Getting tighter, gurgling, reflux and regurgitation at night. HELP!

[Apryl Showers 0]

Hi, it's been a loooong time since I have been on here. Here is a brief synopsis of my band history. Hope someone can give some advice or relate.

Banded Aug 2005. Lost over 100 pounds by June 2006 (less than a year). Get pregnant and unfilled June 2006. Gain 85 pounds by April 2007 delivery. Refilled June 2007 (2 months post-partum). Have one or two more fills by December 2007. Lose no weight until end of December/ beginning of January 2008. I am now down over 60 pounds in less than 6 months. I am losing slowly and frequently hit plateaus.

Here is my problem. I never had any issues with my band before getting pregnant. No PB, no reflux, nothing. My last fill in December has gotten progressivley tighter each week. At first I would PB a few times a week. Then that stopped and about a month ago I went for two weeks barely able to drink Water without it coming back up and i wasn't able to eat any solids until late evening. Then two weeks ago I was able to eat easily thru out the day (even in the am), but had problems in the evening. For the last week I have been getting terrible reflux at night while I sleep. I have woken up many times with actual vomit in my throat. I also make very loud gurgling noises if I lay down. I have stopped eating past 6, and I am not sure if that even helps. The past two nights my reflux has started before I even go to bed.

Tonight i am going to try OTC Zantac to see if that helps.

I rarely, if at all, feel hunger pains, and 99% of the time, when I do eat, I am able to eat only a few bites (maybe a half cup worth). Drinking liquids is a chore too. Each sip rises up and then slowly drains down. I have been getting very light headed recently, my hair is starting to fall out, and I have developed very deep, dark, black circles under my eyes. I also bruise very easily and severely.

What makes it even more frustrationg is that my weight loss has slowed down again.

Has anyone out there experienced anytything like this? Any advice?

Common sense tells me to get a partial unfill, but why is my band getting tighter if I have lost weight since getting filled?

I do not think I am slipped or eroded but I am still confused and a little depressed by the whole thing. Not to mention frustrated.

Any help would be appreciated!

Apryl

[Iluvharleys 15]

I have had my band tighten up lots of time after a long period of time. You really do need to contact your doctor because with all that is going on you could get yourself in big trouble.

One more thought, do you go on liquids after you pb? Do you give yourself time to heal up before going on to solids?

I would suggest a call to your doctor and explain everything that is going on. The reflux at night is not a good thing at all.

Good Luck and let us know how you do.

[4RE4ME 1]

I have had the same issues for the last week. I have not had a fill in over 6 months so not sure why I tightened up but I am looking forward to any good advice and/or explanation.

I am trying to figure out what changed all of a sudden.

[delo 1]

I have the exact same issues. I have not had a fill for about 3 months. Last appointment the dr took out 1cc and noticed that there was a lot of pressure, the fill just shot out into the syringe. I still feel tight and still have reflux. it tastes awful. I go again to the dr. on Wednesday and will have more taken out. I don't understand how the band can tighten up, even after losing more weight. I sure hate this reflux cause it can do damage. I know I'm too tight because I can feel the fullness in my chest after eating just a little.

[juliegeraci 7]

Apry, girlfriend, you are too tight! I can bet my life on it. I would get a slight unfill of .3 or something along those lines.

[allib 0]

I would make an appointment with your doc. and get some of the Fluid taken out. That was happening to me- I ended up going to a gastroentronogist to see what was going on with me. I had all of my fill taken out - I ended up stretching out my pouch and needed to be unfilled for a few months to help it settle down to normal.

Please call your doc.

Alli

[gerio 37]

If I eat anything after 6:00 at night I get reflux and it is not a good feeling to wake up in the middle of the night with that in your throat. I also have to watch closely what I eat at night and once in awhile I have to go on a liquid diet to settle things down. I could probably use an unfill but want to reach my goal.

I agree with everyone that you need to go see your doctor.

Good luck,

[jillagin2000 1]

I don't want to be an alarmist but it sounds like a slip to me (from my own experience with the same symptoms). Get thee to a Dr my dear!!! Especially with the hair falling out, bruising, and severe reflux at night. Those are not something you want to fool around with and could signal all sorts of problems!!!

[kaohinani 0]

OK, now you guys got me worried, I have been banded since 8/29/07 and my last fill before the one last week was in Oct. When I got the fill last week, it was too tight and I had to go back and he took out .25 cc, from the .5 cc he put in, but now I have acid reflux at night, I have never had reflux before this. I am taking Nexium as prescribed, but last night it didn't work. I don't want to have to go back to take out anymore, cause I like the restriction I have now. Any advice?

[delo 1]

I had the same problem and the doctor took some Fluid out and now I don't have reflux at all. I would suggest talking to your doctor cause what happened to me is from being so tight, I have enlarged my pouch and now I have to be on liquids then mushies for a week to shrink it back to normal. the restriction was good but it caused problems. hope this helps. it is soooo nice not to have the reflux anymore. delo

[kjojojr 0]

I had my last fill at the end of jan 08. Everything was fine until end of march into april. Then I started getting such bad problems at night. Choking on thick saliva and coughing all hours of the night. But it was weird it didn't happen all the time. I went to the doc and had a barium swallow. Nothing was getting through the band. So my esophagus is swelled above the band. He took all the Fluid out of the band to let my insides calm down. It's been over a month without the band. I go back june 4 to get a fill. Hopefully all will be well. I'm praying I didn't screw up my band.

Just know that coughing up all the time and spitting up food all the time can screw up your insides and possibly mess up the band. Good luck and please get checked if you have bad reflux. Kelley:thumbup:

Just

[kaohinani 0]

Mahalo everyone. Well I did call my doc (well his nurse) and she said that even if I was fine during the day, only problem was that I was so restricted that I was having trouble with my minimum Water intake. Anyway, she said that I was too tight and would need to get some Fluid taken out. Even if I was only having trouble at night, It might get worse, so off I go to see my surgeon on Tuesday for some removal. I only hope Iget to keep some restriction. And I guess that I just have to sleep sitting up for the next few days. Thanks for the encouragement to call my doc.

[kaohinani 0]

OK, so I saw my surgeon and he took out some more Fluid. He initially put in .5cc, then took out .25, then this time he took out about.1 -.15 so now I guess I only had .1 cc added to my band so a total of 1.6 cc in a 3cc band. But the good news is I still have really good restriction (the best I have ever had since getting banded) and NO acid reflux, YIPEE. I am still having head hunger, and wanting to eat, but my band just will not allow me to do it. I guess thats why I got the band in the first place. Take Care everyone

[Gildy 0]

Hi - I was banded in Feb of 2005. had a similar experience after getting pregnant about a year after having the band. I had had some reflux symptoms before getting pregnant, but had a partial unfill during the pregnancy and that, combined w/ no eating at night and sleeping w/ my upper body somewhat elevated, helped control the fluids that had been coming up at night.

As soon as I had my baby, I'm talking I was still in the hospital, I got the symptoms incredibly intensely. It was awful. Can you imagine giving birth, all you want to do is recover and every time you close your eyes you're wakened w/ bile in your mouth and coughing? I took the baby w/ me when she was just a week old for an emergency unfill. I had an esophagram that showed nothing, but an endoscopy showed a hiatal hernia.

I left it for a while. I tried dieting. I really wanted to avoid the risk of another surgery now that I have 2 kids. Dieting of course didn't work. If it had worked in the first place, I would never have had the band! Now my surgeon wants to repair the hernia and reposition the band higher up. She said the repositioning will lessen the chances of the reflux symptom.

I have to say, in a way it is good to know I am not the only one who had complications w/ the band that intensified after pregnancy. I am sorry you are going through this though. I hope you get it resolved. If I had it to do again, I would push for corrective surgery sooner. Though I have not had it yet. It seems like the best solution.

Best of luck to you!

Sneeka D.

[abby824 0]

Go get checked out... the signs of not losing weight along with reflux that you are not used to are signs that your body is saying something is wrong. I have slipped and never knew it and I ignored the reflux all those other signs you just listed off.... now it might be too late for me!