Search the Community

I had a sleeve 5 1/2 years ago and just had revision to RNY. I stayed away from carbonation for about the first four years. Then I really wanted some diet Squirt. I did buy some and drank one every once in awhile with no problems. I think if you wait awhile like I did and use in moderation it would be OK. Now I am post op from RNY and will have to start my waiting game again!

I am new to VST. I am scheduled for Mar. 23 in SLC, Utah. Very excited and very nervous. Don't like surgery...just looking ahead and hoping for the best. I am having a revision from the band to the VSG. They will remove the band and do the sleeve at the same time...if all is well in there. Thanks to all the posts...I have learned so much from all of you.

Stacy Yeah Liz is a B*tch just to warn you. I was warned so I kept my mouth shut. She is way ruse. Made a lady almost cry at my orientation! She screamed at some ol;der woman for having gum. Just ignore her-that is what I did and that was very hard for me. lol! Robin I like her she is our dietician. I have DR. IM and LOVE LOVE LOVE him. Wear your heaviest jeans, t-shirt, sweatshirt, shoes heaviest everything to the first weigh in!!!! lol..a little trick. hee hee. anyways. Dr. Baggs I have heard great things about him. I have heard not so nice things about Dr. Fisher but he is older and old school and WAY strict of weight. Dr. Bags is really easy on weight from everyone I ever met. I had to loose 222 pounds but Dr. Im made everyone else I met in the program only loose 10!! I was like wtf?? hah ha I have not ONE complaint with Dr. Im. I loved him and think he is wonderful. I wanted him or Baggs. The other two park (a woman) and Fisher is the STRICT ONE. He gave a bander 80 something pounds to loose! CRAZY. DONT be late they will close the doors it is a little silly how strict they are. NO JOKE! Just stay there for your break too. She locked 2 people out cause they were late from break but there was a long line in the restroom! My husband was there with me and he had some not so nice words to say. ha ha. Tina I am all for you whatever you decide! This surgery seems so simple and too good to be true dosent it? Ash says she now can eat what she wants and be completely satisfied, john too just smaller amounts! Seems like a dream! I would do EVERYTHING it takes to get that revision! I know what you mean. A LOT of people on the board would switch but just don't say anything. I proll have already rocked the boat over there enough but ohh well! It is just super duper scary about all the things that can happen. And most of these people that are saying this lived through it and had the band! Check out that chick Tiffykins-her story is nuts.

Hello, I'm sorry your band didn't work out for you. I don't have any personal experience with revision, but lots of people on Obesity Help have revised to Sleeve and been very happy with it. The only way to know if you can get a Sleeve now is to make an appt with the bariatric dept at Richmond and see what they say. Good luck! I'm two years out next week and love my Sleevie!

Hey Julie - wow you look wonderful, so tiny! I was also wondering about the tt after you lost the 60 lbs. Did it make a huge difference? I know you had a revision but when you say revision was it just a little tightening of the skin or did they have to do the full pulling tight of the muscle and everything?

I'm home! No more surgeries! YEAAAAAAAAAAAAA! OK, so this one wasn't SO bad. At least it hasn't been thusfar. They didn't start the surgery until about 3 p.m. yesterday and it took almost 6 hours, so it was 9 before I got to recovery! Since it was so late, they wanted me to spend the night, which was fine with me. Got to a room around 11. They'd taken the catheter our -- I don't even remember them doing that, but anyway, they kept pestering me to urinate, so I did, then settled down to sleep until about 5. I slept really well. So, we did quite a bit. We did the implants. I can't tell you much about them yet -- can't see the boobs at all because they're so wrapped up. They feel good, if that means anything at this point. By that I mean that they feel heavier but not too heavy -- kind of like a hug. I'm sure that makes no sense! Then we did a revision to my lower TT, combined with a mons lift. Can't see that either right now and have no impression of it. When he was marking me with a sharpie before surgery, it seemed like there was a lot of skin to take off there, so I'm hopeful. It's one of those things where even if there's just a modest improvement, it'll be a lot better. Oh, yes, and I got a low profile port while I was there. I think that's going to be GREAT. I'm sure there's swelling, but for the moment, I can't feel the port from pressing on my stomach, so I bet it makes a huge difference. TBD. Lastly, we did the inner thighs. OK, pals, this one is painful. The incision for me goes from the knee all the way up into the groin and at the top, it's quite painful. It's not HORRIBLE, but it's definitely the most tender spot this time.... So, pics to come in a few days once I'm feeling better. Take care all, and happy holidays. Julie

