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I will be a revision from the lapband, which was put in by Tricare, my surgeons nurse is concerned that BCBS wont pay to have the band removed. Has anyone been in this situation? Also I just started going by to the surgeon's office to get fluid out, I had been miserable for a year, throwing up and discussed changing to the sleeve. I had regained the weight I had lost. The office wants to have me make several appointment before the submit my paperwork to the insurance company. I have done my nutrition visit and my psy visit. I was so depressed today because now I don't have a clue when I will get this band out so that I can get a second chance. Has anyone experienced this? Did you get approved. I would love to heard some feedback. The office also said she can submit my paperwork now but if I don't get approved, I only have one appeal. Should I wait and make several appointment or try now, I am so ready to get started. Thanks

Bcbs denied my revision two days before my scheduled surgery (I had already been on the livershrink diet for two weeks). I fought them all summer, but finally it was a combination of hiring a Lindstrom Obesity Advocacy lawyer and my surgeon doing a peer-to-peer that got them to overturn the decision and pay for the surgery. I had jumped through all their hoops- six month doctor-supervised diet, etc. Don't give up hope! Denials can be overturned.

Since my revision I've picked up a strange new habit. I still think about food quite a bit, although I still average 970 to 1000 a day. I'm upping it slowly for maintenance. I'm going on my one year revision surgiversary in August. I love shopping online and get all kinds of food but I literally have a room full of food in sealed containers. If there is any emergency, I would have about 3 months of food or more haha. My poor husband has to eat the overfull freezer and fridge food that I buy. I used to have an empty fridge and freezer and eat out all the time (pre WLS srugeries) but not in the last year. Maybe because I've been cooking a lot at home and I want all the ingredients at my fingertips. I was wondering if there is anyone like this out there? Although it makes sense given my long history with my love for food, It's still so bizarre to me.

I had RNY 21 years ago, I'm scheduled for a revision from proximal RNY (standard one most people get) to a Distal RNY where they make the roux limb longer by bypassing more small intestine than they do on the standard RNY. I'm getting this distal revision done Monday March 21st (6 more sleeps! Yikes!). My Dr says he does them as out patient, which kinda boggles my mind (I figured at least an overnight stay), and I'll go home same day. Has anyone else experienced this? I know there aren't many distal rivisioners that I've run across.

I had my Mgb revision from vsg on 2nd October 2018 does dairy products case flauntence and dihareia after Mgb? Do these symptoms last long or they go away with time?

I went for my final doctor appointment before my surgery on July 22nd today. My insurance has approved me for band to sleeve revision all in one surgery. I remember my doctor mentioning when we first discussed revision surgery that it is done in one surgery unless there is a lot of scar tissue or something. I didn't think too much about it because I've never had hernia surgery or gall bladder or any other abdominal surgery other than the lap band. So today he tells me that most of the time the revision is done in two surgeries! I am really upset. I can't take time off work and burn up sick time, money, energy etc on a third surgery! So I guess my question is how many of you were told it might be two surgeries and woke up sleeved? Do most doctors just say that to cover the behinds?

My doctor said 1 surgery, and it'll be outpatient. I will be the first surgery that morning since it's a revision from band to sleeve (instead of just a sleeve). The more complicated the surgery, they are usually the first surgery scheduled. I'll be able to go home the same day in the early evening if all goes well. I think it may be about money too. In the USA, there are so many hoops. The sleep test alone they charged the insurance $6K. CRAZY!

Here... they are not allowed to do it in one procedure.... there is a minimum wait of 3 months from band removal before you can have a revision. Basically they say it is to allow your stomach to heal and for the area around your band to go back to its original shape.

I'm also a band to sleeve revision. I loved my band the first couple yrs - till it slipped and I started having problems for a year. Until I didn't. Had the sleeve been offered to me 4 yrs ago, I probly would've taken it, but it was either the band or bypass - and the bypass was too scary for me. Do ur research. Go onto the lapband support site and look at the complications forum. Probly the biggest forum around. Try not to 2nd guess ur decision. Ull probly do enuf of that post op - when lots of people have Buyers Remorse. Good luck!

