How did you decide on the Lap Band?

Hi!

I just had my weight loss surgery consultation a couple of weeks ago.  My insurance will cover both the Lap Band and the Sleeve.  I have about 85-100 lbs I would like to lose.  

Why did you decide to have the Lap Band vs. other types of weight loss surgery?  

Anyone a long time Lap Band?  I have heard (from random people) that the success rate is lower for this type over the long run.

Anything about the Lap Band you wish you had known beforehand that you didn't know/realize?  

I am really struggling with this decision....

Thanks!

Sarah

I chose the sleeve. Lap band was never an option for me though. I am very glad with my decision. I also needed just over 100 lbs to lose. I don't have to worry about any fills, slippage or high failure rate. I am sure MANY people have done wonderfully with the band on this forum & would persuade you to get it. My experience is still kind of new. I had surgery April 29th. It was great, no complications & back to work in 2 weeks. I lost 12 lbs pre op & 20 since the surgery. It comes off slower than Gastric Bypass but I am ok with that ; ) Good luck with your decision!!

I had decide on the Lap Band because I believed what they were saying about it at the time. My only choice at the time was RNY or Band.   Much has proven untrue, even the company that produces the band has retracted some of their claims.

I did everything right and the NP said I was a perfect band patient.  I ate right. I worked out.  I went to support meetings.  When I thought my band was too tight I went to the center, they did an Upper GI and said I was wide open and needed a fill.  I couldn't even drink water some days at that point.  I keep my band for 3.5 years and when they removed it they had their proof I was compliant and the band wasn't

Yes, I am biased and have talked my sister and DD out of a band and into a sleeve.  Both are so far ahead of me at the same point with the band.  Sister was at goal in a year and at 18 months 15 pounds under.  The DD lost about 145 and did the 20 pound regain and has maintained for over a year now at 3 years.  I have converted to the sleeve and sure wish that had been my first surgery.

Also remember I was considered a band success at 205, bmi 34+ and still obese.  But, I had lost the expected % of extra weight.

My story is a carbon copy of Piney's, never had good restriction, then got too tight without fills and I finally had it emptied for the last 2 yrs. The biggest thing with the band is it takes soooo much after care and it doesn't care whether you have insurance or not! My insurance changed a couple of out and I ended up having to pay $225 for every fill and unfill, that gets spendy real quick! Plus the band is only good for 5-10 yrs then another WLS has to be looked at. It is not a lifetime fix like i was told back in 2007. In fact alot of what I (we) were told back then was flat out lies and that came from the manufacturer! I also wish I had know how very dangerous the band can be, it can and does very often cause severe esophageal damage and often erodes into the stomach and surrounding organs. I know people who can not eat without vomiting and it goes on all day every day until they get the band removed. Even then some never regain the ability to eat normally. It seems like this is happening more often, all the time.

Besides this the band is the slowest, least effective and most difficult WLS to use. In the beginning it takes months to get a decent restriction level to even start losing weight, before that it is all will power. The average weight loss with the band is 1-2 lbs a week. If you eat too much or too fast you get stuck and this disgusting foamy mucus starts flowing from your mouth and keeps coming until you can get it either up or down. (You can get this with other surgeries but it is very common with the band) so you always have to know where a bathroom is so you can spit. Yes the sleeve is more invasive but it also give you better results.

Another down side is that so many insurance companies are going to a 1 weight loss surgery per lifetime, that means if you get a band and it does fail you can't revise to another surgery thru insurance. You would have to self pay and even at cheaper Mexican prices you are looking at $5000-$10,000 for a sleeve. If you want a life long, little up keep, successful surgery I'd go with the sleeve. I have few regrets in life but the band is truly one of the biggest! Good luck I hope you are able to make a decision you can live with for the rest of your life!

If I knew then what I know now and if my insurance would have covered the Sleeve in 2008, I would choose the Sleeve.  I was a successful band patient and lost 100+ lbs in 9 months, HOWEVER, those are not typical results.  BUT, the amount of adjustments (fills and un-fills) have been a hassle and after 3 years I started developing problems with reflux and I dilated my pouch/esophagus from pushing the limits of my band.  I had my band removed last month and am now considering whether or not I will have revision surgery.  The Sleeve is no longer an option because of my reflux.

If I had no other choice I would still have had the band.  I loved my band until year 4 but in my case.  I couldn't keep up with the strict diet that helped me lose the weight and my old behaviors (emotional/stress eating) got the bast of me.  My band never slipped but the upward pressure it creates fighting with the natural downward pressure of the esophagus was not helping things either.

None of the surgeries are perfect.  They all have  possibilities of complications and our devious minds can figure out a way to cheat any of the surgeries.  Be prepared to work on "why" we over eat as well as "what and how much".

Still, I have no regrets!  I've gained 23 lbs but am still living a life I never thought would be possible when I weighed 335 lbs!

Best, 

Lisa O.

I had a whole host of reasons...but what it came down to was the fact I had a best friend that had the band and I wanted one too.  I thought we could lose this weight together and be "band buddies".  I did idealize the whole experience.  I thought it would be easier than it was and take less time.  It took me well over a year to get to my "sweet spot". 

But seriously I can't complain I have lost 180+ lbs.  I have had no complications.  I can eat anything I want.  I don't have any no-no foods...if I want fruit, veggies, bread, white chicken...whatever.  I can eat it all...I just can't eat a lot of it.  Which is what the band is supposed to do.  So for me my band seems to be doing it's job so far.  I am happier and healthier now at 42 than I was at 28!!!   

I am very blessed.

About 16 months before start dropping serious weight...before that I had lost maybe 40 lbs.  But I also hit the gym like crazy.  So between cutting my calorie intake and going to the gym 6 times a week, the weight just melted off me.

I chose a Realize Band, mostly because I was obese, but otherwise healthy (no co-morbidities) and was self pay.

i lost 18 pounds in the 6 weeks before surgery and then 110 more in the 18 months post op.

i maintain now at about 10 pounds above my lowest weight and have begun to lose again.

i have not had any problems with my band, but given the high rate of complication and re-surgery, if I had insurance and a choice, I would not even think twice and would head straight to a VSG.