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This thread post gives me hope. I had an upper gi done and was told my sleeve is stretched. I have an appointment this week to discuss a revision. My new doctor wants to do bypass and my insurance covers revision. I'm only worried about whether or not they will pay for mine because my bmi is 31. I'm hoping they say it's medically necessary and cover it.

I believe the issue here is the fact that your band is not filled. You have got to get the follow up care in order for it to work. You stated that you had twins and your saline was taken out. Why didn't you have it put back in after six weeks or so from giving birth? After care is the most important part of any wls, especially the band. I had restriction only because I did eat what I was supposed to and when I lost weight and felt I could eat more, I made me an appointment and had myself checked. Sure enough I would need a fill to take up the space from losing weight. Unfortunately 8 1/2 years later, I began having problems with it. It slipped, I lost restriction, gained almost all of the weight I lost, and now I'm sleeved. I don't get stuck anymore thank God. I still have restriction after I eat. What has changed for me is my taste buds. I can't eat or drink anything with a lot of sugar and I AM SOOOO HAPPY [emoji846]. Sugar was my addiction/problem and since I've been sleeved for almost two months now, I don't have that problem anymore. My suggestion is to get a fill so that you can get back on track. If you're mind is absolutely made up on having revision surgery, then good luck to you and best wishes. Sent from my SM-G965U using BariatricPal mobile app

I've had my lap band since 2015, and I HATE it. It does what it should do, stops food from going into my stomach. But I get stuck a lot and it hurts, I end up vomiting it up, and anything unhealthy slips right through the band without a problem. I can eat gobs of cake, cookies, chocolates, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, casseroles, the works but it is painful to eat fruits, lean proteins, vegetables, etc. due to them getting stuck. It's like it's doing the opposite of what I want. When the food stays in the pouch, all I need to do is burp a couple times and boom, pouch is emptied. In short, It. Just. Does. Not. Work. I want a revision but I'm not sure what to do. I need to talk to a doctor, I realize, but I'm nervous. I thought the lap band would be the ticket out of fatness but it's absolutely not. I'm scared if I try something else, that won't work either. I love to eat and I can't stop. I've tried all kinds of diets. It just sucks, my appetite is insatiable and I need to do something about it. I'd love to hear from people who have had revisions and share what's different about their new procedure (whether sleeve or bypass). Sleeve makes me nervous because I've heard a lot about GERD. My spouse's grandfather died of esophageal cancer, due to years of GERD. But bypass makes me nervous because it seems like such a severe surgery... and I don't want to look like a skeleton in a bag of skin 😕 Any shared experiences would be appreciated!

Gastric band - been there, done that. Stopped working and I never felt full. So last year after my weight went back up I decided to have the revision and get the sleeve bit due to the build up of scar tissue (surgery was May 2010), surgeon ran out of time to do the VSG safely. So had to wait until 11/30/20 and finally all was completed. I was told he might have to do the bypass and I prayed so hard that didn't happen. I'm 65 and glad I did it. Sent from my SM-J337V using BariatricPal mobile app

I thought I was really with it right after my surgery, but my husband told me the next day I was loopy and I guess he's right because thinking back I don't remember much until I woke up in my room later that day. My stomach hurt, but I didn't have nausea or a sore throat. sleep was sporadic because the nurses were coming in all the time and it was hard to find a comfortable spot. I was glad I had a hospital bed though, I can't imagine getting up and down without those hydralics. LOL My stomach felt like I had done a gazillion crunches and the muscles were not working. I was required to stay two days and really glad I did. I think the second day is much worse than the first and it was nice to have the TLC the nurses provided. I think my hardest part has been regaining my strength and stamina. I think between surgery and the liquid diet it put a strain on my system. Not sure if it makes a difference, but my surgery was a revision and took over two hours due to scar tissue from the band, so that may make my recovery a bit longer. Having the lapband was a piece of cake..... but the revision was harder. Hope my lil story helps Best of luck on Tuesday.... you will do great!!!