No revisions in my future. I was cash pay for the lapband, and have wls exclusion on my insurance. I'll be back to the battle we've all had... however, my doctor is sending me to a nutritionist, and I am going to continue my daily exercise, and see how it goes. I'm not looking forward to it, but hopefully since I will be trying to maintain, and not have that huge mountain in front of me (of losing 90 lbs) it might not be quite as bad. But I am not kidding myself, it's gonna be a battle. Seppi - hang in there - sounds like you are going down the right path!

Okay this is long and boring at parts but here it goes. I am 3 years post sleeve and I have gained all my weight back . First of all I was on the smaller side to have the sleeve but I do still have all the same struggles and if I had waited until I was older it was just a matter of time until I was a higher bmi having the surgery. The fact that I have lost and then gained it all plus some within less than years is probably proof of that. Anyways, with the sleeve I did lose a big chunk of weight. I went from 235 to 168 which I could not have done with regular diet. But, i was always able to eat a little more than I should at every given stage and everything was easy for me. From day one I had no gas pain and water was easy to get down, then fluids and protein which were easy to keep down, I had no food intolerances and advancing through each stage. I was living my best life watching the pounds fall off but I was alway able to eat just a little more than everyone else at the same stage. Well, while the hunger hormone was gone and I was focused I was able to eat exactly what I SHOULD be eating and I measured my portions to the Amount I should be eating and I was satisfied. So lost most of the weight the dr suggested I would. i held that weight for a few months but then the hunger started creeping back and between the hunger and the extra room in the pouch I started gaining in spite of still making healthy food choices (my food was fine but my portions were too large and too frequent). Well, even though I knew I was losing control my friends and family continued to look at me as doing great..I was still on the road to getting to where I needed ti be in their eyes. I was ashamed. I was failing yet They kept complimenting me and offering me food. They were saying things like your doing so good, you can have one slice or pizza or one brownie. It won’t kill you. It’s okay that you’ve gained a couple pounds I’ve gained a couple it’s Christmas. You can lose that. Well I have since learned that no I cannot just have one of anything to do with carbs or I crave them for a week but I didn’t know that back then Anyways, was still going to my surgeon asking for help but I have bipolar disorder and the meds I take for it limit what other meds I can take so I cannot take many of the weight loss meds they had to offer. And the one I can take worked wonderfully during the day but when it wore off I ate all night Fast forward a few months and I stepped on the scale and I was back over 200. That sucked but I wasn’t giving up. went back to my surgeon asking about revision to bypass. I have heartburn gerd whatever you call it and clearly the sleeve wasn’t working so I wanted to know my options. Well let’s go back. I knew I didn’t want to have surgery if I was going to just repeat the yo-yo that had just happened so I decided I wanted two opinions this time. Well the second opinion dr had a cancellation so I seen him first. He was on board. He was going to bypass a shorter amount of bowel so i had less absorption issues and my meds Would work fine he said which seemed to be his concern even though it wasn’t really my question. I just needed my dr to say that it shouldn't be a repeat of last time and I was going forward. Well even though the bypass was an option he presented to me to start he said he wouldn’t do a bypass for me. He thought it would be a bad call with my mental health issues. This was confusing to say the least because I have one dr saying it’s fine and another dr I really respect saying it’s not and I started this thinking bypass was always an okay option in terms of mental health but worried the surgery just wouldn’t work for me. I am of course concerned about my mental health so took some time to think about it. I tried for a while to find a bariatric therapiest but none near me are taking any new patients. I even asked the surgeon and he said he would look into it but be never did. Anyways I called around for the better part of two days. They all just do the evaluations now for surgery. I have had every hormone test and lab they have that could possibly be the problem. I changed all my meds in case they were the issue. I tried everything myself and my doctors could think of but I kept gaining. When I revisited the idea of surgery I was scared. Anything that was going to upset my mental health again just isn’t an option I decided. I already know what life without my medication is like and I do not want to go back there. I continued to gain. I got back up to 245 and I am miserable. I am so depressed when I look at what I have let happen to myself. I had a chance and I blew it. I am disgusted when I look in the mirror. I decided that the weight is causing me to be more depressed so I needed to get some real answers. I went back to my surgeon. Not to ask him to do the surgery but exactly why he thought it was a bad idea. The plan was to take that info and talk to the other surgeon to make sure he had considered that and see why he wasn’t worried about it. Well, surprise…my surgeon is on board now with doing a revision for me. When I asked why he said no before he said something about a nite in my chart that said I wasn’t complaint with my meds back them and he didn’t know I have a psychiatrist and psychologist and take my meds but now he is comfortable doing surgery. So, frustrated I had to wait until I gained almost 50 more pounds to get here but excited he is willing to do it I am researching the other surgery he thinks will be a better fit for me called the SADI. At the same time I am still not buying the note in my chart thing. Cause that was never true. I guess the important takeaway for those of you here that are just starting out is even if you do regain don’t lose touch with your team and don’t give up. I feel like my dr wavering in whether he would do the surgery didn’t help but I could have asked more questions sooner and I wouldn’t have so much to lose this time. Plus, hopefully you guys can take the weight loss meds and won’t be facing a second surgery.

