hhalphen

Hi everyone. I'm having a really hard time. About a year ago my doctor saw that I had a little bit of reflux with my band. I had it for about 8 years prior to my banding, but when I got banded it totally went away (for about two years). They unfilled me, and i gained 8 pounds, filled me again and I've been on a steady losing streak. Unfortunately that is also when I lost my insurance coverage. Over the past 6 months I have noticed more aspiration episodes, and this past week I noticed that I absolutely cannot eat anything past 9 pm (some days I get out of class at 10 pm) if I want to get a good night's sleep. I have taken Tums for about 8 months now as a daily thing before I go to bed, but this past week they didn't help. The other day I went to my University Dining Hall and, unfortunately, ate some crappy food that was undercooked---I had to throw up. When I vomited, everything that had already gone down into my stomach came back up. It felt like a true vomit, not like a Lap-Band vomit (if you can understand what I mean by that). Since then I have had increased acid reflux and a burning sensation around my banding area. It feels like I am really full, like something is going to come up any minute---although the only thing I've been able to get down this weekend is Water and a little bit of milk because it hurt so bad. I can eat things, but I get nauseated very quickly and I notice my restriction is more. I've been taking 200 mg of Advil every four hours for the past three days, and baking soda in water to help the acid activity (it works better than anything else). Here's my problem: I don't have any money. I have no job, no insurance, nothing save $6 in my bank account. I know I've posted about being destitute with lap-band problems before but no one has really helped me on any of my posts because (and I'm assuming) that you guys don't really know what to do as a broke person. What does all of this sound like? I'm freaking out because it hurts and I'm afraid I've screwed something up pretty bad.

No ulcerations, no hernias, no nothing. I'm not quite sure (and neither is the doctor) why the acid activity is centered specifically around the band area but i've been forcing myself to eat, which is helping. I don't really have the availability to cook for myself to ensure that I get enough protein without salt and fat, but I've been choosing lean meals at the dining halls (today is the first day I got one and ate some of it) and just washing it down with a bunch of water.

Update: I don't have a slip--in fact, nothing was wrong at all. I think I posted my first post on Sunday? I went to the ER and, since I live in the middle of nowhere, there was nothing they could do but hook me up to fluids to hydrate me. They couldn't even give me an Upper GI! Monday I called the nearest (1 hour away) place I could go and they graciously got me in, and unfilled me completely. The restriction feeling went away but the burning sensation did not--it actually increased to about an 8-9 on the pain scale. Tuesday I had a Barium Swallow and passed out during it due to exhaustion, I'm guessing, but they found that nothing was wrong with my band. The doctor recommended Omeprazole and I've been taking it every morning. I finally forced myself to eat oatmeal yesterday and it hurt like hell--Cream of Wheat can't even go down without a fight. Does anyone know if there is anything stronger than Omeprazole?

Yeah I am now sitting on my couch dealing with the same issue. It will either be if I eat anything and a little is left over in my pouch because I chewed it insufficiently, or if I haven't eaten at all and it seems my stomach acid needs attention. I will be completely asleep and then BOOM coughing, clearing my throat, etc. My problem is I know I'm banded too tightly, because I have been to my doctor about this before, but A) this is my sweet spot, and I don't have health insurance any more. I can't have them touch my port without literally owing $150, and as a broke college student I can't afford that. If this is my sweet spot, will taking Nexium help at all? I'm really tired of it and it makes me extremely uncomfortable to sleep in my own room with my roommate.

Hey everyone. Recently I transferred to a college far away from home, so I have to live on campus. I have no health insurance (lovely how the economy is) so I cannot do anything about my band, even if I get into trouble. I also don't have a job due to how many hours I'm taking. Here is my problem: I am on a meal plan with no income. I've paid to have this meal plan, but the problem is that I've gained two pounds in the three weeks I've been here due to the poor quality of food I'm having to eat. I cannot remove the meal plan, and I don't have an income. How can I eat correctly while I'm up here? I haven't had this problem until now, and I'm in need of advice. I'm literally getting no Protein, have no access to Protein Powder, and (again) have no money. Example of the dining hall menus: pizza burgers hot dogs Cereal omelet waffles Desserts salad wraps asian food carb-heavy Soups quiznos. There is literally no source of lean protein on this damn campus. Can someone help? Should I just eat salad for the rest of my days here (two years)? I'm really tempted to, because they give me my Vitamins, but again, no protein at all. Would a better solution (since the last thing I want to do is eat pizza and quiznos) be to try and get money from someone to buy protein powder and drink that between meals (salad)? I'm seriously at a loss here, and I cannot go to the grocery store.

