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The decision is a very personal one to make. Only you can decide which surgery fits your personal needs and lifestyle. I can tell you MY reasons for going with the band. I am a cancer survivor, if I were to have a recurrance, I can be unfilled to up my nutrition intake. Nutrition is an issue with bypass, you lose weight because of lack of absorption of the food you take in. When you are ill, you need good food to heal. That was a biggie to me. The same reasoning holds if you were to decide to have a child. Unfills during pregnancy assure the baby proper nutrition. The studies of pregnancy following bypass were kind of scary to me, to be very honest, I just glanced over them, it was not an area pertinant to me at the time!!! The studies into obesity and WLS's are growing by leaps and bounds. With the band being totally adjustable, as well as removable, if one of scientists out there, discovers a magic cure, I am eligible! For instance, right now they are testing a new band that is tightened by remote, eliminating the need for ports, and saline....no needles. If this shows to be the better band, I can have mine changed! There has been no re-routing of my intestines, everything is still there. I had serious eating issues. I too love sweets, but felt I could deal with limiting them better than being told I could not have them period!!! I wanted to eat cake with my grandbabies on their birthdays. And I do. I am just happy with a very small piece , I do not want the whole cake. But I would have not dealt well with not being able to have sweets period---the dumping involved was a HUGE turnoff! Many say they can eat unlimited sweets even with their band, I cannot---the desire is not there, too much---is just too much! I hope that the lessons I am learning from eating with my band, and the proper nutrition I am learning from studying how to eat healthy, will be lessons I have for the remainder of my life. If something should happen and I were to lose my band---I want to have learned something. I do not want 5 years down the road, to just continue to take supplements, and suddenly realize I can eat a full meal again the super sized kind. I want to do my part, and learn while I lose. Learn proper portion size, and what foods to fill up on....food, not pill supplements. That was a little too much like an episode of the Jetsons to me!!! Those were my big decision makers.....not that they mean anything to you---only YOU know what type of life you want to lead, and how your eating got you to where you are today. Research lots, and you will figure out what works for you!!! Good Luck!!! Kat

Hello, has anyone had revision from sleeve to bypass? Was it hard to get insurance to cover it?

I am scheduled for bypass on 9/16/13. I am so totally thrilled to be approved. However, I feel like an emotional basket case. I am crying at the drop of a hat! Is it possible that the wall I have built around myself with food is already crumbling? Has anyone else gone through this pre surgery?

Surgeon said bypass as i have diabetes. ..he said 78 percent chance i will be diabetes free after surgery...pretty good odds so im 98 per cent yes x

Hi, I am considering Bypass surgery after being banded for 6 years. I have had my band removed and have around 4 weeks until Bypassed. Can anyone tell me how long I could expect to have a leak after Bypass? Is it something that happens in the days and weeks after surgery, or could I have a leak years later?

I was told to walk as much as I was able from day 1, but other more strenuous exercise should wait till my 3 month check up. But I had a hernia repair at the same time as the bypass, so this may be specific to me. I'm thinking about starting a dance exercise dvd soon though as it's just a bit more energetic than walking.

bypass the dr's office and go to your insurance company. I received a bill from the hospital for $12800 and it is because they filed it as my surgeon, anesthesiologist and hospital as all being out of network! I had to literally call them weekly to make sure they were staying on top of it and getting everything refiled and in the end they sent ME a check for over payment of approximately $98. I researched the surgery for 2.5 years before doing it and knew exactly what I would be responsible for out of pocket and kept ALL receipts and correspondence information between myself, the hospital, dr's office and insurance company. The dr's office doesn't care whose oversight it is as long as they get paid. Contacting your insurance company and making sure they filed everything correctly is worth a shot. Good luck!

It's really difficult to stretch your pouch to the point that it will make a big difference. Or so I've read. I think the more common reason for weight re-gain is grazing, snacking, and slider foods. Of course do your own research, that's just what I've seen. I chose bypass because its been around longer and because the weight loss is slightly higher than with the sleeve. I also like the idea of possibly dumping. I feel I might need a little more incentive to eat right occasionally... Also because if all goes horribly wrong you still have all your parts floating around, and I assume they can put it back together if needed. Granted it still won't be the same as it was. but it makes me feel better to have all my pieces.

