I'll try to shorten this long story! Back in 2011 I had a lapband! Until about a year ago I was a model lap band patient. The surgery was wonderful, I lost 156 pounds in less than a year, and due to a horrid issue with reflux, hiatal hernia repair, and more reflux when the repair didn't "take" I'm here... about to have a new weight loss surgery in hopes of both "fixing" the reflux, and dropping the almost 60 pounds I gained when all the fluid was removed from my band.

I'm a little nervous, because technically a gastric sleeve can make reflux worse, but after going back and forth and back and forth on the issue, my doctor still believes the sleeve will be my best bet due to a separate issue I have that has in the past required prednisone therapy... even though I told him I'm never taking prednisone again... EVER... I don't think he wanted to take any chances. So...... we have a plan. And it starts with the removal of my band and me getting a sleeve. I'm ready to drop the extra weight, but more than that, I can not wait to sleep through the night again... reflux SUX and it sucks almost as much as weighing more than 270 pounds a whole lot of years ago!! I'm seriously praying this works!

I realized today that I'd forgotten about this forum which I frequented previous to my lapband surgery.... and I'm so happy to know it's still here!

I have questions... and it looks like y'all have answers! Anyway.... my surgery is at noon tomorrow!

Good luck to you! My modification of my RNY is on July 31. Reflux was a problem for me due to a really bad experience with a band and the resulting condition of my stomach. I am on a prescription that had completely resolved the problem, but I want to get off. I will follow you to see how you do in that regards.

Good luck to you! My modification of my RNY is on July 31. Reflux was a problem for me due to a really bad experience with a band and the resulting condition of my stomach. I am on a prescription that had completely resolved the problem, but I want to get off. I will follow you to see how you do in that regards.

Thank you!! July 31 will be here before you know it!! when I had my lap band I plugged the entire experience and it helped so much I'm actually thinking of doing that again for this.... [emoji5]

Thank you!! July 31 will be here before you know it!! when I had my lap band I plugged the entire experience and it helped so much I'm actually thinking of doing that again for this.... [emoji5]

That should say "blogged" the entire experience

Ha! And here I thought Plugged was a new social media term! I plan on doing the same thing, here, recording my experience.

Ha! And here I thought Plugged was a new social media term! I plan on doing the same thing, here, recording my experience.

Haha! I've been known to make up a few words in my day!!
It's a fun way to record everything.... I've gone back and read over it a lot and met some really cool people doing it!

Been there/done that! I had lapband in 2005. Initially, I was a model lapband patient until my gall bladder decided to fail. I was never the same and battled with reflux for nearly 5 years. I slept nearly sitting up that entire time! Come to find out that my band had actually slipped (likely when the gall bladder debacle hit because I was wretching a lot).

I went through quite a journey between band out and sleeve. My doc and I had some serious considerations about possible reflux with the sleeve and ultimately decided the benefits outweighed the risks. full disclosure: I do have some night time reflux, but it's easily managed and not enough to have to sleep sitting up again. In fact, the only reason I know I have it is because I occasionally wake up with a sore throat. GI doc is monitoring, but I don't expect anything much.

Warning: lap band patients converting to any weight loss surgery often have a lot of scar tissue to contend with. I did. Surgeon said it took him a half hour to untangle the mess of scar tissue. I've also seen others post similar experiences.

6 hours ago, freelance frog said:

Thank you!! July 31 will be here before you know it!! when I had my lap band I plugged the entire experience and it helped so much I'm actually thinking of doing that again for this....

I had my lap band removed because it failed and am struggling to not gain all my weight back. I'm on the pre-surgery diet now with surgery date July 30. I have a cream to use instead of NSAD's on my knee. My doctor won't do anything until I lose weight. Stay in touch as we are just a day apart.

In 2008, I had surgery for the lap band. I never really did lose that much weight with it - I started off at 220 or so. I think the lowest I got down to was 140 or so. I also had reflux before I had the band, so as you might imagine, the band made it worse. In 2017, my band slipped; I couldn't even drink water, nothing could go down, so the band was removed immediately. The surgeon who removed it is a bariatric surgeon, so I mentioned my real concern about gaining the weight back. He then suggested the sleeve. One year almost to the day, I went through surgery for the sleeve. My doctor also fixed the hiatal hernia that had developed from the band. I knew the sleeve surgery had its risks, particularly since I already had scarring from where the band used to be.