Thank you everyone for your input! The only reason I asked for help was because I was in a dorm my first year at college (where they had a real head honcho chef working with everyone to make more nutritious meals) and then I lived at home where I had access to whole foods and healthier items. I just transferred to this university and haven't been in this situation before (it's my fourth year out of a five year program) so I was just wondering what advice everyone had. Thank you so much, now I feel less trapped. I took into consideration everyone's advice and I actually lost 5 more pounds in the last week! I live at the bottom of a couple of hills so the treks to class are usually my only form of exercise (reading intensive major), but they work. My legs are getting more toned. I think my problem was more the types of foods I was presented with, not necessarily the portions (I get really nauseous after I eat more than a cup at a time, even if some of it goes through the pouch), but with such high fat and high carb options I was getting bloated and gaining weight that way. Thanks again! I hope another person in my shoes sees this and gets help, too.

I'm worried about carbs because those are what landed me here in the first place, among other things. There aren't any choices between egg whites and just egg for the omelets, and there are choices of veggies to put in them. I can do the salads all day every day, I'm just not losing any weight (I've been on a plateau for a year and a half now) and I honestly am getting really depressed about this situation.

Three years out, I can eat: rice, soft breads, chips, nuts, anything that seems like I wouldn't be able to eat it. I CAN'T eat: any kind of fruit (I don't understand why, because I need fruit in my diet!), tortilla, wheat thins or wheat Cereal, any kind of soda, frozen margaritas hurt for some reason, french fries The only thing I gripe about is the fruit issue! I don't understand why I can't take it in. Only berries seem to go down okay, but even then sometimes those contain the most sugar. All I want to be able to eat is watermelon

I agree with you Jachut. I know a lot of FA preaches about the word fat and how you should just accept the word, and from speaking to people on the subject I've found that people adapt to their word of choice. If "fat" makes a person feel worse than "heavy", they would use "heavy" more. I was just posting my example. I'm actually on a plateau right now, so the FA is really helping me not become depressed about my situation. However, unlike a lot of Fat activists, I'm one of the outsiders because I still want to lose weight in a sea of people who are perfectly fine the way they are--not to mention I had WLS to help me on this road. I'm in the middle of calling obesity a disease and a load of crap sometimes, just based on what I read about FA. It's a slippery slope if you don't really know what ground you're on beforehand. Some people use FA to rebel against whatever social stigmas they have attracted, some use it to justify their lifestyle, and some (like me) use it just simply to feel better about a certain issue. I'm trying to curb my judgment because I know how destructive it was for me growing up, and it's hard. It's like calling a chair a table. You're so used to the idea that this object is a chair, but now your perspective is changing (either willingly or forcibly) and it takes development of habit to call it a table.

I know some of us, a lot of us women, have trouble with our body image and self esteem while not banded. When banded sometimes the changes are really noticeable from week to week, and a new type of body dysphoria may develop. I know that my being 365 pre-band, and now down to 302 three years out makes me go insane sometimes with the way my body has changed. I am just posting here to help some people (I'm no whacked out doctor or anyone with an agenda of my own other than to help) with this weird change. Fat acceptance, as I'm sure most of you have heard of, is acceptance of people of size. We are stigmatized constantly, and ridiculed almost to a breaking point. Sometimes this causes us to overeat, and gain weight, which makes us sad, which makes people poke fun, which makes us sad again, and the cycle continues. Fat Acceptance (or size acceptance) has helped me just kind of sit comfy with the changes I'm going through. I no longer say "big-boned" or "plump" or "plus size" when referring to myself, because I think (and this may be an unpopular opinion) that the term "fat" is much more polite. I'm now loathe to use euphemisms for anything, really. Some of you may just vehemently disagree with me, saying that being fat is a total end-all to life. That's why we are here, right? To get healthier and lose weight. My point is this: No matter your reason for being here, the ones who are going through these bodily changes may be upset at the way they look or feel when trying on new clothing. I know that I have a flabby tummy and I'm in between sizes, which really racks my brain out in the dressing room. Looking into fat acceptance helped me be comfy with who I am and still want to lose weight. If any of you are having this dysphoria, this weird feeling of desperation to somehow look normal through all these amazing changes, I really suggest looking into this movement. While not all of the things that are covered and talked about in the movement may pertain to you and your plight, it just may be that extra boost to help you through the tough emotions that come with WLS. A book that helped me out was Fat!So? by Marilyn Wann, and various fatshion and fat acceptance blogs online. Just passing on some help because I know I needed it two years ago. Sorry if someone has said this before.