Banded 2010, revision to bypass on Thursday 2/3/15.. (Depending on scar tissue) Doctor has me on complete liquid diet for the next 2 days. I'm getting a little nervous. I know I've already had WLS once, but it seems strangely different this time. I can't explain it. Has anyone else experienced mixed emotions?

Hello, I too had a slipped band and had revision w/plication about 11 days ago. I have started to eat mushies and I have plenty of restriction and my band dosen't even have any saline! I get full with about 3/4 cup of contents! I love this! I wish you luck and if have any questions......don't hesitate! Ray

Hi, I'm new here... I am 5 days post op revision surgery (band-sleeve). I'm feeling absolutely fantastic! No gas pain, no incision pain...etc But I am feeling hungry with the little food I'm getting, should I risk eating something heavier? Like, Cereal n milk? A banana? Wanna eat something....I don't love my Protein shake, but I'll have it anyway. Any suggestions for something ok to eat at this early stage??

I feel your pain! I had Lap Bad revision to RNY surgery November 11 and have only lost 12 pounds. I am very careful about what I eat and try to get my water in. I was a slow loser with the band and even slower with RNY. I try not to dwell on it at least I am not gaining!

I never had any regrets when I had my lap band put in 11+ years ago, despite getting horrible GERD and that the band likely causing my hiatal hernia. And I really don't think I will regret my revision to a VSG two weeks ago either. Not to go to "a dark place" in this thread but honestly, the point that my bariatric surgeon brought up in the seminar when I was considering the lap band years ago was "Why is it that you never see anyone who is old and obese? Because if you're obese you generally don't make it to old age." That has just stayed with me ever since. Wishing you all the best on your journey!!

I am now 5 days Post-op band to bypass. I was banded 3 years ago and did great the first year. Then the stomach flu hit me and I got stuck to the point where I couldn't swallow my own saliva and had to rush back to the ED for emergency unfill. My band was never the same after that. I had always had pain in my left shoulder, like most of us had due to the gas build upon only difference was mine lasted until I had the band removed. After my doctor and I tried everything to help, we couldn't fix it. Many trips to the ED later, my doc said it needs to come out. So I started the process all over again and this time I decided to be revised to bypass. When I woke up from surgery (which went flawlessly) the doctor told me she found out why I was having pain in my left ribcage area, below my sternum and in my left shoulder. The left ribcage was from the band or the tubing rubbing against my diaphragm and causing a callus. Which in turn caused the shoulder pain due to the vagus nerve being bothered. The low sternal pain was from my band moving up and down causing inflammation and early signs of erosion. I was so relieved to hear that I wasn't crazy all these years! Recovery Post-op has been great. Better than with the band. I wish I had done this the first time and saved me so much trouble, pain, money and family anguish.

