comtemplating

Just found out I need a hiatal hernia repair surgery. Had an upper Gi and the dr said stomach is very small and had a hard time "finding it". Also a lot of scar tissue. I am 6 years post RNY (12 yrs post gastric banding). I kept my 75 lb weightloss off until covid. I lost additional weight during covid due to stress and trauma and now I have gained it all back and then some. So in addition to needing the hernia repair surgery, I want to discuss revision surgery. I am having trouble swallowing pills without them getting stuck, have GERD, and have pain when eating. I am trying to find some names of surgeons to research. I am in Arizona but will travel. The surgeon that I have met with has said this isn't going to be an easy surgery and they won't know exactly what they are dealing with until they get a full look. Anyone been through something similar and have a dr. they can recommend?

Thank you RickM. This is very helpful. I appreciate you taking the time.

Thanksgiving last year I started having a lot of trouble with "stuck" episodes. I chalked it up to getting closer to restriction. So I had fill, unfill, fill, unfill from November until May. Months of vomiting. But I kept on trying to reach perfection restriction- all the while I was textbook looking only for slider foods- drinking tons of calories. The weightloss had stopped but each month through May the dr. would say, "you are doing so well" because she was looking at the weightloss I achieved from April to November (50 plus pounds). So my average was on target but the weightloss had stopped. 50 lbs is 50% of what I need to lose and the "expected" percentage that comes with the surgery. In May I took a vacation to Maui and had the worse time ever- could barely eat and started vomiting black acid. In hindsight- I was probably too tight and in the red zone since November but I wanted to keep losing weight. I can't believe that I have wasted all this time not losing- 10 months!!!! So here I sit completely unfilled waiting one more week before I go back for a barium test to make sure everything is all right. I don't know if I have the courage to get another fill because I don't trust my judgement when it comes to needing a fill. This "tool" isn't easy.

Forgot to mention that at each dr's visit I would be asked if I could still eat bread- I always could so because of that I always figured I needed a fill until I could no longer eat bread. It is quite evident that one can have too much restriction and have negative side effects- even if they can still eat bread. Don't use this as a single gauge of whether or not to get a fill.

So last week I had all my fluid removed after having a terrible episode of vomiting and acid reflux (have had several of these episodes that will follow a period of being able to eat freely with no restriction and then out of the blue complete restriction= likely going on since nov but I didn't put two and two together and thought this was just how the band was supposed to work). The did a partial removal of fluid but when I drank water it gurgled down so we just decided to remove all the fluid as the dr. thinks that maybe I dilated/stretched my pouch. I have been on a liquid diet for one week and will be on mushies for two weeks until I go back for a barium test to see if my pouch shrank. My fear at this time is that my port seems to start to stick out and hurt if I drink too much- not at a time necessarily but a quantity over a long time. What would cause the port to be so painful- does anyone understand the mechanics of this? The fluid should go down my throat and easily through the band- which is appears to do- and then into my stomach- what is causing the pain in the port area?

that is very interesting that there were five other people in the outpatient support group that also have a lapband- that seems a bit more than coincidence. It is worth further exploration..........

Hey- I was wondering what happened to you. I am 100 percent positive that what you are experiencing is normal- this has been a life changing experience for you to say the least. You appear to have incredible insight pretty quickly into this entire process! I think it would be safe to assume that a great majority of us have an addictive personality- so to go to the extreme both ways, whether heavy or thin, is really likely. I remember when signing up for this experience I was asked if I had any history with anorexia/bulemia. My guess is that they ask this because it is a potential for anyone that loses a large amount of weight in conjunction with the addictive personality and poor coping skills we are likely to all share. It is really interesting (and common with poor self esteem issues) to hear you describe how you are not liking the attention you are receiving because of your new looks- it is not uncommon for people to be purposefully heavy to protect themselves from any attention. I get the feeling that you are "coming clean"? You don't owe anything to us but I truely appreciate the honesty as your post will be very helpful for many of us who are not yet at our "goal"- you can be a great teacher/example for the rest of us. With that said- I envy your honesty with your father- I am sure he is proud of you- I think you would find it very beneficial to speak with a therapist. Only the best to you.

Anyone else having terrible trouble with their band when their allergies are bothering them? I think I have finally figured out after several months of fills and unfills and fills and unfills that there is a correlation with my allergy symptoms and getting too tight. I get really thick mucus and congetion when my allergies are triggered- which I believe must "clog" my band. If I take gufenessein then I get some relief but I don't do this every single day. Anyone else in the same boat and do you take OTC medication on a daily basis as a precaution?

Just trying to figure out why documentation states someone with lapband will only lose 50-60% of excess weight. If weightloss occurs when you burn more calories than you eat then why would weightloss stop?

So here I am nine months in and I have never felt what I believe to be "restriction". I have episodes when I may eat too fast or take too big of a bite and I get stuck but I have never had any problem with the amount of food I eat. I have heard people talking about not being able to take one more bite or if they do they have a productive burp which brings it all back up. Is this what the "restriction" refers to and is this inevitable if I keep getting fills?

This has been extremely "tricky" for me and I feel like I have wasted some time because I had a hard time figuring this out as well. With each fill we should expect a different experience- the more fills- the more careful we should be. From what I understand we naturally become a bit more swollen initially after a fill- first couple fills I returned to solids rather quickly but now I have to be very careful for several days after a fill and progress very slowly from liquids to mushies to solids. And now my solids are very different than they used to be- used to be able to eat anything just small amounts- now everything needs to be pretty "wet" to go down. My dr. hints that things are going to change even more and that I eventually will have difficulty with bread and tortillas etc. The trouble that I have had is that I "forget" or "ignore" the absolute need to eat slower and chew, chew, chew. This then makes me get stuck and then the vomiting or spitting up traumatizes the band and makes me swollen and then I pushed the limits and returned to solids again and the cycle goes over and over and then you get so swollen you have to go in and get fluid out. I have never reached over 6 cc's in my 10 cc band because of this cycle I get myself into. My advice- err on the side of caution and stick to liquids and/or mushies if you can for a couple days to let things relax- if no success then you might need to get some fluid out and then wait and get some put in at a later time- again, all of this delays the process so I wish I had avoided it all and been much more conservative as I have learned to now be. Good luck!!

So- since October I have been going back and forth on getting a fill, getting an unfill, getting a fill, getting an unfill, and recently had a fill. And now I feel very little restriction and will be going in to my appointment in hopes of another fill. But in the back of my mind I am worried that I will be too tight and back in for an unfill. This is getting frustrating because I have had no weightloss since October. Is anyone else having as difficult of a time trying to find the "perfect" amount? I was told that the smallest fills I can receive are 1/4 cc- does this sound like your experience as well?

Do you think you could get a fill and they could actually miss the port entirely and just inject the saline into your body? I mean what happens if they miss the port- anything? Would we even know immediately? My fill last Thursday felt "different"- can't describe it but I feel absolutely no different and am just wondering if it is a possibility?

That has happened to me. After I have an episode of being stuck and throwing up I always have to go to liquids for at least 24 hrs to let my band heal-lose the swelling from the trauma of throwing up. The gurgling always happens when I swell up. It is easy to make things worse if you eat solids and get into an eating and throwing up phase and never allow the swelling to go down. I've heard of people having to get all their fill removed and start from the beginning. Be careful and take it really really slow with liquids and then mushies.

C-Section was absolutely fine for me-of course the pain medication was stronger. I had a more difficult time with the lap-band- can't tolerate feeling naseus AT ALL. Try not to worry too much- everyone has different experiences and you won't know what yours will be until it happens. I know how nervous you must feel waiting for the c-section- but how exciting at the same time!!!!

194.4. Slow and steady. I know I can be doing more/better. Last Christmas I easily gained 10 lbs and then another 10 over the next couple months. I am headed in the right direction this year but gotta get a move on with the exercise. Need a plan.......

197.4. Gotta get moving now that I am recovered from gallbladder removal.

198.2. Finally got passed the 200's!!! I am so excited. People are finally starting to notice after a 50 lb weightloss. It feels great to get compliments. Had emergency gall bladder surgery three weeks ago- still recovering and had to quit my boot camp but I will return!!!

Hi- could you please tell me what negative physical symptoms you experience when you overeat? I can eat a six inch turkey sub from subway with no problems. That is outside the 3/4 to 1 C of food that is recommended. I have no negative side effects. Should I? or is this the part where I have to take ownership and measure and only eat the 3/4 to 1 C. I am so curious what others experience if they overeat.

So that is where my confusion lies- at times I can sit down and eat a six inch sub and at other times the first bite leads me to an hour of splitting up clear liquid. I thought that this was more of an issue related to not chewing well and that it wasn't related to restriction. Maybe I am wrong. It is the inconsistency that gets me all confused.

I was really looking for an answer- not permission. I know the rules- just trying to figure this out with a little advice from others with experience. So I take it from your response you have never experienced any negative symptoms from overeating? If you ate, for example, four oz. of protein and a few extra crowns of brocolli do you experience any negative symptoms?

Just keep on trucking. I was banded about three weeks before you. I don't understand it but there is an ebb and flow to my weightloss. I won't see any and then bam there it is on the scale!!!! It's about being consistent and attending your appointments. Slow and steady!!!!

When I started getting fills I was told to go on liquids for 1-2 days then mushies for 1-2 days. I could always do the 1 day liquids and then 1 day mushies and be fine. As I got more and more fills the recommendation became 2-3 days liquid and then 2-3 days mushies. WELL- this last fill (I think my seventh) I had a smoothie on day one and there was a chunk of fruit that I swallowed- and it all came back up. So I had additional swelling from vomiting in addition to the swelling that naturally occured with the fill that day. For several days I had trouble with liquids and had to go in for an unfil (the 1/2 cc that they had just put in several days before). It was explained to me that as you get closer to the green zone the more sensitive you become to fills and you can't get away with the things you might have been able to after previous fills (1 day liquids, 1 day mushies). SO here I sit and I feel like I have taken a small step backwards because I am basically going two months on a 1/2 cc. So lesson learned and I hope others will read this and be more careful!!!!!

UGH!!!! Up from 206.8 to 207. Had a fill last Thursday- had trouble drinking- didn't eat anything and barely drank for days- had an unfil (the 1/2 cc they put in last Thursday). Did three days of bootcampt this week and GAINED. I'm going to chalk it up to rehydrating my body and wait for the weigh in next week. Going to try and not get discouraged. SO looking forward to 199- gonna clean out my closet when that happens!!!!

Yipee!!! 206.8. Started a boot camp this morning!!! Got a fill yesterday!!!! Life is great!!!!