Hello everyone,

I am having my sleeve surgery this Monday, June 2nd. Really looking forward to it. If you have not seen my other posts, I am going from the band to sleeve. I'm actually more excited to get the band removed than the sleeve but both are very exciting.

I have done soooo much research and am 100% confident with my decision. However, one thing I am interested in is hearing from people who have had the sleeve for 2 years, 5 years, 10 years, 15 years plus. I am 31 and will have the sleeve for a the rest of my life, but I seem to hear very little from people who have had the sleeve for a long period. Most are from people who have had the sleeve 2 years and under.

My main concern is this, are there any long term complications that come about with the sleeve that doctors and other medical providers don't like to share? Let's face it, they run a business and bad news is bad business. We all know the issues with the band. I can speek for that, and this is one of the reasons I am asking. The problem with the band is that you could be fine for a year, but then suddenly you have sever discomfort whether its while your sleeping, at work, or on vacation in some remote location. As long as I am doing what I'm supposed to be doing with the sleeve, will there be any unexpected complications with the sleeve like experienced with the band?

Quick Note: please don't post stuff like "you can't predict what will happen", "everyone's different." That's not what I'm asking. I want to know of any known issues or long term side effects of the sleeve surgery that people are often blinded to because of the euphoria of weightloss and being thin.

There's a great Veteran's Forum on this site for VSG. Check it out. Short answer to your question: from what I've read you will have some long-term issues if you make them for yourself. If you play dumb about what and how much you eat, if you don't exercise, if you over-exercise, in other words, if you don't partner with your doctor and be responsible for your health. As for big scary things that just jump on you after a few years....not so much.

I'm like you. I did a lot of research before doing this. It was the right step for me. I hope you will find the best path for yourself. I can understand why you're asking some great questions! They're ones all of us should ask,even if this is our first WLS adventure. We all need to make as informed a decision as possible. Good luck to you!