liz2008

[Mynewlife]

Hiya Liz
just wondering if you had read "Shelbell's" comments on the "band to bypass" thread? It has been bugging me since I read it, and I was wondering what you think,, as you have been banded twice, about the comments regarding the 40% failure rate of the band. I was lead to believe that it was lower than that:wave_cry:. Obviously bypass is not exactly 100% either and I would assume that by having the bypass, it does make your weight loss journey easier, but surely they also have to do some of the work to keep it on track, they cant just solely rely on the surgery itself can they???? What makes us not be a part of the failure rate,in your opinion? would it be purely motivation that keeps you out of the 40% failure rate?
Why I agree that having the fills is time consuming and requires thinking on our parts, I personally have not had a fill since November last year, so its not like we are running to the doctors everyweek to have our bands adjusted? Have I taken what she has said out of context?

 

[AA1234]

DOn't worry about the 40% figure quoted. IT is a lot less than that.

In the long term (over 5 years) the band is just as successful as the bypass. Some argue more successful as there is now evidence to show that bypasers are MORE likely to to put on weight after 5 years where as banders will stay the same.

The reason the NHS do more bypasses is because they do not want to pay for the after care. in fact there is just as much aftercare in bypass and banding (exc fills). However there is also evidence to show that NHS patients don't do as well private (in bother ops) due to NO aftercare and support. I don't know how true this is of course and only quoting what some "experts" have said.

In the states there is more and more banding done being done and less bypass. IN the UK there is more bypass being down at the moment and this is because more and more people are going NHS who are very reluctant to go down the banding route dur to cost of aftercare and fills.

At the end of the day whatever op you have it is mainly down to YOU and the failure rates are not has high as people may think.

 

[j.u.s.t.l.i.z.]

hi mynewlife, i shall answer as honestly as i can from my own personal perspective as im in no way a professional. so i can only answer from my experience and knowing alot of banders. not everyone may agree with my reply, but this is how i look at banding realistically.

i do not know the exact percentage of the failure rate for banding but shel is correct as it is quite high, these failures come from people that have a band and think its the answer to all there prayers regarding there weight issues, and think its going to be there "quick fix" banding is so not the "magic cure" alot of people pin there hopes and dreams on. Its bloody hard work to loose the weight with a gastric band, it requires daily commitment, the band can be cheated very easily and banders learn all the cheating tricks with food very quickly, i know ive done them all, whats taken time is learning to be in control, i now can but in the early days that was hard for me and it is also for all new band patients.

when u ask what makes us not part of the failure rates... for me id have to say dedication, hard work, and upmost why im not part of that failure is because banding for me was my last chance saloon to loose weight, if the band patient follows the band rules set out by the surgeon and dietician and doesnt cheat then the band works really well and controls the portions and types of certain foods banders can eat.
new banders seem to expect the same rapid weight loss that a bypasser experiences, people say to me " why am i not loosing weight quickly" i reply the band isnt about speed and how fast weight is lost, its a tool to loose weight at a heathly rate thats all.

one other reason the band has such a high failure rate is because a statement i hear so often from banders is "ifeel deprived on my portions of real food, so i compensate real food with large amounts of chocolate and other slider foods, which stops weight loss or can make people regain weight, then go into denial of these habbits and blame there band, and say "ive wasted my money"

fills are time consuming yes, but its all part of being banded and its not that often i need a fill, but everyone is different.
if hard work is put in the band is a good thing and does work if it has been researched correctly and rules are followed.

i shall finish by saying whats in this post is only my opinion, and ive answered the questions asked to me as honestly as i can from my own experiences.


liz

 

[Sambucca]

whats in your post is my opinion too Liz. Very well put. I was mulling over a response to this thread, but you have said exactly what I would have said.

 

[j.u.s.t.l.i.z.]

thanks sam x

 

[hopelesscase]

whats in your post is my opinion too Liz. Very well put. I was mulling over a response to this thread, but you have said exactly what I would have said.

ditto that

 

[indianlight]

I agree with Liz as well. I'm a bander being revised to a bypass.

