for those considering band

DeniseG · May 5, 2004

I just wanted to give a suggestion to those who are thinking about getting banded, but are unsure if it is right for you. Of course, this is only my opinion. It is not scientific!!!!!

Do you eat alot of food?

Do you eat alot of sugar, but, not much food? or both?

Sugar and bad foods go down for the most part fairly easily with the lapband without restriction In fact, I feel fairly no restriction when it comes to junk food, so I have to avoid it at all costs.

Healthy foods sometimes go down very slow with the band which can be good, to keep you from eating too much, but, your head thinks your still hungry sometimes, you have to be careful in not eating bad food to feed the hunger pains.

If you don't have a problem with eating sugary foods you should have great success with the band.

I mention this because it is one of the most commonly asked question to me when people are thinking about getting the band, and I thought it might be helpful to you too

donali · May 5, 2004

Hi Denise -

I have read many posts regarding this subject, as some docs give the same advice you do, and many people who were "sugar eaters" insisted on being banded anyway and are doing great. I would have to say based on all that I have read that it is a myth that sugar-eaters do worse with the band. I am sure there are some sugar-eaters who do not do well, but there are certainly as many "volume" eaters who do just as poorly. Some people are unwilling to make the necessary changes.

For most people, the band affects the switch for appetite. Many sugar-eaters find that their drive to eat lots of sweets is just as effectively dimmed as the volume eaters drive to eat huge quantities of food.< /p>

Recommending the RnY over the LapBand because of dumping syndrome is also a disservice, as many RnYers do NOT have dumping syndrome, and for those that do, it often resolves itself after the 18-24 month window of RnY weightloss.

Sorry to disagree, but I feel this is misinformation.

DeniseG · May 5, 2004

I guess I should have put "In my opinion" only, or "From my experience only"

I am not recommending the bypass, obviously I had the band. Everyone should make their own choices as to if they want to have surgery and what type of surgery they want to have. Some will do better with the bypass some better with the band. Some shouldn't get either

shellyj · May 5, 2004

hey denise!

well i have always been a chocolate / soda / carb junkie.

i have committed to a COMPLETE lifestyle change! today i bought a diet coke and the promotion was ' buy a coke get a free snickers' now the cheapness in me took the free snickers but i gave that snickers away!!! pre-op i would have had a king size snickers and then ate 1/2 to 3/4 of steves k.s. snickers.

donali is right about dumping on 30% of rny'rs actually dump! so if you had RNY and didnt dump and were a major sweet eater that did not commit to major lifestyle change then...your screwed!

you are 100% right though about the junk foods, candy, milkshakes, refined carbs going down easy!

donali · May 5, 2004

Some will do better with the bypass some better with the band. Some shouldn't get either.

No truer statement has ever been spoken. Unfortunately, it is virtually impossible to tell with any certainty which category a person falls into until AFTER they have had surgery. Some patients who were thought would do poorly have excelled, and some who seemed to be excellent candidates have not done well at all.

Fortunately, in the LapBand's case, the majority of people do well. I am not as familiar with the long-term stats of the bypass as far as "majority" goes - I just know from personal association that once the body adjusts and begins to compensate for the caloric malabsorption of the RnY that some patients regain back some (and sometimes all) of their weight. Certainly that is not true of ALL RnYers. I have yet to hear of a bandster who has maintained restriction regaining their weight. However, I'm not sure I have heard of any bandster who has lost their band or had to have their fill removed for a long period of time being able to maintain their weightloss on their own. There must be some who have done it, but almost all of the posts I read from people in this situation have regained significant amounts of weight, and these people do not start losing again until they are rebanded/refilled.

The kind of help we need in our weightloss journey is PERMANENT help - that is why "diets" and pills do not work in the long run - they are not designed to be permanent solutions, and most people do not start a diet or pills with the idea of doing it for the rest of their lives.

Being banded is a way to help us eat less for the rest of our lives - a daunting task for us to do on our own, when we are constantly hungry, but achievable with good restriction and dedication on our part. The band is not the answer for everyone - but it is the least invasive, most reversable "permanent" option available today.

That is why I chose the band. I have no problems with people choosing the RnY as long as they have factual information on all of their options. Everyone has to do what's right for them. There are no guarantees with either surgery - but both offer hope, which for many of us was in short supply prior to our surgical journeys.