Red Zone is NO JOKE!

[ccjll 177]

Oh how 24 hours can't get here soon enough! I had a fill on Tuesday and I'm certain it was an over fill... well how bad could it really be, right... - let me tell you, BAD! boohoo for sure. Firstly, I'm not dehydrated I'm keeping that in check and watching for any signs (so is my husband)... but i'm very limited in what i'm getting down mostly because it's so painful and if I eat or drink anything with more than one bite every 2-5 minutes it comes back up. The worse part is this spasm feeling that is hurting the back of my throat and then I can feel the area around my band pulsing in pain. I've taken some liquid Tylenol which takes me 30 minutes to swallow the 2Ts but it does seem to chill out the aching pain.

I've been reading up on esophogeal spasm and that sounds like a good explanation however it's not really chest pain I'm feeling - mine is more a pulsing up and down by throat from the back of my mouth to my band with lots of gurgling sounds that are very painful. I sort of feel like I'm being choked and that there is a rock in the back of my throat. Everything from Water to eggs to cottage cheese to Soup hurts to eat - but I am managing to get some down to keep me going. After 4-5 bites I'm ready for a 2-3 hour break from eating. It's weird but crackers seem to be the easiest thing to get down.

Anyway - back to the title of this post - the RED ZONE - never really paid attention to that and I'm sure regretting it now. I am PRAYING that after doc unfills me a bit tomorrow that I'll be back to feeling normal b/c I was doing so well and really managing my post-op lapband life and loving it... I cannot stand set backs and I certainly wasn't expecting this one - I was blindsided for sure and now feeling worried that the issue won't be solved with a simple unfill. I'm regretting not chilling out after fill number 3 for a few months and letting me ease into the tightness that I felt compared to fill #2. I hope this experience of mine can help some of you newbies - take it slow b/c everyday changes. And no matter how many lbs are flying off me this week it CERTAINLY is not worth this agony and fear - no thanks, I'll gladly go back to losing 5-7lbs a month.

I'm going 1st thing in the morning to see my doc - I'll keep you all posted. I really do pray that it takes care of itself with an unfill. Any similar experiences I'd love to hear.

Peace

[parisshel 1,892]

I had exactly this problem with an overfill. The esophegal spasms were super scary and horribly painful. I could feel them coming on, peaking, and going away. Very similar to labor contractions!

I wrote about this in my blog (see my link in my signature)--the post is called The Unfill and it was last January.

They only had to take out .5 cc, taking me from 6.5 cc to 6.0 (in a 10cc AP band). Now I'm at my sweet spot.

I waffled back and forth whether to wait out the fill for a month...but once those spasms started I knew I could damage my band...it was clearly too tight...so I'm glad I didn't try to brave things out.

You know your band. Listen to it when it speaks to you.

Let us know how tomorrow goes, and baby your band for the next week after the unfill. If you can take Prilosec or Nexium, do it, as it will help with the irritation from the too-tight restriction.

Edited March 23, 2014 by parisshel

[ccjll 177]

Thank you Parisshel! I am so worried that this pain will not go away and today I am so nauseous, I really feel like hell but hearing your experience really gives me hope. Thanks so much for your post

[#MagicWithinme 173]

and remember even after he unfills you there will be refill but your stomach will still be sore, so still take it easy on the food.< /p>

[lisacaron 5,075]

@@ccjll how are you doing today? Did the Doc do an unfill for you?

[ccjll 177]

I did go over to his office but he was in surgery all day yesterday hence no visit... I'm scheduled today at 1:00 and I cannot wait. I'm still in a lot of pain and unable to eat or drink much - I'm shocked that I feel as good as I do with only a few things consumed over this past week - I guess I had enough in reserve. I AM looking forward to seeing doc today - that's for sure. I'll let you know what he tells me and what he does to relieve this spasm and choking feeling.

Thanks for checking in with me

[Mikee57 699]

hoping things get better for you ccjll soon!!! will be keeping u in my thoughts sweetie!!!

[ccjll 177]

Good morning all... so here's the update - I'm feeling much better but boy oh boy was I in TROUBLE! I'm hopeful that many newbies view and read this because I really didn't know any of this and I'm blessed that worse didn't happen to me and that's way above and beyond dehydration which is what most were worried about - including my nagging mama LOL (I do love her so) - what was really troublesome is the fact that my esophagus could have collapsed - that pulsing pain in the back of my throat - yep that was my esophagus screaming at me to go to the doctor!

So doc, after giving me deep penetrating eyes saying I should have never waited this long, took out 4cc's - so I'm now very open but still on liquids and taking it very slow and being very mindful of everything - mind body and soul. What an ordeal - one that I never ever considered...

What I've learned:

1. There IS a point where a fill can be too tight (I was the one who rolled her eyes and said Yeah Right) - Caution Red Zone
2. If the band is giving subtle signs like a small burp, a little discomfort, tightness - it's saying "slow down" or stop eating - listen and get used to those small signs - they are FAR better than not being able to get anything down.
3. Give fills/adjustments some time - it takes a while for adjustments to take shape and every day and every hour in a day may be different than the last. I do want to be able to get food down into my body and have it stay to nourish my body and brain.
4. Fluids after a fill for at least 24 hours - I'll probably go 48-72 from now on. What happened to me is the Water at the doctor's office went down fine - tighter yes but it went all they way thru. But I ate (albeit less than 1/4 cup) chicken and salad that night and then 3 small regular meals the next day which much have caused swelling which then closed up my entire band area and then my esophagus started to spasm - even when I tried to swallow my own seliva - dreadful! Give fills time to chill out because food can irritate the opening causing swelling causing no where for the food/drink to go but come back up. If this happens go to the doc immediately to get an unfill.
5. No amount of lost pounds is worth destroying the healthy body God gave me - be smarter and relinquish that it's going to take time - give it the rightful time otherwise I may compromise much more than myself. My poor family having to witness the week of torture was unfair to them - I'm very sorry.

Good news is I'm feeling better and all the wiser - I pray someone sees this and this doesn't happen to anyone else - I was stupid and selfish and definitely ignorant. I'm course corrected, going to the gym, eating small (Yes JC meals) meals 3x a day and staying focused. I go back April 29th for my next fill with hopes of getting closer to the green zone.

[parisshel 1,892]

@ccjll: First of all, I'm so happy you were seen quickly and before damage had been done. And I'm thrilled to learn action was taken immediately to get you out of pain and back to normal.

Your post is important and I agree should be read by all. I'm not sure what forum this is under but you might be doing everybody a favor by reposting it in Fills and Adjustments? Just a thought...

I totally agree that fast weight drop is too high a price to pay for those who love to keep their bands tight. I just shake my head at the lapband blogs I read when the blogger describes loving being too tight to do anything but Protein shakes, or PBing with each meal but "hey, that's ok", or the daily vomiting. This all leads to (at the least) band failure/revision surgery or worse, damage to one's body.

Glad you are babying your band and out of pain. What a relief, right?

[Lady VS 1,147]

Sounds good. Glad you're feeling better. Continued success

[Ms.Vickie 68]

Oh wow, I didn't know you were going through all of that. Glad you are feeling better.