I am so glad to have found this thread. I have been banded since February of 2004. Everything was going great until Oct. 2007 when they told me I had some esphogus problems. He took all my fluid out and I gained back 45 pounds. I have a swedish band that holds 12 cc's of fluid and am just now back up to 10.5 in my band. I received my third fill in seven months last week and am back to the throwing up and not sleeping. However, the trade off for getting this weight off seems to be worth it. I love my band and hate to read that complications start happening around the five/six year mark. I have been so much better with the band and would do it again without thinking. However, I am ready to get back to my skinny self that this band helped me achieve. Thanks for the great post. Now I know that I am not the only "old bander" that exist. They need to start a good thread with us old timers!!
