Do any of you have any regrets about the sleeve

[tiredoftheband]

I am a newbie and have had the crapband for 3 years. I have the typical story and problems with the band. Now I am considering a conversion. My fear is that I will do this and regret it like I do the band. Does anyone have any regrets? Anything they would have done differently, now that they've gotten the sleeve? I am going to the doc tomorrow to talk to him, but I would appreciate some honest feedback about the good and bad of the sleeve.

Does the eating so little (2-4 oz) bother anyone? Do you feel deprived? I am having a really hard time balancing out the enthusiasm I have for the sleeve with the regret I have over the band.

[Grace]

Hi
Read a lot here. We try to be honest and realistic. Some folks breeze through, some have hell week, some hell month. At 52 and with other pain issues I had hell month. I'm only now starting to fee like I can eat almost normally. My relationship with food has changed forever. You will most likely avoid that because you had restrictive eating with lapband, so you know what to expect. I can't honestly say it was all worth it - yet. It's just a month and I had issues with my drain and a lot of nausea. There was some depression, which is now starting slowly to lift.
I think the younger you are the easier this goes, but I have no proof of that....
I have lost 55 lbs, 20 of which is post surgical so that's 20 lbs in a month. Weight loss wise, it's working. It's just a process to get used to the restrictions of what to eat, etc.
I think it will be worth it in the long run, but I need to be honest that at first it is rough.
That doesn't mean you shouldn't consider it, just being realistic for you.

[mbd]

I also had the "crap band" for three years as well. Mine slipped and I needed emergency surgery. I waited six months and 40 pounds later and researched the sleeve v. bypass. Well I went with the sleeve and I am 22 days out, and have no regrets. I have a hard time with solids still but I do not want to eat. I have to actually force myself to eat. I have no regets at all.

[Mica]

At first I was wonderful, no issues at all. But lately I feel sick all the time. Doesnt matter what I eat, what I drink, or what I do. I just feel sick... Smells send me through the roof and I will gag. Something tastes great one bite in then the thought of it makes me sick. I have horrible acid reflux. I cant have a BM to save my life. With all that, with every single ugly thing going on, measuring myself after 6 weeks and seeing another 13+ inches off my body makes it a little better. Knowing Im over 45 pounds down from day before surgery makes it great. At my lowest point I think why did I do this, and then I get dressed and go OHHHH thats why... I wanted to live again.

The stomach yucks will go away in time I just have to be patient. But I wouldnt undo it for a minute. Not a single minute. Im thankful it was done.

[sleeve-me]

right now 11 days out i am so happy i did it - here is why ok so like i had 85 lbs to lose and for me that number was tooooooo overwhelming to tackle on my own. i had lost and gained weight several times in my life - i know how to lose weight i could prob write a book on it - i dont know how to keep it off. the hardest part for me has been the mind the weight between my ears and losing some of the ideas i have in there. Just losing the 17lbs i have has really made a shift in my perception of the entire 85 lbs. had i known that i would feel this much better just losing the 17 then i would have done it months months ago = i just didnt know how to keep it off long term so it was hard for me to start the journey. the sleeve is the controlled governor i have in my own body now that wont let me eat as freely (and unsafely) like i used to do.

[Rae]

TiredoftheBand... I considered all three and this is the only one that made sense to me.

I didn't like the idea of something that required maintence and worried about the long term effects the band appliance would have on my body. Its a foreign object and my body already attacks my joints because I have RA.

Bypass/RNY didn't make sense to me because of the malabsorption piece. There may come a time I cannot afford the vitamins I would be required to take and put me in a worse position. I kept watching the economy tank making my retirement accounts go away and thinking what if I cannot afford the vitamins because I am out of work. What if when I am older I am on such a fixed income and cannot afford to take them daily (some elderly don't take their prescription meds as prescribed because they cannot afford daily doses). The other issue was dumping. I have enough problems with my digestive system, not looking to add on more.

The sleeve was the best of both worlds. Restriction without device and not chained to vitamins. The one thing that made this a no brainer for me to pick was the removal of the hormone that makes you hungry stored in your stomach. The other two I would still crave, desire food, want to eat my favorites. With the sleeve its like a switch that will be turned off or at least turned down. If I decide to have a sliver of wedding cake at my son's wedding I don't want to spend his reception in the bathroom 'dumping'. He's only 11 so I have time to get to goal before his wedding but its things like that I don't want to miss out on. May sound stupid but for me, bypass wasn't the answer.

I am one week out from having the surgery and I am completely ready for this change in my life. I hope things go well and there are a lot of people who pop on talking about conversions from band to sleeve. Do a search for lapband or conversions and maybe find some of the older posts.

