Banders: ever wish you'd had a bypass?

[Lyn8124]

Hi to any banders reading this. Just wanted to know if any of you thought you'd made the wrong decision opting for the band?

 

[serenitylove]

Hi to any banders reading this. Just wanted to know if any of you thought you'd made the wrong decision opting for the band?

i can honestly say no im very happy with my band, i was very encouraged by surgeon to have bypass but didnt want it, i loose weight as i should be so am sure i made right choice

 

[baby jayne]

Banders ever wish you had a bypass?

Hi

I am pre-band and have to say at this time I would no way have a bypass, the reason being is that if you have a bypass and you no longer like the quality of life that option gives you there is no way back...its tough luck live with it!!
With the band (if its succesfull) as thats the big Q with the band, then its happy days and you can play with it. By that I mean this...I have a friend who is a private patient, she has lost 4.5 stone in 2 years and is within 1 stone of target now and is really happy with her band, now everytime she goes on holiday she pays to have a de-fill, then enjoys a 2 week break from her restrictive lifestyle change and when home she has 1 week on liquids before her re-fill. It adds £300 on to her hols but she says she loves fine food and wine and thats her holiday treat which she does 2 x per year, she doesn't smoke so her argument is its worth it. If she had a bypass she couldn't do that, and also she says if she ever wanted to de-fill the band for a longer time she could and it is a tool that is there for whenever she feels like using it...sounds good to me but then again I am pre-anything at the min so who am I to comment lol!!

 

[Sambucca]

Baby Jayne I totally get where you are coming from and I have never thought about it like that before, so thanks for that hun.

However for me, it is the Fine food and wine etc that has left me at +20 stone and for me, I felt the band would not help me enough with my overeating. My problem is not knowing when to stop. If I can never eat like that again then the bypass will have done its job.

 

[PinkyButtonz]

Baby Jayne I totally get where you are coming from and I have never thought about it like that before, so thanks for that hun.

However for me, it is the Fine food and wine etc that has left me at +20 stone and for me, I felt the band would not help me enough with my overeating. My problem is not knowing when to stop. If I can never eat like that again then the bypass will have done its job.

Sam I agree with you.

I'm awaiting Bypass and I don't think the Band is for me. I have spoken to someone who had the Band done abroad and spoke of nothing but ways of getting the food down. Well she regain her weight plus more. I know this will not happen to all banders. I just want something more permanently life changing for me.

For my self I want to break the cycle of over eating and with my health problem the surgeon recommended Bypass.

 

[baby jayne]

Everyone to their own girlies!!
I know where you are coming from, and wish you both lots of luck, I think you are both very brave...I am such a wimp and would be shaking in my boots at the thought of such an Op!! lol I am dreading Saturday but not enough to pull out!!

 

[Silversurfer]

Hi

I am pre-band and have to say at this time I would no way have a bypass, the reason being is that if you have a bypass and you no longer like the quality of life that option gives you there is no way back...its tough luck live with it!!
With the band (if its succesfull) as thats the big Q with the band, then its happy days and you can play with it. By that I mean this...I have a friend who is a private patient, she has lost 4.5 stone in 2 years and is within 1 stone of target now and is really happy with her band, now everytime she goes on holiday she pays to have a de-fill, then enjoys a 2 week break from her restrictive lifestyle change and when home she has 1 week on liquids before her re-fill. It adds £300 on to her hols but she says she loves fine food and wine and thats her holiday treat which she does 2 x per year, she doesn't smoke so her argument is its worth it. If she had a bypass she couldn't do that, and also she says if she ever wanted to de-fill the band for a longer time she could and it is a tool that is there for whenever she feels like using it...sounds good to me but then again I am pre-anything at the min so who am I to comment lol!!

I like your argument, you seem to know and understand what it is that you need and want and have a plan how your going to work with it going forward, i've no doubt that like Serenity it will work well for you.

A bypass can be reversed, but its a far more complicated operation, i've read about reversals being done in the states.
I'm the sam as Sam, it was the fine dinning and nice foods that got me into this way in the first place, the temptation to delay a band fill after a great holiday or eating would be to hard for me, and i'd end up quickly regaining weight i'd fought hard to lose in the first place....... for me i want the weight gone, then to forget about constant dieting (as much as i can) and get on with my life as a slim person !

