I've had some people tell me that they know people who have had the band, got skinny, and then gained it ALL back. Has this happened to anyone? I'm am scared of that!

I don't know of anyone who's done that. I have hear of people who've done that. I can only offer some ideas why this happens.

They may not have been ready to be thin. I know the last time I lost 50 pounds I had a difficult time dealing with the extra attention from men, especially. It is very difficult to learn a whole new life. People are fat for all sorts of reasons. Some of those reasons are because it is so much safer to be fat.

If you eat around the band, you can gain back the weight. If you never get a fill, you can gain (or not loose) the weight. If you don't work the tool, the tool doesn't work you.

I've had some people tell me that they know people who have had the band, got skinny, and then gained it ALL back. Has this happened to anyone? I'm am scared of that!

I don't know anyone who has done that, but I am also the only person I know who has a band!

Just wanted to say that it's possible. But it's usually preventable. Unless there's a malfunction with the band, you can get it tighted and prevent weight gain. Just like when you are losing weight. That's the #1 reason I went with the band.

jayme

some say they say Ann Wilson of heart gained a lot.Since its been only approve by the fda we don't know yet at least in the states. I have found to personal gals web sites one was named binkey or something and she gained back. Not sure if it cause U S docs haven't mastered it yet who knows why. But even you can go get plastic surgery at a top doc and it turn out bad so nothing is 100%!

I have never personally known anyone who has gained their weight back and I do know a few people with the band. But since the band is relatively new who knows.

But, when you think about it logically I really think you would have to try to gain it back. I would think that if weight gain begins then you can just go and get a fill. But maybe they're something that I'm missing.

On the other hand, if a person became an ice cream and milkshake addict and refused to give that up they'd gain back no question. Or if they drank Coke and didn't follow any rules. Hmmm, now you've got me thinkin'....

ACKKKK, I don't know how anyone really could do that. Even if I tried I don't think I could gain it all back. I think that since the band my "tastes" have changed. I love it when I eat small and people say (who don't know I am banded) "is that all your gonna eat" and I grin and say "yep, I am stuffed".

For me, if I eat too much "sweets" I am sick to my stomach now. Its a gross feeling. I NEVER used to be that way.

I would suppose the only way I could gain the weight back is without a fill. I ate like a cow without my fill. If I ate like that again, I would just go and get 'er tightened up like a car tune up!!

I've never encountered anyone who's gained all their weight back, but those few instances of significant regain I've heard about always involve some disruption in the band or the patient's behavior. Assuming all remains in order, there is no reason to fear regain to any significant degree.

That's the beauty of the band. Unlike RNY, which can just lose efficacy over time even if the patient continues following all the rules, the band is merely a mechanical device that will continue to do its thing through time. Whether we want to ALLOW it to, and continue letting it tell us when enough food is enough, is another matter and completely within our control.

I've gained back the majority of what I lost.

The band is successful for about 75-80% of patients. Therefore, one out of every four or five banded patients do NOT do well with the band.

(hi-jack) Hi Sue! Miss your smiling face around here! Hope all is well! (/hi-jack)

Hi Sue!

Can you describe what happened that caused your regain? Did the band just stop working for you at some point, through mechanical or other problem? Were you unable to get it and keep it properly adjusted? Or was it something else? And how are you doing now? You still have your band, right?

Those statistics don't surprise me at all. The band takes a lot of participation by the patient. But it also doesn't have the brief "window of opportunity" that the RNY does. It seems to me that anyone who is properly banded still has the chance to make it work for them, whether it's two years or twenty years later.

Sue, I would love to hear your story. I am pre-band and everyone tells me how great it is, but I would like to get an opinion from someone who does not think it works.

Whats gonna help me decide too about getting the band is when medicare covers it. They announced they are reviewing the band it would take 5 months for the review. That was about 7 months ago and they still not announcement. The announcement was made when they took out the words that obesity was not an illness. I read all of this on CNN.

I can't control my eating. I've never ate a bag of chips or whole bunch of ice cream or candy or never have surpersized a meal ever. So I don't pig out but I'd gain back if the band didn't make me feel full after a small amount.

Sue I thank you for the info and yes that would be great if we had an idea of what happened. I know it would be hard to talk about cause that would be like losing a dream come true.

Rene

The problem is, some people who have been banded a long time become less able to tolerate the restriction they had that got them to their low weight.

Some bandsters develop GERD, and the only way it can be controlled for them is by removing some or all of their fill.

So for those people, it is a distinct possibility that they could start regaining weight, particularly if they relied on the band completely for managing portion size with no regards to portion quality.

And then there are those of us who have lost our bands altogether, so... maintaining the weightloss is just as hard as it was when we quit whatever the latest diet we were on... :sick

However, GERD is NOT a given for all longterm bandsters - just something that DOES happen.

The doc who performed my LB surgery has had a band for over 5 years. He lost 120 pounds and says that he's never going to have it removed, because he knows that he'll just gain the weight again. So now... he's drop dead gorgeous ...and 180 pounds... nice.:Bunny

2bthin

When I have restriction, I lose weight and get reflux. When I empty the band, I get rid of the reflux and gain weight. Right now, I have less restriction that the doctor wanted and I STILL have reflux.

And I'm mostly out of the mood. The band works well for 75-80% patients. But not for everyone. I'm almost 59. I don't have a lot of time to have more surgery or to play this game much longer.

So I'm making appointments for revision to DS. It was my second choice surgery and it appears to make sense to move on. It's a HUGE step, and I'm scared. But I have friends who have done well with it and seems like a real option.

I was fortunate to have the resources, and a husband who didn't mind my utilizing them, to pay for the band out of pocket. And I'm not sorry I tried for the least invasive method to solve this problem. But I have insurance that pays for the DS and that's what I'm looking at right now. In no time at all, they'll be saying, "Sorry, dear, you've passed our cut-off age." So, I'm off to see some wizards, so to speak.

My highest BMI was about 53. At surgery, it was 47-ish. I got down to 39, and that's when the reflux started. Currently, I'm at about 43.

Would I do it again? Probably.

Would I wait this long to move on? Probably not.

Thanks, Sue, that's very helpful. It's wonderful that you still HAVE options, isn't it? At this point very little has been done to your anatomy and moving on won't be medically complicated.