Negativity....good grief.

Glad you put this post up! I was surprised by the tone of some of these posts. Some of them are bordering on offensive, and although I ignore them, I am tempted to report them as inappropriate. If we try that approach, the bashing and hurtful comments should stop.
Good luck!
Mary

 To be honest, reporting won't do a damned thing. I've been here since 2003, and have had to report a lot of people for TRULY inappropriate behavior (basic band bashing doesn't even come close). OH never does a damned thing about it.

You seem like a very nice lady and what you say is true about one size does not fit all.

However, Lynn, myself and many others who come here to post have had the advantage of knowing first hand the difference between the band and in most cases, the sleeve.

It is night and day.  I would be willing to speculate that the best band experience does not even come close to being as trouble free as the sleeve.

When I had the band, I could never really be on my own with it.  I needed daily support just to try to figure out what was happening from one day to the next.  The band is a needy attachment.  The sleeve on the other hand is totally natural.  Once the surgery is successfully healed, there is very little that can go wrong from a health standpoint.

Former bandsters have a unique experience that the should share with those that are trying to make a decision.  We know the difference a different surgery can make.

Well, maybe you should start your own forum. I don't think many of the comments you and Lynn post, although well meaning, are appreciated by everyone.

I also did my research, and that is exactly why I chose the band. If in the future an issue develops, I'll deal with it as it comes along. We can't predict what's to come in life.

Yes, the band is a foreign object in the body, and things do go wrong with it. But so many have had great success, that in most cases the benefits outweigh the risks.

The greatest benefit to the band is that is doesn't stretch out, which both the sleeve and the by-pass tend to do. Look at the celebrities who have had by pass surgery and gained most of it back!

Try starting a new forum and see how many members you get. People don't like all the acrimony coming from many of these posts.

Good luck.

Mary

The band may not stretch out, but your esophagus will.

Again, this is not about people who have made their decision and are happy with it.  It is about the people who are not happy with their bands that post on THIS board and people who are looking for comparisons to the sleeve from people who have experienced both.

I have had my sleeve for almost 3 years and I have about the same amount of restriction that I had after the initial healing.  The sleeve doesn't stretch much.

On January 13, 2011 at 3:08 PM Pacific Time, Phyllis C. wrote:

'The band may not stretch out, but your esophagus will.

Again, this is not about people who have made their decision and are happy with it.  It is about the people who are not happy with their bands that post on THIS board and people who are looking for comparisons to the sleeve from people who have experienced both.

I have had my sleeve for almost 3 years and I have about the same amount of restriction that I had after the initial healing.  The sleeve doesn't stretch much.'

 Well this is about the people who post on this board and are tired of the band bashing, in whatever way it is done or meant.  This post is an excellent example of what should be found on the REVISIONS board.  Not the lapband board.

and yes, I wonder about the time and effort they put into spamming this board as well.  I guess life after the VSG ain't so great afterall if you have to spend your time posting on a board that really you don't belong on AND the posters really aren't intersted in your "help"

seriously get a life...and get off this board 

ETA- I tried to block you Phyllis C. but it's not letting me...so how about you give us your real user name so those of us who don't need/want your expertise can block you?  Or is that just another trollish behavior you like to exhibit?

You are only seeing what you want to see.

I don't feel a need to post on the revisions board.  People who are on the revision board already know they are in trouble.  I am here to support the folks who are having problems with their band.  You folks who are doing so well have nothing to offer in that regard.

Yes, life after the VSG is great.   I need so little support that I just don't post much on the VSG board.  I am not into bragging about my personal success with the VSG so I don't have much to share over there.  In general VSGers just don't need the support that bandsters do.

My question to you is, why are you so hateful towards people who are just try to help someone other than yourself?  Apparently you don't need any help, so just don't read my posts if they bother you so much. 

I am glad you're happy with your procedure and sorry you couldn't get the band to work for you. That said I still don't feel there is a lot of point in being on the band forum praising the sleeve. I would think you'd realize that a lot of insurance companies will not cover the sleeve and in most cases people do not win an appeal. I don't know about you but a lot of people can't afford to self pay. If you depend on insurance, chances are you will have a choice of the band or the RNY bypass. My insurance gave me the above 2 choices. So I could choose one of the above or I could do nothing and continue to gain weight.  Hmmm tough choice. Get healthy and lose weight or do nothing because I can't afford to pay for what you consider the holy grail of WLS. I think doing anything is better than doing nothing at all don't you. I had my reasons for my choice and I don't regret my decision and even if a problem pops up I will deal with it and not second guess myself. This is after all a foreward facing journey and there is little to be gained by beating ourselves up over what we did or didn't do in the past.

I understand the insurance issues.  More and more insurance companies are covering the sleeve which is a good thing for everyone.

Again, this board is not just for people who have made their desicion and are happy about it.  I don't put down people for the choice they have made.  I just offer another perspective that people considering the band need to know about.

Phyllis,

Shakespeare said, "The lady doth protest too much methinks."  In other words, the band bashers are like a dog with a bone.  What you did here showed disrespect for the person who began this post.  Enough already.