Confused

[neesh 0]

Hi all I have had all my appointments and will be seeing the dr for follow up on all my test results next wk thursday. After that I see the surgeon and schedule my surgery. I am now confused, but I do want the band, but been thinking about gastric a lot lateley I even had a dream about it last night. I really don't want gastric becuase of the higher risks and the re routing of my insides. The physcologist and dietician both mad me a lilttle upset when I saw them they both had there comments saying that I should have the gastric and that the surgeon is going to tell me the same thing and blah blah blah. So now I am just confused and scared now that what if the band doesn't work for me. How did you all know it would work for you if you loved food so much? Another thing with te gastric I have too many friends that has had it and are now gaining there weight back and that's another thing I don't like about gastric as well. I mean was it easy with the band to eat better and diet please someone help me I feel like tearing up a lilttle cause im tired of being fat and I wanna have success. Please give me some advice what should I do?

[Libbyjane1976 1]

Go with what you want to do. Don't let the dietician or anyone else tell you what they think you should do. Obviously you feel lap band is right for you.

The lap band is a wonderful tool that restricts the amount of food you can eat. It helps you stay full in between meals. Can you eat your way around the band? yes you sure can. There's a list of foods that will "slide" right through your band. So you are definitely going to have to learn to make better choices. As with any weight loss you are going to have to start making better choices and quit eating the crap foods that got us all here in the 1st place.

I totally share the same feelings you do regarding bypass. I'm 6 months in and I absolutely love my band but I will be honest with you I watch what I eat (with an occasional indulgence) and I exercise. Good luck making your decision!!!

[neesh 0]

Thanks for your respons can you give me an idea of what you eat during the day. I am now trying to diet before I get the band and it is so hard. I am just hoping it won't be this hard when I get the band and I fail.

[Headhunter 6]

Neesh;

If the psychologist and dietician have BOTH suggested that you go for the bypass, then you need to seriously consider it.

The Band and the Bypass are two ENTIRELY different surgeries, and they are meant for different people with different eating issues and disorders.

I have had both of them. The band was WRONG for me, because it didn't address MY particular issue. I had the Bypass, and it DID work.

You will have PLENTY of people in this forum tell you to just go for the band because it worked for them, it's less invasive, blah, blah, blah. That means NOTHING.

It's what is right for YOU and your body.

What your Pysch and your dietician said was VERY SIGNIFICANT. Those two parties sometimes do not make recommendations, even though they should. The fact that in YOUR CASE they BOTH said Bypass, then it's a pretty safe bet that they have both identified YOU as someone that would benefit much more from the Bypass than the Band.

Someone here posted this to you:

"Don't let the dietician or anyone else tell you what they think you should do"

HUH?? WTF?

Don't let the HEALTH PROFESSIONALS who deal with this on a daily basis tell you what to do?

Sorry...that is some of the most absurd nonsense I have ever seen posted here. :tongue2:

So, neesh; Meet with your other Doctors, see what they have to say, and take it all into consideration. But do NOT rule out the Bypass or ANY OTHER surgery that is recommended by them.

Just because a surgery worked well for someone here does NOT mean that it will work well for you. And that goes for ALL the surgeries.

But the simple fact that TWO participants in this process have already recommended the Bypass is a strong indication that it might be the correct way for you to go.

Keep us posted!:tt2:

HH

[flowerchild 0]

I think you should do what you feel most comfortable with. I know my surgeon is very careful to not influence his patient's decision on which surgery to have. He gives you the facts on all the surgeries he does and let's you make that decision. I don't think anyone on your medical team should be trying to influence you. I am newly banded so I am no expert on it, but I think you can gain weight back with the band or gastric either one. It is going to take a lifestyle change for both of these to work long term. It will be different than trying to do it on your own because you will have a tool to help you. I chose the band because I didn't like the idea of having anything changed permanatly in my body. I had a hard enough time convincing my DH and two grown sons that the band was safe. They would have never been supportive of the bypass. What ever you decide to do I wish you the best.

[Headhunter 6]

I think you should do what you feel most comfortable with. I know my surgeon is very careful to not influence his patient's decision on which surgery to have. He gives you the facts on all the surgeries he does and let's you make that decision. I don't think anyone on your medical team should be trying to influence you. .

If your medical Team is NOT trying to advise you on what procedure you should having, then they are NOT doing their jobs.

