LAP BAND

I am also trying to decide between Lap Band and RNY. I would appreciate anyone who has had lap band surgery writing about it on the board. How is the weight loss? Is it steady. REcovery time?? anything you can discuss would be very appreciated. There are not many people who discuss the lap band on the board.

Hi Joanne, I don't know if you are aware but if you look to your left under Resources in Conn, click on Bariatric Surgeons, it will give you a whole list of drs, phone # and comments from patients. This might help. Mary Lou

Hi Joanne, I had Lap Band Surgery on April 11, 2003. I have lost 52 pounds in less than 3 months. But, be careful in viewing numbers like these. Everyone is different and I read alot of information and called people regarding their surgeries and some people lost alot quickly, some lost steadily over a long time (2-3 pounds/week) and some had trouble losing more than 25-35% of their excess weight. When I went to Dr. Valin, they had me answer a questionnaire. When I walked into the office, I was sure that I wanted to have Gastric Bypass (RNY). After answering some of the questions regarding the type of eater that I was, they told me I was a good candidate for the Lap Band. Also, some of my risks made it better for me to select a less invasive surgery. One of the key elements is that I am not a big sweet eater. I tended to overeat at meals and then spent the rest of the evening finishing off a pizza, eating bologna and snacking on chips and dip rather than eating alot of ice cream or candy. Dr. Valin indicated to me that sweet eaters do better with the Bypass because Dumping Syndrome is a deterrent. I have been very happy with my results and the surgery. I have noticed a pattern of weight loss. I was losing very fast at the beginning and then it has slowed down a bit since the surgery. So far I have had one fill of 1.7 ccs (the band was empty right after surgery). That took some getting used to. I had a very easy and quick recovery from surgery. I was in the hospital 2 days and then went home and was able to rid myself of all pain meds within 4 days from surgery. I started working out within two weeks. I hope this gives you more info, but you should also visit Dr. Valins website as there are many people on the site with more information and their experiences. Good luck to you.

I have a friend who had lap banding (this isn't one of those stories that goes like my cousin's wife's sisters best friend had that surgury and failed! When in reality they had a totally different surgery) She is my best friend. She had the surgery when it was still being tested in trials for FDA approval. I believe it's been over 3 years now. She had some initial success and lost some where in the neighborhood of 75 lbs. She was not able to maintain her loss long term. She has now gained back all the wieght plus quite a bit more. I am not knocking the surgery. Just passing along the info. If I were to put my two cents in, I would say tht she was unable to make the life changes necessary to loose and keep it off. Banding, being a more moderate surgery doesn't 'force' you to make those changes like RNY does. I think she needed the discipline RNY gives you. The 'Moral' of my story is this- consider your options carefully, but consider your behavior and emotional issues with food MORE carefully and make a decision based on your honest assesment of why you are obeese and what will be best for you. I know in my heart that I needed to have some changes forced upon me and that I had issues with sweets and portion control, so I opted for RNY as the best choice for my situation. Good luck to you. These things are easy to say but so hard to do!