I will spare you on the details but man what a night I wouldn't wish on my worst enemy! I am 4 weeks PO today from VSG revision. From about 11:30pm until about 4:30am, I was up every 5 to 10 minutes....I KID YOU NOT pissing out of my @ss. I am waiting for word from my surgeon's office in the mean time but I feel like I got hit by a truck. I suspect it's gastroenteritis because my husband is home sick passed out on the couch right now with similar symtoms. He had it all day yesterday. I know I need my nutrients to get back everything I lost but I can't even try to look at the blandest of the bland broth right now (baiatric pal protein chicken broth and beef broth). I have tolerated my vitamins and water but that's the limit. So I sit and and wait but I have a unrelated dr. appt in 45 mins I have to be at. Just gonna sip as much water as I can in the meantime! Perhaps pedialyte juice? Any suggestions?

I understand your concerns. I had the band and even before it slipped I was miserable but I just ignored the awful food stuck incidents and the sliming because it was working. I hated how eating felt, like there was food at the top of my stomach where it wasnt supposed to be. I never actually felt full unless I ate enough to fill up my stomach under the band. My throat hurt and sometimes the heartburn was so bad I'd have to pull the car over and cry. At that point I was glad it was reversable. Fast forward 7 months to when the insurance finally agreed to remove the band. I start gaining back my weight until I'm right back where I started almost 4 years ago. And I'm thinking I sure hope the sleeve works and is permanent. I've been sleeved for a little over 6 weeks. It's just night and day. This is how I thought the band would be but way better. I don't get hungry, I just get empty enough that I know I need to eat. I eat small portions and stop eating when I'm full or when it doesn't taste good any more. I'm still learning not to eat too much. I had esophageal dilation so I worry about food filling up above my sleeve. A couple weeks ago I ate a little too much, it didn't hurt I just felt like I used to after Thanksgiving - uncomfortable. And it occurred to me that this is permanent. Small portions and making sure I don't feel uncomfortable is how it'll be for the rest of my life and that's really just fine with me. I'm learning how to find things to enjoy besides food - eating as entertainment just isn't possible now. And that's a good thing. I hated waiting for the year+ that it took to finally get a revision but it gave me time to read and research. I'm very happy with the sleeve. It's what I thought it would be with even fewer complications - no nausea, no pain, no hunger and a nice sense of satiety with very little food. I'm glad it's permanent.

Hi alley-gator. I have a band and my 23 year old daughter got the VSG on Feb. 8th this year. I had some different issues with the band but am on track with a new doctor and it seems to be working wonderfully now. My daughter loves the VSG. She is not lactose intolerant and loves it. She eats 4 sometimes 5 small mini meals a day and has lost 70 lbs since surgery. I wish I had the VSG and have been considering a revision. She feels great and has no problems. Good luck in what ever you decide.

I used my own. Back in the days nobody seemed to talk about goal weights. When I had my revision nobody talked about about a goal weight either.

I had a lot of regrets for 2 weeks after surgery. I am so glad I had it done. I was a revision from the lapband. I'm down 45 pounds from March and am so happy. People tell me all the time not to lose anymore weight that I'm too skinny now. I love it. For the first time in my life I'm happy with the results. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Your surgeon is correct. I previously had the lap band, it failed me & I regained nearly all the weight. This past July, I had a revision done to remove the band and get the gastric bypass, in two months, I've lost 84 lbs and I feel absolutely great! Not to say I didn't have a few complications, which worked themselves out, but I'm very happy I had it done because I feel confident I won't gain it back Good luck to you & everyone embarking on this journey!

No band.I know so many who have major issues, lifetime issues. I am having a band to sleeve revision

I had a revision from sleeve to bypass in March. I do not have any more heartburn—that’s completely resolved. I have had a much harder time eating this time around and still do not have solid stool. As a result, I lost 50 lbs since my revision which is more than I ever planned to be honest. I was successful with the sleeve—losing 110 and only gaining back 10 lbs over 5 years. But the heartburn was too much. The recovery has just been harder. But as a trade off I’m seeing numbers on the scale I never thought I’d see.