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recovery time was quick! i had first lapband placement in november of 2005....a revision in august of 2006 and then the larger band april 2.....i rested one day and was up and at em wednesday, the 4th.....i'm a nurse, so didn't have to go back to work til the sunday afterwards....the 8th.....however, i could have functioned at a desk job or a light lifting job by wed or thurs of the operative week........very easy recovery.....now i'm looking forward to getting a fill soon.......i feel great!

I hear people saying "He is sick and should be punished." In another thread in this section of LBT, someone writes about the Dr. Phil house (TV show) and the people who are "sick" because of their prejudices. It is easy to single out people who are "sick". If I had cancer, would you want me punished? Just about everybody (except for people who will read this and say that I deserve to die for my attitude) would say no. If I was an alcoholic, would you want me punished? Many would say yes, because I should be able to control myself, BUT, many others would say, "no, it is a sickness and he needs help". I am FAT, do you want me punished? Many would say yes, because I should be able to control myself and do punish me in the form of discrimination, BUT, others would say, "no, it is a sickness and he needs help". If I was a pedophile, would you want me punished? Most people would say yes, because I should be able to control myself, AND, few others would say, "no, it is a sickness and he needs help". Why? Because of the victim? Do we abuse alcohol or eating because we have emotional problems? Does a pedophile abuse children because of an emotional problem? Many if not all pedophiles were abused as children. "Who cares?", I hear. They have to take responsibility. But if you are reading this, you probably have a Lap-Band, but if gastric bypass surgery had not been invented, the same could be said about you (and me). Should we give this(or any) pedophile a medal, or should we coddle him (or her)? NO! Of course not. Should he be separated from society? Of course! But not in a prison where the other inmates are not sick, but in a mental health facility where he should get counseling 8 hours per day, not the one hour per week as he would get in a prison. And these Megan's law are one of the first steps toward all of us losing our freedom. If pedophiles were handled as sick people requiring medical treatment instead of as criminals, we would not have the specter of the government punishing people even after they have finished their sentence. If a person is still sick, they belong in treatment. When a person is no longer sick, they deserve to be free. Treat pedophiles and help them, because they are suffering the same way we suffer. While we are feeding our faces, we are in Heaven, but soon after we return to the Hell of knowing our failure. Do not doubt that many pedophiles go through that same situation. We are sick and they are sick, and it is a medical health problem in each case. All those wishing that I would die of cancer can now respond.

Thank you so much for your comments! I was only thinking about the sleeve until yesterday, when I saw the Army surgeon who will refer me to the bariatric Dr. She had told me to not dismiss the bypass because she thought it was the best option for me. That scared me! I've actually been up since 0230 thinking about it. You make a valid point about reversible about permanent removal of most of the stomach. You've actually given me some relief! I think I'm just caught up in the whole idea of everything. I know how to lose weight, in that I lost over 100 lbs back in 2002. I was able to keep most of if off until 2012. I was hurt in Afghanistan, came home had 5 orthopedic surgeries and could no longer work out 6 days a week, 2 hours a day. My weight has just snowballed. I will never be able to workout again like I used to be able and I can't keep weight off without high intense physical activity. Guess I'm in that 95%, who can't keep weight off. Thank you so much for your support. I've just started the process so I'm sure I have several months ahead of me before the actual surgery. Best wishes for both of you. I look forward to watching your progress. Bonnie

That is weird I thought people get losing weight week after week. I get my surgery(bypass) on 01/19. What is this 3 week stall you’re talking about?

Two bands to bypass lots of scar tissue and adhesions 2/6/13. First 2.5 weeks lived in recliner chair. Everyone is different. My thought was sleeve but learned that I would have to have band removed recover be tested for Esophageal motility if was ok then another surgery for sleeve. Besides my good friend had a sleeve did good 6 months out now she looks like she gained it all back. The short of it was I would bypass the stuckness caused by band that could happen again with sleeve, for me my to band surgeries were easier than my conversion and I wished my surgeon would have warned me about the pain of cutting muscle/nerve. HW 250/1st Lapband 198/2nd Lapband 232/Pre conversion 2/6/13 to bypass 232.....Current 211

I said all that to say that this is what they do to prepare for bypass surgery for ppl with fatty livers and it works even better so it's now it's own stand alone procedure. You will be fine If you ate a lil bit but if u tell, protocol may have rescheduled.

I figured since so many people have revisions from sleeve to RNY, I’d just have RNY to begin with. Higher weight loss and keep more weight off longer, per data.

I have spoken to the doc and he recommends gastric bypass but I am not so sure I want that, I think I like the idea of the sleeve better. Does anyone know what the major differences are?

For me it's because of my acid reflux. I know a lot of overweight people have reflux that goes away with weight loss but mine is just hereditary. I have had reflux since I was 16. I was 115 lbs. My surgeon agrees that because of my family history (mom and grandmother both have severe reflux) that bypass is the way to go. Sent from my SM-G950U using BariatricPal mobile app

I am now considered “in remission” from Type II diabetes. For me, this has been THE most important, most profoundly significant benefit of my RNY. My last A1c was 4.8. I never had high BP, but given my weight and the diabetes, I know it was only a matter of time before the other co-morbidities caught up with me. Aside from some vitamin deficiencies (which I can live with and address with supplements), I have not regretted my decision to have gastric bypass surgery.

Feb 4th gastric bypass.. now have no more sleep apnea... no high blood pressure and no more freeking acid reflux !!... I do now have better self esteem and a new lease on life!

Thanks Jersrose43! This news makes me feel better. I will wait to see what the doc says and then decide. I was told this doctor prefers the bypass surgery and really pushes it but I've heard so many success stories with the sleeve.

i had lapband done in 09, had my son in 2011, lost a total of 120 pds. I had a breast Aug. done, as I went from a ddd to a b cup. I also had my tummy done last summer. I can say that it was the best thing I did. My insurance covered the tummy part. I found out last month that my lapband caused my Hiatal hernia and I was able to get the revision to bypass. I can say that I should have done this before hand. I feel that the only thing that I will have to have done is my arms. I gained back 50 pds and I have lost about 25 of it before my surgery on the 30th.

ROBIN, My preop diet is liquids only. I have cheated several times with a hard boiled egg or a slice of turkey or chicken. Nothing like the cheats I used to do on diets. I am allowed to drink 5 low calorie, low fat, high protein shakes a day (my doc lets me choose out of 5 different brands.) Nothing is provided to me. I purchase them locally. Since I'm a revision patient, and need two surgeries, I've been on the diet for over a month now and I still have 13 days till surgery. I'm SO TIRED OF SHAKES. I swear. I only had 315 calories yesterday because I just could not force myself to drink another shake. I just couldn't. I can't wait for this part to be over!

Was sleeved on June 24. Never had heartburn or acid and I do now. Doc says it usually lasts small amount of time maybe 30 days. I take omeprazole once a day and it's tolerable Doc said if I had regular heartburn he would do a bypass. But i never had it ore surgery

I had gastric bypass in Feb...so I'm a little over 4 months PO....I too was afraid of dumping but I knew at the very beginning of this process that I wanted the gastric bypass. I think I had one minor dumping episode early on...I ate some creamy peanut butter too fast and I was uncomfortable for about half an hour....since then I have avoided peanut butter! I haven't vomited or had instant diarrhea from eating anything yet....I don't seem to have an issue with small amounts of sugar. I have only eaten whole wheat bread toasted...too afraid to try the really bad stuff like white bread, cake and doughnuts! I hope I continue to have that fear...lol...Good luck choosing!! Btw...my reason for choosing RNY was because of the long term data available , helps with heartburn ,and that you are suppose to lose a bit more then with the sleeve.

How did you make a decision on whether the bypass or sleeve is the better option? I'm really fearful of "dumping" with gastric bypass. I HATE being nauseated! When I read my own question it sound ridiculous, but this is really a concern for me.

