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MyFitnessPal Community

Gastric band advice

princesspiercey

Following a discussion with the nurse, struggling for years to lose weight, having two children close together, having a high enough BMI and also being a type 2 diabetic I've decided to investigate more about Gastric band options so really just wanted peoples stories on them, successful or not, starting weight/current weight, how long since the op? Side effects and such. Just anything really to gain more information on a massive decision. Thanks in advance

Replies

kathleenballinger9

I had it and i lost only a few kgs in the end ...a lot of money and poor success for me. Plus now i can't eat rice pasta or more than one slice of bread or it gets stuck...hiccups and pain...embarrassing when out with friends or with family. Its awful and I definitely don't promote it. Im just under 100 kgs and doing 5:2 diet and exercise and starting again as i should've all along with great results.

princesspiercey

I'm in the UK and would be getting it done on the NHS due to the other health issues I have so the cost isn't relevant to me. I've seen a mixture of success and not on here. Did read a few other posts about it. Exercise and healthy eating alone doesn't work for me even alongside orlistat x

mistyloveslife

Everyone I know that's had gastric gained it back after a couple years because they didn't learn how to eat properly. It seems to me to be more like a Band-Aid. I don't personally have experience with it but if a person doesn't gain a healthy relationship with food, I'm sure it won't work long term.

P.S. Most struggle with severe stomach issues. Chronic heartburn, diarrhea, indigestion and upset stomach etc. Plus excess skin from rapid weight loss.

Good luck with your decision!

jgnatca

... I've decided to investigate more about Gastric band options so really just wanted peoples stories on them, successful or not, starting weight/current weight, how long since the op? Side effects and such. Just anything really to gain more information on a massive decision. Thanks in advance

I had the bypass this past June and I have lost over ninety pounds, forty before surgery. Our local clinic is no longer advising the gastric band because of ongoing problems like slippage and scarring. I am no longer on any medications for my former issues including high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol.

I have had very few negative side effects. I will be on vitamins for life due to known malabsorption issues. I don't drink with meals and when I'm not eating I'm sipping liquids to stay well hydrated.

Here's a local community for support and knowledge:

http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/637-gastric-bypass-vsg-lapband

@mistyloveslife, I believe this surgery was literally a life-saver for me. At my age I was pretty confident this was my best option. The local clinic goes through an extensive screening and education program to make sure any eating issues are dealt with. I am confident I can continue to maintain the weight loss post-surgery. The only side-effect I will be dealing with on your list is excessive skin. And brittle nails. But I've resolved my nail problem with a little bit of TLC.

ryanpaintballer

I recently did a surgery rotation in med school with surgeons specializing in bariatric surgery. If avoid the lap band if you could. We had to do probably 6-7 revisions on them over the month I was there. If someone is considering bariatric surgery they should really consider gastric banding over the bypass or other options. Basically they remove 80% of your stomach, but food still follows the same pathway. No issues with nutrition deficiency or dumping syndrome. All of the patients that I encountered with it were very very pleased.

MostlyWater

My sister just had it done 2 Fridays ago. She hasn't lost any weight and is really unhappy.

melhughes903

Bariatric surgeons are steering away from lapbanding procedures. I haven't met anyone with a success story (and kept the weight off). My sister had it done several years ago. She just had the band removal to a gastric sleeve this past October 2014 and the surgeon knicked her intestine. She almost died from this surgery. Was on a ventilator for 3 days. She finally was released from the hospital and is on her 3rd wound vac and is not healing from this surgery.

I'm not a fan of gastric surgeries. JMO

penelopepittstopsmam

You can lose weight yourself, with or without orlistat.

Id given up too and had wondered whether to go down the surgical route but I saw a tv programme with a bariatric surgeon (shaw somers from essex) who reckoned that the effect of surgery only keeps weight off for 3 or 4 years. After that, you've got to use dieting and exercise just like you would without.

As it's maintenance thats the hardest part for me anyway, i reckon that I may as well do it from the start and save the nhs's money, pain and total disruption to my life.

kimberliekay_330

I haven't had it done, but knew two people who have. One didn't lose anything at all, but she didn't have a healthy relationship with food and the other has lost a lot... almost too much and looks sick to me, but she also has to be careful to not throw up or choke on food now.

karen_fitzgibbon

My friend had a sleeve done (not sure what the difference is sorry) a few years ago and aside from the teething problems at the start (which she was well aware of) she is doing amazing. She has changed her entire lifestyle to go with it. She is due for surgery soon to remove her excess skin. She looks years younger and is so much happier loving life.
It's a long bumpy road. Definitely not a short cut. But if you go into it armed with knowledge and knowing what to expect then you should be fine. The nhs is such a great thing. Best of luck op in whichever way you choose

TXRedDirt

I did my research, did the counseling, got approved by my insurance and scheduled the surgery. I went to see my primary doctor for his advice before surgery, when I went to his office he had to leave so I saw his associate. His associate was overweight and told me this. "It's hard to tell my patients to lose weight when I'm overweight myself, if I thought bariatric surgery was healthy I would have done it years ago to help build trust with my patients." That made me change my mind and I found MFP soon after. Almost 50lbs down and glad I didn't do the surgery.

jeanmariemcp

I have known two people personally (not a friend of a friend of a friend) who have DIED as a direct result of bariatric surgery. One in his 30's and the other in his 40's. One other who I know has come to our house and we get to hear him coughing up his meal (I'm not THAT bad of a cook) because nothing will stay down. Gross. Oh...and he's still overweight.

Stay on MFP, read, track your food and be a bit more active. Think hard about the surgery.

trishtrish84

I had my lapband surgery on August 13, 2013. The day that I went in for surgery, I weighed 330 lbs. Today, I am at 244 lbs. That is an 86 lb loss. I am by no means finished with my journey but I'd like to think that I have at least put a nice dent in it. I've read the posts above me where people say to avoid the band because you can't eat certain foods, slippage, throwing up.... yes that can happen but only if you about aren't following orders. The band is not a quick fix for weight loss, it's a tool that you have to utilize in conjunction with changing your eating habits and exercising. If you would like to see a perfect success story of someone with a band, go to youtube and search for bandedwendy. She is amazing amazing has blogged videos galore throughout her 6 year post op journey and still is at her goal weight today and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. I love my band and it was the best decision I ever made.

ItsSlimpossible12

Every member of my immediate family got the band (my sister, my mother and my father). My sister initially lost weight (not much though) but then gained it all back and then some. This was about 3 years ago and she still has it and she still gets it filled but hasn't lost any weight, and in my opinion, has gained quite a bit. My mother and father haven't lost anything. The only difference in their lives now are that they can't eat or digest the foods they love and I get to watch them puke and choke and heave after every meal. My dad even had to run out of his dance with my sister at her wedding because he had dared to eat some of the food. Oh, that and the lovely port in their bodies. That's different too. My friend from high school's mom died after getting gastric bypass. Lost a ton of weight, but also lost her life. IT'S NOT WORTH IT. Last year I lost 40 pounds using MFP and working out. More than any of my band family members. YOU CAN DO IT! Just stick to this site and be honest with yourself and you will be successful.

melhughes903

TXRedDirt wrote: »

I did my research, did the counseling, got approved by my insurance and scheduled the surgery. I went to see my primary doctor for his advice before surgery, when I went to his office he had to leave so I saw his associate. His associate was overweight and told me this. "It's hard to tell my patients to lose weight when I'm overweight myself, if I thought bariatric surgery was healthy I would have done it years ago to help build trust with my patients." That made me change my mind and I found MFP soon after. Almost 50lbs down and glad I didn't do the surgery.

WTG!!!! 50lb loss is AWESOME!

samhennings

jgnatca wrote: »

I had the bypass this past June and I have lost over ninety pounds, forty before surgery. Our local clinic is no longer advising the gastric band because of ongoing problems like slippage and scarring. I am no longer on any medications for my former issues including high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, and high cholesterol.

You lost 40 pounds before the op, and 50 pounds afterwards?

I cant help wondering why you didnt see the amazing loss before the operation (seriously, well done!) and think "Why not carry on like this instead of having life changing surgery?"

What made you go ahead?

samhennings

karen_fitzgibbon wrote: »

My friend had a sleeve done (not sure what the difference is sorry) a few years ago and aside from the teething problems at the start (which she was well aware of) she is doing amazing. She has changed her entire lifestyle to go with it. She is due for surgery soon to remove her excess skin. She looks years younger and is so much happier loving life.
It's a long bumpy road. Definitely not a short cut. But if you go into it armed with knowledge and knowing what to expect then you should be fine. The nhs is such a great thing. Best of luck op in whichever way you choose

This is what makes me wonder why surgery is preferable to a more healthy eating style.

Either way it seems people have to chaneg their relationship with food and/or their lifestyle.

Yet one requires life endangering surgery, the effects of which (I believe) can never be reversed, and the other requires no such thing. Rather some information, determination and patience - which is required in either situation anyway!

jgnatca

samhennings wrote: »

You lost 40 pounds before the op, and 50 pounds afterwards? I cant help wondering why you didnt see the amazing loss before the operation (seriously, well done!) and think "Why not carry on like this instead of having life changing surgery?" What made you go ahead?

Because I want to keep it off. I lost thirty pounds on my own and stalled. This is common. I lost another ten pounds the two weeks before surgery on the liquid diet.

The challenge, which research bears out, is that it is difficult to sustain weight loss. My surgeon described how they used to make patients wait two years after their initial loss on their own before surgery. In nearly every case, they gained the weight back and were very discouraged by the time they got to surgery. We see stories like this every day on MFP, people who feel like utter failures because they could not manage to keep the weight off on their own.

Another side-benefit of my surgery is nearly immediate reversal of type 2 diabetes symptoms. This reversal cannot be explained by the weight loss alone, and is a known side-benefit of this surgery.

And the final benefit is the reduced production of ghrelin, the hunger hormone.

ninerbuff

GB doesn't TEACH you how to eat. If one is overweight, then it's a habitual eating issue. GB should be used on people who are morbidly obese or to save someone's life from overeating. People who are just overweight need to learn how to commit to eating better and less to instill new habitual eating patterns.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

samhennings

Fair enough, its not something I had considered.

The surgery seems so extreme to me I can never imagine wanting to do it, especially if I had been successful in weight loss prior to the op.

I would also have hoped that in changing my habits to the degree of losing so much weight, maintenance would be quite achieveable.

Im glad its worked out for you.

unknown

This content has been removed.

kamakazeekim

Most reputable surgeons are no longer doing the gastric band. There is a high rate of complications and many people end up having it removed. I would recommend the gastric sleeve. Much safer and easier to manage. You also do not risk malnutrition like you do compared to if you got the full gastric bypass.

I had the gastric sleeve done last May and have lost about 100 pounds. I work out most days of the week and eat between 1000 and 1200 calories most days. I do struggle with feeling like I'm going to throw up a lot but you'll get that with all forms of weight loss surgery. Lettuce and meat are two things I'm guaranteed to throw up every time. You also have to be extremely careful about drinking enough water...dehydration is a serious problem...I've had to have IVs three times.

