Trying to decide

Once you're a month or 2 out there's really very little restriction.  I'm hearing DSers say similar stuff about they're sleeves when they're a couple of years out, but at least they have malabsorption.

Having surgery for a month's restriction is nuts.  The plication stops you bingeing, but that wasn't my problem.  I can eat almost as much as a 'normal' person - obviously not someone on a binge though!! ;-)

 On June 25, 2011 at 9:31 AM Pacific Time, Pumpkin X . wrote:
I've heard that the results of the plication have been poor. Can you tell me why ?

I was banded in March of 2009 with high hopes! Within 3 months my port flipped. I was in the office for a fill and all you could here is the needle scraping medal. I was in surgery the flowing Monday for a port revision.    I asked that the surgeon all 1cc to the band while I was under. Over the next few weeks I was gaining weight and felt like a failure. I was ashamed to go back to the doctor. After a few months I put on my big girl britches and went back to the doctor. I found that instead of having 8.5 cc in my band I had only 3.5 cc. What happened to the other 5 cc?    I had to pretty much start all over again with the fills. ½ cc here and ½ cc there!    One summer day I went to a barbeque and had a bite of a burger only to have it stuck! I spent an hour in the bathroom throwing up. I did not feel well for days and went back to see my doctor. He was on vacation so I saw the surgeon on call. He sent me to have an Upper GI with Barium. It showed that the band had moved a bit but nothing bad. He said that I should stay on liquids until I feel better…ummm ok!   I never felt better after that. Some days I could eat and some days I couldn’t even swallow my own spit.    Not only the eating problems but my port area was always sore. I could not wear pants with a band due to the pain that it caused.    After a few more months of not loosing any weight the doctor put me on Byetta. Byetta is a twice daily injection of a medicine that helps control glucose and has been helpful for banded people. Did nothing!   I felt like a failure, all this and for nothing. Soon I got a letter that my doctor was retiring and there would be 2 new doctors taking over the business. I was not happy with this and looked around for a new doctor. I found Dr. Bonanni and I love him.   Dr. Bonanni sent me for an Upper GI with Barium and found that I had a blockage. He removed all of the fluid from the band and I have to say that was amazing. I could eat and even sallow my own spit!    Dr. Bonanni wrote up a report and the office submitted it the insurance company and within a week I had my approval for a revision from the crap band to the sleeve.    I love my sleeve and my surgery was on April 12^th and I’m down 35 pounds! This is something that never happened with the band.     

Congrats and doing your research!!
I had my band placed on 09/10/08. I chose the band because I was really just afraid of RNY, which were the two most popular surgeries being done at that time. What a mistake I made!!
I had 1 confirmed slip 7 mns out and 1 assumed slip that led to my revision surgery just this past month, 05/23/11. I revised to RNY! My experience with the band was not a good one after the first slip. I had horrible reflux and night choking where I would wake up 1-3 times a night and vomit acid. It was very frightening, for both me and my hubby!! I could not sleep lying flat in bed. I struggled to take my meds because of "stuck" episodes, not matter how small I cut my pills. I initially lost 42 pounds in 7 mns, but then after the slip and a total unfill, I re-gained everything plus 10 more! I went through fills and unfills and 2 ER trips due to pain and vomiting and dehydration. It got quite costly for me in the long run!! I never expected so many things to go wrong with the band! 
I am very happy with my revision to RNY and have lost 30 pounds in 4 wks! I have no hunger and it is wonderful. I always seemed to struggle with hunger with my band!
VSG is quite interesting and was my first choice for revision, but my surgeon advised me to go with RNY since I had co-morbidites that could be cured with RNY like diabetes and insuln resistance, yada yada, yada! I went with her advice and am very happy!
Good luck to you and research, research, research!
FYI, my surgeon said their bariatric program *in Ohio BTW* had done a study with the band and she personally had a 30-40% failure rate with it. She has been practing in bariatric surgery exclusively for 20 yrs.

I have to put in my 2 cents as one of the only bandsters answering your question.

My 2 cents is that nobody here can tell you what's the best WLS for you. We're all unique, and there's no such thing as a one-size-fits-all surgery.

I love my band, but succeeding with the band takes a lot of work and a lot of patience. Aside from important issues like your medical history, your lifestyle, your eating habits, etc. you must also consider whether you can afford the time and $$ to get fills after band surgery.

Good luck!
Jean

"I have to put in my 2 cents as one of the only bandsters answering your question."

I have to disagree with this.  I think all but one of the people *****sponded have been people who were Lap-Band patients, as I was as well.  Just because we no longer have the band it doesn't lessen our validity to speak on life with the band.  Those of us who have had both procedures would probably be a good source of advice as we have experienced both procedures.   Can we predict the OPs outcome with certainty, no, nobody can.  All we can do is convey our experiences with both procedures and what it is like to live with each one.

That being said, I would have to put my recommendation behind the sleeve.  As always, I mean this as no form of disrespect towards those who have the band as I wish nothing but the best for those who have it, but I just can't recommend the band in good conscience with the experience that I had with it and with the ratio of people that I know who have the band that end up regretting  the choice and revising. 

 

I don't know who said that Bear because they have me blocked, but as far as I can tell.... there are 14 replies to the OP and 13 of those replies were from previously banded bandsters.

 Sadly I still have mine, so I accept that my vitriolic hatred for it has to do with the pain I live with everyday.  

Oh, excuse me. When I posted my response to this thread this morning, none of the other posters were currently in possession of a band.

 I'm not currently "In possession of a band"  however it doesn't mean I have no authority to speak on what it's like to be a bandster or to live with a band. Does no longer having a band negate our experience?

If we are "going there" then I have to say you were being quite dismissive and coming across like you had a unique advantage to offering advice since you were the only "bandster".

 

Every single one of us *****sponded had a band, plus most have had the added benefit of knowing how much better WLS can be with a differerent surgery.