Hey, all of my southern friends!
I just thought I'd share a very short version of my story with ya'll.
I'm one of the few people that had complications. In an eight month period of time I had three surgeries, three blood transfusions, several infections, and 23 nights combined in the hospital. In the end, I lost my band due to erosion.
You know what? I'd do it again in a heartbeat. I wish things had turned out differently, sure, but I have never regretted the decision to have my lap-band. In fact, I'm hoping to get re-banded within a few months and risk going through it all again.
You take a gamble either way, but which hand do you want to bet on?
First hand: You continue to gain weight and live the rest of your life in the same or worse state than you are in now. You develop more life threatening co-morbidities, take more medications, and your quality of life decreases.
Second hand: You have a surgery that has a high success rate/low complication rate, most likely lose weight, your health improves, your quality of life improves, and you live longer.
This is just my experience and my opinion. Good luck to you in your journeys. I'm wishing you much success.