Why Lapband?

LOL.  no one bit at the bait.  I do love the term "Crap Band" as today I am not happy with it.  If I could have gotten DS I would have so been there!  But, I'm thankful I could have any surgery at all to help me.

I personally wouldn't take advice from anyone that isn't a surgeon and my doctors (at least whole heartedly that is).  I mean, what the F do I know about someone else's position and health?  NOTHING.

at least you got a reply and an LOL on your "crap band" comment!

I'm kinda known for my bluntness.

LOL  I know!  You're a hero in my mind :)   One of your R&R friends invited me over after she read a post to that one antigay, antiHIV, antihuman post she made several weeks back.  I went and had a good laugh reading everyone's post on RR.  You guys crack me up over there!

Oh you must be talking about Nablowme. She is a wacked out bigot we like to slap around on occasion just for ****s and giggles.

We are quite crazy over there. Last week we took turns tearing each other apart. This week we are discussing:

Unrestrained dogs in the back of pick up trucks.

People at work who smell bad and how to tell them

Why OH is so stinkin slow lately

and some guys butt hurts over there.

Personally I could give a rats hynie that his butt hurts. Just Sayin.

I was set to have the RNY up until  a couple of weeks before the surgery. I was so psyched to get the RNY...then I went to the RNY section of this website and was reading alot of people's posts and the comparison of the posts of the RNY board vs the LAP BAND board I thought was being in 2 different worlds. I was so anti the band and then when I got my date and the surgery set in, being on the RNY website and seeing people's complaints from the aches and pains and difficulties they were having from RNY just didnt sit right with me. I then did more research on the band and I was happy with knowing hey if I have any problems with the band, it can be fixed, removed, changed, whatever whereas with RNY knowing oh well, you did RNY your SOL, there is no going back, thats what put me ove the top to change.  I am going on 32 years old with a beautiful wife and 3 year old daughter and I couldnt see putting them through a lifetime of any aches and pains and problems I would have. So far I have lost 69 pounds on my own since 12/8/2009. I have the band and the doctor has told me he isnt going to give me any adjustments or fills until i stop losing weight on my own.

I hope this answers your question.

One other thing...the people here on LAP BAND FORUM seem to be more of the family type (everyone here is one big family) whereas over on the RNY they always seemed to be at each others throats.

It was a quick and easy decision for me.
In 2008 I had to have two heart by-pass operations and my A Orta on my heart
replaced with a fiber type material.  I was sooooo sick and in sooooo much PAIN,
I never wanted to have that much surgery (cuting) done on me again.
I have said before on this forum I did not have any pain at all.
I still enjoyed taking the pain pills however.

It was the only surgery my critical care doctors would allow.  I can't have malabsorption.  With my weight (given I had no vascular disease) I would have really thought long and hard about DS and RNY.  The band isn't instant gratification, but I'm happy I have it.  If I only had 100 to lose I would have gone with the band no matter what.  Being that I have 150-200 to lose I would have more than likely gone with a malabsorption surgery (although hearing how sick some become puts me off a lot since I know what being sick is like).

Just make sure to research A LOT before you commit to any surgery ok!?  Good luck!!! Remember...none of the surgeries will get you thin, but they sure do help!

I am new to this. I started 9 months ago with my first visit to the physicians office. To be honest, I thought to myself "I am having RNY because I don't want to deal with a port in my stomach".

Then..I did the research and comparison. I do NOT want my hair to thin, my skin to get dry and/or have other malnurishment problems. People who have RNY have malabsorptive issues....food just passes on through. PLUS...it is VERY difficult to reverse if the patient requests it. The bands (Lap or REALIZE) can be reversed. My physician put the REALIZE band in and said that he sutures the band in place to help prevent slipping. The REALIZE band is also a little wider than the LAP band to allegedly help with erosion issues.

I am like the others and am a volume eater. I LOVE good quality foods but eat an over abundance of them and want the help of a "tool" to control this. I am ready to do my part but want a "hammer to the head" approach to STOP.

I know that the weight loss may be quite slower than the RNY patients, but there are studies to say that in the long run, the losses are quite similar. Also, the surgical risks are higher in the RNY procedure.

So, with all that said, I decided on the REALIZE band and my surgery was 9 days ago. I have a little post-op discomfort yet (perhaps I am a woos) BUT I have already kicked the habit of caffeine (I refused to give it up pre-op), have definitely FELT physically better already (better food choices ~ albeit liquids)...and......drumroll......................17 pounds are GONE!!!! I cannot be happier for this!! Even if the weight loss slows, which it will, I am not in this for a race...I am in it to be healthy again!!

I hope this helps! Oh, and I forgot....the BAND boards are very much like a family! I have spent hours on them every day and I love the help and support!!!

Good luck with your decision! We hope to see you on the loser's bench someday soon!!

Connie

I think every surgery has their pros and cons. The best thing you can do is meet with a surgeon. Most offer a seminar where they explain them all and give you an opportunity to make an informed decision. I wish you luck on your journey whatever you decide.

I asked this same question on these forums.

I choose lapband because I did not want my guts rearranged.

I did not want further risk of complication since I had a prior non-weight loss surgery that had complications and I did not want more cutting other than the port holes.

I also did not want to deal with the malapsorption.

Another factor was that WHEN I find that I was in control I wanted to be able to TASTE cake/cookies/ice cream without dumping. I did not want to have to eliminate them entirely. I wanted to be able to eat like a thin person meaning just smaller amounts of food. I am finding that the lapband does that.

I am not saying that other surgeries are not a good choice for you. What I m saying is that lapband was a good choice for me.