So I told a friend who has had gastric bypass that I was considering lapband. Below is her response. It has me scared - this is a knowledgable, intelligent friend. I need some input, please!

I have one comment to make, Tracey. VBG, or vertical banded gastroplasty / LAP band procedure, is not as successful as the all-out roux-en-y bypass. They are both surgical procedures. If you are going to do one it may as well be the roux-en-y. I'd suggest you look into it. Yes...it is permanent and they will actually cut your stomach to form a pouch and reroute your intestine and shorten it a bit. But your weight loss will be larger and you will see quicker results. I have heard of people dying from complications on both surgeries and one shouldn't make this decision hastily or take it lightly. Either procedure is serious. But I do have to say that after seeing results from both, there are fewer weight gains post loss with the roux-en-y than with the VBG/LAP. I did extensive research when I was considering surgery. I have several friends who were scared of having the same procedure as I did so they did the band. Big mistake. They ended up losing very little to begin with, got frustrated and gained everything back, plus. YES, it IS possible to gain it back...but the gains I have seen have been more popular with the band. By the way - they don't often warn you that the band can slip up and that you can actually choke on your vomit either while awake or in your sleep (which is what happened to 2 people I know. One person died, the other almost died. I don't know anyone that died from the roux-en-y, but I almost did...and 1 other person I know almost did...and another had some serious complications...but we all recovered and had major losses. The only reason I gained back some of my weight was because of fertility drugs, and I'm having a hard time losing that weight now. But I can assure you that I am still down about 110 pounds...so that's pretty incredible.

I hope that you can do whatever makes you happy...but I think making an educated decision is really important.

There's a lot of variables which need to be considered when choosing which surgery is best for you. Your starting weight, co-morbidities and your lifestyle all are big factors. RNY does take the weight off faster but you will likely be severely restricted in what you can eat for the rest of your life and you will be at risk for malnutrition forever. Bands can slip or leak and can be frustratingly slow. DS has a high rate of complication. They all have their downsides. Which surgery is for you should be a decision between you and your doctor, not you and your friend who is not a doctor, nor does she play one on TV.

I have friends who have had RNYs, VSGs, bands, DS... the whole range. Each of us tends to be on the side of promoting our own surgeries as the best out there because that's what was the best for us. Keep doing your research and take opinions with very large grains of salt. Eventually you'll figure out which is the best for you.