I need your help band to sleeve people

I had my band removed three and a half years ago, and it was such a relief. A couple of days after, I ate a kebab, and I still remember how much I enjoyed being able to eat it properly. I have put on a fair amount of weight since having the band removed, but I've never regretted getting it out- hated it so much

Elizabeth

I had all my fill removed about 2 months before I had my band removed.
I could eat bread the next day, haven't had any thing come back .
I think I have put on weight but don't want to get on the scales to confirm it.
Btgirl

I cant wait to have it removed. Just not sure how I will go when I go to eat. Lol. It has been such a physiological battle eating I wonder if my brain will tell me it is ok to eat or whether it will freak out. Maybe my stomach will just decide to get rid of the food anyway cause that is what it has being doing for so long. Haha.

Somehow I dont think so.

How long after your band was removed did you eat normally? I am really scared I will want to gorge myself so will be trying very hard to stick to the same small servings but make them healthier. My surgeon says I will put all the weight back on, almost guaranteed, so that is really scary as I dont have any clothes that will fit me if I put on more weight!! I feel ugly enough now without getting bigger.

Wonder if he could take the band out and sew my mouth shut!!!! That should help.

Well what ever happens it will all be ok in the end. Maybe I may just try to enjoy eating for awhile as I have missed some many flavours and textures though I will not be having any 'wet' food by choice for some time!! Dont care if I ever see gravy again.

All the best Milly, I had my band removed last month band go back to my surgeon next month to get a date for sleeving.
Btgirl

Band is coming out!! I am so pleased. 17th May is the day. I will then have to wait three months before I can go back to have the sleeve to allow for healing etc. He is going to do some prep work on my stomach when he takes the band out (adhesions and ensuring the thickening is removed too).

The all I have to do is wait and I will finally be able to move on with my life again and stop being ruled by my weight. I am looking forward to eating healthy meals again.

The relief is amazing even though I have the headache from hell tonight. I have been sooooo emotional lately it is a wonder I still have a wonderful hubby and family.

Thankyou to all you lovely people helping me so much. Without you I would still be living a miserable existence. Thankyou from the bottom of my heart.

I had an appointment with my surgeon and he doesnt do band to sleeve in one surgery. When I asked why when there are surgeons that do he explained that where the band has been sitting it 'hardens' the tissue above and below similar to a callous. When it is like this it makes it extremely hard to staple the stomach during a sleeve. He said it is like trying to staple 50 pieces of paper with a normal stapler. He says it does not 100% guarantee a seal so he will not perform the surgery until 3 months to let this area have time to soften and not be thick tissue. I understand now but still having to have two surgeries is a pain in the butt (gut really) and pocket!

I have another appointment this week to try and convince my surgeon I do not want to try the band again. Since he took all the fluid out it has got easy but I still had issues over the weekend and food getting stuck and I am not even trying to eat anything 'normal' as he puts it. Just a damm corn fritter which I have been able to eat all the way through!!! Most unhappy.

I am supposed to contact him if I have any issues and he will book me in for a barium swallow but quite frankly I am not going to call him as I just want it out now. My family is over the dramas and I just cant do it anymore. It did work but now it doesn't and it is not for me. He is a really great surgeon and still believes the bands are good for some people so I have to convince him I am not one of those.

Geminijo ... if you go through this site and read the posts etc you will find all the answers you are looking for. The people on here have told their stories in order for people like you and me to be able to get all the help we can and all the support you could ever want really. This is one of the only sites I can say I feel that everyone is amazing and honest. Good luck with your journey. I am still waiting at the station for my journey to get underway and the train is running late!

Hi

Well ElizBarron and Milly2010 I can so relate to your stories and having been banded nearly 2 years ago and losing 22kg and putting 10kg back on I am feeling very much a failure at this banding thing and am trying to work out when I can afford to have the band removed and sleeve done. A number of members of my family (in laws) have had the sleeve with fantastic results over a number of years and have gotten off medications and sleep apnoea machines etc through it. So generally can someone please tell me - do you need to have two separate ops - 1 to remove the band and another to do the sleeve - or can it be done in the same op - or does it depend on what state your stomach is in ?? If I could have it done tomorrow I really would. I would appreciate any advice on the actual way to go about it that anyone who has been there and done it already could give....

Hi

I had a failed sleeve due to complications so have now been bypassed. With hindsight I may have ended up a failure with the sleeve because I could still eat the foods that caused my weight in the first place eg high fat and high sugar. With a bypass these foods cause dumping syndrome which is really unpleasant so the bypass forces me to choose carefully.

The decision to sleeve or bypass may also depend on how badly scarred your stomach is from the band so you need to ask the surgeon what he will doif this is the case for you as he may have no option but to bypass. Living with a bypass is manageable but you do need to be committed and organised. Malabsorption is an issue and requires careful monitoring. There is also the view that ex bandits lose a lot more slowly than "virgin" tums so you need to discuss that with the surgeon as well.

Good luck with the decision and ask lots of questions both here and with the Doctors
G

Hi. Just adding my two cents in.

I found this site about a week ago after actually looking for a way to 'fix' my band and have been blown away by the information and support.

For over a year I have felt like a complete loser (not weight) cause I havent been able to make this band work for me. It was done 2.5 years ago and I did lose weight but more from starving myself than eating healthy. I cant eat 'healthy' foods often as they get stuck. In fact pretty much every day is try to eat something and if it goes through then eat more of it cause tomorrow it may not and I will be sick, irritate the band and be back to liquids or 'baby' food for days.

It has been a hard time but in the last 5 days I have got the courage to make an appointment to go back to my surgeon which I have put off cause I felt such a failure and will be asking him to take this band out and give me a sleeve. I havent entertained the thought of a bypass but I will ask him about it just so I know all the options this time round. It could be a better option for me as I am real sweet tooth but will wait to see what he has to say.

I wish you all the best in your journey. Make sure you keep us all informed as that is something I found so helpful and still do.

I cant wait for my journey to really start. It has been a long time coming!

If you happen to find that crystal ball could I borrow it for a wee while!! Haha.

Thanks for your reply Freddo1-I really appreciate it. What I really want is a crystal ball to see the future, so that I can make the decision. I eat too much of everything now-savoury chocolates and icecream, lollies-alcohol- i eat everything and anything. I got into some very poor eating habits with the band, and I don't think I've ever gotten out of them. Good luck with your sleeve-hope it works well for you

Elizabeth

Hi Elizbarron. I can see why you're confused. I was banded about 11 years ago - with limited success, and decided to go for the sleeve - mainly because of all the problems you've outlined below - but was prepared to go for bypass if the sleeve wasn't possible. My surgeon told me that because I had had two bands (first one slipped, and I suspect the second one did too), he might not be able to do the sleeve. As it turned out, things were OK and I was sleeved 4 weeks ago today.

Your GP and surgeon are giving you good advice, but it's also important to remember that another GP or surgeon could equally tell you to go in the other direction - mine did. My journey is still in its earliest stage, but I can see how sleeves are different from bypass. It would be very difficult to sabotage bypass, whereas the sleeve is more delicate. It would be easy not to lose weight with the sleeve if your general problem was sweet, creamy foods - as things like ice-cream and chocolates go through easily. If you tried that with bypass, I believe the "dumping" thing would kick in.

If your problem is just general overeating, then the sleeve should be effective. I can't believe how little food I can eat and still be satisfied. I just had two cruskits with a small tin of salmon and I'm stuffed, and will stay full for several hours. However, I still need to be aware that I should stay away from rich creamy foods - particularly with my (nonexistent) metabolism.

Concerning the putting on weight again towards the end of your journey - I think all forms of weight loss surgery carry that danger - but you'll still be in a much better place than you are right now.

Good luck with your decision!

Freddo

I had a lapband put in in 2007 and out in 2009- really hated it and had very small success with weight loss. Am now booked in to have either sleeve or bypass. My GP (who has had bypass surgery, and has many patients who have had bypass surgery) recommends the bypass, and my surgeon, who also did my lapband has leaned toward the bypass compared to the sleeve in his advise- but has clearly told me that is completely up to me. Things like malabsorption, dumping, no alcohol, the pyloric valve issue (don't really understand that one,but read a lot about it) are all considerations. But I really want the best tool for me to finallyhelp me take off at least 45kg to get into a healthy range and to try to not regain it. I know that bypass patients can regain- my GP has regained some, but she still never has a regret about having the surgery. Anyway, I would love to hear from anyone that was faced with this decision, and what their outcomes or regrets are please?

Thank you Elizabeth