annieM

I used to have a 4cc band and got nearly to a normal weight. Then i had a pouch dilation and had to have a revision and they put in a 14cc band. The thing is huge. I have gained back 20 pounds and am out of all of my nice new clothes (again) and still haven't had reliable restriction. I know i need yet another fill; i've lost track of how many cc's i have but i think i am at 14. I asked why they used such a huge band on me and they said that there was a possibility of scar tissue so they needed a big one. Meanwhile, i get more depressed as my weight will not budge. Can anyone help?

Hi, I'm from Beavercreek. I've been a slow loser and have had to have my band replaced once because of dilation, but I'm getting closer to my goal and it's very exciting! It would be great to get together with a local group and compare notes.

Yup, see your doctor. An ultrasound can rule out gall stones and a barium swallow can rule out a problem with your band. We can't do either of those here on lapBandTalk! (too bad, we'd probably be rather good at it with all our combined experience) Good luck and I hope you feel better soon,

Yeah, hang in there. It gets better once you start seeing results. Then the compliments won't be far behind...It is anything but easy though; no lifestyle change is ever easy. It is very much worth it though. My blood fats have all gone down to normal. Pretty cool.

It could also be that you are just too tight for an egg in the morning. I can't eat much of anything at breakfast but can handle an egg at lunch. Most people feel that the band loosens as the day goes on. good luck,

Hey, we've heard it all before! Don't ever avoid your doc, and therefore not get the fill you need, because you've been "bad". They've heard it all too and just want to help you get back on track. They can't do that if you don't come in. BTW, 500 cal is not going to hold you all day; no wonder you're ready to eat the couch when you get home. Try to add in a few high quality calories during the day so you are not so deprived at the end of it.

I would go ahead and see the doc and make sure to never make an appt. with the PA again. Go ahead and cry if you need to! Your doc knows what an emotional roller coaster we are all on! Get your fill and start experiencing some success again. If we could do this with diet alone, why would we need our bands? Good luck,

Have a barium swallow to make sure your band and pouch are ok. I had terrible heartburn and it turned out to be a dilation and I needed surgery and a new band. Extreme heartburn with a band is not normal and it should be checked out asap.

If that's all they charge you you'll be getting off cheaply. I needed to buy a new band, pay for the operating room, anesthesia, the only thing they threw in was the removal of the old one. It is going better now. I have over 12cc's in my 14cc band ( i thought at first it was 10 cc, but it is a 14cc band) and I can barely eat anything. So I'm back down to 163 again and size 10's are loose. I will keep going...

Yes, I am currently losing weight again. (whew) I had gained 25lbs when my band wasn't giving me restriction and now I have lost nearly all of that and I can work on getting to my goal weight. I can eat barely anything though.

We live in suburban Dayton ,Ohio. It's one of four cities we've lived in and I vote it the most livable and convenient. We have great schools, super shopping and it's quite pretty. We live on an acre and I've planted over 60 trees so we have quiet and privacy. Here in southern Ohio we have four real seasons (although some who haven't lived elsewhere might disagree) and each has its charms. We also have a huge air force base so we have smart, interesting people moving in and out and also some cultural diversity. It's not a vacation destination, but it's a great place to live.

Don't forget to get rid of the junk food. You're starting a new life remember!

Keep getting fills until you have restriction and then you will eat less and you will start to lose weight. I have a 14cc band with nearly 14cc's in it so it took many fills to get to restriction. Be patient and keep chugging along.

I missed the end too. Who got voted off?

I had a pouch dilation and let it go much too long without getting a barium swallow. My symptoms were horrible heartburn, throwing everything up and night time reflux. My pouch was so dilated that even with all the fill out, there was no resolution of my symptoms. This went on for, like, months. Stupid. I had to have revision surgery and i have gained 20 lbs. very depressing.

I used to have a 4cc band and needed a revision because of a dilated pouch. They put the 14cc band in me because of the possibility of scar tissue and now I don't have reliable restriction with a full band. I hear they can over fill it though.

I have 10.4 and have some restriction, but not enough. I don't know how much they can fill it beyond its capacity.

I used to have a 4cc band , but my pouch dilated and I had to have a revision. My doc put in a 10 cc band. Now I have 10.4cc's in my band and can still eat more than when I was at my sweet spot with my previous band. I'm getting worried. How much can they overfill this thing? I gained 22 lbs from when I had my surgery till now. I've got to get to the sweet spot and start losing again. I'm getting desperate.

You may find that the cereal in the morning is a no-go. Many people with the band are tight in the morning and more loose as the day goes on.

Ask me on another day and I might give a different answer, but no, I would have gone for the bypass. I have had to have a revision done for a dilated pouch and had to pay again out of pocket. Now that i have my new band and no restriction yet, I have gained back 20 lbs and I'm out of all my new clothes. It took me over a year to get those 20 lbs off and I'm so bummed that I'll have to do it all over. (The way i lost it was having my band too tight so i would not be able to keep much of anything down. Hence the dilation.)

Hi, I was self pay with my first band because my BMI was 38 and if I had done a six month diet, I wouldn't have qualified. Then I got a dilated pouch, was in heartburn hell and couldn't keep any solids down. I needed a new surgery and a new band and the insurance wouldn't cover me because I had been self-pay. It really frys me because although the first surgery was optional, the second wasn't. We had even paid our ten thousand dollar deductable for the year! Insurance companys suck.

I'm glad you guys don't regret the cost of your new lives. I don't regret it either, I've gone from a size 20 to an 8. You can be sure I will take much better care of my new band!

The pouch can get dilated if you drink carbonated drinks (which i didn't) having your band too tight and throwing up too much. When I had my barium swallow, the band was on it's side and a huge (orange sized) out pouching of my stomach had formed. I hadn't been able to keep solids down for months and had terrible reflux and heartburn. My surgeon said that the pouch was very thin and delicate and put in a new band above the streched out portion. Now it's like starting over. TWo weeks of liquids and two weeks of mushies.

I had complications (dilated pouch) but I still love my band. I know I could not have lost nearly 70 lbs without it. When I needed surgery I was terrified that the surgeon would say that my stomach couldn't handle being banded any more. Luckily I was able to get a new band. I don't even care that I'm on liquids through the holidays, I am just relieved to have my band.

I had a barium swallow today and it showed that my pouch was hugely dilated. I couldn't believe it. I haven't been able to keep anything down for quite a while in spite of being totally unfilled and I have terrible heartburn. My surgeon wants to do a revision with a new band. My question is how do I avoid getting dilated again? This is a real drag and I'm not even losing that much weight with not being able to eat.