When i looked at options i did first decide on a band, but having looked at the statistics and amounts i was likely to lose i opted for a bypass, with a band the stats say you'll lose between 45-55% of your excess body weight - therefore at 25 stone i'd have only lost about 7 or 8 stone still leaving me 17 or 18 stone, with the bypass statistically you'll lose 50 - 65% so gives me a better chance of losing much more and getting closer to my goal weight before stalling or having to work at it.
Worth remembering that stats are taken across a control group, everyone's different, some will lose more than others by healthy eating and exercise, others will do nothing and not lose as much before stalling at a weight there body is happy with, the key i think is as you've said to work with your tool rather than letting it do the work for you !

 

[PinkyButtonz]

Everyone to their own girlies!!
I know where you are coming from, and wish you both lots of luck, I think you are both very brave...I am such a wimp and would be shaking in my boots at the thought of such an Op!! lol I am dreading Saturday but not enough to pull out!!

Your not a wimp, you just know your own mind .
I know your not going down that road but think your BMI may have been bit low for Bypass. Mine is over 50.

All the best with op on Saturday.

 

[baby jayne]

Hi Pinky
My surgeon actually tried to talk me into a bypass, but I think they do as they get more money!!
Even NHS patients are a private patient when funded by the patient care trust and I do think a lot of the time (not in all cases) the surgeons push for more money in their pockets.

 

[Silversurfer]

Hi Pinky
My surgeon actually tried to talk me into a bypass, but I think they do as they get more money!!
Even NHS patients are a private patient when funded by the patient care trust and I do think a lot of the time (not in all cases) the surgeons push for more money in their pockets.

MMMMm thats a pretty extreme thing to say - your suggesting that surgeons are offering there paitents the wrong advice because they get more money ?

 

[PinkyButtonz]

Hi Pinky
My surgeon actually tried to talk me into a bypass, but I think they do as they get more money!!
Even NHS patients are a private patient when funded by the patient care trust and I do think a lot of the time (not in all cases) the surgeons push for more money in their pockets.

I'm not sure it would that easy for NHS funded surgeon to do so, as the decision on whether you get the Op has to go before a board, plus they have a strick critria you must meet.

Still wouldn't affect my decision though.

 

[charliegirl]

My BMI was lower at just over 37 and I was offered the bypass on the NHS as it was better suited to my life style eating habits etc....I dont think it has changed my life to a point I am losing out on anything at all, in fact the opposite is true....I love my bypass and I love the fact I have my life back to what it was before the weight gain and whilst this op suited me I know it wont suit everyone. I for one am glad I changed my mind from the band to the bypass I love it and I love life....lol...xx

 

[baby jayne]

Not necessarily but in my case I am overweight but am on the lower BMI side as mentioned, and I was offered a bypass within a couple of mins with My Surgeon...now I was told that the type of Op was dependant on your eating habits for e.g if you have a real sweet tooth the bypass is more beneficial as sweet things are slider foods to a band, also if you are a quantity eater the band is as beneficial for obvious reasons.
Now take me I am a quantity eater and do not have a sweet tooth at all yet I was advised to have a bypass why??
My friend who I mentioned earlier was advised the same, yet she never eats sweets either.
I do think that if you have the guts to go for the bypass it is the better Op as it is most of the time non-reversable but in some cases it has been known to be the wrong choice for some people and has lead to depression in some cases because the patient has been so unhappy (that was on a T.V programme a few weeks ago).

 

[PinkyButtonz]

I think each hospital work differently.

NICE guidance states that you may be eligible for surgery if you:

• have a BMI (body mass index*) of 35 or more with an obesity-related physical problem such as diabetes, high blood pressure, sleep apnoea or early arthritis that could be improved with weight loss
• have a BMI of 40 or more
• have failed to achieve or maintain clinically beneficial weight loss through non-surgical methods for at least six months (unless you have a BMI over 50, in which case you will go straight to surgery)
• have a commitment to life-long follow up.

 

[indianlight]

Just wanted to comment about emptying and refilling your band when it suits. I've just had my band removed but my stomach has not as of yet gone back to its 'normal' shape, I believe this is relatively common, so was wondering by having it emptied for a 2 weeks holiday then eating 'normally' could it be that the pouch is stretching and can cause long term damage?

