Hello from Los Angeles!

[BobBigBoy 0]

I actually live in Burbank, That's within Los Angeles county.

Anyways I'm new to the site & I'm hear to learn more about lap band.

I just completed a 12 week course at Kaiser about have WLS & yet when I completed the class I found myself having 2nd thoughts about it.

I was originally gonna go for the Gastric sleeve being its not as hard core with re-routing my insides..

But the long list of side effects has me thinking more about the lap band now.

I like the fact that I will still be able to sample different things to eat that could never try with the other WLS.

I plan to visit the UK. next year for example & would like to sample all the different foods they offer there vs whats available here.

& with the Lap Band I could still do this.

With the other 2 options it might be a bad idea.

If I get any sugar in my system it could ruin my vacation. :smile2:

Anyways, I'll have lots of questions for you guys, so dont say you were not warned..

[BobBigBoy 0]

Tomorrow I go back to see my WLS doctor & this time we're gonna talk Lap Band..

I'm told its completely different then what I was taught in my 12 week class....?

I guess I'll find out tomorrow at 10:30 am.

[BobBigBoy 0]

Seems Kaiser dont really like doing Lap Bands & neither does UCLA.

UCLA use to do it but no longer does....?

I was told 4 out of 5 people have the lap band removed within 3 to 4 years.

Some due to complications others seem to reach their goal weight & want it removed..

I gave a urine sample & gave about 15 vials of blood this morning so they can run all my lab test.

& then I'll be getting a call to set up a consultation with a doctor that does both the Lap Band & Sleeve, & so as I was told & it makes sense to have this talk with the surgeon that actually will be performing the surgery.

He will help me decide what direction I should choose.

The doctor I saw today said something that makes no sense to me.

He said sure you'll be able to eat Cookies & ice cream, But eating fruits & vegetables & such will be difficult to eat.

& thats when I told him I don't care much for Cookies & Ice Cream, what I like is red meat!

I also said well, that why the class taught us the importance of chewing & chewing & then chewing our food even more before swallowing..

I'm not what I'll finally do, but for now I'll keep riding my bike & doing a loose Atkins diet.

[maxi2010 0]

Hello BobbigBoy.

You really need to do more serious investigating about the different options. My brother had the Roux-En-Y (RNY) a few years ago. While he looks great because he lost a lot of weight, he has had multiple problems with this procedure. My brother has had severe anemia due to malabsorbtion of Iron where he needed to get a blood transfusion. He also has malabsortion of a number of nutrients and requires to give himself daily injections. While the sleeve does not have the same issues because your intestines are usually not rerouted, your pouch cannot be adjusted and it stretches over time, which could cause you to gain weight. Some surgeons look at the sleeve as an intermediate procedure for this reason and perform RNY on that patient later on. The LAP-BAND®®®® can be adjusted up or down, even years down the road.

While my brother lost a lot of weight with his RNY procedure, I see many people in this LBT forum who have lost just as much weight as my brother and have kept it off for years. However, with the LAP-BAND®®®®®®, more than the other two procedures, you need to be committed to keep with the program and to not cheat. By this I mean, you cannot eat high calorie foods that go down easily even with a band (like chocolate, ice cream, milk shakes) and still expect to lose or keep it off. You have to be committed to eat slow, chew your food well and wait 20 minutes to drink after eating. If you do these steps, you WILL lose weight and keep it off for the rest of your life. I really do believe that if you do the LAP-BAND®®®®® and are committed you will be able to lose just as much weight as the other 2 methods and you'll keep it off.

I can say that the band does work but know I am still new to this process. I had surgery on 9/17/10 but I now feel full for the first time in my life with small portions. I already lost 18 lbs. I just saw my doctor and she just cut my blood pressure dose in half. It's been less than 2 weeks since my surgery! People are already starting to notice my weight loss. However, while you lose a decent amount of weight at the start, you begin to slow down after a few weeks. You should know that with LAP-BAND®®®®®® surgery, it will generally will take longer to lose the weight because you lose the weight slower than with RNY or the sleeve. You lose, on average, about 1 - 2 lbs per week with the LAP-BAND®® while the RNY and sleeve you lose somewhat faster. However, if you look at patients who have the LAP-BAND®®®®®® vs sleeve vs RNY a few years out (like 2 years out), you will see they all have reached their goal weight and have lost the same amount of weight. There does not appear to be a significant difference in total weight loss for patients between these 3 bariatric procedures.

I choose the LAP-BAND®®®®®® because, 1) two years out you lose the same amount of weight with either the sleeve, LAP-BAND®®®®®® or RNY, 2) it is the least invasive procedure of the three, 3) LAP-BAND®®®®®® is a fully reversible procedure if you ever needed that option and the other two are not reversible or very hard to do it, 4) there is no rerouting of your digestive system, bypassing where your body absorbs your nutrients with the LAP-BAND®®®®®® making malnutrition, dumping and other side effects no longer a problem and 5) I am committed to following the LAP-BAND®®®®® program to keep my weight at an acceptable level. All these reasons and watching my brother get really sick at times made me choose the LAP-BAND®®®®®®.

Do your own research. Find a doctor who does perform lapbands as well as the other bariatric options. Make an informed decision.

Good luck with whatever you choose.

[BobBigBoy 0]

Hello BobbigBoy.

You really need to do more serious investigating about the different options. My brother had the Roux-En-Y (RNY) a few years ago. While he looks great because he lost a lot of weight, he has had multiple problems with this procedure. My brother has had severe anemia due to malabsorbtion of Iron where he needed to get a blood transfusion. He also has malabsortion of a number of nutrients and requires to give himself daily injections. While the sleeve does not have the same issues because your intestines are usually not rerouted, your pouch cannot be adjusted and it stretches over time, which could cause you to gain weight. Some surgeons look at the sleeve as an intermediate procedure for this reason and perform RNY on that patient later on. The LAP-BAND®®®®® can be adjusted up or down, even years down the road.

The sleeve was actually originally started in attempts to get the really big people down to a smaller size before preforming the RNY down the road but the results of the sleeve on it own proved very effective on its own.

& as you pointed out does not have the issues of re-routing the intestines as the RNY does so alot of the more serious issue don't present them selves as much if at all.

The Doctor I'm going to have my pre-op consultation with does both the lap-band & the sleeve & will help me decide what might be best for me.. :rolleyes2:

& sorry to hear about your brothers issues...

[maxi2010 0]

The sleeve was actually originally started in attempts to get the really big people down to a smaller size before preforming the RNY down the road but the results of the sleeve on it own proved very effective on its own.

& as you pointed out does not have the issues of re-routing the intestines as the RNY does so alot of the more serious issue don't present them selves as much if at all.

The Doctor I'm going to have my pre-op consultation with does both the lap-band® & the sleeve & will help me decide what might be best for me.. :rolleyes2:

& sorry to hear about your brothers issues...

Good luck with whichever one you choose - sleeve or lapband.

[BobBigBoy 0]

Good luck with whichever one you choose - sleeve or LAP-BAND®.

Thanks.. :drool: