Any revisions from lap band to sleeve? How is it going for you now?

babygirlinokc · March 15, 2009

Hi,

I'm new on this forum.

I was banded back in April 08. I first lost 13 lbs then I gained it back and then some. I did what I was supposed to do at first. However, I was still very hungry. I ended up eating more and I suppose I streched the pouch. Had 4 fills and 1 unfill. I know there is nothing wrong with the band, it just does not work for me. Had an upper GI and the doc said it is in place and looks normal. I'm going to get the sleeve done anyway. I need something a little better to help me. I know that I will have to stick to the portions and exercise on a daily basis.

I just want to see if there is anyone out there that had this done.

What is your progress?

I'm 47 years old, 5'1", 204 lbs.

Thanks. Please respond.

WASaBubbleButt · March 18, 2009

Hi,
I'm new on this forum.

I was banded back in April 08. I first lost 13 lbs then I gained it back and then some. I did what I was supposed to do at first. However, I was still very hungry. I ended up eating more and I suppose I streched the pouch. Had 4 fills and 1 unfill. I know there is nothing wrong with the band, it just does not work for me. Had an upper GI and the doc said it is in place and looks normal. I'm going to get the sleeve done anyway. I need something a little better to help me. I know that I will have to stick to the portions and exercise on a daily basis.

I just want to see if there is anyone out there that had this done.

What is your progress?

I'm 47 years old, 5'1", 204 lbs.

Thanks. Please respond.

I have gone from band to sleeve. The difference is like night and day. If I had it to do all over again I would have done the sleeve the first time.

With that said... you need to really stop and think about why you want restriction only. You can eat around a sleeve every bit as much as you can eat around a band. If you dilated your pouch you were overeating and a sleeve isn't going to fix that. All it is going to do is restrict how much food you can eat for a couple of hours.

One thing about the band is that I think a lot of people are looking for the old "full" feeling and for most of us with a band that goes away. People keep eating until they get the familiar full and when it doesn't happen, they keep eating.

The sleeve does fix that one, feeling full feels just like it did before WLS. Well, it does for me.

If you were eating around the band you'll be able to eat around the sleeve. I'd look long and hard at your eating habits and see what you think. Maybe restriction and malabsorption? Only you know what is best for you.

If you think restriction alone is going to do the job for you then the sleeve is mega fantastic!

babygirlinokc · March 19, 2009

Thanks for replying. I have thoroughly researched and have decided to have the VSG done. I know that there is a difference between the sleeve and the band. The sleeve seems to be a better tool. I am not willing to get the RNY because of the rerouting my insides. I have to pay cash and the sleeve is about 8 thousand dollars cheaper. I have already started a change in my eating. I also decided to get off my lazy butt and exercise. Which I know these 2 things are a must with the VSG too. I have to lose 10 lbs before the doc does the VSG. So what I guess I trying to say is that I want a 2nd chance and I'm going to do what I'm supposed to do this time...........

I will keep you posted on my progress.

Elisabethsew · April 6, 2009

Why is your surgeon requiring you to lose 10 pounds?

Vampyrvet · April 6, 2009

Hi everyone,

I just joined this forum, so it's nice to meet you all.

I was banded in June 08. I liked the idea of the band because it seemed less invasive, less drastic, and I was in favor of something that was adjustable and removable. I "only" had about 60 pounds to lose, so I didn't want anything that would permanently alter my insides and I didn't want anything malabsorptive.

Almost immediately after receiving my first fill (3 cc's), I began vomiting. I thought I was just overeating, or maybe not chewing well enough, so I tried to modify my eating habits. The vomiting escalated. I began to reflux in my sleep, with the result that I would wake up choking on my own stomach acid, terrified that I would aspirate and die (this has happened!) I would stop eating 3 hours before bed, but it didn't help. I bought a foam wedge to elevate my torso while I slept, but even this didn't entirely solve the problem. I never felt a feeling of fullness no matter how slowly & carefully I ate. I just went from hungry to pain with no warning, then the vomiting. I had to sleep with a bucket on my nightstand, and I also kept a bucket in my car because I could be overcome with the urge to vomit at any time with no warning.

I should also mention that the port never stopped hurting since the day it was implanted. Every time I coughed, sneezed, or god-forbid tried to exercise... I could feel it ripping through my abdominal muscles. I walked around for months feeling like I had a knife sticking out of my gut. I couldn't wear jeans or anything with a firm waistband, because it felt like I was being poked with a broomstick.

By September, things had gotten so bad that I couldn't even hold down liquids. I ran my own upper GI study (I work at a vet's office) and e-mailed my films to my doctor, who told me I was obstructed and to get my butt to the hospital first thing in the morning for emergency surgery. By this time, I'd lost about 25 pounds, most of which was because I was obstructed.

Now, my doctor told me he'd never had a band slip twice, so he suggested that we reposition it and try again. I felt that I had come too far to give up, so I agreed. We let things heal for a full 8 weeks before attempting another fill (3 cc's again). That was in November 08. By February 09, I was puking after every meal again. Sometimes even with blood. Nothing would stay down except Protein shakes and ice cream. I RAN to my doc to get an un-fill, bringing another upper GI study with me. Doc told me that my band had indeed slipped AGAIN and I would need a 3rd surgery.

There was no way I was about to spend one more minute with that cursed thing in my body, so I elected to convert to a sleeve. I chose this procedure because it seemed to have everything I wanted: minimally invasive, no re-routing of the intestines, no disruption of the pyloric valve, no messing with my absorption of nutrients. I liked the fact that the part of the stomach that gets removed is the part that secretes the "hunger hormone". I liked the fact that the "full" receptors would actually be allowed to do their thing again. I liked the fact that the sleeve carries the least risk of bleeding or leakage. So I was sleeved 2 weeks ago.

My only regret is that I didn't do the sleeve in the first place. In the last 2 weeks, my life has changed dramatically. No more vomiting. No more pain. I actually feel full like I'm supposed to after a few bites, and it lasts for hours. Wearing jeans doesn't hurt anymore. I can sleep lying down like a normal person. I no longer have a bucket in my car. AND I've lost 13 pounds in these last 2 weeks, compared to ZERO pounds lost in the last 6 months with the band. I finally have my life back. This is the way things were SUPPOSED to work with the band. I only have some residual soreness where my doc had to dig the port out of my muscle wall, but other than that I feel perfectly normal. The sleeve was absolutely the right choice for me, and I wish I'd done it sooner. I'm looking forward to a long and happy relationship with my sleeve!

I do NOT feel like I failed the band. The band failed me. It did not do what it was supposed to, which is make me feel full and stop eating sooner. All it did was slice up my stomach, shred my esophagus, burn the enamel off my teeth, and give me a constant sharp pain in my abs. And since all I could keep down was Protein Shakes, I didn't even lose that much weight. If anyone out there is weighing their options between a band & a sleeve, consider this: despite what the band companies tell you, recent studies have been published documenting that 25-35% of all band patients will experience complications requiring a 2nd surgery. That means that 1/4 to 1/3 of bands will fail. Is this acceptable to you??? And if you are one who thinks it won't happen to you because you are a model patient who follows all the rules, then think of me. I am a doctor. I researched the crap out of the band & thought I could make it work. I followed all the instructions to the letter, and my band slipped anyway. TWICE. So my advice to you is, don't be afraid of cutting your stomach. Think of it as getting a new & improved stomach that actually works the way it's supposed to, like a normal person's. I have no regrets this time around, and no doubt that this is going to work GREAT for me.

Good luck to you all

Natalie

Elisabethsew · April 6, 2009

Natalie,

Except for having a slip and a lot less weight to lose, your story is nearly exactly the same as mine. I'm so glad you're on the road to health and congratulations on your loss.