In my opinion, the NHS didn't realise the demand for aftercare for the band. Some people have 2/3 fills and they are at their sweet spot but others like me are yo yoing back and forward for both fills & unfills and further complications.

Although I'm having a revison I would in no way say anything bad about the band. However, as Liz says you have to work with it and I think before you make any decision you have to be honest with yourself about your REAL eating habits and thats hard.

What I have seen is as the WLS is becoming more common, people (and I have talked to many) are going into it blind, they don't understand the lifelong commitment, regardless of which surgery you decide on or that this surgery is an aid to YOU losing the weight, if you don't change any of your old eating habits then you won't lose weight its that simple.

I'm sure you will have heard people talk of getting their head in the right place and that is soo important, if you arent mentally/psychologically prepared for this hard but wonderful journey then you will fail at the start.

Thought I better add this is my own opinion, and I don't want to offend anyone it's just how I feel and the feedback from friends and others who have various kinds of WLS

 

[j.u.s.t.l.i.z.]

great advice xxx

 

[starry]

Also there are the medical aspects of a bypass ie Shaw Somers told me a bypass has a much higher response to drastically helping even curing diabetes and along with the dumping syndrome which I know not everyone gets it a deterent to eating sweet stuff which for a diabetic even a cured one is very beneficial to the old pancreas !!!!!

Just one my reasons for a bypass and I was totally open minded about which surgery.

Liz

xxxx

 

[Mazza]

Thanks for asking this question, some great advice from Liz. I have absolutly no doubts that having the band fitted is the right decision for me and I am 100% committed to making it work for me too!

 

[AA1234]

SOme great point there by everyone.

I think basically everyone is different so you have to be prepared to understand why you are doing this and how it is going to change you life forever.

 

[serenitylove]

i think a big part of the band is being prepared im still amazed at how many people dont understand that the weightloss is slower especially in the early day from op to restriction either the bariatric team is not explaining fully or people hear what they want to hear. i think either op is a life long commitment and has to be embraced iv found it 80% mental once i loved my band and worked with it , it works for me .
i dont read the statistics as to sucsess/failures if im honest im just focused on making mine work

and great post liz

 

[Mynewlife]

thank you liz, serenity and everyone else who replied to the thread. I am determined to not be one of those who fail. I am still adjusting to life with my band, and accepting how it works. I wouldnt say that everything is rosey, because its not. I struggle with some things, especially not drinking and eating at the same time, but it is all a learning curve, and doesnt happen overnight. I work hard at keeping on top of exercise, keeping a food diary and I see a counsellor and dietician on a regular basis, so I have the support. I really do appreciate your input.
I think positive and negative spins can just be put on about everything, but at the end of the day, it is all down to the individual and the effort they put it for the band to be successful. It is not a magical overnight cure.
thanks again peeps.
MyNewLife:553:

 

[Mynewlife]

Hiya

just to let you know that CazBandy has put some interesting facts on her latest thread, including the failure rate, which is listed at 10-15%, much better than the 40% mentioned by Shellbell. Well worth reading Cazbandy thread as there are other interesting facts on there also. lol :bliss:mynewlife

 

[tesmaralda]

It is a personnal choice and one that you have to be 100% honest with yourself and your eating habits. I chose a bypass over a band as I knew that I would not have the will power to work with a band. I am a sweet eater my portion sizes are half the size they were 12 months ago but nothing is working pills or diets so then I would get down heartebned even more and turn to chocolate to console myself. I know the bypass is right for me and after the first 6 months or so once my eating has returned to as near normal as ever I will have to work with the eating bad foods, but in the mean time the fear of dumping will be enough of a deterant to get me on the straight and narrow.

I had fully researched both the proceedures before I even went to see my Gp and the wls consultant was impressed and shocked that I had done so and was able to justify my reasons as why I wanted a bypass and not a band, as because of my BMI being borderline I was offered both. Again this is just my opinion and my reasoning for choosing a bypass and not a band.

Figures and percentages will always differ as they can be tweaked and worked out differently depending on whether you are pro or anti something so it is always best to go by your own surgical team and their successes and failures and not so called experts who are just writing papers or studies.

