decisions decisions

[wheels 0]

Hello I am new to the board. My story is this ...I am in the process of deciding which surgery to have . I have a surgeon and he is very good. Waiting on insurance and wont have the surgery until May or June . I am 48 , 49 in a few weeks male. I lost a lot of weight in my lifetime . I weighed as much as 419 pounds back in the late eighties. I now weight around 290. Sounds good But decieving. I list weight on weight watchers and was down to 260 a couple if years ago. The weight wants to come back. My choices are the lap band or the sleeve. My surgeon thinks I should do the sleeve. I cant decide. Please any help with peoples opinions would be appreciated.

[tiggergramma 129]

I have no experience with the sleeve, but read enough about it before being banded to know I did not want to go that route. Why does your doctor recommend it for you?

It sounds as though you have pretty good control, being able to keep that much weight off for so long. With the band as a tool to help with Portion Control and your ability to control your food choices, you might do fine with the band.

I would be asking your surgeon for the reasons he is recommending the sleeve for you and why he does not think the band will be as successful, then decide.

[Baba Wawa 543]

Hello I am new to the board. My story is this ...I am in the process of deciding which surgery to have . I have a surgeon and he is very good. Waiting on insurance and wont have the surgery until May or June . I am 48 , 49 in a few weeks male. I lost a lot of weight in my lifetime . I weighed as much as 419 pounds back in the late eighties. I now weight around 290. Sounds good But decieving. I list weight on weight watchers and was down to 260 a couple if years ago. The weight wants to come back. My choices are the lap band or the sleeve. My surgeon thinks I should do the sleeve. I cant decide. Please any help with peoples opinions would be appreciated.

I wish that I knew of the sleeve and my ins covered it at the time I was banded. My only option was band or RNY. I can't have malabsorptive surgery, so band it was. Read my blog or my post "my Lapband story, long but worth reading". So many of the people I've known over the last 5 years have had their band removed, revised, mostly to VSG, and have long lasting damage from their bands. I have a GI motility disorder now, requiring new medications and it is having a huge negative effect on my quality of life.

Banding requires a lot of follow up care and even if you do everything "right" things can go wrong, leaving you with the prospect of additional surgeries. PM me for more info. Ask your doctor why VSG is better than band.

[2muchfun 8,927]

You might want to venture over to the http://www.verticalsleevetalk.com/ site and ask the question? You won't find any sleevers revising to band but you will find some bandsters who revised to the sleeve. I would imagine some may not have nice things to say about the band as some people cannot adapt to the banded life. It is a lot of work and requires a lot of discipline. But lurking on both sites would be recommended if you're up in the air over which one to choose.

tmf

[wheels 0]

Thanks. To both. I Did check out the sleave site also. Much more people are on this site. My surgeon likes the sleeve and its non reverseable. The idea of the sleeve scares me a bit, the band is less envasive. But I have heard that the band is high maintence and fills are not insured . I just dont know the Long term sucess of the sleeve. Thanks for listening!

[wheels 0]

Thanks. To both. I Did check out the sleave site also. Much more people are on this site. My surgeon likes the sleeve and its non reverseable. The idea of the sleeve scares me a bit, the band is less envasive. But I have heard that the band is high maintence and fills are not insured . I just dont know the Long term sucess of the sleeve. Thanks for listening!

[Baba Wawa 543]

Thanks. To both. I Did check out the sleave site also. Much more people are on this site. My surgeon likes the sleeve and its non reverseable. The idea of the sleeve scares me a bit, the band is less envasive. But I have heard that the band is high maintence and fills are not insured . I just dont know the Long term sucess of the sleeve. Thanks for listening!

The band is "removable" not reversible...after having it around your stomach for a while, scar tissue will form (that's what holds it in place) making removing it more difficult than implanting it. It's NOT "less invasive", laparoscopic surgery is less invasive than open surgery, so when you see the term "less invasive" that's what they're referring to...it's the method of surgery, not the reason for the surgery.

The band is high maintenance and fills are usually covered unless you are self pay. Everyone, with one or two exceptions, that I know (dozens) who revised to VSG from band are very pleased with the result, most reaching goal and able to maintain. They also say they are able to eat everything, but in a small quantity. Those who had a lot of band damage do have a more difficult recovery, and some have continued left shoulder pain, vagus nerve problems long after band removal. I'm at a place where I most likely will lose my band soon, most likely will revise to VSG. I was very compliant, but still have complications...as I sit here trying to eat yogurt with kashi, I'm reminded that this is no way to live. I love being 88 lb lighter, but hate how my GI tract feels...

[Kime-lou 648]

Either surgery requires commitment and dedication to make it work. Research online what each surgery does physically to your body and what is expected after surgery. That may help you make up your mind. It is totally your decision and both can be very successful if you make it so.

My surgeon said the biggest thing was the commitment to appointment. You must go back much more often if you get the band than you do with the sleeve. So if you surgeon is a long ways a way that may be an issue. Also, if you have trouble takeing the small bites and chewing well the band can cause a few more issues (notice I said a few).

Good luck on whatever you choose.

[DELETE THIS ACCOUNT! 12,703]

I personally couldn't justify hacking off 3/4 of my healthy stomach without trying something less drastic first. I also didn't want to deal with malabsorbtion or dumping. So, for me, the band was the logical choice.

A lot of doctors try to sway their patients towards the Sleeve or Bypass because it's less maintenance and makes them a lot more money. So, be very specific with your doctor and ask why he prefers the Sleeve.

I heard all the horror stories about the band, had people tell me I wouldn't lose enough with the band, and all kinds of other nonsense. The fact is, only 8%-12% of bands are removed due to complications that are no fault of the patient. The rest are because of something the patient did to cause the problem. Chronic over-eating, eating around the band, drinking carbonation, having a band too tight, or even vomiting regularly can (and will) cause complications. So when you hear people talk about how their "band failed" take it with a grain of salt. More often than not it's the patient who failed not the band that failed.

I would encourage you to read up on the facts of both procedures. Read actual medical facts, not anecdotal evidence. In the end you have to do what's best for you regardless of what anyone else thinks.

Best wishes on whichever you choose.

[FLORIDAYS 3,040]

I was banded in December 2010 and have lost 221 lbs. I chose the band because I didnt like the idea of rearranging my anatomy or doing anything that could not be reversed should the need arise. I follow all the band rules to a fault and so far it hasnt failed me. If it does in the future I will deal with it.