Curious to know if anyone regrets getting their lap-band, and why?

I don't regret getting my LB, it was the best decision I've made in the past 10 years! I work with 4 other lapbanders and not one regrets it. I did not have a primary care doc and this was a problem for me because my insurance req'd that a primary care doc had to write a note stating he/she approved of it. It took FOUR dr's to get that ONE to agree w/ me. The 1st one said I was making a big mistake because she knew of a failure. The next 2 said I was fine the way I was. Thankfully, I don't give up that easy!! To this day I have yet to meet anyone that it failed!

I've had a few minor problems with my band, but do not regret having the surgery at all!

see killthefatman - Regrets about the Lap Band

Not me. I love it. I only wish I could have gotten in when I was 30.

I don't regret it at all, I have lost almost 50 lbs. since august 2008 and am feeling so much better. I have had a few episodes of vomiting but it was my own fault from eating too fast and too big of a bite. I am very careful now cause I don't want to vomit, it sure isn't pleasant at all.

I regret not doing it sooner. I regret taking the tags off some of the size 12 pants that are beginning to get too lose to wear before actually wearing them and now I cant return them. I regret not having the foresight to buy the swim suit I wore last year 4 sizes smaller cause I loved that suit and it was discontinued. I do not, however, regret my band!!!

The only thing I regret is waiting so to have it done. I should have done it years ago before I got so heavy. Good luck to you!

Curious to know if anyone regrets getting their lap-band, and why?

Yes, kinda. It did a real job on my esophagus and I may have that damage forever. I think the sleeve is a safer option.

Yes I do but I can't go back in time but hopefully will be able to revise to a different surgery that will work for me.

WASabubblebutt,

Is that from the sliming/vomiting?

and

Nanook, why?

I am curious because I am starting the process to getting one. I am very excited, I'm reading all I can, and trying to get a little of everyones opinions and experiences. This site has been a great help with that. It seems like I read a lot of blogs where people are upset with their (lack of) weight loss or with the vomiting/PBing and don't seem happy. But most people I talk to are very excited and grateful for theirs.

Thank you everyone for explaining why you love (or don't) your LB, and thank you manatee for the link!

WASabubblebutt,

Is that from the sliming/vomiting?

and

Nanook, why?

I am curious because I am starting the process to getting one. I am very excited, I'm reading all I can, and trying to get a little of everyones opinions and experiences. This site has been a great help with that. It seems like I read a lot of blogs where people are upset with their (lack of) weight loss or with the vomiting/PBing and don't seem happy. But most people I talk to are very excited and grateful for theirs.

Thank you everyone for explaining why you love (or don't) your LB, and thank you manatee for the link!

I think one of the things that you will find is that when people have been newly banded they love it, the scale is moving. After they have been banded 1-2 years the thrill of losing weight is not as intense and the problems are kicking in.

I used to love my band until I started choking on vomit in my sleep. I am revising to a sleeve soon.

The band was great at first, until that started happening. I am not having trouble now, but I have no restriction. I ate a plate of spaghetti and 2 pieces of garlic bread tonight. okay, call me an over eater, but that is what I got the band for. If I were to get a fill, I would go back to choking on vomit in my sleep.

It's a very fine line between being too tight and being too loose. I am tired of worrying about fills and unfills so I am getting the sleeve surgery.

Sorry, but I have to be truthful here.

I don't regret! I think getting the band was the best thing I have done for myself. I have lost 104 pounds & I am now training for a 1/2 marathon. Just like anything else the band has challenges, don't think it is easy. In the last year & a half I have taken it slow - I don't eat things I know will get stuck. I know I can't eat bread/pasta/rice and to be honest I don't care b/c the weight comes off :frown: I don't miss those things anymore b/c I am so happy with my progress. I will say that 5 days ago I made the choice to have a 2nd surgery b/c I have lost so much weight my port became visible by a bump on my tummy. My doctor stated that this was uncommon & mine was more visible than he had seen. The surgery was so easy - my tummy is just a bit sore but nothing big and SOOO well worth it. I now have a low port & it is not visible at all. I have learned that if you can get rid of the expectation of a certain number of pounds you want to lose each week & just be happy with any loss it helps.

