DJV22

Hey everyone. I don't post much (or ever?), but I have lurked here off and on for a while. Truth be told, I could never remember my sign on name/password when I felt inclined to post...so I never did. LOL Just wanted to chime in and let ya'll know that I had my band removed on 6/30 after over 7 years with it. Bittersweet for me, but absolutely necessary. Long story short- I tried. In the first year I lost 60 pounds (which was 20 pounds from my goal), but I did that mostly out of pure will power and fear. I was terrified to test the limits of my band because I was self pay and didn't have a very good or convenient follow up doc. The closest band surgeon who would see me was about 3 hours one way and either $200 or $600 (depending on fluoro). My trouble began when I decided to actually put my BAND to work and start getting fills. I had (gosh that's weird to say) the larger 9cm (11cc) band and turns out it was very tricky to get the right fill level. I teetered between too tight and too lose and going broke for about 2 years. Then I decided about 4 years ago to have my band completely emptied. I needed time to reevaluate and let things calm down in my poor tummy. The problems got worse, the vomiting (pbing) got worse and I was not losing a single pound no matter what I did. I had a fill doc, but not a real "follow up" doc....if that makes sense. I did give up for a couple of years and put weight loss on the back burner, figuring it would be there for me when I was ready to focus more on it. I got married, bought a house and tried several times to refocus on making the band work. But it seemed the more I tried and the more tests/fills/follow up I received the worse things got. In those 7 years I had 3 endoscopies, a couple of upper GI's and I think about 8-10 fills/unfills. I probably spent a good $2000 on trying to make my band work (and about a gallon of barium and way too much radiation)... I just couldn't do it anymore. Even when it was "empty" I struggled with eating. The unpredictable nature of the band is the most frustrating part. One day I could eat chicken, the next I couldn't manage to get down Water. I could never tolerate rice, eggs, many fruits and so many vegetables. I was a much healthier eater BEFORE the band. I also was not lactose intolerant before the band and became so within the first year (could be coincidence, but I don't know). My food options were getting less and less as time went on and I felt my HEALTH was in jeopardy. I honestly felt like I was consuming the calories, but not the nutrients because most of what I ate came up and out. I have seen the inside of every toilet at every restaurant I have ever eaten in and me and my toilets at home are very well acquainted. I can deal with the "side effects" of the band if I was actually losing weight. But alas, over the course of trying to make my band work I gained almost all of my 60 pounds back and still suffered....for no reason. I don't blame the band entirely, but it definitely did it's fair share of making things difficult for me. Finally found a surgeon who would spend some time with me and ultimately (but very reluctantly) remove my band. He did determine my band had slipped slightly, but he also told me he thought my band (the 11cm) was a piece of crap. That sealed my decision to have it removed. I am a week out from removal and only drinking liquids and eating mushies in small quantities. I imagine my stomach will take some time to heal after the 7 years of trauma I did to it. I just have one question for those who have had their bands removed after a few years... Did you forget how nice it was to burp from deep down? I am a belching machine since removal and it feels good to have a REAL productive BURP. I feel like I have had gas bubbles waiting to come out for 7 years. I honestly can't eat much without feeling gassy, bloated and full. I hope this is temporary, I just want to feel normal again! Anyhooo, I posed this for anyone who is researching or interested in how things can go wrong. I do not regret trying the band, I made a decision I thought was best for me. It didn't work out, but I learned a lot. I do regret the over $11,000 I spent on the band and now the only thing I have to show for it is a scarred up tummy. :tongue_smilie: Best advice for anyone of you reading this....find a good surgeon who believes 100% in proper follow up! And be realistic about that follow up. Make sure you can afford it - time wise and financially. It's a long term investment. Oh and be prepared to never know meal to meal what you might not be able to eat. :thumbdown:

Thank you. Btw - name is Jennifer Some of you might know me from over the years, I've been around these boards for a while :tongue_smilie: MissDiva, What you describe is SO common. I think avoiding "soft food syndrome" or resorting to foods that don't cause problems is one of the most difficult aspects of banding. Who wants to be in pain? Who wants to throw up? It doesn't take long to figure out the foods that don't cause you grief and yep, they are usually high calorie and CRAP. My beef with that aspect of banding is that even when doing everything right (chew chew chew) I would have pain pain pain when eating healthy foods. chicken needed "lube", vegetables were very tricky and fruit pretty much impossible. Not being able to eat Breakfast was wearing on me also. But I'm glad you have found ways to make it work for you. With the right band, the right follow up and the right determination it can be such a great tool. Another thing I wanted to add to my "complication" list is ANXIETY. I suffer from generalized anxiety (thanks Dad) and I fully believe this should be something that is discussed prior to banding. Anxiety effects so many aspects of life and eating is not excluded. Banding made this WORSE. I would feel my insides tighten up when trying to eat, almost like I was bracing myself for the pain. And I would get esophageal spasms with the first bite or two of food, making it worse. I know this sounds strange, but sometimes I think anxiety is one of the main reasons the band didn't work for me.

Fabfatgirl!! I know you. what is your real name??

Hi everyone. I am new here, referred by someone. I would really appreciate any help you can offer. I have been banded for 4 years and have struggled for 3 of those 4 years. I haven't had any official complications until recently, but the band has only served as a tool to keep me from gaining, it hasn't helped me lose in quite some time. I belong to other support groups, so I do know what I takes to make this work for me and believe me, I have given it my all. I was banded in Mexico by Dr. Sanchez and have had follow up care in the states with a couple of surgeons. But I have been unfilled for over a year because when filled I experienced major discomfort and a dry cough the doctors believed was due to undetected reflux. So I wanted to be safe, not sorry and had my band emptied. Well since then my restriction has seemed to slowly come back - implying a possible slip. I went in January for an endoscopy to make sure there was no erosion (since I hadn't had one since banding) and it showed some gastritis and inflammation (had my esophoagus dilated) and a return of the hiatal hernia I had repaired at the time of banding. I then went a couple of weeks ago to get an esophogram and it appears my band has slipped (and it's been empty for a year). Since I was self pay (due to insurance exclusions) I am now facing a self pay for the removal. Problem is I am BROKE. I have spent a lot of money trying to make this band work for me and now that I may have to have it removed I just don't know what to do. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I can get my band removed and have my insurance pay for it because of issues NOT related to the band? Like to go in and fix my hiatal hernia and just take the band out while in there? I assume a band doctor is the only doctor who can do this?? I can hardly eat, I throw up after almost every meal and if I can get food down it causes pain. I obviously can't live like this, but without money what is a person to do? I don't own a thing. Thanks for any help you can offer. -JP

I have been in touch and they said it's $4500-$5000 for band removal. I tried to find out if it could be cheaper, but so far no luck.

yes yes, thank you for your help. It's nice that some doctors care enough to at least lend an ear and offer some advice.

Thank you Doctor. Would you happen to know if calling my insurance company would raise red flags, as they do not know about my band? Then if I were to get a doctor to do the surgery as only a hiatal hernia repair they would not cover because I called inquiring about band removal? I am not even sure I am asking this right..... but I am 99% sure my exclusion will prevent this from being covered and I don't want to risk any chance of getting it covered another way. And as a Bariatric Surgeon, is there an appropriate way to ask about doing this so my insurance would pay? Thanks so much for your help!