Please help! Have been trying to get surgery for over 1 year!

Firstly, thank you so much for your response, I really do appreciate it! It's funny you mention that it may be pulled off the market because after some digging around in the forum, I found this: https://www.dssurgery.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Realize -Band-removed-from-the-Market.pdf.  which basically answers all my questions as to why they were so hesitant about doing the band. I guess they are planning to get rid of the band completely by the end of this year!!

Congratulations on having your baby girl, that's incredible to hear!

I completely agree, I have been trying to keep an open mind and have been looking into different options since last night!

 

If research is what you like to do, you should discover many reasons not to get the band.  There are oodles who have had problems or lackluster results with the band. My former employer even put in a mandate to not allow employees to get the band even when it was originally covered by insurance. Your friends/family are lucky they haven't had some of the nightmares yet that others have.

Just look over to the forums on this site:

Revsion 

Failed WLS

Complications

WLS Regrets

The sleeve is the closest you'll get to a normal life.  The stomach stretches over time so that you can eat normal amounts (normal = suggested serving sizes that you think are a joke right now).  I'm 11 years out from my DS, (which is a sleeve with some aggressive intestinal bypass for malabsorption) and people would never know by watching me eat that I had any wls.  I eat smaller plates at meals than some, but nothing out of the ordinary and I'm notorious for snacking on cheese wherever I go.  Many with all procedures have had very healthy pregnancies.

Firstly, thank you so much for your response, I really do appreciate it!

 

Wow... that's interesting to know what your employer did. 

Thank you for the direct links to the different forums by the way, I looked through them and am still surprised to just now be learning about all the lap band complications.

I'm glad you shared your experience with me as that was another issue I was worried about. I wasn't sure if it would cause as many eating restrictions as the lap band. 

Listen to the doctors. There are good reasons they are steering you from the band. They've been doing this a long time, and the patient is just not always right.

Plenty of people go on to have healthy happy pregnancies with both the sleeve and RNY.

Hang around here, and talk to people that have actually experienced things. Don't be set on something just because a friend went down that road.

"Don't be set on something just because a friend went down that road."

You are SO right with that statement.  I was following a few coworkers to the RNY many years ago, until I discovered the DS, which was the perfect solution for me.  At the time, RNY and LapBand were all I knew about.  I found my own solution through research.  Nobody had heard of it, and I pushed on just the same. 

"Don't be set on something just because a friend went down that road."

This is so true! I Wanted WLS 10 years ago but personally knew 6 people that had complications with lap bands and one converted to RNY but I didn't want my intestines messed with so I had to walk away. Now I'm getting the sleeve which is perfect for me but wasn't available back then. I'm glad I waited.
Lap band scared me. The band can be removed but the damage cannot! Band removal is a serious surgery. I know someone who's liver grew to the band and had to have a piece of her liver taken off during removal. No thanks! And having children is easier with the sleeve than the band. Another friend's band slipped because of pregnancy. Take your time and don't rush because you don't want to regret your decision. Listen to the Doctor.

Wow... that's some pretty scary stuff! You're absolutely right though, "The band can be removed but the damage cannot."

 

Thank you for the support! 

Firstly, thank you so much for your response, I really do appreciate it! I didn't understand at first why drs were steering me away from the band and I wish they would have told me to begin with, but after some digging around on the forum, I found this link: https://www.dssurgery.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/Realize -Band-removed-from-the-Market.pdf.  which basically answers all my questions as to why they were so hesitant about doing the band. I guess they are planning to get rid of the band completely...   I agree with you 100%, I was fooled at first to be quick to follow other people's path, but I'm learning it's ok to do things my own way now.

I understand the mentality that you have. I think we have all been there - desperately searching for change because you are fed up with the way you look, feel, etc. However, I think there are some things to consider, and a few red flags popped up for me in your thread.

First, if you have two highly trained medical professionals trying to desperately talk you out of the lap band, why aren't you giving more consideration to a different procedure? You have mentioned that you have done a lot of research. If this is true, you should know that for a lot of people, the band brings a large amount of complications. Those individuals that work the band properly and the device itself has no failure can do really well. But, a lot of surgeon's offices won't even do that procedure anymore and there is a good reason for this...

Also, both the band and sleeve restrict the amount of food you can take in, so why would you believe that the lap band would be better for pregnancy? You would both be getting the same amount of nutrition - so this logic doesn't really make a lot of sense. PLENTY of women have had the sleeve (and other WLS as well) and had perfectly healthy pregnancies. In fact, a few years after surgery, a lot of people with the sleeve can eat what appears to be the normal portion size of a person tha****ches what they eat. You will NOT be eating "like a bird" in small amounts forever. I can easily take in 2,000 kcal a day with proper protein, fat, carb ratios.

Third, you really really should talk to a therapist. It sounds as though, like many of us before you, you are quite emotional. This is normal. If you struggle with emotional eating, emotions, or sticking to eating plans before surgery... you will still do so (most likely) after surgery if you don't address these things. I would not have been nearly as successful since having surgery if I hadn't sought therapy starting in the six month supervised diet and for a few years following it.

In the meantime, continue to research and ask questions. And, consider the advice of those that have been your shoes prior. This is the best advice I can give!

Firstly, thank you for taking the time to reply to my thread. I greatly appreciate it! It's true... I was definitely one-sided and stubborn when it came to both of the doctors convincing me to not get the lap band. I had my heart set on that and I wasn't going to let anyone or anything get in my way. I now understand why they didn't want me getting the procedure since the company who produces the band is going to completely stop production by the end of 2016, but I wish I was told this during my consultations. At least, I wouldn't have suffered so much mentally wondering why it was me they were targeting. I didn't even stop to think for a second that they were saying it for MY benefit. I was so stubborn that I figured they must only want to do the sleeve on me because it would mean more money for them.

You're absolutely right about how both the band and sleeve would both restrict the amount of food I would be able to take in... I don't know how I didn't put two and two together. I also don't know why I thought the lap band would be better in terms of pregnancy. I guess I didn't think it through as completely as I had imagined.

I actually have consulted with a therapist since I had to complete the 6 month program for my insurance, but I do see how it would be beneficial even after the surgery. I'll definitely look into it again, thank you!