Let's have a civil discussion: How is it possible to NOT feel restriction?

~The Lap-band is NOT about Restriction~

Really? Perhaps you might want to inform the band manufacturers of this since it is contrary to how they say the their bands work!

 Best article I have read since having the band over 6 years. Every bander should read!
It would have saved many years it's taken. I knew it was a help but
Saw it differently and this really is the right way. It so clicked when I read it. It's long but more than worth the time to read. Thank you thank you. 

~Other than a faulty band or port, and botched surgery, how is it possible that "the band" doesn't work?  ~

Why would you think it's not possible? Why would there be so many bandsters stating they don't have restricion?? What would they possibly have to gain by lying about something like that???

~How is it possible to not have restriction?  ~

It's very possible. In fact it turns out to be quite common!

You were one of the LUCKY ones! So far. Some reach restriction easily and quickly. For others.....it NEVER happens. I have had 17 fills and 4 partial unfills. Never got restriction. Either too loose or too tight. Never a happy medium. THIS IS VERY COMMON!

~Is it possible that expectations are too high so when the weight just doesn't melt off,  without effort and lifestyle change, the patient chalks it up as "the band failed"?~

Of course that's possible. I dont know how many times over the last year I have read a post by someone complaining how they just got a fill and don't have restricion. It's like WTF?! Those ppl are obviously completely unprepared. Anyone who gets a band expecting to get restriction after just one fill is being totally unrealistic. This has happened to a few bandsters, but it is certainly the exception!

That being said.........MOST bandsters have researched enough to know what the band manufacturers and more than likely their Drs. offices as well, claim the band will do and most have a realistic time range.

Most bandsters have realistic expectations of 1-2 pounds/wk. Most bandsters expect to have to modify their diets and make lifestyle changes. And most bandsters expect to have that "tool" that they were told they would have after they reached restriction after a few fills and that they would then get full sooner and stay full longer. Unfortunately MANY of us NEVER got this! I really think you are being very judgmental to suggest that if we never got restriction that we are lying about it b/c we are just mad that the weight didn't just "melt off". I hope that other bandsters will not be judgmental of you when your band fails!

Whoa---why are you so angry, Maria?  I didn't accuse anyone of lying and I'm NOT being judgmental.  

I'm only 5 months out from surgery and still learning.  I am intrigued by those who have had relatively easy success, but even more intrigued by those who have had very little (or none) because they were not able to feel restriction.  I just wanted to know how its possible, which I think is a legit question, and I've learned there are a varieties of variables involved.  This has been a very interesting thread.  Very educational.  

Perhaps I'm happy about my decision to get banded because I only needed to lose 70 lbs; I really just needed some help to stay focused and the band helped me.  I've already lost 40 lbs, so I'm over halfway there and feel very fortunate.  

Maria,  Calm down.  Quit being so angry.  Quit being bitter.  You'll be OK. 

P.S...if you have not blocked Maria already...please do so...she will be a waste of your time, she is bitter, she paid cash for her band... and as she put it...she had to "work her tool" to lose weight, she wanted a magic wand...LMAO to get a better bang for her buck....so if you are wise and don't want to listen her her bitter nonsense, do yourself a favor and block her...she exaggerates band issues to the fullest....and she has NO idea what she is talking about.

She highly recommends the Sleeve, RNY or the DS, without even telling people the risks involved, but again the band is crap as she puts it and ALL other weight loss surgeries are complication free and your weight will just melt off, ~insert sarcasm~

HAHAHA I haven't blocked her....yet....and I probably won't.  

Truth is, I have been trolling the message board to learn and get inspiration, and have noticed she often inserts her opinions in very negative, condescending ways.   I really do think she is trying to be informative and helpful, but her delivery is very off-putting.  You can just sense her  bitterness and anger. 

For the record, I also am a self-pay, so perhaps I feel I have "more skin in the game" --but that only motivates me to work harder!  Who knows, maybe my band will fail one day, but until that day, I plan on taking full advantage it!!

Thanks for the heads up, NanaB!!

It's true that I am angry and I am bitter, but not at you, at the band. And yes I will be ok, but the band won't.

When you make a post like "I don't see how anyone could not have restriction" it would seem to indicate to those of us that never got it that you are accusing us of lying. If that was not your intention, then I appologize.

As to why we don't, well that had bariatric Drs. puzzled as well. In fact, I was invited to the EES (makers of the realize band) WLS bloggers/web influencers event in NYC last Apr. There were probably about 2 dozen of us that were invited to the event. The OAC was there, as was Dr. Blackstone (President of the ASMBS). I looked at the event as an opportunity to go straight to the top and try to get some answers that would help the thousands (of probably more!) of us out there that have never gotten restrictions with our bands.

At the opening of the event, they went around the room and we were to all introduce ourselves and tell why we were there. When it got to me, I stated that I was there to get info on why there were so many bandsters that never reached restriction, and what could be done to achieve this. I was very professional and very polite with my statement, however it was just brushed over. It was never addressed at all, and they very quickly went on to the next person!

Since they chose to ignore this during the session, I spoke with Dr. Blackstone directly at another time and presented her with the question. She blew me off and never gave me an answer.

I also spoke to the event organizer from EES about this same issue. He said he would address it later. About a month or so later he did have a Dr. with EES call me regarding this, but I received no answer from her also.

So as to why some reach restriction and others don't..........if the President of the ASMBS dosent know, and the band manufacturers don't know..............then certainly we bandsters have no way of knowing either.

Of course when you get a band you need to do everything you can to work WITH the band, and as I hear on here often the line about "it's just a tool". And while true for some bandsters..............there anre MANY of us that NEVER received a tool! The band is very much a crap shoot. You have been very lucky so far, and I am glad you have. All of us when we were banded had hopes and dreams of the band working for us as it was advertised to work. Unfortunately for MANY of us out there......this was NOT the case! :-( Can you imagine if you had a few fills and didn't get restricion? Then month after month you got a fill thinking "maybe this one will be the ONE!"..............but it never was. Until finally after your 16th and 17th fill..........it still was not "the ONE". This is a very emotionally devisting experience for us! And it is made worse when we read on the forum frequently post that accuse of of lying, of expecting "a miracle", of expecting the weight to just "fall off", expecting the "magic bullet", etc, We all got the band for the same reason. Some of you have been blessed, but many of us just entered the band nightmare. :-(

Maria, that is fascinating.  I really wonder why that is the case?!  Of course, everyone is anatomically different and I'm sure there are small variances from band to band (IE brand, size, etc) that would affect the ability to reach that "sweet spot".

No harm taken and my question was sincere and in no way meant to be judgmental or accusatory.  I really appreciate your experience.  Please accept my apology for getting defensive.

Now as far as variations in the brands, from what I have observed, the Lap-Band and Realize band are about the same statistically. I can't really see that one is more successful than the other. As far as band size, from what I've heard, the old 4 cc bands were easier to reach restricion with. However they had just as many band complications as the new, larger bands.

Men do tend to generally do better with bands than women (hormonal thing/anatomical differences?), although I don't know many men that are long term with the band either (Tom on the Realize forum is I think 3 or 4 years out and he has done awesome).

Apparently I took your question the wrong way. I apologize as well. I guess I have just gotten used to many questions in an accusatory tone in the past, and tend to over-react (the band forum is actually MUCH more pleasant now that it was even a year ago!).

Oh and another interesting point as far as restriction................There have been bandsters that got restriction, their bands worked very well, they lost well.........then developed complications. Well b/c they had done so well with the band, they got re-banded instead of revising to a different WLS. Many of them didn't do well with their 2nd band. Although they got restriction easily with their first one, many were not reaching it with their 2nd, and of course couldn't understand why since they were initially so successful with the 1st band. I have always found that puzzeling as well!!!

Some of those people that need to get the band REMOVED never really TELL THE TRUTH, they are quite VAGUE in their explanations of how their band "Failed them"

But those of us that that have escaped band slips ourselves and have had our bands a very long time KNOW THE TRUTH.

Let me clarify:

Lap band failures are MORE mechanical such as tubing issues, or port infections which is the number one cause of band erosion, sometimes people may have infection in their body that may cause band erosion, some people have "gut" problems with their stomach that are pre existing, some people have weaker stomach tissues than other people, some people have weaker esophagus than others, the lap band just do NOT work for ALL people and IT NEVER WILL. This is why pre screening is critical, but pre screening does not catch every problem of detecting whether or not someone is a good cadidate for the band but it helps the surgeon decides on who to band....everyone is NOT a good candidate for the band, but many people ignored pre screening in the past because they paid cash or went to Mexico..insurance companies mandate pre op testing....

How is it possible to NOT have restriction?

That is simple, some surgeons install the WRONG SIZE band on many people, some people get a band installed that is too big and NEVER really feel satisfied on food even if their bands get filled to the maximum capacity, also some people get a band too small and have problems and complications from being too tight with no saline these people REALLY HAVE FAILED BANDS......

Also the band IS NOT ABOUT RESTRICTION, the post with Dr Simpson giving an explanation on how the band works, people should READ IT, the band is about helping you pull back from the table and NOT stopping you from eating, it dims your appetite once you are at or near the sweet spot, it give you signals to stop eating, like a burp, hiccup, sneeze, running nose, etc, these are your signals to stop eating....many people use the band the wrong way and use it as a crutch to stop them from eating hard stop with vomiting....those who do this usually have to get their bands removed eventually.

How do you know if your band is a good fit FOR YOU?

Usually those people like myself I have a 4cc band, I get to my sweet spot half way at about 2.5cc I still have an extra 2 and some odds worth of saline I will never use, so my band is perfect for my anatomy I don't ever have to worry about getting filled to the max because halfway I have good restriction, and I don't have to worry about my band tightening up WITHOUT A FILL, because if it tightens up unexpectedly I can get saline removed and still have restriction and without my band being empty.

Now there is another group of so called lap band failures, lap band abusers

These people actually FAILED their bands but don't clarify why their band failed, these are your abuser group, they GO WAY PAST THE SWEET SPOT of recommended saline and stay too tight too long...trying to lose as much weight as possible until their bands damage their esophagus or slips and when the band damages the esophagus or slips...IT IS PURE HELL, you will have constant burning, reflux that is horrific and sometimes it has to be removed in an emergency, this is why surgeons tell patients to come back immediately if they get overfilled by mistake....because the band WILL cause complications if it stays too tight too long...it's just that simple.

So you have a variety of reasons why the band must be removed, some people body will reject the band, they typically know this right away after surgery, some people have mechanical issues, infections that causes erosion's, bands placed wrong by surgeons, and lastly the abuser group that allowed their bands to slip due to not getting proper aftercare that the band requires and ignoring symptoms of a too tight band, aka reflux, coughing, and frequent vomiting.