Rosie O’Donnell Makes Hurtful Comments About the Lap-Band on “The View”
Ms. O’Donnell herself is a gastric sleeve patient who had struggled with her weight throughout her professional life. She got the procedure done in July of 2013, and has since lost about 50 pounds.
Upsetting Effects of Ms. O’Donnell’s Words
Ms. O’Donnell not only insulted Governor Christie, but also every lap-band patient. She stated outright that the lap-band has a 50 percent rate of removal, and is an inefficient way to lose weight. She strongly implied that anyone who gets the lap-band chooses to do so because they haven’t done enough research.
This kind of divisiveness between weight loss surgery patients is harmful to everyone who is affected by obesity. Weight loss surgery can literally save lives and give people back their quality of life. It can be the only way to lose weight for many people. The only way to improve weight loss surgery outcomes and acceptance is to provide a unified front. When someone like Ms. O’Donnell bashes lap-band surgery, it only adds to the public’s general misconception of weight loss surgery as a foolish choice.
The Lap-Band Is a Good Choice for Many
The gastric sleeve is the right choice for some weight loss surgery patients, and it may have been the right choice for Ms. O’Donnell. For other patients, the lap-band is the right choice – and, in contrast to Ms. O’Donnell’s accusations, they can arrive at that decision after careful research. They may be hesitant to permanently remove most of the stomach, as in the gastric sleeve, and may value the ability to adjust their bands.
There’s no shortage of evidence that the lap-band can work. In fact, it may even be working for Governor Christie! He will not publicly discuss specific numbers, but he’s clearly lost weight since getting the lap-band in February of 2013. Rumor has it he’s down 85 pounds, but he hasn’t confirmed this amount.
A Better Choice of Words
Ms. O’Donnell is certainly entitled to her opinion, but it doesn’t seem necessary for an influential celebrity to insult all lap-band patients in front of millions of viewers on national television.
- She could easily have praised the gastric sleeve and all that it has done for her without bashing the lap-band.
- She could have discussed why she chose the sleeve over the lap-band and gastric bypass.
- She could have praised Governor Christie for his weight loss without insulting his choice of weight loss surgery.
How Can “The View” Make Amends?
“The View” could have handled the situation a little differently. The show could have done something as simple as asking Ms. O’Donnell for evidence for her claims. For example, where did she learn that half of all lap-bands are removed? That flies in the face of what patients learn from their surgeons, who spend years studying the lap-band and other types of weight loss surgery.
There’s still time to make amends and show weight loss surgery patients some respect. “The View” could dedicate a segment of a future show to discussing weight loss surgery more accurately. Any number of bariatric surgeons and allied health professionals could serve as credible guests in an informative interview.
Make Your Voice Heard!
What you think matters to Hollywood celebrities and TV shows. Their success depends on your approval and continued support. If you want to weigh in on how you feel about Ms. O’Donnell’s insensitive comment about the lap-band, why not tell her and “The View” what you’re thinking? You can tweet them at @Rosie and @theviewTV to explain how hurtful her words were. They’re on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/RosieODonnellOfficial and https://www.facebook.com/TheView.
Ms. O’Donnell may benefit from learning that the lap-band is a good choice for some weight loss surgery patients, and “The View” may learn that the show needs to take responsibility for presenting a more accurate picture of this – and any other – sensitive topic.
Alex Brecher
I am a native New Yorker who loves spending time with my children and working out at the gym.
I had struggled with my weight my whole life. Diets worked for me until I went off them and gained back more weight each time. Finally, a friend who used to be obese told me that he had gotten weight loss surgery. I could see how great he looked, and I got weight loss surgery in 2003. Thankfully, I can say that I have never looked back. It helped me lose more than 100 lbs. and keep the weight off since 2003.
I am the founder of BariatricPal and proud of everything that it means to the entire weight loss surgery community. Together, we can fight obesity and work toward living healthier lifestyles!
You can view The BIG Books on Weight Loss Surgery book series at the BariatricPal Store.
Star Jones had a bypass a few years ago. It was no secret; she talked quite openly about it.
She talked about it after keeping it on the down-low (as was her right) for nine years post-op.
http://www.today.com/health/star-jones-her-weight-loss-i-wasnt-plus-size-i-1C9381962
She talked about it after keeping it on the down-low (as was her right) for nine years post-op.
http://www.today.com/health/star-jones-her-weight-loss-i-wasnt-plus-size-i-1C9381962
I didn't realize that so much time passed before she opened up. And as you say, it was her right to do so.
Absolutely! I was speaking of her results
Much of the research has been leaning towards the band as being subpar to the sleeve and/or bypass. I don't watch the view, but I know Rosie o'donnell has always been outspoken and brazen in her comments.
I think that we shouldn't take offense to her comments, just know that she may have the same information that many of us have seen on the band. I spoke with one surgeon who doesn't even perform band surgeries anymore.