 

[j.u.s.t.l.i.z.]

thank you liz, serenity and everyone else who replied to the thread. I am determined to not be one of those who fail. I am still adjusting to life with my band, and accepting how it works. I wouldnt say that everything is rosey, because its not. I struggle with some things, especially not drinking and eating at the same time, but it is all a learning curve, and doesnt happen overnight. I work hard at keeping on top of exercise, keeping a food diary and I see a counsellor and dietician on a regular basis, so I have the support. I really do appreciate your input.
I think positive and negative spins can just be put on about everything, but at the end of the day, it is all down to the individual and the effort they put it for the band to be successful. It is not a magical overnight cure.
thanks again peeps.
MyNewLife:553:

hi MNL, from what you have said in this post i really do think this band will work for you on a long term basis, you have the right positive attitude to work with your band, yes we all have our off days and banding is a learning curve as you say, after my 4 years being banded im still learning, i think you have made the right choice for you and your prepared to put the effort in with your band so the rewards in weight loss will be given.
The band is just a tool to help us on our weight loss journey, and i feel very privalged to have mine to help me keep on track as its hard enough for any dieter to loose weight and i apreciate this chance ive been given in life.

good luck MNL you have the right attitude and that goes along way when your banded.

liz x

 

[thinkbethin]

You banders have come up trumps AGAIN.The peeps on this forum know what they are talking about and thats why if you have any questions, then this is the place to ask.Well done to all banders that replied. XX Gaynor XX

 

[shelbell]

Lol didn't know I was being talked about so much! No wonder my ears were burning

The 40% failure rate statistic has come from my surgical team, not from me just choosing a figure randomly. My surgical team offer both banding and bypass.

Flip it round, the band has a 60% success rate, so with hard work and dedication, it is very possible to be successful.

Also, I don't think that I said anywhere that anyone was running off to their doctor for fills every week! Unlike many people, I extensively researched all options before my surgery, and am familiar with the average number of fills needed per year at each stage post op with band surgery.

Liz, you have said yourself in the past that when you went for your second band you wanted a bypass, but were not allowed one because your BMI wasn't high enough at the time.

I am in no way saying that one surgery is better than the other. It is an individual choice and depends entirely on your dedication levels, knowledge, and eating habits. It is a sad fact that too many people go into weight loss surgery with a complete lack of knowledge and understanding, particularly with private surgery, and end up failing. As most private surgery is banding, that will affect the stats.

On here, it is very obvious to see that a bander will always defend the band to the hills, and a bypasser will defend the bypass. Its inherent human-ness, as to admit that maybe a person made the wrong choice is like admitting failure, which no-one likes to do! I am not saying that any choice is wrong, or that anyone has failed, just explaining people's defensiveness.

Band v bypass is an argument that will always run on here, it has done since I joined and I can't see it ever ending. Whenever a new person asks how did you choose etc you see the same people falling over themselves to defend their choice and advocate it as the best option! There are a few of us on here that don't do that, what we do instead is advocate research or signpost towards previous threads of exactly the same nature and allow a person to make up their own mind.

 

[j.u.s.t.l.i.z.]

hi shel, i totally agree with you as i said in an earlier post on this thread, the band does have a high failure rate, and when i had my 2nd band yes i did ask about the bypass as at that time i felt that i didnt want to go through rebanding ops every 3-4 years, yes they did say my bmi was too low, if they had offered me a pass instead of rebanding i probably would of took it at that point as rebanding scars the tummy, and they said if this 1 has to be removed also then my tummy would probably not be able to tollerate another band due to scarring of the stomach, each individual must do whats correct for there circumstances at the time, and i am fully supportive of both types of wls.

 

[Sambucca]

Wow Shel. Awesome post. I agree with everything you have said.

Liz, I also agree with you, but still cant rep ya... Grrrr

We have to be supportive of both types of WLS. We all know that they both work, and they both have their pro's and con's and their fair share of failures.

Its important for the individual to make the right choice for them and to work with the tools they are given to ensure that that they dont return to the bad habits that caused us all to be here for WLS in the first place.

Mucho respect girls. You are both ambassadors for your chosen surgeries, and perfect examples of how both surgeries work.