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Hello! I paid for my sleeve out of pocket and looking to get a revision due to GERD as well. I have tricare select. The insurance coordinator said that tricare is really good about revisions. I’d not mention it’s for weightloss but for a medical reason. In your case GERD and sleep apnea. Good luck and I hope it works out.

I never lost my hunger. Not with the sleeve or with my revision to bypass (complications caused the revision). It was tough...really tough...in the beginning with both surgeries, but once I learned to time my meals and snacks, and learned the difference between head hunger and real hunger, and got my body used to the dietary changes I was making, it got a lot easier. You have to not only retrain your stomach, you also have to retrain your brain and change your relationship with food. It's worth it in the end.

Good afternoon, everyone. I'm new here. I was looking for some kind of forum where I could interact with others like me. I think I may have found it. I live in South Texas, and I had a sleeve gastrectomy in Mexico in 2009 when I was 35. I initially weighed 340 lbs and lost 149 lbs. and went from a size 32 to a size 14. My goal was a 12, but I was really happy. I was exercising 5x a week on the elliptical for a whole hour nonstop! I kept the weight off for approximately 6 years. Unfortunately, all kinds of tragic events started changing my life. In 2014 my father passed away, and I took it really, really hard. I ended up on Xanax and Ambien. In 2015, I got divorced. In 2016, my mother passed away. In 2017, I was transferred from a job I really enjoyed to a brand new location with all different people to work with. Then the COVID Pandemic kept me teaching from home for a year and a half. It was literally one heartbreak after another. Rather than looking for actual help, I helped myself... to pills, alcohol, and crap food. Over the past 9 years, I regained all my weight. Even though I still felt restriction in eating (i.e. only half a burger or 1.5 slices of pizza, with no sides or drinks and I was done). I was 10 lbs away from my original weight before my sleeve. Last year, though, my school district sent out an email stating that WLS was now covered by our insurance. I was so excited! I looked into it, made many calls, and thought coverage was out of the question because I had already had a surgery. Our insurance covers "one surgery per life." However, since my first surgery was private pay, they went ahead and accepted covering my revision to a bypass. Today is my 18th day post op. I've lost 42 lbs altogether since May 11, but only 10 of those lbs since the surgery. I feel a little blue because I was hoping for more than a 10lb loss in 3 weeks. I lost more weight at the beginning when I started a semi-liquid diet to prepare for surgery. I was doing 3 shakes and one solid, no-carb meal. I know that revisions are slower than virgin surgeries. I am doing as much reading and research as I can. I just can't help it, I guess. After my sleeve, the weight loss was phenomenal. Right now I am consuming 450 cals, 60 g protein, and keeping my carbs under 40g. I am walking around my house (not outside because South Texas) 4x a day and was told I could start on the treadmill this coming Monday. Maybe I'm doing something wrong? I'm also trying to find ways to consume fiber without a lot of carbs. I've eaten 1/2 cup of pinto beans twice but, man, that's a lot of carbs. I wanted to try raspberries, but I'm afraid of the little seeds getting stuck in my sutures. Any advice, thoughts, suggestions?

I am so glad to hear that you are doing so well. Congrats on your loss but even bigger congrats on the “normal” on your blood test for diabetes. That’s amazing!! May I ask if your Surgery was a virgin surgery or revision?

I just logged into my patient portal and looked at my labs. They ordered the same tests for both my sleeve and my revision to bypass. Here's what they ordered: vitamin d A1c comprehensive metabolic panel tsh vitamin b1 prealbumin iron ferratin folate vitamin b12 cbc with differential lipid panel vitamin a

Hey all, I have a small hernia and GERD from sleeve surgery. My insurance is FEP Blue of MD. My doctor submitted a pre cert and FEP Blue said I needed behavioral health and nutrition visits to approve even though it’s a revision due to complications. My doctor then canceled the pre authorization and Re enrolled me to start the whole program over with again. Does this seem right ? I feel like I’ve seen other people have a very seamless process when having a complication based revision. I feel like the insurance and the doctors office is not properly communicating with me or each other. Any advice ?

I think that's actually pretty rare. I think I've only heard about feeding tubes maybe two or three times in the nine years I've been on this site (and I don't remember if they were for revisions or "virgin" surgeries)

I had a sleeve to bypass revision yesterday.

Ooh yea. I am doing fine now. Thank you for asking. I haven’t needed any more NSAIDs. I gained my weight back and I’m facing revision to a surgery where even occasional NSAIDS are not okay though so this is on my list of questions to ask about.

Jan 22, now one week out and still in significant pain. I had revision sleeve to gastric bypass.

What kind of BCBS coverage do you have? When I had my initial sleeve surgery (and my revision an year later to bypass due to complications) I had BCBS (the highest Diamond plan) and they approved my initial surgery in 48 hours once it was submitted and 72 hours for my revision once it was submitted. I know some plans don't offer a lot of coverage, or require a thousand hoops to get an approval.

Yes, make it clear to the doctor this revision is for treatment of your GERD and Tricare should go along with it. Reflux coming up your throat that far puts you at risk of aspirating it. I ended up in the ER with severe asthma attacks from that and got pneumonitis several times from acid burns in my lungs. It is NOT fun. This wouldn't be a second weight loss surgery, this would be a revision due to a medical problem that the surgery will treat. So it won't conflict with their "once per lifetime" clause.

I was fine after the sleeve as far as the surgical glue goes. But after my revision from the sleeve to bypass due to a lot of complications, I developed a major allergy to the glue. So when I had my hernia surgery, they had to do a lot of internal stitches, which was A LOT more painful. But overall, even though the first week or so after your revision has been rough, I promise you it WILL get better.

Hello! I was just approved for revision surgery / Lapband to RNY / and am waiting on a surgery date. Just wondering how much time some of you took off work?

On August 2nd at revision from sleeve to gastric bypass. Can pancreatitis be a side effect ?

I am so glad they recommended you for revision!! It is sad that a lot of insurance companies have a "one bariatric surgery per lifetime" clause, or will cover revisions but make it near impossible to qualify for them. The sleeve surgery is the first stage in a classic DS surgery, it should always be up for revision to a DS/SADI if the results from it aren't lasting! I had a modified traditional DS done on November 1st. I'm so happy I did it. My diabetes and high blood pressure went into immediate remission. My weight loss has been slower than I'd like, but that isn't unusual for a DS because we lose for a lot longer than other surgeries (if we are lucky!). Your sidebar says you are pre-op, you should adjust it so it shows you post-op! How are you feeling?? I've heard the recovery from revision from sleeve to SIPS is not too bad since they don't normally touch your sleeve again unless it was improperly done the first time. Do they still have you on a strict post-op diet progression? I look forward to seeing how your weight loss goes, revision patients to this surgery usually do well! It just goes a little slower than before. ❤️

Thank you for the response @learn2cook it’s a little scary even though it seems to be really common. I don’t want a revision and hoping I can just get a hernia repair. But such is life. The doctor said I also had some curves to my sleeve so a revision maybe in my future. But he wasn’t a Bariatric doctor but a gastro. Thank you

I’m doing ok. I had revision and it’s definitely not the same as I expected. It’s slow weight loss but at least it’s going down. Body take longer to heal compared to before. Over all can’t complaint. Thanks for asking!

Hi! I’m having revision from VSG to RNY in June. I’m 52, and had the sleeve almost 10 years ago. I did well with the sleeve as far as no complications, but I regained almost all of what I lost, so here I am now. I’m older, hopefully wiser, and my reasons are different this time around. Best wishes to you!

I did. That's why I had to have a revision. What side effects are you having? What surgery did you have?

I’d never heard about up them (they’re not available here so no wonder). I did notice they say to avoid if you have IBS or other gut conditions as they can upset your small intestine bacteria. Can cause bloating, diarrhoea, etc. too. May be see what your dietician & surgeon say especially with your revision.

i think many people on here will tell you any revision surgery results in a much slower rate of weight loss than the first time around.

I had the sleeve done in August 2023 and have lost 75% of the excess weight. Approximately 2 weeks after surgery, I developed reflux. I did not have reflux prior to the surgery. I do not feel burning in the chest, but I do have a sore throat and saliva in the back of my throat most of the time. I have been on various combinations and dosages (taking them once a day and twice a day) of Prilosec, Nexium, Protonix, and Pepcid, but nothing seems to help. I have had two endoscopies: November 2023 - which was performed by a GI doctor that found gastritis and a small hiatal hernia. February 2024 - which was performed by my sleeve surgeon that found gastritis and esophagitis. I was told that the hiatal hernia was fixed during the sleeve surgery in August 2023, so I am not sure why it came back or why it was seen in November 2023, but not in February 2024. I was also told by my sleeve surgeon following the February 2024 endoscopy that I have a non-obstruction rotation. My sleeve surgeon advised that I could have another endoscopy where they blow air in the sleeve and that it "may" help with the reflux or I will need to do the gastric bypass revision. I have been living with this sore throat for 8 months now and I feel I have tried everything. I don't want to have a sore throat for the rest of my life, but I am reluctant to do the revision. Questions: Has anyone heard of this "blow air in the sleeve"? If so, does it help? Is the revision a guaranteed cure? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Dr. Josh Roller (Roller Weight Loss) has a GREAT segment on the podcast he’s on going over best surgeries if you need revision. I just finished listening to it. It’s on Spotify (& others) “The Skinny Truth”. I’m set up to get the Modified DS in the next few weeks with him.