received approval for gastric banding today

and suddenly I am feeling conflicted.  I should stop reading the bashing, not its not bashing threads --- but I so enjoy the drama because it is outside of my life. (like a creepy peeping tom)

So banders, what is your best advice.  How did you calm the nerves. 

Getting the lap band is a GREAT thing for many people. Being prepared is the first the step. The thing I usually ask people if they are interested in the lap band is CAN YOU AFFORD IT? Especially if someone is on a fixed income.  MANY people can't and end up with horrible complications.

You need to ask yourself these questions:

1.Are you ready and willing to change your lifestyle? Exercising, walking daily, drinking water, and following your diet plan.

2. Do you live less than 1 hour to your surgeon’s office? If not, this may be a problem for you, the closer you live to your surgeon the less risk of problems you may experience. The band is not an exact science and if you get filled too tightly it becomes an urgent manner and waiting more than a week can result in complications you may not be prepared for. You can never put distance or not having money first when it comes to needing to see your surgeon for aftercare.  The tighter your band is adjusted the more closer you need to be with your surgeon. For example, if you need to travel overseas and stay for long periods of time, most people get their band deflated during this time in the event they need to get an urgent unfill. If the band is not filled tightly you don't have to worry about complications with it.

3. After surgery following your post op diet plan, this is serious if you plan on keeping your band for long periods of time. The band has to heal and if you find yourself very hungry or CAN eat after 2 weeks post op, don't do it. Follow your liquid diet plan or mushy food plan, the most important reason for this is to allow the band to heal and prepare you for getting fills, the last thing you want to do is start the fill process too early and get a fill on a unhealed band. If you are very prone to vomiting you need to tell your surgeon to give you anti-nauseous meds and keep them with you at all times. Vomiting period with the band is like kryptonite to superman, it's a no no and you want to avoid vomiting if you can throughout your banding life especially in the first year when your band is healing. Sure there will be times you get sick, but again vomiting should be very rare with the band and not daily.

4. Nowadays surgeon’s offices have a chart of how you are supposed to feel after fill adjustments which are the yellow zone, green zone, and red zone. The yellow zone indicates you still need a fill, you get hungry between meals and your meals are still pretty much like you have no band. The green zone is optimal restriction that usually does NOT cause any lap band complications and where you want to stay throughout your journey and in the green zone, you would eat about 1 to 1/2 cup of SOLID food and get full quickly and your appetite is dimmed and this zone is where most people lose more weight IF they are following their eating plan and exercising daily and you must learn to adapt to the eating rules of tiny bites like pea size bites to keep from vomiting every time you eat.

The RED zone is the danger zone, sometimes you can accidently get over filled and get in the RED ZONE, the thing is sometimes people lose a LOT OF WEIGHT QUICKLY in the RED ZONE and sometimes they do not, it depends on the person, in the RED zone, in the beginning it MAY SEEM like perfect restriction because you will be very tight and you will only be able to sip very slowly and eat only tiny amounts of soft foods and eating anything solid will cause vomiting.

The RED zone is not only a problem for complications, but many people fail to lose weight in the RED zone because they may gravitate towards foods that are easy to get down, like cookies, crackers, ice cream, chips, etc....the RED ZONE in the end is a trap for many. Some people who actually lose their weight in the RED zone will not eat much, or they may puree their foods or drink protein drinks..But these people suffer complications too because you CANNOT keep that very tight pressure on your esophagus for long periods of time, this will cause damage to the esophagus and or band slippage from frequent vomiting. So THIS type of complication can be avoided IF you stay out of the RED zone as much as you can throughout your journey, it will be UP TO YOU to let our surgeon know how you feel and work closely with your surgeons office. After you get a few fills you know when you are reaching good restriction towards your sweet spot, sometimes it takes tweaking the band a couple of times to get to the green zone.

