis as well , I had initially wanted to revise to sleeve but after getting my Esophagitis diagnosis from my gastroenterologist, and with the research I did , it didn’t make sense to me to go with the sleeve . It took a lot of research , talking with a counselor about me weighing my options to have made the decision to go with bypass . I am having surgery on 8/13/2020 . I am looking forward to this new step in my journey . But I’m fully committed and ready for it !

Female: 42 at the time 2009 (insurance covered), HW 232lbs. Best weight 143lbs. No problems with band till the slip due to a bad stomach virus in 2017 (diff, insur, and not covered) had to pay apx 5k OOP, still 143lbs. No doctor would do a revision as they all said.... I "didn't weigh enough". Fast forward..... 2017-2019 I put back 30lbs. Came to the conclusion that I would have to go to MEX to get a revision. May 2019, I finally got my divorce property settlement. Headed to Mex. But then as luck would have it, I found a dr. 10 min from me. I still had to pay OOP, and it would be more, but I would not have to fly and all the other humbug. So I paid OOP 14k for a revision to the sleeve 8/28/19. I was 173lbs, today i'm at 123lbs. Was your removal done in an outpatient facility or in a hospital? Surgery center. Was a hospital stay required? One night How long did the surgery take? 30 min. No scaring, no erosion, no GERD, pretty open and shut. SX said if band had not slipped, I would still have her. What was your experience after the surgery? Lots of pain? How long did it take you to recover? After SX I had a little gas. I had no pain at all. SX was on Thursday and I was back at work on Monday. Was your removal covered by insurance even if WLS is not? It was not. Sleeve SX was just as easy, less the one week liq diet. Sleeved on Wednesday and back to work on Monday.

Hi I have been having the same port pain that you describe. I have pinching and pain when I move or twist in a certain way. I was just wondering if your pain and pinching ever went away or did you require revision surgery? I have been having this for over 2 weeks now ever since I picked up a 35 pound dog. Well I hope to hear back from you soon. Thanks in advance. :eek:

Thank you for the responses. The surgeon did casually throw out that if I develop GERD I can be put on a prescription for it, but I wasn't a huge fan of that attitude. Part of the reason for getting the surgery is to get off the medications I'm on that are related to issues caused by obesity. So the thought of having to put on something new due to the surgery when I was really hoping the heartburn would go away was a bit of a downer. I'll try to get my anxiety over it in line and just wait to see what the Endoscopy says. The surgeon I have has been doing this a long while now, so I should probably listen to him. It's just the self pay and thought of needing revision for GERD later that is giving me the ickies.

My being afraid of bypass is what led me to the disasterous decision to do a band to begin with. I have realized very much the hard way that I should not make medical decisions based on things I am afraid of that I have no expertise whatsoever in and that I should listen to the people who do have the expertise. I went to my revision doctor wanting the sleeve. He suggested bypass as a better option. Thankfully this time i listened. I ultimately realized this was the best course to take to avoid the risk of yet another revision. And I'm done with bariatric surgery! He was right and I'm mad at myself for wasting 11 years of my life in denial with the band where I could have just had success and eliminated my health issues in one fell swoop instead of trading them in for The new ones the band caused.

My revision was on the 7th so far so good. Down 12lbs.

Hello there First off, I hope that your surgery went well. I'm thinking of having my band to sleeve revision with Dr. Lopez in Guadalajara and I was wondering what your experince was like. I would so much appreciate your feedback as I can't seem to finda as much info on this Dr as other Dr's in mexico. Many thanks! Hi Helen, Dr Lopez has his own company called Specialized Bariatrics. I am having surgery with him on 3/7/14 in Tijuana. I will be posting my experience from beginning to end.

Hello there First off, I hope that your surgery went well. I'm thinking of having my band to sleeve revision with Dr. Lopez in Guadalajara and I was wondering what your experince was like. I would so much appreciate your feedback as I can't seem to finda as much info on this Dr as other Dr's in mexico. Many thanks!

My surgeon recommended starting with the sleeve, and then at a later date it can be revised (if needed). If you start bypass then the sleeve would do no good.

I am scheduled for a sleeve revision to gastric bypass, however I never heard of a mini bypass. Can you explain what the difference is?

Oh God, Okay, so first I suppose I should give a little background about me.... I decided on 11/4/08 that I would look into Lab Band per the request of my pcp. My aunt and I decided to do this together as her endo has been after her to have the surgery for a year. Had our first appt at NEMC in Boston 12/15/08. They said banding wouldn't be an issue and thought it was a good choice because of my weight and blossoming health issues (high BP, chlesterol, diabetes). I was 242 at that visit. They told my aunt to think about bypass, because of her age, the amount of meds she's on to regulate the same problems I have and she is a heart pt. too. I went in last weds 1/14/09 for Immersion Day, where you meet with everyone and their grandmother (except for the surgeon). The shrink used the same arguments for the band to tell me to think about bypass! My aunt, they still said consider the bypass, which she is. Needless to say, I am a little wigged. The bypass to me is SOOOOOOO totally different than a band. Its like rewiring your insides versus sticking a scrunchie on your stomach. Plus there are more complications to think about, dumping syndrome, food intolerances.....and (I apologize if I offend anyone) I dont think I am sick enough or large enough for the bypass. Again, I dont mean to offend....I just think of the bypass as something more drastic for larger people with more health issues than I have.... So I need some advice, input, and HEEELLLLPPPPP!!!!! In a perfect world I would lose 100 lbs. Realistically, I'd like to shoot for 80-90 from my highest weight of 242. I know it will be harder with the band. But I am already down 10 lbs!!! Do I want to end up not losing weight and have to have a revision to the bypass? HELL NO!! Do I want to lose too much weight and look emaciated? NO THANKS! Do I like that its harder to lose with the band? NOPE Do I like the idea of rewiring my insides? NO WAY JOSE! But I guess I like the idea of working harder to lose the weight better than I like the idea of rewiring my insides and all the extra risks and side effects of a bypass...... Any help, questions, input, ideas or other thoughts are greatly appreciated!!!!

Hi everyone! Today marks one year since I got my lap band revised to gastric bypass. I've lost a total of 87 lbs so far. 275 to 188. I am 5'5" so I still have about 30-35 lbs I'd like to lose. I was very discouraged a few months ago, but I left my pity party behind and made sure I was sticking to eating well. This is not always easy! I have an appointment with a plastic surgeon in late August. I have some sagging skin on my stomach, inner thighs, and arms but nothing too horrible. Also of note, I have PCOS, which always made it harder to lose. The surgery has definitely helped with this and it seems to get easier to lose weight the more weight I lose. It seems counter-intuitive but I think the insulin resistance that often comes with PCOS has abated. I'll attach a before and after pic. Picture 1-I'm on the right holding my new nephew last June. Picture 2-selfie! Picture 3-me in the middle. I posted this on purpose so you can see that I will definitely need a tummy tuck.

Hi! I had a lapband to bypass revision yesterday and I am home today. I feel pretty good, but the pain when it hits is terrible. Can anyone tell me how long their post op pain lasted?