Hi There...at this point I'm looking for information and seems like this is the place. I had a lap band from 2008 (placed by a Sutter Dr) until December 2010 when it slipped and blocked my stomach completely. Dr. Fischer at Kaiser Richmond removed my band. Fast forward a year and I have regained all my weight and it brought some friends. So here's the question...I have heard that Kaiser doesn't do revisions. However, since my band wasn't through Kaiser what are the chances of getting a sleeve now? I've done alot of lurking and reading and it seems like the sleeve is a good way to go. Although I did lose weight with the Band I was pretty miserable the whole 2 years, so second question is for anyone who has gone from a band to the sleeve...how is it different?? Thanks in advance to anyone who responds! Vicki

Well some insurance companies only cover one WLS procedure for life...I would call the insurance company directly to see what the requirements are.... Alot of people like to rely on the doctor's office to do the work for them, and when something is missed and their stuff is denied, they like to blame the doctor's office when if they called the insurance company themself it would've saved time... I called and was told revision would not be covered on my policy so I self paid

That's great, hopefully they will allow the revision!

Jacqui, I'm happy for those for whom the LapBand has--so far, anyway--caused few or no problems, but that group is not a miniscule as you might believe...nor are the problems as minor as one might assume from reading your post. A young woman on another board I frequent, who was LUCKY because her surgeon was Rumbaut, just spent 9.5 hours in surgery and 11 days in the hospital having her band revised to an RnY. If it took Rumbaut, one of the most experienced band surgeons on the planet, 9.5 hours to fix something...it was a mess. a mess that MANY other doctors would not have had the experience to repair. I never said that mental health was not important. If someone is unhappy being obese, that's just another good reason to do something about it. But if anyone is having any wls in hopes that "the other kids" will like them better...they need help. There ARE people who have surgery for all kinds of reasons...and doctors who, for their own reasons, actually perform surgery on people with bizarre reasons...like the doctor in Scotland who amputated the healthy limbs of people who just felt they'd be happier with only one leg. But to tell the truth, I've encountered several people who have learned AFTER having wls (or various types) and losing substantial weight, that not fitting in and not being accepted and all of that was NEVER about their weight.

He is a really nice doctor. I am starting to wonder about him though. I went in for my revision surgery yesterday to flip my port back over and re-stitch it to my muscle. while I was under, he filled my band. He said he put in 6cc's total but when I got home I couldn't take a tblsp of the liquid hydrocodone and I couldn't keep Water down..it just came right back up. I called his office and they told me to go to either SCOR or SCOH and have Fluid removed. I was like whta the heck! I just had surgery yesterday...you think that he would have cheked to make sure I didn't have too much?? so, here I am 1 day po and have to have my hubby take me to SCOR and they said that I had a total of 7cc's. Dr. Marsden said he put in 6... 7cc's in reality plus the swelling from the surgery I was completely cut off and my salivia wouldn't even go down. You know the last thing I wanted to do after surgery is having someone press around on my stomach to try to find the port to stick a needle in it to unfill me. It makes me wonder about him....I thought he was the best but I have had too many problems back to back with him. I don't understand why an experienced dr would fill me the wrong amount and then not check to see if I could swallow before I left the hospital.

Hi All, Thanks for the kind words and thoughts...but really bad news...I slipped my band. I guess one of us September bandsters had to be it, so here I am. I feel horrible, I've been crying since yesterday. Doc unfilled my band and we're waiting 3 weeks to see if my stomach will go back to where it's supposed to be and my band will move back up into place. I have a 50/50 change it will correct itself. But that also means a 50/50 chance of surgery to revise or remove my band. I feel desolate...like no matter what I do, I'm destined to be a fat & unhealthy. I know thats not the right attitude, and I really am trying to be positive. It's just so hard, I never expected for this to happen so soon. I just can't understand how some people PB all the time and I only did it 2 times and mine slipped. I'm in a little pain but I feel much better without restriction. But I'm also back to being ravenously hungry. I'm sticking to the challenge and trying to live each day as if there is nothing wrong. What else can I do for 3 weeks? I'm not gonna worry myself into a tizzy. I'm working on a mantra here... I am OK. I trust in God to bless me and fix my band. I am not giving up. This has made me wiser and stronger. I am NOT defeated. I AM OK! I'll see you guys next Monday with my weigh-in. Please everyone stay positive for me and keep me in your thoughts & prayers.

Kiki -- Welcome , I'm pretty new here myself. There's loads of info and support! Please stick around! And congrats on your success! Denise -- The caramel nut chews are in the snack/treat category. I haven't tried any of the Atkins protein bars, yet. I'll have to try the nougat for sure, thanks! I, too, have a problem with constipation. As a matter of fact, I've not been quite right since being banded May 9th. But it definitely worse since I began low carb. I tried some Miralax today, so I'm playing the waiting game for now. I mixed shook it to death in a bottle of Diet Green Tea and it dissolved into nothing! (Which is great because I have a huge texture-phobia and the slightest hint of grain on my tongue would have had me heaving!) Sure hope this stuff works. That could drop off a pound or two! Renewed -- the nutritional content I gave you earlier for the Caramel nut chews are a bit different from the box i just picked up at walmart. And the price was MUCH cheaper.The one I ate earlier was sold as a single at CVS and almost twice the cost per bar. Maybe the pack I just bought is the new revised version? The calories are a bit lower, everything else a bit higher, net carbs are the same. Go figure.

