Positive Lap Band Stories & Success-Post Here

I had my surgery on 7/16/2009 and I love my band. I have lost 66 lbs and would have been more but at my own request I had a major unfill after being too tight. 8 months and I maintained my weight. I got a fill today and it feels great. I am back on track to finish my goal of losing another 50 lbs. Already I have gone from a size 22/24 to a 12/14. I no longer have high cholesterol, nor pains in my feet. I can run a mile! A regular towel fits around me! I feel great and wish you the best of luck in your journey. I have pictures on my profile if you would like to see before and progress!!! :)

Check out my signature! Says it all for me. I eat any foods I want, just not much. If you ate with me you would never guess I am banded, just think i have a small appetite.

Also look back at the photo parade Bette started a couple fo days ago.

http://www.obesityhelp.com/forums/lapband/4358989/For-fun-An other-photo-parade/

Hello...I have read over 500 Lad Band success stories but your LB story have stood out the most...My LB surgery date is 5/21/14..I am a very strange eater I hate veg..My question is to you can u really eat anything and still lose with the LB..Please let me knw soon bc I very scary it might not work bc of my strange eating habits..Im not a very big eater I just eat all the wrong foods... Starting weight 275. 

On May 5, 2014 at 6:07 PM Pacific Time, Mooseg0313 wrote:

Hello...I have read over 500 Lad Band success stories but your LB story have stood out the most...My LB surgery date is 5/21/14..I am a very strange eater I hate veg..My question is to you can u really eat anything and still lose with the LB..Please let me knw soon bc I very scary it might not work bc of my strange eating habits..Im not a very big eater I just eat all the wrong foods... Starting weight 275. 

 

Hi. First if all, this is a very old thread. Three of the people on this thread have had to have their bands removed because of serious complications.  Dev is now sleeved and, I believe, everything is going well, Stephanie had serious problems caused by the band which have caused permanent damage which was too severe to allow another surgery. Bette is still going well at over 10 years post op and I am fine at over8 years. As far as I am aware, none of the others still post on here so I don't know about them. I notice the surgery for Sarah R now reeds VSG so unless that is an error, she also is no longer banded.

You do need to be aware that more people have complications than any of us realised when this thread was started in 2011. These can be for two reasons. One reason is beyond our control and is that the band can cause damage such as oesophageal damage, damage to the vagus nerve, or it can slip or erode into stomach tissue.  The other is that fir some people it simply does not offer the level of help they expect. We still have to work hard!

There is no reason why you could not be banded and eat no veg, although one problem is that when you eat small amounts, you have to work harder at getting a balanced diet and veg are a good low cal source of many  nutrients, especially fibre. I  an physically eat anything and generally do. Is is fine while motivation is high but dieters down the line brings problems. It is easy for us to graze and when motivation slackens years post-op, it is  very easy to slip back into old habits. I have regained (not horrendously but my size 12 skirts are too tight to wear without a loose top) and losing it is very hard, in fact, fighting gaining even more is hard.

I choose to keep it lose to minimise risk and so it gives me less help that some would like. But I eat a totally normal diet, rarely have any discomfort.  Most of the over 40 people I know in real life have not had serious complications; neither have many of those on another well-known board. Very many on this board have! I believe some US doctors no longer offer bands because of this.

All this  sounds negative! But I still love my band. I have not one second of regret.  But whereas when this thread was started I would still have said it was an excellent surgery, now I would say that people need to think carefully.  My own success has been such that if my band had to be removed, I would ask, if possibie, for another band; other ex-banded people would disagree. 

Thank you  so much for the information I will take all in consideration...

I am 4 months out and feel I am doing well; with my weight loss but even more with what I have accomplished outside of the weight loss! Such as not having one bit of sugar of any type, and no diet coke or any carbonated beverages!!!  This is HUGE for me! 
I truly love my band and am so happy with my choice!  For me I have found what makes me successful is I allow myself to eat anything (except the sugar) but in much smaller portions so I don't feel any deprivation!  Of course there are the difficult head hunger days.. but as someone else said my band tell me even if you DO want to you just can't.. and my fear of throwing up will keep me from doing that!!

I do write my food down everyday and I do try to think ahead about what I am gonna have, but I don't obsess about it and I make sure to enjoy everything I put in my mouth, if I don't like it , it does not go in! LOL

Good luck with your procedure, it will be great, and you already know about the food choices so you are a step ahead!

You will do awesome! 

5+ years with the band and I am still doing great. Have been at goal for about 3 years with just about a 15 lb. regain from my lowest weight  which is my fault .

