Hi Everyone,

Well I have come full circle, a place I never thought I would be at again in my life. I took the big step on January 15, 2009 to have lap-band surgery with Dr Ortiz. The best thing I ever did for myself, I was young and ready to start living my life. Little did I know 2009 would be a very tuff and awarding year for me, and with that I was not strong enough to continue my weight loss focus. The best thing was meeting my now husband. Problem is we both have the same food demons so it was easy for me to slip back into my old habits. Since meeting December 2009 I have gained 50lbs and my husband has put on 100lbs.

I told him a few months ago, I was going to stop loving him to death, and if we didn’t get our demons under control we were going to do just that "love each other to death". Everything we do revolves around food. But we also have dreams and passions and if it wasn’t for our weight we would be living a more active life, I know it, and I know we will.

But with change and uncertainty comes many questions. My husband tried to support me in the beginning when we met, I wasn’t quiet a year out from having my surgery, he has seen my struggles, the sometimes embarrassment that comes with not using the band as a tool. When we made the decision to have the gastric sleeve surgery, we made it as a team, but with one big hesitation. We will have eating troubles like I do now with the band?

My questions to you are:

I currently get food stuck, almost like my band is to tight, although I am completely empty. Do patients with VSG, get food stuck, like Lap-band patients?

Do you have to chew the food until there is just nothing left to chew, like you do with the Lap-band?

Are there no no foods, like there is with the lap-band? It was years before I could eat a sandwich after having the lapband put in. I still to this day can’t eat dry meat, like steaks or pork.

Are you able to drink when you are eating, unlike the lapband, where you should wait at least 30 min.

How long was it after your VSG surgery until you could really eat solid foods?

How much food can you eat? Let’s say a year after surgery are you still only able to eat 1/2cup of food at a time? I have read that some poeple feel like "they forgot to put the sleeve on". Does that mean that some days you can eat more then you normally can?

We know the long term health benefits outweigh all these questions and concerns, but eating is still a part of life. We love to travel and try new foods at the places we go, I would hate not to be able to eat the local cuisine.

I guess we need to start looking at food as a survival tool and not entertainment.

Thanks for reading, loooking forward to your insights

Jnlebean

Current:

Gastric Sleeve Surgery Date February 12, 2014

Highest Weight 299 November 2013

First Surgery:

Lap-Band Surgery Date January 15, 2009

Highest Weight June 2008 – 290lbs

Surgery Weight – 270lbs

Lowest Weight July 2009 – 242.5lbs

Weight Loss Goal 160lbs

all of the rules apply to the sleeve..If you eat too much you will feel like you have food in your throat..1 cup of food is maximum for me even after a year out...I still cannot tolerate beef and pork..And only brown meat in chicken...no drinking with your meals..30 min. before 30 minutes after.

You will find that there will be foods that you can eat a lot of. For me it is popcorn or any sweets....They do not close the valve at the bottom of your stomach because they are not dense foods...they slide through to your intestines..Hence sliders...

You have been on the first round of this journey....The second will be easier I hope as you will have to deal with your head and why you regained that weight.

This is not a 1 year diet, this sleeve is a tool to be used to help you with the amounts of food you have to fix the reasons you got this way..You will struggle because anyone who says they won't or don't are fibbing.....Think life change for both you and hubby.....hope this helps!

Edited December 9, 201312 yr by RJ'S/beginning

i would hope you wouldn't struggle as much after you are sleeved then before you have it. i mean if you did then why have it done right? im not sleeved yet but i was a lap bander. lol i had a slip 2x and then had it removed. not sure why it slipped, doctor can't really say why, but he did say once it slips the first time its common for the 2nd band it slip as well. i was successful with the weightless when i was banded but once it was removed i ended up over the years regaining.

i wish you and your husband lots of luck in your new journey!!

I have never had a "stuck" sensation. Sometimes I feel a little pressure in my chest/throat if I over-eat, but I try really hard to not do that. I measure my food carefully and don't eat more than my allotted portion.

Chewing - I try to chew my food well but I don't chew it into liquid or anything like that. It is important to take small bites.

No no foods - from what I have seen, many people end up with a couple of foods they can't tolerate anymore after surgery, but it really varies as to what those foods might be. I think the most common are bread and Pasta. I personally haven't found any foods I can't tolerate yet, but I'm still on soft foods (my surgeon has a strict plan of soft foods for six months after surgery) and I'm also not allowed bread, pasta, etc. until I hit my goal weight, so it's possible I have something lurking out there that I can't eat! I have no problem with dry meats such as chicken, turkey, etc.

No drinking during meals or for 30 minutes after.

How much food can you eat? I am almost six months out and I can't eat more than a half a cup of food, if that. It does depend on what I am eating. I can eat about an 1.5 ounces of chicken, but I can eat 3 ounces of yogurt. Frankly I hope it stays this way and I am doing everything in my power to preserve my restriction. There is no reason I need to eat more than this, and eating as much as I wanted in the past got me up to a BMI of 60 and needing weight loss surgery. Never again! A lot of how much restriction you maintain depends on how small and tight your surgeon made the sleeve in the first place as well as how careful you are with not overeating in the initial stages.

Good luck!

I currently get food stuck, almost like my band is to tight, although I am completely empty. Do patients with VSG, get food stuck, like Lap-band patients? There's no structure getting in the way but sometimes it feels like I still have my band in. If I eat too fast, it feels like it's stuck. I know in reality that there's nothing in the way but it sure feels like it.

Do you have to chew the food until there is just nothing left to chew, like you do with the Lap-band? Sure do

Are there no no foods, like there is with the lap-band? It was years before I could eat a sandwich after having the lapband put in. I still to this day can’t eat dry meat, like steaks or pork. If u have problem with some foods, u may have problems with the same foods. I can eat everything, just in really small quantities. The only things I couldn't eat with my band were: pancakes, pineapple chunks, and pizza crust (all p's). I can now eat those things. I'm a rebel. I eat Pasta, bread, potatoes, rice, and chocolate (unlike most people on this board)

Are you able to drink when you are eating, unlike the lapband, where you should wait at least 30 min. Ur not sposed to. For the same reason, u wash the food down quicker making u hungrier sooner. However, I was never able to drink after eating with my band cuz the food would act as a "plug" and whatever liquid I put in there afterwards would come right back up. Since it feels similar when I eat now (like there's a "plug") I'm too afraid to try to drink. After 4 yrs of having the band, I'm pretty used to not drinking and can feel when I'm ready (about 30-45 mins)

How long was it after your VSG surgery until you could really eat solid foods? 4 weeks of full liquids before starting soft foods. Longest 4 weeks of my life. I cheated after the 1st week with my band but didn't cheat once after sleeved. I was paranoid about causing a leak (rare, very rare). That first bite of refried Beans was like heaven

How much food can you eat? Let’s say a year after surgery are you still only able to eat 1/2cup of food at a time? I have read that some poeple feel like "they forgot to put the sleeve on". Does that mean that some days you can eat more then you normally can? I don't measure or weight my food. I just eat until I'm satisfied. A few times I've counted the bites just to see how much I'm eating (and I'm 5 mths out) and I eat about 10-12 bites of any given meal (like I said, I eat everything. Example meal: last nite I had homemade crock pot chili with cheddar cheese on top. I ate 8 bites. I also made cornbread. I ate 3 bites. For Breakfast I'll eat 1 egg and 1 pc of bacon or sausage. Or 6-8 bites of oatmeal. For lunch I'll eat 2/3 of a Lean Cuisine, half sandwich, 1/3 of a burger, 3/4 of a taco, or 1 bite of each of 8-10 items on a buffet)

It's the beauty of my sleeve. I know I could lose faster (I'm focussed on maintaining until after the holidays when I'll tackle the last 22 lbs I have left) if I counted everything I put into my mouth but if I could do that well, I wouldn't have ever need wls in the first place. If we could eat healthy in small quantities, none of us would have needed wls. I enjoy not dieting and losing slowly. I'd be happy if I never lost another lb (going from 248 to 152 is pretty good, IMHO) I'd be happy in my size 8 jeans. But that part of me that wants to get to 130 and maybe a 4 is still there, nagging me! So I will cut out my nightime snacking (Cheese Its, dinner leftovers, 1/2 PB and banana sandwich, or popcorn) and that oughta help. I will also watch my carbs (not too low tho). I WILL reach my goal!

Good luck with ur decision. So glad my band is out. My band was slipped for 9 mths before it finally herniated (caused from frequent vomting, even after a complete unfill) and caused pain with every bite of food. Had my revision 5 mths ago. I've vomited once (vs daily with band). My fault, ate too much.

1 I currently get food stuck, almost like my band is to tight, although I am completely empty. Do patients with VSG, get food stuck, like Lap-band patients?

No, NOTHING like the band. I have never felt any food stuck. I eat and it goes into my stomach. There's nothing there to prevent it from going all the way.

2 Do you have to chew the food until there is just nothing left to chew, like you do with the Lap-band?

At the beginning we are told to do this. Eventually, I stopped and I chew like I did prep. My feeling is that if I chew things too much it takes more to feel full.

3 Are there no no foods, like there is with the lap-band? It was years before I could eat a sandwich after having the lapband put in. I still to this day can’t eat dry meat, like steaks or pork.

When I was banded I couldn't eat food. I could eat ice cream and broth. Everything else came back up within a few minutes. Over time, There are no foods that you can't eat when sleeved. There may be a few that don't agree with you anymore, but those are very few. I don't like ice cream anymore... That's not a bad thing in my mind. On a note though.. There is the no no foods that will make you fat again that will need to be either eliminated or far and few between times you consume them

4 Are you able to drink when you are eating, unlike the lapband, where you should wait at least 30 min.

Told not to do this. I will have a sip of Water if needed, but I've never been a meal drinker

5 How long was it after your VSG surgery until you could really eat solid foods?

I took my hand full of pills right after surgery and know I could have eaten solid foods right away. Are you supposed to do that NO. You can eat solid foods when your surgeon allows it and NOT before. It's for a reason.

6 How much food can you eat? Let’s say a year after surgery are you still only able to eat 1/2cup of food at a time? I have read that some poeple feel like "they forgot to put the sleeve on". Does that mean that some days you can eat more then you normally can?

I will be a year on the 14th and I can't eat much more than 1/2 cup at a time. One cup is my max and it doesn't take long to learn not to over eat.

Without changing my eating habits I would have been right back to gaining weight. The sleeve doesn't stop you from grazing or eating the wrong foods.

That has to change or the sleeve won't work long term

Thanks Everyone for your opinions/comments and well wishes.

Counting the days....

I am two years from my revision. At this point I eat pretty normally but small portions. I choose to eat low carb and few processed foods. I had the band for10 years and never was comfortable like I am with the sleeve. Good luck!!!