Thanks! I see you are a revision as well, how are things going for you

I'm glad they can do yours at the same time. My date is July 20th and I can't wait. Hope it's a good experience. Good luck to you on the revision. Sent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App

Good Morning! Just got approve for revision from lapband to Bypass. Waiting on date Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app

Very encouraging!! I'm a newbie here and am still on the fence about the surgery, as I am a bit of a scaredy kat when it comes to surgeries, especially one such as this. I lost weight successfully with the lap band, but it developed a leak and stopes working. My doc has suggested vsg revision, but I get anxious just thinking about it! I truly feel you and the other members of this community who have undergone wls are quite brave. I hope some of that bravery rubs off on me.

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

I had this after my revision on 12/12/16. This lasted about 6-8 days. It will get better just stay hydrated and try to move around as much as you can. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Statistically the weight comes off slower with a revision. It DOES come off, just not as quickly. And I've heard a lot of people who've done revisions saying they felt far more restriction with the sleeve verses bypass so I believe that's normal. I don't know why it's hard for you to lay on your left side or why you're still feeling weak. I'd most definitely call your surgeon and ask them for advice on what it could be and if it'll pass on it's own. Sorry I couldn't be more help!

Hello, everyone it's been about a month since I last posted when I missed my appointment for to meet with my new surgeon to consult about a revision from the sleeve to the bypass. I have a hiatal hernia, a severe case of GERDS which causes me to vomiting a lot and deal with a painful burning sensation. I'm 16 months out from surgery and my weight loss has been an epic fail. My current surgeon said that the issues I'm having INSIGNIFICANT to him and that he recommends that I have the Gastric Bypass. So I have an appointment with a new surgeon that is 4 hours away from where I stay because he's the only surgeon that accepts my insurance outside of my current surgeon. And I have a feeling that I am going to miss this appointment as well and giving my current situation, I'm pretty sure I won't make another attempt to get help. I'm completely discouraged and disgusted and regret my choice to have the gastric sleeve since I'm still obese, my type 2 diabetes is still out of control, my blood pressure is always high. Now I'm worst off than when I started my weight loss journey..... But good luck with your surgery...

