Please be honest and realistic. I am so on the fence, I need and want to lose weight, but wow! I never imagined in would be SO much work with this tool called Lap Band...and to have to do it everyday for the rest of my life? I need to make a decision! I've been on a million diets, but I've never eaten so slowly and such small bites, that concerns me as much as anything.

Would YOU really do it all over again?? Hindsight is 20/20. What do you think??

I guess it depends on what is important to you. I went to my first seminar Mar 2011 and thought I don't need the band, I can lose the weight on my own. Three months later I was 10 pounds heavier. I had to face the music...I need help to get this weight off. My surgery is scheduled for June and I am so excited to think that I will be able to play with my granddaughter and to walk at a decent pace and not get out of breath. I am also looking forward to getting off my cholesteral and blood pressure meds. And to get some new clothes!!

I find myself taking bites of food and swallowing and then realizing I didn't chew it very well. I am already becoming more aware of the way I eat and the things I eat. I might be wrong but I feel this surgery will be easy. I have had a hip and a knee replacement and they made a great change in my life. I plan on my band surgery to take me to a better place in my life.

Good luck in your decision. Only you can make the decision because you have to live with it for the rest of your life.

I know how you feel...I've been thinking to myself, "I have to keep doing this?" I'm almost a month post-op and I'm getting a little burnt out dealing with this on a daily basis. I just want to take normal sized bites again, and enjoy food the way I used to. I miss that. I'm working on my mental state now. I'm so happy when I step on the scale and see that Ive lost about 22 pounds. I'm not eating correctly yet. I rarely had heartburn before all of this, now I have discomfort a lot in my chest and throat, even on liquids or small bites. I'm hungry sometimes, but feel like I can't eat that much. I have some anxiety about meal times now, like what am I going to be able to eat?

Would I do it again? Ask me again in 6 months. If I lose the weight, yes I think it will be worth it...

I haven't been banded yet but I'm meeting the surgeon next week. I wr really on the fence for years. But I'm 27 and a nurse and my back hates me everyday. I wake up in pain and go to sleep in pain. Another bid deciding factor is my future kids. I don't want to be 280 and gain 40 lbs pregnant and have gustational diabeties and put my kids at risk. I want to run and play with them even though they are not here yet. I think restarting foods is worth that

Wouldn't think twice. It was the best thing I ever did for myself and I'm just sorry I was on the fence for 3 years trying to decide to get it done. I have had a few rough spots but nothing like being over weight and unhealthy. I have dropped 4 sizes since December and am on my way to a new me. So keep reading the posts and find a really good Dr since that makes all the difference in the world. Good luck to you and hope to see you on the other side of being banded

Yes!!! The only thing I would do is have pushed for more aggresive fills. Took me 6 months to get restriction. Maybe I did'nt take really large bites presurgery because I don't have trouble with having to think about smaller bits.

No, I definately wouldn't have lap band ! I don't know too much about gastric bypass but in hindsight, that seems more realistic to me now. I felt that the lap band would be less invasive and body altering. I lost the recommended 13lbs. pre-surgically. My surgery went fantastic. I had it done at 5 PM and I was back home by 9PM same day. Next day, and for about a week I had severe gas pain in my chest. I had some incision pain for about 3 weeks. I am 20 months post surgery. I have only lost 50 lbs., I get "stuck" every day and I am hungry alot. Sometimes I even get stuck on Water. I have had fills then fills removed, more fills, more removed, finally I thought things were great and then almost every time I ate.... the food got stuck, so I opted to have some removed and haven't gone back to the doctor as I am disgusted. My goal was to lose 134 lbs.. I don't think I will ever even hit 100lbs. One year ago I was cooking roast beef. I took it out of the oven and took a teeny bite to see how it tasted and immediately got stuck. I ended up going to the ER because after 6 hours, I couldn't get unstuck. I was constantly "slimeing" large amounts, I tried to vomit because that is what it felt like I should do. I think I brought up the meat but a mucous ball had formed blocking everything up. I was on the brink of hysteria. It happened about 2 PM and I finally was back home in bed at 1 AM. Very tiring and discouraging day for me and I will never forget. Cost me $1500 in the ER and that is WITH insurance. Some days I am tearing the kitchen apart trying to find low cal. food to eat cause I'm hungery alot. Other days, I am full after eating a few bites and feel like I will vomit if I go on, which is fine, that is what I want. But I would like more consistency. I also feel severely guilty wasting food. I must also say that my exercise routine is lacking because I had a knee replacement in July and now my other knee is also going bad and I'm probably headed for knee replacement #2 . I think the best part of this is that I now drink lots of water. I used to drink copious amounts of soda,but no more soda. That is my discouraging story. Maybe other people had better luck than I did.

I just suffered a slip that caused me to DIE, and after 4 minutes of chest compressions they jolted me. That brought me back. They explained in x-ray that they see more and more now that the band has been around a while. "What did you think your the only one !" Well i figured low numbers, and he laughed and said we see more and more, but your lucky ! Your still alive, most die from the slip. I thought I was going to faint, what I truly loved, killed me.

So if your having problems, and your not happy with your results, see your Dr., and tell them how its working for you, and how you feel, before you end up like i did. In other words do something about it instead of complain. Or the outcome will be do to your own decision.

To th person that started the thread: do your research on which band has the potential for less of a slip.

I have lost 77 pounds since I was banded on Jan. 6' date=' 2012 and I would do it again in a heartbeat. This is by the far the best thing I've EVER done for myself.

My only regret is that I didn't get banded years sooner.[/quote']

Wow. What are you doing for so much weight loss?

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In a heartbeat. I am about 120 lbs down from my heaviest and 85 of that due to the band and I have gone from a 54-56 inch waist to a 38-40. I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes at age 26 and now at 30, I am free of all my meds and insulin. I no longer have high blood pressure or high cholesterol. I was taking up to 5 pills and 3 shots of insulin a day. I am at a point where my goal weight is in sight and I couldn't feel better. I think I had read a post above that someone was having frustrations with the changes that come along with the band. To that I can say that measuring food and remembering to chew and take small bites is so worth it since the alternative would be me still eating 5 (or more) double cheeseburgers from the dollar menu at one time and feeling like a complete failure. I was actually thinking the other day while clothes shopping (at a regular store since I don't have to go to the big boy store anymore) that I couldn't remember the last time I got tired from just walking around. Or being drenched in sweat from just moving around, or feeling self conscious about my weight on a date, or being embarrassed about needing a seatbelt extender on a flight, or feeling uncomfortable in my own skin.... the list goes on and on, but I think you get the point. NSVs are now a part of my life and FAR outweigh any frustrations or changes caused by my band. During the clothes shopping trip that I mentioned above, I tried on a large size shirt. When it actually fit, I literally had to sit down in the fitting room and collect myself I was so happy. I was 10 the last time I fit into anything in the large size. The band has helped me take control of something that was pretty much killing me. In 2008 when I was admitted to the hospital after I collapsed at work, the doctor told me that I was diabetic and not only that, but I had severe diabetic ketoacidosis too. I had no idea I was diabetic and thought I just had the flu. It was so bad that the team of doctors figured that my organs were hours away from shutting down. I was going to leave work early and go home to take a nap. If that had happened the doctors thought I might not have woken up. I remember being hooked up to every machine imaginable and then being told it was a good idea if I saw someone to help me put my affairs in order "just in case". I was in the hospital for 9 days and they were THE scariest days of my life. It was a more extreme wakeup call than most people get, but I honestly don't think I could have come this far without my band. I feel lucky to have been given the opportunity to have it. I consider it the best gift I have ever given myself.

I am 4 months out and down 50 lbs.

I ran my first 5K last month when just 3 months ago I couldn't walk a mile. I have more energy and feel better than I have in years. At 31 I was taking blood pressure meds 2x a day. I am no longer on meds and am training for my next 5K. I am working on a 12 minute mile. I have NEVER run a 12 minute mile in my life!!! I would absolutely do it again only sooner!!

No

Yes, only I would have done it sooner.

