Please help me decide!!

Bella · September 17, 2006

Hi all,

I'm loving this forum!

I'm 248 at 5'8 1/2" so I have a BMI of 37. Not covered by insurance:faint:

I can't decide between the lap band or the RNY and I would love to hear your input on either surgery.

RNY - you lose weight faster, but then you have a higer risk of death/complications, longer recovery time, BUT you don't have to struggle with eating healthy because you will lose weight no matter what. I do worry that I will lose weight so fast that EVERYONE at the office will be talking about it behind my back. You know how judgemental other women can be...

Lap band - cheaper (I am selfpay)

very low chance of complications so I feel confident that I WILL survive .. that's a big deal. :nervous short recovery time ... loving that too, but I WILL have to struggle with the food issue which had all my life.

I like the idea of losing about 10 pounds a months which slow enough so that people won't freak out.

See another thing is I won't tell my co-workers ... they WILL talk about me like a dog. But I don't want to be like Star Jones and keep a lie that everyone KNOWS is a lie. So if I'm seen eating small heathly foods and I lose weight slowly .. it will seem natural.

Of course, I will tell my close friends as I know they will be supportive.

It seems though the the loose skin thing affects people that go will either choice - but I already have a lot of muscle. My feeling is that if I do light weights with many repititians ... I can keep my skin fairly well toned.??

My goal weight is 135.. - of course, I can't even imagine being that small.

PLEASE GIVE ME YOUR THOUGHTS!!!!!:help:

ladydi · September 17, 2006

Bella,

# 1: who cares what other people say to you or behind your back. You would be doing this for your health and your future. This is for you!

#2: You put this weight on over a long period of time, so taking it off over a normal period of time seems healtier to me, plus your skin can work with you.

#3: You only have a little over 100 lbs to take off and I think that the other sx with all the complications would't be the way to go.

#4: cheeper

#5: I feel great and don't even know that I have had the sx except I was a little tender. I am still waiting for my first fill, but I am so blessed that I was able to have this sx. For me, I need to lose at least 115 to be happy, and I couln't justify the other sx with all the complications. I have seen and known too many people that have had the sx and gain the weight back after all that they have gone through. I have been on too many diets that have gained all the weight back and I will not go through that again! With this sx, if you start to gain anything back you can have a fill. You have a better chance of keeping this weight off. This will be for the rest of my life and I do not want my tummy to get larger again and not have the ability to correct it. (by over eating like I have in the past) Not that I will but you never know.

Diane

DonnaB · September 17, 2006

Hi Bella,

Good luck in your decision, I know it can be a difficult one.

Just so you'll know, RnY patients do lose weight with very little effort or commitment on their part, but there is a high rate of weight regain, because they were not forced to relearn better eating habits. I know of a couple of people personally who had RnY, lost a lot of weight, and have since regained most of their weight. They continued to make poor food choices and when their body adjusted to their changed anatomy, they regained their weight. They're both very unhappy with their outcomes and must also deal with malabsorption issues for the rest of their lives.

On the other hand . . .

Lap band isn't a magic bullet. You have to do every thing you did with conventional diets. You have to watch your calories, make consistently good food choices, exercize, etc. The only real difference with the band, is that it helps you to feel full sooner, keep you feeling full longer, and it will limit your ability to binge when you've had enough and (like on previous diets alone) you want to give up. The band won't allow you to give up entirely and the binge is limited. The benefit there is that you have time to get grounded and decide to make the effort again - BEFORE you've regained all the weight (usually plus some) you may have lost. I just want you to know that a band is a tool that will HELP you, but it won't do the work for you.

Good luck on your decision and on your weight loss journey.

ladydi · September 17, 2006

Well said Donna!

Stitchy · September 17, 2006

I agree with everything that ladydi and DonnaB said.

I also had about 100 lbs and a BMI around 37, so was self pay, too. In 4 months, I have lost 45 lbs. That's pretty fast, IMO. Anything faster than 1-2 lbs a week really isn't good for you. I may have the loose skin issue, but it doesn't look like it so far. I love the way I'm looking.

