We often hear how much better sleeves are than bands, how much easier it is etc etc. Nobody that is sleeved ever seems to post on here that life is not a bed of roses and they make it sound like the perfect weight loss surgery.

Now I can't comment as I don't have a sleeve I have a band. So far I don't have any problems with my band but if I do at some stage in the future then I would probably consider a sleeve. Anything rather than be fat again.

Which is why I found this comment posted on the VSG forum rather interesting.

Ok guys and gals. . . here is my tidbit of advice! CHEW YOUR FOOD AND DON'T GULP IT! I made the big mistake this weekend of eating a piece of chicken way too fast and not chewing it well enough (old habits don't die) MY GOD, i was in such pain, I thought for sure i was going to die. . .thought for sure i needed to go to the ER! the sliming was horrible. . . then i forced myself to puke and felt better. . . felt way better after about 30 minutes, but was way too afraid to eat anything anymore. . . the next day was so much better! I'll always chew very well, wait my 2 minutes between bites and eat only baby bites of food. . . good luck!

Sounds familiar doesn't it? In fact this comment would seem to indicate that in many ways the sleeve has very similar issues to the band.:thumbdown::blushing:

Oh, you trouble maker! If any sleevers see this, its going to be on for young and old! I really dont understand why people think their surgery is the only choice and I hate band bashing. There are downsides to the band, but there are pros and cons of everything. And reading that sleeve forum over the past year or so, it has become exceedingly obvious that sleever live with a host of day to day annoyances, discomforts and problems just like bandsters do and many of them similar!

I think when it comes down to tin tacks, we all wanted to do something about our lives badly enough that we were prepared to face these consequences, and pretending they dont exist for any surgery is a bit silly.

Thanks Jacqui - love you too! LOL

Seriously I didn't post it to cause trouble although some people may see it that way. I just thought it was interesting to see what things are like with some of the other choices,and there have been a couple of threads lately where people have again asked what the advantages/disadvantages to the various types of surgery are.

I admit that I know very little about the sleeve which was one of the reasons I was looking at the other forum(that and obviously boredom as I'm off work for a couple of weeks).

I have looked at some of the surgeon's websites but we all know that they don't give the full picture, to get that you need to speak to people who have had the procedure.

So reading real people's experiences was really interesting. Especially the quote that I posted above as it could easily have been written by a bandster(myself included).

I hadn't realised that some of the rules/recommendations with a sleeve include:-

Do not drink fluids while eating

Omit carbonated drinks

Eat slowly and chew foods until they are mushy

Do not lay down or rest after eating (presumably this is to prevent reflux)?

So really it all sounds very similar to life with the band.Presumably the main advantage is that you do not have the level of aftercare that a person with a band has and that you do not have to wait to reach restriction?

Reflux is a big problem with the sleeve because the stomach produces its normal amount of acid for quite a while, but with less stomach, you dont need it. I think that anti reflux and heartburn meds are taken for quite a while after surgery and for some, forever. It seems ironic that many band to sleeve conversions are done to escape horrid reflux.

I think you're right, the huge advantage is avoiding the fill issues - the difficulty getting restriction, keeping restriction or regaining restriction you have lost. But I have also read of one or two people who's new stomachs have been made, if not too big, then a size that hasnt enabled the person to lose all their weight - and you've got absolutely nowhere to go from there.

I think you'd probably find the sleeve suits a lot of people though becuase without the need for fills, it does take away user error - so many people think they're band failures when really, they just dont have proper restruction - whether this is easily rectified by a fill or whether its one of those mysteries many seem to face is another issue.