Thanks for the tip about having fruit with dinner, Susanbee. That seems like it would be a very good way to "wash" down food. I'm so glad that you're having such great success. Good luck, Regang. I hope you hear back from your insurance soon. I have some good news. I went to a seminar with a different surgical group and had a completely different experience. The doctor was very positive and gave a more balanced view of the lap band procedure. I also went to the seminar equipped with a lot more information after spending hours reading this site. I'm going to call their office in the morning and schedule an evaluation and cancel the appointment I made with the other office. I do think that if the doctor that actually performs the lap band surgery, rather than the gastric bypass specialist, had presented last week's meeting it would have been much better, at least for me. I'm glad, now, that it pushed me to find another office.

As far as the sleep machine goes... They will send it home with you and you bring it back a few days later. It records all your information and they just plug it into their computer and read it. If you don't like bulky stuff on your face ask for the pillow instead of the Mask before you take it home. The pillow is a small little thing that goes under your nose as opposed to the whole mask that goes over your face. Hopefully your insurance covers the machine because I'm pretty sure they're going to tell you you need it. I swear It's their way of making a little extra money. I graduated 8/12/16. They took awhile to call me to schedule with the therapist and doctor (2 weeks past from graduation and I still haven't heard anything) I had to call and request a call back which happens pretty quick. Unfortunately they were booked so I had to wait two weeks for both appointments, each one was one day apart but they want you to have both before you can see the surgeon. The day before my doctor/ bariatric doctor appointment they called me and said he called off sick. So that put me back another 2 more weeks for the rescheduled appointment. Just don't miss the appointments and hopefully they're not fully booked like they were with me. After I walked out of the doctor's appointment they said I would hear from the surgeon's office within a week. From my experience and everyone else I know you get this call within a day or two most the time it's the same day you hear from them so when I waited three to four days and still didn't hear anything I had to call the Kaiser office back and sure enough they forgot to send my file over to the surgeon. She said she would do it right then and there ...no more than an hour later I got the call. That was on a Wednesday, the surgeon scheduled me that Friday Oct 21st. The surgeon gave me his first available appointment which was November 30th. I asked to be put on the cancellation list being that I'm a stay-at-home mom my schedule is completely open. He actually ended up having a cancellation that following Monday LOL. I had my surgery Monday October 24th. So it came up fairly fast on me. So be sure you ask to be put on the cancellation list!

If I had it to do over again, I wouldn't choose lap band OR RNY bypass, but would choose DS or VBG instead. You get better weight loss with the last two and less complications. Perhaps you should look into all of the bariatric surgery options to help decide which is best for you.

entwife, I'm so glad that you posted. I'm learning so much from reading about other people's experiences. I have one person that I know personally that had the lap band, but she lives out of town. There's no way I would have gathered this much info without this site. I hope you get some tips on how to lose a little quicker, but it sounds like you're doing very well. Going down several dress sizes and getting your blood pressure under control is wonderful. I know I'll go through times of feeling discouraged too, and I hope to lean on this community to get me through and for encouragement to continue. anitaj, you've given me a lot to think about. I wouldn't consider gastric bypass at my current weight, although I have a lot of weight to lose and fear the continual upper climb in pounds as my metabolism slows with age. I really do see that a last resort proposition, and I had no idea of the bathroom trouble that people experience. I really can't decide what that doctor's motives in not supporting the Lap Band treatment. I do think he truly believes in the gastric bypass as a life saver, but it seems like a sledge hammer solution for someone like me. As far as questioning about the Lap Band removal, I'm not going into this with a defeatist attitude. I just want to be sure I understand all the ins and outs. If I were to have an adverse reaction to the band (erosion, slippage, etc), I want to be sure I understand what my options will be. If I decide to get banded, I'm going to be 100% committed to success. For one thing, this is coming from our savings (our insurance doesn't cover it), so I really want to be sure this is an investment that will not be wasted. I think after trying Weight Watchers several times, physician assisted diet meds, plus all the self inflicted yo yo dieting it's easy to become cynical of ever keeping off the weight. As you were able to tell from my post, I am very concerned about hunger. I'm so glad to hear that it hasn't been a problem for you. I know everyone will have different experiences, but I left the seminar with the opinion that hunger was going to continue to haunt me indefinitely. ~ kiz

You sound like me, GramaLisa. I want to read up on everything I can get my hands ahold of, to make the most informed decision possible. After I finish reading here, I'm going to look into ordering the book your nutritionist recommended. I'm sorry to hear about all the difficulties your friends at work have experienced with gastric bypass. Some of those are heart breaking. I don't know how I could cope with gaining all the weight back after going through such a life altering surgery. I hope you hear back real soon from your insurance. Thanks for your kind words, froggi, but I'm not surprised, because you come from a great part of the country. My husband and I were born and raised in Parkersburg. We haven't lived there for years though. I think you were probably a little baby last time we called Parkersburg home. Where will you have your surgery?

Hello everyone. I have so many questions and concerns. The message board has already been very helpful to me. I'm 46 and have been considering the surgery for about an year. My bmi is 39.5, so I think I can put on the extra couple of pounds to qualify for the surgery without too much trouble. :wink2: I went to the doctor's seminar the other night. It ended up discouraging me more than anything else. The doctor who spoke is the head surgeon, and he's not very supportive of this procedure. He is top in his field in gastric bypass surgery, and he highly recommends it over Lap Band. He has surgeons in his practice that perform the Lab Band surgery though. A couple of his thoughts (my paraphrasing): 1. It does nothing to relieve the constant hunger. 2. Over the many years he's practiced medicine, he's seen several restrictive surgeries come and go, and he said in Europe, where Lap Band has been used for several years, it is falling out of favor do to its less than favorable results. After reading this message board, one of my concerns is the inability to drink fluids during meals. I can give up my diet coke addiction, my rare beer, and bread, but having no fluids during meals is going to be hard. I also was under the impression that the surgery was much easier to reverse than it seems to be. I'm worried that like all the other diets I've tried, that I'll not lose, and I'll be stuck with the Lap Band. I'm self pay, so I won't be needing a insurance authorization. My doctor's evaluation is scheduled for next month. Thanks for reading ~ Kiz

I'm approaching three month out from my surgery. I started with a BMI just a little above yours. My decision to have the band instead of bypass was based on the fact that the band does not require permanent re-routing of my digestive system. I was never comfortable with that concept. As for hunger....even though my band is only at 2cc in a 10cc band, I rarely feel true hunger. When I do, I stop to think and it's usually been four hours or so since I've eating....a small snack, such as a handful of grapes or a string cheese stick, will hold me nicely until my next meal. I do constantly battle with the 'head' hunger.....boredom, snack attacks.....but that's getting better as well. Fortunately my doctor was/is very supportive of the band. She does both procedures almost equally, but gives each patient the pros and cons for both procedures. The outcome, a ways down the road, with lap band and bypass is practically identical so it made no sense for me to have the more invasive procedure. I am also a self-pay.....the difference in the price between the two procedures wasn't a major factor, but certainly lap band is less expensive.

Hi Christan I'm rather a newbie in a different way. I just had my RNY surgery on September 5th, was in the hospital for 2 days so this was my first full day home. Things are going pretty good. I have to be on blood thinner shots for 3 weeks , the stuff is lovenox, guess it is doing its job , my lower belly looks like someone took a lawn roller to me, but at least I have lessened my chances of throwing a pulmonary emboli or having a stroke. The actual incisions are pretty okay, its the Technicolor tummy that gives me a jolt. But I feel whole lot bettter, better than Even I could guess. And Christian if you doctor advises you a bypass accept his suggestion. I will lose my weight faster than my sleeved sisters as a rule. But then we all are indivuals, and there may be some that no nobody was enough, seldom,loses at the same rate. As a guy you will lose faster than us girls. But I wish you well, and BYPASS-VILLE is as nice a place as SLEEVE-TOWN. So makes your choices and start a new life.

I chose bypass because of the dumping, I needed that sense of secuity. Also I want my diabetes to go away. And with the malabsorbation period will help me the most.

Welcome! Sorry about the bleeding trouble. I'm sure your scars will fade to nothing-much. Mine did. I had 5 incisions twice and only about three of those are visible. Don't be in too much of a hurry for that first fill, you are still healing. It's important to let yourself heal completely to avoid trouble down the road so follow your doc's instructions about exercise and foods to the letter. (please) I'd bet you will bypass your goal weight and keep going. I'm 5'7" and 150 and you are just a tiny thing. (soon to really be tiny) I'm four years out from my surgery and the best advise I can give is to be patient with the process and with yourself. You are attempting a major lifestyle change and that is SO difficult. Cut yourself a break when you falter. Just pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and get back on the "bandwagon" without recriminations. It takes a long time to lose a pound of fat. That's a deficit of 3500 calories. Unless you workout like a mad fool, losing 1-2 lbs a week is just fine. The band really helps with the patience. It keeps you from the "oh what the heck" moments that wreck a weeks efforts. Good luck on your journey,