However, all went well, and I am so happy that I went through it. I feel fantastic, no more reflux, no more antacids, and I lost approximately 105 pounds from when I had the band. I fluctuate between weighing 112 to 115 pounds. I haven't been this weight in 30 years.

Part of my concern about the band removal was the prospect of needing to take prednisone in the future. I have a autoimmune disorder (sarcoidosis) that is mostly dormant but flared up once, and I needed to take prednisone for six months in order to function. I must have gained about 50 or 60 pounds while on steroids - my appetite was voracious. I was afraid that if I didn't have something like the band or the sleeve to curb my eating, I could really gain weight if I needed to go back on prednisone.

I hope your surgery went well today!

It is encouraging to hear other stories that are similar to mine. I had the lap band in 2009 and lost about 40 pounds with it. No matter what I did I just could not get below 190. The good thing was that I really stayed between 190 and 195 most of the time. I started having terrible reflux around 2016 and they wanted to remove my band. I was so scared of gaining all of my weight back that I just kept changing the date and putting off the removal. About a year went by and I just could not take the complications of my terrible reflux. I was literally sleeping sitting up every night and my body hurt everywhere from that crazy situation. I had the band removed in Sept of 2018 and by Dec I had put on 30 pounds ( with no changes to my eating habits) I decided to speak with someone about my options for sleeve or bypass. After seeing the surgeon he thought that I would be a great candidate for the sleeve and we sched surgery for Aug 12. I have put on 60 pounds since having the band out and I feel absolutely miserable. I am so excited and very nervous to take this next step.

I will start my preop liquid diet one week before surgery but I have been thinking about starting a little early.

For those that have already had the surgery any suggestions on pre-op diets, what helped get you through..... also was anyone able to lose any weight pre-op?

Why did your surgeon opt for sleeve instead of bypass if you have such bad reflux issues?

I didn't develop the reflux until I had the band. I haven't had much since having it removed. We discussed it and he felt that it wouldn't be an issue.

7 minutes ago, Second Time Around said:

It is encouraging to hear other stories that are similar to mine. I had the lap band in 2009 and lost about 40 pounds with it. No matter what I did I just could not get below 190. The good thing was that I really stayed between 190 and 195 most of the time. I started having terrible reflux around 2016 and they wanted to remove my band. I was so scared of gaining all of my weight back that I just kept changing the date and putting off the removal. About a year went by and I just could not take the complications of my terrible reflux. I was literally sleeping sitting up every night and my body hurt everywhere from that crazy situation. I had the band removed in Sept of 2018 and by Dec I had put on 30 pounds ( with no changes to my eating habits) I decided to speak with someone about my options for sleeve or bypass. After seeing the surgeon he thought that I would be a great candidate for the sleeve and we sched surgery for Aug 12. I have put on 60 pounds since having the band out and I feel absolutely miserable. I am so excited and very nervous to take this next step.

I will start my preop liquid diet one week before surgery but I have been thinking about starting a little early.

For those that have already had the surgery any suggestions on pre-op diets, what helped get you through..... also was anyone able to lose any weight pre-op?

As a former bander, I know that sometimes the reflux is caused by a band that has slipped. If you didn't have reflux after the band was removed then it may be an issue with a band only and may not be an issue with a sleeve. I had my band removed a year ago and I'm on my pre-surgical diet. I did start early as I do better in stages, I removed all carbs for 2 days then sugars, then went on the diet. My doctor doesn't require all liquids for 2 weeks I'm allowed 1 meal off of their selections and as I hate to cook I've bought rotisserie chickens and packaged the meat in 4 oz. portions and my green beans in 1 cup baggies. I'm allowed cottage cheese and protein drinks for the remainder of the day. They have other selections but the quicker I can get used to the same foods the easier it is. I've also added clear peach flavored protein to my plain caffeine-free ice tea. It is hot as hatties here and staying hydrated is important. Good luck with your journey my date is July 30. My pre-surgical appointments next week. Getting excited!

Although I had reflux pre-band, my doctor said that he would fix the hiatal hernia issue during the sleeve surgery. Also he said I should 1) watch out for spicy, acidic foods and 2) cease eating two or more hours before bedtime. It’s pretty basic stuff, but I appreciated the reminder. I’ve been off the pantoprazole since the surgery, and the reflux is gone and/or in remission.