I am having a hard time deciding whether I want Lap Band or RNY:unsure:

I think I'd prefer the band, mostly because if I have complications that I just can't live with, it can be removed. But I have failed at "watching my diet" so many times, I'm afraid I'll be a failure with the band as well and that I might be more successful with the RNY because of malabsorbtion and more limits on food choices.

This is my one shot and I feel nervous that if I get the band and am not successful, I'll wish I had gotten RNY, but it'll be too late and a second surgery later is not possible for me.

I am not someone who can't diet, heck I'm a professional dieter. I could teach classes! I stuck to Atkins for 18 months once, but like always, I revert to my old ways. I've done low fat so many times and have probably lost 1000 pounds in my lifetime, but I've never once maintained my losses. What makes me think the band will change that??

How did you choose??

Cindy T

Hi,

You sound like me, so I am responding to your question! I have a dieting history like you. At first, I got the band because I just had an issue getting healthy organs bypassed...just a personal deal for me. WHAT I LEARNED from having my band for 3.5 years now, is that it was the BEST choice FOR ME. WHY? Because I honestly think I would have lost all my weight fast with a bypass and then gained it back. The band has taught me (and teaches me daily) that I may not be perfect at my eating, but with the restriction I can make choices that help me lose weight or not. It has taken me years to modify the way I eat, the way I think of eating, and I think with the bypass, I would have reverted back to "non-dieting me" and gained it back. The band is much more forgiving (I think) and I can "start" take a break "start" up again and not gain weight back. I am still losing and loving my band. It was the best choice for me! I hope you can make a good decision for you!

I'm going to 2nd that -- this was the best choice for me. Do I consider it successful, even though I'm not at goal? Absolutely. And I'll get to goal eventually.

For me, not having a "window of opportunity" was key. The band is still here, even if I wander off track. The key is that in wandering off track, I no longer gain back everything I lost and then some, because I just can't eat large quantities of food -- the worst I can do is make poor food choices.

Of course, part of my decision was because I had one friend and one acquaintance who regained their weight a few years after their initial RNY. And the complications with RNY are very scary.

Of course, there must still be a lot of successful RNY patients out there, or it wouldn't be so popular.

Have you considered a duodenal switch (DS) or gastric sleeve? Those are a couple other surgeries I hear people talking about on here as alternatives to banding or RNY.

I've known 6 people that have had RNY. Four have gained back over half their weight. One is a new RNY patient (under a year out) and is doing very good. The sixth is a girl I worked with that threw up so much from overeating after her RNY that she has torn her esophogas to shreds.

It was a no-brainer for me, less downtime and less complications from surgery. However, WLS is a very personal choice and while I can only go from personal exp, I know there have been MANY success stories from other surgeries.

Whatever you decide I wish you the best of luck. :purplebananna:

You all have been so helpful. I realise there are success stories with each WLS. I guess my job is to figure out where I think I'll be successful. I'm just so afraid I'll make the wrong choice.

I'd be lying if I said that the rapid weight loss that comes with RNY wasn't appealing. Heck, I spent half my childhood praying to God each night I'd wake up thin. I'm not so crazy about the vomiting, but from what I read, thats from overeating. I'm not overly concerned about the recovery, I don't have an outside job to get back to.

I like the idea that lap band is adjustable. Not so crazy about a foreign thing being in my body that can slip or erode. Also of concern is that if something happened to my husbands job and we no longer had insurance, how would I get fills...etc. We've just now been able to get insurance and may not be able to afford it at a different job. With RNY thats not an issue.

I feel confused. I'll keep researching and hopefully come to a decision:blushing:

Thanks Again!!

Cindy T

Hello Cindy!

Congratulations on your first few steps to a new you! I know it can be scary, I only slept one hour the night before surgery because I was scared and was wondering if I was doing the right thing. I really feel that I have made the right decision for me. I've worked in the medical field for years, I worked in a lab for a few years and we would draw blood panels on people who had previously had other types of Bariatric surgery, and truthfully although they looked thinner.. I can honestly say that they did not look healthy, their hair wasn't shiny and their skin looked gray and pale. Maybe that isn't the majority of BS patients, but I only saw one of the dozens that beat those odds. That was one deciding factor for me, the other was the fact that it was laprascopic, which is safer and third because of the down time, I am the sole bread winner in my home and could not afford to take almost 2 months off to recover from "elective" surgery.

I also believe that I am an expert at dieting, My lap band is keeping me honest and I'm actually paying attention to what goes in my mouth first, and I'm reading labels when I go shopping and I'm making smart choices. I'm chewing before I swallow! What a concept! I definitely think it's the tool that I needed.

Have you gone to a seminar? Be sure that if you do that they are covering all types of surgeries and aren't "pushing" for a certain type.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

I did not go for the bypass because everyone I've seen that has had it looks so sickly and I didn't want my insides permanently changed! My mom had one and she throws up all the time and my aunt had to have her whole stomach removed and her intestines routed to her esophogus - so that wasn't even a option in my mind!

