Newcomer questions

You need to research RNY, DS & VSG to see which is the best for you!

You may find that people have slightly different experiences..........for myself, once I was full I didn't feel hungry .........

 

Experiences vary.  I do not feel unmanageable hunger. I could always eat more but am satisfied with less. If I am busy, I forget to eat. I throw up maybe once every few months and it is always due to eating too fast. I have been banded over seven years. 

I think you need to talk with a bariatric surgeon, not a PCP (family doctor). My former PCP, who tried several times to talk me out of weight loss surgery (WLS), was woefully uninformed about the band and just about everything else related to any kind of WLS. Most surgeons offer free informational seminars. You'll get a better idea of the risks and benefits there than you will here on OH. Even the well-informed and well-intentioned other members are not bariatric medical professionals. We are well-qualified to tell you about our personal experiences.

My own personal experience with the band was that I did get hungry (though not as greatly or as frequent) for the first year or so post-op. Then the hunger gradually disappeared. That was a great experience. Then my band was removed and I had VSG (vertical sleeve gastrectomy) surgery in August 2012 due to problems I'd be happy to tell you about in a private message. Since then, my physical hunger has been fierce and frequent, no matter what or how often or how much I eat. Many OH members had spoken in happy, glowing terms about lack of hunger after VSG because the reduced stomach size reduces production of ghrelin, a hunger hormone. That has not been my experience. I have also developed some brand-new medical problems thanks to my sleeve, so that now I have more medical problems, and must take more medications and supplements to deal with them, than I've ever had to take in my long, long life. As far as I'm concerned, the only advantage the sleeve has over the band is that it doesn't require fills. I woke up after my surgery with 75% of my stomach gone forever, so all I can do it find ways to deal with as best I can.

The moral of my story is that there is no one-size-fits-all WLS procedure. All you can do is get some bariatric medical advice, do your own research, and pick the procedure that feels right for you and your lifestyle. Good luck!

Jean

The moral of my story is that there is no one-size-fits-all WLS procedure. All you can do is get some bariatric medical advice, do your own research, and pick the procedure that feels right for you and your lifestyle. Good luck!

That's the BEST advise you will get anywhere if your Truly looking to have WLS

And your also going to read the positive and negative from ALL Surgeries, on Forums like this. If you go to a Bariatric surgeon ask them WHY they promote the band. Also ask them if they will be available 24/7 if complications arise AFTERCARE is 50% of the problem , 50% complications.with the band. Most ppl banded don't seem to get good aftercare and then when desperate have to see another surgeon so the old one is Clueless about the band Complications OR just prefer to IGNORE them

Then Ask other doctors why they Don't promote the Band, it's probably because the Gastroenterologist's See the Esophageal issues caused by a band.MAYO doesn't Do band any longer , If your smart you'll ask yourself why

ER's aren't usually equipped with anyone that has a CLUE about bariatric's let alone the band, So make sure you go to a hospital with a Great Bariatric's if you experience problems ;) ( band or otherwise)

You be best Served viewing all the Forums Sleeve, gastric Bypass.. go to WLS informational sessions (many) 

But know that If you get a Band, even if you lose weight (and i did) YOU WILL need a revision at some point in time just and FYI 

Hi Tim,

 

I'd strenuously advise against the band. 

The advertising is good. The product is not. 

I have so much damage from that thing, I won't even bother to go into all the details. Suffice it to say, I had it removed a good many years ago, but I'm still paying for it today. Nerve damage... pain in the left shoulder from damage the band caused to the Vagus nerve system. I get light headed, sweaty, and have sharp, stabbing pains in my shoulder to this day from the damage. My guts are chewed up from the years I had the band in my body. 

It's not an understatement to say that I absolutely detest the band and wish I had never heard of it in the first place. HUGE mistake. 

Thank you, Nic.  I'm going to have to figure something else out.  Band is too dangerous.  I am sorry for your troubles.

 

 

Happy to help. Thanks for the nice words, Tim. Wishing you the best in your research.

I loved my band! Seriously... I don't regret my decision that I got it in 2007. I expected that I would vomit daily, I expected to not be able to eat a lot of my favorite foods. I made my peace with those side effects.

What I didn't expect and what I couldn't live with is that in February 2013 I wasn't able to fall asleep without waking up choking on whatever I had eaten that day. It scared me. Was horribly uncomfortable... And it was time for the band to go.

My band was removed October 1 and immediately revised to a sleeve. I'm still recovering so I don't know how great the sleeve will be. But I'm hopeful.

So many problems with it from you and others.  Serious problems.  I'm surprised they even do this surgery.  Thank you!