Gayla1313

So, after months and months of misery and dollars spent, I have FINALLY found a doctor who was honest and thorough. He performed a flouroscope diagnostic and it turns out my band has been drastically overfilled which has caused all of my problems. Reflux, GERD, vomiting, and now pouch dilatation and weight gain. He removed .5cc and still the barium was back washing up my esophagus and not even trickling through the band. He wound up removing 1 full cc and now the fluid trickles through like it is supposed to but now my pouch is stretched and I have probably gotten all the weight loss I am going to get from it. Which totally SUCKS! Thousands of dollars, pain, discomfort, frustration, etc. etc. for a 60lb weight loss. I can warn those considering Lab Band enough, that just because you can eat doesn't mean you need a fill. Fill centers and "certified" doctors will take your $$ and just keep filling and filling. If your having reflux and gurgling etc, it's TOO TIGHT. Also, I don't know how many doctors are telling the truth about the expected weight loss, but 60% of your starting weight is on the high end of what the expect and as little as 10% is considered success. I have posted elsewhere on here about my health issues and weight gain and frustrations, only to have most of those on here blamed me for overeating and not "taking care" of my band. Why doesn't anyone ever look at the doctors who are supposed to know what they are doing?!?!?!? I wonder if I can repair the damage done to the pouch and get anymore benefit form having this thing in my body.

I appreciate everyone here that chooses to act like adults and try to learn from others experiences. Too bad on bad apple can ruin a perfectly good pie. Thank you to all those who spoke positively about my post or at least could see the point I am trying to make. Good luck to all who are trying to make the best out of having the Lap Band!

tmf...I am not going to indulge your childish behavior with an online argument. I don't know you and you don't know me. I suggest that you recheck your facts with the BEFORE you bully. I am happy for you that you had nothing but a peaches and cream experience. I did not. And people should know ALL the sides to the story. Taken from portions of WWW.ALLERGAN.COM directions for use LAP-BAND adjustable gastric banding system with access port 10.0 and VG. "......CAUTION: Esophageal distension or dilatation has been reported to result from stoma obstruction due to over-restriction, due to excessive band inflation." "Mean weight decreased steadily from 293 pounds at baseline to 235 pounds at 30 months. Weight loss through 36 months was significant when compared to baseline. Mean excess weight was reduced from 156 pounds to 98.2 pounds. The weight changes from baseline were statistically significant at each visit (paired t-test p<0.0001). The observed level of weight loss at 12 months and beyond is equivalent to almost 20% total weight loss, substantially more than the 10% weight loss that has been reported in the literature to improve or resolve comorbid conditions associated with obesity...." Allergan, and most bariatric surgeons view success as 10% weight loss to an upper range of 20% weight loss. I do not see that as EXTREME WEIGHT LOSS. If you do, then more power to you. How many prospective patients would jump on the Lap-Band bandwagon if they knew that at a starting weight of say 350 pounds, Allergan considers 35 pound weight loss at success!?!?! My last suggestion, if you don't like to hear negatives about the Lap-Band, DON'T READ THEM.

Skyvic, What you say is exactly right. Everyone is different. Everyone should listen to there own bodies and not allow medical professional who "know better then you" tell you what is working for all of their patients should work for you. Good luck to you and I am glad you have a doctor you are happy with. 2muchfun (tmf), We are all adults here (or so I thought), each with his or her own experiences good or bad. So, if you feel the need to resort to name calling like a 5 year old, and get annoyed at posts that don't extol the wonders of the LapBand then maybe you should not read those posts. I have the right to post my experiences here without the worry that a "POST-BULLY" calling me names. You should be ashamed of yourself.

Junior Guru, I am so sorry for your troubles but it sounds like a mirror image to mine. Do not wait an longer to get the reflux under control, it can be very dangerous if left untreated over time and can lead to erosion and cancer as well as erode the enamel from your teeth. My reflux got so bad that I couldn't even bend over without throwing up acid, and even Water irritated it. I went and had 1cc removed and although most of my reflux symptoms have reduced it is still there. Everybody is different, so what is tight for someone at 3cc's can be totally different for someone else. I still have to take reflux medication, but I found a doctor who is also suggesting black licorice. No, not the jelly bean kind, but get some chewable black licorice root pills, they taste pretty good if you like licorice and it is an herbal remedy for reflux and it seems to help. I chew 1 before each meal and 1 before bedtime. I also stay away from the worst offenders, alcohol, chocolate and caffeine (I know, just kill me now). I also HIGHLY recommend getting your next fill/unfill with fluoroscope, it is an eye opener and you can see EXACTLY what is happening in there. I sometimes have a feeling of regret with the surgery, but I was insulin dependent, with horrific cholesterol levels, sleep apnea, etc. and all of that is resolved. S I try to keep that in mind. The doctor I recently went to admitted that Bariatric Doctors on the whole are doing a disservice to the overweight population at had. They are selling a "golden ring" that does not exist. Expectations for extreme weight loss with just the "tool" of LapBand does not exist. I thought I was being reasonable wanting to get down to 150lbs. at 5'5". But apparently wanting to go from 230 to 150 was unrealistic at best. I am at 176 now and my new doctor, said if wanted to lose any more, to get off my ass and run. There is no golden ring or easy way out that I was sold back in 2009. Oh, well, off to run...lol The best of luck to you, and I hope you get to feeling better soon!!

Your welcome. I had exactly the same thing happen, only I tried to live through it for the weight loss. My doctor INSISTED it was not the lad band and that I would have had reflux with or without it and it must just be me. I got down to 158, but basically from starving and dehydration. I could not keep anything down and would throw up constantly so I just stopped eating. I wound up in the hospital on IV and having to have an EGD etc. to figure out what was happening. Again, the doctors looked for every other explanation, pancreatic tumor, celiac, etc. I kept suggesting the band, but was dismissed. I went to a totally different doctor for an unfill. Within minutes I felt better, go figure. They weight loss was nice, but the cost was not. The weight gain is frustrating, but my health and well being is more important. It sounds crazy, but I used to joke that I would do anything to lose weight and if I wound up in a coffin at least I would be thin. IT IS NOT WORTH IT. Go slow, and at least periodically get fills using floroscope. That's the best advice I have. Good luck!

Thank you elcee, your right, I am happy to have lost the 60. It was 80 but I have regained 20. I am not planning on any more surgeries. I will work with what I have and exercise more and try to continue to eat as if I had restriction. I can tell anyone who asks, tighter IS NOT BETTER! You will be sorry in the long run and do more harm than good.

Thank you KBLISS I just found that as well. I will try it. I have nothing to lose (but pounds) at this point...lol

Thanks for your advice, however, I am not pissed, I am actually pleased I will not be waking up in the middle of the night choking on acid. I am disappointed that I depended upon my doctor to know what he was doing and the fact that I did not take charge of my health sooner and get myself educated BEFORE having surgery. I would love to find the silver lining, move on and have my band work properly, however, the band will not do what it is designed to at this point since my pouch has been stretched. But if I can help someone else make better decisions and not drink the Lap Band Kool Aid the doctors are serving, I will make that my silver lining.

I would be careful with a 1cc fill. That is a BIG fill and could result in overfill and the problems that go with it. I would give anything to go back and have fills little by little but my doctor thought it a good idea to put in a big fill without benefit of floroscope. So now I have a stretched pouch, no restriction and SEVERE reflux/GERD. I am now on the "Fills Under Floroscope" bandwagon!!! Blind fills are dangerous.

Did Dr. Schirmer do the fills himself?? He seems to routinely overfill. I have gone to another surgeon because after too many overfills my pouch is now stretched and I have SEVERE reflux. I didn't think I had any restriction either, until I had a flouroscope which showed my band was almost completely closed and my pouch had stretched. I would suggest getting your next fill under flouro. and not a "blind fill". 10cc seems like a hefty fill for only 5 months out. I have a 10cc band and just unfilled it 1cc and I am now at 4.8.

My name is Gayla and I have had the Lap Band since 2009. I have had some weight loss, but also a revision surgery, and severe gastritis and reflux. I have not been able to get a good adjustment in over a year and it is costing me a fortune as well as many gained pounds. It is extremely frustrating how difficult it is to find a doctor to perform adjustments, one little tidbit they forget to tell you when you are in the process of getting the surgery.

Thank you for your suggestion. My problems started when my surgeon put in a little over 1cc during an adjustment which apparently was WAY TOO MUCH. It caused sever inflammation and irritation and at one point I couldn't even swallow my saliva. After about 6 months of the doctors telling me it was NOT caused by the lapband, hospitalizations, severe dehydration, and EGD'S, I finally went to another doctor and had him take out the 1cc of fluid. My problems and pain immediately were relieved. I of course had no restriction at that point and being right before Christmas, I put on about 15 pounds since. I have had 3 adjustments since then at very small intervals of .2 or .3 of a cc per month, but still have no restriction. I have not gained anymore, but have not lost either which I suppose is better than continuing to gain. It is costing me about $150 per adjustment, but I hope I get to a good restriction point before I brake the bank.

I am sorry for your troubles as well. I am thinking about starting a support group for all the things your medical professionals don't or won't tell you about what to expect from having this surgery. There are things they don't think of even talking about since they have not had the surgery. I wish you well with your surgery.