Has anyone re- gained after 10 years, so many people have said this will happen

I know that removing part of one's stomach is not a new procedure but it's fairly new in the weight loss surgery world. I doubt you'll find someone on here who's had the sleeve for more than ten years. The band and gastric bypass is older.

ok, thanks.. and now that I think about it you are right.

With the sleeve you CAN gain the weight back. This is going to be true of any weight loss surgery. The major changes that are needed to get to goal and to maintain it will have to come from you. You have to watch what you eat and exercise regularly to keep the weight off. The sleeve is just a tool to help you lose weight. It is not a cure all for obesity.

Actually there are some threads in here explaining that the reason some on here trust the VSG is due to family members having had gastrectomies in the past, as in decades ago. A byproduct of their procedures was weightloss. So the medical community has been aware if this for a while, but I'm sure red tape has bogged approval down. On a side note...the very first gastrectomy performed was in 1881. I think they've had time to practice. Lol.

Nobody has been tracking the results of the sleeve as a WLS that long yet. Give it a bit more time. I'm not certain but when I was researching I think someone posted a five year study - you might do some searching and see if you can find anything on VST about it.

Regain is possible with any surgery. The big benefit the sleeve has over bypass (what most people are probably thinking of when they talk about regain) is that there isn't a honeymoon phase or window where loss is easiest. Once you're sleeved and healed, your capacity only increases a small amount. Unlike a short window where malabsoption is guaranteed, or a pouch that is likely to stretch (or a band that requires fills and unfills, for that matter), your sleeve is going to restrict you immediately after surgery and for the rest of your life.

I am two years out and maintaining beautifully. I'm currently pregnant and while I have hormone bloat and the start of a rounded tummy, I'm not having a problem with weight gain (nothing more than I'd expect at this point) despite the fact that my capacity is increased now that I'm pregnant.

All surgeries come with the risk of regain. Using the sleeve like a diet that will someday end is the biggest cause of regain I've seen - people just stop being diligent at goal and fall into denial about bad habits, ones they didn't fix while losing in the first place. That said, I have seen very few regain posts in the three years I've been here. I've seen plenty of "I got out of control over the holidays and gained a few but took it off quickly" posts, though. If you weigh daily in maintenance and actually learn how to eat like a healthy, normal person during the first few months post surgery, there is no reason you can't reach goal and maintain for life.

~Cheri

So much great info on this website. I cannot imagine doing this (Aug 28) without this board.

If you check the post-op section of the board, there's a stickied thread asking members how much weight (if any) they have regained since reaching goal. There's a lot of great responses there. From what I remember, those that did say they had regained, it was in the 5-10 pound range. I'd encourage you to read through all the posts there. It really helped me feel more confident in my chances for long term success.

I am in the 5-10 lb regain since surgery almost two years ago. Although I would be more comfortable with 5 pounds down, I am still okay with where I am now. My daily weight fluxuates by 2-3 pounds over a course of a week. If I see scale up, I take immediate actions which is easier with sleeve.

At my lowest I was 17 lbs below surgeons goal and way too skinny, looking unhealthy. Now I am 10 lbs above that but still 7 lbs below surgeons goal and well within Normal BMI range.

Don't get used to drinking your calories, or you will gain weight back. Another sleever friend of mine lives on sweet tea. She has gained back a lot of weight and is frustrated. DUH Sleeve only restricts. Our surgeons did stomach surgery, not brain surgery.

Why did I gain back 10lbs? I eat a lot of carbs and am carb sensitive. Potato salad, Pasta, white rice - with almost every meal. I also eat chips and candy too often. So with these slider foods the pounds have come back on. I am not proud of my weight gain and know what I need to do to lose the 5lbs. I do not diet anymore. What a sleever (me) needs to do is make better choices.

The sleeve works.

Hmmmm. Re-gain? Right. I'm way pre-op (more an explorer--my first bariatric appt is mid-August), but I'm staring at 100+ pounds to lose. Like, I re-gained FIVE pounds? I re-gained TEN pounds? Okay. I could totally live with that. At my weight, five pounds isn't a) noticeable; or significant.

What a blessing this surgery is!

As I read these boards I'm beginning to see that REAL life--at whatever weight--begins when you change your relationship with food. Like, boom. That's it. The sleeve, as many have said, is a tool. Not a magic bullet (I wish it were, but hey.) Plenty of people say that their view of food changes effortlessly, their taste for food changes immediately, whatever. Going in, I'm planning to have to face my dragons. I'm just hoping the surgery will make them smaller, scared, squash-able.

I am hanging in here, still one more Determined Girl

@iegle. I think your are doing great. When I was banded I has those same 5 to 10 pounds I played with and being very carb sensitive myself I feel you. Buy these ladies are all right. We just make better choice and the sleeve will help us get there.