Question for those who've gone from band to RNY

[mandi78 3]

Does it feel different than the band in relation to the feeling of fullness? I have had my band over 1 1/2 years and weigh about the same as I did before my band placement. I just cannot handle the feeling of pressure in my chest the band causes....the so called feeling of fullness so I drink to wash down the food because I cannot handle that pressure, it makes me feel like I'm suffocating. I'm wondering if when you have the RNY, is the feeling of fullness closer to the way you would normally feel full before having any type of bariatric surgery. Also, are the rules similar to band rules such as no drinking with meals, no soda, no large pills/vitamins, etc? Thanks.

[Nanook 2]

Mandi,

I've gotten the impression that there aren't that many RNY's here at lapbandtalk and it's a really good question as I'm revising to RNY myself in June.

[Headhunter 6]

Mandi,

I have had the "revision". I had a lap band, and now I am the "owner" of a bypass!

I find it hard to think of it as a "revision"....to me, revision sounds like an alteration of the original....but it's not. The RNY is a whole different thing.

Sometimes the band is NOT right for people, for a lot of reasons. The feeling of a foreign object in your body is problematic for many people.

In answer to your basic questions, the overall feeling IS more "natural" when you get full. Your stomach IS much smaller, and the feeling of fullness is real.

Some Drs advise to NOT have soda after a GB. Others say it's ok in small quantities. I found that if I had a little soda, it made me burp a lot easier than before the GB.

Some of the rules are the same. I have had a couple of complications with my GB, ....an ulcer, and a stricture. So, my "rules" have been a bit different.

If the band has NOt worked for you, you may find that a GB will. It certainly has for me. I am at a perfectly normal weight for my height/build for the first time in nearly 25 years. It wasn't easy, because there were some pretty serious complications that I experienced because of the damage that was caused as a result of the Lap Band being present. So, my recovery was much longer, and I have had the aforementioned complications, but in the end, I do believe that it was the right choice for me at this time.

If you have other questions, please feel free to ask......but remember, there is no ONE CORRECT method for everyone....we are all individuals, and we all respond differently to different procedures. You have not done well with the band, perhaps the RNY will be what you need.

HH

[Nanook 2]

Headhunter,

I am familiar with strictures as my daughter had one and had to be ballooned twice but what are signs of ulcers with RNY and where was the ulcer, thanks Nancy.

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

Mandi,

I have had the "revision". I had a lap band, and now I am the "owner" of a bypass!

I find it hard to think of it as a "revision"....to me, revision sounds like an alteration of the original....but it's not. The RNY is a whole different thing.

Sometimes the band is NOT right for people, for a lot of reasons. The feeling of a foreign object in your body is problematic for many people.

In answer to your basic questions, the overall feeling IS more "natural" when you get full. Your stomach IS much smaller, and the feeling of fullness is real.

Some Drs advise to NOT have soda after a GB. Others say it's ok in small quantities. I found that if I had a little soda, it made me burp a lot easier than before the GB.

Some of the rules are the same. I have had a couple of complications with my GB, ....an ulcer, and a stricture. So, my "rules" have been a bit different.

If the band has NOt worked for you, you may find that a GB will. It certainly has for me. I am at a perfectly normal weight for my height/build for the first time in nearly 25 years. It wasn't easy, because there were some pretty serious complications that I experienced because of the damage that was caused as a result of the Lap Band being present. So, my recovery was much longer, and I have had the aforementioned complications, but in the end, I do believe that it was the right choice for me at this time.

If you have other questions, please feel free to ask......but remember, there is no ONE CORRECT method for everyone....we are all individuals, and we all respond differently to different procedures. You have not done well with the band, perhaps the RNY will be what you need.

HH

What is the difference (meaning, what does it feel like) between a band stoma and a bypass stoma?

[Big Dan 2]

I would love to hear more information on this too. I lost my band due to erosion and my surgeon says he would be more comfortable having me do a RNY instead of getting another band. I am worried about the extra complications with the RNY and of its long-term success.

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

I would love to hear more information on this too. I lost my band due to erosion and my surgeon says he would be more comfortable having me do a RNY instead of getting another band. I am worried about the extra complications with the RNY and of its long-term success.

What about a sleeve? Better weight loss than banding, no malabsorption like bypass, and safer than bands or bypass.

[Big Dan 2]

I would certainly consider a sleeve but the hospital system that I use does not offer the sleeve. They only do bands and RNY. I could possibly go elsewhere but I would have to start the whole process over again.

Edited April 29, 2009 by Big Dan

[WASaBubbleButt 41]

I would certainly consider a sleeve buy the hospital system that I use does not offer the sleeve. They only do bands and RNY. I could possibly go elsewhere but I would have to start the whole process over again.

Did you know that 1 in 5 bypass fails?

You won't always malabsorb calories, just during your honeymoon phase.

You will always malabsorb Vitamins.

If your bypass fails your options for revision are extremely limited.

If bypass is honestly what you want, great! Go for it! But don't get a procedure that isn't a perfect fit for you because you'd have to have records transferred to another doctor who does sleeves.

[Big Dan 2]

Oh, I totally agree with you. I didn't mean that I won't go somewhere else, but I do want to hear them out before I do. Maybe the RNY would be right for me. I just don't know yet.

[2bthinagn 3]

I just had my band removed 2-22,and had a RNY. 16lbs lose so far. Not sure where that figure 1 in 5 gastric bypass fail. Ive never heard that.I had lost 60lbs on the band in 3.5yrs and then gained 20 back. Dr could never get the restriction at a good place for me.

[terilynn112 1]

I'm a band to bypass start over.... I had the band for 2 yrs 4 months... I feel so much better, so much more normal in the eating aspect. I have lost 51 pounds in just over two months. I'm already cured of diabetes, and high blood pressure, and assumed I'm cured of sleep apnea.

teri