A different reason for joining, I hope you all don't mind.

Hi Suze,

I can totally understand where you coming from! I get my band out next Tuesday and my sleeve done on the same day! I'm so excited to be getting the band out - only because it's been a real trial for me. I too know people that it's worked well for but for me it's be a bit of a disaster. I've had consistent vomiting and gagging and have had to put up with other pretty awful side effects. I've lost 8 kg since March 2007 so now feel that I need a more permanent weight loss solution.

With regards to recouperating - I agree with the other guys in that I felt fragile and weird for the first few weeks. That honestly passed pretty quickly. I have never been able to have any fill in my band because it meant I was so restricted that I struggled with water even. I guess that's why I'm very excited about the sleeve.

I think it's worth persevering with the band for 6 -12 months because I know of at least 3 other people who didn't like the band at first but who have all lost in excess of 40kg each since.

Although I'm a newbie, I think this forum is great place to talk about your issues regarding the band and weight loss in general because everyone here is so supportive. So I'm looking forward to hearing how you're going with the band and hope that you relax into it and find that it works really well for you down the track.

All the best
Berta x

Hi Suze,

You've already been given some great advice here but I might as well also give you a bit of what I have experienced with the band.

I had my band fitted Dec 2009 and have lost nothing. I am at fault as much as my band because I can eat high calorie food without problem, but that's all another story...

For the first 2 to 3 weeks after the band is fitted you feel quite fragile - I know. I was even scared to sleep on my side and insisted on sleeping upright in bed for the first two weeks can you believe! I'm a big woose. Don't worry, you will be able to do normal things after about 3 weeks, such as pick up small children etc. As each week goes by, you'll feel more resiliant and stronger so please don't be worried.

I was fortunate as I had no infections etc. As for the 'fills' you only have them very occasionally. My doctor told me that the more you inject the port the less effective it becomes in the long run - so he was very careful not to 'fill' mine too often. That might also be a reason why I haven't lost weight. Oh yeah, I'm always HUNGRY. God knows why they think a band can restrict hunger - it certainly hasn't for me.

In a week's time I'm having my band removed. It's not a difficult operation so that's also not a worry if you want to get yours removed in the future. I am opting for the sleeve as I need a more permanent solution to my eating problems. But I guess everyone's different, so you never know Suze, the band might just work for you, and like many others, you might be a success story - so I suggest you stick with it for at least 6 months and then re-evaluate your options. It's good that you're emailing websites for advice as this will get you some important support and advice from people who have already experienced what you're experiencing.

Good luck and please feel free to PM me if you want any other info.

Big hugs,

Kris (aquarius)

Hi Suze,

I concur with others in saying give it time (((hugs)))

Do you have someone you can talk with like a friend, family ??

Is there a support person at the clinic you attended ??

Ring the clinic and tell them what you have told us and let them know how unhappy you are.

Send me a pvt msg if you would like to chat on the phone and I will give you a call :)

Everyone is different and you might find that this is the best thing since sliced bread for you and you have to remember that any operation requires time to get over it and even though you might feel physically fine, the body is most probably wanting a bit longer to settle down.

Ruth :)

Hi Suze,
I was sleeved 6 days ago and am feeling great. I was banded thought back in 2007. It wasnt a good experience for me, lots of vomiting and unable to eat most healthy foods...... meat, chicken, bread, certain vegetables ans no fruits at all, so 8 months later had it taken out.

But I also agree with everyone else who has said to give it a try, you never know. Dont stress over it, just remember it is reversible, so with that in mind I'd say give a try and if you find its not for you well you have the option of getting it taken out.

Basically its the same as having the band put in, maybe less pain, I was eating normal again in a couple of weeks, and everything was fine.

Having said that, when I haad my sleeve the other day, the Surgeon did say everything went well, but he had a harder time than expected because of damage from prior band surgery, even though I only had it in for 8 months it still did alter my stomach to some extent.

I feel great though and was none the wiser. I know its a hard decision but, now you have gone through with the surgery, you might as well give it a good go, you will be fine, and as I said before if not, then have it removed, its great you have that option. I guess the fact that you have had limiteds contact with your surgeon also makes it hard, make an appt to see him, discuss your concerns and see what he says.

Wish you all the luck Hon,


Anna

Hey suze,
I have a band, have had it for just over 16mths. In that time I have lost 30kg.

I feel that I am a lucky bander as I can eat any texture, some people have trouble eating bread, meat, raw veges etc. I didnt know about the sleeve at the time as my surgeon did not mention any other WL surgery.

Are you on the liquid stage at the moment, thats enough to get you done as well and make you think "what have I done". As a few have said on here, you have the band, give it a chance to work, you never know, you may come to "like" it hahahaha.

take care and I hope your feeling a little more positive

thanks again for your gentle support.

Notproud: I used the Ashford Obesity Clinic. I had used Ashford's specialist services before for other things and it was familiar to me. My reading also uncovered that the Surgeon who heads up the clinic is one of the pioneers of the surgery in Australia so I had hoped that he was one of the more skilled; I think he probably is as the surgery itself has been trouble free it's just my reaction to it...

Hi Suze and welcome :-)

I'm sorry you're having such a hard time with this. I went to my surgeon to ask for a band, I had never heard of the sleeve, but when he told me about it I decided it was the right thing for me. Having said that, I know there are a lot of people who the band is right for. Because this is a sleeve site you are unlikely to find them here, but as you have found on the band site, they are out there :-)

There are lots of messages on this site from new sleevers asking "what have i done?"/"why did I do it?" in the first weeks post op. Your body has taken a bit of a battering, you are still full of powerful hospital drugs, and you have done something that is going to make a huge difference to all aspects of your life.

I agree with the other members, give yourself a little time to get over your operation. As Chris suggested, talk to your surgeon, go to your GP and ask them to recommend a counseller. If you still feel like this in a little while by all means get it out, but give yourself a bit of time to get to know it first.

Come back here as often as you need, to vent, question, talk, and to let us know how you are getting on.

Hugs - Carrie

Buyers remorse is common to us all. You are not alone. You probably had a restricted diet pre-op and this too affects us. While in hospital food intake is restricted and you will be sore, grumpy and nothing will seem normal.

Its a bit like that just after the sleeve as well.

Be gentle on yourself and give the surgery and band time to work. Its done now and it just might be perfect for you. If something does go wrong down the track you know you have other options. But as several people have said nothing might go wrong and it might just be perfect for you.

Some sleeve patients have complications, food issues and the like as well. There is nothing in your post that someone has not written soon after a sleeve when the whole world can seem out of whack.

Follow the surgeons guidelines, take it slowly, recover, do the first few fills and see how things go.

Yep I agree. Relax, give yourself some time, and see if you it can't work for you before contemplating removal.
Bands can be amazing things. Yep, most on here probably don't think that (ex-banster myself), but they can work, and they don't HAVE to go wrong. Remember, you've just had surgery and are probably feeling a bit sad and down, things will probably look better soon. Goodluck and all the best, I hope it works beautifully for you.

Hi Suze,
I have a band, I had the first one 6 years ago & lost 25-30kg & was well & kept it off for 4 years.
Then it failed, I had it replaced last October & have not lost weight with it.
My surgeon is recommending the sleeve.
I used to advise everyone to have the band, I spoke so highly of how great it was.
2 weeks ago when my surgeon recommended the sleeve, I wanted a third chance with the band.
Being here on this support group I have learnt so much reading everyone's posts.
I am now really excited to have the band removed & try the sleeve.
My husband also wants the sleeve, we will see how I go first.
You have the band in, why not try & see if it will work for you?
There are a lot of people that lose weight & keep it off with the band.
You have been through the pain & expense so maybe give it a chance to settle in?

I havent had either although I do have a date to get the sleeve done in October.

But my advice would be to just give it time, you have done the hard yards in getting it in, so why not see what kind of results you may benefit.

I hope you feel better about it soon.

Do you mind me asking which surgeon you used? I too am going to Adelaide but am actually in NSW but Adelaide is closer.

Hi Suze, and welcome
I can understand your feelings, although I haven't ever had a band myself.
But this site is filled with people who have had unsuccessful bands - you have to remember that there are lots and lots of people who have had huge success with the band, too.
Like the others said, give yourself some time to adjust. Talk to your surgeon, and perhaps a counsellor might be able to help you out too.
Give your body time to adjust to the band, too - you might be one of the lucky ones who do really well with it, in which case it would be a shame to jump in right away and have it removed.
I don't usually encourage people to go for the band myself - don't like what my research found, and have read experiences of others who have had so much trouble. But like I said, there are lots who are really happy with it, too, and you can't forget that.
I'm glad to hear that you've joined a band group too - maybe the good ones have posted their stories, to encourage you to feel more positive.
Good luck, whatever you decide, and please keep us 'posted'.

thank you all so much for your replies.

Just in answer to the location question; I live right on the border of Vic/SA and SA is closest in terms of accessing most medical specialists.

I guess that rationally I know I should give this a little while but I was very much overwhelmed by my immediate rejection of it in terms of my mental well being.

I really appreciate your responses. I'm going to pour over some of the other posts regarding lap band removal.

thank you all so much.

Hi Suze,
Sorry I can't help other than to give you comfort I guess.
I will ask though if you are from Victoria why were you done in Adelaide ??

Hi Suze,

I'm sorry to hear that you are so unhappy. I have had a band since 2005 and am having it removed in 3 days (my choice) in order to eventually have a sleeve. I will post my experience of removal on the band-sleeve thread as I havent been able to find a detailed post on this either.

I remember freaking out about my band at first too.... I was freaked about having the band in and wanted I it OUT! This lasted for about 2 weeks after which time this feeling started to pass. Now I dont even remember it's in, apart from feeling my port every now and then. I am currently unfilled so have no restriction.

Because it didnt work for me, I'm not a huge fan of the band BUT it works for a lot of people, try and wait out the initial feelings you are currently having, maybe a month and then if you still want it out, get it done.

To have the band removed means (in my case) spending one night in hospital. My surgeon is going to re-use my old scars and hopefully everything will be hunky-dory and I can go home the next morning.

I would really recommend speaking to your surgeon about your feelings, I think you will find your feelings are pretty normal.

Sorry I haven't been a lot of help but remember my experience was similar to yours at the start.

Peace and love,

Jiggly

Dear Suze,

I really feel for you and I really understand your anxiousness.

I had the band for a grand total of 6 months - I hated it and it made my life pretty awful, although I was losing weight.

When I got it out, I truly felt so much better. The pain from the removal was certainly less than having it placed orginally and once it was removed I just finally felt WELL again, that's the easiest way I can describe it.

It took my stomach about 2 full weeks before I felt like I could eat normally. The stomach was kind of scrunched in for a while after surgery and I got full quite quickly - which was fine with me as I didn't gain weight immediately upon having it out!

My surgeon did not charge me anything to remove it at all (I am in top private hospital cover though). To my knowledge I don't think their are complications with having it removed but some of the other members might be able to give you more information.

I really hope you can find a solution as soon as possible, and please keep us updated,

xxHuggyBear

Suze... I feel your despiration.... take a deep breath and relax... it is all going to be fine.

There are plenty of people on here who have had the band removed and will give you the advice you need. I have not had the band, so I can't tell you what it feels like getting it removed etc.....

Have a good read on here,...there is a section from band to sleeve which will have some of the information you are looking for.

Take care!

Hi Suze...don't stress about putting the post in the wrong place....I think the moderators can move it if they want to...in the meantime the link to it works really well. We all make mistakes on the web...for example I just lost the reply I had already written to you....doh!

Unfortunately I cannot know how you are feeling but I wish you were feeling much better. You are only one week out and should not expect to feel on top of the world..but it's a shame that you are having such a tough time. never had a sleeve so am of no practical use to you at all in responding...so can only send you my best wishes and hopes that you are able to resolve your situation soon in a way that works for you...

It sounds like you need to speak to your surgeon -- and soon! That may help...can I also recommend that you post your intro post (or the link to it below) in the band to sleever forum? I think more of the ex-bandits might see it there and they are more likely to be able to respond in a meaningful way.

Finally I hope at some stage you are able to celebrate the fantastic job you have done in losing weight so far....

The band to sleeve forum is here:

http://www.gastricsleevesupport.com/from-band-to-sleeve-f38/
best of luck
S

Hello everyone.

I just want to start by saying that I'm here for a different reason to usual I suppose.

I've just been banded (in Adelaide exactly one week ago).

I have to confess that I am incredibly miserable and feel as though I've made a dreadful mistake.

I was told that the band would definitley work if I did all the right things. I was told that while complications were possible they were quite rare (certainly I wasn't told just how damn serious some of these complications could be), I was told that they didn't think the bands would last a lifetime but I certainly wasn't told that they often lasted MUCH less than 10 years.

From my first appointment to discuss the possibility of a band I was rushed in to have the procedure done within weeks. I remember feeling rushed but when I questioned how quickly it was all going I kind of felt as if I was being ungrateful.

Now I'm an adult and I admit that I have obviously gone into this taking far too much at face value and without having done the appropriate amount of research myself. For example, I didn't realise just how difficult it was going to be for me to maintain the necessary vitamins and minerals in my body and I also didn't realise how much of an impost it would be on me to get filled and unfilled and blah blah blah.

I guess I feel that once I stepped into the doctor's rooms the rest became a roller coaster and it got totally out of my control almost straight away and to be honest I kinda felt as if I was going along with it all 'because I didn't want to put anyone out'. Totally pathetic and unlike me. Perhaps this is why from the moment I woke up I had a complete psychological rejection of the damn band (I suppose it didn't help that the doctor didn't even bother to come and see me the morning after the operation and I was discharged without seeing him. In fact I haven't laid eyes on him since about 3 weeks before the operation as I was unconscious by the time he arrived to perform the operation). I can't explain how anxious I feel with it in there. I'm terrified something will go wrong, I can't sleep, I obviously can't eat, I've got the shakes, I'm crying all the time, I'm terrified that despite what I've been told the band will impede my ability to carry a child. I know this isn't normal but I'm beside myself. Honestly, I'm at my wits end.

Guys, I'm not contemplating getting sleeve, as I just wish I could put this whole episode behind me, but I am SERIOUSLY wanting to have this band removed. Please, please, please tell me all you can about your experiences in having a band removed.

Could you eat normally again?
Was the operation to remove any worse than to have it put in?
What sort of costs were involved?
Do you know of any potential complications from removal?

I didn't know where else to turn. I hope you can help.

I joined a forum with a lovely group of people who've been banded and I've tried to get some advice or help about how I'm feeling but they're all big fans of their bands and honestly can't understand my desperation.

Weight post optifast = 103 kilograms
Weight @ banding = 98 kilograms
Weight 1 week post band = 94 kilograms
Height = 166 centimetres
Age = 36