The band and medications

i am pre op for a sleeve but am getting really scared about the possibility of leaks and the dangers with that.  Thought I would research more on the band.  So how does everyone do with swallowing their medications after having the band?  Are you allowed to take ibuprofen or aspirin ever again after the band?  What issues might I expect after the band compared to the sleeve?

You can take any medication, nothing prohibited. But you might well find you can't swallow very large tablets. Anything other than small tablets, I crush, get in liquid form, cut. 

As to your question about the band in general compared to the sleeve....

Please bear in mind that I am a very happy and very successful bandit now almost nine years post-op. I do not regret my band, would do it all over again and if I ever have to have it removed, I would hope to have a replacement.

When I was banded in 2006, it was a miracle surgery. And for some people, who accept that they will still have to work hard, it is just that. It was and still is for me. But over the years it has become clear that serious complications necessitating further surgery are much more common than originally thought, some of these are avoidable by careful eating and by not keeping the band tight; unfortunately others are beyond our control.

We used to be warned about band slips, leaks and about ( very rare) erosion into the stomach tissue but it turns out that a build up of scar tissue round the band (causing it to tighten) is quite common. It can be very difficult to get the right level of restriction and some people are tempted to keep it tight enough to physically limit food, in fact it was once thought this was how it should be. But this causes food to back up into the oesophagus and that risks problems such as oesophageal dysmotility which may be irreversible. It can also damage the vagus nerve.

We still need lots of will power. The band makes it easier by dimming hunger, but it does nothing for head hunger and, contrary to popular opinion, it does not and should not physically stop us eating. If it does it is too tight!

Having said all that, I love my band, I know many successful long term bandits in real life. On this board, you will find more people who will put forward the case against the band than in favour of it and I do not for one second question their experiences. But my own experience has been good and so has that of almost all those I actually know and have met.

I am just the opposite of my friend Kate, I did ok for the first year or so, altho I only lost 20 lbs. Then my band started getting too tight so I'd get some fill out. That happened several times and I kept getting too tight so I finally had it emptied at about the third year.

Then I did pretty good for another 2 years with it empty, then the tightening started again and with it came horrible heart burn even empty. I couldn't get it removed however because my insurance changed and I no longer had coverage for a removal.

I ended up just suffering for a year or so but finally just couldn't handle the pain anymore and when I was in the hospital for something else I told them to take it out. That got rid of some of the pain but that was nearly a year ago and I am still in horrendous pain from the GERD and heart burn. I'm afraid it will never go away!

I wouldn't worry about leaks they are very rare and even if you do get one it usually heals on it's own, They usually just have you stick to a liquid diet a bit longer than usual. Once in awhile someone will get what is called a stricture where things close up some from swelling or whatever and then they do have to use a tube to go in and stretch the area but they put you out while they do it and that usually takes care of the problem but they don't leave anything in you. If I were you I would really stick to the sleeve, you have far fewer problems with the sleeve than with the band. A great many people with bands end up having a terrible time just like I did. I even know a couple of women who have had to have their stomachs removed because of the damage from their bands. All the surgeries have horror stories but I honestly believe that the sleeve has fewer problems than the other options. Much fewer than the band long term. I believe the last I read there is a 60% failure rate with the band meaning 60% of people with the band have some kind of a problem either lack of weight loss or a problem with the band. Also the sleeve has no maintenance once you heal from the surgery, with the band at least the first year you need to go in for fills and/or unfills till you get to the green zone and then at least yearly after to get the band checked. That is if you have no problems with it, if you start having problems you could be at the docs every week.

So there you have the good and the bad of the band and others fall into different spots but you will get a different opinion from each person you talk to, but don't be afraid of leaks and awful things with a sleeve because they just don't happen that often and if they do they're easily fixed! Best of luck to you and try not to let the pre op jitters get to you!

Hello

I am like Kate and have been very content with my band.  I have no trouble taking and kinds of medicine.  Even big horse pills.  The only thing I don't do is take pills right before I go to bed...I can feel them sitting there when I lie down.  If I take them about 20-30 mins before bed I'm fine.  It just needs time to go down before I lay down.