5. Make SURE your surgeon performs pre op screening to ensure you are a good candidate for the band. Take a look at Allergen website and make sure you don't have contradictions such as hernias, auto immune diseases, etc. You need to make sure you ask your surgeon IF he checks for hiatal hernias and if he repairs them, most surgeons do these days, but you need to ask. Also ask what his complication rate is, how many lap bands has he placed. Also ask about his aftercare policy, you don't need to see a surgeon only if they are free, you MUST see your surgeon every 4-6 weeks in your first year to make sure you are on track and losing weight to keep up with adjustments for optimal weight loss.

There are NO cutting costs and corners with the band, the advice I gave you is critical. But the band is an awesome and safe tool for many, I love my band, I love the fact that it allowed me to eat all the foods I like, but in very small amounts with no side effects unless I ate too quickly or too much. Now I am experiencing a bump in the road with my band, no weight loss surgery is perfect no matter what people say on these boards and now I have a hernia that must be fixed, my band has done its job for me, I am going on 8 years post op, I have no regrets, even if I have to get my band removed, it was still the best decision I've made.

That is the best advice I can give you, good luck

 
A hiatal hernia is NOT a contraindication of the band.  An UNrepaired hiatal hernia is a contraindication to ANY WLS type.  Fix the hernia during WLS and no more contraindication.

I don't believe you had a hiatal hernia unless you went to a total twit for your surgery.  No surgeon worth his weight looks right at a hernia during surgery and declines to fix it.  Only those that want $$ from a 2nd surgery.

Either way, it will be on your OR report.  Look it up, see if the band caused a hernia or if your surgeon was a twit.

Sad to say, my original surgeon was indeed a twit who lost his medical license due to drug abuse allegations. He was affiliated with a big, well-respected hospital and the bariatric clinic he directed was excellent. When I asked him why he didn't fix my hiatal hernia, he looked blank for a moment and then said, "It was too small."

 Just want to clarify that you CAN get into the Red Zone without overfilling.  Many of us have had this happen, even though we kept our bands on the loose side.  It's caused by the stomach churning against the band, causing scar tissue to build up under the band...it's progressive, meaning it can continue to happen even with no fluid in the band.  I think it's a matter of your body and the way it reacts to the device.  As Maria likes to say, it can be a "crapshoot" whether it works for you and if your body can tolerate it.
I chose the band because I felt it gave me the most control, because it was adjustable...now it's empty, I'm still too tight and its no longer adjustable.

NanaB thank you so much for your awesome and detailed email.   This is a keeper.  I may even post it on my wall.

 

I've researched researched researched and have decided on the lap band as a tool to aid me in weight loss, I know that it is not going to do the work for me and that I need to stick to the plan.

 

thank you for your words of wisdom

You wouldn't be human if you didn't have conflicting feelings about something life-changing like weight loss surgery. My usual response to this kind of question is to suggest taking a short vacation from OH, but if you enjoy the drama, that might be hard for you.

Maybe you could re-frame those nerves? I wasn't nervous before my band surgery, but I sure was in the weeks before my wedding. I chose to consider those nerves as happy ones rather than fearful ones.

However you deal with the nerves, I congratulate you on taking the big step towards improving your health and quality of life, and I wish you the best of luck as you start your WLS journey.

Jean

Thanks Jean M. 

I actually am new to OH...so you know when you first start you want to read everything.  Life has forced me to not be on the site and just ignore the drama and I am better for it.

I think they are happy nerves, I've been in the process for a long time because I wanted it to be in my time line and not rush through it.

 
Wait, so when people post facts and stats, that is band bashing?

When they post peer reviewed journal articles that is band bashing?

When they post of their own personal experiences, that is band bashing?

Are you for real?

Most people call that adult research for a major life changing surgery type.

What I do not understand is why people would prefer a band over a safer surgery type long term.  That one is a head scratcher for me.

 I was a bit nervous before surgery, more than many surgeries I've had in the past (10+) because its truly ELECTIVE.  Before, my surgeries were necessitated by injury or emergency or absolute medical necessity...I got it done because of a situation that was incompatible with mobility, work and a couple of times to save my very life.  It's hard to rap ones mind around going thru surgery that may or may not work (my thoughts pre op), and you don't know how you're going to adapt to a different way of life. 
Try to keep busy, make sure you have everything you need for when you come home, organize a closet...
Good luck to you!