No, I definately wouldn't have lap band ! I don't know too much about gastric bypass but in hindsight, that seems more realistic to me now. I felt that the lap band would be less invasive and body altering. I lost the recommended 13lbs. pre-surgically. My surgery went fantastic. I had it done at 5 PM and I was back home by 9PM same day. Next day, and for about a week I had severe gas pain in my chest. I had some incision pain for about 3 weeks. I am 20 months post surgery. I have only lost 50 lbs., I get "stuck" every day and I am hungry alot. Sometimes I even get stuck on Water. I have had fills then fills removed, more fills, more removed, finally I thought things were great and then almost every time I ate.... the food got stuck, so I opted to have some removed and haven't gone back to the doctor as I am disgusted. My goal was to lose 134 lbs.. I don't think I will ever even hit 100lbs. One year ago I was cooking roast beef. I took it out of the oven and took a teeny bite to see how it tasted and immediately got stuck. I ended up going to the ER because after 6 hours, I couldn't get unstuck. I was constantly "slimeing" large amounts, I tried to vomit because that is what it felt like I should do. I think I brought up the meat but a mucous ball had formed blocking everything up. I was on the brink of hysteria. It happened about 2 PM and I finally was back home in bed at 1 AM. Very tiring and discouraging day for me and I will never forget. Cost me $1500 in the ER and that is WITH insurance. Some days I am tearing the kitchen apart trying to find low cal. food to eat cause I'm hungery alot. Other days, I am full after eating a few bites and feel like I will vomit if I go on, which is fine, that is what I want. But I would like more consistency. I also feel severely guilty wasting food. I must also say that my exercise routine is lacking because I had a knee replacement in July and now my other knee is also going bad and I'm probably headed for knee replacement #2 . I think the best part of this is that I now drink lots of water. I used to drink copious amounts of soda,but no more soda. That is my discouraging story. Maybe other people had better luck than I did.

well.. on reflection i think i went in not knowing the full extent of the change that was coming... but, hey, what did i think it was going to be?? im not sorry at all but its been a very deeply stirring experience for me, mostly emotionally i think.

Not an easy time at all. IN all of this im finding that some of my old habits and mind sets are still rearing their ugly head. I know its goign to take time for all this to dispel .

It has been one of the hardest things Ive had to deal with. Mostly because when i am having a bad day i cant just ''get off the train ''.lol. Discipline has not been one of my strongest points for many years now. Im 66, learning that i have to be renewed in my mind regarding food. Also, im finding that whats equally as important is that i have to change how i feel about myself. I know it will all come together..

its going to take some time though. Meantime the results have been just staggering as far as my health is concerned. More than id ever expected, especially so quickly after surgery. This has been an awesome boost for me. i think that was meant to be to encourage me.

All in all?? yes, i would have it done again... a thousand times over. Nothing else was going to force me to confront my ''demons'' thats for sure.

268 down to 190...yes I won't forget my aching ankles and crippled feeling, shortness of breath in stair climbing, or the heavy woman clothing store that I was a slave to....no regrets the bads are outweighed by the goods!

yes yes a thousand times yes, i would do it again in a heartbeat ! i may be only 4 months banded and while i had to change my eating habits , the payoff so far has been huge for me ! ive lost 32 lbs, my digestive problems have gone away, i found i love my swim class 3-4 times a week, so that gives me a lot more energy ! ( walked 4 miles today !!). my clothes are getting too loose (again! And i just bought those pants 3 weeks ago !) im getting lots of nice compliments and im starting to feel comfortable in my own skin again. Hell yes , I'd do it again !

txdee,

The band is only a tool, and one which comes with a life time commitment to modify your thinking and behaviors with eating. It's imperative that you change your relationship with food to be successful with your weight loss journey. A person who is considering that amount of behavior modification has every right to be concerned about what all that means to them. One fact is true above others: if

your "head" is not in the right place, your success will be marginal at best.

Food is not your friend; how is your life different from what you want it to be because of your weight? The same concerns about having to eat slowly were in part how you got to the point of considering surgery. We loose sight of eating to live, rather than living to eat.

You did not mention your age; if you are younger, most likely you do not have any serious co-morbidity medical issues like many of the active bandsters on this forum. For me, having the surgery was an opportunity to regain some of the health that my weight was taking away from me. If you are fortunate enough to not have weight related medical issues (i.e. hypertension, arthritis, diabetes, acid re-flux, to name a few), being morbidly obese as you grow older you are at increased risk of developing them.

My surgery had to be delayed for over a year due to unavoidable life events and some unanticipated complications in my medical condition. When I finally received medical clearance, I had no reservations about what the right decision was for me.

I would make the choice to have the surgery again...and would have done it sooner if it had been an option for me.

​I encourage you to give considerable thought to this life altering decision. Without a sincere commitment to change both your eating habits and relationship with food, you could end up resenting and regretting your decision. It's also possible that at this point in your life you have not reached a place where you are motivated to change.

Either way, best of luck to you!