Anyone consider Gastric Bypass after failed attempts with LapBand?

[jst4kel 1]

I was banded Jan 08 and was very happy with my band. By August 09 I had lost 86 lbs, but began vomitting often and not keeping much solid food down. By Sept 09 I was admitted to the hospital for a weekend stay and my band was emptied of all 6cc saline. I was told that my stomach had gotten so swollen that it was almost completely closed at the band. I was left unfilled for 6 weeks and in that time I gained 35 lbs. I had 2 adjustments by Jan, but had no restriction and have now gained back 55 lbs. My doctor can't find a reason that my band is not giving me restriction, so he suggested changing my path and choosing bypass or the sleeve. Just wondering if anyone has come across this. Thanks for any input.

[Nanook 2]

jst4kel,

I did not have the same issues as you did but have revised from lap band to RNY and have been very pleased with the results so far. Hopefully you have a good doctor/support system to help you look into your options for revision. Also there is another wl forum called www.obesityhelp.com that actually has a revisions section where people revise from and to every WLS out there and it was very helpful to me when I was making my decision. Anyway good luck and health to you, Nancy.

[Kelleigh710 0]

If you can beleive it, I'm a different boat. I had the gastric bypass 10 years ago and have gained back all but 30 pounds. I will be having a lapband placed over my gastric pouch on 6/29. My advice, whatever you choose, just treat your WLS tool well, and it will do the same to you. I wish I had done it right the first time around, but will now take care of this new tool and investment :thumbup:

[AdamY 0]

My non-medical advice would be to take advantage of every adjustment opportunity before having another surgery. Another surgery brings on another set of risks, another large expense and a new set of rules to live by.

Has your provider performed a barium swallow to check your band for dilation or prolapse? If not, it's definitely time make a provider adjustment and talk to another provider. You should make sure you aren't struggling with a complication that can be easily fixed. I'm leery of surgeons who quickly offer up another surgery too quickly.

Has your band been adjusted properly? If you only had two fills after a major unfill, you might not have enough in the band to get restriction. It can take quite a few fills to fit an adjustable gastric band. Remember that some people take over a year to feel restriction, depending on your provider's technique and your unique physiology, which may have altered due to the swelling.

Finally, do a thorough and very honest review of your own activities to see if it's time for a behavior adjustment. Do some food journaling and compare that to what your rules are. Same thing with exercise. Are you eating the proper things to nourish yourself and encourage your band to provide that restriction? Everyone cheats with LAP-BAND Slider foods, but we can easily mislead ourselves into believing that we don't cheat that much. A food journal could help if that's a problem. You could also attend a local LAP-BAND Support Group to help troubleshoot behavior in a nonjudgemental environment.

Please get a second opinion before going through the risk and expense of another surgery. Let us know how it goes.