What made you choose Lap Band?

1. I take a least first/keep my options open approach: all WLS have a fairly high risk of regain later on, so I wanted to be sure that I had additional options open to me later. If I started with an RNY, I felt I would have fewer revision options open to me later should they be needed.
2. I was only 32 and had not yet had children, so I wanted to avoid malabsorbtive surgeries.
3. I was self-pay.

 I chose banding because:

Malabsorption was not an option for me.  I have a family full of alcoholics and am a social drinker, did not want to risk tipping the odds...

My brother was banded a year before me and has done well, losing all his excess weight.

Even 2 years ago, VSG wasn't as mainstream.  Many, many more surgeons have started doing them.

VSG still isn't covered by Medicare.  I've been covered by Medicare since 2008, since I am disabled by spinal stenosis, sacroiliac joint dysfunction and a knee that needs replaced.

I chose RNY, but my doctor wanted to start doing lapbands, so he convinced me that bands were 'safer' and 'less invasive.'  He told me that since I "only" had about 100 pounds to lose, the band would be a better option.

It wasn't.

It caused permanent, painful damage and my experience was hell on earth. That was over 9 years ago and I still have lingering ill effects from it.

The problem is that the lapband is on the top portion of the stomach and is in close proximity to the diaphragm. The (Phrenic) Vagus nerve system runs from the base of the skull down into the stomach.



See where the diaphragm is in a human body?






The band causes referred left shoulder pain in a LOT of people. It might be a dull ache or it might be debilitatingly painful. It might start right away or it might come on suddenly years after surgery. The only thing that's certain is that it IS becoming well known as one of the complications of banding.

It doesn't happen to everyone... but it happens with enough frequency to be notable. And, I know it sounds like not that big of a deal in the abstract, but if you go through it, it definitely becomes a problem.

I chose the band because I couldn't get comfortable with the replumbing required for RNY. At the first orientation 3= yrs ago the sleeve wasn't getting the visibility it is today and insurance wasn't as open to that process as most are today.

I had surgery Dec. 2011 and almost changed to the sleeve but decided to stick with my first choice and not second guess myself. I think I would go with the sleeve but I've had a great experience (thus far) with the (Realize) band.

Unless I had a failure, I think it's hard to say I would or would not do it again because my journey hasn't ended yet...or at the very least I think I need a few more years.

I fell for the "least invasive" B.S. Turns out..........it was anything but. I also fell for that "full sooner, full longer" "green zone" crap. Live and learn.

~ Did you have a lot of follow ups?~

Did I? Oh hell yes!

~I know there are fills and different trials involved, but how many exactly?~

That will vary greatly. No one knows. Some just need a few, while other (like me) can get 19 and never get restriction. About 20% bandsters never get restriction. Bet your Dr. "forgot" to tell you that part!

~One concern I have is if my insurance changes will any new insurance treat an adjustment like a pre-existing condition. I'm almost sure it would and I don't know if I could cover adjustments on my own (mostly because I don't know how much they cost)~

You can lose bariatric coverage at any time. Your insrucance cane decide to eliminate any bariatric services to keep the cost down. It has happened to many. Now if it's a DS, VSG or RNY'er that's usually no big deal since they seldom need follow up services, but with the frequency of fills and COMPLICATIONS with the band.........it can be financially devasting for a bandster!

~Has anyone paid out of pocket for their Lap Band? I would love to read your stories, thanks ~

I paid about $15,000 for mine. I still have no insurance and now need to have mine removed and revise to an effective WLS. There is no telling how much this band will end up costing me. One of the WLS'ers here got her band paid through insurance and then lost her insurance. With all her complciations, her band now has her $90,000 in debt. Do your research!!!

I chose it because I did not want to re-route my plumbing. I felt like it was safer and less invasive. I also felt more comfortable with the idea that if I were to have complications, the band could be removed. I had no co-morbidities other than sleep apnea. I just was not comfortable with RNY.

I have had complications. Gallbladder surgery, port replacement surgery (leak in port), and in 2 weeks I am having another operation to repair a hiatal hernia and reposition my band. My journey has NOT been what I thought it would be.

If I had to make the decision today, I would choose VSG. A lot more information is out about the band now. Then again, the VSG is in the stage that the band was when I got it. Who knows what will start popping up 4... 5 years from now. 

Just know that surgery is invasive. No matter what you choose. You have to decide what fits YOUR life and YOUR situation. Read read read, research research research. I cannot stress that enough.

Good luck with your decision.

FYI, I lost 100 pounds fairly quickly before I had issues with the leak. I gained about 54 pounds back. I am now heading back down and have lost re-lost 23 pounds in the last 3 months. My band works when I work with it. So I am happy right now. I have not always been in a happy place with this band.

 The VSG is in no way in the same stage as the band, it is by no means a NEW surgery. The VSG has been preformed for YEARS for both stomach cancer and ulcers AND as the first stage of the DS for higher BMI patients. If you are looking for statistics as a stand alone wls then you are limited, but if you look at the overall health statics for people having partial gastrectomies you can find information going  back to the 40's and 50's. 

 I bought into the "least invasive" crap they where selling (and still are). 

The price. What a huge mistake. Now I'm paying for the RNY!!!

 Interesting that you said price because that is a factor for me, because I have a cap on what my insurance will cover and it is the cheapest surgery so yeah I'm going to look favorably at that. Also it seems Lap Band is easier to recover from, but it seems long term there is potentially more cost and more dr. visits. I think for me it's easier to plan things in the short term and short term it looks good, but long term issues I would have to deal with also. That is why I am researching this way. To hear the stories.