Considering the band???

For the record, I didn't go over there because of anything you said or posted... I don't respond to fear mongering at all, ever.  When I posted that, I thought I could never consider permanently altering my anatomy... hence the "I'll never do RNY or the sleeve".  However, an offline conversation with Bubble gave me food for thought and I decided it couldn't hurt to find out all I could about the sleeve from people who've done it.  I don't have any friends who have and you can only find out so much by reading the sites that describe it and the small amount of studies that have been done on it.

I didn't post asking for horror stories because I wanted to get a thread going pointing out all the horrible things about the sleeve (as you do here on this forum).  I asked because if I'm going to make an informed decision, I want to know the best and the worst.

I'm sorry you've had a hard time with the band... I really am, but if there's anything you should take away from this thread, it's that you'll catch more flies with honey than you will with vinegar.  Posting reasons not to get the band is only going to put people on the defensive.  If you want to convert people, take some pointers from Bubble.

~I  know I have to do something about my weight, and there's no way in hell I'm letting anyone revise my innards.  I'm fine with adding a device that can be removed if I have a problem, but I can't bring myself to do anything irreversible like the RNY, VSG, DS, etc.~

Seriously?  You honestly think you're offering help and support by trying to scare people into changing their minds and then when confronted with the fact that someone ELSE who took a positive and helpful approach succeeds where you've failed, you think it's appropriate to ride that person for having admitted to considering other options?

Really?  This is being supportive?  You can't even be happy to hear that someone who was only considering the lap band is now broadening their options to possibly including VSG... you have to ride my ass for it?  Wow... just, wow.

You just proved Steph and the others right who said that if they had a problem, they'd think twice about posting here for support because they'd know you'd be all over them with "I told you so!"s.  How sad.

Seems rather strange to me that you only want the happy band stories.............but you want ppl to post the VSG "horror" stories! Who's trying to create "fear mongering" now?!

For what it is worth I think it is very smart to do as much research on different surgeries as possible to find the right one for you and not only do research on the surgeries but the surgeons themselves. You want to go for the best of the best for what specific surgery in their field. That is what I did. I started off looking into the band but once I saw the many and long term complications versus the great statistics on the sleeve it was a no brainer for me. Then I found my doc in San Fran who is at the top of his field for the sleeve and I was sold! I had a totally uneventful surgery and a fantastic recovery and know that the sleeve that I have with me for the rest of my life was done by a skilled master. Now it is all up to me! Best decision of my life and I have not one regret!

Congrats on your VSG! I wish I had researched better and gone that route also!

And FWIW, I didn't see Bubble's comments and your responses until after my last post went up... I started writing it after I saw you wishing Renee well.

So you have two people asking you to please stop your negative, discouraging posts (one of them repeatedly, thanks for trying, Bubble!) and rather than admit that you're doing the opposite of being supportive, you instead accuse us of trying to censor you?

Not quite... this isn't about you, it's about the people who are coming here for support and are instead finding someone who's only too happy to stoke the fires of their fears.  Yes, fear-mongering is exactly what you're doing.  You're playing on the uncertainties and nervousness of people who have not yet had the surgery to convince them that they shouldn't.  What, may I ask, was your intention in labeling this thread "Considering the lap band?" if not to draw in pre-op newbies to read it, look at that thread and change their minds about having made this decision?  Are you seriously going to say that you wouldn't feel victorious if one of us posted thanking you for the info and saying that we've decided not to get the band as a result?  Please.

As I said, there is a forum where people who want to talk about how craptastic the band is can do that... so go there and talk about it there; no one is censoring you.  This forum is for people who either already have the band or have made the decision to get the band to come in, ask questions, get support and share this journey together.  If any of us have troubles with our bands, we'll be sure to post about issues as they happen because we'll be looking for insight and advice from people who've gone through it... feel free to chime in all you want on threads like that, but these proactive, anti-banding threads have got to stop.

Heaven forbid we should ever post that we are having a "complication", Maria will be right there saying "I told u so!!!!"

And you know that is the sad part to Steph.  I honest to goodness if I ever had problems if I would come on here and post about it because I would get the answers I told you so .