Personally I've never, ever, been flexible enough to do that reach-behind business. If you can wipe from back to front, you can do it the opposite way. When feces (and yeah, it's there even though you may be squeaky clean) gets into your vaginal area, a couple of things can happen: 1) Most important: e.coli is in your intestinal tract whether you like it or not, it's a natural bacteria, and can be released when you poop. So if you wipe from back to front, or even have a really bad bout of flatulence that escapes the other way, e.coli can make it's way into your urinary tract. UTI's are people variant, some people feel em immediately, and some people don't exhibit symptoms until they're in the ER complaining about a stabbing pain in their side. 2) Any kind of excrement can make it's way in your vagina and cause yeast infections. Sometimes, ladies, yogurt and honey and tea tree oil just doesn't work. DO NOT DOUCHE when you have a yeast infection, either, because that can make it worse. In summation: to the front to back, now, before you get really sick. source: trial and error growing up and living in a medical family.

Plus, darling, some of the side effects with bypass include: lifetime pills and supplements, losing weight too fast which then leads to skin hanging everywhere which in turn leads to plastic surgery leaving huge scars. Also, in my opinion, you don't have to tell people you have the band, which is awesome because as you lose weight gradually people will be thinking that you do it based on your own will power. Although that sounds funny, I've gotten weird looks when I tell people I've gotten a band because there's this stigma that people who get weight loss surgery just don't have any willpower so I just don't tell them at all anymore. Now when I get compliments I feel as if I'm seriously doing something to help myself :smile2: It is a tool, and it does work. You'll be fine. Habits are really the only thing you have to worry about.

Hi, I was banded last July, and I had lost 60 then gained it all back with a bad fill. I went nearly completely vegetarian (only fish and occasionally chicken) and that helped me lost 21 pounds, which is so f**king depressing. Is there anything, other than complete starvation, that I can do that has helped? I work out everyday for twenty minutes: one mile walk I only eat when I'm hungry or faint, and it's often two times a day with the normal full feeling after it hits the band. I'm stressing out too because my body has shifted, I've gained a roll, and I still have lost two sizes. I was much sexier at the larger weight, shape-wise. Can't afford the reconstructive surgery after my goal weight is reached, either. Any tips?

I went to a bad doctor, basically. I told them I needed a fill and they dismissed me saying that I was doing fine. I mean, at that time I wasn't doing fine because I was still able to eat pretty regular meals and had NOT been filled. I had changed living locations, and that was the reason why I went to another doctor. Plus, I hadn't ever had a surgery like that and my body was getting used to the shock, so I think that's why I dropped so much the first six months. Then I gained it all back. I tried following the guide they gave us and I just got really disgusted by beef and pork after a while, so I tried vegetarianism with fish and chicken. I drink 3-7 bottles of Water a day (16 fl. oz), have cut out almost all sugar (exception is natural sugars) and don't eat anything that is a starch or carb. My doctor said it was fine to not eat, so I guess I should start forcing myself. Except, sometimes, when I do force myself I get really nauseous and just can't eat.

Hello, this is my first time posting. I am a harpist that attends a Conservatory in Ohio during the school year, and resides in Houston, Texas, during the summers and subsequent breaks. I was banded on July 13th, 2008. I lost 60 pounds in the two months that followed because of the surgical shock, stress, and I was getting ready to start my freshman year in a college far away; not to mention I had a bad run-in with nurses who didn't follow instructions. I've since gained it all back because a local doctor didn't listen to my needs and therefore ignored a fill request and barium swallow. I'm starting over, and I plan to make it work. Start weight: 345 lbs. :frown: