Band Vs. Sleeve - Freaked Out...

[SashaWLS 412]

I was SURE I was going to get the sleeve. There are 100 reasons from the ghrelin elimination to not wanting a foreign body in me, to hearing horror stories about the band, and the list goes on... But the surgeon today really really strongly advises getting the band for the safety ratings, and he's talked me out of getting the sleeve...

But now I'm home, and I'm sitting here crying. It feels irrational, but I'm so scared that I won't be successful. That I'll get surgery and just continue to be a big fat failure at losing weight just like I always have been. So many people say they stop losing or gain it all back. And I just don't trust myself to muscle through it. I don't WANT to be on Weight Watchers again. I already lost 75 pounds and gained it back. I don't WANT to never be able to eat rice again. But I really really don't want to be fat anymore.

I don't know what to do... I don't have the right to put my life at risk and get a surgery where I could have major life complications.

It all just feels hopeless.

Have you been where I am?

[KellyL 173]

I'm sorry you are going through this, I know it's not an easy decision. But I would not let anyone pressure me into a surgery that I didn't feel 100% comfortable with. Do you know how many sleeves this surgeon has performed? It's not very common any more for Surgeons to promote the Band over the Sleeve, so it would concern me that maybe he's just not as comfortable doing the Sleeve if he hasn't done that many? Is he aware of the high # of complications and revisions from being Banded? Is there another surgeon who has equal experience, that you might consider or at least get a second opinion? Keep reading and researching til you feel comfortable with your decision, there is complication and revision threads in most of these forums if you haven't already read them. Good luck!!

[SashaWLS 412]

The surgeon is Dr Fielding at NYU in ny... He's supposedly one of the world leaders in all bariatric surgeries... For him it's a numbers game. Having a leak is HORRIBLE and possibly fatal, and the band has nearly equal weight loss over a 5 year period...

I don't know, I'm really upset.

[Foxbins 625]

I'm sorry you are going through this indecision...however, did your surgeon mention the complication rate with the band? Over 30%! (you can check the LapBand manufacturer's website yourself). Did he mention PB'ing? (Productive burping, otherwise known as regurgitation) Did he tell you food can get "stuck" in the stoma? Also weight loss with the band is not as good as with the VSG, at least not VSGs done in the past 3-4 years. Sleeve sizes have decreased and weight loss has increased as surgeons got more data on the optimal size of the sleeve. VSG leaks are primarily caused by surgeon error (and the vast majority of them heal over time) so I wouldn't let the possibility of a leak scare you. If you're in NYC there are a number of experienced VSG surgeons there. If it were me, I'd find one and get the surgery I wanted.

[missmeow 156]

I'm having the same indecision. At first, I was adamant about getting a band because it is reversible. When I went for my first consult, the surgeon was advocating the opposite of yours--that I should consider the VSG. Then reading all of the complaints about the band and the fact it will probably have to come out in 5 years anyway had me almost 100% for VSG. Then I started reading how much is actually taken out. Some sites say 75% but it seems like everyone here is at 85%-90%. I have concerns at that level primarily because of the risk of complications that would force me into a total gastrectomy and the long term effects of vitamin/mineral nutritional deficiencies. I see VSG blog where there is constant deficiency even if the person is eating a normal calorie intake (like 1500 or so). That worries me as to what happens 30 years from now?

So I feel your pain.