elcee

If your surgeon has said 2 weeks liquid then you do 2 weeks liquid. They are the one that is responsible for keeping you alive , following the instructions they have given you should be a no brainer

My BMI when I got my band was around 32. My personal opinion is that when your BMI is at that level it is only going to get higher, there are very few people that manage to get it down to a healthy level and keep it there without some kind of assistance.

It feels like normal fullness. You lose interest in food, don’t want any more, feel like you have had enough etc.
You don’t get that awful feeling in your chest and or throat that makes you feel like you are dieing . No more getting stuck, wasting nights out chucking in the loo, not being able to swallow your own spit.
The difference is like day and night, if I had known what both surgeries were like in advance I would have gone straight to RNY.
But you still have to be in control, it’s not a magic wand, it won’t stop you eating slider foods although you may get dumping.Its the same as all the other types of surgery, it’s a very effective tool if you use it correctly.

I'm with you. food is something that is legal and every person needs to live. Cocaine, Heroin, ICE etc are all illegal and are not required for survival.

I'm with you. food is something that is legal and every person needs to live. Cocaine, Heroin, ICE etc are all illegal and are not required for survival.

There is no such thing as a one time thing

It can damage all sorts of things not least of which is the brain. But I’m sure you already know that and you are going to go ahead anyway.

I got a band in 2009 for much the same reasons as you are contemplating it. It was reversible, I wasn’t fat enough for serious surgery etc.
It helped me achieve my goal weight and maintain it for about 6 years and then I started regaining .
There are a lot of things they don’t tell you preband , the reality of living with it is very different to the marketing.
You get told if you overeat it will make you sick, you don’t get told that you may get sick on your first mouthful of healthy food because for some reason it didn’t go down right today. You may have taken a small bite, chewed it well and it could be something you have eaten multiple times before but for some reason today it’s not going to work.
You wish that being sick actually meant vomiting because that would be over quickly and a lot less painful than being stuck. Being stuck causes pain in the chest, you think you are having a heart attack, you can’t swallow anything, not Water and not your own saliva. In extreme cases you end up going to emergency to get an unfill and put on a drip to rehydrate you.
They don’t tell you that healthy food is really hard to eat yet high calorie unhealthy food will go down really easily. Be prepared to say goodbye to steak, chops, chicken, corn, lettuce, raw carrot etc all whilst cursing candy, Cookies ,ice cream etc.
You will never feel full or satisfied like a “ normal” person again. Instead you will feel a horrible pressure in your throat and or chest.
You hear about this magical sweet spot. Well that can be as elusive as the holy grail. Not enough fill and you are still really hungry, too much and you can’t swallow your spit. The difference between the 2 can be O.01 ml and for some reason you still can’t get that sweet spot.
Be prepared to spend lots of time in restaurant loos instead of chatting with your friends ( see my comment above about getting stuck)
Then there is the reflux. Waking up in the middle of the night choking on acid is no fun.
In spite of all this I loved my band as it helped me keep the weight off ( until it didn’t). I was horrified when my surgeon told me they have a limited lifespan and that it was unlikely to do what it was designed to do any longer. He suggested a revision to RNY and I was horrified. That seemed way too extreme.
I went home and did lots of research. Came back into these boards and other Facebook groups and asked lots of questions. I decided to go ahead and my revision to RNY in Jan 2019.
What can I say, the difference is like day and night. My RNY does what the band was supposed to do. I can eat small portions of healthy food and feel satisfied. Hello steak, chops, salad etc. When I’m full I feel it like a normal person would, no more horrible pressure in my chest. I can still eat cake, cookies etc but in much smaller quantities as too much sugar makes me feel gross( which is a good thing). I can go out to eat and spend the time chatting to my friends, food doesn’t get stuck and I haven’t vomited since my revision.
So with the benefit of hindsight if I had my time over I I would not have a band I would go straight to bypass.
If you still feel the band is for you, good luck, do lots of research, be very aware of what you are signing up for. Also start saving so you can fund your revision surgery at some point within the next 15 years.

I am sure that the caffeine had nothing to do with the bleeding. It was probably related to poor healing or just plain bad luck.

