i am a candidate for either lap band or having my teeth wired. about the teeth wiring------------ there is only one orthodontist who does this, that i can locate, and he is in brooklyn. drted.com. it is about 2300$ and they teach you to take off the wire which holds only the premolar and molars]-----a great idea if you want to go somewhere and look halfway normal. i dont live close-----but brooklyn people could just go back to the office, for their routine wire cut--which allows you to excercise your jaws, and get a dental cleaning. in other words it would be better not to know how to wire and unwire yourself. i have looked and looked--for hours on the web, trying to find other docs who will wire teeth. i was hoping for some in mexico, as surely it would be cheaper. the cost is high at dr ted because of liability, i think. there is an orthodontist in hollywood, and one in littleton, colo. i heard, that wire for weight loss. then i ordered something like' the dds system'--a dental appliance that you put in your mouth that makes you eat more slowly. it is just a denture without the teeth--called the LATS SYSTEM--BUT I GOT IT FROM CANADA==ABOUT 300$ WITH THE SHIping. oops- sorry about the caps. it does make eating laborious, but obviously anything that can be taken out--- well you know. years ago, someone developed a dental appliance that coud not be taken out and it forced you to eat small bites. does anyone know about it.????????????? we could all be millionaires if we could just design something. i found on the web a man who got a patent for something he said was not removeable, but hasnt mass produced them. i begged to be his guinea pig, and havent heard from him. cant remember his name. a dentist friend--fat--wouldnt design something because he is afraid of the liability---[as if people dont swallow their loose caps and fillings!!! ] please email me at [email protected] or even send your phone number if you want to try to pursue options together. i may end up with the band, but as a nurse, i am afraid of potential problems down the road. if you go in an emergency room and have to have a surgeon, how much would it cost you if you arent covered under insurance? i am afraid of it being thousands of dollars. also, some banded people on the web,--disappear--so i wonder if they have gained alot of weight. does anyone know how much people are getting to refer us to their surgeon for lap band? i heard 500$ all some of us can do is to pray for strength not to give up on ourselves, is all i have for advice!

Karianne, So sorry about your mom.......It hits home because I am 51 and have been having trouble with my left leg. What is ALS?????? Can you tell me anything about it or what ALS stands for??? Thanks, Cathy

Sherry, It seems like you got the Tool of your choice and it works for you. I was down for RNY at first, but the thought of me giving up sweets for life, made me feel uncomfortable, I wanted my life to as normal as possible without any sickness, I have a phoebia of being sick and did not want to take ANY chances with long term complications that I have seen so many folks have with this surgery. I also had my concerns that the lap-band would not work for me also and, I did not like the fact that weight loss had a risk of being slow, but I am so happy I chose the band because I am so pleased with my weight loss so far, I don't starve and be sick just to lose the weight, I am not being rude or anything but I am so happy with my decision and I did my research and yep with the band some folks don't lose any weight from the git-to, but those are folks who never follow up with their fills and never follow rules, but if you get properly restricted like I am the band will stop folks in their tracks from eating, SO technically it is impossible for them to gain weight UNLESS, they are doing mindless eating like milkshakes, candy, cookies and chips and they have to do this all day long.... But a lot of folks don't realize the secret of the lap-band and eating sweets, currently my band is so tight, meaning, I can only eat a few bites of food at a sitting and you get sooo full after eating a couple of bites, it DETERS folks from eating sweets, I went out for lunch the other day and got so stuffed on a few bites of salad I DID NOT HAVE ROOM FOR MY DESERT, BUT I WAS ABLE TO JUST TASTE MY KEY LIME PIE AND I WAS ABOUT TO BURST...OH MY... Some folks are mindless eaters and have severe eating problems I would not recommend the band for this type of eating...but gee what more can you ask for to be stuffed to point you can't breath on teeny amounts of food, this is what the band does...at least for me... Now if I was a lunatic and just ate m&ms candy all day long, the lap-band would not work for me... Naomi

I replied to you earlier- and I was astounded at the negative comments and emails I received back. Please keep in mind that the information that I shared was from my Surgeons Office and my insurance company. As everyone was so quick to point out- I was wrong in many comments that I made. Again remember please - this was the information that I received from my Surgeon. I was told that in my case- I would only loose 50% of the weight on the lap band that I needed to loose- On the RNY I would loose 85% of the weight I needed to loose- these figures where from there tracking of their patients through there office- sorry I did not make that clearer. As far as seeing the doctor I was in reference to one time per year to the Surgeon- my LOCAL physician can run all my blood tests needed- sorry I was not clearer on that subject. As far as the length of the time that the Lap Band has been used in the USA- it came over from Europe I believe- My Surgeons office had been doing the procedure for only 4 years of tracking- sorry I was not clearer on that- but that is the fact- In Minnesota my Surgeon states it has 0nly been done for four years. Insurance companies- mine BCBS of MN sent me a packet of statistics to go over and review in reference to problems they have documented with the Lap Band- and they still feel it is still experimental in Minnesota because it has only been approved by the insurance companies here for 4 years. That is all the info and tracking they have on it - with the rate of reverse to RNY- that is what I based my info off- In my area- not yours- not your insurance company- not your surgeons office. Every area may be different. and tracking of dietary habits by the doctors office is for my area- but beneficial info all the same. Because with the lap band you have no restrictions on what you eat- only the amount- SOME people go back to the High CARB lifestyle and do not loose the weight- As with the RNY- ALOT of the people cannot tolerate the sugar- and will dump- or if you eat to much you will purge- Therefore you learn not to eat the refined sugars or to overeat- there are paybacks- that some people and personalities need some form of recourse to keep them on the right path to productive WLS- Again if people have alot of weight to loose- of course they will loose more with the band then I would- individual people will loose across the board differently- the more you need to loose the better your chance of loosing on the band- I need about 100 pounds- and being told I would only losse 50%- without actually dieting and alot of exercise- versus- loosing 80-85% with RNY-which would bring me closer to my goal- as I am doing this for medical conditions that need rectified sooner. So I perosnally chose the RNY- for those reasons- with my information from My area Surgeon-my insurance company. I understand that this is a public forum- and I really thought it was devised to put all information out there that could be useful to another person going through WLS- I did not feel it should be a bashing ball. I mean I sent for two cans of protien powder that was suppose to be great- wasted 43.00 dollars and I hate it- am I angry no- It was one other person personal opinion for her she loved it- PERSONAL OPINIONS ARE JUST THAT- EVERYONE IS ENTITLED TO ONE- LEE

Well, I had RNY 4/17 and atfirst I was considering the band. But after researchin I felt the bypass was best for me because my problem was eatin fatty foods and sweets. With the band, I could still do that, but with the bypass, I can't, I dump. I have dumped twice since surgery and NEVER EVER EVER want to feel that way again! I don't eat or drink anything with more than 5 grams of sugar. I have lost 26 pounds so far since surgery and I was eating regular foods by the time I was 1 week post op. I was walking 2 hours after I got out of surgery and have been walking since then. Now, I've had a few bad days, who doesn't? But really it's a personal decision. My problem wasn't portion size, if anything, I would starve for breakfast, lunch and eat dinner, so I knew the band wasn't for me. Now I have friends who've had RNY and some who've had the band. My friend's father was banded, his band eroded and he got stomach cancer, so he ended up having RNY in the end. He did well with his band before he had problems and he's done well with his bypass. Either one are great tools, it's just a matter of how you plan to use them. And I was reading messages on here almost saying "i don't have to worry about gaining my weight back", if you're banded? You can gain your weight back with the bypass or the band, it's not a matter of the tool you chose. I also know people who have gained their weight back with both. I mean, if you're banded and drinking smoothies and milkshakes and eating cookies and cakes, UH, you can still gain weight back and the same goes for bypass. Now some people don't dump with the bypass, I actually do. But I'm glad I do because THAT is the tool I needed to prevent me from gaining any more weight. I was also a carb addict, but because it has no nutritional value, i can barely eat, and they always feel like big lumps going down or like it's stuck, the rice/bread/crackers, etc, are not even worth it to me anymore to eat. But that is what I needed for weightloss. Now, sometimes I feel like i'm going to die when we go out to eat and my banded friend sits there and can eat a bite of the rich cheesecake on the table while I take the strawberries off of the cheesecake (that i WISH I could have) and wash off the syrup and eat those. BUT, that's what I need for my journey. I could easily take a bite myself, but I NEVER EVER EVER want to dump again, and so it's just not worth it. Now I do have a bypass friend who has to have her M&M's. And she'll eat them and go through the duming process, but it's just NOT worth it to me!