I have been reading everyone's comments for over a month in preparation for having the lap-band® surgery.. i still cannot determine if this is the best option for weight loss. don't get me wrong. i am doing it. and i am determined to do my best. but i keep reading mixed reviews about it..now i know we are all different. I fully understand it is how you use this tool.. because that is what it is. a tool. and not a way out. but how come it just doesn't work for some people? i don't understand. i can't see how. it constricts your stomach to make you feel full.. which i am finding out may not happen until 4+ weeks later!!!.. but if you are consuming less calories than burning.. isn't it inevitable that you will lose??? so to me... maybe people aren't reading nutrition facts like they should? or they are not active at all.. it doesn't make sense to me.

the whole taking 4 weeks for a fill.. ok i can see why.. you need time for your stomach to heal.. but 4 weeks!! it really only takes 2 weeks to get used to eating different.. atleast in my case. so why the need for lap-band® then?

i guess i am just a little frustrated... i really want this to be a success.. and i feel it is up to the person carrying the lap-bans that makes thats determination. is it just me???

All you can do is research and ask specific questions of your doctor...and then decide whether it is right for you. I am thankful for all the posts here, particularly the ones from people having difficulties because I was then able to go to my doc and ask, "What's up with this?" His answers reassured me not only that I made the right decision, but that I had also picked the right doctor. As a lap band recipient himself, he knows exactly what we're going through.

Will you have issues? Maybe, but you should always expect the unexpected and make up your mind from the word 'go' that you're just going to deal with it and move on. That doesn't mean you don't get to gripe about things that go wrong. It just means it's ok to vent, but then you need to deal with it.

The minute my approval came through this afternoon, all of my anxiety regarding this whole process dropped away. Will everything go perfectly? Most likely not...but I accept that and will deal with any problems that crop up along the way because it is, in the long run, the better option. Better than fighting this losing battle with my weight and having to deal with all the weight related medical issues.

Onward and upward!

.

No one can predict how you will react. Your best weapon is good preparation and lots of information.Read as much as you can, go to the support groups, ask your Dr lots of questions.Some people have issues some don't. Often the ones that have issues are the ones that were not fully informed prior to surgery so they didn't know what to expect.

With regard to fills be aware that your first one will probably be between 3 - 6 weeks after surgery depending on your Dr.It is unlikely that you will get perfect restriction after your first fill - that can take months. Although some Dr's fill aggressively the slow and steady approach is considered to be safer and leads to less problems in the long run.

During this period you may get hungry, you may not lose , you may even gain a little weight. Stick to healthy food choices and try to cut out the junk. It is better to eat more of a healthy food than carry on eating rubbish. And yes if you are consuming less energy than you are expending you should lose.But if you eat slider foods such as icecream, milkshakes, chips, crackers you won't.

Do your exercise and most importantly remember the band is for life it's not a quickfix.

The bottom line is: You can eat around a lap band. For that matter, you can eat around gastric bypass. If a bandster doesn't eat as instructed, the results will be less than optimal. Complete honesty with yourself is so important! If you say to others you're losing slow and don't know why, but in fact know for yourself that you've been snacking regularly between meals then you know the answer even if you don't want to admit it.

For me, yeah, I've been successful at losing weight more than once. But I've also ben REALLY successful at losing 30 or 35 pounds and then falling off the wagon and regaining the weight very quickly. But my band experience is that about 3 months ago I would absolutely have been off the program completely and not looked back. But as long as I don't graze/snack between meals, the band won't let me eat a whole pizza or a sack of fast food crap. So I've continued to lose.

You can argue the fill schedule with your doc but I'm betting he/she won't budge. My doc does the first fill after 4 weeks but it's an aggressive fill (for me, he took me to 4.6cc but had to remove 1cc because it was just too much). Then it was a fill every 4 weeks until I hit the green zone. I didn't lose anything in the 4 weeks post op...going from liquids to mushies to real food was enough to stop the weight loss but that's why they call that period bandster hell.

The success of the band is absolutely the responsibility of the bandster.

I lost really well in the beginning and then stopped losing. And then started making really crappy food choices and gained some.

Some.

And that's why the band for me. Not only does it help me lose weight when I'm doing really well and right on track (like now), but it also helped keep me from gaining back weight very quickly when I was not doing as well.

No matter which surgical option you choose, what you put into your mouth is your choice. Eat the wrong foods, eat too much food, and you're not going to do as well.