I smell a troll

I smell a troll

Just a few ?!?!? 😅

I got a band in 2009 for much the same reasons as you are contemplating it. It was reversible, I wasn’t fat enough for serious surgery etc.
It helped me achieve my goal weight and maintain it for about 6 years and then I started regaining .
There are a lot of things they don’t tell you preband , the reality of living with it is very different to the marketing.
You get told if you overeat it will make you sick, you don’t get told that you may get sick on your first mouthful of healthy food because for some reason it didn’t go down right today. You may have taken a small bite, chewed it well and it could be something you have eaten multiple times before but for some reason today it’s not going to work.
You wish that being sick actually meant vomiting because that would be over quickly and a lot less painful than being stuck. Being stuck causes pain in the chest, you think you are having a heart attack, you can’t swallow anything, not Water and not your own saliva. In extreme cases you end up going to emergency to get an unfill and put on a drip to rehydrate you.
They don’t tell you that healthy food is really hard to eat yet high calorie unhealthy food will go down really easily. Be prepared to say goodbye to steak, chops, chicken, corn, lettuce, raw carrot etc all whilst cursing candy, Cookies ,ice cream etc.
You will never feel full or satisfied like a “ normal” person again. Instead you will feel a horrible pressure in your throat and or chest.
You hear about this magical sweet spot. Well that can be as elusive as the holy grail. Not enough fill and you are still really hungry, too much and you can’t swallow your spit. The difference between the 2 can be O.01 ml and for some reason you still can’t get that sweet spot.
Be prepared to spend lots of time in restaurant loos instead of chatting with your friends ( see my comment above about getting stuck)
Then there is the reflux. Waking up in the middle of the night choking on acid is no fun.
In spite of all this I loved my band as it helped me keep the weight off ( until it didn’t). I was horrified when my surgeon told me they have a limited lifespan and that it was unlikely to do what it was designed to do any longer. He suggested a revision to RNY and I was horrified. That seemed way too extreme.
I went home and did lots of research. Came back into these boards and other Facebook groups and asked lots of questions. I decided to go ahead and my revision to RNY in Jan 2019.
What can I say, the difference is like day and night. My RNY does what the band was supposed to do. I can eat small portions of healthy food and feel satisfied. Hello steak, chops, salad etc. When I’m full I feel it like a normal person would, no more horrible pressure in my chest. I can still eat cake, cookies etc but in much smaller quantities as too much sugar makes me feel gross( which is a good thing). I can go out to eat and spend the time chatting to my friends, food doesn’t get stuck and I haven’t vomited since my revision.
So with the benefit of hindsight if I had my time over I I would not have a band I would go straight to bypass.
If you still feel the band is for you, good luck, do lots of research, be very aware of what you are signing up for. Also start saving so you can fund your revision surgery at some point within the next 15 years.

Elcee. I really appreciate your detailed description. That, plus everyone else's stories tell me that the band is probably not for me.

Best advice - cancel your life insurance now! She won’t stab you then, she might need you.
You are just going to have to prove her wrong, show her that WLS does work.
She is probably feeling insecure and worried that you may decide to find someone else once you are looking super hot. Reassure her and remember pregnancy hormones are a b***h!

I don’t believe I have “restriction”, but when I eat the correct type of foods I stop feeling hungry and as though I have had enough quite quickly. It’s not a hard stop like when I had the band but it’s a much better feeling.

Best advice - cancel your life insurance now! She won’t stab you then, she might need you.
You are just going to have to prove her wrong, show her that WLS does work.
She is probably feeling insecure and worried that you may decide to find someone else once you are looking super hot. Reassure her and remember pregnancy hormones are a b***h!

Yes I do. I drink a lot less, my limit is probably a glass and a half.

elcee, Your experience with the band is very similar to mine. You said it way better than I ever could! Great advice for anyone still looking at the band!

I am 13 months post revision band to bypass and lately nothing seems to taste right. meat in particular tastes weird. I don’t have an issue eating it, it doesn’t get stuck or make me sick but it tastes and often smells weird. For example the lamb mince we ate tonight tasted very gamey. I used to love pork and would often order it when we went out but the last couple of times that hasn’t tasted right either!
At this rate I am going to end up vegetarian which could be a problem as there are a heap of veggies I hate ( the bitter ones) , don’t really like eggs ( I can do the yolks so long as they are runny) and only eat small quantities of cheese. On top of that if I try to turn my hubby veggie he will rebel!
I can’t live on yogurt nuts and seeds!
Has anyone else been through this and how did you deal with it?

I had a revision last January. My weight now is lower than my lowest weight with my band and I achieved it fairly quickly. I started from a lower weight so yes I want losing a huge amount per month but I still got to my goal and beyond pretty quickly

Best advice - cancel your life insurance now! She won’t stab you then, she might need you.
You are just going to have to prove her wrong, show her that WLS does work.
She is probably feeling insecure and worried that you may decide to find someone else once you are looking super hot. Reassure her and remember pregnancy hormones are a b***h!

Yes I have the same issue, they have to use the hypoallergenic tape on me

I am sure that the caffeine had nothing to do with the bleeding. It was probably related to poor healing or just plain bad luck.

Find something to replace it with. Eat a handful of nuts or some dried fruit. Make your own sugar free Jello snakes. Get strawberries and dip them in a tiny bit of chocolate.