I wouldn't have had WLS if RNY was the only option. It scared the Hell out of me. That's how strongly I felt about it. It sounds like you have done your research, so you know all of the reasons. And you would still have to struggle with eating healthy. Even more so than with the band because of the malabsorption factor. Much of what you eat dumps out. Have you read about the dumping syndrome?

If you made a mistake or there are complications with the band, you can have it REMOVED!! There are no options with RNY. You're screwed.

And co-workers. Forget them. This is for you, not them. If they are talking, they may be envious. Lucky you!

Bettina · September 18, 2006

Neither one is fool-proof...my sis lost a lot of weight with RNY but gained a lot back too!! So she lost the weight, gained it back, and still needs to get plastic surgery for the skin flaps. But the hospital told me on Thursday that a fireman had RNY and then developed Esophagus cancer...luckily he had that piece of stomach still there inside, they took the bad parts out and took the old stomach and attached it to his neck..and is now cancer free! Malabsorption is a prob with RNY. But not so much with banding. I would go to a support group and talk to the people there...it helps to actually meet with people in person.

Best wishes in your decision!!!

Bella · September 18, 2006

Hi Ladies,

THANKS HEAPS! For your insights!

I admire you greatly for this step and I hope to follow in your footsteps!!!!

I think you are right ... and I've known this all along ... do the RIGHT thing.. take it off slow and you are right ... you HAVE to develop good eating habits as some of the RNY folks just gained it all back!!!! UNREAL!!!!!

About not telling my co-workers???? Ummm The Dutch are funny creatures... I definitely will not tell them. I would never hear the end of it.

Support groups will be hard to find for me. I'm American but I moved to Holland 6 years ago .... so I have to really dig around. I plan to have the procedure in Belgium (right next door) so will dig around on that end.

Okay - I no doubt will be asking more questions as I have not met with the surgen yet...

AGAIN - THANKS!!!!!

Bella

munchkincan · June 21, 2007

I am scheluled for surgery with Dr. Spivak August 1, 2007. Do you like him? Is he as nice after the surgery as he seems before he has your money? Is his office staff really as nice and helpful after the surgery as they are before. I ask these things because I know I am going to need a lot of support. I went to the seminar last night and everyone was so nice and so helpful I made my decision on the spot. Now I have so many more questions. How did you feel after the surgery? Are you hungry all the time? How hard has it been for you to stick to the rules?

Looking forward to hearing from you.

M.

cmp2007 · June 21, 2007

I was at Dr. Spivak's last night as well, and I am going in tomorrow for the banding! I have the same questions you do, munchkincan. I will let you know how it goes!

C.

kacee · June 22, 2007

I am scheluled for surgery with Dr. Spivak August 1, 2007. Do you like him? Is he as nice after the surgery as he seems before he has your money? Is his office staff really as nice and helpful after the surgery as they are before. I ask these things because I know I am going to need a lot of support. I went to the seminar last night and everyone was so nice and so helpful I made my decision on the spot. Now I have so many more questions. How did you feel after the surgery? Are you hungry all the time? How hard has it been for you to stick to the rules?
Looking forward to hearing from you.

M.

I was banded by Spivak on 5-23. I think he is dynamite. His office staff is the greatest. You may, or may not, see him after the surgery. He's a surgeon foremost, and many times when surgeons are done you don't see them again unless there is a problem. I went in for my first fill yesterday which was done by Leslie, his nurse, who was wonderful. She also had nothing but praise for Spivak. She said he is a dream to watch him operate....he's like an artist. She was very impressed with him. I think you will be happy with him, and happy with your aftercare. There are some threads devoted to Spivak on the Doctors part of the forum and everyone just sings his praises....me included. For info on the procedure, read the posts about pre- and post-op. Find out everything you can about how to plan for your hospital experience and after. Can't tell you how you will be hungry wise, but I was totally NOT hungry for about 2 weeks after surgery. When my stomach growled, I fed it. Going into week threeI noticed my capacity for food was quite a bit greater...this is as it should be....it means you are healing. You just have to stick it out until your first fill. At Spivak's you will get your first fill 30 days after surgery. Then it will be trial and error to get to where you are sufficiently restricted. May that 1, 2, 6 trips....everyone is different.