Again: different surgeries for Different people. It's not a smorgasbord. YOU don't choose the surgery; the SURGERY chooses YOU.

HH

[Libbyjane1976 1]

Headhunter: "Don't let the dietician or anyone else tell you what they think you should do"

HUH?? WTF?

Don't let the HEALTH PROFESSIONALS who deal with this on a daily basis tell you what to do?

Sorry...that is some of the most absurd nonsense I have ever seen posted here. :tongue2:

HERE WE GO AGAIN. HEADHUNTER - STATE YOUR OWN OPINION, GIVE YOUR OWN ADVICE. QUIT QUOTING WHAT OTHER PEOPLE SAY AND UNDERMINING THEIR ADVICE, CHOICES, OPINIONS, ETC. YOU MAY NOT REALIZE IT BUT YOU ARE BEING EXTREMELY RUDE AND I DON'T APPRECIATE IT.

Neesh:

It is your body you do what YOU want and YOU make YOUR own choice that YOU FEEL is right for YOU. if YOU DO NOT want a bypass DO NOT get a bypass. Hope it works out for you!!!! :tt2:

[neesh 0]

I do feel most comfortable with the band, but I also want to see results. Im like super scared of gastric with the risks and the loose skin and looking sick throwing up and all that crap. I do not want all that comes with the gastric. The dietician and phycologist I feel didn't know much about me to tell me what i should or shouldn't do spcecially the dietician I didn't even like her she really didn't help me at all and I will be teling that to my dr when I see her next wk. All she did was tell me to cut out the eating out get away from pop and how they want u to eat 3 meals a day and focus on eating when I do eat. I thought she was to tell me some of the foods to eat and give me like a meal plan or something I don't know maybe I was thinking wrong.

[Nanook 2]

I would ask your bariatric team "why" they suggest gastric bypass over the band. I was supposed to get the RNY first but chickened out two weeks prior and went with the band and my surgeon didn't care either way. There is much more information out there today on lap banding than there was when I was banded in 2007. So maybe it's possible that they can weed out candidates better now which would be nice. It's best to know why you'd be a good candidate for the band if that's what you choose.

I can tell you that I personally didn't do well with the band and actually was one who never lost but gained weight after banding. I just didn't realize how many foods actually went through the band like junk food (sliders) and when I couldn't eat the healthier choices and be satisfied with their small amounts I fell into a trap of eating the sliders.

This is something I can't do now after having revised to RNY. At least for "now" I'm losing and am glad I finally had the RNY. Recovery was more difficult and they did reroute my insides but it's not like I'm "aware" of it. Does that make sense? So discuss with your team why they think you should have RNY and explain to them your reasoning behind wanting the lap band and hopefully you'll be able to come to the best decision for you. Good luck, Nancy.:tongue2:

Neesh,

joining a support group prior to surgery might be a good idea for you also as you can talk to people face to face about the issues they've had with their weightloss surgeries.

[Headhunter 6]

HERE WE GO AGAIN. HEADHUNTER - STATE YOUR OWN OPINION, GIVE YOUR OWN ADVICE. QUIT QUOTING WHAT OTHER PEOPLE SAY AND UNDERMINING THEIR ADVICE, CHOICES, OPINIONS, ETC. YOU MAY NOT REALIZE IT BUT YOU ARE BEING EXTREMELY RUDE AND I DON'T APPRECIATE IT.

QUOTE]

And you're damn right I WILL State my opinion and give my own advice. I can do it because I have BEEN THROUGH it the hard way, and I do not wish to see ANYONE else experience what I Have.

"UNDERMINING THEIR ADVICE, CHOICES, OPINIONS, ETC"

Undermining your "opinion" that the poster IGNORE the advice of MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS????

What kind of crap is that??

I'm telling the Poster to LISTEN to what the professionals have to say. You're telling her to ignore them.

Sorry if I'm "rude". You're just plain irresponsible.

HH

[Headhunter 6]

Nanook is correct on all points.

As I said, you need to speak to your other medical Team members about this. Almost always, when a Specific recommendation is made, it's done for a reason. And I would pay even more attention to the Psych and Dietican than I would the Surgeon in this case, because they have (most likely) spent some time with you, discussed your eating habits, and learned about your history with obesity. Very often, in a well-coordinated Bariatric team, the Surgeon will take his/her "cue" from what the Other professionals have said about the patient.

