Nanook

I vomited on the way home from a fill once and waited until the late evening to call the doctor and she met me after midnight at the office to take out the extra fill. She told me never to wait more than an hour or two if you're still not able to swallow your own saliva! Nancy.

Privatedancer, Mine was removed last October and I ended up going in for an endoscopy which I scheduled on my own and not related to my gastro surgeon. I was put in the hospital because of my chest pains that they said were related to my reflux which I never had prior to banding. I do experience some of the "spasms" I guess that's what they are where I don't swallow as easily anymore but definitely not to the extent you're having. Mine is so mild I never even brought it up to anyone, just a weird thing I notice from time to time. I know it can be a common problem but since having the band removed I take all my gastro/esophagus issues to other doctors and surgeons who are not related to WLS. I have a feeling they'd be more interested in covering their butts than taking care of my medical issues. Good luck, Nancy.

Well for me it was easier but I had no complications. I spent the night when I got the lap band and had a lot pain from the gas etc... I had my removal as an out-patient and the incisions were on the same lines as the original ones and so they are longer and the pain was not nearly as bad. The port removal wasn't as bad as I had expected either but they gave me stronger pain meds also to have it removed since I no longer had to worry about my pouch. Nancy

Well my truth is that I got banded over a year ago and put back the preop weight and had other probs too with it and had it removed. My daughter on the other hand had the RNY done and has lost over 130 pounds so far. I don't know what makes it work for some here and not others. Is it the type of food we eat or when we put on the weight, age-wise, our sex, our age, or what but it seems that with the diversity of situations it's almost difficult to judge ahead of time which would be the right solution. I think I was a sweet eater prior to banding and after banding it made it worse. It is much easier to get sweets into you than spaghetti let's say. Bread is tough but then you read a lot of people can still eat bread. I also think I was always too tight and even with no fill had issues with that so it can be a bit tricky. I didn't come to this forum until I started having problems with the band. I suppose in some instance I was affraid of getting the RNY but now that seems silly since my own daughter had it done and she's more than half my age. It took as much will power for me banded as it did not banded to lose weight and I don't think all people have that issue. My daughter just seems to be flying through this thing now and has had her problems with RNY in the beginning had closed up and they had to do two endoscopies on her to stretch her stomach openning but since then has been doing well, TG! She also has never had "dumping syndrome" which was another thing I was worried about. It's not that she's never eaten anything that would cause it either but her stomach is smaller and she doesn't eat as much. Now down the line things may change for her as it does with any WLS. As you can see people revise to other surgeries because either one fails or is not as effective as it used to be. There are no guarantees with any of these surgeries but it takes a lot of research, which you appear to be doing and asking many questions of your surgical team about percentages and what if this happens or that etc...I myself have decided not to revise to another WLS but that is probably very rare and it is not always easy to live as a fat person in a world that is not fat friendly but that's what I've chosen to do, good luck to you, Nancy.

Nanastummy, I'd be curious to hear what they tell you on your second opinion. Mine said that they were rare but not an issue so I just went with that. They said the meds I take for the acid reflux cause them but it could be just "me". Anyway hope you're doing better and let me know how you are, Nancy. Also, I couldn't remember what they were called but searched them and they were fundic polyps found in the fundus of the stomach, don't know if yours were the same, thanks Nancy.

I was curious as to how many have had problems with acid reflux or GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease) post-surgery. I'm particularly interested in those that never had issues prior to lap band surgery. Thanks Nancy:smile:

Ann, Go to Thinner Times - Gastric bypass, Lap Band, and other weight loss surgery if you want to speak with more people about the RNY. My daughter had it last May and after a few bumps in the road has been doing very well and has lost over 130 lbs so far. There are a lot of nice people there that will answer your questions and helped me a lot when I needed assist. Take care Nancy.:tongue2:

I think there's a big difference between the people who hate their bands or are just disappointed in the results. Most people find it odd that someone who has lost as much weight as you have would be unhappy. I too found it difficult to get it right after many fills and unfills but ended up gaining instead of losing. Maybe it was a loss of control thing who knows. I've found I'm much happier and healthier without the band than was on it but it's a big decision to have removed. For me it was easy as I did it for health reasons and am much happier. Good luck to you and I hope you find the right decision for yourself, Nancy.

I worked with my surgeon's coordinator to have mine removed. After a one night stay in the hospital for chest pains due to my reflux must have sent a red flag to the insurance company and they approved my removal fairly quickly and it was out two weeks from that time. I was not successful with the band after having it 14 months so the combo probably did the trick, good luck, Nancy.

