Gastric band v gastric bypass - your thoughts

years ago a good friend of my mother who is a nurse tried talking me into the gastric band. I was the perfect candiate. nearly 500 lbs. I refused. I'll do it the non surgical way. hope whatever you decide works for you.

Hi,
yesterday i went to a seminar to decide if i wanted to opt for a bypass or a band. ive been under the hospital on a programme for this for the last 6 months and originally i wanted a bypass but the risks are much higher so it seems.
both are done laparoscoply.
i was far from the hugest person there. i weigh 227 pounds at present.
battled with my weight my entire life and never get very far.
after several years ive come to the conclusion that i need a helping hand. not an easy answer, just some assistance to help my achieve some serious weightloss or i WILL only get fatter. i just know it.
i'm 33, have 4 young kids. the eldest is 8. no health complications and i dont smoke.. bloody love vodka tho!
so i was basically wondering if anyone has any thoughts or experiences on this topic??
thanks

I'll gladly accept the penny for my thoughts, even though I'm throwing my two cents in... (somebody's making a penny)

Speaking on a purely financial level, if you can avoid the EXPENSE of having the surgery--either one--I would recommend NOT doing it. Even if you have insurance, you're going to have to jump through hoops to meet the requirements before they will pay for it. And I don't know about you, but with the way things are going with insurance these days, you may be fighting a different battle after the surgery is done. I'm still getting bills for things my then-insurance company isn't paying because my insurance changed about two weeks after I had the surgery.

I had the LAP-BAND surgery on January 18 of this year.

Now, if you're insistent on having one or the other, I personally would lean toward the LAP-BAND. Unlike the bypass, the LAP-BAND is adjustable. It's not made to be removed once you have it in, but it can be adjusted once it IS in. And there is less risk for having the band than getting the bypass.

Yes, you are going to have to make some life changes, in particular what you eat and how you exercise...meaning, if you're not taking smaller bites of more nutritious food and not exercising, you're basically just wasting your money having the surgery. And yes, this site can help you make some of those changes, regardless of whether you get the surgery (I've only been on this site for 2 months). But where I feel the LAP-BAND can help is helping you make sure you're eating properly. If you don't eat properly, you'll be running to the bathroom to speak to Ralph Hurley (my nickname for my LAP-BAND).

The LAP-BAND is a _tool_ to aid in your weight loss; it's not a cure-all. The bypass will help you lose weight quicker, but you will also plateau quicker (and also run the risk of gaining it back, especially if you drink...my former roommate's sister is a good example of this. She had the bypass, lost a lot of weight, but was too fond of alcohol and gained it all back...and then some).

I am sorry that there are people who very anti-surgery, and for those who are, I implore you to please make sure you have all the facts before jumping to any negative conclusions. Do the research. No, surgery isn't for everyone...in fact, there is nothing in this world that is ideal or suited for everyone. And while you're absolutely entitled to your opinion, just remember that constructive criticism is generally accepted more.

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.
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True and elective, but to get there takes months!!! At least 10 months for me. I had the Gastric Bypass on August 16th. I maybe lucky but I was out of the hospital by friday noon. I also had two hernias. One was the size of an orange. The agjustment time is your time to get all your protein, taking your vitaimins 3 times a day and less than 10 grams of suger per serving. Always making sure your portions are about the size of a hard boiled egg. The gastric bypass is only a tool. You will be on a diet for the rest of your life. But I wouldn't change my decission ever!!! My surgeon wouldn't call it routine by any means. He puts his life into it. there is also a program that I am in to make it effortless. I can talk to any of the RN's or Dieticians the Hospital has. It a beautiful program!!! It's like weight watches on steroids. It is all routine (Dieting). Same program, only mine cost more.

I had Gastric Bypass. I was 270-280 pounds, on a 5'4" frame. I"d do it again in a heartbeat.
You don't seem to weigh enough for bypass. There are incredible amounts of testing you have to go through for both surgeries.

I'll be 5 years out in Feb. I am at 150. I am looking to lose 10-12 pounds. I need major skin removal surgery (Which i cannot afford to do) I have major body issues. Sagging skin, boobs, stretch marks. I do think alot of that is heredity, and the rapid weight loss.

I was not unhealthy when I had the surgery. NO major issues. However, two-three years ago, I had pancreatitis, which was a bummer. I have a bit of IBS, which can also be a pain. But is not hindering my life - I just wanted you to know everything.
My hair fell out, and is slowly growing back.

I am on anti-depressant meds. I thought weight loss would make me happy again. Nope. I still am the same person. Just a little more male attention, and female jealousy.

ANyhow - just a little 'fill in' for you. Every one is different. Feel free to ask anything you'd like.

add me as a friend. I did the bypass and have kept the weight off for 6 years. Many of my friends did the band and gained all the weight back. I have pics on my profile.

I had th4e lap band 3 years ago, I would not recomend it to anyone. I have had a horrible time with it. If you say that you are addicted to eatting the "wrong" foods, well that doesnt change. You will still crave them and eat them. I throw up everyday, sometimes from just water! I feels like you are dying. People try to convince me to not have the surgery but once I heard that I could get approved there was no stopping me. Please listen to everyone on here and do it yourself. It is actually harder when you have surgery because you will feel like **** and then have to change your eatting habit,excersise and then go to appt. I have not lost any weight and kept it off. Now I am starting from scratch like everyone else on here. Eat healthy and excersise!!! If you have any questions please email me: galpals00@yahoo.com

...and honestly the surgery may be a risk and may be unhealthy but if its what you wanna do is get sick when you even think about food or look at food then thats fine i wish you the best of luck and its gotta be better than the risks being obese bring.

I'm afraid this is a very, very biased point of view and is not at all the norm with either form of surgery, particularly lapband. Remember, if you were able to go to support groups across the US, you would find that the majority of people who have problems with the surgery are either those who choose not to comply with the guidelines they were given PRIOR To their decision to have surgery or they are part of the minority who actually had complications or their bodies do not agree with the surgery, but if you read the statistics, the people who were naturally not compatible with the surgeries are very small compared to the successes and after so many years of research, experience and statistics, the surgeons are much better at identifying those people prior to surgery.

For some people who are extremely obese, injury, heart attack, stroke, etc. are perhaps higher risks than the risks of surgery. I do know that the main reason the insurance companies actually support weight loss surgery is because they have determined that STATISTICS prove that weight loss surgery is so successful that the companies reduce their exposure by paying for the surgery. People only tend to gripe when things don't work out as they planned, especially here on MFP where there are so many haters of WLS. Again, the best place to get REAL information is a large weight surgery support group. You can talk to the patients themselves.

Everyone has their own opinion about whether to have surgery or not & only you can decide if it's right for you. My husband had the band & I did try to discourage him from it at first, though after really trying to understand what his reasons were for it, I did support his decision & I believe it was right for him.

That said, you need to be aware that whether you have surgery or not, you will need to change the way you eat to get the weight off. The surgery will just force it upon you. And you can eat your way around any surgery. Whether you have bypass or a band, if you don't follow your nutritionist's guidelines, you can stretch out your stomach & be right back to those old habits that made you overweight.

I chose not to have surgery, though my dr did offer it up as an option at one time, & I did it "the hard way." Diet & exercise, nothing fancy. Both my husband & I have lost significant amounts of weight.

A huge difference I have noticed is that I care a great deal about the nutrition that's in my food. I make a point to be very aware of it, because my weight loss is dependent on what I eat. In his case, his losses post-op would have occurred no matter what he ate due to sheer restriction in quantity. Not to say he doesn't care what he eats, but he's not going to place the same value on nutrition as I do because his weight loss isn't hinging upon it. This is something I appreciate about having lost weight naturally...I've developed an appreciation for nutritious food that I didn't have before, & have a firm grasp of the connection between what I eat & how it impacts my weight.

Best of luck with your decision.

Wait a minute....with the band, your nutrition has everything to do with your weight loss! If you eat cookies, ice cream, soup, or any of a zillion liquid calories that easily pass through the band, you will NOT lose weight. The band restricts, but there are so many sugary, carb-laden foods that can prevent you from losing weight that you HAVE to keep to your nutritional goals in order to lose weight. I watch every gram of carbs, protein, sugar, fat and sodium that goes into my mouth. We have to log our food for the first 18 months, at least, and many of my friends from the office, still log, years out from the surgery.

I'm sure that there are some people like your husband, who doesn't keep track, but those are the people who are not following their doctors' instructions and they are very likely to gain the weight back eventually. The stomach doesn't "stretch out" with the band,beacause you do NOT have a pouch, but it's very easy to gain weight if you DO NOT watch what you eat.

I'm sorry to keep posting, but it is so difficult to read the misinformation, or lack of understanding that can be posted here!

I'm new here, I just joined a few hours ago. I am an RN (recovery room). We do tons of bariatric surgery here. The band is much safer. Really, I could say so much about this, but Ididn't read all the responses yet. But I will say this, I see very fewppl keep the weight off more that 5 years By-pass , well, I've seen some pretty scarey things. lots of them.

Stubby....I'm sorry that your hubby didn't take advantage of the opportunity afforded him with the band. Thanks for your clarification. I am sooooo afraid that someone who could REALLY benefit from the surgery will not go for the information because of something they read here that might not be a prominent problem, so I spend my days defending and trying to get out as many facts as possible. I hope that you both do well with both of your plans!

Just in my opinion, you;re not THAT overweight enough to require surgery. Plus, I'm anti-gastric bypass since a co-worker died after having it... and I know 2 other people who did as well

I started out at 302 on May 10th of this year and as of this morning I am 2.6 lbs from losing 50lbs. I work full-time, 12 hour shifts and I am a single mom. It's hard work, but it is SO worth it!