Seriously, if you can lose and maintain without surgery - do that. But I couldn't even after trying a zillion times.

it really only takes 2 weeks to get used to eating different.. atleast in my case. so why the need for lap-band®® then?

i guess i am just a little frustrated... i really want this to be a success.. and i feel it is up to the person carrying the lap-bans that makes thats determination. is it just me???

Surgical procedures-be it lap band or gastric bypass vary considerably in complexity and specialized training is needed to perform them. It can lead to severe complications if not done correctly. You can go online, participate in surgery-related forums, discuss with your family doctor and previous patients of potential surgeons to get prior information about your surgeon.

I can suggest you one surgeon in Mexico,i.e, Dr. Zapata.

And the important thing-Be brave.

dont forget in any community theres' always a lot of obese people who protest that they dont eat that much.

And you know what? Sometimes its TRUE. There's plenty of people here who have done all the right things and not lost weight because their body's just dont respond like they logically should.

I know to maintain my weight now, I eat about 1800 calories a day. That's simply NUTS for a 5ft 10 150lb woman who's on her feet all day and runs for an hour a day on top of that. I should be able to eat at least 1000 calories more - all the charts say so. But I cant. And I know I eat a helluva lot more than most here, carbs included.

2 weeks to get used to eating different? If that's really the case most of us would never need a band. Most of us cant EVER get used to eating different without surgical help. We need our bands in there for LIFE to keep the weight away.

those are the reasons why we do it - becuase for many of us our bodies arent working quite right, and for MOST of us, we simply cant change our eating habits and set appetites permanently without some help.

ALL of us could get used to exercising regularly though.

I have been reading everyone's comments for over a month in preparation for having the lap-band®® surgery.. i still cannot determine if this is the best option for weight loss. don't get me wrong. i am doing it. and i am determined to do my best. but i keep reading mixed reviews about it..now i know we are all different. I fully understand it is how you use this tool.. because that is what it is. a tool. and not a way out. but how come it just doesn't work for some people? i don't understand. i can't see how. it constricts your stomach to make you feel full.. which i am finding out may not happen until 4+ weeks later!!!.. but if you are consuming less calories than burning.. isn't it inevitable that you will lose??? so to me... maybe people aren't reading nutrition facts like they should? or they are not active at all.. it doesn't make sense to me.

the whole taking 4 weeks for a fill.. ok i can see why.. you need time for your stomach to heal.. but 4 weeks!! it really only takes 2 weeks to get used to eating different.. atleast in my case. so why the need for lap-band®® then?

i guess i am just a little frustrated... i really want this to be a success.. and i feel it is up to the person carrying the lap-bans that makes thats determination. is it just me???

I'm not trying to rain on anybody's parade, Dragonfly, because I love, love, love my band......but my advice is that if you are unsure about the band, then don't get it. Do more research on all weightloss surgeries before you decide on one (if you even decide on surgery at all).

thank you everyone.

you all had some really good information. I made up my mind over a month ago that i am doing this surgery.. and i went through all the necessary medical clearance so far... that's a commitment in itself. I am completely ready for a life change and the ups and downs that come with it. I guess i was just frustrated for other people who were unsuccessful with the band. Unfortunately i am the type of person that NEEDS to know everything.. hense why i am on here all the time.. lol. it's probably a good thing when it comes to major things like getting WLS.... I am just going to remember all the good advise. and remind myself that nothing comes easy in life.. i always had to work hard for the things i have.. and that's ok. because then you feel so much more accomplished. I am extremely excited, nervous, anxious and every other emotion that comes with it... but most of all. I am determined... :scared2:

Good luck! I am sure you will get well soon after suregry.

Hi,

Sometime back i was really nervous about my surgery but now after reading these articles ,i have started gaining confidence,but can someone please tell me if these surgeries are permanent?

Thanks,

Regards,

Kate George.

Hi,

Sometime back i was really nervous about my surgery but now after reading these articles ,i have started gaining confidence,but can someone please tell me if these surgeries are permanent?

Thanks,

Regards,

Kate George.

Hello Kate,

this is what i learned. gastric bypass is permanent. some people rather this option for their own reasons..

Lap-band is totally reversable. in the seminar the surgeon explained that some people have issues with the band (slip) but can be easily fixed laproscopically. I suggest reading a lot more before chosing WLS.. it is a forever life change. check out a seminar.. they are very informative as well.

good luck.