Gastric band v gastric bypass - your thoughts

I just wish i could afford something like that, i know my friend had a bypass and is doing fantastic. me i just make some progress, then end up back where i start.


I hope which ever you decide on helps you.

seem a bit light for surgery.......I started this at 240 less than 3 months ago and am 214 today.

I am assuming you are mobile and have nothing confining you to a bed. You weigh barely more than I do. You can lose the weight without the price, pain, and lifelong issues caused by these surgeries. You have to be willing to change your entire life for the surgery, and you have to change your life to lose the weight anyway. If you cannot commit to doing it without the surgery, the surgery won't do it for you either. Eat better, eat less, move more, and you can do it without such an invasive path.

I got the bypass because there is a lot of maintenance with the band. You have to get fills and adjustments on a regular basis. For me, bypass also meant I could lose more weight and faster.

Please forgive me for answer, which you won't like!!

Neither!! U don't need surgery, you need desire, motivation, and support!!! Sorry but that's what I thunk!!!

I agree.... sorry, but it's an easy math equation: Calories out (RMR + exercise) minus calories in (food) = a positive number ... you have to burn more than you eat.
Good Luck~

I had the band in May of this year. It has been the best thing for me. I have lost 40 lbs. It is a much slower loss than gastric bypass but steady. I like that it is adjustable. My mom had bypass, got too tight and had to had another surgery to loosen it up. I had a fill that was too tight and it was easily adjusted in office.

I was researching the same a few months ago and the doctor told me that the "hardware" from the lap band causes alot of problems. Like anything, if it has parts, it fails over time. Be prepared to have replacement surgery in 10 years or so. Plus it takes 6 months to a year to find the right adjustment for each individual, with a higher rate of heartburn / GERD. Think very seriously about doing any of this. I decided against bypass surgery because: never chew gum again, never drink alcohol, risk of dehydration is increased MASSIVELY, risk of vitamin / mineral deficiency greatly increased .... But each individual is different. I wish you luck and good health with your journey.

My experience is watching my Dad go through the recovery of a bypass. I probably wont change your mind about getting one, but it isn't pretty. My dad weighed almost 400 pounds at one time, and now he weighs about 140. It's a good change in weight and has helped his blood pressure and sleeping improve. BUT... During the rigorous recovery year he got sick all the time. A majority of weight lost was probably because almost every food made him sick. He hardly drank anything.. maybe a half a glass of protein two or three times a day.. because any more than that made him sick. Absolutely no sugar ever.. even now 5 1/2 years later because the surgery made him so intolerant to ice cream especially that he will pass out or black out. His aversions to food now sometimes screw with his vision.. and my dad is 41. I remember him constantly being sick and not hardly being able to move for nearly 3 months. I had to take care of my siblings myself.

There are good things about the surgery.. sure. But not many people will tell you just how serious the recovery process really is. Not to mention how expensive it is. Several extra hundred dollars every few weeks went to buying tons of protein anything to keep his starving body going. If you get the band.. okay you wont have a 3 month down time.. but much of the process is still the same.

The most important thing to remember is that if you aren't already in the habit of eating better and losing weight.. you will be thrown into a position of being generally unprepared which often times leads you to gain a lot of it back. My Dad has gained 20 pounds back in the past two years..

BE AWARE OF EVERYTHING.

If you really need a tool to help assist with your weightloss, I would go with the band! I have it and it is the best thing I have ever done for myself... good luck and keep us updated!

I agree with some of the others- it doesn't sound like you are big enough to need the surgery.

However if you do choose to get one I would try to sort out your issues with food beforehand. I have known 2 people personally- One had Bypass & the other lap band. After a year or two they both went right back up to where they started & one is even bigger.

You've got to make big changes to lose weight & you've got to be really committed whether you use surgery or not.

Neither... It's just un-natural...and wrong...I'm sorry :frown: I do however wish you the best of luck in whatever it is you chose to do!

not everyone can loose eight with just changing their eating and excersising ome have medical problems that prevent that and bypass can help with that

Also I lost 22pounds in 4 weeks, eating well and being active. When people ask me how I did it, they look sooo disapointed when I tell them...eating well and being active. What did they want me to say? I eat maccers and don't excercise.... You can do it without risking your life or your health and well being!

I'm not a fan of any elective MAJOR surgery. I don't want to be mean, just my opinion. Just because it has become somewhat routine, does not mean that it should be taken lightly or even semi-lightly.

Where we live we have to have a 2 year course to teach us about food, nutrition, exercise etc etc and we have learnt a lot, they do not just take you in a operate, all health issues and your past is looked at too. I am also having this done on the NHS as i also live in the UK. If i had the money i would have just gone and had it done but this way i am learning all the things i will need to know before and after the op....