Lapband removal on NHS?

[strawberryparty 0]

Hi everyone,

I was banded in 2009 by The Hospital Group at the Birmingham clinic.

A bit of background: I have been living with the band empty (all saline fill removed) for about the last 3 years after I found I plateaued with my weight loss. I opted to get a total un-fill and stay that way because past a point, my weight was staying the same and the band's restriction was only causing pain and costing me a lot of money to keep having to go in for fills/unfills to try and find the elusive "sweet spot" (the band never seemed to work for me and I came to regret getting it done as the years went on).

So after getting a total un-fill of the band some time in 2013, I subsequently lost more weight on my own up until now without any fills in the band / any restriction, though I have plateaued again and been at the same weight for a couple of years now (still about 1.5 stone off my ideal goal weight, but I had a low BMI for the surgery to start with and the weight was always slow to go except for immediately after the surgery).

My problem is - the last 2 years, I have started experiencing pretty bad acid reflux in the night and it is disrupting my sleep badly, it has been getting worse. Even after the total un-fill in 2013, I still had to take care with the band even with it being empty, as first thing in the morning I'd need to drink something hot like tea, then move onto Water, then move onto something somewhat soft, then be able to eat pretty normally though always having to chew thoroughly. This is even with the band totally empty.

Recently (this last year) it has been getting worse in the morning, with the acid reflux, I get stuck on Water if I try to drink it at night, I get stuck on my own spit at night, combined with the acid reflux, it seems to clog up the top of the stomach where the band is and make it that water and spit cannot go down, so I have to go down in the middle of the night and make a cup of tea, then I can get water down, and that sometimes helps with the acid reflux. The whole thing is becoming hard to bear as like I said, it is making sleeping through the night impossible, and I often wake again at 4am with it. It's really not fun. I'm in my late 20s, I have heard that having reflux like this for a long time can give you cancer. I have tried not eating hours before going to bed, I've taken fatty stuff out of my diet, etc. - i never had acid reflux before the band and I'm certain it is the band causing it rather than what I am eating.

My band is the smaller version of the 2 that were available because of my low BMI for the surgery, so I guess it is still restricting me even while it is empty. To be clear - i do not think it is slipped or there is an erosion problem, as like I say, when I start in a sequence of eating, i can build up to being able to eat normally with no discomfort so long as I chew well. It's just this reflux that is really getting to me.

I have no money to get the band removed with the Hospital Group, so I was wondering if anyone here had had their band removed on the NHS, not under emergency conditions, but going through their GP? Could anyone tell me what happened, what you said to you GP, how long you were on a waiting list for? I haven't minded having the band so long as it wasn't bothering me (basically I was able put up with it because I've had no money to get it removed privately), but now it is taking my sleep and making life quite miserable.

Edited January 18, 2017 by strawberryparty

[BayougirlMrsS 3,935]

I would suggest not eating after say.... 7pm and avoid high acid foods like tomatoes and sauce.

Sounds like you have a pretty good grip on it except for this one thing.

Let us know how it goes.

[savyourdvine1 110]

Yes "gerd" is dangerours! I had the sleeve done to stop it! It was a success. No more liquid zantac for me. I was on it for about a year. It did control my acid reflux which was out of control.

Sent from my SM-J700P using the BariatricPal App

[Adelenik 0]

I'm at wits end , band done 2012 done really well until 2016 , horrendous pain down port side going into pelvis, after NHS diagnosis tube disconnection and embedded between pelvis and uterus , hospital group wanted more cash and then advised a new band operation , I didn' have enuf money , doc offered full removal but I was scared , weight gain was rapid , 2017 saw surgeon at Nuffield who offered repair costing 3000 but it hasn't worked , constant pain feel tummy is full of hernias I need this out of me and I'm looking for advice , wish I'd had sleeve done now

[mimi0725 12]

I'm at wits end , band done 2012 done really well until 2016 , horrendous pain down port side going into pelvis, after NHS diagnosis tube disconnection and embedded between pelvis and uterus , hospital group wanted more cash and then advised a new band operation , I didn' have enuf money , doc offered full removal but I was scared , weight gain was rapid , 2017 saw surgeon at Nuffield who offered repair costing 3000 but it hasn't worked , constant pain feel tummy is full of hernias I need this out of me and I'm looking for advice , wish I'd had sleeve done now

Will your insurance pay for the reversal to sleeve, due to all the complications you have had I would think they would. I had many issues with my band slippages which ended up with quite a few hospital stays, had to go thru hell to get them to approve it but they finally did, may be something to think about.

[1Corinthians6:19 53]

I had my band removed yesterday and it was covered by my insurance because I was having esophagus and stomach spasms and difficulty swallowing due too much acid.