sparkplug

I have had the band for 11 years. For the first 8 1/2 years I did great, with occasionally getting stuck once in a great while. I got down to goal and everything was fine. NEVER had a fill since I felt restriction from day one with no fills. Fast forward to today, I am an emotional eater and the last 3 years have been very turbulent for me and my husband who I am a care giver for. I ate my way to gaining a little over 30 pounds and get stuck on a daily basis. I feel like something has slipped and I have been trying to get approval to get the band out since only sliders go down easy and I really need my strength to take care of my husband. I would not discourage anybody from getting the band but I do not know anybody that has had the band for the rest of their life like I was led to believe this would be. I wish I could keep this and get back on track but the uncomfortable feeling in my chest has got to go. You are right everybody is different and maybe I am not the best person to ask about this but I really did have a wonderful 8 1/2 years of being thin again, even though it was not permanent. I believe my sister got the skinny genes and I got the fat ones since this has been my cross to bear since I was a child. Good luck to all of you since every story has a different ending.

I too said I would die with this band but when there is an issue like feeling stuck most of the time, it wears on you and it is time to have it removed. I have had the band for 11 years and worry that it also damaged my esophagus. I don't blame anybody but I hope they perfect the band so that this will not happen to anymore people. I believe my band was doomed when over a year ago I had food poisoning and the constant throwing up for over 7 hours probably did more damage than I realized. I never had any fills and kept all my weight off for over 8 years but been having problem getting regular food down the last few years and eating sliders like chips and popcorn since had hard time to get regular food down. Hope I get this out soon with little or no damage.

Just wondering how long this band can safely be in our body. I have been having trouble getting food down and family doctor recommended to have the band removed since it has been 11 years. Most of the time feel stuck and fear damage to my esophagus. Anybody else have this issue? I was lead to believe you can keep this in your body forever and I have read that this is not the case. HELP!! Waiting for bariatric doctor okay to get this removed.

I am 65 and weight coming off is verrrryyyy slowwwww. I carry papaya enzyme tablets with me, I still occasionally get stuck. I gained about 40 pounds since my retirement and have lost 15 pounds so far, but it is taking forever to get it off again.

I am 10 years out and no problems, and I don't see anybody complaining about the after effects of RNY and the sleeve. My niece had the RNY about 15 years ago and from the restricted diet she was on permanently, her bones are so brittle that when she fell last year she broke her leg in 3 places because of lack of vital nutrients caused from the elimination of necessary vitamins and minerals that you get from food in your body and not eliminated at a higher rate with the surgery. I hope to keep my band forever, but I am geting pretty sick of all the negativity of people not following the band rules and having problems because of it, so they need it removed.

I had bad hamburg last year, food poisoning! Threw up for 7 hours and it came out of both ends continuously. How gross, I was scared that I would have to go to the emergency room so I took a couple of imodium tablets which stopped both and after sleeping for 24 hours I was okay but kept on liquids for the next couple of days and prayed that everything would be fine. It was. Not good experience, but you need to stay calm when things like this happens so to keep your body relaxed and I was told it made the difference of not having problems after the fact.

I have not been to my bariatric doctor since my surgery. Have never had a fill, I rely entirely on the band, do not need to have the feeling of full because of the band being tightened up. It has been my choice to use this where I am comfortable and if something should go wrong I will have to find a new surgeon since my insurance does not cover this locally and there is not a bariatric doctor within 200 miles from here. Good luck and and try to make this work where you are totally in control,not waiting for your body to tell you to STOP eating because of pain from eating too much.

I too will die with the band. Never had a fill and have no problems unless I eat too fast or too big of a bite when extremely hungry. If I did not have this band I would be back to day one. I did gain some weight when I retired but am working on getting it off. I have to get my mind back to what to eat and not eat. It's not easy and I know just as many people with problems from the other surgeries so you need to pick your poison and do your own thing.

There is nothing worse than being stuck for any length of time. I have learned after all these years when I do not feel the food going down, I excuse myself and go to the bathroom and put my arms in the air until I feel the food going down. If I don't feel it go down, I sit and drink liquids until I feel the food move. If it does not move, I do not eat any more and end up bringing the rest of the meal home. I wish I had more ideas for you but it took me years to figure out what to do for me. Good luck and try to listen to your body and do what you are comfortable with.

I am in the same boat!! You guys are not alone!! Was banded in 2008 lost all my weight I wanted, kept it off for 8 years and I am up 40 pounds now. I gave up the bread, pizza, calzones and am trying so hard to lower carbs, but it is coming off 1/2 pound a week. Not good!! I retired 3 years ago and do not exercise or walk like I did back in the beginning of this journey. I totally understand what everybody here is going through. We just have to keep trying.

I started my change at 40 years old and after 2 months of hot flashes and crying for no apparent reason, I chose to go on hormone pills from the gynecologist and stayed on them for about 8 years. when I got off of them all the flashes and mood swings were gone. I cannot believe that anybody would suffer with hot flashes and mood swings when with today's modern medicine you do not need to suffer. Stay cool and enjoy life without sweating things out!!

Chewable Papaya enzyme pills. Been stuck with trying to throw up food and sometimes there seems to have something stuck. Chew a couple of those and sip warm coffee or tea very slowly and it should move it down. I normally stay with liquids only after one of those episodes. These were recommended to me in the beginning journey for me and I keep some with me at all times. Good luck and I hope they work for you.

