LadyBlue

I've had my band since '07. Got in the summer. Everything was great until December. That's when the heartburn kicked in - no matter what I ate or drank, it burned. Long story between then and now, but I will say that even though I do not have a lot of Fluid in my band, it will still seem to tighten on it's own - I've discovered the weather has a lot to do with it. If it's going to rain, the barometric pressure drops or if it gets cold, my band will tighten up. It's these times I try to stick to warm liquids until it passes. Pay attention to when you have problems that seem to pop up out of nowhere -- what's the weather like at that time?

Bread is not one of the best things to eat at all with the band. It goes down better toasted. I do bread once in a while, but try to make sure I take small bites and chew very well. Otherwise it can get stuck in a gooey glob in the band and just sit there for a while - and yes it can be painful. Sometimes I don't chew very well and end up with something stuck -- it's too far down to want to throw it back up, but yet hasn't gone down all the way. And that just hurts! I drink hot tea to get the heat in it to help release and ease it down. It seems to help.

Hopefully Velvet, they were mistaken. It's definitely too soon. You need time to heal thoroughly before starting fills. I believe my dr. has patients come for the first fill (it's been a while, so can't remember for sure as I had my band in '07) at least 4-5 weeks after surgery. Good luck on your journey!

I had the band about 5 years ago. Everything went fine until December. I had severe heartburn and problems with fluids coming up, etc. Long story short, I realized (as my Dr. has at this point also) that the weather can affect the band. When it's cold out or the barometric pressure drops (basically when rains are coming) I get extreme restriction. During these times, I stay on liquids and basically "baby" the band until it passes. I wish I had known this before I'd gotten the band. I would've know better how to handle it instead of the fill yo-yo we started on and ultimately having to have revision surgery. When you start having issues with tightness and heartburn/reflux, pay attention to the weather......that could be part of the problem.

If I've missed this being answered someplace else, please forgive me! I've tried to search for the subject first before posting. I'm one of those who have stretched the pouch. Not once, but twice. The second time, being almost a slip and blockage, my doctor opted to remove the band and put a new one in. I know that once you stretch the pouch, it's easier to do it again. I waited 4 months before getting a fill, then after 2 weeks had it removed because the weather changed and I started having the tightness/problems that I get when the barometric pressure changes! I have not had another refill yet, and will probably wait until after the holidays, for financial reasons. But this is my question: Yes -- I know it's easy to stretch the pouch after having done it, but when that stretch happens and the fibers in the top portion of the pouch are stretched (the ones that tell you you're full and don't have much of an appetite anymore), can they go back to normal? In other words, am I fighting a losing battle because I've stretched the pouch before? Will I never be able to get to that sweet spot again? Anyone with any experience in this, if you could offer me some insight, I'd appreciate it! I feel so discouraged and just wonder if it's hopeless at this point, or do I still have a chance at success?

They refill it a little at a time -- you basically start over with the fills.

If you don't have any restriction, you're not going to stretch the pouch. After the healing process and the swelling goes down, you can fit more food down, so it's natural to be eating more or feeling hungry sooner. Like Jack says, you have to learn the difference between head hunger and body hunger -- it's very hard to undo the head hunger habit. It'll just take practice. As you start getting fills, you'll soon realize and feel the restriction. It's a learning process constantly. Good luck.

xemi, I PM'd you. And Gonna Lose It, you won't stretch it out if you don't eat what you're not supposed to and you stop when you're full and only eat the amount your dr. says your pouch will hold. I did well for a while, had 3 fills then hit the sweet spot. It was a month or two after that that I started having severe heartburn & Fluid coming up when I was laying down. It turned out I was too tight and it was the weather changes causing it. When the barometric pressure drops, it can cause restriction, as can cold weather (for me anyway). That's when the problems started. I didn't have that sweet spot anymore after having fluid removed for a while and we kept trying to get it back. I was eating when I knew I'd had enough -- it was just hard to not eat it if it was in front of me. (When you eat out, have a to-go box brought to you immediately and leave out the portion you're eating for dinner and box the rest of it away.) It may not be easy to stretch it out initially (so says your dietician -- I think individuals vary on this), but once you do, it's so easy to do it again. Good luck!

