I never thought to ask anybody but will my irritable bowel syndrom stop me from having band surgery?:ohmy:

I have IBS and my doc said I can have LBS. In fact, since I've been on 5 shakes per day and one meal it hasn't been acting up. Strange.

It may help, it may hurt. Do you know what your triggers are for an episode? What kind of diet do you follow? If you need to follow a high fibre diet, you need to ensure that you can get the fibre that you need, post band, which may mean that you can't get filled to your sweet spot in order to get all the fibre you need (fibre can take a lot of room). You will also need to be very careful that you always drink enough fluids.

For many bandsters, their BM decrease dramatically once they are fully into the program. Will that be an issue for your IBS? Do you currently have constipation issues? You would need to figure out what your sytem can tolerate (preferably pre band).

On the other hand, by eating less and eating less high fat foods, your IBS may get way better (see poster who is only drinking shakes and hasn't had an episode).

Finally, have you actually had a colonoscopy and been diagnosed with IBS? I thought I had IBS for years, but with the dreaded test, I found out that I actually had diverticular disease, which is different (same pain) and which can sometimes be treated and relieved with antibiotics and a high fibre diet (didn't work for me, but that is a different story). :drool:

Be really open and honest with your Dr. and really know what you need to make your life comfortable in terms of diet, so you can have the surgery (or not) with really clear expectations.

Good luck! :frown: