No, I would have gotten gastric bypass. The reason is because I am a sugar addict and with the bypass, you absolutely cannot eat sugar without vomiting. We were talking about this at our support meeting last week, and many of us agreed that bypass is better for sugar addicts because you can just about eat anything you want with a band, including sugar.

Another reason is because I cannot stand the way I feel after having fills in my band. The feeling of everything stuck in my throat, the nausea, yuck. Plus there is always a chance of the band eroding and having to have another surgery to get a new one. More insurance hassles. With bypass, the weight comes off faster too.

So knowing what I know now, I wish I would have had a bypass. I realize not everyone agrees with me though. I'm losing weight with the band,

I chose the lap-band over gastric bypass for several reasons.

The Lap-band is less invasive than gastric bypass surgery.

Gastric bypass is physically altering your stomach forever.

Gastric bypass surgery does cause you to lose more rapidly, increasing the chance of hanging loose skin... yeah I'd love to have all my weight melt off in a few months, but the idea of looking like the saggy-baggy elephant afterwards... not so appealing.

You CAN eat sugar with gastric bypass, I work with 2 people that have had it done in the past 6 months.

Talk to some other folks with gastric, like several posters I've seen that lost all that weight, then started gaining and went in for a lap-band.

I read that only about 30% of bypass patients experience dumping with sugar. So, it isn't guaranteed that you could not eat sugar. But it was a strong contender for me in my decision.

At 2 years out, the weight loss is similar, but bypass folk lose it quicker to start.

When I am hanging over the sink trying to get something unstuck I wish I had gotten bypass, but other than that, I am very happy with my decision.

That said, if the band fails me, I'd be OK with revising to bypass, also.

Even for those that get dumping syndrome, though, it goes away within two years. So, eventually, all sugar addicts have to deal w/moderating sugar (without the help of dumping).

Rather than say one surgery is better than the other for sugar addicts, I would highly recommend another strategy for sugar addicts... I challenge you to give up all sugary foods AND sweeteners (artificial and natural) for one month. You will be amazed at how much the sugar and sweeteners you are using are DRIVING your addiction for more sweetness. Artificial (or even natural low calorie sweeteners) are the worst because they lull us into thinking that they have no effect on our weight. But, studies have shown this to be totally false. When you eat something that is no or low calorie, but very sweet, your body is expecting calories. And, when it doesn't get it, it looks for more elsewhere through what else, but more sweets. Also, highly sweetened beverages (like crystal light) deaden your tastebuds to how good natural non-sweet foods taste.

I know, I know, this sounds like a bunch of health scare propaganda. That's what I thought when my younger friends would tell me how bad all my diet coke and sweeteners were for me. But, when they told us in our pre-op class that they wanted us to cut out all sweeteners (artificial, natural, low cal, high cal) for the month after surgery, I took the challenge (very skeptically, I might add). And, was so pleasantly surprised that they were right. I no longer crave sweets or feel compelled to eat sweets regularly. I do occasionally ENJOY a very small portion of dessert, but I am not pouring on the splenda, nutrasweet, agave nectar, sugar all over everything anymore. And, I drink plain Water and enjoy it.

I'm off sugar, but I still wish I had gotten bypass. As one lady said, when you are trying to get something unstuck or vomiting because you started eating before your stomach was ready for real food, it is a good wish.

Bypass is a great surgery for some people. But it causes significant lifelong malabsorption of nutrients--which is something we are thankfully spared.

And once the initial honeymoon period, the rate of weight loss success generally equalizes with ours---at a far greater lifestyle and health cost, IMO.

You know, if you really want a revision, you can go the bypass route. But I think it's probably more constructive to let go of the grass-is-greener idea. On one hand, you're saying you wish you became ill in response to sugar, and on the other, you're saying that vomiting after being stuck is part of your rationale for wishing you'd had a different surgery. So---which is it? Is vomiting good (keeping you from sugar) or bad ('cause it happens when you get stuck)?

From what I've observed, dumping makes stuck look like a walk in the park.

I'm sorry you're having buyer's remorse. It's really common--and usually fleeting. I can tell you, we all wish our weight was gone, like yesterday.

If, after really giving banded living a good try, you still are dissatisfied, you always can revise to bypass. You wouldn't be the first.

As an aside to the poster who mentioned skin sagging: It has very little to do with rate of loss, other than it appears faster in those who deflate faster :smile2:

The malabsorption and permanent alteration of my stomach is why I didn't do bypass.

I'm sure I will like my band more when I feel better. This is the hardest fill I've ever had.

Neither bypass or band is a cure - it's just a tool and we have to work the program in order for it to work. Both procedures have pros and cons.

Don't bypass folk get food stuck from time to time?

My PCP had bypass and we were talking about getting food stuck. He spoke of some incidents he'd had with chicken.

Maybe not as often, but it sounds as if it occurs.

I registered to the site just so I could post on this thread. I just wanted to point out that my best friend had a gastric bypass 6 years ago. One of the first things she ate post-op was a slurpee. (full of sugar) To this day, she has no issues eating sugar or candy. She only got dumping at the VERY beginning. Also, she is always getting food "stuck" and trying to either get it to come back up or go down. One of the very reasons I am not a big proponent of gastric bypass is having watched her and others who have gone through one. She doesn't eat right, and im worried for her in the long term as far as nutrients and vitamins are concerned. She lost a lot of weight, yes, and she's very happy and consideres it the best decision she's ever made. Im happy for her, but I just wanted to point out that she can eat sugar and gets things stuck..................

I guess I should just be happy with what I have.

Woodstock,

I think if you'd had bypass, you would be having moments of, "I wish I would have had Lap Band!"

It's the way we are. I do have moments where I second guess myself. Like last week when I was urping into a public toilet.

I think you are having some fill issues right now. That is a rough time to question your choice.

Hopefully when you feel better, you won't feel so bad about your choice.

I'm sure you are right Denise.

At this point i think i would have gotten the bypass.i was banded in sept 16'09. The only reason i got the band is because it was reversable. i didnt plan to lose my insurance so now i have to pay my fills out of pocket $150.00 and to top it off my damm port flipped upside down and thats another 5000.00 more that i have to come up with. if i dont get it fixed i would have gotten the band for nothing. also i cant still eat hings i shouldnt. i need restriction .. at times i do wish i could go back and get the bypass.

I agree that the lap band is more expensive in the long run. You've had a lot happen in a short time!! So sorry to hear about your port. Your doc sure charges a lot for fills - mine are $70.

Woodstock, I went over a year with no fills because of the problems with food getting stuck, but I lost 86 lbs. in the process. Then I started being able to eat more with no restriction. My doctor wouldn't give me a fill right away because of all the problems I had before. He kept saying "Come back in a month and let's see if you're still losing". Well when I went back, I had lost a couple of lbs. so he still wouldn't agree to a fill.

So 2 more months down the road I'm at the same weight and he finally gave in and agreed to do a fill under flouroscopy. He ended up putting in 3cc. I went home and two days later, couldn't get fluids down, so I had to go back and have 1cc taken out. Now I'm back to where I was before the fill and can't get another one until April 20th. What I'm saying is, if it takes fine tuning and maybe another year for me to lose this last 30 lbs., I will be happy with that. Because at least my bowels are not permantly altered and if there ever is a problem with my band, it can be fixed. Even with the band I have had some difficulty getting enough nutrients. I can't imagine what it would be like with the bypass.

I agree with the others about the sugar cravings and the sweeteners. For a long time I was sweetening my iced tea with Stevia Extract (all natural). I got tired of that "not sugar" taste and discovered that I prefer my iced tea sweetened with very little sugar, just enough to take away the bitterness, so that's how I drink it. I put in less than 1/2 cup per gallon tea. And as for other sweets, when I crave them, I go for my favorite fruits. Believe me, I get in my fruit servings daily. That's my take on this whole thing. Didn't mean to write a book, sorry:confused:.

The Band vs Bypass debate rears it’s ugly (and misunderstood) head once again.

Loads of baloney from all sides. So, here are a few comments on things that have been said on this thread.

And, if someone suggests that I have a Bypass Bias of some sort…that would be incorrect. Both Surgeries are quite viable, but they are meant for different classes of people. People just love to “defend” their own surgery, which is detrimental to other people who are still trying to make the decision as to what is right for them.

“The Lap-band® is less invasive than gastric bypass surgery.”

This quote is right out of a Lap band brochure. This seems to be one of a couple of phrases that are continually regurgitated whenever the subject of Band vs. Bypass comes up. The Procedure is DIFFERENT. But this whole concept of “invasion” is pretty absurd. It is NO different than many other surgeries and procedures that are performed to correct a deficiency or malfunction in some area. We have appendixes removed, gall Bladders removed, Heart bypass surgeries, and on and on and on….we have TONS of plastic surgeries. I find it amusing that so many of the people who chose Lap band over Bypass because it’s “less invasive” are planning to have tummy tucks, facelifts….whole big pieces of skin (an organ) removed. Plastic surgery probably carries as much if not MORE risk than a GB. Not to mention all of the piercings and tattoos we have and don’t even think twice about. But a gastric Bypass? An effective surgery that has been successfully performed for nearly half a century and has benefitted hundreds of thousands of patients? Hell no! it’s too…”invasive”….funny stuff.

