I also had the band. I was banded feb 10 2006 I had a slippage June of 2006 I lost 200lbs in 16 months. I followed the diet the doctor gave me to a T. I never wavered and I excercised the first year. I got bored after that. Finally got thin never had my band filled. But always miserable, always having periods of tightness always vomiting always in pain. Finally I moved from Florida to Ohio and the first 6 months I was back in Ohio my heartburn was out of control. Couldn't even take Zantac. Could barely eat was burping up a sewage smell, not to mention the complications from my gallbladder surgery because after losing all that weight that quick I had 48 stones and one was stuck in my bile duct. That surgery caused a dysfunction in my bile duct. Which causes severe pain and elevated liver enzymes yet I can't do anything about it. That's another story. So I finally found a bariatric doctor here in Ohio. They got me in ordered an upper gi just to see that I had slipped, bad! My band had to come out so after 5 yrs and 10 months my band was removed. I wanted a revision but the doctor refused during the process we found out I was 8 wks pregnant and he insisted I was thin and didn't need it. Well guess what after basically starving myself for 6 yrs and after the initial 15 months of my band eating like crap because that's the only way I could eat I packed on the lbs through out my pregnancy and once my band was removed. The band can be a great tool but you have to stay on it and be on the diet the doctor gives you always. To do it any other way will cause great pain and sickness. Plus when the doctor in Ohio went in he said my band was entirely to tight. So the original doc who put it on I guess he put it on to tight. I never had a fill in almost 6 yrs. now I'm trying to find a way to get the sleeve. Also my insurance didn't cover the band so I'm also out 14,000.