For almost five years. I actually had two of them. I had an erosion with the first and it had to be removed less than a year after it was put in and then the second one I had to have a port revision after 2 years and then it slipped and it had to be removed. So, I opted to get the sleeve when they removed the band. I'd have to say I did not have very good luck with lapband. While it was working it was good, but I guess that wan't meant to be for me in the long run.

Where do I start I was sleeved on April 20th took 8 hrs due to many issues found while removing my lapband, on road to recovery and it's been a great 4 weeks post op, loosing weight so fast and walking 4 miles a day now, I'm 57 pounds down now since pre op weigh in. I started out at 447 on first consult in Feb and we decided my band was to tight so in April tried to unfill it but port had fliped so Dr requested urgent repair/revision with insurance company got approval the next day and booked in 6 days later. I didn't get a chance to think about worrying it happened so fast. After 12 years of my band which worked for me for about 7 of them I was now free from it and sleeved and enjoying my new life every day so much more now as those pounds I gained come off and my new body comes to life once again. Cheers Mal and Aussie Up Over is Fremont CA

in all honesty - i'm glad they have someone on with a failed WLS. not for giggles; but because it's a reality....sometimes it just doesn't work for someone, sometimes they have the wrong surgery. my neighbor - she had gastric, lost 140lbs - gained more than half back when she had a revision to a DS 2 months ago. she had no business having RNY in the first place, because she had no intention of changing her eating habits. she asked me how many calories i had a day & guessed around 1100.....that was Breakfast for her. i think she now has the right surgery for her, like lapband worked for many of us here. i don't think having WLS is an easy "out" for someone - i still have to make proper food choice selections / shop for healthier items & drag my a$$ into the gym on days i rather sleep in. if anything he has a strike against him & i'm pulling for him - because according to his labs, this is make or break for him.

I think the Band works differently on different people. Not sure if it has to do with the type of Band... fill docs... or whatever. Some people PB a ton from the get-go regardless of what they eat. Others never have a PB at all. What I do believe is that you need to work to be successful with as little fill as possible? Why? Because in general, the smaller the fill, the more healthful/normal foods you can eat. The smaller the fill, the more calories you're probably getting (although not too many), so your metabolism doesn't shut down. You also leave yourself more room for success. I know that when I got super-tight... when barely anythign would go down... that's when I turned to the junk food that somehow always made it down. At this point, I was starving... eating so little... and desperate, so I turned to food, any food, for nourishment. My nails were shot... hair looked like crap, etc. Removing some fill lead to better choices, and eventually more weight loss. Of course, now it's been three years since I've had a fill. Had to have the one I had in March (I think) removed because it gave me problems. Was planning on revising to a VSG (Vertical Sleeve)... but became preggers again. I will say that even though my Band can go crazy during pregnancy, even with no fills (like when you have your period)... it is still comforting to know that I have the Band vs. a malabsorption surgery during pregnancy. As for the MGB, I looked into having that done in 1999 when I started my WLS research. Have nothing but good things to say about Dr. Rutledge. He has published some great long-term data on the MGB, covering a ton of patients. You can check it out at his site, which used to be clos.net Not sure if that still works.

Thank you for the encouragement! I am getting all of my hospital requirements done - just need the psych eval and Bariatric class and I will be good to go for the revision.

I will add that with the bypass you can always get a band over a bypass down the road as an option, though I dont know if I would classify that as a revision or not. But i probably see more band over bypasses done than I do lap bands for people who have never had surgery before.

Chiming in, I have my sleeve to bypass revision surgery that day!

5 months post-op today and down 72 pounds. It feels a lot better and I'm having more energy. I'm having trouble with my stomach. I can't really explain it, but is lower and possibly a burning feeling. It comes and goes and only lasts about 30 seconds to a minute. My 6 month follow up is in exactly 4 weeks and I will speak to my PA. We discussed it before and she said she would do a scope if it continued. So, I will be asking to do the scope. I take protonix daily, although I have missed it a few times. I sure hope it stops and won't have to do a revision. My Dr wanted me to do the DS, but I said no. However, I guess I might consider if this continues. I still have to lose 84 pounds to get to goal, and definitely will need plastic surgery on my arms, stomach and breasts. Hope everyone is in a good place and may we all continue to do well! Love this group!💕🤸‍♀️

This is absolutely the reason. My therapist (had bypass over 30 years ago) has told me about several patients of hers that have gained weight after having WLS. What she tells me is every single time it’s because they didn’t do their head homework. The science behind this is very real whether you get the sleeve or bypass. You will lose more with bypass— it’s restrictive and malabsorptive. The sleeve is mostly just restrictive. However both procedures share a common component which is the complete metabolic reset. This reset only lasts a short time though and we all know that as the “honeymoon”. It’s what we do during that honeymoon that determines future success. I won’t lose as much excess fat as I would’ve had I opted for bypass, but I had to consider my career and lifestyle and many other factors. I made that choice knowing the weight would come off slower and that hitting goal weight would make me have to work that much harder. Now maybe someday I will have to have a revision: I had chronic acid reflux and I can potentially see something like that coming back on me in a couple of years, but I wanted to take a chance on the sleeve because I’m pretty active and have an extremely demanding work environment and I needed something “easier” to take care of. Right now I wasn’t willing to have to worry about dumping or losing even more hair or being chronically tired because maybe I wasn’t absorbing enough nutrients. Either way I know I’m going to be successful because my head is in the right place and now my body is actually cooperating.

Absolutely! The first ones were actually done in 2006-2007. A very good band doctor in Ohio did his first one in 2007. Here is a link to show you an x-ray of what a band over bypass looks like, it's pretty cool: Trace W. Curry, M.D. - View topic - Band-over-bypass Xray My surgeon has placed over 3000 lap bands, and recently, many gastric bypass patients have been seeking this revision. Feel free to ask anymore questions. As you can tell, I'm a research-a-holic

Hi London! I'm in East Orlando too! what kind of revision are you having done? Who is your surgeon?

If you have ANY lactose intolerance, stay away from any protein that contains Protein Concentrate. Find yourself a protein that ONLY has Protein Isolate. Like Isopure for instance. Whey Protein concentrate is exactly what it sounds like, it's a concentrated milk protein, but concentrates do not filter out lactose. Isolates remove most, if not all, lactose. You are looking at things the wrong way. Saying you'll NEVER be able to do something is wrong... very wrong. Quite a high number of Bypass patients, myself included, have almost no issues with almost all foods. I can eat pretty much what I want at this point, just over 6 months post op. I drink beer, eat sweets, etc. No issues. I had 2 donuts the other day and that made me feel like crap, but no dumping or other issues other than feeling super run down and icky for a few. If you focus on ways you plan to fail, you will fail. Focus on the things you can switch out. I'm a huge ice cream guy. I could eat a whole pint and want more. I found Halo Top ice creams, protein, no added sugar, low fat, super low calories and they taste good. I don't eat white flour anymore, I choose to eat the high grain count stuff or fiberone has an 80 calorie wrap. Look for the things that you can swap out, and that will satisfy the cravings while still falling inside of your diet restrictions. It's not hard, you just have to do a little bit of work at first. Revision from Band to Bypass was legit the best thing I've ever done. I'm still dealing with some odd body dysmorphia, I still "feel" fat. Like when I'm not paying attention, my spacial awareness is that of my fat body... but I'm not "fat" anymore, so that's an odd thing to deal with. But it's getting better day by day. I don't have any issues with feeling like I'm missing out on food or anything, we still go out to eat, I just pick better items. Your taste buds will change, some folks they change only for a little while, some, forever. I've lost my craving for super sweet things, for the most part. With sagging skin, my max weight was 370 and I don't have much sagging skin at all... I've got some, but it's totally hidden with clothing. The bypass is reversible. It's risky, but it happens. The **ONLY** weight loss surgery that isn't reversible is the sleeve, because the sleeve 90% of your stomach is removed, with the bypass, it's all still there, just shifted around. The other side is to realize that, food addictions are real, even if you don't believe you are addicted to something, doesn't mean you aren't. Some of it is habit, habits take a minimum of 2 weeks to break. Why do you want the surgery? You don't have to answer here, but keep that in mind whenever you start to get frustrated or sad at things that... more than likely won't bother you later down the road. I knew that if I didn't do something to lose the weight, I would be cutting my life MUCH shorter... I don't want to do that to my wife and kids. I'll tell you this. over 90 lbs dropped since March and I feel fantastic. Food does not drive my life, I still enjoy lots of food items, I can hike without issue, I take several flights of stairs without breaking a sweat, I actually did 8 floors of a Federal Hospital in 1 go, just because I wanted to see if I could do it, and my heart rate got to a whopping 121 bpm. I'm prepping now to climb a mountain.... I wouldn't even have been able to entertain the idea 6 months ago. It's ok and totally understandable to be afraid, scared and unsure of the future and all the changes that WILL be required with this surgery. But one thing is certain, if someone stays overweight, they are guaranteeing they will have medical issues down the road.