Yes, Jessica, you really can stretch out the pouch. It comes from putting too much food into it and not stopping. The pouch is designed to hold 1/2 cup food....PERIOD. If you go over that, you risk stretching it. And once you stretch it out, it's very easy to do it again. Stretching it out can cause a slip -- where the pouch is overfilled and it starts to "balloon" out and the more food that is stuffed into it, it'll start to "lay" over the band. At this point nothing will be going through and you'll have to have surgery to reposition it, if you don't lose it altogether. The symptoms are heartburn/reflux and not feeling anything going down (I used to drink real cold Water to see if I could feel it going through). There could be other signs -- just do a search and you'll find them. How do I know this? It happened to me. So I know now how very easy it is to stretch it out and I have to be very strict about measuring 1/2 cup food at mealtimes. When you are at your "sweet spot" -- that 1/2 cup of food will fill you up and you won't feel hungry. Usually, when you need a fill -- you are hungry a lot and can eat more than you should (1/2 cup). Everything else feels fine -- no heartburn, etc. All you need then is a fill. Hope this helps. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask. Since I've been through it, I don't mind sharing, as I know it can be a tough thing to know what's going on inside there. My band is very sensitive to the weather. When it changes (as it has does these past 2 days), I feel a lot of pressure and I go to warm/hot Clear liquids until the weather straightens out (rains/storms have passed). I hope this helps! Good luck!:thumbdown:

Unfortunately, you CAN stretch the pouch out to the point it will slip over the band, at which time nothing (or very little) will go through because it's hanging over it. Been there....done that....and had to have revision surgery. The chance of stretching it out with no restriction is slim, but when there's Fluid in the band, my doctor advised me to MEASURE NO MORE THAN 1/2 CUP food at mealtime. The pouch is designed to hold 1/2 cup. So it IS something that you have to be careful and watch out for.:sneaky:

Jachut is right! Don't risk having problems with the band. I've had to have revision surgery and believe me, you don't want to risk it. Losing a little slower than you'd like is better than losing the band altogether! Good luck!:smile:

Thanks! I'm in no way an expert in this, especially with the troubles I've had! But I realized that I was lucky enough to be able to get this band, when so many others would give their right arm to get it, and yet I'm letting it go to waste, in a way. I'm like you -- the first year it was so easy and it pretty much did all the work, but now it's time I do the work and help it! When you do your journaling, be sure to note the temperature/weather conditions each day, whether it's that time of the month, etc., as well as how you and your band are feeling so in the future when you look back to see if there's a pattern when you have problems, you'll know where to start. Today is my day to start regular foods -- and I'm already feeling stressed about it. But I know what I have to do to achieve what I want..... Good luck, sweetie, I'm glad I could offer you some help, or at least some things to think about. Like I said, I'm no expert on this band at all, but glad I could be of some help! Let me know how it's going!

Slimmap, according to my doctor, it's the weather around here, and they seriously think that's what starting causing it. The barometric pressure in the air, as it drops, it can cause the band to restrict. After getting more fills, then having too much -- as the yo-yo started, I realized that I wasn't stopping eating at a 1/2 cup. If it was there, I was eating it whether I felt full or not (I usually did feel full). So I was overfilling the pouch and that can cause it to stretch out and ultimately cause a slip, where it's wanting to basically "spill over" and lay over the band. Just before my revision surgery, I knew something was wrong. I found myself drinking a lot of cold Water to see if I could feel it going through. When it was normal, I can feel cold going through the band. For the longest time, I couldn't feel that. When I went in and they checked it under flouroscopy, it was not only stretched, but had started to go over the band -- so since it wasn't "straight", things were just barely dripping through. That's when the dr. said it was time to do a revision and basically start over. But I know now, that this is my last chance for this -- for several reasons. One, is we no longer have the insurance we had when I got it in the beginning and had revision surgery in April. My husband changed jobs and we can't afford their insurance, plus from what I understand, insurance companies won't pick you up and cover previous lapband procedures. Also, I know that the stretching was MY fault. I allowed myself to go back to bad habits instead of babying my band and treating it right. I know my biggest issue is overeating -- when I feel full, if I still have food on my plate, I want to eat it regardless. So that's why I've joined OA to help get a grip on that -- it's basically a disease and I have to learn how to control it. So if you don't think it's the weather where you are affecting the band, could it possibly be bad eating habits? That's why a lot of us are overweight to begin with and were able to get the band. If your band feels fine for a while, then it's suddenly giving you the restriction problems, then there's got to be another factor that influencing it and causing the restriction -- i.e. weather (you may have developed a sensitivity to it) or even hormones, that time of the month, stress, etc. Start a journal and see if you notice if things are happening around the time you start having the trouble. It's worth a shot. I had my fill Saturday. I'd gained 10 lbs. since April and I'm almost within 30 lbs. of where I started when I first had the band. So I'm ready to do things right and figure out why I don't want to stop eating, why I depend on food so much, etc. I've done everything to a "T" since Saturday like they told me. I've been cranky and testy and I know that is why -- it's hard to give up a vice you've depended on for so long. But I have to realize that I only need food to sustain my body -- not for anything else. That's a tough lesson and it'll be a life-long lesson. I wish I could give you more answers -- just realize you have to figure out what the outside factors are that can cause your band to tighten up one day, when it was fine before. This is a foreign object placed inside our bodies, and since everyone is different, it could be anything causing your sudden restrictions. When it happens, go to clear, warm liquids for a couple of days and see if that helps. Also, as I mentioned before, try journaling and see if you notice any patterns, etc. Good luck, sweetie and let me know if I can do anything else for you!