Hi. I was banded in 2008. I went from 191 to 117 pounds and now I'm back up to about 160. I started having pain and my EGD showed a bad slip. My doc wants to remove the band and sleeve me. If you've had both, will you compare them for me? With my band, over the years, I got to where I could eat anything I wanted-even with good restriction (I was uncomfortable a lot). I assume I'd still be able to do that with the sleeve, though I hope I won't. When you're too full with the sleeve, does it feel as bad as with band (I hope so, to discourage)?

I realize this must be a very common question on these forums, but I'd sure appreciate any input.

I was revised to the sleeve about a month ago. Got banded 2009. I immediately have noticed a tremendous difference between the two. I have immediately began losing weight. You literally can't hardly eat and don't really want to......AFTER THE POST OP liquids PHASE OF STARVATION HELL.........but that's only about 2 weeks. As soon as you hit puree or soft foods it is crazy how little fills you up. With the band you had to guess if you were in the green zone and get 50 adjustments just to hopefully get full. The sleeve IS the green zone. So much easier and you're not a slave to those damn fill appointments. Soooo much better. Oh, if you eat too much or too fast you can get sick and feel a little "stuck" but not like you are being strangled by your food like the band. Others have thrown up....not me....and you CAN get dumping syndrome if you eat something too fatty or sweet. I have experienced that a couple of times. Sweaty, flushed,rapid heartbeat, nausea, diarrhea. No fun. But that's rare and STILL better than fearing each bite will choke you and slime. This is just what I have experienced so far. Hope it was useful to you.

Thank you Christina!! My surgery is in about two weeks!! Thanks for the information. That's encouraging.

Did you have the band removed and the sleeve put in at the same time? I'm so afraid to lose the only control i've ever had over my weight but I know my band is eroding. Is it even possibly to have it done at the same time? Does insurance cover it?

Hi Marisa! My surgery was 3 days ago and yes, he removed the band and did the sleeve at the same time. I know how scary it is to think about losing the restriction the band gives you. I wouldn't have removed the band if I didn't have the money for the sleeve. Insurance paid a portion because of the hiatal hernia part, but between my surgeon and the facility, it cost me 6,000 up front. Recovery from the sleeve is definitely harder for me than from the band. I've only been consuming 400-600 calories a day for a week, but I haven't lost weight. I was 164 pounds the day of surgery and the same today, but my belly is really swollen, so I'm sure that's the reason. Let me know how you're doing.

That's such great news! Thank you for the feedback! I'm relieved to know that my weight loss won't stop them from a revision. I know I need it, I have all the willpower in the world but when it comes to food it's been a life long struggle. It's definitely and addiction i've been fighting all my life. Aside from the past 6yrs. Let me tell you, i've never been so happy with my weight not consuming my entire life. Thanks again!

On 4/30/2017 at 6:03 PM, rcm1216 said:

Hi Marisa! My surgery was 3 days ago and yes, he removed the band and did the sleeve at the same time. I know how scary it is to think about losing the restriction the band gives you. I wouldn't have removed the band if I didn't have the money for the sleeve. Insurance paid a portion because of the hiatal hernia part, but between my surgeon and the facility, it cost me 6,000 up front. Recovery from the sleeve is definitely harder for me than from the band. I've only been consuming 400-600 calories a day for a week, but I haven't lost weight. I was 164 pounds the day of surgery and the same today, but my belly is really swollen, so I'm sure that's the reason. Let me know how you're doing.

How are you feeling now? How was the port area after removal?

Hello everyone,

I'm five months out after 17 years of banding. I am SO GLAD I made the switch. I won't bore you with my band and band revision journey. I will focus on how amazing having a sleeve is. It's the surgery I hoped I was getting 17 years ago! With the sleeve, I can drink my protein in the morning. No waiting hours for the mucus cap to dissolve. I can actually drink a good bit of water. I do not throw up. I only did once and that's because I ate too fast. Like it was said above, I don't feel like I'm being choked with food sitting at my esophagus. I am able to eat healthy foods (meat, salad, veggies). My head is in a better place because I had a wonderful two months or so of having NO interest in food. It gave me a great start/ restart.

To answer some questions from above, I had my band removed first and then was sleeved 7 weeks later. I did gain weight in that time, but it wasn't a ton- five pounds? I thought it would be more, but I hadn't been feeling much restriction for years so... At first I was upset about the two procedures and thought about going with RNY because my surgeon would have done that it one. But, I found the waiting time fine and I'm glad I didn't do so much at once. I have no pain in the port area. The band removal surgery was very easy. I was in and out of the hospital in four hours with very little pain.

If you have questions, just ask!

Hi Sara! I'm doing well. Tomorrow will be two weeks since my revision. I've lost 7 pounds, but I'm still retaining some fluid and swollen. I weigh 157 today. I'm not hungry. The soreness was pretty much gone after 6-7 days, and the part that seemed to linger the longest was the place where my port used to be.

I'm having Gatorade Low Cal and creamed soups mostly, and I notice a difference than with the band. At two weeks with the band, I felt huge restriction, and I vomited quite a bit-slime and all. I feel full with the sleeve, but no urge to vomit-not "stuck" or over-full. I hope this doesn't mean I won't feel any kind of restriction when I graduate to regular foods. Any advice on that hermione53?

My doctor recommended a protein powder, and I'm liking it so far. I can't get 60-80 grams any other way. It's called Genepro. There's some debate about it online because they claim to use some science to pack 30g of protein into 1 tbsp. My doctor says it's good. I add it to creamed soups, and I can't taste it. And only 1 small tbsp!

How are you all doing?

Hi Sara! I'm doing well. Tomorrow will be two weeks since my revision. I've lost 7 pounds, but I'm still retaining some fluid and swollen. I weigh 157 today. I'm not hungry. The soreness was pretty much gone after 6-7 days, and the part that seemed to linger the longest was the place where my port used to be.
I'm having Gatorade Low Cal and creamed soups mostly, and I notice a difference than with the band. At two weeks with the band, I felt huge restriction, and I vomited quite a bit-slime and all. I feel full with the sleeve, but no urge to vomit-not "stuck" or over-full. I hope this doesn't mean I won't feel any kind of restriction when I graduate to regular foods. Any advice on that hermione53?
My doctor recommended a protein powder, and I'm liking it so far. I can't get 60-80 grams any other way. It's called Genepro. There's some debate about it online because they claim to use some science to pack 30g of protein into 1 tbsp. My doctor says it's good. I add it to creamed soups, and I can't taste it. And only 1 small tbsp!
How are you all doing?

So great to hear of this progress!!! I cannot wait to be in your shoes, I feel like I'll finally have my chance to truly use a tool for weight loss!!

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