“Gastric bypass is physically altering your stomach forever.”

The old “irreversible” argument…..wrong again. It is, in fact, reversible. It is not something that is done very often, because it does not NEED to be performed very often. The vast majority of Gastric Bypass patients have their surgery, lose the weight they need, and continue on to live happy, productive, and HEALTHY lives. You hear of some adverse outcomes, but in virtually EVERY case, the problems occur as a result of patient non-compliance or Surgeon inexperience or incompetence. But the notion that the bypass is irreversible is NOT true. Doctors do not “advertise” the fact that it is reversible, because they do not want patients to consider it to be a temporary procedure. But it can be reversed. It’s not all that easy, but it is performed quite regularly on those who need it….which is not a lot of people.

“Gastric bypass surgery does cause you to lose more rapidly, increasing the chance of hanging loose skin... yeah I'd love to have all my weight melt off in a few months, but the idea of looking like the saggy-baggy elephant afterwards... not so appealing.”

Again…not the case in most circumstances. In many instances it depends on how much weight you have to lose. If you have 150 pounds to lose, you are going to have saggy skin regardless of what procedure you have. And, even THAT is dependant upon some very individual circumstances, such are your age, skin elasticity, etc. Also….if this element is of great concern, you do not HAVE to lose weight quickly post-bypass. You do have a LOT control over your weight loss.

“You CAN eat sugar with gastric bypass, I work with 2 people that have had it done in the past 6 months.”

This is one area where you are partially correct. I have watched this argument come and go for years on this (and other) forums. The facts are that a percentage of GB patients do experience a reaction to certain types of high-fat and sugary foods. It is what is called the “dumping syndrome”. As is the case with virtually all WLS procedures, there are no solid stats, but experienced surgeons will tell you that Dumping occurs in roughly 15 to 30 percent of GB patients. If they consume enough concentrated sugar (and in some cases that would be an astronomical amount), ALL GB patients will experience it because of the inherent mechanism by which the GB functions. And, the severity of the Dumping varies dramatically. For some patients, it is a mildly uncomfortable sensation. For others, it is more severe. MOST people who experience dumping are grateful for it.

“Even for those that get dumping syndrome, though, it goes away within two years. So, eventually, all sugar addicts have to deal w/moderating sugar (without the help of dumping).”

Not necessarily. For SOME patients, it diminishes somewhat over time, but in virtually ALL cases where dumping was present to begin with, it does continue, but, again, it CAN diminish somewhat.

“Bypass is a great surgery for some people. But it causes significant lifelong malabsorption of nutrients--which is something we are thankfully spared.”

Some nutrients are not absorbed properly post bypass. That IS one of the mechanisms of the procedure. But…..much of the BAD stuff is not absorbed as well. That is why it works. The solution to this problem is quite simple: Take your Vitamins. Period. If you take your supplements, there will almost NEVER be nutritional deficiencies. And please note: You need to take Supplements post-Lap band as well. The NEED to take Supplements post Band Surgery is not quite as critical as it Post GB, but you still need to. For most GB Patients, the Supplements are a non-issue. They take them and they are just fine. No Problem. Again: Patient Compliance is key. A few Vitamins a day is a small price to pay for the benefits offered by a GB.

“And once the initial honeymoon period, the rate of weight loss success generally equalizes with ours---at a far greater lifestyle and health cost, IMO.”

Wrong again. The Lap Band faction of the WLS industry loves to toss this one out with great regularity, but as presented here, it is quite incorrect. Of course, as I have stated before, there are NO solid, quantifiable research statistics on this, but most experienced, long-term Bariatric Surgeons (and not the batch of surgical clowns that have jumped on board the Lap band Gravy Train in the last few years) will tell you that the vast majority (around 85-90% by some estimations) of GB patients take the weight off, and KEEP it off, given some minor, normal weight fluctuation as age increases and time passes.

“From what I've observed, dumping makes stuck look like a walk in the park.”

Most GB patients would disagree with that, particularly those who have experienced both. Dumping is usually a mild to medium discomfort, and NOT the gut-blasting makes-you-wanna-shove-your-fist-down-your-throat-and-rip-out-your-esophagus experience that characterizes the Lap band “stuck” experience. SOME Dumping episodes can be difficult, but to suggest that Dumping “makes stuck look like a walk in the park” is ludicrous, at best.