Hi there! I live in the UK and i understand a lot of people on here are from america but im hoping i can google the equivalent here. So im a year post gastric bypass and had a lower wisdom tooth removed friday and came across the problem of not being able to take ibuprofen, ive been taking paracetamol (actually taking anadin extra before learning we arent supposed to have aspirin either! Oops) and rubbing ibuprofen gel on my jaw but its made me wonder, what the heck do we take for swelling and inflammation now?? Im going to ice my jaw because its still slightly swollen but im curious about the future and painkillers Sam

Averaging 18 pounds a month is great! I think many people here have unrealistic expectations of how fast they will lose post-op. There are so many factors: did you have sleeve or bypass? Are you male or female? Was starting weight/BMI high or low? etc. No two people are alike, and no two people will lose weight the same way in the same time frame. You're only 2 months out. Do you really think the weight loss is going to stop suddenly? I know it's hard not to compare yourself to others, but really, the only one you should be comparing yourself to is... you! What was your weight loss like before you had the operation? I know for me, the most I could ever lose was about 10 pounds a month, but after a month or two, the weight loss would plateau and creep up again. What are your body measurements like? You may find that you are losing inches, even if the scale is stalled. How do you feel? Do you have more energy? Do you have less pain (if you have it before)? There are so many non-scale victories to keep track of. Even for me, the last two weeks have been a bit of a downer, as the scale hasn't budged (but it finally did today). That said, even though the scale wasn't moving, clearly something was happening because I suddenly found most of the clothes I was wearing were too big - pants and skirts literally falling off my body, shirts so baggy it was embarrassing. So I've done another clean-out of my closet and I'm happy that I am starting to fit into size 16 bottoms, something I haven't been able to do for over 10 years. Anyway, focus on your NSV's, stop comparing yourself to others (social media is great for support, but it often can create false expectations based on what others are projecting out there), and relax. Hope you start feeling better about this soon.

With the gastric bypass procedure, there are also other problems. For instance, "dumping syndrome" which is violent vomiting. It often comes after eating anything with sugar in it. My daughter had the gastric bypass surgery and I had lapband. She still, after 6 years, has dumping if she eats more than a bite or two of anything with sugar in it. Gastric bypass surgery is also "malabsorptive". Which means that because of the surgery you don't absorb all the nutrients that you need. So you have to take vitamins to make up for this. There is also that whole thing of bypassing part of your stomach and re-routing your intestines. It is a much longer period of recuperation. And of course, because of the faster weight loss, you have all of that loose skin to deal with. It is also non-reversible. So even though my daughter is one of the success stories, having lost "a whole person" and kept the weight off for 6 years and counting, I am very satisfied with my own decision to have lap band surgery instead. Even though I am fairly new along the way, I have lost 25 lbs in a month and a half, and still going strong. Just my humble opinion.. But you are very smart to investigate all of the angles before you make a final decision.

I do know that it will take us three years to lose the amount of weight that a bypass patient will lose in one year, so if you were to have lap band, you would have to have patience. Being 60, I felt that this (band) surgery was less invasive for my older body but at 38, this is probably going to be totally your decision. What I would do is talk to my surgeon / Bariatric Center about the risks and rewards of each. With either surgery, you certainly are taking the right step to a longer healthier life with a lot more quality to it! Congratulations!

When I had surgery 4 years ago, my surgeon recommended 3 Flintstone complete chewable multivitamins daily. Since at the time these vitamins were readily available in large bottles at Sam's club, that is what I went with. But Sam's club has transitioned to gummy Flintstones which cannot be used for gastric bypass patients. The chewable are still available in small bottles at drug stores but they cost more. But they are still available in large bottles on-line at Amazon.

My doc sends you home on 3 tablespoons of puréed meat 3 times a day, for two weeks. No veggies for 8 weeks, no fruit for 3 months, no dairy for 6months and no starches for 9 months. I'm going to ask about some of that as they give gastric bypass and band people the same guidelines. I know that because the last NUT class there were people getting all 3 procedures. I want to follow my docs orders, but I'm getting the sleeve to avoid the issues the other 2 have!

Hi everyone! I’m about a month away from my gastric bypass surgery and I have started to do some research on the vitamins and other medications I will be taking after surgery I’m regards to headaches and pain I usually take Advil, but due to the risk of ulcers after surgery I cannot take it anymore. I find Tylenol doesn’t work for me and I was just wondering if anyone had any suggestions on what they use to manage headaches and pain that won’t do any harm. Thanks all!

I’ve been an ibuprofen user my whole life. I had to switch after my bypass. I take the liquid Tylenol if something is really hurting, like cramps or a headache. It has been an adjustment for sure.