Decisions? Decisions?

I have been doing my research but still can't make a decision. I am looking for individual comments/input on their surgery - either Gastric Bypass or Lap Band. Please - I want to know the good and the bad. I have an appointment with my surgeon in May and have questions for him and will use him to also help make my decision but I want input from those who have already had the surgery to use as a tool as well. Thanks everyone!

Hi Lisa consider attending the support groups. Some programs have groups for Gastric bypass and Lap band that are specific to the surgery, others have groups that are all together. You will get a l ot of information from the support groups so long as everyone has open conversation. Stella

A lot of it is individual to determine what is the best surgery for YOU. I chose RNY beacuse it severely limits how much sugar you can have, I have a lot of weight to lose and I did not want to have to go back for fills. Lap band offers a shorter recovery and I am sure people who have chosen it can list other good reasons they made that choice. Keep researching but think about what each of the surgeries offer and how that matches up with you and what will help you best meet your weight loss goals. Does your surgeon perform both surgeries? Good luck. ~Cher

Hi Lisa -- I had RNY in January and couldn't be happier with my decision. I had originally planned on the the band, but because you don't lose as much weight AND can easily sabotage yourself, I ultimately went with the RNY. My surgery was at 7:20 in the morning and I was up and walking by 2:00 that same day. I never had any discomfort after the procedure and got back to my normal routine really quickly. I've lost 73 lbs. in only 4 1/2 months. Regardless of which route you go, make sure you have a few different types of protein drinks on hand post op. I drank slimfast for 2 weeks pre-op and really liked it, but I literally got nauseous the minute I smelled it post-op. I'm an incredibly picky eater and spent a small fortune on different protein options until I found one that I liked. I wish you the best!

Hi Lisa Picking a WLS is a personal choice. Do as much research on both procedures and decide which procedure would work out best for the results you are looking for. I personally chose the open RNY because I knew i needed something to help with my sweet tooth. I do dump which helps me greatly from staying away from high sugars and high fat foods. I knew with the band this would not help me. I also did not want to have to go in for fills. The bandsters say its not a big deal but my surgeon's office is not just around the corner from me either. I also wanted to lose the weight quicker due to I am not a patient person. Early on with the recovery I had ups and downs with feeling sick, couldn't tand the smell of anything, vomitting after eating or getting the foamies. Some of my favorite foods I couldn't eat in the begining such as tuna, chicken or eggs. I am very happy with my results. I have lost 127 pounds in 17 months. I am less than 1/2 the person I was at my surgery date. Remeber everyones exeperience will be different. Good luck and keep on researching!

Hi Lisa I have not had surgery yet but I chose RXY instead of the band. Reason 1) I have a lot more weight to lose then the band allows 2) I know i would be testing the limits and over eat stretching the band 3) I didnt like the idea of having to go in and have it filled 4) Both my Doctor and Surgeon thought it was the best choice for MY BODY 5) If im gonna have surgery for this might as well choose the one that will make me lose the most and gain back the least Hope that helps hun but like everyone says the decision should be between you and your surgeon ....Good Luck

Hello, I am new to this site but i thought that I would let you kno w that I am in the same boat as you. I was originaly going to have the lap band but now I am thinking that the bypass may be better for me. I am concerned about the vommiting though as I have to children of my own and I am also a nanny of another. I planned to take a week off. does anyone know if that will be enough time?> thank you all

Lindsay, As the mother of twins who were 5 when I had my surgery, one week is NOT enough time. My kids were with me but at day camp for most of the day after 2 weeks and I was still tired at the end of the day and I had no complications. Kids are exhausting and you cannot lift anything over 10 lbs for 4 weeks and they MEAN it. I lifted my daughter after she fell about 2.5 weeks out and OUCH. Take the time to recover. You'll feel good but you'll be tired. Take care. Carolyn

Lisa, I am sure you will hear this a million times....its a personal decission or do whats right for you and all I can say is do you research and what everyone is saying is the truth! I chose RYN because I did my research on the band and didnt like the success rate and it seem more people gained it back after and I didnt want to go threw all this to go back. Also I didnt like the idea of a foreign object left in my body...haha I dont have a big sweet tooth but I love my junky food (chips etc...) I had my surgery on March 5th and I have lost 37lbs and I feel great...I havent had any complications and so far I am able to eat everything I ate before (aside from sweet) of course in smaller portions. Since my surgery I havent had any sugar or caffein and to be honest I dont miss it! There is a thing called head hunger and I had that alot in the beginning weeks so you do have to have will power. whatever decission you make I wish you the best of luck!