This is a long post, but it details my gastric sleeve experience in Mexico, and I feel like it's important to share it. I'm sure there are great results from this clinic and others in Mexico, but here are some of the pitfalls: I had a sleeve gastrectomy in April in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, with Dr. Juan Francisco Hidalgo (Weight Loss Team), and I have had extreme complications since then. I had to undergo a revision surgery to a full gastric bypass because the multiple strictures in my stomach were so bad that surgeons at the Mayo Clinic (arguably one of the best groups of bariatric surgeons in the world), after five procedures, couldn't fix them. They say it was most likely Dr. Hidalgo's technique that created the stricture - he uses a much smaller bougie (tube to shape the stomach) than is typically used in the United States, and it is more likely to create complications. I know loads of people have a good outcome from Mexico surgeries, but I share my experience because I owe it to anyone contemplating this. I did a lot of research before going there and thought I had chosen well. The website of Dr. Hidalgo is very sophisticated, and there are no language issues when asking questions in advance because of the English-speaking administrator, Gerald. The website gives reams of information in perfect English -- all very comforting. Plus, as I was considering the surgery, they offered me access to the support group on Facebook for patients of Dr. Hidalgo -- something that seemed so authentic and convincing since I could read posts from all kinds of real people. However, after they recently found out about my complications, Gerald, the administrator, removed me from the group even though I was not all over it bashing Hidalgo but had just posted a couple of times about my situation. I suddenly felt so duped -- I believed all the great testimonials and was too gullible to understand that only people with positive outcomes were allowed to be in that community. So since I can't share it with people allowed to join that private group, I feel it is my responsibility to share my experience here: My experience in the Puerto Vallarta hospital was very hairy - I woke up after surgery in some kind of lounge with no one around me and in extreme pain - sobbing and begging for help, and after that at one point my blood pressure was so dangerously low that they wouldn't let me lay down anymore - forcing me into a sitting position, and I think it was possibly because the nurses gave me pain medicine twice at one point. Dr. Hidalgo was summoned to the room, and actually suggested perhaps my condition was because I hadn't taken my Wellbutrin for a couple of days. Um, what? I sincerely thought for a little while that I might die. Promises that the medical staff would check in on me at my hotel regularly after discharge from the hospital didn't materialize, and a bellboy had to track down Dr. Hidalgo to remove my staples because I was due to fly home. And then when I required intervention a couple of weeks later because I couldn't eat or drink anything due to the stricture, I was told by Dr. Hidalgo that I just needed a shot of cortisone (Seriously? Where?), and when they sent my "surgery report" to share with the U.S. doctor, it was actually just a generic report with my name at the top - not my report. It didn't even include my actual surgical information because it talked about the port they had installed, which I never had. When I asked for full records, including the swallow study/leak test done with X-Ray at the hospital before discharge, I was told that Dr. Hidalgo didn't have any of the records, and that it could be three or four months before he got it from the hospital. My diagnosis was that I had a severe stricture in my gastric sleeve in several places, and the five additional surgeries were to try to stretch and stent the stomach open, but nothing worked and I had to have a complete revision to a roux en Y gastric bypass because my stomach was unsavable. The Mayo surgeon's professional opinion based on my situation and the generic "surgery report" Hidalgo's team sent is that this stricture was caused by Dr. Hidalgo because he uses a bougie that is far too narrow. This is the tool used to size your new sleeve stomach, and Hidalgo uses size 18, while the medical standard in the U.S. is more like 28. Though I asked several times, Dr. Hidalgo would never provide my actual medical records or X-Rays from after the surgery, but the Mayo doctors believe the X-Ray immediately following the surgery shows the stricture, which left just a 1/4 inch opening and was slowly killing me. I didn't eat a solid piece of food for 140 days, I was anemic and malnourished and needing fluid IVs just to stay hydrated because I couldn't even force enough water down the narrow stricture. Half of my hair has fallen out, I was confused and exhausted for months due to malnutrition, and I could hardly function. I lost 75 pounds in four months, but I only had 100 pounds total to lose so that was a dangerous pace for someone my size . Yes, I lost weight, but this was not a safe way to do it and I was desperately sick the whole time. Besides, my procedures to fix my $4,200 gastric sleeve from Mexico cost more than $125,000 - thank GOD I have good health insurance because just the co-pays alone have caused me significant hardship. I'm sorry to share such a terrible story. I understand how hopeful it feels to finally have the opportunity to lose weight because I was desperate to do so. But I made bad choices, it seems, based on a fake Facebook "support group," and English-speaking staff, and a charming doctor. My advice is to choose slowly and well and to comb forums looking for posts from people who may not have had the best experiences with the clinic you choose. I have a network now of a couple of other people with an experience similar to mine from surgeries with Hidalgo's Weight Loss Team, and none of us ever saw anything negative ahead of our visits. People with complications need to share them for the benefit of people in the future. I would also recommend that you ask a surgeon for the technical aspects of their procedure and then compare them to the vast volumes of research available from doctors who practice in the U.S. The bougie size is a big deal, and so are the exact kind of staples used. And above all else, DO NOT leave Mexico without a copy of every medical record generated about your care, from the films of the leak test to hospital logs. Even in Spanish, they can be invaluable later to a team of doctors trying to help you if you have complications. I have learned these things the hard way, and it's been a rough road. If I could do it over, I would still have the gastric sleeve, maybe, but I would have been much more cautious in the process. I wish you all the best.

The revision would be because of the reflux. He's just afraid that it could cause erosion or ulcerations in the esophogus and make it even worse than it is now. He might be giving the meds a bit longer to see if they can help. He did tell me to put cinder blocks under the head of my bed. I asked "Instead of my wedge?" He said no, keep the wedge, too! Maybe I will call up on Monday and see if they will refer me to a gastroenterologist. I was just caught completely off-guard and didn't come up with any good questions. I'm great with numbers, not so much with words

I had the bypass in 2003. I did not follow directions , lost only half the weight I needed to. Gained every lb back. Got disgusted and did not do anything about it until this year. They scoped me and then told me that my pouch was relatively normal but my anastomoses was dilated greater that 10 cm. That's bigger than a new born baby's head. I was able to eat everything and anything. Not large portions because of the pouch , but I became a bottomless pit. I had a revision done 3 months ago. I've lost 50 lbs and am now in a plateau. But I can shake it off. I am very careful to pay attention to how I feel when eating. I try very hard not to eat things that aren't going to injure my pouch, soft food. I know it's never too late to make fresh starts and no giving up this time. Take care of yourself as if you were your own child. Follow instructions to the best of your ability. Your body underwent great trauma to make yourself healthy. Don't damage your operation results , talk to your doctor and tell him/her what's been going on and seek instructions to help undo any damage you may have done. You have gone through a lot, way too much to get nothing for your efforts. Good luck to you and remember that You Can Not eat anything and everything. Good luck to you and also to me. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I had the band placed in 2010 I at my biggest was 389 I got pregnant 1 year after band was placed lost 120 pounds then gained 45. My band started to fail on me after I had her, went to an awesome Bariatric dr, and had the revision surgery. Was approved tru Medicaid very fast. I am a year post op and have lost 105 pounds and officially lost 200 pounds since 2010 whoooohooo!!! I am a changed person weigh 189 and feel amazing.. I am done on weight loss and my surgeon is working on my tummy tuck procedure next is my arm surgery. Due to 200 pound loss skin on arms is a must to remove, stomach is not bad but is recommend to be removed. I wear lots of dresses and love it . Transition is a tiny hard, but u will adjust quickly and love it I promise u can eat almost what u want just very tiny portions best decision in my life .. Good luck to you darling you can do it!

I was sleeved on 9/20. Iv lost 15 lbs and that was all the first month. I was very successful with my band for 6 years and only revised after being sick of that stuck feeling and all of the inconsistency with the band. Now don't get me wrong I can't eat as much as someone who has never had surgery but I honestly feel very little fullness or restrictions with the sleeve. I can eat a 6" sub from subway and a bag of baked ruffles just to give you an idea. I don't know yet if I regret it or not but I do know I'm making the decision to make it all about me. As far as I'm concerned I'm living life and taking care of myself as if Iv never been on the operating table. I will trust in myself for maybe the first time ever. I'm training for a half marathon this year and making good food choices because I want to. I'm still about 12-15 lbs from my goal, but when I get there I will know that it's because I worked hard for it and I'm okay with that. I wanted that feeling that Iv read so much about, I wanted to be full after 6 or 8 bites but I didn't get anything close to that. I just want others to know there are no guarantees with revision and prepare for the "what ifs " . It's funny to me now I was actually worried about losing too much weight being a low BMI patient to begin with. Now I just worry about getting to goal. I can tell you if I left it to the sleeve I never would but then again maybe that's how it should be...

I was converted on Monday, 11/5/18; sleeve to bypass due to GERDS. I don't have too much advice because I'm newly revised. I can say everybody experience is different. I woke up with a lot of gas pain. Gas X helped a lot. I was up and walking the same day. The hospital staff managed my pain very well. I still have a little pain on the left side of my stomach. It feels more like a pulled muscle now, than it does pain. ScorpioC_RnY

I was 31 for my band and 32 for my VSG revision.

My two cents on the Shirley issue, she was a band to sleeve revision and had her sleeve done by Dr Pompa long before she was the main US coordinator for Betancourt/Dr.Almanza. Also she was definitely NOT fired. She QUIT! This is NOT hearsay from my part for sure! Thanks Stoongal for the FACTS!!!

Bypass is better with reflux, I chose bypass 5 1/2 yrs ago my friend chose sleeve & had bad reflux issues & now doing bypass as revision.

My surgeon put it this way. "We will do whatever surgery you want. Just so you know, we are taking out more lap bands than we are putting in now, most of them being revised to sleeves." Lap band is less "permanent", but from my point of view, would not be as effective in reducing ghrelin, or the volume of my stomach. The sleeve keeps everything in the proper order, so I went with that. I don't need people opening me up any more than is absolutely necessary.

Have you had a scope to check the size of your stomach? The one thing I'd be worried about after a band to sleeve revision is a stretched esophagus. Mine was caused by the band and about a year after my sleeve I discovered that overeating can case it to stretch, the food stays there instead of going down into my stomach. Since I now have a higher chance of Barret's I really need to protect my esophagus as much as possible. If you're having that kind of capacity it's well worth getting checked and seeing if your stomach is either too small of the food is pushing up into your esophagus.

5 years out from lap band and 9 weeks out from revision! I had the band taken out and had the bypass done. I had nothing but issues with that horrible band and I couldn't be happier with where I am. 45 lbs down and more active than ever! Good luck guys, it's worth it!