I certainly hope so! I had my band removed due to erosion in December 2005 after an 80 pound loss. I am now bandless, and I certainly HOPE I'm scaring the pants off of any newbies who think it's okay to cheat today. Don't do it! Do not, for one second, fall back into your old eating habits! BOO!

Have I been inappropriate this week in my blatant posts? Perhaps to some, but I'll defend my honor and the honor of my de-banded buddies fiercely, and I don't appreciate tripping upon the recent posts here at LBT that have generalized titles of Banded vs. Non banded, or Newbies vs. Veterans. I don't have a band anymore, but I still have all the symptoms and I will always be a bandster whether you like it or not. I still have restriction, tightness and discomfort to the point of pain when I overeat. My stomach won't allow me to eat the portions that I did pre-band and I suffer from choking in my sleep, shortness of breath, severe acid reflux and Barrett's Esophagitis, which is a pre-cancerous condition that may or may not lead to cancer of my esophagus. But am I trying to scare off those of you that are scheduled for surgery next week?

If you consider this raining on your New Band Parade then I am very sorry for you. Get out of denial fast and grab hold of Planet Reality. Those of us who have lost our bands or converted to another surgery aren't here to scare you away from your band. I personally hope people see what I went through and work even harder to achieve your dream of being slender, happy and free. If you think eating junk food, eating while driving, eating late at night, snacking or anything you used to do before the band is okay, it's not because I said so. Go ahead and argue but know you're only arguing with yourself.

If you were able to eat a mini Snickers once a month pre-band then you'll most likely be able to stop at one mini Snickers now. But if you were doing 2-3 regular candy bars at a time before, you can never eat candy bars again because I said so. If you supersized your fries before but think you can have a small order now, you’re wrong because I said so. If fries were a problem before then stay the hell away from them forever. If you ate $15.00 of Taco Bell while driving before, then don't think you can eat your walnuts and string cheese safely while driving. Pull over and eat your food at a table or at least on the curb.

I'm not here to scare newbies, I'm here to prove that you will remain fat if you don't change your eating habits permanently. Figure out what made you fat before and quit that behavior. Once you have the band, once you find the right portion and food choices that help you maintain or continue to lose, stick with it. Do NOT come to LBT seeking approval to eat that one piece of cheesecake. Have a handful of apricots mixed with a little Peanut Butter in some cottage cheese instead. Gross? Get over it; it’s healthy.

KISS. Keep It Simple, Stupid! And I mean that with all the love and compassion of a once-banded chick. Since December I have gained and lost the same 5-12 pounds several times so there is plenty of hope for YOU if/when you lose your band. Without the band I'd have shot up 60 pounds by now, so look to those of us who have lost the band as beacons of hope, not buckets of ice Water here to slam you down. We want you to succeed because it feeds us hope and inspiration. Good luck on this wild ride, and I hope to see you on the skinny side!

God I'm so over this. Its stupid. This is addressed to everybody and nobody in particular.

I can accept that notes of warning, mentions of what can go wrong, etc are helpful to newbies, everybody needs the correct information.

But you ladies need to realise you are in the unfortunate minority for whom the band has not been as successful as you'd hoped. Things go wrong and unfortunately it was you who had to suffer that. Everybody does need to know that things go wrong for sure. But they dont for the VAST majority of people, the band is a useful and successful tool if not a miracle worker.

What you have to say on the topic is valid, but it goes past being helpful and does indeed come across as pissing on peoples parade. People who are positive and upbeat and hopeful for their bands are NOT living in denial. We are not that stupid and we do not need you ramming down our throats every second of the day how terrible the band is. It is your problem and you need to deal with it. You have sympathy and respect for what you've been through but you have nothing to do with my everyday life and I do not wish to constantly hear what a downer your band was on a board that is supposed to be informative and supportive. You may not mean to but you come across as bitter, twisted and nasty.

I'm fast coming to the conclusion your pessimistic, depressing outlook on life is more of a reason for your lack of success than anything else, physical complications notwithstanding. I cannot in any way see that you have a balanced or healthy outlook on your lives. If you have nothing nice or positive to say then dont say it. There was no reason for this thread to have been started at all.

I have the utmost respect for experienced bandsters, whether they have their bands still or not. They've been there, done that and have experiences to share. I have no respect whatsoever for whiners, whingers and nasty people who just want to make sure everyone knows how miserable they are.

LOCKED another one.

Simmer down now! Simmer down now!