I was banded by Dr. Ortiz in Mexico in January 2005. My total weight loss over the next three years was 130 pounds from my highest weight, 110 pounds after banding. My decision to go to Dr. Ortiz was cost - my insurance didn't cover bariatric surgery and I absolutely do not regret my decision. The procedure was still new in US in 2004/2005. I had a surgeon friend who performed my fills "blind" whenever I needed more restriction and we truthfully were "winging" it. I did ultimately have an overfill, but ignored the signs because I loved the weight loss. The price I paid was that I needed an emergency unfill (my surgeon friend moved to another state). I went a year with no/minimal restriction but had actually gotten too thin and needed to gain 15 pounds. I maintained that for about a year, then decided to get a fill. It was then (I only had approximately 2 cc in a 4 cc band) that we figured out something was really wrong because I became severely restricted and had an unfill again. The UGI revealed band slippage. I am waiting until after January 1, 2009 to meet with my new band doctor to decide what to do. I am self-pay because I no longer meet the criteria for bariatric surgery (or do I?). I'm not counting on BCBS to pay for this but I will probably go along with the surgeon's recommendation. I hate going into debt for this, but I hate being fat more. This is my story. Whatever I have had to go through, it was worth it to be thin again. FYI, my mother was one of the first gastric bypass patients in the US in the early 70's. She die four years ago, it did extend her life, but the quality of her life the last 10 years was pitiful. Land Band surgery spoke to my heart. I liked having my stomach and intestines and not dealing with malabsorption, etc. Looking forward to hearing from anyone who identifies with my issues and now problem of band slippage. I did it to myself - stress, overeating and mad vomiting. It still involves being able to control yourself and I wonder if I can do it without being banded. Probably not . . .

Hi Mili, I was initially going to have the lapband also, mainly because it was reversible and I was so sure that after I lost my weight, I could have it removed. I stumbled across the sleeve option while reading about the lapband, and decided it was a much better choice. I also met a gal locally who had the surgery - and she has gone from a size 22 to a 6 in a year. Totally amazing. As far as complications go - there is always a risk when you are sedated. If you have never experienced that before, it can be scary. I often will wake up teary but that goes away quickly. People have this surgery everyday and if the complications were high, you would hear about it. What made me the most comfortable was knowing that many had gone before me, traveling to Mexico, having the surgery and flying home a few days later. I figured it just couldn't be that bad and risks were low. Also with the lapband, I was concerned about having an object in my abdomen and wondered if the port could be seen. The thought of fills also didn't thrill me. Even tho I have had several surgeries and donate blood, I still do not like needles! Keep doing your research and ask lots of questions so you can be comfortable with your decision. As I slowly tell more people about it, most are supportive (to my face, lol) and only a few grill me. Most of them tho have no idea what it is like to be heavy, only think "bypass" not understanding the difference with the sleeve and think having surgery in Mexico is crazy! Ok. Maybe it is just a little, but it worked!! Good Luck!!

I go in this Thursday 5/21 for my gastric bypass, and I have had a few slip up on this liquid diet, happen to anyone else and if so how did it go for the surgery?

Welcome! I was a self-payer too and it was worth EVERY penny. I wasn't interested in gastric bypass either. I originally wanted lap band but my surgeon recommended VSG. I am SOOO glad he did as I LOVE my sleeve. I hope your insurace comes through for you but if it doesn't and you have the means to self pay then go for it.

Shirley you might want to hop onto the LapBand boards. The folks who had your procedure may offer you better insight than those who had bypass. Your food list, and reactions may be very different from ours.

I also share the same fear that I will not lose enough weight, particularly not get to my goal weight- I refuse to operate in the place of fear. My surgery date is on 24 November. It's been a long time coming as I am self financing. I look forward to it! I enthusiastically look foward to having 'after' pictures. Sent from my SM-G935F using BariatricPal mobile app

So i went to the doc not to long ago and i Have to get two opts in one! they found stones in my Gall bladder and now they may have to take the whole thing out ALONG with gastric bypass -__- (sighs) ughhh this entirely too much u guys.