Good luck and let us know how it goes!

[Reneeru]

No regrets! I am 63 and wish they had this 20 yrs ago! I have not had any problems from the surgery,I still have to take heart meds due to a leaky hrt valve. I do not feel deprived,and lost all cravings. After 40 yrs I have stopped diet coke and drinking out of a straw and do not miss it,which has been the biggest surprise!!

[splendaaa]

I have no regrets! The sleeve immediately stopped my soda habit, my pain pill habit, my sugar habit, my coffee habit, and my gorging on food all the time habit. There are times I wish I could wash down my food and gulp my drink, but it's already changed my life in so many ways. My blood pressure is already normal. It is an adjustment, but no regrets.

[roxyringo]

i too wish i had this done years ago...its a massive life changing thing to do but it does get easier...food is no longer the bad monkey on my shoulder that was shadowing my life...i dont regret it for one minute...i am already below how heavy i was when i got married...so thats pregnancy weight and stress of having really bad psoriasis weight gone!!!! onto the weight i was when i graduated next...and im 2 inches away from the suit i wore 11 years ago!!! that day i will be soooo pleased with myself if you read all the info and it sounds like its right for you then go for it!! a lady who had the sleeve with me had the band previously and had loads of problems with it...restricted to eating liquids...now she eats what she fancies just a small bit of it its a bit like rehab for drug addicts in a way...it takes the urge to take the drug of food away no regrets just hopes for a skinny future x good luck with your journey x

[Soup-a-Woman]

I'm a year out and have zero regrets. My new thin life is wonderful... I feel great, my confidence is through the roof, and I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything at all. I had a bit of a struggle right after surgery with dehydration, but now I feel like I live a completely normal life. I eat whatever the family is having, just in smaller portions. I don't feel like I have to "restrict" or "avoid" certain foods at all. Anything I choose not to eat is because it just doesn't sound good anymore. (ie. pancakes **shudder**)

I posted pics today of before and after of myself... if you want to peek go look under my profile. I have a big old smiley face and no regrets!

[karma11]

Almost 6months out-i can eat pretty much whatever I want but just the amount is restricted-you do feel better after about 4 months-more 'normal' . There are times that were hard to get used to but after time it gets better. Still happy! By now I wouldve gained my weight back but 6 mon later I'm still losing!!

[buddyd11]

72 days and 65 lbs later I can tell you the only regret I have is that I didnt do this sooner. Other than that as far as regret 0, none, zilch, bupkis, not no but un un. lol I guess you get the message. Best decision I ever made other than to ask my wonderful wife to marry me, I feel I have to add that wife part in there lol.

[tiredoftheband]

I want to thank all of you for your openess and honesty about this procedure. I was really having second thoughts earlier today and now I feel renewed in keeping my appointment to have the evaluation. It's kind of like a mental hurdle that I fight because I believed the lapband would do what it should have. After 2 years of problems, I have decided I cannot live like this forever. I do not want to become a diabetic and I feel like I am close. The problem is really that even though you have some restriction with the band, you are physically hungry and the cravings are there. I am keeping my fingers crossed that the cravings/hunger part will be significantly decreased with a sleeve. First I have to find out if they can do both procedures at the same time though because my insurance will pay to remove the band because of the problems, but will not pay for the other surgery (which I will pay out of pocket). I will let everyone know what happens after the visit tomorrow. I just want to do normal things again, and I'm sick and tired of being fat and tired.

It sounds like no matter how challenging the first month or two are, it will be worth it in the end. Afterall, it's what I wanted 3 years ago when I made the first surgery decision. I just can't understand why I'm having such a hard time with the excitement part. I suppose it's just fear of the failure I've had with the band. I'll keep reading your posts. It makes me feel better about the whole thing.

[tiredoftheband]

Do you know anyone who has had the band removed and the sleeve done in the same surgery? I'm curious how that surgery compares to the original band surgery. That one was pretty easy for me, but they didn't wack off part of my tummy, so that must make a difference.

[Theresa]

I'm a year out and have zero regrets. My new thin life is wonderful... I feel great, my confidence is through the roof, and I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything at all. I had a bit of a struggle right after surgery with dehydration, but now I feel like I live a completely normal life. I eat whatever the family is having, just in smaller portions. I don't feel like I have to "restrict" or "avoid" certain foods at all. Anything I choose not to eat is because it just doesn't sound good anymore. (ie. pancakes **shudder**)

I posted pics today of before and after of myself... if you want to peek go look under my profile. I have a big old smiley face and no regrets!

That is so impressive! Congratulations and thanks for sharing!!!