Hi everyone! I have been banded since 2005. I lost 60 lb in the first two years and then went thru a period of esophageal dilation, fertility treatments, two miscarriages and two babies born......needless to say, I am right back where I started pre-band. My husband thinks the only reason I have not been successful with the band is because I "cheat" with it, as in I drink with food in order to get it down, I still drink carbonated bev. on occasion, I don't eat my protein first, and I eat junk (cause as we all know it is the processed crap that slides down easily!) I am trying to convince him that the failure with the band is not all my fault....maybe it is....maybe if I had more willpower.....I don't know.....I am self pay, so I need to be certain that this is the right choice for me. I know many people who have had RNY and gained all the weight back - this cannot be what happens to me, but I am afraid that if I have not followed all the rules with the band I will eventually break the RNY rules. Did any of you "cheat" your band and now find with the RNY you are in compliance with a healthy eating plan and following the rules?

Yes, I was a huge banded sugar addict. People who were never banded don't understand that having the band and being a sugar addict is no different than failing to follow a traditional diet. The only thing stopping banded people from sugar is their willpower, which is obviously not very good.

The RNY is totally different. Don't follow the rules? Get miserably sick. I was converted to RNY 5/1/13 and have completely avoided sugar since then, and have no cravings for it. I have stuck to my diet exactly as told, with one exception. The other day I tried a piece of bacon and was so nauseous I had to leave my mother in laws and go get zofran. I learned, and won't do it again.

Pre-op I had the same reservations as you, but post-op there is no comparing band to bypass, and I would encourage any struggling bandsters to consider revision.

I had the band and had a lot of slider foods, but that's because I threw everything else up. I am 8 weeks out from my revision. Nothing makes me sick. I have eaten just about anything except desserts because I don't like sweets to begin with. My bad foods are pizza and chips which I have had a few times since surgery. With the band I could wash down a family sized bag of chips, but with rny I just have a small handful. I have still lost 30 lbs though at this point.