My surgeon explained to me that you heal and scar tissue forms, that in itself can create a pouch, so when my band was removed the scar tissue was holding it in the same position. I still have restriction at the moment but don't have a band...

As for the question of would I have preferred a bypass. At the time of banding no way would I have had a bypass, however I am now in the position of waiting for my stomach to heal so I can have a bypass (approx 3 months). I wish I had considered a bypass as a serious option at the time, but was too scared!

My surgeon made it very clear that history showed that the band would get me to approx 17/18 stone I saw that as a huge weightloss, didn't listen to much beyond that weightloss...now after problems with the band, I'm waiting for a bypass. Do I regret the band? NO WAY, its got me to this stage..my one regret that I didn't have a bypass in the first place.

This is just my own personal opinion, but if ever asked I will recommend a bypass for anyone with more than approx 5 stone to lose...and wish I ahd taken my own advice..lol

 

[AA1234]

I actually think that the bypass os offered much more on the NHS because of the cost of aftercare on the band with fills etc. There are some people that are finding it hard to get aftercare and fills once they have had the band on the NHS.

 

[Sambucca]

great post IL. Good luck with the rest of your journey hun xx

 

[AA1234]

It is true that ou loose more weight in the short term with the bypass but when you look at the longer term weight loss over 5 years it is the same loss with band and bypass.

 

[brett30]

i decided i wanted bypass cause i don't have will power with food ...

i managed to stop smoking by just deciding i wanted to and im now 4.5 yrs non smoker... would never do it again.

i can manage to leave drink alone when i don't want it.

i can control everything in my life .

but i can not take control of food !! food has been my life for 31yrs.
i love to cook i love to entertain.. i love the best of foods from around the world.

im well traveled i have lived in other country's. and Australia for 4 years. i always seam to like expensive food and wines.

i was brought up in a family where i had 2 sisters and my mum was a butcher and ran a restaurant . so come dinner time mum would cook 3 different dishes cause we all did not like the same.

i was lucky that way as a child we always got what we wanted how ever it came to bite us all in the bum later in life.

my mum has been on a diet since i was a child she was once 20 stone .. now around 11...

both my sisters fight with weight have done all there life's.

and now my nieces are the same ..

we are a round family..... food has been all of our lifes...

i use food to entertain people. i use food to make life great..

there has not been a day thats gone by that i have not bought some food in some way or another. im bad for fresh bread milks etc ..

i wont eat things after 2 days so i have to shop again ..

so bypass was for me there was no real choice in my mind. i can not afford to fail with the band and i don't trust my self ..

i know many people do well with band but there is also many many people who don't do well with the band and go in to it thinking its magic and it will work. and end up getting bypass..

i met someone who lost 13 stone with band in 2 yrs. only cause it slipped and twisted it was nhs and she had to be refunded to have it fixed so in the 18 months it took she was ill and threw up everyday she says her self she has lost only cause the band went wrong.

i have met a few who regret the bypass but they where all early stages and they only regret cause they have not got there head around it .. and are missing been able to eat what they use too ..

but at the end of the day i don't see why a woman who is 50 getting a band who is 5ft4 and 24 stone & diabetic. i think there is a time and a place for a band .. when you only need to loose a few stone when your of a certain age and your health is in a better place.

i think life is to short to be fighting food all the time. so bypass and get on with it .. its not the end of the world having a bypass its a way of life that you will learn to life with and be happy..

the main thing that stops people getting bypass is the horror of the operation story.. and THERES NO GOING BACK ..... that is what sticks in your brain .. but have you not thought thats the food part of your brain doing the thinking for you !! Oh never have that cake again or that bacon sandwich ........ we all think but what if !!!

but think about your life and your family and your happiness this is the one chance to change your life for ever and for the better so do what is right for you and make sure you make the right choice the first time .. don't listen to horror stories and failed attempts of others..

so my choice is bypass only cause i don't want to fight with the band cause i know i will ..x good luck with your choices xxx

 

[baby jayne]

That post was brilliant Brett, good luck only 5 more days to go for you and 6 for me!!
I couldn't afford the bypass even if I wanted it!!