I also work in healthcare and have had people die and nearly die living in the hospital in icu and then rehab for 9 months following the surgery...I agree that you can do this. Unless you get control, you'll re-stretch your stomach and regain anyway. the risks are too great in my opinion - and if you give yourself 3 months on here you'll see results easily.

In any case, I wish you huge success in whatever avenue you take...in the meantime until your surgery, try this and take your measurements...see how far you come fast er than you expect. Best luck

Hi,
yesterday i went to a seminar to decide if i wanted to opt for a bypass or a band. ive been under the hospital on a programme for this for the last 6 months and originally i wanted a bypass but the risks are much higher so it seems.
both are done laparoscoply.
i was far from the hugest person there. i weigh 227 pounds at present.
battled with my weight my entire life and never get very far.
after several years ive come to the conclusion that i need a helping hand. not an easy answer, just some assistance to help my achieve some serious weightloss or i WILL only get fatter. i just know it.
i'm 33, have 4 young kids. the eldest is 8. no health complications and i dont smoke.. bloody love vodka tho!
so i was basically wondering if anyone has any thoughts or experiences on this topic??
thanks

I had gastric bypass back in 2009. The best decision I ever made. I suggest you dont ask people who havent experienced it to tell you that you " shouldnt" do it. www.obesityhelp.com is an awesome way to research your options. Me personally had been extreamly obese most of my life. So I did it to save myself. I still have to watch what I eat. I did go to rehab after gastric I became a raging alcoholic. When I was in treatment there were 3 other girls there that had also became that. You can message me or check out my profile if you have any questions!

Wow I've been reading through all these posts (although I can see this topic has died), because my doctor has me on a 1500 calorie diet and in 6 months will refer me to a bariatric surgeon for gastric bypass. For those who say that its as easy as eat less burn more, I beg to differ. I am at 294 pounds, and I'm 5 ft 9 in. I have hypothyroidism, which even with medicine causes me great difficulty in losing weight. I've been trying for the past 6+ years to shake off my 115 pounds (the doctor recommends I be at 180 because of my large frame), and I just can't. I've done weight watchers, lost 30 pounds in a year's time, but when I could no longer afford to go, I gained it all back plus 15 more. I am a very busy person so while I may not have actually been able to go to the gym (I work full time, go to college full time working on my undergrad, I have a 7 year old daughter, I'm a volunteer firefighter, and I was planning my wedding). I don't get the chance to eat a lot because I'm so busy. My husband for my birthday upgraded his membership to the Ymca so I could go. My birthday was friday, I went yesterday and today, and I really feel hopeless when I do go. other than to go under the knife and get that extra help I need, I'm out of options.

Hypothyroidism causes the bodys metabolism to drastically slow down, and the body comes resistant to losing weight, or even to insulin, which can cause diabetes if the body doesn't use insulin properly. It causes you to feel chronically fatigued, sluggish, and even depressed. Having gastric bypass would alleviate a lot of these problems for me.

A few comments:

1. Have you ever considered trying a low-carb diet? Not necessarily Atkins, but even reducing net carbs to 100-150g can make a huge difference for some. Just a thought since you mentioned the insulin.
2. You mentioned feeling hopeless at the gym. That's because you don't have a plan. With any Y membership you get a free orientation with a personal trainer. You need to schedule that & have him/her walk you through the weight training & cardio machines to show you how they work, & help you figure out a routine you can live with. I can tell you now that if you go any less than 3x a week, you'll have a hard time sticking to it.
3. Everyone's busy. If you make time to do all that stuff you're doing, you can carve out 30-45 minutes 3 times a week to improve your health. How much more effective do you think you can be at all of those things you listed at a healthier weight?
4. Although your fatigue is partially a symptom of your condition, it is also easily improved by a better diet with sufficient protein & regular exercise. I used to drag my >300 lb *kitten* out of bed every morning & still be tired. Now that I've cleaned up my diet, I'm rarely tired or sluggish & my overall energy level has skyrocketed compared to a year & a half ago.
5. I'm not saying surgery is the wrong choice for you. But think carefully about why your other attempts failed. Pretty much any diet program works for at least a while if you commit to it, & having surgery requires a commitment to be much more diligent about your diet than you've ever been before, & there is little room for error. Nancy is a success story but I assure you she works very hard at staying on track & that is exactly why she IS a success story.

My doctor has broached the subject of gastric surgery to me before, I guess after seeing me stay fat for so many years he figured I wasn't going to do anything about it & something needed to happen. I knew that if I wanted to, he would support me going through the process, but I knew in my heart I hadn't given it an honest try on my own. I hadn't put 100% effort & commitment into a weight loss program & stuck with it long enough to say OK, I did try & it didn't work, so let go the surgical route.

So last May I finally did buckle down & decide I was going to do it for real, no matter what, no excuses, & I was just as busy as you are. Work, school, kids, in a wedding, sick relatives, deaths in the family, you name it. MY HEALTH IS TOO IMPORTANT TO BE AT THE BOTTOM OF MY PRIORITY LIST. I'm no good to any of my loved ones as a tired old fat lady who isn't even old.