There is a girl that I worked with that had a bypass done 6mo after I had my band. To date she has lost alot more weight than I have and unfortunately people look at me like I should be like her. No matter how I try to explain that the weightloss with banding is slower (which is good), I think they think of me as a failure at times. Well - I don't work there anymore and I stopped by there last week because I was going to lunch with my friend. They haven't seen me since December and I had a good fill in October and have lost quite a bit! It was nice to hear the comments and make them eat their words from before! :Dancing_wub:

I've known a couple people who had the gastric bypass. One of them had the gastric TWICE because she gained the weight back. I'm not sure how they were able to do it twice, but she had it twice. Another person I know lost a significant amount of weight - got down to approximately 165 from 280 - but she is now at 198 and struggling to get back. After eating, she seems miserable and vomits a lot. A gastric bypass does not provide restriction, only malabsorption. You can fool yourself into eating a lot of food, but it seems like the more food you eat, the more calories you're still going to take in. The band provides restriction so you get the satiety feeling and won't continue to eat. I like the fact that I will still be able to enjoy foods, but in limited quantities which is how it should be. Sooooo, I decided to get banded so I wouldn't experience the vomiting syndrome and plus, rerouting my intestines is scary to me. Once your insides are changed, it's done and that's it - NO REVERSAL. If something happens to the band, it can always come out!!

One word.....REVERSIBLE!!!!

I guess you can say that I made a hasty decision. I mean I did my research on all types of WLS but the total time I had to take to make the decision and the surgery day was like 3weeks. It just happened that way because the place I had inquired with for the band was planning a trip and she told me I could still get in on it. At that time in my life, I had been very depressed because of my weight and I was even doing the nutrisystem diet and it just wasn't comming off, so I had the money and decided to fly to MX and just do it. The only thing I can tell you is from my research and my decision. The factors that helped me decide on the band was #1 it is adjustable. #2 I am not done having kids so I know that after birth I can just get a fill and start loosing weight again. One thing that scared me about GB is Carnie Wilson had it done and now after her pregnancy she is fighting tooth and nail to loose all the weight she has gained back. I also knew some people I worked with that had GB and while 3 are doing good and keeping weight off, 1 has lost maybe 30lbs out of a 120lb goal and is now gaining back. Now I am sure she is not eating properly, but clearly this has failed for her. I know my body and if there was any chance for GB to fail I would be one of those statistics. I know that the fast weight loss with RNY or GB is sooooo appealing but what you do have to consider is down the road. Do you want to have kids, do you think you will struggle with pregnancy weight,....etc. Personally, while I am loosing very very slowly, I am still loosing and it is not creaping back up. Just be sure to do the research and make the decision based on what YOU think is best for you and what YOU think you can deal with! Good luck.

For me the decision was easy. My mom had a gastric bypass in 1997 and lost from 265 to 110 pounds. At one point she was 95 pounds. But she pays for it every day. EVERY DAY she is either throwing up or diarrea or even worse, she has a blockage. Her intestines are a mess and she goes to the hosptial once or twice each year with a life threatening blockage. Her hair is almost non-existant and she is always weak and frail.

On the other hand, I know two other people who had it done and although they were not sick, like my mom, they have both gained some or all of their weight back.

With RNY you just get what you get and then it's up to you, but with LapBand, they can adjust it until it's right for you. And as someone already stated, it's reversable.

I sure wish the band was in the US when my mom had her surgery, what a difference it would have made in her life.

Here's another thread I noticed with similar content.

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f18/starting-process-looking-support-57837/

Best of luck to you whatever you decide.

Edited April 7, 200818 yr by SuzanneG

I knew ANY bypass procedure was not going to be for me by simply looking at those around me who had it. They look so pasty pale and ill while they're in the "successful" weight loss mode. Those who are not "successful" are gaining their weight back. Besides, I wasn't willing to do anything permanent to my insides. If I had side effects that I couldn't live with, I could have it removed.

With LapBand, I knew I would HAVE to participate and I was willing to try even though I had failed countless times before. I went through a similar phase like what you're describing right now. "What if I fail at this?" "What if I go right back to what got me here in the first place?" What if, What if, What if. So, what I did was research. When I had enough information to have me satisfied, I literally began training myself to live the LapBand life. I carried a sport watch with a timer to train myself not to drink while eating (before and after). I got a small fork and spoon and started eating on a salad plate. Small steps, but very valuable and habits I am glad I learned because I'm not so eager to wolf down my food and I have no problem with no drinking while I eat.

Advice: unless you're absolutely sure...........don't do it. Feel comfortable with your decisions because if you are not, the struggles you face may be overwhelming. I don't regret what I did, but I have certainly gone through periods where I have wondered "what the hell have I done to myself?"

First of all slow down. You are overthinking EVERYTHING.

All of us that are thinking of either way are professional dieters.

For me, I did research like crazy, (we all did that). I wanted the band because it is removeble (can't spell), and I don't want to loose weight as fast as the other surgeries. It took me a while to get this size (400lbs) and I think that I will need time to adjust to the emerging butterfly that is within.

But how you decide might be as simple as taking a piece of paper and dividing it in half and having one side banding the other RNY list what is good and bad on both to you. Then put it away for a day or two, then go back and see what you think.

Whichever one you choose know that is what is right for you.

I have yet to get a surgery date. Most of my paperwork is in, I am having a little trouble getting my doctor to send the last little bit to my surgeon (Dr. Higa, Fresno, CA), but I am not pushing right now as my husband had to have emergency surgery 2 weeks ago and he is not coming out it as fast as I would have like, but all any of us can do is hang in and keep on trucking.

Good luck with whatever your decision.

Dianna