Its like the Elephant in the corner

[Guest MARC]

Its like the Elephant in the corner no one wants to discuss. I was banded on 2/27/04. Lost 18 pouds in one week. I am a former college football player that lost a grip on eating. My highest weight day of surgery was 305. I am now 287 8 days later., however I am 6-2 tall. (Trust me proportions sound better than they really are at his stage of my life, lost alot of muscle mass.) Anyway, I really was interested in Gastric Bypass Surgery. My Dr, However felt this was a little extreme for my overall situation, and not being severely obsese. BMI on day of surgery was 40.1, Barely obtained Insurance authorization. I guess barely big enough for gastric banding. How do you guys feel. I really wish I had the malabsorbtion aspect as Gastric Bypass patients do. I kind of feel I only went half way with this thing. Not too mention we have to deal with fills. Rare, but possible slippage, etc. Don't get me wrong. I am happy thus far. I am afraid of weight gain when I am off liquids, but still cant have my first fill yet. Anyone else feel this way?, or chose to be banded instead and are happy with it?. I have two friends that went through GBS with Dr. Abkin in New Jersey and are doing great. Sorry if This eamil annoyed anybody, however I HAD TO BRING THIS UP>>>

[Alexandra 55]

Hi Marc,

Welcome to the site! Yours is an interesting perspective I haven't seen yet. Just about all of the people I've ever spoken with who have been banded chose the band as their FIRST preference over bypass. I have heard of a few people getting bypass later if the band didn't do what they had expected, but honestly, I've never heard of anyone whose doctor steered them toward the band when it wasn't their first choice. It's usually the other way around!

I totally agree with your doctor, though. Bypass sets up a permanent malfunction in your body and, in my opinion, is only appropriate for people with really significant health problems that immediate weight loss will improve. Banding takes more time, and possibly more "will power" on the part of the patient, but the effects on one's body are infinitely gentler and less severe.

I was banded by Dr. Abkin last summer and am absolutely thrilled with the results. A 40-lb loss in six months has improved my energy, strength, stamina, and appearance. I've had no negative side effects and not in danger of malnutrition. I don't have to take supplements and can eat whatever I want. I'm fully in control and am continuing to work on myself and my eating habits. That is something all of us have to do, whatever sort of surgery one has had. And IMO it's so much saner and safer to keep my plumbing the way it is and work on what I do wrong.

My take on the elephant in the corner: It's not really there. People who are banded usually had to go more than an extra mile to get there, and you won't see a lot of regrets or pining for a bad decision. Obviously there are struggles along the way, but as far as I can tell it's the rare bandster who really wishes they'd gone the other route.

[not2big42long 0]

Hi Alexandra,

Your comments are like a balm on a wound, very soothing. I wish I were already where you are but I will get there soon. I completely agree with you about the band, although I do not have experience to base my thoughts on yet. I only have what I have seen and researched. These were my thoughts on why I chose the lap band over GBS Marc I hope this helps:

Hi Marc,

First of all congratulations, I’m getting my band on 3/24. I think you made a good choice with the band. For one it is completely reversible. Although the malabsorbtive part may sound good, did you think about all the nutrients you also don’t absorb? Most having the GBS have to take a lot of supplements because their bodies have lost the ability to absorb them from food. They end up dealing with osteoporosis, anemia, and metabolic bone disease. The "dumping syndrome" in which food moves too quickly through the small intestine can cause nausea, weakness, sweating, faintness, and sometimes diarrhea after eating. There can also be an inability to eat sweets without severe weakness and sweating causing patients to lie down to let the symptoms pass. The enzyme needed to digest milk and other dairy products (lactase) does not reach food in the usual fashion and may not be able to fully digest milk. Undigested milk can lead to gas, cramping and diarrhea so you may need to avoid dairy products and eat foods that do not contain lactose (i.e. soy milk, lactaid). And the BIG fear with GBS is staple line break down or leakage, which leads to emergency surgery and a longer stay in the hospital. The great thing about fills is it means that what you had done is adjustable. You get to decide what your “sweet spot” is. When a GBS patient’s smaller stomach begins to stretch they have no other choice than to have another surgery. Also the massive amount of weight lost in a short amount of time with the GBS often causes massive loss of muscle mass. Losing a little slower and in a more controlled fashion is significantly healthier. After all the research I did and the actual part of seeing and doing the surgery, I do think they both play an important roll in weight loss. The band can easily be cheated where as the GBS will make you pay for the cheating. But the band has minimal side effects compared to that of GBS so I guess it’s up to the individual and whether they think they will try to cheat the band or do they need the retrictiveness of the GBS??? Can you tell I have been thinking about this for a while LOL? :laugh

Take Care and Good Luck,

[Alexandra 55]

Kathy, thank you for your post. It's so instructive to hear from someone really who really knows how both of the surgeries work. People often only hear "100 lbs down in three months" and think that's all there is to it.

Thanks again!!

[Guest tbone100]

Mark-

I was banded on the 21st of Feb, 2004. I weighed 240 and now I weigh 216. My second week that I just went through seemed to be a little slow but I am hoping that the next 4 weeks before my fill I will loss more. I would like to be filled sooner but I guess the doctors want to wait 6 weeks. I also run on my tredmill 1 mile a day. That is all I can do at this time. I haven't exercised since I was a cheerleader in college. Well let me know how you are doing. I have a feeling it will all work out.

Eryn

[donali 57]

Hi Marc -

Did you know that the malabsorptive part of the surgery is only temporary, in regards to calories, but PERMANENT in regards to nutrients?

That's right - eventually the body learns how to compensate for the calorie malabsorption, but the nutrient malabsorption never gets better.

My sister had the gastric bypass about four years ago. She lost tons of weight very quickly, and looked great. She got down to a size 18.

Now, she has regained almost ALL of her weight. She never learned how to change her eating habits. She's desperately trying to diet again, and her life and her weight is just like it was prior to the RNY, except that her insides have been cut and resectioned, and she faces the risk of having an emergency resurgery sometime in the future (as all RNY patients do).

In my year and 2 months of banding I have lost about the same amount of weight that she did in her first six months. However, as long as I keep my band and this restriction the weight I've lost will NEVER NEVER NEVER come back - because as long as I keep doing what I am doing (which is nothing really special, as I'm not dieting, and just hit and miss on exercise), then my weight will stay off. FOREVER.

So good for your doctors for recommending what I consider to be the better WLS for you.

If you do a lot of research on both procedures I would be surprised if you did not end up agreeing.

[Guest MARC]

I did not know about the Relapse possibilites with RNY. I fell alot better now. Thanks for the information...

[CandyB 0]

Hi Marc,

I'm new to this forum (joined last week), and I love what I'm reading. I wish someone in my surgeon's bariatric practice would educate him/herself by reading these threads. So far, they have been so UNhelpful about my after-care. I am amazed at how NONknowledgeable they are.

I, too, had thought I wanted a bypass. My thought was - If I'm going to do it, let me do it ALL THE WAY! But after attending a few support group meetings, which are made up of mostly bypassers, I didn't like what I was hearing about bypass - too many negative "side effects". I also thought- Why do more to my body than I have to? Maybe the less invasive approach Will work. I mean, you don't cut your finger off if you have a boo boo. You use a BAND-aid! (Get it?) So, I switched to the band. So did my sister, and we were banded on 2/24/04. The more I educate myself the more glad I am that I made the decision to go with the band. Reading these threads is so comforting because knowing what to realistically expect is exactly what I need to get me through this confusing pre-fill stage. So, I thank everyone from the bottom of my stomach for sharing and caring.

My best to you, CandyB, Monmouth County, NJ

[FDATrialGuineaPig 7]

Marc, with the band you have to be able to really think LONG term.

The average weight lost with the bypass at 5 years postop is 50%.

You can easily acheive that with banding, and in my opinion, it's MUCH easier to maintain with the band. You have the adjustability and you have to learn at a very early stage how to not sabatoge yourself.

I've seen people with the bypass who did nothing for the first 18 months face shock when they realize that if they don't start changing their habits, they're going to start gaining weight back.

I LOVE the Lapband. I've gotten to goal. It's taken me longer than if I'd had the bypass, but so what? I didn't get fat overnight. It's a learning process.

Plus, being a man, you will have a much easier time than us females . Trust me on that one!!

Good luck and congrats on your surgery.

[mkcarpen 0]

I love my band and I love the pace that I am losing the weight. I am not to tired to exercise.

I work with a girl that had the bypass 1 1/2 years ago. She lost 100 lbs. She is now dealing with an extremely low Iron level. She is now anemic. She wants to get pregnant but was just put on the birth control patch to try to increase her Iron. She is always tired and does not exercise. Because she has to take prescription her stomach gets upset and she does not feel like eating. I am sure that this is just the beginning of life long problems for her.

I also work with a man that got the band 1 year ago. He lost about 70 lbs within the first 6 months. He stopped going in for fills and hasn't put in much effort to keep the band working for him. I think he may be gaining weight back.

It is all what you put into it. I think you are going to be just fine. Give it some time.

Kathy

[quakergirl 2]

In addition to the higher risk of death and malnutrition, the RNY also has a lesser-known problem that might cause the surgery to be almost totally ineffective: Enlarged stoma.

That's when the opening they make between your stomach and intestines is too large and the food just slides right through the stomach pouch without making you feel full. The patient with an enlarged stoma feels hungry constantly, and it's a struggle to lose weight.

That is not a risk with the lap-band, since our stoma is adjustable.

In fact, with the lap-band, just about any problem you might have is pretty easy to fix, so I think as time goes on you'll be happier with your choice. Just be patient.