Would you do it again?

[floridareader]

I keep reading about complications regardiong the fills , post op, getting back to eating foods.  Is it really that terrible?  Would you do it again?  I go to my first meeting tomorrow.

[Barb925]

In a heart beat. I had Gastic Bypass in 1981 and went from 317 to 170. Yes I gained some back, but am losing it again. Yes it is hard at first to get use to not eating as much, but you will learn to adjust. Remember this is not a cure, but a tool to use for weight loss.

Good Luck

Barb

[floridareader]

Congratulations!  You are an inspiration to me.  I appreciate your input.
mary

[Elyz1214]

I had the lap band in February 2007 and I would not do it again. For the first month or so I was absolutely miserable the whole time. Then I hit a plateau big time - I ate no more than 800 calories a day, drank my protein, walked 3 miles a day and still didnt lose a pound for over a month. After that I started eating more out of frustration and gained some weight back.

So I got a fill and for 2 days I vomited EVERYTHING - even water. I went back and had them take out some of the fill and for the next several months, still vomited about 50% of everything I ate the whole time. Finally went back and had them take out the rest.

The lap band is just as much diet and exercise afterwards as it is before. Granted you DO lose a lot of weight initially but you figure out quickly that mashed potatoes and chocolate milkshakes and other foods go down the band really easy.

Before I had the surgery, I thought I had really tried so hard. Afterwards, I didn't think my attempts before were that great. One year after my surgery - I had lost 60 lbs and gained 25 back.

I would not do it again.

[floridareader]

Thanks so much for your answer and honesty.  I am debating between gastric bypass and lap band and you gave me input to help with the decision.  There seems to be a lot of restrictions and possible problems in the lapband, but the bypass is so radical with all the rerouting of internal organs. I am still on the fence.
Mary

[bslowen]

At 5' 1" and 400 lbs, was having very serious problms with co-morbidities. Was going to do the Bypass until 3 of my friends went to Phoenix for the Bypass and 2 of them died. Another friend developed a leakage 5 months after her Bypass and a few months after it was repaired she started loosing her hair and nails.
My daughter, many of her friends and aquaintances had the band with no complications or problems. I ended up getting the band in November 2006, after my 67th birthday. The surgery was a breeze. My husband and I went on a road trip the day after the surgery and I was ordering from the menu.
I have lost 140 lbs with no complications and the only problem is I plateaued last Christmas ...guess at this point I need another fill.  I eat all the things I used to eat ...only a lot less of it. I cannot eat when I am stressed .... not even water stays down when I'm stressed. My only restrictions are to not skip meals, remember to start the meals with protein, eat slow, chew until the food is practically liquified and stop when I feel full. Of coarse you have to drink what seems like gallons of water through out the day.
I would do it again a hundred times over. It is like being reborn. I used to take 4 blood pressure meds ... I now take 0. I used to use 3 inhalers and 4 pills for the asthma and respiratory problems ... I now use 0. I do not have to use the C-Pap machine anymore. I no longer have shortness of breath or the muscle/joint pain and problems.
I still have another 140 to go. It should be easy once I break this plateau.    

[ngm44]

i had my lapband done almost a year ago.  it is the best thing i have ever done for myself.  it has been pretty easy adjusting and i have lost 80 lbs.  the only problem i have had is recently i have been having problems with acid reflux.  i think my band is too tight.  i have an apt to have it loosened soon.  but with that said.....i would do it again tomorrow!  good luck!

[MrsOckert]

I had a vertical banded gastroplasty done 18 years ago.  It involved using staples in the stomach and putting in a band around the stomach to create a pouch.

I lost over 100 lbs the first year after the 3 rd year I had gained most of it back.

The band is now eroded through my stomach and is protruding.  I am having a difficult time finding a surgeon to repair it since the orignal surgeon has since passed away.

I would do the gastric bypass.  100% guaranteed to work.  My friend had it done and hasn't had any problems.

[Bob_D]

There is a lot of excellent information at the site below on scientific evaluations of the long-term results of weight loss surgery.

http://junkfoodscience.blogspot.com/