I chose the sleeve for my own reasons and believe everyone is entitled to what they want done with their body. One surgeon told me
I should have bypass, but I knew that that wasn't right for me.
Good luck to anyone that chooses to pursue weight loss surgery as a means to better their health.
Rosie is known for her outrageous comments! Of course she is going to criticize other surgeries because she did not choose that one. Does not make her view on the View right. Somewhere out people will start to realize that all weight loss surgeries are the tool for those of us that are at that point in our lives where we need help. Like she did!
That is what she should be focusing on not the procedures themselves. I don't watch the view either. Too jumbled with a lot of tension.
Wake up folks! She didn't make her comment because it wasn't the procedure she chose for herself. She made it based strictly on the fact that Christie's politics don't match up with hers. If it had been a fat Democrat who had made that choice, her whole tone would have been completely different. She is an extremely rude, highly partisan, big mouthed pig (I don't care how thin she gets either) who lives to hurt others who don't think just like she does. I used to watch the view, but after they brought her back on the 2nd time, that was all I could take.
When I had my sleeve done about one third of the other folks on the Bariatric wing were originally banded and had to go through getting it taken out in order to be sleeved. Frankly, I think she's right. There may be some successes with the band but the lower rate of loss and the even more rapid rate of regain seems to indicate that, in general, it isn't the optimum choice if you want to lose weight and keep it off.
Aside from the political rants above, there are two actual issues raised by Rosie's comments:
1. She dissed the lapband's effectiveness, angering lapband patients who found and/or still find the band successful for themselves (whether they still have the band or have had it removed). Should she have done that?
2. She "divided" the WLS community where (I did not know this until Rosiegate) that it's politically incorrect to say that one WLS procedure is less effective or desirable than another. Did she cause a division?
My take on Rosiegate is that it's illogical to deem off-limits debates about the relative effectiveness of WLS procedures within, of all places, the WLS community. Every prospective WLS patient has to deliberate about and decide which form of WLS is appropriate for them. It's one of the biggest decisions about WLS we all made.
FTR, I'm 6 1/2 weeks post-VSG-op. I've never had a lapband, but it was the procedure I first explored with my surgeon, since I had thought lapband and gastric bypass were the only two WLS options. Until he described the sleeve, I had never heard of it.
My surgeon (who has done thousands of all three WLS procedures--and supports his past lapband patients) discouraged me strongly from having the lapband citing these facts, based on his education and experience and the experiences of thousands of his WLS patients over the past 10 years:
* The lapband wasn't designed to be a permanent fixture in the human body,
* Fills / adjustments can be difficult to get right,
* The band works imperfectly for many patients in helping them to lose weight,
* Patients find it easy to game/cheat the lapband, obviating the lapband's efficacy,
* Most lapband patients regain their weight when the band is removed, and
Those of us who are sleeved have met online many banded patients who wish to transition from the band to the sleeve. Some of their stories of banded life are horrific, particularly about stomach damage caused by their bands that sipped or eroded.
Therefore, this forum and its members don't want to discourage anyone from discussing WLS procedures' pros and cons, their continuing / changing utility, and their risks.
And now that I know more about the three WLS procedures, I agree with the gist of Rosie's comments about the band. What would be very interesting to me would be a civil discussions about which procedure is appropriate for whom and which one(s) are NOT. The decision tree can't be that complicated.
Maybe Rosie needs think of try to lose weight or jog around the block a few times.
Aside from the political rants above, there are two actual issues raised by Rosie's comments:
1. She dissed the lapband's effectiveness, angering lapband patients who found and/or still find the band successful for themselves (whether they still have the band or have had it removed). Should she have done that?
2. She "divided" the WLS community where (I did not know this until Rosiegate) that it's politically incorrect to say that one WLS procedure is less effective or desirable than another. Did she cause a division?
My take on Rosiegate is that it's illogical to deem off-limits debates about the relative effectiveness of WLS procedures within, of all places, the WLS community. Every prospective WLS patient has to deliberate about and decide which form of WLS is appropriate for them. It's one of the biggest decisions about WLS we all made.
FTR, I'm 6 1/2 weeks post-VSG-op. I've never had a lapband, but it was the procedure I first explored with my surgeon, since I had thought lapband and gastric bypass were the only two WLS options. Until he described the sleeve, I had never heard of it.
My surgeon (who has done thousands of all three WLS procedures--and supports his past lapband patients) discouraged me strongly from having the lapband citing these facts, based on his education and experience and the experiences of thousands of his WLS patients over the past 10 years:
* The lapband wasn't designed to be a permanent fixture in the human body,
* Fills / adjustments can be difficult to get right,
* The band works imperfectly for many patients in helping them to lose weight,
* Patients find it easy to game/cheat the lapband, obviating the lapband's efficacy,
* Most lapband patients regain their weight when the band is removed, and
Those of us who are sleeved have met online many banded patients who wish to transition from the band to the sleeve. Some of their stories of banded life are horrific, particularly about stomach damage caused by their bands that sipped or eroded.
Therefore, this forum and its members don't want to discourage anyone from discussing WLS procedures' pros and cons, their continuing / changing utility, and their risks.
And now that I know more about the three WLS procedures, I agree with the gist of Rosie's comments about the band. What would be very interesting to me would be a civil discussions about which procedure is appropriate for whom and which one(s) are NOT. The decision tree can't be that complicated.
Geez..... This thread is like the gift that keeps on giving.....
I chose the lap band/plication because it leaves me with an option at a later date; the choice to reverse it if something changes in my life. I have ZERO judgement on what others have chosen for themselves. ZERO. I was scheduled for a bypass, but cancelled two weeks prior; too permanent for my personality type. When considering all surgery options, and forward thinking about illnesses that could arise in my aging years, I did not want to remove most of my stomach because I may need it for absorption of nutrients. AGAIN, no judgement on those who chose to go that route. Believe me, I love the idea of having surgery & being done; no fills, no whatever. But I'm very cautious when it comes to permanent changes to my body, and what I chose is what I can live with. To each his (or her) own.
Lets give this a rest already. I cannot stand Rosie O, and chalk up the crap that comes out of her mouth as her personal "agenda". Lets all live and be well with our choices. After all, we've lost weight, reversed co-morbidity health issues. There is no debate here. Live....and let live.
Edited by mrsto
I don't watch The View, maybe caught a couple episodes when it debut's. I thought the whole premise of the show was to get women of varying ages and varying opinions, to speak on certain topics so the public could realize there are a wide range of opinions on any given subject out there. I thought it was up to each individual watching to take the discussion, to form their own opinions..
I was banded in '09. due ortho injuries resulting in multiple surgeries, I wanted to have enough nutrients to heal well. I requested a slow. gradual fill which I'd hoped would coincide with the end of surgeries. 8 surgeries in 4 yrs; 2 with lots of blood loss that rendered me unknowingly, extremely enimic.
It hasn't been easy but I did lose 100lbs in those 4 yrs. In 2013, I experienced band complications of my own doing- picked up smoking cigs after 5yrs smoke-free, due to extreme mega- stress. The stress inflamed the band site. Smoking inflamed the band site, Alcohol increase inflamed the band site & a too-tight adjustment following the last of my surgeries further complicated already well-inflamed band site. I ended up awake all night with those uber annoying, hacking, night coughs. Then, the acid reflux. Burning all the way up my esophagus to my throat-OW! Then on top of the cough wake ups, I began also waking up an additional 2-3x's a night, vomiting blood that pooled in my tummy from the acid.
I had the band loosened & gained 15lbs in 4 mos. The gastric symptoms were treated with omniprozole & some other liquid tummy med & it healed nicely. The PA put back 1cc and it seems ok though there are nights I still cough all night. Still trying to figure out the new sweet spot. I've lost 10 of the 15lbs I'd gained so am now @ 95lbs lost, 5yrs out.
Even with all that, I'm not considering tossing the band and giving up. I'm pretty confident that once my mind's in a place where I have reduced that mega-stress enough to stop quitting smoking again, my tummy will stop being so inflamed & the band will again do its' job. I have 25-30lbs to lose to get to my goal weight.
I'm not offended by Rosie's comments @ all. It is what it is. My PA informed me the band has had a low success rate in general; that I'm an exception to the rule. So what!
I'm glad I'm still in the 50% group of band successes. I took Rosie's comments with a grain of salt; it's just her opinion based on whatever she knew @ that point in time. We've all done research to chose whichever WLS we get. What I discovered that informed my decision to get banded would probably offend the sleeve & RNY people. Who cares? We're all in this together, learning as we go, even Rosie.
Anyone who makes their WLS decision based solely on "Rosie said..." should maybe consider a lobotomy instead of WLS, IMHO.
Well, consider the source...small mind, big mouth... from someone who may be misinformed.
None of us are immune to big mouth syndrome. I'm glad to be an American who's (mostly) free to express my opinion in public on any subject - health included..
I'm happy with the weight loss my sleeve has made possible, but I still fiercely miss my band. Rosie's WLS opinions sound important because she's a celebrity, but being a celebrity doesn't automatically gift you with wisdom. In the end, Rosie is still a human being who will have to account for her life and choices when she meets her Maker. And any celebrity talking about any WLS procedure probably does us a favor by shining a light on the topic of morbid obesity and its treatment (surgical or otherwise) even if their commentary is negative.
mrsto 2,925
Posted
Star Jones had a bypass a few years ago. It was no secret; she talked quite openly about it.
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