Marchmallow

It's a divided topic, but I'm firmly in the camp that it treats the symptom but doesn't cure the disease. When people have bariatric surgeries like a bypass, they eat less calories because their stomach is physically too small to eat as much as they did. Initial weight loss is often sabotaged further down the line as the person gradually stretches the smaller stomach and before they know it, they gained the weight back. Instead of going for a drastic quick fix, consider making small, gradual changes to your lifestyle. Make one small change per month. It doesn't sound like much, and won't feel like much, but that's the whole point. You want a permanent lifestyle change, not an intense (and short, due to low sustainability) period of self deprivation of suffering. Start at the lowest rung of the ladder.

jenluvsushi

I know several people who have had either a bypass or the band who gained back everything they lost. I think that it can be a wonderful tool for the right person but if you are eating for emotional reasons or unwilling to change your eating habits, it isn't going to change anything. My aunt lost tons of weight and even had a full body lift afterwards. She gained everything back plus some. I don't know how but she did. I think slow and steady wins the race....I would really try to get to the root of why you are overeating and go from there. I know that I turn to food during moments of stress, boredom, when I am tried, etc.

josephwelch7739

Heres a thread that might be helpful for you. I found it while thinking about surgery, decided against it at the end. Only person in the group that backed out. Decided to follow calories in/ out

3fatchicks.com/forum/weight-loss-surgery/298317-gbs-2005-gained-back-anyone-else-same-boat.html

snowflake930

mistyloveslife wrote: »

Everyone I know that's had gastric gained it back after a couple years because they didn't learn how to eat properly. It seems to me to be more like a Band-Aid. I don't personally have experience with it but if a person doesn't gain a healthy relationship with food, I'm sure it won't work long term.

P.S. Most struggle with severe stomach issues. Chronic heartburn, diarrhea, indigestion and upset stomach etc. Plus excess skin from rapid weight loss.

Good luck with your decision!

^^A huge percentage of people regain the weight that they lost, no mater how they lose it. That is fact. Not just people that have a surgical procedure.

Do whatever you feel is best for you.

jgnatca

Here's a ten year study, 2004.

"As compared with conventional therapy, bariatric surgery appears to be a viable option for the treatment of severe obesity, resulting in long-term weight loss, improved lifestyle, and, except for hypercholesterolemia, amelioration in risk factors that were elevated at baseline."

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/nejmoa035622

The risk factors included:
diabetes, hypertriglyceridemia, low levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, hypertension, and hyperuricemia.

Edited to add: This was a study of about 600 bariatric patients and an equal number of controls.

xmichaelyx

People fail with the band because they don't bother to learn to eat properly. But if they learned to eat properly, they'd realize that they don't need the band.

IOW, the band sets you up for failure. It's a band-aid disguised as a cure.

kraull2001

I had the band done almost 2 years ago and I have lost 105 lbs and am currently maintaining. I certainly want to lose more, but I know I need to do more physically to get to the next plateau. What the Lap Band has taught me is portion sizes and eating proper foods. It is a constant reminder that I have to watch my intake because I can so easily slip into " oh just this one time" moment. I can eat whatever I want in moderation, so I'm not starving or missing out, but if I eat too much junk - ice cream or chocolate, the scale does not lie. I'm only lying to myself. I feel I'm doing all the things the Lap Band program has told me, and it has worked for me.

princesspiercey

I don't eat a lot anyway nor do I eat *kitten*. If I could do it without surgery I'd not still be fat right now. Surgery is my final option or its stay fat for life. It's partly also for potentially eradicating my type 2 diabetes that I'd considered the op also. I don't exercise much but even when I did used to go to the gym it never made a difference. Everyone's body works in a different way and that's what people need to understand. I know skiing people who eat like a horse but cause they don't gain weight no one bothers to moan at them for unhealthy eating habits yet of you're fat you automatically must eat *kitten*, loads of it and be a total pig. This is not always the case and it's about time people realised that. I have a friend who is like me also. Doesn't eat much, eats pretty well, is full easily yet she's also over wright but carries it better as is like 6ft tall so even though she weighs more than me she doesn't look as bad so her weight isn't an issue to her. Having a good or bad relationship with food isn't always truly reflected by a persons weight. The nhs don't tend to offer the bypass anyway unless the circumstances are extreme because of the dangers. The band is still the most common type offered.