Here's my perspective from the lap band side of things...(warning this is a long post) First and foremost, I want to have more children and I don't have years and years left in my childbearing years so I know the lap band is very "pregnant friendly". The idea of putting my health and unborn's child's health with malnutrition risk is too much for me. That's not to say you can't get pregnant with RNY, I know that many women have had no trouble with having babies in the 1-2 years post op, but my doctors have stressed to me time and again that it is a road I should not go down purposely. When I get pregnant, they will unfill me for optimal mother/baby nutrition and after birth, start refilling again and pick up where I left off. With lap band weight is slower most definitely, and I'm very okay with that. To me slower means healthier and a *chance* even if smaller, that the stretch in my skin will snap back a little better and require less or no plastic surgery in the end. I have no trouble getting fills. They don't hurt, I'm not afraid of needles (though I've heard many who are needle-phobic say that the fill proceedures don't bother them the same way getting blood drawn or an IV would.) I view seeing the surgeon this often and for years after surgery as a positive thing not a negative. First, it helps me with accountablity...second I can get fills/adjustments for as long as I need them...years and years if I have trouble maintaining weight down the line. If I don't...if this process properly teaches me new eating happens for a lifetime then fills won't be needed years and years down the road. I don't personally know anyone with RNY and don't knock anyone's decision (just as I expect mine not to be criticized) so I really have alot of my impressions from RNY based on the doctors recommendations and what is in the media. My doctor said that there is an "ideal patient" for each type of proceedure and I fit the band perfectly in all ways except my high BMI. If I were older, done with childbearing, or had serious co-morbidities happening I may have chosen another route. But I see some pretty famous people have trouble regaining weight a few years post RNY when the hunger comes back and the dumping syndrome is less severe...what options do they have then? This was also a big part of my decision. Most recent studies show that in the 5 year post-op surveys, RNY and Lap Band are comparable in percentage of weight loss. The very early studies showed Lap Band only at 30-some percent and alot of people erroneously misquote that nowadays, but proceedures have changed and so have the outcomes. Someone above mentioned the band stretching, but actually the band can't stretch...it's plastic. The pouch can stretch in either surgery...but my doctor made this analogy to me. Imagine a funnel with a very large top (pouch) and a very small outlet (the stoma, made by the band or the RNY stitching). It doesn't matter how big the top is, the flow of food emptying is always going to limit you. You can have a smaller top with a much bigger outlet and lots of food will go through. So some stretching of the pouch is normal and harmless. I'm sure there are excessive cases of both, but again his analogy helped me realize that I can always get adjustments down the line to keep that stoma at optimal restriction. Now the big drawback. You really have to be patient. Because its going to take a good while, probably months, before you get the same level of restriction (they do fills slowly as to not "shock" the stomach and over tighten it) that a RNY patient has from the start. So the first few weeks and months can leave you feeling with "buyers remorse" as my doctor puts it because you're not losing weight the same way as RNY patients do. Some don't lose much at all, some even gain if they can't contol themselves from eating high calorie foods. I did a decent job at demonstrating I can eat healtier and lose weight before the surgery so I'm confident I will get through this transition period to true restriction okay. Still, it's an emotional time and I do catch myself worrying about it but the Lap Band support community (on the lap band forrm here and other websites) have been helpful in reminding me I am totally normal and with some patience I will be rewarded. They swear by it. But for those who don't truly understand this step in the weight loss journey (and probably lack the support outlets), it can make them give up. And they don't go for future fills and they never end up losing weight. This is where alot of folks report "oh my XXX relative only lost 30lbs then gained it all back on Lap Band". You really have to know what you're getting into. You really have to know that you are an active participant in the sucess of the Lap Band. I hope this information helps you, and anyone else thinking about the options. Research is your best friend in this situation and you're getting started on it here, so for that I applaud you. Be sure to look into local support groups for your surgeon (many insurances require proof of attending these as part of the pre-approval process) anyway...AND see if you have a weight management doctor in your area as well. Oh I should mention that, in the above when I say "my doctor" I don't mean my surgeon, I mean a weight managment specialist who I've seen comprhensively since I started this process. He sees both surgical-candidate patients, post-op surgical patients (meaning ANY surgery, wether it's RNY or Lap Band or any of the others...and I hope you know there are other weight loss surgeries, even if they aren't used as much.) as well as non-surgical patients (normal weight loss dieting & exercise type stuff). It's only in his best interest to see his patients suceed, he makes no money off of the surgery so his opinion to me was always in the highest regard. He's seen the ups and downs of all choices. He bills the visits as a regular doctor's visit so my insurance always covered the visits (though when I had a gateway/PCP doctor, I did have to get referrals for visits to him but my regular doctor was happy to oblige.) Good luck and hope to see you on the boards.