For me this has been the best thing I have ever done for myself.

2 1/2 years out, no longer have symptoms of diabetes, pretty sure around 60lbs loss now, more energy, no heavy breathing, and no longer have the feeling of hopelessness, the list goes on and on.

I know without a doubt I would not be where I am at today without the band. I lost my brother and sister within 10 months of each other and without the band, well let's just say, I don't want to know.

No regrets. Can there be complications? I don't what to live my life in the "what if".

Best wishes,

Sandra

Trying to post picture but not working. :(

I will be a year post-op in May and while I am not at my personal goal, I have lost 112lbs and I feel AMAZING! I have gone down from a size 20 and now wearing loose size 4s. I'd have never imagined myself as a size 2, especially since I am only 5'3 and I don't have the smallest of hips! It's great really. My journey has been flawless, except for the few slip ups on my own part; I still tend to eat too quick but I am slowly learning.

The band has really helped me in more than weightloss. I think it's somehow given me the patience and drive to understand nutrition and exercise. I now know A LOT of things about food; fats, carbs, sugars, protein, etc. how they work, why we need them, how much we need, and so on. So for me the band has not only been a push to lose weight but a push to understand proper nutrition and how to really live a healthy life. I think this is the most important part of being successful with any WLS. While I love that the band has helped me lose 112lbs, I love even more the fact that I feel comfortable and quite knowledgeable when it comes to making healthy lifestyle choices.

Good luck with your BoB!

When I began looking into my band surgery almost 3 years ago, I weighed 290 lb, my BMI was 48.3 and couldn't walk around my very short block without suffering severe pain in my back, hips and knees, just the attempt would put me out for 2-3 days of ice and nsaids and sometimes narcotic pain relief.
Today I weigh 225 lbs, my BMI is 37.4 (almost 10 months out), I have lost 11 inches from my waist, 8 inches off my chest, 12 inches off my hips and 9 inches off each thigh.  A couple of weeks ago, I was able to walk a mile on the treadmill at 2.9 mph, very close to my old pace (pre-disability) of 3.5 mph.  I was uncomfortable, but what a feeling I had to finish that mile.  I can do 1 1/4 miles now...

Some other notable NSVs:

Down from size 24-26 to 16-18 pants and still shrinking. 
Down from 4x tops to XL or 16-18 and they are cuter too!
Able to shop in "regular" stores!
Saving money on clothes
New panties...was size 10-11, now 7-8!
Need new bras, they are on the smallest hook now, will need smaller ones very soon...
Wearing all my daughters "hand-me-ups" as she has gone from a size 20 to 12-14!
Went to Maui in October and the seat belt had about 10 inches left over!  Last year I could barely close it and it HURT...for over 5 hours!
The tray table comes down!
I can eat with a plate on my "new" lap!
Lost half a shoe size.
I can go up and down stairs without dying of pain in my knee and back.
I can park and walk around town!
I can drive Bette (my turbo beetle...she is a stick shift and the clutch was a bit of an issue with my knee so abused)
I can go to my 7 grandkids sporting events and navigate the bleachers much more effectively.
I don't need a ride to the gate at the airport any more.
Sex is much better!
People that I don't see often say I look great!
My A1c is 5.7!!!!  A year ago it was 7.5

Every day is so much better than it was before I started this journey; less pain, more energy, and I actually enjoy my meals more, since I am actually paying attention!

Very different reply if you ask me today:  my band was removed due to achalasia 11 months ago.  Soon after writing this post things went bad.  I cannot recommend banding.

 

2 years post removal:

I regained 40 lb.  In March I joined a low carb high fat eating group on Facebook to manage my T2 diabetes.  I noticed that my fasting BG was steadily rising after being around 100 since my lapband surgery.  I've been eating less than 30 gr of carbs per day since April 1 and the results are amazing.  I'm testing before and after every meal.  98% of my readings are within normal range and I've lost 13 lb.  

Before going LCHF, bread, pasta and several other starchy foods were still getting stuck, even though the band was removed.  My band was found to be on my esophagus with my stomach pulled up at a weird angle.  There was a thick rind of scar tissue under the band which was constricting my esophagus.  It could not be removed, but was just divided.  Because of this, and the fact that my bariatric surgeon closed my hiatal hernia with a nissen fundoplication, I cannot have any further bariatric surgery.  

Thats ok.  I'm doing great with this new way of eating and in addition to getting my BG within normal range, all my IBS symptoms resolved as well.  I know I'll continue to lose on this new way of eating, because it's a lifestyle change.