“Don't bypass folk get food stuck from time to time? My PCP had bypass and we were talking about getting food stuck. He spoke of some incidents he'd had with chicken.”

CocoaBean, that is partly correct. What a lot of people are unaware of about the GB is that restriction is ALSO a component of this procedure. Malabsorption is the primary and fundamental mechanism that makes the GB work, but on very, very rare occasions, you can get “stuck”. MOST commonly, this occurs in the presence of a “stricture”, where the channel leading into the stoma is not wide enough, and eating without chewing properly can lead to a Lap Band-like “stuck” feeling. It does not happen very often, and the stricture can be very easily corrected. However….many patients do not WANT it to be corrected….it provides another level of “forced compliance”, kind of along the lines of the Lap band. It does not happen often, but it is one of the things that CAN occur….but again, it is quite easily corrected, in a few minutes, actually. And yes, Chicken…..evil stuff…. J. Also the nature of the “sticking” is different. With the lap band, almost anything can get stuck, it seems. And things get stuck on one day and not another. With the Bypass, the experience is very consistent, in the rare event that it does happen. And it is ALWAYS because you haven’t chewed properly or it is something you just should not have eaten.

“I registered to the site just so I could post on this thread. I just wanted to point out that my best friend had a gastric bypass 6 years ago. One of the first things she ate post-op was a slurpee. (full of sugar) To this day, she has no issues eating sugar or candy. She only got dumping at the VERY beginning. Also, she is always getting food "stuck" and trying to either get it to come back up or go down. One of the very reasons I am not a big proponent of gastric bypass is having watched her and others who have gone through one. She doesn't eat right, and im worried for her in the long term as far as nutrients and vitamins are concerned. She lost a lot of weight, yes, and she's very happy and consideres it the best decision she's ever made. Im happy for her, but I just wanted to point out that she can eat sugar and gets things stuck..................

“

With all due respect, you have a very Stupid friend. Ultimately, it is likely that her Bypass will fail. PATIENT COMPLIANCE is KEY, with the band AND the Bypass….and the Sleeve, DS, FB, and all the other more obscure procedures. And from day one, she broke the rules. But guess what: The band wouldn’t work for her either. She would have the SAME problems, and would not have lost any weight, because of the ease with which one can eat “around” the band. For some people, NO Surgery will work long-term. Your friend needs the kind of help that no surgery offers.

This whole debate over which procedure is better is pretty useless. The simple fact is that one of the procedures is better for someone than another. They are different procedures that work in different ways. One is Malabsorptive in nature, with some restriction; the other is almost entirely restriction. They are meant for DIFFERENT people with DIFFERENT eating and/or metabolic disorders. There is a certain segment of the obese population for which either one WOULD work reasonably well….But….ONE of them would be better. It is not a matter of simply picking the one that appeals to you….at least not if you want REAL success. It takes an experienced and skilled bariatric specialist to be able to help you sort out which one would be the most successful for you.

There are a number of things that make the GB a preferable surgery for many people. It’s been around a LONG time, nearly 50 years. The procedure has been refined over and over. The advent of Laparoscopic technology in the last decade has made the procedure incredibly safe. As one very experienced Bariatric Surgeon said: “If the Patient is reasonably compliant, then we can predict pretty much exactly what is going to happen…the surgery is that reliable”.

Finally, to the Original poster I would have this to say. It is difficult to know from what you have said if the Bypass would have been a better procedure for you. A “sweet tooth” is not always a specific indicator of the need for a GB, but it is a “clue”. I think that at this point in time, it would be wise for you to work with what you HAVE, rather than spend any time thinking about what you “should” have done. “Buyers remorse” is very, very common among WLS patients in the first couple of months post-op. Regardless of the surgery, most Patients will end up saying to themselves “what have I done to my body?” at some point. But, that will pass. It almost always does.

Many people have a rocky start with the Lap band. One person on this board, Erin18, I believe, had a LOT of problems at the beginning. She was quite the topic of conversation here last year because she was posting every day, if not several times a day, complaining about the difficulty she was having. But, she has gone on to lose quite a bit weight. She is one example of people who had a lot of problems initially but went on to some success.

If you do not find success with the Lap Band, there are the other options. But you absolutely have to give the Lap Band every chance to work. It sometimes takes a LONG time to find that “zone” where it starts working. Some people never do, but you have to give it your best shot before you start thinking about alternative procedures. It IS “doable”. It just takes time, effort, commitment….and COMPLIANCE.

S.

Edited April 10, 201016 yr by Spartan