shlyle

Your story is similar to mine. I knew my band was tight but I wasn't really having problems with eating but looking back I was probably in a bit of denial also. What finally prompted me to go back to band dr was problems breathing at night when trying to sleep. I thought I was developing asthma or something. After an xray and CT my general dr told me my esophagus was extremely large and would cause problems with my airway when I laid down. So being too tight led to food backing up in esophagus, enlarging it and causing breathing problems. Got a complete unfill and heartburn hit with a vengeance. Have spent the last few months getting incremental fills hoping to find sweet spot again. I have been watching the scale move depressingly up and would like to get down about 25 pounds. I still wouldn't be at "goal" but would be at a point I think I could manage to stay at if my band functions properly.

I had all fill removed on Friday. Yesterday I battled heartburn all day...Zantac, Gaviscon, lots of water. Hoping it's not as bad today. But I feel better overall. Seems like I am sleeping better. You don't realize how tight you are until there is no restriction.

Been a few years since I have been on these boards, but have just run into a pretty big problem. Got banded in 2012. Fills and weight loss went great. Seemed effortless for the first year and a half. Never really reached my goal weight but was at a weight that I was happy with and was only about 15 pounds from goal. Last fill was probably 3 year ago...?? I haven't had any major problems. Occasional stuck or close to stuck episodes but nothing that didn't resolve. Last year I was to the doctor twice for what was diagnosed as bronchitis. Was given meds and inhalers. Seemed to resolve. For about six months though I have been having increasing episodes of trouble breathing when I went to bed. Felt like I was breathing through a straw in my chest. Finally decided to see my doctor about getting tested for asthma. To me, everything pointed to something respiratory related. Ended up getting chest xray and then chest CT and a few hours of worry that they were going to tell me I had lung cancer. CT showed a massively dilated esophagus - normal diameter is 2 cm, mine measures 6 cm. It is pressing on my trachea, thus causing the breathing problems. Not sure if my food has been backing up into my esophagus or what, but I would think that I would have been experiencing some sort of pain or throwing up???

I am wondering if anyone else has this problem? It seems like since I've had lapband and lost most of my weight I manage to catch every cold and flu that goes around. I am taking multi-vit and b12. I can be going good for a few weeks, increasing my exercise, them bam!! Get sick again.

Exactly why I didn't tell everyone. My family knew, that was it. Now that I have lost a good portion of my weight, people comment on how good I look and sometimes the conversation allows me to say that I had lapband. Others still just think I've been on a really good diet. You kind of have to guage people as far as if you want to get into the whole conversation with them or just thank them for the compliment and move onto other topics. If you read any of the articles about Chris Christie's lapband revelation, comments that followed those articles really reflect how society feels about obesity. Some commenters were very complimentary and hoped he succeeded, other comments were so completely assinine.

Thanks for the replies. I am just frustrated that I seem to take 1 step forward with my exercise, get sick, and take 2 steps back, waiting until my body can handle it again. And I wouldn't say that I am overly stressed....at least I don't feel like it. Some nights I have sleep troubles but have been that way for 10+ years. And yes I would usually get a cold once during the winter, but this year I am on my fifth head/chest cold, went through the flu, and to top it off had the worst stomach flu I have had in years.....and I got a flu shot :-)

Runny Nose! This is gross but I don't think your sinuses can drain the "normal" way when it is packed with food so it takes the next exit :-) Seems like I am always looking for a tissue. Also get the left shoulder pain when I get too hungry.

I hear ya! I was banded in Jan and am only at 40 or so pounds lost. But with my last fill, I think I am too tight. Haven't puked this much for a long time. But hopefully the Green Zone is right around the corner with a bit of un-fill. The band is a delicate balance. For the first few months after banding I did fight with hunger although I have been slowly losing. But being over tight is no picnic either.

I know how you feel. I had my 4th fill about two weeks ago. It has been really tight. Tight to the point that I wake up in the middle of the night because I have liquid (saliva, I suppose) gurgling in my throat and it feels like I am choking. Last night I finally got some solid food to go through and stay down but then today I couldn't eat anything again til about 5ish. Liquid goes down for the most part but I am getting hungry. I am trying to ride it out til my next appointment in a few weeks but I don't know...

It really can be a rollercoaster. I just had a .5 fill yesterday. On one hand, I had really been dreading it because the last fill I had made me painfully tight, but on the other hand I was experiencing alot of hunger between meals. So far, this fill hasn't been quite as painful as my last one. After that fill, water was painful going down but I stuck it out and eventually my stomach settled down. I think I am just one that my stomach can't handle major fills, because once it settled there were times I felt like I didn't have much restriction at all.

Hi I'm a fellow GF patient. Had my surgery with Dr. Debeltz. No complications but I have noticed at times that I have general discomfort in the left abdominal area. Seems like having this stuff inside makes you wonder if various aches and pains are related to it or not. Good thing you've been following up with it and were able to have the procedure to fix it.

I was on Pinterest last night (not a member, just browsing). Anyway, I have never been one to browse around for new recipes to try but it seemed like it was all the food posts that jumped out at me. Yes, we all had this surgery to lose weight, get healthy and fit. But it takes awhile for the mind to catch up to the fact that our relationship with food has been drastically changed, that maybe talking about it helps some to cope with that fact.

Hi, Haven't posted before. Been banded since Jan 23, 2012. I have lost 30 pounds and haven't felt like I am on a "diet" for the most part. However, just got my second fill 4 days ago. I do know that it takes awhile for the stomach to "settle" after a fill. But even trying to get yogurt down hurts. The food does go through, so I don't think it's an overfill issue, but it is painful to eat. Anyone who has entered the magical "green zone", does it hurt to eat? I get a pain in my back while food is making it's way down. Even not being in the green zone I don't think I could overeat if I tried, but frankly if this is the green zone, I don't think I like it....

And that's what I have been working on - chewing and slowing down. But after this fill for the most part I've been sticking to mushies and those even hurt going down. Last night water seemed to be not as painful so maybe my stomach is settling a bit. And I think I may be one of the overly sensative types. After surgery it took me all of three weeks to feel better. Lot of nausea and throwing up in those first weeks.

Because of scheduling conflicts, my first fill was two months after surgery and second fill was one month after that.

My first fill was 1.5 cc. My doctor said they do conservative fill amounts. First fill was a breeze. Took a day for things to settle down as far as eating solids. I am a few days past my second fill and this one hasn't been so easy. I may be a little too tight but am hoping things may settle in a few more days. I am seeing my doctor sooner this month so I am hoping to ride it out til I see her. But if it stays like I am now I may need a bit of an un-fill.

Since banding my gut has been extremely noisy. After a meal if my family is in a room with me they all look at me like "what is going ON in your gut???"

And I am beginning to think that I may be too tight also. I am going to try to ride it out til my next appointment. My fill doc is 2 1/2 hours away and I am seeing her sooner this month because of some other appointments I have there. So when they did an unfill, would you say you entered the green zone?

Thanks for your replies. What I find confusing about the whole banded thing is, you have a pouch above your stomach. Theoretically food should make it's way to the pouch fine. If you're going to have problems it should be when the food is trying to get through the band. But it seems like after this last fill, as soon as I swallow, even water, I get pain running down my upper back. It does get through, eventually.