Search the Community

I called, they said it's still being put into the system and they have 30 days, unless your office submits it as urgent, ughhhSent from my XT1254 using the BariatricPal App Oh crap. That really, really sucks. I feel for you. I'm a very anxious person by nature and a total worry wart. And our cases, being revisions, are a bit more complex and expensive which i am sure bcbs isn't quick to approve. It may be a longer wait for me too and not so fast like my husband's.Update, recalled bcbs today in the afternoon, got a much nicer operator, she apologized for it taking so long and said give them another few days and I should have a answer by next week, now that's more like it, even if that isn't true, its at least what I want to hear. Sent from my XT1254 using the BariatricPal App

A lot of people just assume that because there are band problems, that we did not follow the rules. They claim they are doing better because they follow the rules. I followed the rules. I did lost a lot of weight with the band. I would have gained all of it back too, when I started having band problems. I gained back 15 lbs in a very short time, waiting for my revision. I did that following all the rules!

Hi Dave, welcome! Your story sounds veeery familiar. *wink* I just wanted to wish you well for your revision surgery coming up next Saturday. Please check in and let us know how you're doing when you feel up to it. Take care!

Hi everyone! I'm one month post op and for some reason have one ankle that hurts and is swollen. I didn't injure it-started hurting when I got out of bed. Urgent care and PCP want me to take a steroid and/or NSAID to reduce inflammation but I told them that my bariatric surgeon was pretty clear that I couldn't. They said it would just be for a week and shouldn't be a problem.....anyone else have this issue??? Thanks in advance!!!

Do a search for a user on here called nailsbyniki. She went through very similar stuff. You can PM her and I am sure she would be happy to talk to you. I'm sure you really don't want to hear it, but in most cases, RNY cures GERD. It is a function of how RNY separates the food from the bile and mixes them in the intestine rather than the stomach. And GERD is very serious and puts you at grave risk for esophageal cancer. By all means, get a second or third opinion. But please think seriously about why you are resisting conversion to RNY. If you continue to have the GERD and the spasms, you could be setting yourself up for many painful surgeries in the future. By the way I suffered from GERD pre-op. I had the sleeve with the informed knowledge that I may have to convert to RNY later. I took the risk. Right now my GERD is managed by Nexium, but it may not always be enough. Throat cancer is so much worse than RNY, at least in my own opinion, and I won't risk it. Here is Niki's thread. It is long. She had a kink in her intestine as well as Addison's Disease in the end. It was a very long road for her. It is worth reading the whole thing and then PMing her. http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/248633-sleeve-revision-to-gastric-bypass-tomorrow/

Hi Ellen, I decided on the bypass with the help and guidance of my bariatric team. I have barrett's esophageus and didn't want to take the chance of continuing the side effects which include heartburn. Yes i am at the lower end of the scale but I have multiple weight related issues and have always battled with my weight. I've researched the bypass and the sleeve for over a year and have participated in group settings for 8+ months. I am ready for this life changing tool!!! I'm so new to website and am hoping that I'm replying correctly. Take care, Rachel

I had gastric bypass. The following has been repeated here enough to be... well... repeated enough here. But since no one researches old posts, here I am... My plan is 3-4 oz protein, 1oz veggies (or other) 3 times per day... Or as much as I can manage before I become full. I never counted calories or much that isn't described in the first sentence of this paragraph. This was my plan Day 1 through current (20+ years post op.) Currently, I'd say I reach 3-4 oz protein 1oz veggies for perhaps 50-60% of meals. The rest are meals where I can't come near my meal goal, I just stop when I max out for the meal. Perhaps 1% of the time, when the meal is exceptionally good and hits all that is good of an exceptional meal, that I might (very much might, because is is uncomfortable) push the envelope. The fact that I don't challenge my limits is why I believe my restriction is in the same place as it was about 3 months post-op. I can't eat much more per meal than I have since I have been 3 months post-op because I have rarely ever pushed the limit. My belief is the more one pushes the limits the larger those limits become. I simply do not push the limits, so I believe they remain narrow. Whether the limits actually exist as I said are perhaps a matter of belief doesn't really matter. My belief has kept me near my goal weight. So what I eat now is not a whole lot different than during the post-op period when I was learning how to eat again. I don't push my limits.

I'm sorry it didn't work for you. As with all WLS, none of them work for everyone. I've met many people on here that absolutely love their bands and a couple that it simply didn't work for. Likewise, I've known people to love other WLS and some who've gained back literally hundreds after a radical procedure like Gastric Bypass. I hope the Sleeve works for you. It definitely seems like the next logical step to me- I'd do the same in your shoes.

There are tons of revisions from band people here as a matter of fact they even have a sub-forum here. Good luck to you http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/forum/13-band-to-gastric-sleeve-revisions/

The lap band prevents me from eating healthy foods like fruits, veggies, and lean proteins. It does NOTHING to stop me from eating slider foods, though, so I've actually gained weight with the lap band. I regret not doing bypass in the first place but I thought the lap band would be a safer choice since nothing was cut or removed. I was wrong. People have complications/issues with the band WAY more than with any other WLS, and far less success. I know some folks on here have had success with it but they're in the minority. Most doctors aren't even doing lap bands anymore. My doctor said he takes out way more bands now than ever before because they were popular 10 years ago but are failing. I'm converting to bypass soon... can't wait to get my surgery date!

Wow, I hope for your sake you are pre-op! If you are post-op, you are setting yourself up for major problems. You really need to follow this "diet" to a T until your stomach heals. There is a reason for the liquid diets. I am so fortunate in that my husband was so supportive of me when I was banded and he would never have let me deviate from my post-op instructions. I am counting on him being this supportive this time with the revision too. In any event, what is done, is done. Starting right now, just follow your doctors advice and hopefully you will be fine.

did they you lose more weight after you graduated from the options program? I have 4 more classes, and only lost about 7lbs. Also, I had the lapband removed in Dec.8 last year and im awaiting a revision.

Hi Dawn welcome! You can get your fills right here in Reno! We have an excellent Bariatric practice which is made up of four surgeons called Western Bariatric. They are a American Society for Bariatric Surgery Center of Execellence and my surgeon has talked about doing revisions for people who have had surgery elsewhere so I would think they will do fills too. Their phone # is 775-789-9192.

Do you happen to know if he has experience with lap band/gastic bypass patients? Also, do you need any other work done?

Yeah I had bypass on the 19th, too. Cant eat pureed for a while yet but I CAN'T WAIT!! That sounds delicious!! Sent from my SM-G920V using the BariatricPal App

I had a sleeve - not the bypass - but have been forced to take steroids. Haven’t seen any damage from them. I do think it makes it harder to lose weight. Plus my stomach is swollen. It’s horrible but I have no choice.

Since I work in pharma - specifically on extended release medications, this is a question I asked my surgeon about when deciding between the sleeve and bypass. He indicated that one of the advantages of the sleeve is that since the intestinal tract remains completely intact, there is no impact on absorption of extended release medicines. Immediate release medications all release in the stomach and he indicated even with the reduced stomach volume, even poorly soluble immediate release drugs won't be impacted. From the science aspect - some SR/XR (and MR) medications have a mechanism that just slowly releases over time (often due to a matrix in the formulation that swells when you ingest it and slows down the escape of the active ingredient out of the tablet/capsule. For others, they have a coating on them that will only dissolve when it hits a certain pH - so they won't dissolve in stomach acid but wait until higher pH levels. They can be targeted to release at different points in the intestines based on what pH the coating will dissolve. Hope this helps.

Someone shared this article from bariatriceating.com that I wanted to share here: Don’t eat bread! That latte has 35g sugar! No macaroni salad. NO tortillas. No rice. It won’t last without change There is no delicate way to say this. We have always set ourselves apart from other bariatric groups in that we don’t look the other way while post ops continue to eat the bad carbs. We try and bring them back to the bariatric reality. We coax you to knock off the Pasta, rice, tortillas or bread and often people get mad or try and justify it. For years we’ve watched people blow through this surgery and they all have the same story. Everyone thinks they are ‘Different’, that they can handle the bad carbs and the sugar (they don’t get sick!) and ‘because they have lost 100 pounds in 7 months they must be doing something right’. The first hundred pounds is the surgery Hate to keep making the same point, but your surgery did it, not you. Remember that you are not driving the car for the first year. Eating the same foods that grew you to 300 pounds, but in smaller amounts is not a good long term plan as eventually you will be able to eat larger portions. Ask yourself why eating the same bad carbs would be a good plan. No doctor has advised you to eat the same way post op as you did pre op. Post ops pick this up somewhere, latch on to it and defend it, often to the bitter end of a total regain. No one fights for broccoli carbs! It’s not that the bagel will kill you, it’s that these carbs make you hungry. They rapidly turn to glucose and burn… poof, gone, #Lookingformore. They don’t give you any nutrients. They don’t create a feeling of satiety or lasting fullness. The empty carbs work against what you are trying to achieve. If you were arguing for eating salad or green bean carbs, more power to you… but people are trying to hang on to foods without value. If this big argument was for VEGETABLES… well it wouldn’t be a debate as vegetables didn’t make us fat, it was those ‘other’ carbs. Did you ever meet an obese vegetarian and wonder ‘HUH?’… how’d they get obese if they are vegetarian? Same deal… its not the vegetables, its the other stuff… the carbs… the potatoes, bread, macaroni, rice, tortillas and sugar! Square peg… round hole Stop looking for slightly better substitutes for bad choices and find new healthier foods to love instead. We keep trying to force that square peg into that round hole. Stop EATING crackers and chips… don’t find ones that you can justify because they have fewer carbs. Enough with the terrible fishy shirataki tofu noodles. Learn to live without bread and pasta so it will not call your name. We aren’t changing the behavior or trend if we continue eating them, just slightly shifting it. Before long you’ve got your hand back in the Doritos bag & fork in the Mac and cheese. Look It’s Protein Cheesecake! Don’t add protein to muffins and convince yourself they’re good for you. Stop with the Starbucks Creme Brûlée Lattes because ‘they’re your one indulgence'; they have 500 calories and thin people don’t even drink them. Stay the heck out of Wendy’s. I read an article the other day touting all the ‘good choices’ in fast food restaurants. How about stay out of them. That’s the best choice of all! Why go to the place where you know there is danger. Before you know it, oops… there are fries in your bag! You know people gain back weight, right? In our first month of new Facebook Support group I have cried for new members who have gained back all their weight. I am not immune either after fourteen years, three bariatric books and knowing better. When life hit the fan, I comforted my bruises in the way I knew best and it has taken me ten months to lose fifty pounds of it. People are having revisions, a lovely sounding word for a second serious body damaging operation. What will change? Unless there is major change along with that new surgery, won’t it have the same result? Step away from the bagel! Own that there was and maybe still is something wrong with your food picker! Use surgery as an opportunity to change, not cheat. I used be bothered by the ‘word on the street’ that we were the carb or food police, but am now proud of it. If you want to promote the virtues of Everything in Moderation while eating half a Subway, there are plenty of groups that will help you do it. If you want to eat right and learn new behaviors to make the feeling of slipping on those skinny jeans last… we have a support group that’s a healthier fit. Bariatric Surgery IS the easy way out It’s a personal food cop that is always with us, that helps us push away from the table. We make it hard when we don’t live by the bariatric rules we’ve been given. There is nothing harder then gaining weight back after surgery. There is nothing better than losing it a second time. Control is empowering. If you need to pick up and start losing again… If you need to work off a regain… it’s not too late and your pouch works just fine if you choose the right foods. Clean those lethal carbs from your life and go back to Bariatric Eating – protein first and lots of fresh salad and vegetables. We’ve got the support for you to make that change!

No. My daughter works fulltime and has a severely disabled child plus a 4 year old. I won't see them again until I can drive and my immune system can handle it. There aren't any fences to mend. She and her husband do not believe this surgery was right for me because of my own disabilities. They were right. I wish I had listened. My neighbour had a gastric bypass which she also regrets. I didn't listen to her either. I was determined to do this seduced by the idea of weightloss. 11 days post op, I still regret it. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I’m from Danvers and I am having my gastric bypass at MGH. Matthew Hutter MD is my surgeon. My surgery is scheduled for May 14, 2018

I don't always pee steadily anymore. Sometimes it's a little at a time, and it takes a few minutes to get it all out, so to say. I've always had a shy bladder, but it has gotten a little worse since surgery. I guess my body is still adjusting to all the shifting around it went through with my RnY bypass?

Band to sleeve revision. Surgery was June 26th. 2 days in hospital. Surgeon had me on puree's from day 1. Dairy has not agreed with me. My belly is far too irritated. I went to Clear liquids and I seem to be tolerating that pretty well. Mostly only having lactose free Protein shakes, broth, popcycles, and hot tea.

I started my journey at 278 pounds which was my highest weight ever. I am not really sure exactly how I got there but it is what it is. I never really thought I was that big, I was just kind of in a huge denial of my actual self. I originally went to a seminar in July of 2006 to learn about the bypass. The nurse coordinator and my mother had worked together way back when so she has know me forever. I was convinced to come to the meeting when I saw how great she had looked and that she had a bypass in 1997. At that meeting I learned about the Lapband which I had never even heard of before. I got my info and thought about it but decided to try dieting one last time. I lost 30 pounds that I promtly regained. In Decmeber of 06 I gathered my doctors documentation and had my consult. I could have had my surgery in January but opted to wait until Feb. I had my UGI and psych eval done and I was ready to go. Day of surgery. I was scared out of my mind. I had never had surgery before and I could not get myself to calm down. I kissed my kids and held them tight. Once I went through preop and was lying on the bed I finally got some meds to calm down. I remember being pushed to the OR room and it felt like I was flying there. They transferred me to the bed and the next thing I remember was being pushed to my room leaving the postop area. I have been told that when I woke up in the OR I felt up and down my body and exclained "Holy shit, I am fucking alive" This whole past year has been the hardest journey of my life but the best thing I have ever done for myself. I have struggled with head hunger, emotional eating, plateaus, and frustrations, but it has taught me that I can survive. I have gained a new confidence about myself. I know I am worth more than i ever thought was possible. I know I can be a good wife and mother. I know that even if bad things happen, I can and will overcome them. With the loss of these 85 pounds I have gained a whole new sense of self. I always said that weight loss would never change me but it has. It has opened up a whole new world that I never really knew existed. It has challenged my thoughts of how my life was and showed me just what it could be. Instead of the facade I put on daily I have now gained the confidence to finally truely be myself. I can't wait to find what my second year of banding has in store for me.

Hi Heidi - yes, I was banded on April 10th. My starting weight was 259 pounds and I'm 5'6. I had to have a port revision done this past Friday (June 13th); my port flipped after surgery. So I just got my first fill - I'm about a month overdue for fills. I go back tomorrow to my doctor. I lost about 15 pounds on my pre-surgery diet (low carbs) and the rest after banding. I'm really happy with the results so far. It is coming off slowly, but that's what it needs to do. I've been exercising 4-5 days a week and I think that has really helped boost the inches lost. I'm just setting mini goals right now. Have you gone for your first consult yet?

My surgeon is near giving up on the band completely due to the high complication rates. He does nearly (I'm told) as many band to sleeve revisions as he does bands alone.