Hi I've gone cold turkey off my antidepressants before that was a real problem for me a few years ago, the withdrawal and just not being on them was a bad time. When you go off one med and go on another you're usually under the care of a doctor and depending on the drug or class of drug they can have you slowly reduce the one you're currently on and start up on a lower dosage of the new drug until you're completely off the old and on the new. Some are very similar that it's not an issue. I don't remember having an issue going down/off of effexor because I was going on another drug immediately so I did not suffer withdrawal symptoms. Sometimes you can be on an antidepressant for a few years and it's just doesn't seem as effective as it once had been or not give you the results you desire. So I've had to switch to a few different ones after being on them for a few years or so. Hopefully it won't be so bad for you to switch if you're going to start up on cymbalta right away. Take care Nancy.:hurray:

Thanks, I know I should get it done anyway but will in a year. The stomach ones are no big deal they are a different type than the kind you get in your colon, just saw the doc. I just don't feel like going through anymore medical procedures for a while as I'm been bombarded lately! take care Nancy.:thumbup:

Plain I was just reiterating what many bandster has said about "not even thinking about eating today" etc....those are the types of things that have been said here and it's not that I was knocking anyone I found that some people are actually like that on the band. Doesn't mean it's bad it's just means it works for them and didn't for me, Nancy:smile:

J, Sorry you're in the same situation I was in also but you were much more patient than I was, three years verses 14 months. I suppose it works for some and not for others and obviously it's difficult to tell until after you've been banded most times. I know that with me I focused on food too much and here the people that seem to do well on the band act like they never think about food so how does one know when it will work out in their favor, they don't and that's problematic. I wish you luck and health and hope you don't have any further complications, take care, Nancy:smile:

I'm glad I'm off that roller coaster and don't want to depend on any other person to sell me their snake oil to once again get me to lose weight when I'm fine at this weight and don't need any more people to tell me that I am wrong, unhealthy, unacceptable to be at the weight I am. Too much time has been wasted in this effort. I hope for you that it is over also and that this band brings you the happiness you seek. Nancy:smile:

Donna113, what I said speaks for itself. I could have said size 0 then I would have had comments on that too. It really doesn't matter because what I said I believe and it's just my opinion and I'm sure most people here will find issue with it but I really don't mind. Nancy:smile:

I know I have an issue with sounding a bit preachy at times but I think obsessing over TV personalities and their weight changes just makes it harder for us regular folk. It's nice to have a variety of sized people out there in the world so we all know that people do come in different sizes and it's not a crime. It's that world that makes most of us feel we're not worthy to live in this earth if we're not a size 10! Nancy

Sorry you're right you caught me, I don't know how to change it though. But it's good to have your information thanks Nancy.:blushing:

Glad you're doing well seppi, Nancy:smile:

I think you're wise to be objective about the band as it doesn't necessarily work out the way you expect it to as in my case. The one benefit it did give me was a respect for my body and to be careful what I do to it again and also a sense of what real fullness feels like. So for that I am appreciative. I think we've all done our share of crazy things in our past to feel accepted in a society that worships thinness and puts down fat people but we have to look closer within ourselves to see how we treat ourselves before we worry about what others think of us, Nancy:smile:.

I think the port area takes the longest to heal but honestly it wasn't that long for me. I think because I could take better pain meds after removal. But I did think it would be worse than it was. So recovery time was fast but still waited for lifting heavy objects until I got the surgeon's ok. Good luck and health to you Nancy.

Marieg, As someone who was banded over a year and really didn't know how it would affect me physically and emotionally I can definitely understand the term you used "natural". I felt the same way after having mine removed. I lost weight on the preop diet, had done many crash diets before and thought it was worth the results I'd have of getting banded. I was wrong and found that being banded was a very unnatural way to live. Which is why I did what I had to do to keep from starving myself because regular "healthy foods" would not go down. Maybe I'm on in a million, well like to think so but doing something as unnatural as being banded did not go over too well with my body either. I gained back all that preop weight and then developed a bad case of acid reflux because of the way the band is placed. I've gone one step further and find it better to not go up and down in weight anymore, I try to eat healthy now, much more than when banded and prior to banding and exercise to stay healthy. I don't need to be a stick to be healthy or happy and that was something I've learned during that unnatural process of banding. Anyway good luck to you, I think you sound like a pretty smart cookie, Nancy.:wink:

Thanks Band_Groupie, I know my dad and my maternal grandmother had colon polyps removed but as I don't turn 50 for a year and a few months I was kind of waiting till then to find out if I had those also. Didn't know if there would be a direct connection meaning if I had them in my stomach I may have them in my colon too. While banded I was pretty much constipated (tmi) most of the time so who knows what's going on down there! I know it's inevitable and the same doc will do my colonoscopy but most people are like me and aren't rushing out to do it. Thanks for your info, Nancy:smile:.

Some surgeons want you to use it in the hospital or they just give you oxygen after surgery and monitor your breathing. I would check with your pulmonologist or whomever prescribed your cpap machine for instructions after surgery. I've never heard of anyone being told not to use it due to air in the stomach but there's a first for everything. Nancy:smile:

I never knew I had reflux until I started getting chest pains about 11 months after banding and it's complicated but I wasn't able to lose weight on the band so the combo made for a removal which I am fine with since it didn't work out anyway. I haven't heard that the reflux caused the polyps but read that the meds you take for the reflux, the proton pump inhibitors can cause the polyps. I saw pictures of mine and there were a lot so it kind of freaked me out. I just don't know much about them and don't meet with my gastro doc for a week or so. Thanks Nancy.

Anyone familiar with Wee Forest Folk know of any good web sites for good deals on Christmas ones??? Thanks Nancy:smile: