Hi, I have had the same problem and find myself also wishing I had done the gastric bypass. The band just doesn't seem to work for me like it does for some people. I experienced the same thing you did and decided to have all the fluid taken out and give my will-power a go, I have since gained 20 lbs from the day of my surgery. It has been 2 and a half years since I have had any fluid in my band. I find myself absolutely miserable with my present weight and am trying to weigh all the options. The band was always either too loose where I could eat pretty much anything, except bread; or too tight, where I couldn't even get down a sip of hot tea. I also could never eat anything before 6:00pm, I could only drink water. Then, after 6:00, I would start to eat, throw up, eat, throw up, eat, throw up, then suddenly I felt something happen and could eat whatever I wanted. I would find myself eating way too much because I knew that it would be 24 hrs. before I would be able to eat again. Not my idea of fun, and definately not the way the band should work. I have never found the band to work for me and am wondering if I should give it one last go now that it has been so long, or just have the thing removed and converted to gastric bypass. Soooo confused. I too feel like a failure.:confused2: Michelle