The important thing here is that you get the RIGHT surgery for YOU. I don't advocate ANY of the procedures over another. But many people here think that the band is right for EVERYONE. And it's not. The Bypass isn't either. Or the Sleeve.

THIS situation is a little different than others that have been discussed here. You have TWO members of your Team that have SPECIFIED Bypass.....that doesn't mean they are entirely correct. But it's a pretty good indication that there is some agreement as to the correct solution for you.

Don't be afraid of the Bypass. it's been used for nearly 50 years successfully. I felt the same way you did prior to mine....I wouldn't want to be cut/pasted. But, then I studied it. And put in a proper context with the right circumstances in place, it turned out to be the right answer for me....and plenty of other people.

So don't dismiss the bypass. Find out what the recommendations are from ALL of the concerned parties. And make your decison based upon THAT, and NOT from observers who have not actually experienced the procedure.

HH

[BethFromVA 5]

Neesh;

If the psychologist and dietician have BOTH suggested that you go for the bypass, then you need to seriously consider it.

The Band and the Bypass are two ENTIRELY different surgeries, and they are meant for different people with different eating issues and disorders.

I have had both of them. The band was WRONG for me, because it didn't address MY particular issue. I had the Bypass, and it DID work.

You will have PLENTY of people in this forum tell you to just go for the band because it worked for them, it's less invasive, blah, blah, blah. That means NOTHING.

It's what is right for YOU and your body.

What your Pysch and your dietician said was VERY SIGNIFICANT. Those two parties sometimes do not make recommendations, even though they should. The fact that in YOUR CASE they BOTH said Bypass, then it's a pretty safe bet that they have both identified YOU as someone that would benefit much more from the Bypass than the Band.

Someone here posted this to you:

"Don't let the dietician or anyone else tell you what they think you should do"

HUH?? WTF?

Don't let the HEALTH PROFESSIONALS who deal with this on a daily basis tell you what to do?

Sorry...that is some of the most absurd nonsense I have ever seen posted here. :tongue2:

So, neesh; Meet with your other Doctors, see what they have to say, and take it all into consideration. But do NOT rule out the Bypass or ANY OTHER surgery that is recommended by them.

Just because a surgery worked well for someone here does NOT mean that it will work well for you. And that goes for ALL the surgeries.

But the simple fact that TWO participants in this process have already recommended the Bypass is a strong indication that it might be the correct way for you to go.

Keep us posted!:tt2:

HH

HH, I have to say this is one of the rare times I disagree with you.

First, I don't know that I feel comfortable with ANY physician/psych/dietician telling me WHAT procedure to have. No matter what procedure we have, it will not specifically address the mental or other psychological issues that made us fat.

I personally feel that some docs out there who have adamantly pushed for the bypass do so because they get paid a lot more for it.

The fact is (and you know this), the bypass is permanent. The OP doesn't know if the band would or would not work for, any more than she knows whether the bypass would. I have known people who have gone through the very permanent bypass operation, only to regain the weight or never completely lose it because of the choices they were making and/or the psychological issues involved. I have also known people struggle with the band and losing weight because of the choices they were making and/or the psychological issues involved. However, the band, as we know, is NOT permanent and can be revised to a sleeve or bypass at a later date if one finds it necessary.

I personally can find no good reason for a dietician or psychiatrist to dictate WHICH procedure they feel would work best. Maybe I'm missing something -- but the fact is, the behavior modifications and other things we must do to make ANY of these procedures work have to be applied almost equally across the board, regardless of the procedure. You can cheat with all three. You can gain (or not lose) weight with all three. With that being the case, WHY is one procedure being pushed for more than another? I personally can't think of any good reason.

Unless I hear WHY this procedure is being pushed by these people, I personally feel that the reasoning is more financial on the part of the people involved.

The bottom line is, it's her body and her decision. We see all the time when people are told by doctors that they have some incurable disease or cancer which will result in the loss of a limb, and the person either researches themselves or gets a second (or third) opinion and come to find out it was curable after all without the loss of the limb.

Though we look to doctors to help us, they are not infallible. We don't know that for some of these people, one WLS is no different from another (which WE know is not true). If they do the LapBand for X amount of money but could do the bypass for X amount MORE, a doctor who sees no difference in the overall procedures (not necessarily unscrupulous, just indifferent) might choose to go for the one that will make him more money. And it's not unheard of for them, especially if THEY are the ones providing lists of dieticians and psychiatrists, to supply names of people who will also support his WLS of choice.

Just my .02, for what it's worth.

OP, do your OWN research and go with what YOU feel comfortable with. Don't let anybody ANYwhere (even here) tell you what you should do (and this isn't towards you, HH, as I respect your experiences and opinions).

[BethFromVA 5]

If your medical Team is NOT trying to advise you on what procedure you should having, then they are NOT doing their jobs.

Again, I disagree, HH.

I had an OB-GYN who asked me one day if I had considered getting a hysterectomy. Um, NO, and WHY?? I have no idea why she would suggest such a thing since I have had no issues whatsoever.

Should I just have listened to my doctor and gotten one "just cuz"? I don't think so.

There are also those docs who have recommended I have my breasts removed because I have a strong breast cancer history in my family. Again, WHY? Why should I consider such a drastic procedure when there is no proof I will have issues?

To me, the bypass is THE most radical, drastic WLS there is. Has it worked for some? Yes. Has it NOT worked for many as well? Yes. But now you're stuck with no recourse, nowhere to go.

Look, if I have a problem with my bunions, I sure as hell ain't gonna amputate my foot. To me, this surgery is waaaay too drastic to consider as my FIRST option. That's just me...

[RestlessMonkey 7]

This surgery is elective. (and by the way, if you lose a lot of weight you'll have loose skin whether you do bypass or the band. So loose skin is no reason to choose one surgery over another) We make an INFORMED choice. That means considering alternatives and deciding.

Let me give an example. Over time my front teeth have separated slightly. Now I don't look like myself, to myself. So I asked my dentist: Do I need braces to get them back in alignment?

He told me : NO They'll keep moving. You have a couple options. I can fill in the middle with dental bonding. It will look great. It is the cheapest. Or I can do porcelain veneers. That's way more expensive. Both will work. You pick. (he went into more detail of course but I don't figure anyone on here cares about this in more detail LOL)

SO you see...I had thought "braces", he disagreed, explained why, gave me other options. The goal: No longer have a slight gap between my two front teeth. What I thought I wanted (and what worked for many) Braces What I decided on: Veneers.

Firstly, I trust my dentist. He's great; I've been going to him for years. I PAY him for that expertise. I PAY him to help me navigate.

IF you trust your surgeon, ask WHY bypass? WHY not band? Weigh his reasoning and decide which is right for you.

The band isn't one supersize fits all solution. It works for lots of people, but not everyone. Neither, for that matter, does bypass. or the sleeve. But they are all valid solutions (like my braces, dental bonding, or veneers options) and you need to pick which (if any) is right for you.

If your surgeon will not take the time to explain to you which he feels is best, and why (same with dietitian and psych consult) then by all means ignore them. But ASK. Weigh. It's your body, the surgery is elective, educate yourself and decide, knowing yourself best, which is right for you once you have all the info.

[Libbyjane1976 1]

Well dang it then instead of quoting me and being a jerk just say I would listen to your healthcare professional. You do not need to single me out and be a jerk about it. I don't do that to you and I would appreciate it if you didn't do it to me. You make it so that people out here are discouraged to go to these boards for help.

HERE WE GO AGAIN. HEADHUNTER - STATE YOUR OWN OPINION, GIVE YOUR OWN ADVICE. QUIT QUOTING WHAT OTHER PEOPLE SAY AND UNDERMINING THEIR ADVICE, CHOICES, OPINIONS, ETC. YOU MAY NOT REALIZE IT BUT YOU ARE BEING EXTREMELY RUDE AND I DON'T APPRECIATE IT.

QUOTE]

And you're damn right I WILL State my opinion and give my own advice. I can do it because I have BEEN THROUGH it the hard way, and I do not wish to see ANYONE else experience what I Have.

"UNDERMINING THEIR ADVICE, CHOICES, OPINIONS, ETC"

Undermining your "opinion" that the poster IGNORE the advice of MEDICAL PROFESSIONALS????

What kind of crap is that??

I'm telling the Poster to LISTEN to what the professionals have to say. You're telling her to ignore them.

Sorry if I'm "rude". You're just plain irresponsible.

HH