My husband and I both had the Lap-Band the same day and shared a room together in 2007. We did well at first because we were afraid to eat much but we both found that as we introduced more foods back into our diet that we couldn't eat the healthier foods we needed to be eating, most lean meats, eggs, salad and many veggies without it getting stuck and having terrible pain after the 1st or 2nd bites.

We NEVER felt full which was what we were told would happen with the band, so we just started having foods we could actually eat.

Needless to say that over the next few years he gained all his weight back and I gained mine PLUS another 15 pounds. We are at our heaviest weights ever and we are miserable.

In May, I found out that insurance might cover a revision and started the process. After 2 weeks, the insurance company requested more information and I figured they wouldn't approve it BUT we resubmitted with the info. they asked for and 3 weeks later I got THE CALL that we are both approved and are on the schedule for surgery in two weeks. WOW!!!!! Just when I had lost all hope....

PAT testing is July 12th and the surgery date for both of us (again) is July 19th.

Soooooo excited to have hope again and a second chance with a better TOOL that will hopefully work alot better than the 1st one. According to most of you it WILL!

This site helped me stay more positive so THANK YOU to all of you!!!

Hi there, I am new here too.

I had similiar problems, healthy foods like lean meat and veggies were the hardest foods to eat. Made it hard to have a normal life!

From what I gather about the sleeve, eating is hard at first, but after that initial 6-18 months you can eat most foods so don't have that problem of choosing foods based on what doesn't hurt!

good luck with your revisions!

Congrats on your approval - you will find the sleeve is nothing like the band. The restriction is there from day one and doesn't stop. Also, you actually crave and can tolerate healthy food. When I am feeling really drained, all I want is chicken. A couple bites of Protein and I feel like a million bucks!

Good luck on your journey - make sure to read a lot of the post-op forum because that is where people go to talk about their recovery. I found it to be a little tougher than my lap-band recovery.

Congrats on your approval - you will find the sleeve is nothing like the band. The restriction is there from day one and doesn't stop. Also, you actually crave and can tolerate healthy food. When I am feeling really drained, all I want is chicken. A couple bites of Protein and I feel like a million bucks!

Good luck on your journey - make sure to read a lot of the post-op forum because that is where people go to talk about their recovery. I found it to be a little tougher than my lap-band recovery.

Thanks!! We go for our pre-op testing tomorrow morning...so nervous and excited...surgery is one week from tomorrow. Can't wait.

Hi There,

New to this posting stuff...My story is much like yours, I was banded in 2007, and couldn't eat healthy foods. I was miserable, so I had the band taken out last Nov 2010. Now I am sceduled to have the sleeve done on Aug 11th. I'm very nervous about it. The band was such a miserable experience. Am I going to end up miserable again?

Hi There,

New to this posting stuff...My story is much like yours, I was banded in 2007, and couldn't eat healthy foods. I was miserable, so I had the band taken out last Nov 2010. Now I am sceduled to have the sleeve done on Aug 11th. I'm very nervous about it. The band was such a miserable experience. Am I going to end up miserable again?

We went for our pre-op tests yesterday and everything looks good. They said they are seeing alot of people with the same problems and are going with the sleeve. The gal that did our paperwork had the band a few years ago and said she wished the sleeve was available back then. Everyone I talked to said the sleeve was NOTHING like the band...it works! (I know it works for some people and I'm happy for them)

The hardest part is that there is more pressure to succeed because we failed once already. But I try to remind myself that IT FAILED me too. I told the doctors that I realize it's a tool but my explanation or comparison is that I was given a dull knife instead of a sharp one. When I needed to feel full the most (around 6 months or so) the healthier foods just got stuck. With the sleeve IF we eat like we're suppose to and not drink with the meals we will feel full. That's all I ever wanted.

From everything I heard yesterday I am even more confident with this decision. I am more excited than nervous now.

You'll do great too!

Tues. July 19th can't come soon enough.

You have no idea how happy I am to hear these kind of comments!

Congrats on your approval - you will find the sleeve is nothing like the band. The restriction is there from day one and doesn't stop. Also, you actually crave and can tolerate healthy food. When I am feeling really drained, all I want is chicken. A couple bites of Protein and I feel like a million bucks!

We went for our pre-op tests yesterday and everything looks good. They said they are seeing alot of people with the same problems and are going with the sleeve. The gal that did our paperwork had the band a few years ago and said she wished the sleeve was available back then. Everyone I talked to said the sleeve was NOTHING like the band...it works! (I know it works for some people and I'm happy for them)

The hardest part is that there is more pressure to succeed because we failed once already. But I try to remind myself that IT FAILED me too. I told the doctors that I realize it's a tool but my explanation or comparison is that I was given a dull knife instead of a sharp one. When I needed to feel full the most (around 6 months or so) the healthier foods just got stuck. With the sleeve IF we eat like we're suppose to and not drink with the meals we will feel full. That's all I ever wanted.

From everything I heard yesterday I am even more confident with this decision. I am more excited than nervous now.

You'll do great too!

Tues. July 19th can't come soon enough.

Good luck with your revisions. You are going to LOVE the sleeve. You will be able to eat healthy foods and it is so nice to not have to worry about sliming things up or having foods get stuck. Life with the sleeve is way better! In fact, it's pretty amazing! You are going to do great!