I am in that phase between having met with my surgeon the 1st time and doing all the requirements for my insurance company..(oh, excuse me, did I say jumping through hoops??) ...they tel me as long as I do everything on the checklist, I'll get approved. So this means my surgery will be in July. I cannot wait!! This is where I need to ask for some info....I have some friends/family that (while supportive).. are clearly more objective than I am at the moment. It has been suggested to me that I get some feedback from folks that have been sleeved (and I'm looking for people who have been sleeved a MINIMUM of 6 months) that REGRET having the surgery....I can't imagine that I would change my mind, but these people LOVE me and only want the best for me....SOOOOO... please talk to me if you had the surgery and wish you didn't..tell me everything you regret. I want to know that I am truly making an educated decision!! HIT ME UP!!! Let me hear from you....THANKS, FRIENDS!

Like others have said, my only regret is not having WLS sooner. Also as others have said, it is a lifestyle change. Be ready to commit fully an you will see results. Once you see the results any thought of regret goes away. You will need support, and it will be available to you (online here and through in person support groups - most surgeons put one on). Take part on them. Even if you think you don't need them, you will find you get something out of it.

Band2sleever you make many excellent points. Reality is that when first sleeved, you almost can't NOT lose -the sleeve does most of the work really. Overtime most people find it becomes less the sleeve doing the job and more on the individual. I do 5:2 and I would say that most people 2plus years out find they have to"work it" however it is not as hard as I struggled to stay under 300 pre op. The sleeve is an effective tool BUT it is only a tool.

I had the band for 10 years and really wasn't too successful. I have been sleeved since Dec 2011 and am maintaining 160# lost(from 308 to 148). Lots to say about that but I believe that getting to goal inspires me mightily whereas I never got under 200# with the band.

Also want to mention that the veterans forum is very educational to read but is intended for vets only to post...this is the right place to post this question.

There aren't data yet regarding 10 years out with the sleeve - the sleeve hasn't been around that long. The best you can do is maybe 5 years, and IDK if any of those people are here!!

Having said that, if you're just curious about ANY weight loss surgery 5+ years out, you can go to the Bypass groups.... But remember it's a different surgery. However, 5+ years should be a similar situation because that's when you get a read on whether people really changed their approach to food vs really didn't.

Then again, those results are so individualized that you might not get much good data from the information.

We have several people 3 or 4 years out and at least 1 that is 5. Our 5 year person re lost a small regain and is a successful maintainer.

Trouble is that forum participants are a self selecting group. ..not really a balanced view. Stats show people typically regain some weight in the years post op but MOST who were initially successful keep most of their weight off. For someone like me who was really bad off...twice the weight I should have been, this surgery was a life saver. If I had only 50 to lose, I personally wouldn't do it but not everyone shares my opinion.

I am 3 weeks out and it is the hardest thing I've ever done. But do I regret it? No way. Each day gets better. I struggle with weakness and I'm a single mom with a 50 hr a week career so the weakness is really hard to manage. I know it will be exponentially better in a month so I'm just hanging in.