i felt very confident that i wanted to have the band until i started reading some of these threads from extreme hair loss!!!!! to slippage to erosion to dilations on and on and on scary as hell ! IS THIS SURGERY REALLY WORTH ALL THE COMPLICATIONS? are these isolated incidents or very common where are these people having there surgeries are the doc qualified etc. help i need to hear from someone more than a year out that has had good results with no problems how do you keep these problems from occuring any advice?:help:

One thing to keep in mind with any forum.....there is an unknown percentage of people who have the surgery, do great and never come back to report on it. Whereas if you have difficulties, you want everyone to know about it.

So, there will always be a disproportionate number of 'horror stories' to read through. (Sorta like when you're pregnant and everyone has a nightmare tale to tell you! -- and I'm sure there are other analogies as well.)

There are a LOT of positive stories here, you just have to make sure to pay attention to them and give them equal credence.l

WOW lots of info thrown at you sort of overwhelming ! my next step is getting the right documentation for insurance did anyone else have to have 12mos supervised weight loss ? i have 10 documented and like 3 more months sort of documented trying to figure out wht to do! Does anyone know if a food diary with your weight and initialed by supervised diet counselor is enough documentation? thats the sort of documented one! darn insurance companies! :clap2:

NAnA why was your surgery cancelled? gOOD LUCK IF ITS STILL TOMMOROW!!!!!AUG 14TH YAY! LET ME KNOW HOW IT GOES!

Ive been considering the lapband and very concerned too when reading all the complications. If i knew i would have long term complications i, of course, would not get done. Make sure you are very sure you want to have it done so you dont have any regrets.

NAnA why was your surgery cancelled? gOOD LUCK IF ITS STILL TOMMOROW!!!!!AUG 14TH YAY! LET ME KNOW HOW IT GOES!

It's done!!! At last!

It was cancelled by the anesthesiologist the on 8-2 because my cardiologist had never signed a release form and he was out of town and unreachable. Even though he was the one who referred me to the surgeon and was adament I get the surgery done to save my life!!

On the 14th I made it into the OR, but they bungled the intubation so bad that I was bleeding and swelling and the procedure had to be stopped and I was given a week to heal.

But, THIRD TIME IS A CHARM! And I'm SO happy to be on this side of the surgery! Thanks for thinking about me!

YAY IM SO HAPPY ITS OVER FOR YOU WELL AT LEAST THE SURGERY PART WAS IT BAD ? i am just in the early stages of the process hope to be part of the club soon lol glad it went well hang in there and god bless!:whoo:

I just finished all my paperwork and I'm waiting for the insurance company to give the go! I'm new to writing here but not new to reading.

I too am back and forth with having the surgery. I am tired of being ill and over weight, but am scared to death to have this surgery. I had been on South beach about 4 years ago and stuck with it for a year, lost 50lbs and put 60 back on! I feel I have no will power and am out of control, but wish I could lose weight and keep it off without surgery, but can't seem to do it.

Ok guys, here is mho - There are complications from getting a tooth pulled to getting a paper cut. Some have them some don't.

What are the complications that are caused by being obese??

High Blood Pressure, Diabetes, Sleep Apnea - All these things are going to kill you sooner or later. Yes you are going to read horror stories of people getting infections, slippage, eriosion etc - but that's life - Stuff Happens. My 3 yr old grandaughter has Mrsa (it's a staph infection and she has never had surgery or been the in hospital - it's community aquired) Who are we going to blame this on... Life happens... I guess i am just a firm beleiver in that you deal with what ever God gives you do deal with ( or your high power etc - it's God for me)

The Band is a tool to help you control your portion size that's it - it's not the magic pill we all want - As to the hair loss - my gf who did medifast and is not banded has had the hair loss issue - it's not exclusive to the band or bypass - it's due to your diet and usually happens about 3 months out (imho is due to a too low in calorie diet - 800 calories a day but i'm not a doctor) I am taking my vitimans - boiten - sublingual b and eating about 1100 calories a day (meats, fat, veggies - no sugar and low carb but i do still eat carb just not like i use to)...

Some times i think we look at the negative so that we don't have to deal with who we are. Example "oh i can't get that done cuz i might get an infection or the band might slip - so i guess i will just stay the way that i am - its hopeless " Well you might just get in a car accident on your way to work this morning. With the band you still have to change your eating habits to loose the weight - you have to exercise also.

All I can do is suggest that you keep reading both the good and bad and think about what's best for you. Good Luck on your journey and quest for a healthier life...

i have done so much research on this surgery i realize that things could happen as like with any surgery or illnes your absolutely right i have decided to get the surgery done! i am waiting on approval from my primary doctor i need a psych exam and im ready to go! i talked to my dr about these complications and theres only about a 1% chance of these things going wrong and i guess it really depends on having a good surgeon who knows what he's doing so do your reasearch on your doc too find out his success rates with all complications! good luck to all who are in the process like i am good luck to those already scheduled for surgery and good luck and success with those who are already banded ! GOD BLESS!!!!:kiss2:

i have done so much research on this surgery i realize that things could happen as like with any surgery or illnes your absolutely right i have decided to get the surgery done! i am waiting on approval from my primary doctor i need a psych exam and im ready to go! i talked to my dr about these complications and theres only about a 1% chance of these things going wrong and i guess it really depends on having a good surgeon who knows what he's doing so do your reasearch on your doc too find out his success rates with all complications! good luck to all who are in the process like i am good luck to those already scheduled for surgery and good luck and success with those who are already banded ! GOD BLESS!!!!:kiss2:

Jamie - It also has to do with how well YOU take care of your band too by following your Doctor's instructions - My Best to you Janet

I AGREE!!!! YOU MUST CHANGE YOUR WAY OF EATING FOREVER! Im trying to explain this to my husband whos the band is a quick fix well at least i think he does so he acts ! a life change indeed thanks!

I am 14 months post-LBS, and I don't think anyone will tell you that "there were NO problems" with this surgery. The reason I got this surgery is because I had problems eating too much, too fast, not good choices, emotional eating....etc etc. So I think that this surgery had to 're-educate' me to eat slowly, don't eat too much, eat the right foods.

Sometimes I am a fast learner... and a few times I have had to learn the hard way.

So it depends on how comitted you are to learning a new way to eat. This isn't the magic pill we all want, this is teaching us something as basic as chew! chew! chew!

Good luck in your descision,

I HOPE ALL IS WELL WITH EVERYONE NANA HOPE ALL IS GOING WELL WITH YOU RECOVERING QUICKLY ETC. WELL EVEYTHING FOR ME IS A GO RIGHT NOW DOC IS ON BOARD GOT MY 12 MOS ALL I NEED NOW IS A PSYCH EVAL AND A SURGERY DATE!!!!! YAY CANT WAIT THANKS EVERYONE FOR ALL THE REALITY CHECKS AND KIND WORDS SO FAR !!!! YOU GUYS ROCK! GOD BLESS:whoo: