What does Less Invasive REALLY mean ?

I had my gallbladder out open and my VSG done lap. The open scar is HUGE. And it took a month to recover from. I felt like my insides were going to fall out every time I tried to walk. The lap surgery was pretty much nothing. I walked in the recovery room. (Wanted to pee, didn't want to use a bed pan.)

My surgeon removes as much of the gas they pump you up with as possible before he sews us back up and I didn't have any particular issues with gas.

I had my DS done open. My mother had hers done lap. I am a side sleeper and she is a stomach sleeper. It took me 3 months to be able to comfortably sleep on my side and then I had to have pillows to help prop me in place. She was sleeping on her stomach within 2 weeks. I was extremely jealous of that. She was also moving much easier than I was. She wasn't there when I had my surgery (I was living in Kuwait at the time) so I can't ask her how mine compares. She got on a plane and flew back home 5 weeks later. It is 24 hours in a plane or airport to get from Kuwait to Houston with a plane change in Amsterdam. Mom flew to Lansing so she had 2 plane changes. She handled it so much better than I did.

I will say this though. If you haven't already, get your gallbladder out at the same time. I had mine out 3 years later and it was hell. They refused to do the gallbladder surgery lap because there was too much of a chance for adhesions. And guess what! I sure had them. I had one complication after another with that surgery and ended up being in the hospital for 33 days. There is a high rate of people having to go back in to get out their gallbladders with all different forms of WLS. Do NOT take the chance!!!

My three C-sections were less painful then my two band surgeries.

It amazes me how little people research their options b/4 letting someone CUT THEM OPEN! Good lord I've seen sooooo many people on here put more thought into what car to buy then to what they are going to have done to their body. Amazing

When I got my band ten years ago there was not much out there about it.  I had actuall just got my first computer about six months before I was banded and everything I read about it was positive.  Everything about the bypass was scary and they had more complications back then, an as a self pay if I had any complications I would have had to pay for any of the complications.  I actually thought I did alot of research when I got it done.  I was on this site and several other forums and researched it for several months.  I really wanted the bypass but my insuranse wouln't cover it so off to Mexico I went.  I did have a really good Dr in Mexico but looking back my after care dr here in the states sucked.  I don't actually remember ever seeing him after surgery and when I had fills it was by a nurse.  Never had a follow up with Dr to make sure everything was working correctly.  As I said I have been lucky I've had no complications.         

It is good to hear from people that have been banded as long as you have been and that have had no complications.

Y'know, I have some empathy for the layperson's line of thinking that believes, "Getting a foreign objected implanted is better than getting my guts replumbed."

There is no science to back this up. 

You don't expect laypeople who don't read much if any professional literature to go looking for such science. Laypeople are SUPPOSED to believe their doctors, because doctors are SUPPOSED to be very knowledgable and trustworthy.

Doctors, on the other hand, know better. But do they live up to the higher expectations that belong with higher education and experience? Not very darned often. The way so very many physicians and surgeons blithely tell people to get a band makes me CRAZY.

I will refrain this morning from opining about the manufacturers and their lies, I mean advertising. It's a beautiful summer day and I'm headed out to show Pycca some more of the loveliness.

I empathize too and that is why I want pre-ops to really understand the definition of " Less Invasive "

To me it seems that Lap band is the MOST invasive WLS.

With every other type of surgery, they open you up, fiddle with you and close you up.

With the lap band they open you up, fiddle with you, LEAVE A FOREIGN OBJECT INSIDE OF YOU, and close you up.

This seem so obvious to me that I have a hard time understanding how anyone could disagree!

(BTW, it is my firmly-held opinion that I am NOT opinionated!)