I think one of the things that you will find is that when people have been newly banded they love it, the scale is moving. After they have been banded 1-2 years the thrill of losing weight is not as intense and the problems are kicking in.

True for some I guess but certainly not all. I am 2.5 years post-op and yes I have stopped losing weight....but I still ~LOVE~ my band !!!

In my opinion too many people go into this surgery thinking that the band is going to do 'most' of the work when in fact that band only helps you feel satiated on a smaller quantity. You need to be prepared to literally work your butt off !!! You need to change the way you think, the way you shop, the way you prepare and eat food. This is not a magic bullet.

Also in my opinion I think that some (notice I did not say ~all~) people who have problems with band slippage, erosion and stretching have done something incorrectly. They have either not followed the bandster rules or else they have kept their band too tight. I read the obove post about vomiting in her sleep and it's pretty obvious that her band was too tight. When I see a Dr or nurse for a band adjustment one of the first questions asked is if there is any night-time vomiting/reflux/heartburn.

With the band you need to listen to your body and learn to ignore the voice in your head that has been allowing you to overeat for too long.

Did I mention that I still ~LOVE~ my band???

Patricia

11-16/06

True for some I guess but certainly not all. I am 2.5 years post-op and yes I have stopped losing weight....but I still ~LOVE~ my band !!!

In my opinion too many people go into this surgery thinking that the band is going to do 'most' of the work when in fact that band only helps you feel satiated on a smaller quantity. You need to be prepared to literally work your butt off !!! You need to change the way you think, the way you shop, the way you prepare and eat food. This is not a magic bullet.

Also in my opinion I think that some (notice I did not say ~all~) people who have problems with band slippage, erosion and stretching have done something incorrectly. They have either not followed the bandster rules or else they have kept their band too tight. I read the obove post about vomiting in her sleep and it's pretty obvious that her band was too tight. When I see a Dr or nurse for a band adjustment one of the first questions asked is if there is any night-time vomiting/reflux/heartburn.

With the band you need to listen to your body and learn to ignore the voice in your head that has been allowing you to overeat for too long.

Did I mention that I still ~LOVE~ my band???

Patricia

11-16/06

Patricia...

No, it is not quite obvious. This is one of the problems many of us are talking about that happens long term with the band. Many suffer from this kind of reflux, I had it and I had an unfilled band. Elisabethsew has it and she is nowhere near being too tight.

There was a study done that I read on the OH boards and I could kick myself for not bookmarking it. It talks of how this is very common in banded people due to the new shape of the stomach after banding. You can completely remove the fill of these people and they still have reflux to the point of aspirating on their own stomach acid.

A band that is too tight can absolutely cause this. But that isn't the issue I am referring to and it is not what many experience. It's something that is growing more and more common.

Slips, pouch dilation, esophageal dilation... I agree, that is often times the banded person. Erosion... only if their band is verrrrry tight for an extended period of time. Thing is, most cannot tolerate a band that tight. I think it's more the doctor than the person with erosion. Why does one doctor I am thinking of have a 20% (not a typo) erosion stat and another have a 0.005% erosion stat? Both are in MX so most people have their aftercare done locally. So it's not that one doctor is filling them too much, they have a ton of different aftercare doctors. The only common denominator is the surgeon.

One thing I have noticed is that regardless if it is a patient or surgeon, other banded people are quick to blame the one with problems. That's just not fair considering the high complication stats of banding. Did you know that 30-50% of people will need another surgery within the first 5 years? Anything from a flipped port, slip, erosion, band intolerance, etc. Those are not reasonable stats in my eyes. Slips are not decreasing, they are increasing.

I think people of all surgery types go into this thinking surgery will the the ultimate cure and they can just sit on the couch and wait for pounds to melt. This is a life long journey, it never ends. It merely becomes easier.