SLEEVE TO BYPASS REVISION

[India928 81]

How is everyone's weight loss going? I am interested in hearing about weight loss success rates from Sleeve to RNY. Anyone able to share?

[babysteps 48]

Slow but I was told that's how it would be but it's not to slow 10 lbs a month. I'm down 58lbs in 5 months. 233 to 175.

[India928 81]

I was told that it would be slower weight loss by my nutritionist, my surgeon never said this to me

I am so disheartened by this. I'm over 300 pounds again. While 10 pounds a month lost is undoubtedly better than gained - and CONGRATULATIONS to you on that success, I feel disappointed.

I still have one last insurance hurdle to accomplish before it is submitted for review.....could be combination of my nerves and too much "wait" time but would you still do it again?

....and Thank You very much for replying!

[SleeveandRNYchica 1,155]

I am in the process of sleeve to band revision. I had my surgery 10/1/12. I loss 53lbs with sleeve pre and post op. I got pregnant and cannot lose. I have an angulated (twist) sleeve that holds food causing gerd.... I also have a hiatal hernia. Currently back up to preop weight. Going through insurance requirements but expecting to have bypass in late Sept early October almost 3 years to the day from my sleeve.

[MichJohn77 39]

I am so happy I found this thread. I am in the pre-op stage of revising from my sleeve to bypass. I read about "mini-bypass" what is that exactly and how is it different from a regular bypass? I saw it mentioned a few times. I loved my sleeve 2012 until this year. My GERD is soooo bad its really becoming a problem. I am on 4 different medications that I take more then once a day and most days with no relief. My pouch spasms... and I am doubled over in pain. I am using a different surgeon this time around because when I went to my surgeon with these concerns he looked at me like I was crazy and got defensive. I am concerned about complications. I didn't want to re-route my insides the first time around and am still on the fence but then the pain comes and I can not wait to get the revision! I have 2 more appointments this week and then I am done. Hopefully they can submit everything ASAP and my insurance doesn't give me a hard time. Fingers and toes crossed. Today my nutirionist told me that weight loss would be minimal if at all. I can still lose at least 30 pounds and be at my goal so I am hoping I at least reach that. She also said that my banana shaped sleeve would now be more like a shot glass and only hold 3-4 ounces. She said that it wouldn't "stretch" much since they removed the stretchy part of the stomach when i had the sleeve. I love reading everyone's comments, good and bad.

[Tlmarsh 15]

Interesting info! I had a lapband first, and had nothing but problems with it from the beginning. My surgeon, Dr Benn from Mpls - Southdale Weight Loss Clinic, seemed nice at first, but on the day of surgery he yelled at me in a very unprofessional manner because his staff screwed up and didn't have a letter from one of my doctors which was important about my medication during surgery. Long story short that issue was fine because the pain staff had the letter and all was well, but to have the surgeon yell at ME when I am laying there waiting for him to cut on me, was very nerve wracking. Then when my band was having major problems with me throwing up, getting stuck on every thing, etc. he blamed ME for the problems with the band. I was on an online group and I was asking him very valid questions and that made him mad. So finally, I called the clinic and was connected with a wonderful PA. She encouraged me to file a complaint against Dr Benn, which I did. Then she switched me to another surgeon, Dr Laguna, who has been wonderful. Plus she informed me that my band problems were not my fault.

I kept the band in for 4 years and kept trying to work with it. When I finally gave up, I asked Dr Laguna about converting to sleeve. He said that with the problems I had with the band, he felt that my esophagus had problems with pressure in the round muscles that make up the esophagus. There was a test I could have had which involved finding out the pressure of the esophagus (there are ring like muscles that control the food pushing down and some people have more tension in those muscles, which can cause them to not work right. )

He told me he highly believed I was one with those issues so I decided to go with the gastric bypass and never had that test. I am guessing that maybe some of you that had the sleeve had those same problems and that could have caused your sleeve to fail. I don't remember all the medical terminology now, but he said that the band and the sleeve are both "high pressure" surgeries??? I think that was the word he used...and he said the GB is not. So I would be most successful with the bypass. I have had the GB for 2 years now and got down to goal weight. Now I am getting back into daily aerobic exercise in order to maintain my loss.

I do have dumping, which for me is an answer to prayer because I am a sugar addict. It is like being an alcoholic on anabuse. And it works for me. I still get tempted and eat something with sugar and get sick and then I beat myself up for putting myself in that misery again But overall it has been the most successful for me.

One problem I wondered about when reading about you who are converting to GB after the sleeve...I had lost most of my weight with the band and my insurance refused to pay for the GB!!! because my BMI was too low!!!!! So I actually had to gain back 30 lbs to qualify for insurance. It wasn't hard and I gained it back in 2 months just by eating frozen yogurt every single day. And I stopped exercising. And that 30 lbs came off very fast once I had surgery. But just be sure and check on the rules of your insurance company before you get too excited. Especially those of you who lost alot of weight with the sleeve and are not severely obese anymore. Good luck to you all and I can sure relate to all the pain and vomitting, etc. Hope you all find success in the end!!! Tracy

[Tlmarsh 15]

Oh, one more thought. I wonder why they don't give EVERYONE that test on the esophagus before doing sleeve surgery on them???? It sounds like having high tension esophagus muscles is pretty common. Tracy

[himalaya62 221]

Hey. I'm having my sleeve to bypass revision next Wednesday, July 29. I was sleeved in February 2013. I lost about 40 pounds and kept it off for a year when I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and was started on a beta blocker. I gained 20 pounds the first month and it has just gone up since then. My insurance said only one bariatric surgery per lifetime however I decided to try to have it approved and they approved it within two days. The insurance company considered my failed sleeve a complication as well as my new heart condition and borderline sleep apnea. I thought for sure I would have to appeal the denial but was happily surprised. So if your insurance states one bariatric surgery in a lifetime, try to get it approved anyhow. You may be pleasantly surprised. I have completed all my preop requirements and I started my diet today. Has anybody gone through this and are you glad that you did this? My biggest fear is not the surgery itself but being a failure again. It's so embarrassing. I am telling very few people I'm having RNY. They all think I'm having a hiatal hernia repair. I would appreciate your thoughts. Thank you.

[LaurenB8604 29]

Heyyyyyy everyone ! I am looking for support! I was just revised from a sleeve to rny on Monday. 7/20/15 . I was sleeved on Feb 17,2014 and lost about 70 pounds. About 6 months in my weight loss basically stopped. After having an upper GI and endoscopy done, I was told that I had a hiatal hernia which caused most of my stomach ( which was sleeved) pushed up in to my chest cavity. The bottom part of my stomach was bloated. The surgeon explained that this was the cause as to why I was not loosing weight as well as having gerd symptoms. So Monday I had my surgery and I am feeling ok definitely in some pain and very tired. But it's nice to be home now to heal. I am looking for anyone who has been revised for support , I feel like our population is not very big

In the wls community , or maybe I just haven't found the right place! I know everyone's situation is different but I am curious to know about weight loss after revisions . Thank you all for reading! I am going to stop now as the pain meds are kicking in

[Titaniumsleeved2014 42]

Wow, I'm so glad I found this thread it has really encouraged me to go forth with a revision from sleeve to bypass. I was sleeved May 2014 and has only lost about 30lbs in 14 months. Like most of you since having the sleeve I have the worst reflux ever I didn't know people suffered like this. I'm always in pain I can't eat with pain, burning and the vomiting. I'm in pure misery.

[SleeveandRNYchica 1,155]

Hey. I'm having my sleeve to bypass revision next Wednesday, July 29. I was sleeved in February 2013. I lost about 40 pounds and kept it off for a year when I was diagnosed with atrial fibrillation and was started on a beta blocker. I gained 20 pounds the first month and it has just gone up since then. My insurance said only one bariatric surgery per lifetime however I decided to try to have it approved and they approved it within two days. The insurance company considered my failed sleeve a complication as well as my new heart condition and borderline sleep apnea. I thought for sure I would have to appeal the denial but was happily surprised. So if your insurance states one bariatric surgery in a lifetime, try to get it approved anyhow. You may be pleasantly surprised. I have completed all my preop requirements and I started my diet today. Has anybody gone through this and are you glad that you did this? My biggest fear is not the surgery itself but being a failure again. It's so embarrassing. I am telling very few people I'm having RNY. They all think I'm having a hiatal hernia repair. I would appreciate your thoughts. Thank you.

Good luck! Keep us posted on how you are doing!!!

[Tlmarsh 15]

I was a band to bypass. So glad I did it. I had problems the first year, mostly just learning experiences. If I had eaten exactly as I was told, I wouldn't have had any problems. But most of us have some addiction problems with food and we push the boundaries. Now I feel like an alcoholic who takes anabuse. It's a drug that makes an alcoholic really sick if they drink. I get really sick when I eat sugar period. Sugar was my weakness. And now that I am over 2 years out, I sometimes eat too much and then in 20 minutes I feel it. So I keep trying to remember to eat only one cup of food at any meal. Eat 3 meals per day and eat Protein first, then veggies and fruits. I do sometimes feel an emptiness inside where the sugar used to go...not in the stomach...I am learning that for me, being creative is a must. I have to have creativity in my life regularly. Some find a love of exercise and that takes the place of the food. Most of this journey is in our heads not our stomachs. And it's a wonderful journey of self awareness and learning to love ourselves from the inside out.

[chasingpolaris321 214]

Did anyone have the sleeve to RYN at a normal BMI? I developed Barrett's and severe acid and bile reflux and am revising sometime in December. I'm only a year out of sleeve surgery and will probably be around 140lbs (currently 150) at surgery and am 5"5'. I just remember how hard it was to eat anything for so long and I'm having a hard time figuring out what having bypass is going to be like at a normal weight.

[SleeveandRNYchica 1,155]

Heyyyyyy everyone ! I am looking for support! I was just revised from a sleeve to rny on Monday. 7/20/15 . I was sleeved on Feb 17,2014 and lost about 70 pounds. About 6 months in my weight loss basically stopped. After having an upper GI and endoscopy done, I was told that I had a hiatal hernia which caused most of my stomach ( which was sleeved) pushed up in to my chest cavity. The bottom part of my stomach was bloated. The surgeon explained that this was the cause as to why I was not loosing weight as well as having gerd symptoms. So Monday I had my surgery and I am feeling ok definitely in some pain and very tired. But it's nice to be home now to heal. I am looking for anyone who has been revised for support , I feel like our population is not very big

In the wls community , or maybe I just haven't found the right place! I know everyone's situation is different but I am curious to know about weight loss after revisions . Thank you all for reading! I am going to stop now as the pain meds are kicking in

How's your recovery going?

[himalaya62 221]

Well I am now 10 days post op GS revision to RNY..... That was a real trip. I had it done at Cleveland clinic Florida and they were excellent there. The worst part of my entire journey so far was that darn JP drain. Since it was my second abdominal Surgery I had to go home with one for two weeks. After a week I developed a reaction on my skin so I had to travel back and get it removed. What a relief that was. Other than that and of course the gas pains the rest was tolerable as long as I had appropriate pain meds. I am 17 pounds down from my presurgery weight. Today I got to start soft dairy. Cottage cheese never tasted so good. I have had absolutely no nausea (yet) I start soft Protein on 8/10. Can't wait to taste something meaty for a change. Good luck to all. I will let you know how it goes.