Does anyone remember Carne Wilson when she had the RNY to lose over 100 pounds. Well, not too long ago she had a reality show on TV and I could not believe that she gained all that weight back again. I know what she was feeling and she then got the band even though she had the surgery originally and succeeded. I saw her last week on a TV advertisement for Progressive insurance and you know what she is still a plus size person. We all fail and get back on the wagon. Now that I am older (65) I am not in the frame of mind to give up everything and lose fast again. I am losing slowly about 1 1/2 pounds a week but as long as it goes down I am happy and do not feel like I am giving up all my favorites. Sometimes I think that being a drug addict where you can give it up totally would be a lot easier than this food problem.

Since being banded, I take one chewable calcium supplement(caltrate), one 10,000 mcg of biotin and one chewable multiple vitamin(centrum). I tried stopping them last year and after 2 weeks, I felt so weak and miserable that I went back to them and will be on them forever since I cannot get enough protein in to get my necessary vitamins. My hair stopped falling out and my nails are growing like weeds.

We all have the issue of regaining once we let our guard down. Bread, pizza and high carbs is what put me back on this roller coaster. I had to get on this website to remind myself of smaller portions and low carbs. Once we get down a few pounds then we will get renewed strength to keep going and get this done. I started back a month ago and am down 10 pounts which is a real moral booster to get this going. Good luck and keep smiling.

I know what you are all going through. Lost almost 90 pounds to begin with 10 years ago when initially banded. Kept down to 148 pounds for almost 8 years then started gaining 5 pounds, then 10 pounds and now I have to lose about 30-40 pounds and this website has given me the resolve to do it again. I am just totally cutting bread, pizza and all the dough products that I have been eating over the last 3 years. We can all do this, this is our Lifetime Fight to get this weight off and keep it off. Somehow I think if I was an alcoholic it would be easier to do stop that instead of this weight issue that I have been battling my whole life.

I have been banded for 10 years. Had the weight off for 8 years and then BAM, retired and last year of work was a nightmare with the boss from hell. I know, that is not an excuse, but here I am again trying to lose this 35-40 pounds gained from stress eating. Getting back on this website has helped me get my resolve to do this again and I hope that this helped you with knowing that we all slip one time or another and we can do this again. I believe that obesity is a disease like alcoholism, the only difference is that you can quit alcohol but you cannot totally give up food. We need to have control at all times and it is definitely HARD TO DO.

I think that you are not clearly seeing the writing on the wall. whether it is lapband, sleeve, or any other surgery. These are only TOOLS to get you to change your eating habits and change your weight and life. Regardless what surgery you choose, the result is what you do with making a life change in eating. I realize that some people might reject a foreign object in their body like the band. My body rejected a screw put in my foot after surgery and I had to have it removed, so your doctor knows best what caused your problem. Do what you have to and good luck.

Not everybody is good for the band. I love my band and would not change anything. It is my "little" reminder to eat less, smaller bites and eat slower. I also know several people who have had nightmare experiences with the sleeve, RNY and all the other outrageous surgeries offered for something that is mostly suppose to change your eating habits. I also know of the various infections and yes deaths from other surgeries. You need to search and decide what is best for you but any surgery done to change your body can cause serious illness or even death.

I am a stress eater so I know where you are coming from. A failure is somebody that falls down and does not get back up. I rely heavily on my stubborn streak to put me back on track and yes...a good cry gets you going as well. I too was disgusted to get back on the scale but the fear of getting back to square one scared me even more. I think you are amazing and faith and courage will pull you through this because there is always light at the end of the tunnel.

I think I am a success story. I got down to my ideal weight within the first year of getting my band in 2008 and kept the weight off for 8 years. I retired 3 years ago and unfortunately too many calzones and strombolie's put me up about 35 pounds which I am trying to get off. The good news, some good days and some bad days on getting stuck but had blood work done last week and for the young age of 65, it came back excellent. No diabetes, no cholesterol problem and do not need to live on prilosec. I believe that the band saved me from the downward spiral of all the problems of obesity. If I get back down to my ideal weight, I will be very pleased with myself.

I love my band and have had it for 10 years. I, too still have days I eat too fast or too big of a bite and get stuck. I retired 3 years ago and got careless and ate the wrong foods and gained about 30-35 pounds that I need and want to get back off. Unless I have a medical emergency to remove the band, I plan on dying with it in me and I refuse to go to the extreme of the other surgeries they are offering. Thank you very much but I will stay with what I have.

I am quite concerned about all the new people going to such drastic measures to have their insides reconstructed to again lose weight that they claimed they lost originally with the band and they have gained. I will not do more surgery and if it comes to the point of a drastic problem to remove the band, I will have to learn new eating habits and WILL NOT have my insides cut and reorganized thinking that that is the answer. I am going back to my basics when I first got the band and I will get back down to my goal weight. This has been my life of up and down weight and I believe that most of the people having surgery are all cut from the same cloth as me. I am optimistic that we all can change and it just might take a few tries and lots of faith in ourselves.

I have been banded for 10 years and I believe it is the safer alternative than any other surgery. I did not want my body rerouted or changed from what was normal. I know of a person who had the sleeve and was told that even with that surgery, over the years your stomach can stretch again. It all comes down to self-control and learning new eating habits. I am thrilled to see that there are people being banded like me and are starting this new adventure. I was worried that everybody is jumping on the new bandwagon of doing outrageous things to their body to lose weight instead of just trying a non-invasive way like the band.

I have been banded for 12 years and I believe it is the safer alternative than any other surgery. I did not want my body rerouted or changed from what was normal. I know of a person who had the sleeve and was told that even with that surgery, over the years your stomach can stretch again. It all comes down to self-control and learning new eating habits.